Family Bonds

"My name is Nox Kieran. I am the grandson of the Hex Master. He is also known as Adrian Williams. So, that makes us cousins, Oscar."

It was quite shocking to hear. Suddenly out of the blue Oscar gained himself a cousin. His mind was blank for a few seconds. He could only look Nox in the eye.

"Err... You are joking, right? Is this some kind of distraction?" (Oscar)

"Wait... You don't know it?" (Nox)

"No... Are you serious?!" (Oscar)

"Of course I am! Hey, do you really don't know me? What about my father, do you know him? Or rest of your family, do you really not know us?!" (Nox)

"Do I look like I know you? It is the first time I hear something like this. I have always been told that I am the only and the last child of Williams family." (Oscar)

Nox was speechless. He always thought that he was abandoned with his father by his grandfather and the rest of their human family. But if what Oscar said is true, they didn't even know that they existed. It was quite possible actually, the time difference between the two realms was too much. Adrian might never know that he had a child from spirit.

At that moment Nox realized that he hated his grandfather for something he didn't even know of. Nonetheless realizing and accepting are two different things. This much wasn't enough to state his hatred rooted in his heart. He was imprisoned for centuries just because he was the grandson of Adrian Williams. Nothing can change this.

"Hey, you were serious?" (Oscar)

"I am. I have no reason to lie to you. We are indeed cousins." (Nox)

"Oh... This is quite shocking..." (Oscar)

Meanwhile, The Convict was watching them dumbfounded. It never imagined the meeting of the two cousins would be this uneventful. Both of them are calmly talking to each other. Nox was known for his aggressiveness but not much was known about Oscar. But it seems like he is a calm person.

'Oscar, he could be right. I did hear someone being the grandchild of Hex Master while I was a kid. I need an hour at most to verify it with records of my clan. I will immediately notify you if I found it.'

"Thank you, Kairi. I don't know what I would do if it wasn't you."

'You don't have to worry. I will always be with you.'

Oscar took a deep breath and calmed his raging emotions. From the outside, he may look calm but inside was quite chaotic. He didn't know what to think or what to say. It was unbelievable to experience something like this. There were so many doubts in his head but he didn't know how to clear them. So he put all of his hopes on Kairi.

"I don't know if I should trust you or not. As far as I know, you could really be my cousin. What I care about are your intentions. Are you an enemy of humans? Are you my enemy?" (Oscar)

"...I don't really consider the humans as my enemy. But I am curious about your strength. You declare yourself as the protector of humans. Do you have the power the back those words?" (Nox)

"Don't worry about me, dear cousin. I have enough power." (Oscar)

"Then we shall begin!" (Nox)

Nox disappeared from the spot he was and appeared in front of Oscar. He punched him with mana infused fist. But his fist went through empty air. Oscar dodged the strike with a speed similar to Nox himself which deeply shocked him. After dodging he kicked Nox in the gut. Same as Oscar Now too dodged the strike.

After dodging Nox sent a slash to Oscar using his hand like a sword. Seeing this Oscar was surprised but he once again dodged. Their confrontation was full of dodging from both sides. Neither of them did land a hit. This made Oscar frown but Nox smiled crazily. He didn't expect Oscar this powerful. He heard stories of him from the spirits while traveling to reach The Rift. He thought all of them were just overexaggerating spirits. But it turns out to be true.

"I am enjoying this very much but let's finish it."

Nox gathered a huge amount of mana in his hands and was about the cast a big spell to stop Oscar. But right at that moment many small water needles pierced his back and interrupted his spell. Because of the interruption, his mana get out of control and exploded on his face.

*BOOM*

Nox was blown away because of the explosion. He crushed at the nearby tree. He tried to get up but suddenly water appeared out of thin air and bind his body. A second later lightning bolt hit his body and electrified him. This was Oscar's favorite combo. With the ability of his Spirit Eyes, he could easily control water particles in the air and make it look like he created water from thin air.

Oscar stood in front of the Nox. There was a water blade on his hand. He glanced at the Convict. From the start of the battle, it never moved. Even now it didn't look like it was interested in joining. This was confusing at first but after he thought about it, he realized that Nox didn't attack with killing intent either. So it was a spar for him, he thought.

"Are you done?" (Oscar)

"You are way better than I imagined. I should settle with this for now." (Nox)

"We are not here to fight with you." (The Convict)

"Good. I want to talk... and learn why you are here. Something tells me you aren't here for the same reason as other spirits." (Oscar)

"That is correct." (The Convict)

"How keen. You are right tho. Let's talk it somewhere... private." (Nox)

At that moment Jason and the others arrived at the scene. Seeing Owain they were surprised but seeing Oscar talking with Nox and Convict shocked them. Oscar did send a message to Aiken but it was incomplete because he was rushing the forest. Actually, they were alerted by the strange lights in the middle of the forest and the obvious mana traces.

Aiken glanced at the Owain and turned around the Jason. They weren't sure about what to do with a witness. Oscar gave them a signal with his hand meaning relax. Nox wasn't showing any signs of aggressiveness from the moment Oscar did his combo.

"Guys, we need a private place to have a conversation. And someone needs the explain things to Owain." (Oscar)

"Are you sure?" (Aiken)

"...Yes." (Oscar)

"Fine. I can explain things to him then." (Aiken)

"We can use the old house my grandpa left for me. I have the keys with me. Also it is close by." (Jason)

"Thank you. Let's go. Nox?" (Oscar)

"Right behind you, cousin." (Nox)

Jason and the others were completely shocked by the revelation. And seeing that Oscar wasn't refusing was confusing them. They could tell that Nox was a spirit after their fight with other spirits.

It took ten minutes for them to arrive at Jason's grandpa's house. It was an old single-story house. Quite similar to the rest of the houses on the street. This street was on the opposite side of the city where they fight against inferior spirits.

After everyone settled in the living room a heavy silence engulfed the room. Nox and Oscar were starring each other. The Convict was floating next to Nox and it was impossible to understand what it was thinking. Jason and Lydia were lost at what was going on. Aiken was explaining everything to Owain in another room. They thought that it was best to do it without the possible influence of Nox and the Convict.

'What he said is seems true. There was indeed a grandchild of Hex Master born in the Spirit Realm. His name is Nox Kieran and he is a hybrid. This is all I can find for now.' said Kairi.

"Thank you, Kairi. So it's true... It is still unbelievable but I guess I have to face the truths now."

Oscar took a deep breath. Confirming the truth with Kairi gave him mixed feelings. He long thought that his grandfather was someone extraordinary. Even the necklace he gave him was something powerful and mysterious. The mana inside of it was something different than everything he ever saw or heard. After focusing and inspecting it with Kairi they found nothing about it. It looked almost no different than mana crystals.

He thought that it could be something about the evolved spirits which Kairi mentioned. But after she research the library of her clan she found details about those evolved and ancient spirits. Apparently, none of them is close to what the necklace is. The nature of mana inside of it was different. Normally mana of every person is different with slight differences. But this one was completely different. Like it was coming from somewhere else compared to mana.

This and some small but impossible to ignore mysteries was pointing his grandfather. So his grandfather 'interacting' with spirits at his time was not something unbelievable. But it was still shocking for him. Just who was his grandfather?

"We really are cousins, huh." (Oscar)

"Yes, we are." (Nox)

"It might sound rude but why are you here? What is your purpose?" (Oscar)

"I am looking for something. Grandpa was supposed to have it." (Nox)

"By the way... what do you know about him? I only knew him as a normal human." (Oscar)

"He was a legend. His name alone would bring fear to those who try to oppose him. His allies were ready to lay their lives for him. He even said to be the one who saved Spirit Realm." (Nox)