Chapter 9: Rage
Chapter 8
Rael froze. He didn’t even need to turn around. He already knew who was standing there.
Heavy boots thudded against the wooden floor as the person walked closer.
"Rael," his father’s voice boomed. "What the hell is going on here?!"
Rael turned slowly, face hard, mouth tight, and the flames on his cleanched fist slowly dying. "She hit me first."
"Don’t lie to me!" his father shouted, storming forward. "You come back injured from a D-rank portal and now you want to start fights in my house too?!"
Rael opened his mouth to say something but the slap landed before he could say a word.
Crack!
His head jerked sideways from the force. The pain bit deep into his jaw and the sting lingered like fire.
His father’s voice roared behind it. "Is this what I raised you to be? A failure who can’t even keep his temper? You’re a disgrace to this family."
Rael didn’t look at him, didn’t speak, he didn’t even dare react. Because he knew exactly what his father was capable of doing.
He just stood there, breathing hard through his nose, swallowing everything he wanted to scream, after all.... that’s what he always did. He was used to this happening, thanks to this damn woman who always turned his father against him.