One Week

~

In the blink of an eye, a full week has passed since Tylem's first day of school, and a storm was brewing.

It was late in the afternoon. Changing into a running singlet and shorts, Emily covered herself with a large white jumper, a vibrating iPhone was pressed against her ear.

"Rehan, did anything major happen today?" Emily inquired.

Recently, from Rehan's investigation, Emily had discovered that Tylem was doing an excellent job in keeping Lynne safe. So far, it seemed to be working, and she was prepared to step in if necessary.

Doing her part, Emily had given Tylem absolute freedom in the school so that the teachers would stand at his side.

"Rest assured, Master. Nothing has come up." Rehan answered in a respectful manner.

"Days ago, I've made Master's demands very clear with the Principal and school board of Ivla." Rehan repeated, "Under no circumstances are Lynne and Tylem allowed to be hurt."

"Like Master wanted, I also made sure that Tylem will be granted special privileges in the school." To the school board, Rehan had ordered that Tylem was immune to punishment.

Unless it was something serious that was akin to murder, Tylem should never be punished.

Rehan, whose own official documents were all fabricated, had carried out Emily's orders with care and diligence.

The name 'Emily' was not mentioned once.

It was a rather simple request, but all of them knew that Lynne was in a precarious situation. Thus, it was much harder than it sounded just to 'keep her safe', which was something very normal that should have been expected in a school environment. Regardless, the teachers were doing everything in their power to follow Rehan's wishes.

Rehan, this was a legendary underworld boss who was the major shareholder in tens of renowned companies, rumored to have an unstoppable killing group under his command. Having a widespread range of connections everywhere, he was a top figure a part of both the light and dark side of Beijing.

Thus, now all the teachers were keeping a close eye on Lynne as if their life was on the line while letting Tylem off for anything that came up. It was simple, after all, no rational person wanted to offend Rehan, the big boss who might appear in their house late at night with an entire army.

Of course, both Tylem and Lynne were unaware of this.

"Though I am curious." Rehan stroked his chin, continuing, "Master, how come you don't step in and deal with all of those children's families personally?"

"With one move from Master, those old cronies would rush to your feet, following every order given." Rehan's curiosity grew. Indeed, if Emily went as the masked master of Winter's Edge, the powerful parents of the harassers would slap their unfilial children a million times for daring to offend her.

"No, this is the perfect chance for my babies to grow." Sighing, Emily hardened her motherly heart. "I don't want another situation like this to reappear in the future."

In her eyes, the two were eleven-year-old children who had much to learn. No matter how mature Tylem was, all children, including adults, made mistakes.

There was another big crucial reason.

"It's also not guaranteed that I will be able to maintain my identity a secret if I go to all those different families myself, demanding them with such a specific request." Emily sighed. "I can't drag my family into this world—ever."

The children who had wronged her daughter were far too many. It would probably take over a hundred house visits, and her real name and status would likely be revealed at the end of it all.

"I wish for Lynne and Tylem to try and solve this issue together to the best of their capabilities—without too much of my intervention." Emily continued, "If I wasn't sure whether Tylem had the strength to handle this, I wouldn't have chosen this path, but I believe in my son. I can see it in him."

"I want them to learn from this experience and develop into fine young adults so that the two would be able to even face the entire world together. This will be both the first and final trial I will give them as their Mother. I don't think my heart can take any more of this."

"There might come a day where Weston and I will no longer be here to protect them." Emily let out a troubled voice. "Rehan, you should know best that people in our line of work are at constant risk. We won't always remain on top."

"Even if I managed to solve everything for them now, Lynne and Tylem would lose the chance to truly learn and undergo growth. Rehan... so what would happen if another similar but more serious situation were to arise in the future, a future where we're no longer there to support them?"

In the worst case—the loss of everything. The two were at the perfect age for such necessary growth. It was a tender time of their lives where a simple mistake wouldn't be fatal. Thus, she had contributed enough for them to be successful, giving them the best conditions to succeed even if alone.

The two could make mistakes, and she would block all the dangerous storms for them.

If she were to leave the world in this current state, she would not even be able to rest in peace because of her worries about their future; she did not want Tylem to experience pain ever again. This was a type of supervised training where she could ensure that Lynne and he would never come under true harm's way.

"I understand, Master." Rehan apologized. "It was insolent of me to ask.'

"Luckily, my son is doing an excellent job." Emily closed her eyes, which emitted power and authority. "Or else... I don't think I would have been able to carry out my resolve in this matter."

If it wasn't for that piece of news where Tylem was doing everything he could to protect Lynne, she would have likely been furious and rash, demanding for the lives of the students and teachers involved.

Lynne, her darling daughter, had been hurt so much... after all.

"Once everything is over, I plan to have a very long talk with Lynne and Tylem." Emily choked out a quiet sob. "Rehan, have I failed as a Mother? Is that why my babies feel the need to keep it a secret from me?"

When she had found out about the bullying, she had cried throughout the night. What kind of worthless mother was she that both her children were unable to depend on her?

In that time, Emily had told her husband about the matter, and she had managed to convince Weston to allow her to handle the situation with Lynne and Tylem.

"No." Rehan's deep voice was firm and steadfast. "Even though I don't have a family of my own, I can promise that Master has not failed. Your love for them is clear. The children must have unspeakable problems of their own."

"One day, I believe they will open up to you on their own." Rehan assured.

"..." Emily tightened her grip on the phone.

[Nevertheless, this matter won't end until I make sure that those responsible for Lynne's harassment all receive their inevitable punishment.] With this thought from Emily, the futures of those harassers involved were now set in stone.

* * *

The same afternoon.

During the last week, Tylem had begun to make a name for himself as one of Ivla's best up-and-coming talents. In the seventh grade, almost all knew of his feats. Many rumors were sprouting up about him.

With one punch, the new handsome transfer had taken down the school's strongest fighter, a senior Taekwondo red belt who had sent him a letter of official challenge. Of course, this senior was just an eighth-grader. Before a cultivator, tactics were meaningless.

With one word, he had made Mr. Smith, the second-year dean who was notorious for being smug and conceited, stand down. Thus, the students suspected that he hailed from a powerful family.

To top it off, he was a genius in class as well. Each time the teachers called him up, there were no questions that he could not solve. It was like he had walked straight out from a novel, a Mr. Perfect showing no flaws.

Even now, the transfer's true capability and background was an utter mystery.

Throughout the week, Tylem wasted no time as he continued to train himself, tempering his physique through exercise. However, Rome wasn't built in a single day, and improving his overall physical capabilities took time.

Yesterday night, Emily had given him permission to start taking jogs within the Luli District.

However, that was on the basis that she would come along with him. In the end, she was worried about him running outside alone, which he did not blame her for.

Luli District had a tight security; however, Emily couldn't help but worry that Tylem would be in danger alone.

In most parts of China, there were outdoor gyms that had a basic design similar to that of playgrounds. It was present in almost every well-kept public park.

Right now, Tylem was on one of these runs with Emily in the afternoon, the first of many.

"Honey, I'm impressed that you're keeping up with my pace." Emily raised her brow. In the beginning, she had planned to slow down for him when he got tired, but now there appeared to be no need?

"Mn." Tylem nodded in his black sportswear. The one-week deadline had arrived, and he now planned to reveal Lynne's bullying situation to Emily before the run was over.

Unfortunately, Lynne had not managed to completely open up on her own. It was understandable as it wasn't that simple to come to terms with a great matter that had lasted for years as an inexperienced eleven-year-old child.

For the majority of people, being guided secondhand would often lead to a letdown, it was important to come to terms on their own and not through the words and social pressure of others.

To be honest, it did look like Lynne was going to tell Emily soon, but he would, in the end, keep his promise of the one-week deadline. It was his duty as a son, after all. Furthermore, it was important to not go back on one's word.

Smiling, Tylem had a playful thought as he began to increase his pace, pulling ahead of Emily.

"Oh?" Emily grinned as she increased her strides. "Was Mummy going too slow?"

Like a cheetah closing in on her cub, Emily once again stood side-to-side with Tylem, who was still smiling mysteriously.

Suddenly, the vibrant energy within Tylem surged forth.

In an instant, Tylem's figure dashed forward, leaving Emily behind in the dust.

Emily's eyes widened as her competitive spirit rose. This brat, heh. He wanted to race his mother?

"Honey, let's see then!" Emily laughed, utilizing the inner force within her to break through normal human limits.

"What." Tylem's mouth gaped as he watched Emily blitz ahead of him.

For the first time since becoming a cultivator, someone had gotten the better of him in terms of physical ability, even if he had been caught off guard.

"Mother, you're too much." Tylem's pitch-black eyes shot open.

Hmph, even if she was his mother, he would not bow down. This was the pride of a cultivator!

"But you're too naive." Tylem had no plans to hide his strength in front of Emily, his family.

The power of a cultivator was brought to light as Tylem's figure coasted ahead, disappearing into the distance.

Tylem was not running with everything he had, but he still expended a lot of energy. The speed he traveled at would look frightening to the average human being.

For a moment, Emily was left speechless at the sight of Tylem's extraordinary speed. However, as an adult, her strides, which were much longer, provided a great advantage.

The race was on.