Chapter 156: I Got Him
"Are you really going on this mission?" Little Lola asked, her voice laced with worry as she looked up at her mother.
"Yes, baby girl... This is a crucial operation. Your dad needs my assistance." A woman with flowing blue hair said with a warm smile. She knelt down to meet her daughter’s gaze.
"You are fifteen now, Lola... You should stay home and take care of your baby brother... We’ll be back before you know it." She shifted her gaze to her young son.
"Be a good boy, Nioh... Don’t give your sister a hard time." She walked over to him, got to her knees, kissed his hair, and hugged him tightly:
"We’ll be back."
Nioh and Lola stood at the grand gate of their mansion, their eyes fixed on the line of military cars as they drove down the street and out of sight.
"Come on, brother... Let’s go inside." Lola took Nioh’s hand and led him back into the house. Nioh’s eyes remained glued to the gate, a sense of unease settling in his heart as Lola pulled him away.
___
[Same Day - Nighttime.]
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!!
"Lola!!"
Lola opened the door, a puzzled expression on her face as she looked at the boy standing before her.
"Prince Frederick?" she asked, confused.
"Come on! I heard there’s a new cake at the marketplace. Let’s go get some!" Frederick said with a grin, holding up a handful of glittering galaxy crystals.
Lola stared at the money, then hesitantly shook her head. "No... I can’t leave my brother alone in the house."
"Come on, Lola... There are maids and guards here. And besides, you can get him a cake too... I’ll pay!" He puffed out his chest confidently.
"Promise!" he added, crossing his heart.
Lola thought for a moment. Her mother had told her to stay home and watch her brother, but the thought of that new cake... She’d wanted to try a new flavor for so long.
"Fine... I’ll get a cake for my brother too... But we aren’t staying long!" she said seriously.
Frederick pouted. "You know you’re only six years older than me, right?"
Lola gave her cousin a small, playful knock on his head. "That still makes me your elder. Now come on, let’s go."
She walked past him, and Frederick quickly followed, leaving the estate behind.
___
[Five Minutes After Their Departure.]
An old man rushed into the estate, pushing past the two guards at the gate.
"Where are those two kids?!" He stopped abruptly, turning to look at the stunned guards over his shoulder.
"The young miss is out with the Prince. The Prince said his guard are with him, so we weren’t needed," the guard on the right answered.
The old man’s face went pale:
"This?!" he muttered to himself.
"Is something wrong, Lord?" the second guard asked, noticing his sudden change in expression.
The Lord gritted his teeth, his jaw tight. "I am here to take over the mansion! I have received news that the head of the house and his wife are traitors! Their properties now belong to me! My first order as the new head is..." He stared hard at the two guards.
"Both of you and every worker in this estate are fired! I will send your payment to you... and you are to spare this order to anyone!" he yelled.
".....?!"
The two guards were stunned into silence.
"The master and madam are traitors?!" one of them muttered in shock.
"Impossible! The madam is the crown princess of this nation! How can she be a traitor?!" the second guard yelled, his face red with indignation.
"You’re right! She loves the people, and the people love her! I won’t believe it!"
"Silence, both of you!" The old man clenched his fists.
"You two need to get out of here now! Jolie is heading this way! The council has decided to execute all members of the Hewson family! I am not here to take over but to save the kids! You must go now!" he said, turning and walking towards the mansion, leaving the two guards frozen in shock.
BAM!!
He kicked the front door open, the loud noise jolting Nioh, who was sitting on the couch, awake.
"Where is your sister?!" he yelled, his voice echoing through the house, drawing all the household staff into the room.
"Sister... I don’t know," Nioh stammered, his face already pale with fear. Being yelled at so suddenly was too much for a seven-year-old.
"Lord, please calm down–" a maid began.
"Shut up!" The Lord pulled a gun from his spatial storage and pointed it at the workers, who instantly went pale.
"All of you get out! I am taking over the Hewson’s mansion! And all of you are fired!" he stated firmly. "Get lost!"
"....??!"
Everyone scrambled for the door, all but one old woman who remained behind.
"Why are you still standing there?!" he roared at her.
"My Lord, you are the head’s brother... Why have you betrayed him?" she asked, staring at him with a look of deep sorrow.
"Your Lord is dead! He and his wife died on the mission!" he hissed, his face contorted in pain.
"No... That can’t be." The woman staggered backward in shock, her gaze falling on Nioh, who was staring at them in utter confusion.
"The boy... please," she pleaded.
"Do you think I would harm my own nephew?! Get out, or I will do something I’ll regret later!" he snapped, his voice trembling.
The woman swallowed hard. "Please, don’t hurt him," she added, her voice a whisper.
"You!!"
BAM!!
The Lord fired a shot at the ceiling, the deafening sound terrifying both Nioh and the woman.
"Get out!"
She nodded shakily and rushed out of the mansion.
"Uncle Lincoln, what’s happening?" Nioh asked, his body trembling with fear.
"Come with me," Lincoln said, grabbing Nioh’s wrist and pulling him towards the back exit. He threw him to the ground, his voice cracking with emotion.
"Get lost! I don’t want to see you here!" he yelled, and closed the gate shut.
Nioh stared at Lincoln, who wiped a tear from his eye, turned, and walked back into the mansion. Slowly, Nioh stood up from the ground and looked around at the dark, empty street.
"Kid? Are you lost?"
Nioh turned around, seeing a huge, muscular man standing before him.
"Who are—"
Before he could finish his question, the man blew an unknown substance at him, and Nioh collapsed onto the ground, falling into a deep sleep.
"I got him. Don’t worry, he won’t remember a thing..." The man picked Nioh up, his other hand on his ear as if speaking to someone on the phone.
"Yes, I understand, I’ll tell him what you said... OK. I will... I will make sure he has all the training he needs, both in combat and every other skill there is to teach... I will turn him into a weapon; he will be the one to avenge his family." The man said as his figure disappeared into the night.
____
[Back In the Mansion.]
Lincoln sat on the couch, the gun still in his hand, his gaze fixed on the front door.
"Hewson... I paid back my debt to you," he whispered, a single tear rolling down his cheek.