The Lord Is Too Overbearing

Basil looked at the scene in front of him in a slight bewilderment and fascination. He was conscious of what he was currently doing, but he didn't actually know what he was doing; he felt unfamiliar with it, but he felt so right doing it.

If he were to analogize it, it would be like having one's memories wiped clear, and then doing the habit one always did prior to losing the memory.

He had actually felt this feeling in Death Howl when he had done it to Caesar, but he felt the feeling clearer this time. No different than his first time of doing it however, he still didn't quite know what the purpose of the act.

What makes the current situation different than the one he had done back then at Death Howl Dungeon is his state: he had been half conscious when he was doing it to Caesar, whereas now he was fully conscious while doing it to Deacon.

He had early meant to pat Deacon's head, but he had suddenly channeled his Mana to his hand and utilized it the way he had never done before—the way he didn't even know he knew of.

Faced with such a bewildering situation, Basil's reaction was, "Interesting."

He was a practical man; he knew, due to what he was carrying, himself was an enigma. He was aware that he was carrying a mystery that was far greater than what the world had.

Unexplainable situation? Bewildering phenomenon? Though he didn't know what was actually happening, he was sure the cause was either the Fragment inside him or the Guide. Racking his brain for an explanation would be a waste of time.

'What am I currently doing?'

[The Host is channeling his Mana to his Beast Companion in a special way that is not in the norm of Magic Principle.]

Not even the Guide could provide him a definite answer.

'What is this activity I am doing called?'

[Such information is still restricted for the current stage of the Guide.]

From the answer, Basil could conclude two things: first, the "phenomenon" wasn't caused by the Guide, since if it was, the guide would have provided an explanation to him; second, the phenomenon was influenced by the Fragment inside him, and that means its existence was far greater than he had thought.

Even though Matheus had explained to him what Fragments were, there were still some things Matheus didn't tell him about.

—What is the true identity of Fragments?

—Where did Tablet of Truth come from?

—Why was Tablet of Truth split into Four Fragments in the very first place?

—Who has ever united all of Four Fragments, and fully utilized Tablet of Truth?

He had also asked many things about the Fragment to the guide so he could satiate his curiosity, but he had always been provided with a generic answer that he had already thought of even before he was answered.

After the upgrade of the Guide, he could ask it many questions which had been restricted to him prior to the upgrade. In the case of anything related to the Fragment however, he still had to upgrade the Guide once again.

Therefore, he couldn't exactly tell what was currently happening to me. However, he could still call the phenomenon with his own term ... Or what he had heard from Caesar and Deacon.

He settled with calling what he was currently doing Blessing.

When he felt that his bond with Deacon had become stronger than ever, Basil stopped channeling his Mana to his hand. The faint white light that was covering his hand slowly faded as he retracted his hand afterward.

He looked at the very hand he had used Bless Deacon in silent contemplation; he was sure he had spent his Mana, but he didn't feel even a tiny part of the Mana he stored in his Heart was used.

'What did I use, then?' Basil quickly shook his head at the question he knew he wouldn't know the answer of, and returned his gaze to Deacon. Said Companion was slowly opening his eyes, and stared at Basil brightly when his eyes were completely opened.

[That was amazing, Master! You make me feel something I have never felt before!]

At Deacon's choice of words, the students, who had been witnessing the scene in wonderment, turned a sceptical eyes to Basil. They were now suspicious of what Basil was actually doing.

Different than the sick minded students, of course, Basil didn't think Deacon had chosen his words wrong. There was nothing wrong in Deacon's choice word, as he had merely expressed what he had felt.

"How did it feel?"

[It felt EXTREMELY good! I have never felt that warm since the day I was born. It was as if I was in the embrace of the mother I didn't know I have!]

Deacon wiggled his tail excitedly, sweeping the ground where his butt was currently resting, and raising dust up to the air. In the next moment however, he stopped wiggling his tail and stared Basil seriously; his bright expression was wiped off his face.

[Master. Can I say something?]

"Speak."

[I have never thought of you that way before, but the thing you did to me earlier made me feel so good; I felt we were closer than ever at that moment.]

The students, who had looked at Basil with sceptical eyes jokingly before, were now genuinely looking at Basil with sceptical eyes. 'What in Akasha's knowledge Basil has done to Deacon?! Why does Deacon sound so suspicious?!'

[I think it is time to further our relationship, Master.]

While Basil was quirking his eyebrow in curiosity at Deacon, the other students were screaming internally. 'Bloody hell! This conversation is getting weirder in each passing second!'

Despite of having a great urge to stop the conversation right away, the students waited patiently for Deacon to finish his sentence. While hypothesizing was one of the Mage's traits, prejudice was something a Mage would never do.

[C-Can I—Can I call you Father?!]

At the rather unexpected and heartwarming next word of Deacon, the students' mind went blank for a second. 'H-Huh? It turns out better than what I expected?' was what they all had in their mind.

Basil, as the person whom the request was directed to, crossed his hand, and lightly sighed at the expectant Deacon.

"No," was his instant reply.

[W-Why, Master?! Am I not good enough?]

'Eh?! He refused? How could he refuse such a good boy?!' Even the crowd was a little bit disappointed by Basil's decisiveness.

Uncaring to the people, whose face had changed so many times in the last few minutes, Basil waved his hand nonchalantly. "You are good enough as my Companion, but you can never be my child. You are a Saberwolf, I am a human; I can only have a human child."

At Basil's answer, the crowd was a little bit conflicted. 'That's true, but look at the poor boy ... He is genuinely sadde—ah, he's back to normal again.' As Deacon's eyes lit up brightly, the students watched curiously at what Deacon's next course of action.

[Then, I can just make myself look like a human so you can take me as your child, right?!]

At the enthusiastic question, Basil flatly answered, "No."

[But, why?!]

"Yeah, why?!" Even the students couldn't hold back this time.

Snorting coldly, Basil righteously said, "I am still young. I have many things to do; I got no time to waste on being a parent." Frowning lightly, his mind recalled a particular memory of the past. "Besides, I don't have the capability to be a parent."

Looking deeply into Deacon's eyes, Basil continued, "Whether you become my child or remain my Companion, both still makes you my ally. Status is nothing more than a trivial recognition; there is no actual worth in it."

Extending his hand, Basil put it on Deacon's snout. "Do you think our relationship can be measured by a mere status?" Basil lightly smirked, but he was cringing inwardly. 'Tsk. I can't believe I said that.'

Upon hearing Basil's word, Deacon was beyond moved. Looking at Basil with a deeply touched eyes, he opened his mouth.

[M-Master! Thank you for choosing me as your Companion! I vow to never let you down, and will always be your most dependable aide until the end!]

"Very well."

Basil nodded his head with a slight smile. Taking his hand off Deacon's snout, he looked at the the five students who had been watching him as if they were watching an opera; all of them were smiling at him upon receiving his gaze.

'To be able to enjoy this kind of useless drama ... As expected of a youngster.' Basil lightly shook his head. When he turned his gaze to Iliana, who was not that far from Deacon, unlike the others, she gave him a smirk. 'Well, at least this one is different.'

Turning his gaze back to Deacon, he motioned his hand at him. "Make yourself a little bit bigger." When he saw Deacon's puzzled expression, he added, "The current you is too small for me; I can't mount you."

Due to the earlier event, Deacon hadn't realized that Basil was actually standing at the same height as him when he stood on his four legs. He had been so immersed basking in the unique feeling he had felt for the first time, he didn't register how much Basil had grown.

Nodding his head once, Deacon utilized his Mana, and made his body bigger so Basil could mount him. It took him slightly more than a second to assume his 3.5 meters tall Saberwolf form.

Grasping the unsuspecting Iliana's hand, Basil jumped on top of Deacon along with her. "I know there is something you want to talk about," he whispered to Iliana.

Though Iliana stayed silent, Basil didn't need to hear her confirmation. He had been observing the way she behaved since the moment he had started Blessing; he knew that she knew something.

Disregarding the existence of the other five students, Basil instructed Deacon to dash forward.