Beast Blood

Chapter 3: Appeasing

My uncle asked his men to bring me down from the cross and undid my bindings. I kept my head down, unable to face him from the guilt of my transformation just now.

It seemed like my mother was right. I really did have an inextricable tie with the beastmen.

"You little runt, consider yourself lucky that I found you this time. Come with me, I have something to talk to you about."

My uncle left without looking back after saying those words. Led by the group of soldiers, I followed him. It did not take long before I was brought to a temporary stronghold in the city. These strongholds were convenient places for the soldiers to rest and reorganize themselves. They may be small, but they had everything they needed.

I found my uncle in a relatively spacious hall where he sat on a chair, motioning for me to sit beside him as he saw me enter. It was the first time he had ever spoken to me so tenderly in my life.

Though I knew that my uncle loved my mother, he seemed to have some hostility toward me, his nephew. I had always remembered being with my mother since I was young. I could not remember what happened, but my grandfather locked my mother up when he discovered that she tried to escape from here. Since then, I could no longer see her.

After that, the closest people to me became my grandmother and my aunt. They were the ones who raised me, but I still yearned for the love of my mother, just like every other child. Whenever I asked to see my mother, I would be refused by my grandmother and my aunt. That was because my grandfather would surely be sent into a rage if he were to find out. I never did find out why he would not allow me to see my mother. So, I had no good memories of this man in my childhood, only hatred.

On the other hand, this uncle of mine was just like a milder version of my grandfather. He was not very kind to me either, and neither would he allow me to see my mother. So, we rarely spoke to each other. It was very quiet here. In the end, it was my uncle who broke the silence.

"Brat, aren't you supposed to greet me when you see me? Seems like I saved you for nothing!"

It was true, I was thankful to my uncle from the bottom of my heart. After all, anyone would feel touched when saved from such despair. And, with him being my biological uncle to begin with, it was normal for me to greet him. However, for some strange reason, I mustered a few murmurs, but I could not call out to him.

"Forget it. Nothing to gain from hearing a greeting from you anyway!"

He waved his hand impatiently and frowned. "Let's talk about you instead. What happened today?"

Reluctantly, I gave him a short run-down about what happened. He frowned as he heard what I said. Then, standing up, he paced back and forth before finally taking his seat again and turning his gaze to me.

"Did I really go berserk back then?" I looked at my uncle hopefully.

My uncle shook his head, indicating that his words were meant only to save me. Though these berserkers did exist among humans, they were still different from me. The first difference came down to skin color. A human berserker's skin would turn dark violet, whereas my skin turned dark crimson. Secondly was consciousness. My consciousness was hazy then, but my uncle told me that human berserkers might not feel pain, but they had complete control over their own thoughts. Thirdly, hair would not grow out of their skin. Instead, a protective layer similar to calcified stone would appear around their bodies to protect them, improving their defensive power. So, there were still differences between us. But this was the first time he had ever seen my case. We shared similarities, that was all.

I could not help but feel a little disappointed. In fact, I hoped that I could have been a berserker. That way, I might have been able to gain the approval of people. It seemed like what happened to me earlier could not be extricated from my beastman blood.

My uncle seemed to be able to read my mind. He told me that whether I was a berserker or not, I must always remember that I was raised on human soil. No matter what happened after this day, he hoped I would never forget.

When I saw his serious expression, I nodded earnestly. After that, my uncle seemed to show some sympathy in his gaze as he looked at the cuts and bruises around my body.

"You don't have any serious injuries, do you? I'll ask the physician to take a look at you."

"No need, there’s nothing deep. I have thick skin, so I'll be as good as new in a few days." Though I refused my uncle, I still felt warm inside my heart. It was the first time he had ever shown me concern.

Of course, I also meant it when I said I have thick skin. That was because I really am more resistant to taking a beating compared to the average person, and I also recover faster than my peers. I fought many times when I was younger, especially when I'd been called a "mongrel", leading to me getting into more and more fights.

I had actually beaten all the kids who live near me. But of course, getting beaten up was also a common occurrence for me. I knew very well that my current injuries were no big deal to me, and from what my uncle could see, I did not seem like I was lying either. I seemed to be holding up well, so he did not insist on having my injuries seen.