Chapter 8 – The Beating
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I was in a pitiful state. After being cleaned up, the foul servants escorted me to my family home to visit my mother. This was not on the list of this young master's tasks.

"Mother, how have you been! I missed you so much!" I said as I entered my home.

I wanted to finish formalities with my mother quickly.

"Oh James, dear you are back!" exclaimed my beautiful mother who walked into the foyer and grabbed me by the ear.

"Little James, you can't be scaring your poor mother. I went a whole month with no information concerning your well being. How has the Hudson clan been treating my son?" said my mother Diana.

I did not want to deal with her nagging. But I must quickly get out of this. I must paint the Hudson clan unreasonably, to butter up to her.

"Mom, it's been awful. Since I unlocked Soul Dao everyone is looking down on me!"

"Don't you go comparing yourself to others in the Hudson clan. They don't amount too much in the Xertzul Abyss, anyway. Ever since your father took up that post as patriarch, it is the Hudson clan this and the Hudson clan that."

"All I care about is my husband, my daughter, and my bratty son. The Hudson clan can kick rocks."

"Mother, how could you say such a thing?" I said, knowing full well where she was going.

Talking down on the Hudson clan, my mother's mouth had no filter.

"Brat you think your father or anyone else in the Hudson clan dares complain to this princess about speaking ill about a Devil Count clan?"

"Even your quote-unquote 'Devil Ancestor' has to give me face when speaking to me." said my mother with a hint of mockery.

I laughed, I loved that my mother was such a rival. She hailed from the Rossen King clan, much higher in social standing than the Hudson Count clan. If this young master hailed from a King clan, he could strut around an entire Kingdom freely!

I still wondered how my father could pull the wool over her eyes and snag my mother. My father was a toad who kidnapped a swan, though I would never tell him that to his face. I'll have to ask father how he pulls the ladies when I get the chance.

"Enough about them. How's your recovery coming? Rumors say you have difficulties with your vision."

"Even without sight you can still become a paramount devil. You do not even require sight to be a good combatant."

"Your mother is also having her hands full with talks with the Mirage Duke clan. You remember your marriage contract, right? Her father already didn't think you were worthy to marry their daughter when we made the contract."

"He thought a Devil Count clan was too low for his outstanding Devil Duke clan daughter to marry into. What Hogwash, like a Devil Duke clan is anything within the Abyss."

"Now they are using the fact you practice Soul Dao as a probable cause to break the marriage contract."

"They have to give me face so they are using a combination of hard and soft tactics to approach the situation. Before you reach the age of 25 the marriage contract will execute."

"They do not want their daughter to remain unwed at 25. Waiting to the end of the contract would bring shame to their clan. It would make her look unappealing."

"The contract states if you unlock an unfavorable Dao you will have to at least become a Baron before the age of 20."

"Mom!"

I wanted to avoid my mother. She was the nagging type.

"That's a lot of information I don't want to hear. I don't even care about the marriage contract, it was you and your best friend who arraigned it wanting your children to be together."

"I've only met the lass once or twice when we were kids and she seemed like a spoiled little brat. She's not worthy of this young master!"

I honestly had no thoughts on the marriage contract. It wasn't even my idea to get married in the first place! This young devil is an eligible bachelor, I should do eligible bachelor things. I have to ask father how he got the beauties back in his day.

I could not voice my true thoughts to my mother as she was already on my case about the incident.

Devil clans fostered blood descendants. By age 25 they expected all devils to marry and pop out a new generation of blood descendants for the clan. Only through this way could clans grow.

Children normally belonged to their father's clan, but some clans were so overbearing they required the children of their daughters to belong to their clan. That way their bloodline would ever leave the clan.

"My dear son, I see you have grown bold since becoming an Esquire. You dare think you can disregard the face of your poor old mother," my mother said.

"Let's go to the training ground, I want to make sure my son is not useless."

"No, mother, I need to get back to recovery. I still am hurting, and I can't even see! The training grounds are not for me."

I attempted to run. My mother would never drag me to the training grounds! She was utterly barbaric.

I'd always hear my father complaining with a smile, his body filled with bruises, after being dragged off to the training grounds and beaten by my mother. She was not a useless princess of a Devil King clan.

My mother's combat prowess garnered respect around the Abyss. Whenever I asked her about her noble title, she would always say it was impolite to ask a lady about her title. I think she wanted to save face for my father since he was only a Baron.

This young master will never be weaker than his wife. I can not catch that henpeck disease. It is incurable!

"My dear son, I'll give you a wonderful lesson in the training field."

Diana as she dragged the crying James away.

Once we reached the training field, I tried to punch and kick to defend myself fruitlessly. I could barely see and was beaten black and blue. I could not dodge or evade any of her attacks and none of mine would land. Not even my mother could recognize me anymore, and she was the one who did the beating!

My mother had even covered her own eyes and used strength comparable to the initial-Esquire realm. Still, I could not beat her. She was faster, stronger, and more proficient with her attacks.

Her attacks and movements were fluid. This battle stomped me. Most devils would usually have difficulty fighting at their full potential suppressing their strength and she even went further to become blind just like me. She brought her devilry realm and Devil Arts to be exactly equal to mine and beat me up domineeringly.

This is a shameful day for this young master. Beaten black and blue by a woman in the same realm. I must not let this information escape the walls of this house. This young master has a reputation to maintain.

I am not a greenhorn with combat! I had grown up training in martial combat. My number one goal was always to defeat Mikael, my sworn nemesis. If I didn't train diligently Mikael would easily capture me and subject me to youthful pranks.

I had difficulty acclimating to fighting with no vision, but my mother was amazing at it. My world view had widened from this fight. Maybe this young master can become a blind young master. It will be even more shameful for my enemies. Defeated by a blind young master, they wouldn't even have the face to strut around the world!

My mother beat me to having my life hanging by a thread. She did not hold back one bit. She did not even use any special combat arts or anything beyond the initial-Esquire realm.

Anything she had done in the combat I technically should be able to do. I felt if I could fight as skillfully as his mother, I would be a combat expert.

"My dear son, I see you have much to learn about combat. Honestly, not bad for your first fight without your sight."

"Even if you could see, you would need at least a century of training before you can think of not being defeated by this princess in the same realm."

"Your mother was known to be undefeated at the same devilry realm when she first began strutting around this Abyss and that has never changed. Work harder at the fundamentals of combat to give this princess face."

"If I'm undefeated at the same devilry realm, you must at least be better than the average devil or people will look down on me. Eat this pill and rest the night here. I will see you again tomorrow morning at sunrise."

I ate the pill my mother gave me and felt my wounds healing fast. Even my eyes felt a little better. I see why my father was always smiling after being thrashed by mother, fighting her is the best combat training anyone could ever hope for. Mother is a master of combat, all your flaws are an open book to her.

Mother just gave me a strong medical pill that can heal me overnight. Oh no, if this becomes a cycle I'm doomed. The only way to not get thrashed is to improve my fighting skills.

I spent the evening in my room sore and thinking about combat training with my mother. I thought I had a good understanding of fighting.

My entire world view changed with this one round of beatings from my mother. I suspected my mother was a true and blue Battle Devil.

Battle Devils were devils who strictly stuck to polishing their combat skills to be the best of the best. At the same devilry realm, Battle Devils were to be undefeated. They even had an association, like the Blacksmith Association. All Battle Devils registered with Battle Devil Association were genuine freaks of martial combat.

The future had become bleak for our poor devil hero. Over the next few weeks, his doting mother viciously beat him. The only way he could lesson the beatings was to improve himself!

But the worst thing was every time he had a slight improvement and thought the beatings would lessen his mother got better at beating him. It was a never-ending cycle. When his father saw him, he just smiled and told James that he should cherish such an opportunity.

James cried!

I had survived until today. Every day my mother was relentless. She showed more and more flaws to me. One day my mother finally told me the beatings would end. Oh, it was a monumental day. This young master was finally free again!

My mother told me she had important work to attend to. She however felt that I had learned how to defend myself while blinded. Even though she did not teach me any combat techniques, she had taught me the basics of battle.

I now had a sixth sense in combat and his vision did not seem like such a burden. I could move out and about in the world.  I was now a blind young master in training.

The ultimate words my mother left were, "If you don't have any improvement next time I see you we will begin another boot camp."

I must not let her down. I barely survived the first boot camp!

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