How I got fuc*ed up

Terta, Stellaria Continent, Royal Palace, private chamber of the king

King Draegor III, was a man in his late 60s but with the appearance of a young man. Standing at 198cm (6’6), with blonde hair and ice-blue eyes, he radiated a powerful aura even when relaxed. Blessed by Stellar with an incredible talent for both Qi and Mana, he was the perfect heir to the throne. Awakened at 15 with a Supreme level Mana crystal, he reached the pinnacle of Qi and Mana Domain at 40 thanks to all the battles he fought and all the treasures that the crown invested in his growth. He became the king at 41, succeeding his father who retired from the monarchy to devote all his efforts to the battlefield. That was what supposed to do Draegor himself once his son had finished his training and reached an adequate strength level… Unfortunately both his son and father perished at the hand of the special forces of the Noctis’ kingdom during an ambush. That led to a devastating counter-attack that brought destruction of the border zone of both kingdoms, ultimately resulting in the signing of a momentary truce    

“How is the boy?” asked the king with a tired look on his face

“Different, your Majesty” replied the Supreme Commander of the Royal Guardians, who was kneeling in front of his lord

“What do you mean, Tiron?”

“I can't tell you your Majesty… It's just a feeling”

“Try to explain”

“It’s like looking at a dragon cub… He May be vulnerable now, but Stellar knows when the cub becomes an unstoppable force of nature”

“And he was sent by Stellar himself”

“So Jorlof believes”

“Should I kill the boy?”

“I… Don't recommend that, your Majesty?”

“Why?”

“The boy seems to be pure of heart and… I don't think your Majesty could bring himself to do such a thing”

“Do you think that time has turned me into a weak minded old man?”

“It’s not that… It's just that the boy is a perfect doppelganger of…”

“Enough”

“Sorry, your Majesty, I meant no offense… As I was saying, the boy is pure of heart and if properly nurtured he can be of great use to the kingdom”

“Do you think he has talent?”

“I don't know what he has that allowed him to rapidly increase his strength during his training exercise with Kalon, but I can tell that the boy has an incredible will power”

“Will power? I have seen many kids with such a thing crumble in the heat of battle”

“Your Majesty…”

“What?”

“... He doesn't care”

“What do you mean?”

“He doesn't care what will happen to him… He will keep going”

“And you can tell that by just looking at him once?”

“That boy is obsessed with survival… When he was training I could feel the agony he was experiencing by just looking… But he didn't stop… He kept going like his life depended on that… Imagine what someone with this mindset can do on the battlefield”

“Mh… I have never seen you talk like this about a youngling”

“Nor I could ever think of doing so, your Majesty”

“Do you think he will make a good soldier?”

“Well…” Tiron made a strange face 

“What’s with that look?”

“I was told that he has quite the temperament…”

“What do you mean?”

“He… Has a quick tongue, your Majesty… It seems like he tricked the intruder in releasing more heath to catch Tarlen attention by irritating the man”

“... What kind of person can drive someone from that organization to make such a mistake?”

“Apparently, the boy can”

“... He is gonna cause a few headaches, isn't he?”

“So it seems… But I think he can become a great asset for the kingdom, your Majesty”

“Well, I hope all the noble families will think the same, because otherwise it's gonna be rough for him once he is on the frontline”

“Do you want to send him to the frontline?”

“Well, a diamond can become one only under great pressure… I will give him that… How long do you think it will take before he gets to that level?”

“A few months, at least”

“Mhh… Sounds reasonable, now, I think it's time for the trial, isn't it?”

“Yes, your Majesty… But there is something else I would like to discuss beforehand”

“What?”

“The awakening of the boy…”

“Isn't he already awakened? Didn’t Kalon feed him a lot of low level Mana crystals?”

“They didn't trigger the awakening… Kalon said it was like a drop in a dry ocean and that it would be needed a Supreme level Mana crystal to awaken him’’

‘’Have the priests gone mad? Don’t they know that those crystals are only for the supreme talents, the royal heir and for researches of top priority?’’

‘’I think they do… But it seems they consider the boy worthy’’

‘’...’’ the king started massaging his temples because all that he heard from Tiron made him understand that the situation was going to be quite messy from that point onward

‘’Well, let’s get over this… Summon the Royal Court and start the trial’’

‘’As you command, your Majesty’’

Terta, Stellaria Continent, Temple of Stellar, cantin 

“I bet you were broke” said Tarlen, looking at the empty plate in front of Julius 

“You better believe I was… And I can tell you were not by looking at your plate and how you eat”

“I eat in a normal way… It’s just you who can eat all that food”

“No, it's just that your slow ass never had to run to get food in all his life”

“Can the two of you please relax? You have being going at each other for almost an hour”

“Tell that to the boy… He is gonna bankrupt the kingdom if he eats like that all the time”

“You are asking for a punch in your face”

“Boy, did you forget that I can kill you with a snap of my finger? Maybe you should eat more fish, it's good for the memory”

“Nono, there is no need for that… I think that a clap of your chicks is enough to vaporize an entire city” 

That comment made the few priests in the cantin laugh. 

The dynamic between Julius and Tarlen was something that nobody could have expected but, as two fellow outsiders, they could relate to each other. One was a training maniac, obsessed with survival, and the other was a battle maniac, always ready to risk his life. 

All the laughs were cut down when a giant man appeared in the room 

“High Priests Kalon and Tarlen, you are required to escort, together with me, the defendant to the trial… The Royal court summon you all” 

“As the king commands” replied the two priests

“Julius, come, it's time” whispered Kalon, getting closer to the guy 

Once the trio arrived near Tiron, the commander focused his gaze on Julius

“Boy… What happened to you? You are…”

“A broke ass bastard, that's what he is…” murmured Tarlen 

“I’m a young handsome man?” replied Julius “Never seen one? Don't tell me there is something that moved the feeling of such an intimidating man” 

Everybody froze

“Boy… Watch your tongue” slowly said Tiron, releasing part of his aura and directing it towards the young man “Let’s see how much you can hold on”

From Julius prospective, everything froze