Vengeance of The Broken Lycan Prince [BL]
Chapter 339: Wherever You Are, Will Always Be Home

Chapter 339: Wherever You Are, Will Always Be Home

[KAWAI]

For years, Zaffuto Hinata was the hollowest creation of the moon goddess.

He was a man who had strived to live for something, anything. And yet for years there never was a thing to let him in or teach him to hold on to that which mattered the most. He had nothing, and he hated it back then.

But now almost a pinch of his life later, he was with the one person who made him feel like he was someone to be looked at. Someone who could honestly say shit and people would willingly line up to listen.

It was strange, truly, how the times had changed, but no one would ever understand the sacrifices it had taken to get here with his son. He had lost so much, and he was done staying on the sidelines, much less letting his son think that this was the end of the road for the both of them.

Perhaps he was an ambitious man, but even he understood that there were things worth living for, not just to fight, but to watch bloom even if he had to do that from a distance.

It was so simple and it was a truth that anyone would assume had hit the king in some sort of epiphany. That was not an impossibility, not when it came to the king of ruins anyway. This was epic.

Well, maybe it was so, but at the end of the day, he was here, with his son, making the biggest compromise of his life. He was a goner for the kid, and it was just right that he gave in to all that came with the broken kid before him.

"You don’t have to ask twice, son. I will be honored to be your trainer," Zaffuto said, and Tamiko lifted his head to stare at his father.

He had been staring down since they pulled back from the sudden hug, but now, he wasn’t sure if there was a point in hiding from the man who had been there for him. He didn’t have a thing to fear, not with the king on his side, always.

This time, he had the madman’s backing and no one would undermine that, no matter what color the skies maintained for the rest of their eternal lives. It was definitely not going to be a walk in the pack, with the battle in the free lands ongoing.

But it was a good start.

"When do we start?" Tamiko asked and Zaffuto chuckled.

"When you beat me in chess," Zaffuto said and Tamiko cracked his neck, excited at the first real challenge by his father. He knew that this man was a good player and always had the dirtiest of tricks under his sleeve, but Tamiko was prepared.

He had learned chess on the streets of Grealor, just to put food into his stomach.

It had been a battle that he had strived to win over the years because a win would earn him food, but a loss, was the worst thing that he could have been introduced to at the mere age of nine.

A loss always ended in endless hard labor for days, not to mention the horrifying encounters with Gabe and his unruly friends who always insisted on reminding the outcast of his unfortunate position in the pack of wolves.

Funny how he was the strongest creature of them all and yet Tamiko had stayed humble and reserved despite their cruelty and pride that always managed to hinder how long he lived with them.

But maybe it was a lesson on what life would truly look like for him, a lesson Tamiko had greatly implemented at the mating ball years ago.

Perhaps because he couldn’t quite understand whether he had been a rogue who had stumbled into Grealor, or he was just an abandoned prisoner in the long fight between the Lycans of Kawai and the Grealor wolves.

Perhaps it had been so for so long, but here and now, with the power that came with being the one person Zaffuto Hinata truly cared about, Tamiko didn’t have much to worry about. This was home. And this was his father. Oh, but it was comforting.

"Alright then, papa. Get your dusty chess boards out here. And tell me how many games I have to kick your ass in to get that training," Tamiko said knowingly.

He had played against Lord Sadako for months since he had come to Kawai and the Lycan Lord had divulged some of the secrets that the mad king used to make sure he won and frankly, the kid was excited to see it for himself.

Maybe this would be their thing too and if he was good enough, he would get the chance to play against his father and his uncle, yeah? It was an interesting choice for the kid, but at least this time, he truly had a choice.

"You sound like Sadako, Tamiko. Did he put you up to this?" the mad king asked and Tamiko arched a brow at his father’s statement. It was a game for him, something that he had known from Lord Sadako.

This right here was his father trying to play tricks on him.

But would the son cave?

"Does that mean you never wanted to play with me unless I came at Sadako uncle’s bidding? Is that what this is?" Tamiko asked in a soft pout and the king looked genuinely taken aback.

He hadn’t thought of it like that and for a moment, he wondered if he had ruined the first interaction that felt real with his son. He needed to fix it, and soon, but how the fuck was he going to be able to do that—

Especially when all his life, the only interactions he had were with Liana and Sadako, both who understood him a little better than he even got to fully understand himself. Was this some sort of a test by the fates?

Because Zaffuto was willing to get into a fighting match with them.

"I—" the kind tried, tripping over his words that had long gone mute.

"It’s okay if you don’t want to play with me or train me., I’ll just learn from Uncle or Kosta," Tamiko said, getting ready to leave. He looked hurt and the king stared at him, flustered and at a loss for words.

This had truly not been his intention., and he had fucked it up even then.

"Wait... stay. I just... I didn’t mean to be harsh to you. My brother and I play games that... I’m so—" the king fumbled.

Tamiko stilled.

He hated hearing apologies from his father, especially given that he was the one person the king never hesitated to apologize to. It was a truth that he once loved, but over time he realized that that was too much power for a kid like him to have, even as a prince.

"You really thought I was leaving?" Tamiko chuckled as he turned to his father, the defeated king.

"I have been bested?" Zaffuto wondered.

"It’s too early for a checkmate, papa. Where are the boards?" Tamiko laughed and the king sighed. This was not what he had expected, but the fact that his son was willingly making jokes with him, was a step closer to everything he willed for his son.

He had thought that he ruined everything., but now, he couldn’t help but relax at the idea of having him close. Perhaps this was the beginning of a beautiful union for the both of them. They would find a way through the messes that they had been thrust into.

At least that much the king was slowly being sure of.

"I can’t believe I was bested," the king whined, making his son just chuckle even louder. This was a beautiful moment for them and hopefully, there would be more in the days to come. They both deserved to be happy, after all.

"You didn’t answer my question, papa," Tamiko reminded.

The king looked at his son, wondering what question he had missed out on. All this time, his mind had been whirring, trying to be ready for whatever the fuck his son would pull on him again, but even he knew that it would take a while.

The kid was street-smart and knew how to deal with chaos head-on. This was nothing for him, and perhaps it made the memories they were about to make even more beautiful. Then again, a man could hope for the best with his only living blood bond, right?

"I can’t believe you have reached that age this fast, papa," Tamiko teased.

"What age?" the king asked curiously as he tried to look for the cleanest or rather, less dustier chess board. He had the magic to conjure a board instantly, but he was looking for one from a particular pack of boards.

He needed to use the ones he had when SHE was still alive.

The ones she had forced him to play, and the ones that she had bested him on more than once, because the king may have been good at playing chess, but he had finally found someone who played better than him and Sadako combined.

Oh, but she had been a good player back then.

"When Alzheimer’s kicks in," Tamiko snorted.

The king stopped looking.

"Did you just call me old?"

The prince just stared defiantly, knowing so well that this could end in either of two ways, yet somehow those two would still have the same conclusion — Lord Sadako kicking them out of the palace, again. Perhaps this time would be worth it, no?

"Your words, not mine."

"This little—"

"Uncle, help!"