“Barad.”
A dark night carries on.
Two figures faced each other in the forest, the sounds of the night muffling their conversation.
Against a tree, leaned one of them. Blood stained the man’s body, his breathing was slow as though death was near. Yet the expression on his way was left smug.
He chuckled weakly, “You know. You will never be anything without me.”
The other figure breathed heavier. He was younger and wore a suit, drenched in blood. Blood not of his own. He carried a bloodstained axe on one hand.
“You’ll always be a failure. You will never make anything in your life, be anything.”
The younger man breathed louder, his hand shaking, his head hammered down on him resulting in a terrible headache.
“You will regret this Barad. Remember? You need me. The Nobleman family will never succeed under the hands of such an amateur child like you.”
The younger man gasped for air, his breathing quickened again, he tightened the grip on his axe until his knuckles turned white.
Everything the older man was saying… It was clearly affecting him.
“You will never learn to use your Core.”
The younger man’s eyes widened. The grip on his axe eased and it almost fell out of his hand.
He held it tightly again.
That was the last straw.
The younger man lifted his arms…
The older man’s head was cut straight off of his neck.
Blood splattered all around the forest grass. The decapitated head rolled off to the distance, to a place where no one will ever find.
—----------------
The news spread like wildfire all across the country.
Rumors emerged from one person to another. One by one, the people of the country fell into an equally divided debate of satisfaction and panic.
“Senator Johnathan Adams, widely regarded as the overwhelming favourite to win the upcoming presidential election and become the nation's next president, had mysteriously disappeared, with authorities officially classifying him as ‘missing’ after all attempts to establish contact proved unsuccessful. However, the search remains continuous and the public will be updated on any new information.”
Barad stood up from the couch, and made his way toward the apartment kitchen.
He brewed his usual morning coffee, and for breakfast, he was provided with a carefully prepared plate of smoked salmon, freshly baked sourdough bread, poached eggs and a fancy selection of imported fruits.
A meal befitting someone of his status.
“May I attend you with anything else, sir?” His butler stood behind him as he ate.
He carefully sawed the salmon into thin, equal strips before calmly replying, “I am more than adequately provided for, thank you.”
“Very well, sir.” The butler bowed before exiting the room, leaving Barad alone with his thoughts.
Barad ate as he couldn't shake off a bad feeling.
In the distance, the broadcaster continued, “If Senator Johnathan Adams is not found within weeks, the runner up will be elected in his place, who in this case, is ‘Barad Nobleman’ from the Nobleman family.”
Barad coughed as he was caught off guard, he choked on his coffee.
He had already known this, but the feeling of being president…
It was overwhelming, too much. Yet it was his one chance to prove himself.
Barad didn’t know how he felt about it. Thus, he wasn’t ready.
“The Nobleman family will never succeed under the hands of such an amateur child like you.”
Those words still ringed in his ears. Maybe the Senator was right. How could he, someone who was too young to be president in the standards of presidency, run an entire country?
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.
In fact if the public found out about last night…
No, he didn’t want to think that.
“Sir?”
Barad jumped as he heard the voice.
“You seem rather perplexed.” The butler came back to give Barad extra napkins.
“I am alright. Thank you for your concern.”
Quietly, the butler left the room once more.
Barad gazed back at the television. Advertisements filled the screen as the broadcast channel took a break. He used this time to collect his thoughts.
For his whole life, he’s been oppressed by the hands of his own family. The minimum age to become president is thirty-five, yet Barad was only twenty-one.
The Nobleman family have been running for president ever since its existence, they bent every law to make sure that they can become the next president. Senator Johnathan Adams was the only one who went against them, and wrapped his finger around Barad.
‘This idea… It would be perfect for my presidency.’
He always stole Barad’s ideas and used them for his own, Barad’s own reputation never had an opportunity to shine.
“You will never learn to use your Core.”
His hand gripped the coffee cup tighter. How could he possibly know about that?
‘My father’s possession… Was he after that too?’
Maybe, if he had not intervened, the senator could have become president, and he wouldn’t need to worry.
And now… Barad really thought things through.
Was the crime really worth it? Now he had more problems than he had before.
The Senator was taunting him that night, perhaps he knew something Barad didn’t.
However, if he didn’t then the Senator would have ruined Barad’s entire life.
All his thoughts then circled back to one point.
If someone found out about the crime…
Barad smashed his fist against the table. ‘It was a noble crime. A crime for my freedom.’ He told himself,
‘If I hadn’t done that, I would suffer for my entire life. If that’s not a noble crime, then what is the definition?’
His breathing quickened once more, the events of last night flashed in his eyes,
His grip tightened on the breakfast table, his knuckles turning white.
“You’ll always be a failure. You will never make anything in your life, be anything.”
Suddenly, Barad lost all his energy. His shoulders slumped as his body went limp in his chair.
‘But now… I’m buried in burden.’
“...”
He got up, he no longer had an appetite to finish his breakfast.
He needed to check up on something.
--------------------------------------
Barad waited for the city to sleep.
Now was the time.
He put on his coat and brought a spare of clothes.
He picked up a shovel then headed out the front door.
Barad walked through the familiar city line.
Cars drove past him, in this hour, no one recognized him as one of the people running for president.
The sounds of crickets filled the air and got louder as he got closer to the forest.
The smell of the grass lingered in the air. Trees filled the entire city line as Barad entered the forest.
The sounds of night filled everywhere in the forest.
Then, deep in the forest, Barad made his way to a familiar tree.
The tree was painted crimson, as a reminder for what went down here.
A headless corpse remained under the shade of the tree.
In hindsight, he should’ve buried it.
He stared at the corpse without emotion. Without remorse.
His hand shaked once more.
Without wasting any more time, he picked his shovel, and began to dig.
He dug and dug, the pristine suit of a Nobleman now covered in dirt and blood.
He dug and dug, until the hole was wide enough for the body.
“In a rush, young man?”
Barad’s blood ran cold. He turned to see where the voice came from.
A man sat on the ground with his legs crossed, his face covered under an iron mask.
Barad froze in place.
“Barad Nobleman. Who knew you were the one responsible for the Senator’s death?” The man stood up and put his hands in his pockets.
“If you really cared about status. You should’ve buried that last night.”
Barad’s body moved automatically, he could not recall why it happened, but he lunged towards the man.
However, before he could reach him, someone else held him back by the shoulders.
“So irrational, noble my ass!” The person behind him taunted him.
An ink tendril shot out from Barad’s back and pushed away the other figure.
The man with the iron mask simply tilted his head, amused. “Looks like I was right. The Core user of ink.”
The other man stood up, and from the shadows came another man.
“Give it up, Barad Nobleman. You’re outnumbered.”
He was right, Barad was outnumbered. He could sense that the other two were Core users as well, he, who had little experience, would not stand a chance.
Then, the man with the iron mask spoke again, “I have a deal for you.”
“Join me. And nobody will know about this. Refuse…”
The other two men came closer, the threat was clear.
Barad had no choice.