Secret Bond

"What's happening?" Alina asked, her voice tinged with worry as the carriage bearing the barony's coat of arms swiftly departed from the manor, driven by a fully armored knight.

In it, two women and a crying kid were sitting with concerned faces.

"What's happening?" Alina asked, still overwhelmed by how quickly everything went downhill.

While chatting with Eleanor over tea and late-night snacks, Lucius suddenly burst into the room in a panic. He asked about Julius's whereabouts and instructed them to wait at the manor's entrance before rushing out to find the boy.

"The damned bastard came back to take revenge on his father," Eleanor murmured, preoccupied with her husband's well-being.

Alina heard her and thought pensively about who that bastard could be.

As the carriage moved on the bumpy road, the steady beat of the horse's steps on stones echoed in the dark. Inside, hushed conversations mingled with the gentle sound of wheels, creating a peaceful atmosphere.

"Sniff... It's over. Big brother is dying, and no one can help him now."

Julius, still crying, was now holding his brother in his arms. Unwilling to see him be dragged like a rag behind him. With his face covered in tears and snot, he looked quite pitiful.

After hearing that, Alina couldn't help but look at her son worriedly.

"Julius, what are you talking about? You already mentioned that earlier. Wasn't your big brother an imaginary friend?" She asked.

Hearing her mention that he was imaginary for the umpteenth time in recent years made him snap in anger.

"He is not!" Julius's voice cracked, his grief and frustration boiling over.

"He's a ghost only I can hear and see. He's been with us, for as long as I can recall. He looked after and instructed me, cleaned the house and helped Grandpa Theodore brew potions. Grandpa knew about him as well. For a few years, he communicated through me, using my finger to write with..."

*Slap*

Julius stopped screaming and held his cheek, shock visible on his face. Alina had cut him off by slapping him for what seemed to be the first time in his life.

With sadness in her eyes and tears welling up, she immediately realized that her son's big brother was the ghost who communicated with her and Theodore using dust and ash.

"You both kept this secret from me all these years? Did you think I was that untrustworthy?" Alina's voice trembled with hurt and betrayal.

She always wanted to thank the ghost who helped her so much after he disappeared. However, unbeknownst to her, he had never left and continued to help them.

Astonished, Eleanor looked at Julius and Alina. What was this whole story about a ghost and whatnot?

"Explain everything from the beginning!" Alina ordered her son, who had been lying to her his whole life.

Calmed by the slap and shaken by Alina's tone, Juliu began recounting the stories of an old man, a ghost and a young boy, detailing their plan to join the barony."

"He asked us not to tell you anything, to let you live your life in peace, unrelated to ghosts, magic and paranormal things."

Julius ended his recollection feeling a hint of guilt. No matter the reason, it was true that he lied to his mother for years. 

"He helped us for years in secret, without asking for anything in return and didn't want to implicate me because he promised to let me live in peace..."

Alina's trembling voice echoed Julius's sentiments, her gratitude mingled with remorse as she realized the extent of the ghost's sacrifice.

"In other words, you three devised a plan... to deceive us," Eleanor said suspiciously, her gaze wary.

"We didn't! We planned to deliver our part of the deal. I have never seen my big brother lie." Julius insisted, feeling wrongly accused.

"I can guarantee that making a deal with him can only benefit you." Alina chimed in, not liking to hear his benefactor be called a scammer.

Eleanor hesitated, torn between doubt and trust, her gaze lingering on Julius and Alina.

"Sight, I trust the both of you. After all, we lived together for half a year, but I want to speak with your brother and have him clarify things." 

After six months, Eleanor was certain that the mother-and-son duo harbored no ill intentions. However, she didn't know Adam and had to ensure he was as clean as the other two.

Moreover, her goal had always been to help her son find powerful and trustworthy allies. She didn't really care that Adam was the real genius instead of Julius as long as he was loyal.

However, despite the duo trying to reassure her, she couldn't help but doubt. Could she trust someone who made a plan that resulted in a poor commoner being adopted by nobles?

'To think that everything was planned and that we danced in the palm of his hand...' Eleanor thought, frowning.

Little did she know that nothing of the sort was planned. Adam's real plan was for Julius to show enough mastery over mana to at least become an apprentice knight. Afterwards, he would sneak into the library as often as possible to allow him to learn new magical knowledge.

'I really hope he is clean. His plan-making abilities are even scarier than Gaston's, that devious bastard.' She saw in him a potential incredible ally but also a terrible threat if he was ill natured.

"Why did you say he was dying?" Alina asked, her concern evident after she calmed down a bit.

"No matter what I do, I can't wake him up. I don't know what is happening. It's the first time I have seen him like this." Julius finally explained the source of his anguish. 

"Maybe he needs to rest to heal his soul? I remember that it was wounded seven years ago." Alina theorised.

"I don't think that is the reason. Is he fading or becoming more transparent?" Eleanor asked Julius.

"No, everything is normal, except that he doesn't wake up," Julius answered.

"He shouldn't be dying then. Let's wait a little longer before thinking about the worst." Eleanor said, reassuring Julius and Alina.

While they were discussing Adam's condition, the carriage suddenly slowed down and came to a stop. Its passengers, confused by the brusque halt, stuck their heads out of the window to see why. 

They saw an armored man walking on the paved road, his face filled with guilt and cast downward.