Zylar's black threads enveloped him almost like a hood, leaving only his head uncovered.
Even Kael could detect a repulsive scent, the unmistakable odor of death.
"It's as if he's been sentenced to death," he thought.
Still, he gradually regained his composure. "Okay, I understand. When are you going north?" he asked directly.
Zylar pinched his forehead, thinking. "I've been hesitating about that, but it will probably be two or three months at the earliest and six months at the latest."
He continued. "After all, you have to go to the academy, and the fighting in the North is still in its early stages, so there aren't many casualties. But when they get closer to the S-rank beast, that will be a problem."
Zylar told Kael everything, hiding nothing.
Kael nodded, understanding the situation. "As I recall, that S-rank beast is defeated without my father having to go in the original plot, but…"
Looking at the threads that wrapped around Zylar, it seemed that every time he mentioned the S-rank beast, the threads wrapped around him tighter.
This made Kael despair. "Could that beast kill my father? Impossible. He is at Master Perfection, one step away from being Royal rank, one of the most powerful in the entire kingdom. It's impossible for him to die against that S-rank beast."
Thinking about all this, Kael's eyes flashed with understanding. "At least... they betray him."
All the pieces began to fall into place in Kael's mind. After all, according to the plot, the Tayron family would be there.
Kael's eyes turned cold and serious.
"Son, what's wrong?" Zylar asked, noticing the change in Kael.
"Father, I'll be frank with you," Kael took a breath, wanting to reveal everything to his father. "A few days ago, I realized they were poisoning me."
Such a bombshell caused Zylar's pupils to dilate. "What did you say?!" he shouted, almost releasing his murderous aura.
Kael's expression remained serious. "Calm down," he said, looking at his father, his heaving chest slowly calming down.
After confirming that his father had calmed down a bit, he continued. "Raquel informed me that for several years now, the Tayron family has been poisoning me, with the maids as their accomplices. That is why I haven't advanced in my level of power for years. And I discovered that a few days ago, the Tayron family decided to poison me to end my life, but fortunately, I realized it."
After a pause, he continued. "That is why I ask you to be careful in the North. Since they were unable to kill me, they will likely try to kill you on the battlefield, covering it up as an accident."
Zylar listened intently, his expression changing with every word Kael spoke.
In the end, Zylar could only clench his fists, trying to suppress his murderous intent.
His eyes turned cold. "Thank you for telling me this, son," he said, his voice hoarse and cold.
Kael raised an eyebrow. "Do you think I'm that gullible?"
"Of course. You're my son. If I don't believe you, who else am I going to believe? Although I don't know how you discovered the poison, and I know you're hiding certain things from me, like that woman who hides in your shadow or your sudden change in attitude, I know very well that you want what's best for me and for this family."
With a smile, Zylar patted Kael on the shoulder again. "Don't worry, this old man won't go down so easily, and I know you're tougher than I am."
Kael's expression softened when he saw his father's attitude and how several black threads that had been enveloping him were now disappearing.
"There are still many, but at least it's less than before," he thought as he looked at his father again. He knew that now, at least, there was less chance of Zylar dying.
What if Zylar discovered Eleanor's presence? This was to be expected of him. If Zylar did not notice her presence, he would have questioned his father's strength.
"After all, he's one step away from the Royal rank," he thought.
"Father, I will win the duel. Anyone who is conspiring against us is destined to die," Kael said firmly, surprising even Zylar, who then gave him a radiant smile.
"That's the spirit," he laughed.
The two then chatted happily for a while. After a moment of tension, the atmosphere became warm and cheerful.
Almost an hour passed before Kael finally said goodbye and left the room.
Zylar's smile, which had remained on his face almost the entire time he had been talking to his son, slowly faded.
He turned around, looking at the vast landscape. Almost the entire kingdom of Vaylon could be seen from here, a beautiful and warm view with the sun at its highest point.
But in Zylar's eyes, it was all black and white. The image that everyone else would describe as full of life was just gray to him.
"I wonder what you would say to me now if you were alive," he murmured, without taking his eyes off the landscape.
Without realizing it, his expression became melancholic.
Looking at the blue sky, he remembered a face that haunted him in his dreams, both in his happiest dreams and in his most terrifying nightmares.
Finally, he turned around, walked over to his desk, and picked up a photo frame showing a family of three.
A young man of about twenty-five, with green eyes and long golden hair, a happy smile lighting up his face.
Beside him, an incredibly beautiful woman with black hair that fell in waves to her waist, her gray eyes looking at the camera with a smile, showing her cute dimples.
And in their embrace was a baby wrapped in a blanket.
"I failed you, but I won't fail my child," Zylar muttered, clenching his hand into a fist as he looked out the window at the landscape.
But now, he saw only one thing. It wasn't gray, it wasn't an image full of life.
What he saw was his worst enemy, the world that took away the person he loved most.