"I—I feel like I have no place here." Deon began to pour out his grievances to his mother. Both of them sat on the spectators seats. He hesitated at first, but Viktoria's gentle gaze urged him to continue. "I feel like everyone hates me. Father made that clear, Viera avoids me, and most of the elders look at me like I'm a waste of time."
Deon paused for a moment, as if searching for the right words. His expression was sad, but he did his best to appear strong. "The Second Elder has been approaching me more in the past few weeks. He said that my behavior is what puts me in an unfavorable position. That someone of my status and name shouldn't act the way I do. That's why the elders prefer the other young's over me and Viera."
He fell silent again, watching his mother's gentle expression. He expected her to scold him at this point, but she didn't. She simply nodded, signaling him to continue. "So, the Second Elder, Decius, offered to teach me—the right way. I had nothing else to do but accept. Training with the other young's was unproductive for me. No one wanted to pair up with me."
"I'm not stupid enough to take all his words as truth. He has his own secret agenda, just like all other elders. But it was an opportunity—something I could do instead of doing nothing." Those were Deon's final words. He didn't look at his mother's face; he simply lowered his head in shame.
Viktoria observed his defeated expression and remained silent for a while. She didn't know what to say, but she had to say something. As a mother, she had to help her children.
"There is no right way, D," Viktoria said, placing a hand on his silky black hair. "Your place will be wherever you decide it to be. You don't need the elders approval or anyone else's to be free. Your name is not a duty you have to fulfill. It is simply what I chose for you because I am your mother. Whether you accept its meaning or not, that is up to you. But I want you to be free."
Deon lifted his head, his eyes filled with newfound hope. Viktoria took the chance to point toward the pile of rubble where Decius was buried. Yulna was there, scanning the area as if she might find him, but it was useless—he was buried deep, though barely alive. "Look there! What happened to that snake—that's all you need. With enough power, you can free yourself from the world's shackles. Of course, a person shouldn't isolate themselves. There are beautiful things to appreciate—like you, my dear D—but having enough power gives you a choice. And choice is freedom."
Deon tilted his head in confusion. "I haven't even awakened yet. And how would I rid myself of my shackles if I have to receive the dead mana of a family member? Isn't that just another shackle?"
Viktoria also tilted her head, but her gaze wasn't confused—it was knowing. "So what? You're simply receiving the mana of someone who has died and is no longer here. Is he going to scold you for using what no longer belongs to him? Besides, dead mana doesn't give you talent. It only enhances the precision of your bloodline—that's something you already possess. If you have talent, and of course you will because I'm your mother, then you don't need to worry too much about these so-called shackles. You already have what you need."
Deon remained silent for a few seconds, processing her words. After a moment, his eyes lit up with curiosity, and he smiled. "Thanks, Mom. But I still have a question I want you to answer."
"Of course, I'll answer my baby's curiosity. What is it? Go ahead," Viktoria responded with a wide smile.
"You said, 'whether I accept the meaning of my name'—what does my name even mean?" Deon asked, his face showing pure curiosity.
Viktoria hesitated for a moment, unsure if she should tell him the truth or not. In the end, she chose honesty. He wouldn't remember this conversation anytime soon, anyway. "Your name means 'debt'..."
Deon tilted his head, and at first, he seemed not to understand. But then dissatisfaction flickered in his eyes. Viktoria noticed and continued, "I had another name in mind before Deon. You could say Deon was just the price for that name."
That caught Deon's attention and curiosity. "What was it? Tell me."
Viktoria smiled at his curiosity and answered dramatically, "I was going to name you Walid. The name Walid means 'to be born.' But I chose Deon instead."
Deon stared at Viktoria blankly. Only after a long pause did he speak. "Walid is a more unusual name than Deon, but I like its meaning—'to be born.' At least it's better than 'debt.' But why didn't you go with Walid?" His tone carried slight dissatisfaction.
Viktoria closed her eyes for a moment, thinking about how to answer. She had thought long and hard about his name back then. She didn't choose Walid because Deon held a deeper meaning for her. When she opened her eyes again, her son was waiting for an answer.
"If I had named you Walid, it would have been too much of a coincidence. But the main reason is that Deon held a deeper meaning for me. To me, your name represented the debt I paid for you to be born."
Deon's confused expression indicated that he didn't understand. Viktoria hadn't expected him to, either. It wasn't the right time yet. But when he remembered this conversation—when he recalled it again—she hoped he wouldn't feel disappointed.
"So... my name is also Walid. That's—I don't know?" Deon still looked confused, and he had every right to be. But his mother's gaze made him back down. "But since you like it, I'm fine with it."
Viktoria smiled happily. She stood up from her seat and spread her arms wide. "Don't think too much about it. You'll come to love your name—I'm sure of it. Now, give Mommy another hug."
Deon agreed without resistance, hugging his mother without much thought. Unlike Vierenna, he had become conditioned to do whatever she said, and he didn't even notice it.
Viktoria wrapped her arms around her baby boy, ready to bite his soft cheek. Though they weren't as smooth as baby Deon's anymore, they were still delicious—at least to her taste. But with absolute restraint, she stopped herself. The memory of her teeth sinking in held her back. So instead, she settled for pressing her nose against the top of his head, inhaling his scent with joy and delight.
"You do know I was just training, right?" Deon asked from within her embrace, as if stating the obvious. He had grown used to his mother's behavior, seeing it as routine. Though she was strict, her strictness felt justified. At the very least, she was immeasurably better than the mothers of the other young's. He recognized how different she was—and he loved her for it.
"My baby is delicious," she said, her mouth audibly chewing on his hair.
Deon simply sighed and let her be. Soon, something would happen, and she'd leave him alone. He could already see her personal maid approaching, struggling to climb the stairs. She looked like she hated her life with every step she took.
The moment she reached the entrance of the arena stands, she opened her mouth to speak—but no words came out, only exhausted gasps. Yulna leaned on the platform railing beside the stairs, trying to catch her breath. She signaled to Viktoria that she'd be there soon, but Viktoria was too busy holding Deon in her arms to notice.
"My lady… we should ease up on the Second Elder!" Yulna finally managed to complain once she regained her voice. Her distressed face showed deep fear and concern as she added, "The noise was too loud…"
"WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?!!!"
A deep voice roared, shaking the entire arena. The sheer fury in it was reflected in the face of the man who stepped through the gate. The gate itself failed to withstand his rage—it was flung aside, crashing into the far end of the hall.
Behind him, more people entered, scanning every corner of the arena. Their overwhelming presence suffocated the surroundings, but none of them dared to focus their aura on Viktoria or Deon—not even Yulna—once they noticed them.
Viktoria continued to hug Deon, though she knew she had to stop. Even her ugly maid was desperately tugging at her clothes, gripped by uncontrollable panic and anxiety.
With a sorrowful expression, Viktoria finally let go of Deon and turned her gaze to the five elders descending the stairs toward her. She pulled out a piece of paper containing eight names and glanced between it and the approaching elders.
"Three came on their own. Lucky me!"
Yulna seemed to know exactly what would happen next. For a brief moment, she considered trying to stop her mistress—but what were the chances? She was only a source of worry! So, instead, Yulna grabbed Deon's hand, who was staring at the paper with a dumb expression, trying to read its contents, and dragged him away—far from his crazy mother.
Viktoria shot her maid an amused look. "Even though you're ugly, you can be smart sometimes. I'm impressed!"
Then, she turned her attention back to the five elders. She didn't bother looking at their faces or even recognizing who they were. They were just victims—or soon would be. It didn't matter. It was only a matter of time.
But what did matter was…
Viktoria was going to enjoy this—immensely.