I Can Copy And Evolve Talents

Chapter 1336: Father - Son Banter

Northern finally reached the students’ room. A few of them had left before his coronation ceremony, including Shae, leaving only Nyssira, Pathie, and Ellis.

The three were scattered across the space, each absorbed in their own world.

Ellis sat surrounded by a miniature library’s worth of books, round glasses perched on his nose. His gaze never lifted from the text in front of him, one finger tracing lines as he read.

Nyssira was tending to rows of pitcher plants, her hands moving with the careful precision of someone handling something precious. She spoke softly to them as she worked, though the words were too quiet to catch.

And Pathie stood at the window, staring out at the darkness that swallowed the forest. Her eyes held a pale, fading light.

She had witnessed an impossible wonder, after all. Some things took time to settle.

When Northern stepped inside, all three heads snapped toward him in unison. The synchronization was almost funny.

Pathie moved silently to one side, making space. Nyssira straightened and dipped her head with quiet respect. Ellis rose from his chair, adjusting his glasses as they slid down his nose.

"Oh? What’s wrong in here?"

Silence answered him. Too much silence.

Ellis chuckled, scratching the back of his neck. "We’re just kinda busy." He gestured vaguely at the stacks of books around him. "I’ve been trying to do more expansive research so I can fill you in on what I learned about the connection between names and attributes. I think I’ll figure it out soon."

Northern looked at him, and something warm flickered behind his expression before he suppressed it.

’You really didn’t need to.’

He didn’t know how much Ellis understood about what was coming. But the young man had to sense something to be acting like this, burying himself in books as if knowledge alone could prepare them.

Northern smiled and gave a small nod. "Thank you."

He turned to Nyssira and Pathie, letting the moment settle before he spoke.

"I came to tell you... we’ll be heading to the Northern continent. In a few days, I believe."

Pathie frowned immediately. "What? How could you possibly?" Her eyes searched his face. "Your presence is needed here."

Northern allowed himself a dry, uninteresting smile. The kind that said nothing at all.

’Shouldn’t they have figured it out by now?’

Rather than explain, he simply split.

Two Northerns stood where one had been, identical in every way. The clone on his left raised a hand, and darkness swirled above his palm, semi-autonomous and hungry. Then he pressed his hand to his own head.

The darkness spread through his hair like ink bleeding through paper. The white hue vanished beneath the spreading blackness until it was gone entirely.

Now two Northerns stood like twins. One with hair white as snow and blue eyes. One with inky black hair and those same blue eyes.

The black-haired Northern exhaled slowly.

"Whew." He ran a hand through the dark strands. "I’ve sort of missed this look."

He turned to Nyssira and Pathie. Recognition dawned slowly across both their faces, pieces clicking into place.

"So that was how you did it..." Pathie said quietly.

Northern’s brow creased. "Huh? Did what?"

"Never mind." The girl met his gaze, and something shifted in her expression. A calculation. "Will you be able to afford doing this? You might have to expend yourself both fighting the Reimgard Empire and facing the horrors of the sea." She paused. "It’s nothing like you’ve ever seen."

Northern stood straighter. His shoulders squared.

"Nothing like I’ve ever seen?" He scoffed, and the sound carried genuine amusement. "You have no idea what I’ve seen."

Pathie studied him. So did Nyssira. Their expressions were strange, caught somewhere between skepticism and something that might have been hope.

’She must’ve missed her mother.’

The thought came unbidden, and Northern let it pass without comment. Some things didn’t need saying.

He looked over both of them one more time.

"I just came to relay that. So prepare. I can come knocking anytime from now."

He turned to leave, and Pathie’s voice stopped him.

"That’s all?" She stepped forward. "What about food? How are we going to survive? What about a ship? How do we intend to secure one? Are you not going to discuss any of those details with us?"

Northern stood still for a moment. His eyes went unfocused, as if listening to something far away. Then his gaze sharpened, settling back on Pathie and Nyssira.

He shrugged.

"There’s nothing to discuss. It’s all been taken care of." His voice carried an easy confidence. "When the time comes, we’ll simply move."

Pathie blinked. Her mouth opened, then closed.

Northern gave them a dashing smile, waved at all three of them, and walked out.

After both Northerns left the room, one vanished through a dark spatial gate. The other made his way down through the levels of the Tower, heading toward his mother and father.

***

The room was quieter than Northern expected.

Shin was fully out of bed now, seated in a chair by the window. Some color had returned to his face, though the exhaustion hadn’t quite left his eyes.

Northern stepped inside and let his voice soften. "How do you feel?"

Shin looked up. He groaned slightly.

"Like my head is being hammered repeatedly?" He rubbed his temples. "It’s better now, though."

He exhaled and leaned back, the chair creaking beneath him. Northern settled into the seat opposite, letting the silence stretch between them.

Shin studied him for a long moment. Then he spoke.

"Eisha filled me in on the things you’ve been up to."

Northern opened his eyes as he heard his father’s voice.

’Of course she did.’

Sometimes he forgot they were husband and wife before they were his father and mother. They talked. They shared things. It was strange to remember.

"Are you okay?"

Northern met his father’s gaze without hesitation. "If you’re asking if I can handle seeing my supposed brothers and sisters and father, waging a war against them..." He let the sentence hang for a beat. "Yes. I am very okay. In fact, I’m looking forward to it."

His voice was steady. Almost too steady.

He turned the question around before Shin could probe further. "Are you okay? You still haven’t talked about what he did to you."

Shin was quiet for a moment.

"He stuck needles into my head to extract information."

Northern paused. He’d wanted to know, but not delivered like that. Not so flatly, like it was nothing worth dwelling on.

"Uh... why make it sound so simple?"

Shin gave him a blank look. "My stars, how can you be so antisocial? You shouldn’t go about asking sensitive things like this, North." He waved a hand dismissively. "Let it marinate."

Northern returned the look with equal flatness. "I don’t think you’d have let it marinate if it was you asking, Father."

Shin frowned. "What are you saying?"

"Everything I am, I got from you... Father."

Shin’s eyes narrowed. He looked at Northern for a long moment with an unreadable expression.

"Go and tell your father in Reimgard that."

"No!" Northern’s voice rose slightly. "You’re the father I know. Be responsible!"

Shin shifted in his chair. "If it wasn’t that I’m a little tired, I would’ve knocked you out."

Northern grinned evilly.

"Your hand will break before you can achieve that." He leaned back, crossing his arms. "Please, old man. Just rest in your rocking chair."

Shin’s face reddened. "I’m not old!"

Northern scoffed. "Sure..."

The banter continued, trading jabs back and forth, filling the room with something warmer than the silence that had preceded it.

Meanwhile, somewhere in the Soul Forge, another Northern began preparations for both a voyage and a war.