The Nameless Heir-Chapter 34: First Date

Liz sat on the bench with Kael on her lap, his head heavy against her legs. Her hand was on his forehead—steady, trembling slightly.

Golden light poured from her palm, soft at first... then brighter. Warmer.

"Kael..." she whispered.

She didn’t know what had happened. Didn’t know what to do. Her fingers moved through his hair—slow, careful, trembling.

But he didn’t respond.

She looked at him—

And noticed the change.

He was different. No longer the same person who had left for the underworld. Something was off. Subtle... but wrong.

She could feel it. He was hiding something. Even she knew—no one changed this much, not in so little time. His appearance. His behavior. All of it... different.

Even now, she kept telling herself—he was still the same. That maybe... nothing had changed.

Kael was floating in empty space, curled into a ball. His body was shivering. It was cold. Silent. Empty.

Then—

A light appeared in the darkness. Soft. Warm. Familiar.

He crawled toward it like a wounded animal, dragging himself through the void. Fingers trembling. Breath shallow.

And the moment his hand brushed the light—

He stirred.

His eyes opened. Slow... heavy...

Liz’s palm was still glowing. That same golden light washed over his face—gentle, alive.

It hit him like sunlight after a long, dreamless sleep.

"Hey, sunshine... mind turning down the light?"

His voice was low, still groggy.

She didn’t answer right away. Just looked at him—

Then slowly, her expression changed.

The fear faded.

Something softer took its place.

He opened his mouth to speak again, but no words came.

So she leaned in, wrapped her arms around his head, and pulled him against her chest.

Held him like she wasn’t ready to let go.

Holding him tightly—like she was afraid he might disappear again.

"Damn... today must be my lucky day," he mumbled, voice muffled against her. "Not that I’m complaining, but you’re really upping your hug count today."

"Shut up, stupid."

Her tone was soft. Warm. But she didn’t let go.

Instead, she tightened her grip—just for a second.

Then her voice shifted. Softer. More serious.

"Now... are you going to tell me what happened?"

Kael sat up and looked at her. Eyes steady.

"I still need to face this on my own," he said quietly, offering a soft smile.

"I’ll tell you soon."

She gave him a look—flat, unimpressed. Like she didn’t buy a single word he said.

Kael sighed and rested his hand on her head.

"I’m sorry, Liz."

His voice was quiet—gentle, steady.

"But this... this is something I have to face alone."

He lowered his gaze, words slower now.

"I promise—I’ll tell you everything. When the time comes."

She nodded slowly. Not a word. Just that slight movement—like she understood. Or wanted to.

—

Kael took a breath, grounding himself.

Then the sound hit him—shouts, steel, sparks.

He turned.

Rowan and Dax were still going at it.

Dax—son of Hephaestus—was no joke. Built like a forge, every blow behind him like a hammer strike.

Kael had fought Rowan before. He knew how strong the guy was. But this? This match was dead even.

Rowan had strength. But Dax had durability.

It wasn’t a fair fight—Rowan couldn’t use his axe. But his gauntlets were still in play. And that was enough to make it brutal.

Punch after punch—Rowan kept swinging. And every time, Dax blocked.

Unmoving. Unshaken.

Like a wall that wouldn’t break.

Then Rowan lunged.

A straight punch—right fist, all momentum.

Dax didn’t flinch. He formed a pair of gauntlets of his own and met the blow head-on.

The impact rang out like thunder.

And Dax’s gauntlet shattered.

Rowan slammed his left fist into Dax’s gut—

But the blow didn’t land clean. Dax had already summoned an armored suit, and the impact threw Rowan back like he’d hit solid stone.

Rowan rolled, stood quickly, and grinned.

"That all you got?" he said. "Come on, forge-boy."

Dax didn’t answer. He formed new gauntlets and charged.

Rowan saw the glow building—bright red, pulsing. Fire.

He braced himself. He had to time it right.

Their fists collided. Sparks exploded. Rowan twisted his arm mid-strike, slipped under Dax’s guard, and slammed a clean uppercut into his chin.

Dax staggered back.

Then opened his mouth—

And spat fire.

It hit Rowan full-on.

Heat ripped through him.

His clothes ignited. Flames crawled across his skin.

He tore the burning fabric off and threw it aside.

Blisters bubbled across his arms, raw and searing.

But he didn’t stop. He didn’t even flinch.

Chiron stepped forward to stop the match.

Rowan lifted a hand, unsteady.

"I said I’m fine."

He forced a grin. Didn’t quite match.

Dax didn’t wait. He rushed in again.

His gauntlets glowed. Both fists burning red.

Rowan crossed his arms to block.

The punches came fast. Hard.

Each one hit like a hammer. His bones rattled.

But still—he didn’t fall.

Something inside him was changing.

With every blow, his skin glowed red.

His eyes began to burn.

Then it happened.

He let out a scream.

A roar from deep inside.

It wasn’t pain. It was rage.

The force of it knocked Dax backward.

Rowan stood in the center of the arena, shaking.

His body glowed like embers.

He shot forward.

Dax responded with a wave of fire. Bigger. Hotter. Blinding.

Rowan didn’t care.

He ran through it—head down, skin blistering.

He punched.

Dax raised his gauntlets to block—

It shattered.

Rowan drove a fist into his gut. The hit lifted Dax off the ground.

But Rowan didn’t stop.

Punch after punch. Wild. Furious.

Breaking through what little armor Dax had left.

Dax couldn’t even fight back.

Rowan was gone—completely lost to it.

Caius and Vander rushed in.

They grabbed him by both arms, dragged him back—then slammed him to the ground and pinned him there.

He fought back for a second. Growled like an animal.

Then—

He stopped.

The glow faded.

His muscles went limp.

And he collapsed.

Chiron handed Dax some ambrosia.

Both fighters were taken to the side, bruised but breathing.

The crowd murmured, then fell silent.

Chiron stepped forward. His eyes swept over the arena—steady, unreadable.

Then his voice rang out, calm but final.

"Kael will not be fighting."

He paused.

"Liz, daughter of Apollo... you’re up next. You’ll face Thalia."

Another pause.

"Last match of the day."

Liz froze.

She didn’t want to leave Kael’s side. Not yet.

But Kael’s voice broke the tension—light and playful.

"Yeaaa, go get her! Ooo!" he said with a grin.

She didn’t say a word.

But the look in her eyes said enough.

Kael just smiled wider—like everything was going exactly the way he wanted.

Chiron stepped forward. His voice calm.

"I will watch over him. You can go."

Liz let out a small breath. Her shoulders dropped slightly.

She gave Kael one last glance, then stood and walked to the center of the field.

Chiron sat beside Kael in silence.

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Then Chiron broke the silence. His voice low—measured.

"Are you alright, child?"

Kael didn’t respond at first.

His eyes stayed on Liz—still. Quiet.

Then, finally, he spoke. Barely above a whisper.

"You already know... don’t you?"

Chiron gave a faint smile. Warm. Tired.

He didn’t answer. He didn’t have to.

Kael’s voice came again, even softer.

"So... what should I do?"

Chiron looked at him carefully. Like every word mattered.

Then he said,

"Pain doesn’t go away just because you want it to, Kael.

And it doesn’t make you weak.

The truth is... some things stay with us forever. But that doesn’t mean something’s wrong with you."

Kael stayed quiet.

So Chiron kept going.

Gentle. Firm.

"You don’t have to forget what happened. You don’t even have to be okay.

But you do have to keep going."

He placed a hand on Kael’s shoulder. It wasn’t heavy.

But it felt steady. Grounded.

"Accept what you’ve been through. Accept who you are now.

That’s how you start healing. Not by forgetting. But by accepting it’s part of you."

His eyes narrowed slightly. Tone softening.

"Don’t let his sacrifice be in vain."

Kael didn’t say anything.

He just kept watching Liz—now standing at the edge of the field.

Then finally, he turned to Chiron.

"Thank you," he said quietly.

Chiron smiled, then walked toward the battle.

The match began.

Liz stood ready with her bow. The arrows had round tips—meant to strike, not kill.

Across from her, Thalia held a wooden spear and shield.

Before Thalia could charge, Liz fired—three arrows, fast.

Thalia moved quickly. Dodged two. Blocked the third.

Then she sprinted forward, spear low.

Liz jumped back, flipped once in the air—and while still upside down, loosed another volley.

Thalia blocked again. But when she looked up—

Liz was gone.

A shadow flashed at her side. More arrows came, circling like a storm.

Kael watched in silence.

She made it look effortless. She always did.

Thalia spun, trying to keep up, but Liz never stopped moving.

She ran. Turned. Fired.

Then she stopped. Just for a second.

She pulled one arrow back—this one glowing.

Gold light shimmered along the shaft.

Kael’s eyes widened.

Liz fired.

The arrow tore through the air like a beam—bright, fast, sharp.

It hit Thalia’s shield—

And kept going.

It pierced straight through, struck her chest, and knocked her to her knees.

She gasped. Gripped the point of impact.

Her breath hitched. But her eyes— ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm

They weren’t angry.

They were impressed.

Chiron raised a hand.

"That’s it."

He stepped forward and handed Thalia ambrosia.

—

On the sidelines, Kael was still cheering like a ridiculous cheerleader.

"YAY, Sunshine, you go!"

Liz walked over, her expression somewhere between tired and amused.

"You are so strong," Kael said with a grin.

She brushed it off. But her smirk gave her away.

The match ended. The crowd thinned.

One by one, the students drifted off—back to their rooms, their noise fading behind stone walls.

Kael and Liz didn’t move right away.

They lingered.

Then, without saying much, they started walking.

No real direction. Just side by side.

Eventually... they ended up in the cafeteria.

Kael was starving. It hit all at once.

The only thing he remembered having—if you could even call it food—was water from the River Styx.

He sprinted to the food line.

Didn’t hold back. Grabbed everything—wraps, burgers, soup, steak, smoothie.

Then dropped into the seat next to Liz, who was calmly eating just a burger.

Kael looked at her burger. Then at his mountain of food. Then back at her.

He squinted.

"You better not touch my food."

Liz gave him a devilish look.

He covered everything instantly.

"No."

She laughed.

"Eat. We can’t stay here forever."

Kael took a huge bite. Then, mouth full, said,

"So does this count as a date?"

Liz smiled.

"I don’t know. It would be a bad date—especially since my date won’t share his food."

He looked at the tray. Sighed like it hurt.

"Fine. You can have the smoothie."

He took one last sip, then slid the smoothie her way.

She took it without hesitation—no thanks, no pause.

Then she laughed.

Kael was already tearing through his tray like he hadn’t eaten in days.

"You really were hungry."

"Yes," he said between bites. "I haven’t had anything since I left the hospital."

Liz froze.

"What?"

"Yup."

She didn’t say a word. Just stood up and ran to the back.

Moments later, she returned—with more food. Burgers. Ice cream. And set them in front of him.

Kael looked at her with wide eyes. Like a puppy.

"You are amazing."

He kept eating. Messy. Fast. Almost satisfied.

Liz just watched him. Smiling.

She didn’t speak.

Just leaned back and let him eat—

Like she was trying to memorize this moment.

Like she knew it wouldn’t last forever.

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