"You were right Mrs. Parkor. Regardless of what she thinks, I can't be spoiling her forever. I think there has to come a time when I have to let her go," Aiden whispered as he swung his pickaxe not bothering to turn towards the lady.

"Is that what YOU want? Wouldn't you be lonely?"

Aiden nodded.

"Yes, I want her to become independent. Me being lonely is no good reason to be stopping from it. I am not a kid anymore. And regardless of what she thinks it is the RIGhT thing to do."

"I see. Well, I am happy as long as you don't work yourself to death. And I have a feeling that you won't be lonely forever. You are tall and also so caring, Aiden. Surely not all girls are blind. Do you want me to set up a blind date for you? I have a few good girls in mind."

Mrs. Parkor winked as she chuckled away.

Aiden could only look away in embarrassment.

"No, I don't think that would be necessary..." Aiden whispered in between his breaths.

But a voice from behind cut both of them off.

"Pathetic."

Kaguya's voice was muffled by her white mask, and yet they resounded behind them giving a cold chill to Aiden's spine.

Aiden and Mrs. Porkar turned around only to find Kaguya standing behind them? 

'Since when was she there?'

And while Mrs. Porkar had tilted her head in confusion. Aiden had only alarm bells ringing in his head instead.

'What's she doing here?'

Kaguya was definitely the tank for the day. And while she wasn't the only tank, it was highly unusual for the tanks to be leaving the battlefield. After all, they were the front line of defense.

'Don't tell me...'

Aiden's pupils shook. He was suspicious of Kaguya from the very beginning and she was now acting even more suspicious.

He couldn't help but think that Kaguya was too dangerous for both him and his team. She seemed like some kind of suspicious homicidal killer.

What Aiden feared most was that all of his teammates were already dead and with Kaguya's rank she was perfectly capable of doing that.

Aiden quickly opened his status to check without bothering to confirm everything.

[List of Boosted Players]

Makayla Parkor - Speed Boost (57:20)

Ardent Setstone - Speed Boost (56:40)

Bane Vossel - Attack Boost (54:00)

...

"No, they are alive."

Aiden's status system always showed the list of players he had applied his boost against and also a timer to signify the time they had left.

As long as they were all alive, they were going to appear on the status screen. That means Aiden's worry was for naught.

But when you have a powerful individual standing like a ghost behind you just like in Horror movies, you couldn't help but be spooked out.

"Since when were you here?" Aiden asked.

"You fucker. Do you think your sister is some kind of burden on you? How can someone be so sick in the head! You are just a useless good for nothing!"

"So you heard everything? Despite that, there seems to be some kind of misunderstanding..."

Aiden never remembers calling his sister a burden. Rather Aiden had always assumed his sister to be that same odd teenager. But little by little even that teenager was growing.

She was already 17, and it was but a few days before she would be a bonafide adult. Well to him she would always be a little one.

But it was bad for him to spoil her too much regardless of whether Aiden could even afford it or not.

What Aiden was planning rather was to let her make her own choices and live independently.

'I would transfer all of my savings to her to pay for the tuition. As a former guardian of hers, it also makes sense if I send part of the money I earn monthly to her.' Aiden thought disregarding the core emotion that was driving Mrs. Parkor's argument.

But before he could word it out, he already felt cold hands wrapped around his neck. Aiden's hair stood up as alarm bells began ringing on his head.

Aiden looked up at Kaguya.

Her pale blue eyes had turned frigid. It was as if she had lost her cool in anger.

Mrs. Parkor immediately got alarmed as her eyes popped out.

She reached out and pulled Kaguya's hands instead, in an attempt to free Aiden.

"Stop! What are you doing?"

Mrs. Parkor's scream was able to bring Kaguya back to her senses. Her hands shook as she pulled them back in disbelief.

"I am sorry," Kaguya whispered turning towards Mrs. Parkor as she pulled back.

*cough* *cough*

Aiden panicked for breath.

'Shouldn't you be apologizing to me instead?'

'What's wrong with her?' Aiden thought. 

Aiden not only feels threatened by her power but this Kaguya seemed to have some kind of personal grudge against him, which was really bad.

Aiden felt his legs shaking from her unsurpassable killing intent alone. He was directly subjected to it after all. He couldn't even hear the verbal lashings that Mrs. Parkor was subjecting Kaguya now.

'Mrs. Parkor, if you don't want to get in trouble. You should stay away from her.' Aiden couldn't even begin what kind of dangerous person Yuna was in friends with. He would have to reach home talk this out seriously with her.

"Godammit! I said I am sorry. It was just that I... I lost my cool for a bit and was threatening him. I wasn't planning to harm him," Kaguya began to defend herself.

From afar it would seem like an old lady lashing her daughter like a girl, but it was a far more complicated situation than that.

"You should apologize to him."

"No, I won't! It's all his fault in the first place. This son of bitch is just a useless piece of junk with useless skills. He can't do anything but mine in dungeons. It pains me to see someone like him, holding back Yuna. This bastard is just a burden to her and should just go somewhere and die!"

Mrs Parkor was taken aback.

"That's a really rude thing to say considering what he is going through. And it is not like one can choose to be born with powerful skills and titles. He is trying his best."

Kaguya shook her head.

"That won't be changing my mind. He is still a useless good for nothing... I won't apologize!" Saying so Kaguya stormed off leaving Aiden and Mrs. Parkor behind.

*sigh*

"Kids these days. Aiden, are you okay, child?"

"Yeah... yeah, I think."

Aiden nodded.

"You shouldn't worry too much about this. Just be careful around her okay?"

"Yeah"

Aiden didn't know what more to say.

Mrs. Parkor who was watching from the third person's perspective had a better idea though.

It was just a hot-blooded youngster who thought that her friend's brother was an embarrassment and lost her cool.

But she didn't point that out to Aiden and only sighed.

How could she say it? It would only burden the poor child more. And none of it was Aiden's fault in the first place. He had been giving it his all. But circumstances had brought him to a tough place. And there was only so much she as an outsider could interfere with.

'Scary. Scary.' Alarm bells were ringing in his head.

The killing intent that he was subjected to had reduced his capacity to think as his whole body shivered. No monster had done this much damage to his soul as this girl had.

And perhaps, had Mrs. Parkor been subjected to that same killing intent, she wouldn't have come up with such a basic conclusion either.

Passing it off as just another 'hot-blooded youngster' was probably a little too far-fetched.

Twin

Thanks @Hunedoara for being my first patron. (I can't express how happy I am to get my first supporter 😆)