||To Change a Destiny||

{~Chapter 21: The Truth~}

To say the situation was awkward is an understatement.

For a good half hour, the massive dining room was filled with silence and tension so thick that Bai He could take a knife and cut through it like butter.

Finally, Princess Iron Fan cleared her throat. "When my husband told me that we would be having company... I assumed it would've just been our son. I wasn't expecting the rest of you... mortals." She picked up her cup. "Now, tell me; why exactly have you intruded upon our dinner plans?"

Mei, casually stuffing her face with noodles, was the one to reply. "We're looking for the Samadhi Fire."

DBK spat out his water. "THE SAMADHI WHAT—?!"

Princess Iron Fan was equally as baffled. "The Samadhi Fire is one of the most powerful weapons in all existence... what purpose would you children have to—?!"

"The Lady Bone Demon," Red Son stated. "We need it to stop her and save MK."

DBK scoffed. "I can only assume the Great Sage has sent you on this moronic quest."

"W...Well, moronic or not,"  Bai He tried, scared out of her mind, "it's our only option to save our friend!!"

DBK looked like he was about to say something, but was stopped when his wife gave him a look. As he turned away, PIF addressed the group.

"What exactly do you know of the Samadhi Fire?"

Mei blinked. "Well, we know it's this super power flame, and—"

"It was sealed into three super secret rings and scattered all over the land!" Bai He added.

"And, apparently... it came from me." Red Son muttered. He looked at his mother, who tensed up. He didn't like that reaction. He didn't like that at all. "Mother... is that true? Did... Did I really make the Samadhi Fire?"

After a moment of silence, she responded, not looking at her son. "Yes... it's true. The Samadhi Fire was created by you as a child."

When she saw Red Son's expression, she began the story. "When you were born, you appeared to be the same as any other demonic child...! A promising addition to the Demon Bull Family...

"...Too promising."

It all came running back in scenes of red hot destruction. Laughter. That unsettling gleam in the child's eye, who's knowledge was limited and believed this all to be some fun game.

"As you grew, your power became... unstable. Despite our efforts, we could not control him... Reluctantly—"

"We were given no option but to.. remove this power." DBK finished.

The scene was as clear as day. His son in a whirling sphere of flames, laughing and grinning like nothing else was going on. When the rings were forged, all he could think about was his son. He didn't hesitate to drop the cursed ring in order to catch the little infant from falling, who had fallen asleep as if a powerful weapon wasn't just ripped from him.

"So, you see, it would be possible for imbeciles such as yourself to wield such a power, if even the spawn of the Demon Bull King could not."

When his father concluded the story, Red Son glanced down at his hand. So, it really was true. The Samadhi Fire was his creation.

Even as his parents left to lie down, he still stared at his hand, deep in thought.

If he had wielded it once before...

Surely, he could do it again?

"Red Boy? Helloooooo?"

Red Son looked up to see Bai He. He groaned.

"Ugh, not you too. It's bad enough that Dragon Girl is already calling me that."

Bai He giggled. "Sorry, sorry... it's catchy. Uh... are you okay? You've been like that for a bit... Sandy and Mei already went to look for the guest rooms."

Red Son huffed and stood up. "I'm okay... it's just a lot to take in right now.

The little girl nodded. "I get it... it must be hard to process. Do you want to talk about it? Or...?"

The demon shook his head. "No... it's okay. Let's just go. I'm sure those idiots are bound to get lost."

As they both walked out of the dining hall, Red Son still felt uneasy. But he didn't want to put it on Bai He. They all had enough to deal with without him giving them more to stress about with his own worries. It would be fine.

It would be fine.