He quickly opened his eyes to see his mother, Gina, sitting next to him on a king-sized bed within the castle walls. The whole reincarnation thing had really worked.
He felt a distant sense of comfort as his eyes scanned the opulently adorned prince's room. The grand clock nestled in the corner, the gold framed mirrors, the scented candelabra on an antique oak desk drawer…
Kion was back home. And not a moment too son, his eyes landed on a woman sat across him on the bed, staring at him with curious blue eyes
"What would you do without your mother here to wake you up?" Gina teased playfully, and Kai smiled.
In his past life, she was the only one who had loved him, but could only stand back in tears as her son was banished from the kingdom. In the aftermath of it all, she'd killed herself from the pain, and Everglade kingdom was without a queen.
But here she was again, in the flesh, with her usual kindness and affection. Kion was happy that she hadn't changed one bit.
"Good morning mother. What could I ever do without you?" he said in a surprisingly groggy voice.
"Nothing, sonny, because I'll always be there by your side when you need me. Now why don't you go freshen up? You've got a big day today."
"What's today again, mother?"
His mother looked at him with a shocked expression.
"It's the day of your ascension, you big, forgetful boy." She said as she gently tugged at his left ear. Even when she scolded at him, she did it with love.
If Kion had remembered correctly, this was the day his life was going to be ruined.
But that wouldn't be the case. He was in control of the script now.
He was about to tell his mother something when two guards barged into the room, knocking the double doors open.
Usually, this level of insolence from the Imperial guards would have been received with a beheading, but Kion was left shocked as his mother, who should have been scolding them, bowed her head down in defeat, almost as if she was some…
…mere commoner.
The very thought resounded in his brain.
Don't expect everything to be the same.
Thea had warned, and everything began to make sense when one of the guards finally opened his mouth to speak.
"The King's bastard son and his whore of a mother are requested in the Royal court."
Kion flinched.
In this timeline, Gina was not queen. And even worse, was that this didn't qualify him as an heir.
Suddenly, he heard another voice, distant yet approaching.
"Do you want to come? Or would you rather we dragged you and your filthy mother to the throne room."
His heart sank as he saw his brother (now half-brother) appear at the door to his room, the heir's crown adorning the top of his head.
"Hello little brother." Kai Everglade said with a wicked smirk.
***
Kion never remembered Kai to be so bold.
In his past life, Kai had been the underdog. Kion carried all the feats, all the makings of a king, while his brother, while being fully capable on his own, basked in his shadow.
But now, it seemed they weren't even fully brothers, but mere half-brothers. Kion was even more shocked when Kai had called him "little brother", suggesting to the former that Kai was the older of the pair.
"You look like shit." Kai remarked. "Well, you always look like shit, and as you've always known, I do not care. As the guard said earlier, you both are ordered to come to the court right this instant. Father is expecting you for the awakening, which in my head is simply a waste of time on a talentless dump like you."
Kion was still getting used to everything, so he didn't retort nor retaliate
Kai was about to leave when he stopped, clearly hungry to hurl more insults at the duo.
"And also…" he continued.
"Tell your slutty mother to cover up properly in the presence of the king. We don't want her whoring around with any more guards."
Kai continued, and the guards snickers at their various spots.
Kai was about to leave when—
"Just stop right there!" Kion's voice boomed with a strange confidence that caused everyone to stop in their tracks.
Gina tugged at his arm, beckoning him not to cause a fuss, but Kion wouldn't have any of that bullshit.
It was one thing to insult him, but it was another to come at his mother. In his past life, despite his overall prowess and strengths, Kion had been a little too calm. This had caused him to be easily banished and thrown out of his own kingdom, forced to live the remaining one year of his life as a mercenary.
There, he had found a fire soul core, integrating it's raw power into his longsword to give him access to skills and talents. It would have made him weaker than a standard soul-bound cultivator yes, but he would still have a fighting chance, an advantage.
With his past battle strength and smarts, he would become a force to be reckoned with, going on to become the notorious leader of the Sacrilax gang.
He'd found rage.
He'd found will.
He'd found fire.
And if he wasn't mistaken. If that Thea goddess hadn't completely screwed him over…
That fire followed him here, to this new timeline, embedded into the very depths of his soul core.
He wasn't the same Kion. He was something more.
And he sure as hell wouldn't sit by and watch his mother get slandered.
"What did you say to me?" Kai questioned with an equally intimidating tone, shaking off the momentary shock to deal with this anomaly.
To him, Kion had simply had a slip of tongue. He'd misspoken to him, and of course, the brat was going to give a swift apology, at least not before Kai and the other guards present beat him up to a pulp.
But Kai was even more shocked when the so-called brat got out from bed and walked up to his face.
"And who do you think you're talking to like that?" Kion barked in his face.
??!
This wasn't part of the script.
It had never happened before, but all of a sudden, Kion had some balls.
Battle wise, they were worlds apart, with Kai getting the best trainers the kingdom could offer while Kion scraped by with the amateurs.
But they weren't much so different physically, bearing almost the same height and musculature. Some even mistook them for twins. The only difference being their hair: Kai's was long and golden, while Kion's was fiery red and short.
But still, this shouldn't have given this boy the audacity.
In Kion's position, having confidence like this didn't amount to much due to his low impact within the castle walls. From another's perspective, including the guards and Gina, what Kion did was sure to have been foolish.
But Kai knew better. With this kind of confidence came will, bravery…
Strength
It terrified Kai.
If he didn't treat this fuck up from his little brother. It would only be a matter of time before the useless bastard would plot to usurp the throne with his mother.
And that was totally unacceptable.
Kion was slightly surprised when he saw a gloved fist flying at his face.
Is this fool about to punch me?
Time seemed to slow as Kion analysed the trajectory of the punch, the speed at which it came at his left cheek…
What an amateur. Kion thought.
His past self would've eaten this pompous prince.
He thought of countering, deflecting the punch to the side and jabbing the flat of his palm straight at Kai's gullet. That would've silenced the asshole real quick.
But Kion also knew that it would be too much disrespect, considering he's meant to be the underdog here.
Besides, there were four guards in his room. If he were to badly humiliate the crowned prince, they wouldn't stand by and watch. They would come at him. And Kion knew he was outnumbered. He definitely couldn't take on four armoured guards all at once.
In the end, he knew what he had to do.
CLAP!
Kai was flabbergasted as Kion's hand clamped around his fist, successfully stopping his punch mid-air.
"I'm going to make this clear to you." Kion said, his eyes narrowed, as his hand insidiously squeezed Kai's fist, bending the wrist at an unnatural angle and causing him to wince in pain.
Everyone was shocked. The guards, most especially, had not expected this. Naturally, Kai should be fully capable of beating his brother to a pulp. His strength was highly outmatched, even among them.
The older brother usually beat up the younger one, not the other way around. But it seemed with Kion's newfound confidence came strength.
"You, or anyone else, will not call my mother a whore. Call me bastard for all I care, but keep the insults away from her. Do you understand?" He strategically deepened his tone, sending waves of intimidation at not just Kai, but the stunned guards.
Kai seemed to hesitate in giving a reply, and Kion squeezed some more, crushing his bones. Kion himself was also a bit surprised. He was not this strong in his past life. It seemed that getting a soul core gave a significant boost to his strength, or maybe it was just a goodbye gift from Thea.
Either way, he was determined to make a statement today. No more calmness. If he was to not be a pushover; if he was to survive, he would have to show them he was not someone to be trifled with.
He stopped squeezing and let go when Kai let out a slight yelp. At the same time, the guards finally went on alert as their hands instinctively went to their weapons.
Kai glared at him, malice burning in his eyes. He hadn't given Kion an answer, but the message had been passed.
"Let's go. And leave these two to rot in here for all I care."
With a snap of his fingers, Kai, along with the rest of the foot soldiers, exited the room.
Gina found herself mesmerized, and above all, scared. This was not the Kion she knew.
"That was incredible." She mumbled.
Kion turned to see her shocked expression and chuckled.
"You look like you've seen a ghost, mother." He said with a smirk.
"Well. I suppose I'll see you later. I have an awakening ceremony to get to."