Chapter Sixteen

R U S H : A BIT OF HELP

“Eh?!” Adam was pissed. “You told me I had seven days!”

“Yes, that was before you blew your mana veins and damaged your nerves.”

Lambert sounded very mad. Adam looked away. He was sitting on his new bed where the King had carried him to his room after finding him laughing like a loon covered in mud.

He was mortified.

Adam chose silence over a response.

Lambert gritted her teeth. She counted to ten before responding.

“Why did you do that?”

Adam looked at Lambert's hands as she held a foot. The edges were frayed and his skin looked like a broken can opener ran around it.

“So what did I do.”

Lambert tisked.

“Tell me, what do you know about your awakening?”

A pause.

“What’s an awakening?”

“What’s an-”

Lambert stared at him. He should know these things. She knows Kina. There’s no way she didn’t educate- Lambert wanted to slap herself.

A being’s memory can start to deteriorate after just a few days of severe isolation, they boy lived through six months. Lambert sighed.

It was a wonder how he was even able to function. Lambert moved the divinity closer to his toes. He really tore apart his feet. When the King came to ask for her aid, again, she expected something had happened to him.

Lambert watched Osiris try to wiggle his toes.

A cringe engulfed his body. Yup. Lambert upped the divinity. Osiris burned not only his stratum corneum, but all the way to his Dermis. Once it’s healed he will never have feeling on the bottom of his feet ever again.

On top of that, he also tore the mana sacks at the core of his Patala pathways. His veins are fried, his chakra points are blown… Lambert was slightly impressed by his recovery rate. Without divinity he would have been healed in about three months if he ate and rested well enough.

She looked at his torn open soles. The flesh was raw and red, burned fresh in oil. But since his mana is constantly moving it will never heal. A slight glow flared. Or maybe there will be nothing but pure mana left. Lambert was aware that bodies can do amazing things when pushed.

She just hoped Osiris was lucky enough to be one. He has blown years off of his life for this little stunt. Lambert struggled to hold her connection. Mikael’s damn barrier was messing with her work.

“An awakening is when a child like yourself awakens their gift. There are those who awaken with eyes, some with hair, and those with feet, and then there are those that awaken with two gifts like yourself.”

Lambert pursed her lips.

“When you awakened it looked like an accident happened and your mana forced its way out of your body. It was like shaking a pop bottle and having the top pop.”

Adam was sort of following.

“Because of that clog, and the way it was flushed, it left a permanent leak.”

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Adam looked up.

“There is a constant drip of mana in your feet. Because of this your mana is constantly flowing. This then causes your eye gift to never turn off. This will cause your mana to constantly be consumed. You will lose and consume mana at a frightening speed until, inevitably, your vessels explode.”

“Is that a for sure?”

“-we, w-what was that?”

“Like, is it 100% they’ll explode?”

Adam remembers that Osiris was originally supposed to be strong. He wasn’t sure how strong, but he- Adam stopped. There was never any mention of Osiris having a leak. Adam sweat dropped.

“No, but your body must be able to keep up with the change. If you can take what you give then yes, it’s possible to adapt with it.”

Lambert grimaced.

“I guess you lucked out a bit. With royal blood you may survive where others have not.”

Adam scoffed.

Lucky.

“What else?”

“Before this incident-” Adam squinted. “-you had a life expectancy of about twenty-eight years old.”

Not bad, given I’ve done 32 before.

“Now it’s dropped to sixteen.”

“..”

Adam can see why she’s mad now.

P L U T O : ROCKY ROAD

“I see..”

Adam had to breathe. The cards he was left with were bad and he made them worse. An ache was soothed.

Lambert let that sink in. Though she felt for the boy, she didn’t like how he played with his life.

Ruined.

Lambert flinched.

The King has ruined the boy. There was no sugar coating, there was no remedy…

Lambert wanted to cry.

She really loved the King and Kina. She really did. To see their boy go through this... She was going to have to start the daily check ups now.

“Have you eaten?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you want more?”

“Yeah.”

“Beef or Turkey?”

“Turkey.”

“Gray or green meat?”

“..”

“Green.”

A plate of chopped turkey, gravy, corn, green beans, and a baked potato came out of her safe. The meat really was a tad green. Like moss.

It tasted really good.

After he ate he lit up green for two seconds before the glow vanished. More of his aches were gone.

“At least with you I don’t have to worry about using divinity on you. The speed at which your leak flushes out the poisons from your blood is within a few hours. It’s astounding.”

Might be faster now.

“How much do I need to eat now?”

Adam was finishing the corn.

“Triple the amount you do now.”

Zero times three equals..

“What if I binge eat?”

Lambert raised a brow.

“You can eat as much as you want, whenever you want.”

Adam took that as permission to steal.

He also took it as permission to use Lambert like an endless food generator.

“Two more.”

“Three, then go read.”

Adam made a face.

“Your father is also starting lessons sooner, and wants you to read something once a day.”

Why isn’t the coward telling me himself?

A bit of bloodlust rose.

Lambert blinked. She was sure none of the other children released their bloodlust this young. The average age is fourteen, youngest thirteen.

“I can go with you.”

Adam’s mood only soured.

“I have snacks.”

Adam paused.

He hasn’t seen no spec nor eye in awhile. Bells followed occasionally but Lambert kept most things in check.

“No.”

“I’ll answer any question I can.”

That offer was tempting.

Adam tossed the thought around.

“No.”

“I hate to tell you but your father upgraded me to a nanny AND doctor until you are fully healed.”

Adam’s face looked repulsed.

“Don’t you have a family?”

Lambert's eyebrow twitched.

“It’s only for six hours.”

Adam wanted to cry. He already missed his alone time.

“How do I say no?”

He had finished the third plate.

“We start tomorrow.”

It was already night.

“Leave.”

Lambert just packed up and left.

It was nap time.