F-Rank Soul Eater-Chapter 181: Little Aegon (Bond Of the Twilight Shade)

Aegon remembered his mother’s voice.

Her singing.

It was always soft.

Almost gentle.

The memory returned to him now as if dragged from the depths of a dark ocean.

He remembered the day she submerged him into the green fluid made from the crushed meat of Eldritch souls.

The liquid was thick.

Warm.

And alive in a way that made his skin crawl. The moment his small body sank into it—

Pain exploded across his skin.

Every pore burned as if tiny needles were digging under his flesh. "Mother... it hurts." His voice trembled.

The young Aegon tried to lift himself out of the basin, but her hand immediately pressed his shoulder down.

"Bear with it, little one."

Her voice was calm.

Too calm.

He looked up at her and saw that her eyes were hollow of feeling.

Her skin was sickly and pale, stretched thin enough that the green veins beneath it were visible, crawling like worms beneath fragile flesh.

Even submerged in the thick green liquid, he could hear it—

The faint cracking sounds of her bones shifting.

Arthritis had arrived too early for a woman barely in her early thirties.

Every time she moved her fingers, the joints popped softly.

Yet she never complained. And beneath the loose blouse she wore—

Her body was riddled with scars.

Long.

Jagged.

Ugly.

Scars she never hid from him.

In fact—

She made sure his eyes always saw them.

"Mother... it... it hurts." He pleaded again, his young eyes moist with tears. But his pleading did nothing to move her heart.

"I did not present myself as an offering to that disgusting pig of an Aegon patriarch for my saving grace out of this wretched family..."

Her voice hardened. "...only for you to be born without a spine."

The words were sharp enough to cut.

Aegon immediately shut up. He always hated when she got like that. If not for the ritual she was performing—

She might have struck him a couple of times.

Even though the green liquid burned his skin—

Her hitting him always hurt more. "Listen to me."

Suddenly her hand shot forward.

She grabbed him by the neck.

Her fingers dug deep into his skin. Squeezing just a little too tightly for a child.

"You still carry my blood."

Her hollow eyes stared directly into his.

"Even the disgusting Aegon blood in your veins cannot erase it."

Her voice lowered.

Almost reverent. "And we were bonded... to the Twilight Shade of Horned Desires."

A strange light flickered in her gaze.

"Today..."

"I will unlock that bond."

She reached to the side and picked up a blade.

Old.

Thin.

Covered in strange inscriptions.

Her lips began moving silently.

Muttering words that sounded wrong.

Ancient.

Then she placed the blade against the center of his forehead.

Aegon’s small body trembled.

"Mother...?" And the blade moved.

Slice.

The cut was shallow. But it burned.

Before he could react—

She cut her own wrist and blood immediately flowed from the wound.

It was Dark.

Thick.

Her hand hovered above his head. Allowing her blood to drip down. It mixed with his own.

The moment the two touched—

The green liquid around him violently reacted. The stinging pain multiplied.

It felt as though his nerves were being peeled open.

Little Aegon thrashed wildly in the basin.

But her grip on his neck only tightened.

"Stay still."

Her voice trembled slightly now.

"With this...My Richnic"

She whispered.

"You will defeat those step-siblings. You might share blood wuth them, but remember, they are your enemies, enemies whose corpses shall ladder your rise.."

Her blood continued dripping.

"And you will attain the position of heir."

Her breathing grew heavier.

"And I..."

"...will rise to the top."

Her voice echoed inside his young mind.

Then—

His eyes changed.

A strange shade of green appeared in them.

Within that green, iny specks shimmered, they were like distant stars.

At that moment—

The green ectoplasm within the basin began swirling violently.

It was all drawn toward him.

Pulled into his body like a vortex. And on the center of his forehead, a glowing Neuralink Rune slowly appeared.

Burning itself into his skin.

"Yes... Mother." He muttered through the agony of his pain. After all, for her. For this woman, he would do...anything.

The memory shifted again....

The darkness peeled away.

This time, Aegon found himself standing in a wide open courtyard.

The ground beneath his feet was polished black stone, engraved with old neutrallink runes that shimmered faintly under the afternoon sun.

Around him stood dozens of young members of the Aegon family.

They all wore tight fitted black clothing carrying the aegon family emblem on the left side of their chests.

All of them teenagers, and all of them were candidates.

This was the test.

The test that would determine who would carry the title of heir.

And more importantly—

Who the Aegon family would push forward to represent them at the Imperial Soulforge Academy.

Many of the youths looked frightening even at such a young age.

Boys and girls alike.

Their gazes were sharp and Predatory. They almost looked like wolves circling each other before a fight.

This was no ordinary family gathering. Every one of them knew the truth.

In this place—

Only one could rise.

Aegon stood quietly near the edge of the courtyard.

His tall mohawk hairstyle rose proudly from his head.

In this gathering, such an obvious hairstyle would pill attention. And of course, it did.

Suddenly, two boys approached him. They looked slightly older.

And definitely stronger.

The kind that already carried themselves like nobles who believed the world owed them respect.

One of them pointed at Aegon’s hair. Then burst into laughter. "What the hell is that?"

The other leaned closer. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"That thing on your head."

He snorted.

"It looks like a dog’s tail stuck on your skull."

The two boys laughed loudly.

Aegon frowned.

"It’s a mohawk," he replied stiffly.

"It protects my—" He stopped himself, mouth closing instantly.

His mother’s voice echoed in his mind.

’Never tell anyone.’

The entire reason for the hairstyle was to hide the result of that ritual night.

In such a harsh world, maturity came fast, especially if the individual was to survive.

And so Aegon knew. He knew his mother was only giving him an ace up his sleeve.

So instead, Aegon lowered his head slightly.

"...It just makes me look cool."

The two boys stared at him for a bit—

Then burst into even louder laughter.

"Cool?"

"Did you hear that!?"

They circled him like vultures.

"You weak useless thing. You can’tbe strong so you thought looking cool was your backup?."

"Useless."

One of them leaned close enough for Aegon to smell the mint on his breath.

"You’re the fruit of that woman."

His lips twisted cruelly. "No wonder you want to look cool. What? You want to seduce us like your shameless mother?"

"Yes... I remember her. The one who only knows how to spread her legs to pay debts."

The boys laughed.

The words struck Aegon like a blade.

His fists clenched tightly.

But he said nothing.

Because deep down—

He knew the truth.

It was what the entire family whispered behind his back... no, behind the back of him and his mother.

Their lives were used as casual entertainment for when the others were bored.

At that moment—

A sharp voice suddenly rang out.

"Stop it!"

A smaller figure rushed between them.

A young girl.

Younger than Aegon by at least a year.

Her eyes burned fiercely as she stood protectively in front of him.

"Don’t bully brother Richnic!"

The two boys frowned.

"Move aside, Mimi."

But she didn’t.

Instead she pointed angrily at them.

"If you don’t leave him alone..."

"I’ll report to the high elders that you said the Patriarch has no honor!"

The courtyard suddenly became quiet.

The two boys froze.

Because what they had just said...

Implied exactly that.

If the Patriarch had taken Aegon’s mother as a concubine as a means of debt collecting—

Then mocking her meant mocking him.

Their teeth clenched in frustration.

"Fine."

One of them spat on the ground.

But before leaving, he pointed directly at Aegon.

"We’ll see you soon."

His eyes glinted coldly.

"...in the Glass."

The two bullies walked away.

Their laughter fading into the crowd.

Silence followed.

Slowly—

Aegon turned toward the girl who had defended him. He wanted to thank her. Every time, she was the only one that stood up for him.

He never understood why.

His half-sister.

Mimi.

She looked up at him and smiled warmly.

Even now.

Even after everything.

But just as Aegon began to lift his head to smile back—

His mother’s voice echoed inside his mind.

’...all the children of the Aegon family are enemies.’

This was a reminder she had sang in his head regularly since as far back as he could remember.

His expression stiffened.

Instead of smiling—

He turned away awkwardly, and walked off without a word.

Behind him—

Mimi remained standing there.

Her smile slowly faded.

Leaving only a quiet, helpless sadness in her eyes....

(Author’s note: Still no Super Gift till now. Damn. Or any gift will be appreciated 😞 )