7. Revenge

"Not again, I have to run." Claude exclaimed, wide-eyed as he saw his mother grinning.

Claude swiftly rose from his bed.

"Ugh, ARGH!!" But it was too late; the fire leaped, scorching his back. Despite the spreading flames, Claude tried to stay calm.

He dashed to the bathroom, rinsing his back and grabbing water from a dipper, throwing it towards his mother.

Amber grew angrier with Claude's antics; the fire in her hands turned to smoke, mirroring the flames engulfing the room.

"You dare to resist! Hah?!"

His mother, surrounded by smoke, stood her ground; it was her power.

'Ah! Why am I so careless? I escalated her emotions; she's a fire witch, of course, she can control smoke too!" For his safety, Claude ran downstairs, heading outside the mansion.

"Ka-ne." Claude unconsciously called for Kane, the only person with teleportation magic. If he could summon him, Claude would instruct Kane to take him away from this hellish home.

"Kane!!" Claude yelled louder.

At the door, Claude spotted his twin siblings, Misca and Michael, who had just finished playing.

"Claude? What's wrong?" they asked simultaneously. Their eyes widened as they saw their mother chasing Claude with her powers, her body surrounded by smoke.

Claude hurriedly strategized. 'Each character I created has three skills or powers. Claude is a support with healing as one skill, and his third skill allows him to control two people nearby.'

He touched his siblings' shoulders, and instantly, Misca and Michael's eyes turned green; they couldn't control their bodies—Claude had taken their bodies and consciousness.

'Lucky! Their magic element is water, like dad.'

Amber realized something was amiss with her children, noticing Claude's control. Seeing him smirk like her, she thought, 'She must be afraid to confront them.'

Claude grinned even wider; finally, he won. Planning to defeat his mother now, he didn't care if he became an orphan; he would eliminate those threatening characters.

"Release them," the mother pleaded.

Claude refused to listen, pressing harder on his siblings' shoulders. Amber began to retreat as Claude unleashed thousands of ice needles towards her, a power not expected at their level one magic—normally just water. But under Claude's control, Misca and Michael's powers transformed to level five ice, progressing to level ten as their abilities eventually became crystal elements.

Crack

The floating ice needles melted, and Claude suddenly fainted as he felt a blow to his neck.

"Phew, that was close." The one behind Claude's collapse was his father, Arthur, who sighed while lifting Claude's unconscious body.

Misca and Michael regained control, touching their shoulders with trembling hands.

"This is insane!" exclaimed Michael, surprised. After breaking free from Claude's control, his power reverted to its original state.

****

Following the incident, Natan became absorbed in Claude's character, feeling insane. Numerous near-death experiences made Claude increasingly wary, not hesitating to harm anyone he deemed a threat, be it Duke or Count.

It took five months for Claude's body to fully recover, during which he displayed intense resentment towards his own family. He avoided touch, care, and even eye contact with his father. Each time his siblings entered his room, he'd get angry.

Due to his unstable emotions, Claude was left alone; even the servants feared serving him. Food and drink were left at his door; no one dared to approach him. Claude's parents felt guilty for shattering his mental state during those five months. He never left the house, considering everyone dangerous.

Claude became a terrifying person. His behavior intensified; every morning, he brought nails, stabbing the family photos, even those of his mother, father, and siblings.

No one dared to approach Claude; only ordinary people without powers, the enslaved people dared to get close.

Ten years later, Claude resembled Rapunzel, locked in a tower, and during that time, he never descended. His parents were afraid of him.

During his confinement, Claude spent his time making dolls. He crafted two large wooden dolls taller than himself and began learning to control his mana.

Not being a mage, Claude used his mana to control the dolls. After a brief touch, he painted the eyes of the wooden dolls, then sat on both dolls he crafted.

"Hahaha, done!" Claude cheered. Finally, after ten years, he successfully created mana-controlled dolls. He equipped one doll with a sword and the other with two sharp knives, typical of an assassin.

"And look at this, my masterpiece!"

Claude clapped his hands, caressing the faces of the dolls, one resembling himself in the real world (Natan) and the other very much like Claude. Claude then leaned in, kissing the cold lips of one doll.

"First, let's kill my mother, love. I hate that character so much," Claude muttered with a vengeance

During unsuspecting nights, Claude dropped his bed from the window and lowered both dolls. Claude grinned, extracting mana from his hands and transforming it into invisible threads connected to the bodies of the two dolls.

"Let's move, my dear. Let's kill the fire woman in her sleep, hihihi," Claude said.

"Ah!"

As Claude controlled his dolls, a flash of light appeared. Someone pushed him abruptly, causing him to fall to the floor. Claude couldn't see the person's face; they were cloaked. The mysterious figure thwarted his plan by severing the mana threads Claude had created.

"Who are you? Damn!" Claude yelled in frustration.

"My hand, ugh." Claude's hand felt painful, crushed by his own body. His plan had failed.

"I know you're upset," said the person. Opening their cloak, revealing a face that Claude very familiar with.

"The owner of teleportation magic...," Claude mumbled.

He saw a young man under the cloak, his age and features mirroring Claude's. Claude was astonished; the young man had long, jet-black hair, a code on his cheek, and beautiful yet blood-red eyes that shone. His pale, paper-like skin completed the eerie picture.

"Kane?!" Claude exclaimed in disbelief. At just 14 years old, why was Kane so tall and mature-looking?

Claude was shocked because Kane had teleported to his mansion, a considerable distance from the palace. It meant the kid had grown stronger.

"Yeah, yeah, it took me a long time to get here. Got lost several times because I didn't know your house, and finally found you at age 14," Kane explained arrogantly.