The Evil Emperor's Fragile Heart

"He's my son," Head Sage Yue said finally, curling up his lips in a sneer, and looking up haughtily at General Aquila.

Both men were tall, but General Aquila was taller.

General Aquila shrugged nonchalantly. "He may have your blood and he is kind enough to let you associate with him – but even you should have enough sense to acknowledge that you have absolutely no claim on Raven at all. You gave up that right on that day twelve years ago when he was born and you tried to kill him," he said coldly.

Raven, who had been chatting with some dignitaries introduced to him by King Jaren, happened to glance in the direction where two of his fathers stood, and saw the dark expression on General Aquila's face.

General Aquila was a cheerful person by nature, and whatever memory Raven had of him, and what he'd seen recently since they'd found him, had reaffirmed this. And now, to see General Aquila looking cold and angry – Raven was stunned. Logically, of course, he'd known that his Father Aqi was a very powerful General who had never lost a battle – even the final fight with pirates where he had been lost at sea – the battle was won by the Obsidian Kingdom, and that was all thanks to General Aquila – and that as such an undefeated General, the man must have a ferocious side which he never displayed to his children. However, the battle-seasoned power of General Aquila, even if kept dormant for ten years, was in full bloom now, and Raven could feel it acutely – perhaps even more so, because of the fealty bond between them.

Seeing Raven stiffen uncomfortably, Mana followed his gaze and found Head Sage Yue and General Aquila standing face to face in a confrontational manner. Mana, too, was taken aback at this fierce face of General Aquila – such a contrast to his usual kind and gentle face.

King Jaren saw that the two children were distracted, and with a glance at the general direction their attention had been drawn to, he immediately understood the situation. Quickly, he wrapped up the conversation with the dignitaries and sent them off, and then led the two children (and one little dragon, that was currently snoozing on his shoulder – it was well past Azar's bedtime) to Head Sage Yue and General Aquila.

Mana smiled wryly. It looked like the three fathers competition she had been worrying about was going to begin now.

Seeing General Aquila and Head Sage Yue both enveloped in a cold aura, and King Jaren striding towards them, Raven's heart lurched. He was tired of conflicts and unpleasant conversations with the same repeated themes. A grey mist began to swirl in his peripheral vision.

Raven swayed for a moment, unsteady on his feet, and stopped walking abruptly

Right by his side, Mana stopped walking, too and grabbed Raven's arm, alarmed, and lending her support to him to keep him steady. Somehow, she was able to perceive even the slightest change in Raven these days – and currently, it seemed to her that Raven was being dragged into cloudy, hazy darkness.

His eyes were also turning darker.

Mana quickly sent in a strand of her own magic into the boy, and slipped her hand into his, noticing that his hand was already turning cold and clammy.

"Raven? Are you all right?" Mana's soft, worried voice cut through the haze approaching Raven.

And then, the grey mist in Raven's mind suddenly dissipated completely, leaving only warm sunshine. The unsteadiness disappeared, and his hands turned warm again, and his rainbow eyes returned to their usual soft, pearlescent glow.

"I am now," Raven replied softly, squeezing Mana's hand. "Thank you, Mana."

Bright emerald eyes filled with concern raked over him from head to toe. "Are you sure? Most people have left by now, we can just tell Papa and leave for the night," she murmured quietly. "The banquets have just begun, and we'll have many more of these. I don't want you to tire yourself out too much…"

Raven smiled slightly. "I'm all right," he said. "Not tired at all."

Mana's expression cleared a little, but she didn't let go of his hand. Raven didn't mind, of course. Together, the two children made their way to the spot where General Aquila and Head Sage Yue's two way paternal confrontation had become a three way paternal competition instead.

Instead of mediating between Head Sage Yue and General Aquila, King Jaren simply pitched in by praising Raven to high heavens.

And these were what Mana and Raven heard when they reached the three men.

"Raven is such an amazing child – you won't believe how quickly he picked up swordsmanship! His intellect was always famous, so we weren't all that surprised when he learnt everything in the advanced lessons of the imperial tutors so quickly and even scored so well at IMARI – but swordsmanship – that was amazing! It's such a pleasure to teach this child! You really can't ask for a better son! And you should see the amazing ideas he keeps coming up with…" King Jaren was boasting.

A faint blush crept up Raven's fair cheeks, making Mana giggle.

"I wish I'd been there to see Raven grow up…I'd have loved to teach him battle techniques…" General Aquila said wistfully.

"You can start teaching him now," King Jaren said magnanimously. "He's only twelve, after all, a good age for learning – and I can tell you upfront from my personal experience – you'll never find a pupil as talented and as dedicated as Raven! You know, the other day, I showed Jules and Raven one of the secret sword moves of the royal family of the Emerald Kingdom, and both of them picked it up in one attempt! Now, Jules has been learning swordsmanship since he was very young, under direct tutelage of my father in law, who's the best swordsman the Amber Kingdom ever had – but Raven, who hadn't even touched a sword in his life until a few months ago – he can now keep up and match Jules at par! And let me tell you, this move I taught them, it's very, very extremely complicated – and when I was young, it took me a whole week to learn what these two children learnt in an hour! Truly, it is exactly as they say – the sons surpass the fathers!" King Jaren continued to boast, completely unabashed.

Head Sage Yue frowned. "You've taught him the sword style of the royal family of the Emerald Kingdom?" he asked. "Why would you do that?"

King Jaren shot him a deprecating look. "Haven't I said that Raven is my son, too and that he became one of my children from the moment he and Mana got together – actually, it was even before that. Why wouldn't I teach my child my family's techniques? Besides, that's not the only thing he's learnt – my father in law has also taught him the sword style of the Amber Kingdom – and Raven's gotten as good as Jules and my father in law in that sword style as well! Amazing, isn't it? I have no doubt that when General Aquila teaches him the sword style of the Obsidian Kingdom, Raven will pick up on that really quickly, too! I'm telling you, it's such a pleasure to have a child like this – I'm proud of all my children, of course, and all of them are brilliant and wonderful in their own way – but Raven really is the most talented of the lot!"

Mana nearly face palmed. She really did adore her Papa, but his bragging was getting a little out of hand. Not that he was exaggerating or anything – Raven was an honest and true heaven defying talent – and all of them: Jules, Bella, Mana – freely and happily acknowledged it. And all of them were immensely proud of Raven, too!

Head Sage Yue's frown deepened. "Are you certain your own children won't mind that you're so appreciative of my son, King Jaren?" he pointed out, envy seeping into his voice.

King Jaren scoffed openly. "De facto, I think Raven is more my son than yours, Head Sage Yue. No offence meant. And you don't have to worry about my children being jealous of each other – none of them are so petty, and we all are fully in sync and completely agree on the fact that Raven is the most talented person in our entire family. Why would we mind? We're extremely proud of our little boy!"

"Of course," Mana piped up. "Raven is a once in a millennium talent – so, naturally, we're very proud of him. It's a good thing, and he's with us, so we're on the winning side – what's there to mind here, Papa? Isn't it a good thing?" She made big, innocent eyes and looked up at King Jaren.

King Jaren could clearly see the mischief in his daughter's sparkling eyes.

"Of course, little Mana, it's a very good thing, and that's why we're all so proud of our boy Raven," he boomed happily.

Raven's blushed again.

Head Sage Yue had a complicated expression on his face – a mix od regret, pride and something else. General Aquila, on the other hand, looked rather proud and excited.

"I can't wait to teach Raven the sword style of the Obsidian Kingdom!" he announced.

Raven's eyes shone. "Really? Father Aqi, you'll personally teach me? And Rook also?"

"Of course, son. I'll teach you both, and if Crown Prince Jules wants to join, he's most welcome, too," General Aquila said happily. He turned to Mana. "What weapon do you use, Mana? You should have some basic combat training, at least."

Mana sighed. "Er…archery, maybe?"