Back in his room, Wang Shu sat on his bed with a huff. Though he feigned indifference just now, he couldn't really fool himself and pretend to not actually care. Mikel Elderidge is not his father. This is not his life. why is he bothered by it?
What made him even more irritated is that his vexation doesn't come from a place of pity but actual anger and heartbreak foiled by a mask of resignation. These are not his feelings, they are Oliver's. he should've known that absorbing the memories would make everything personal.
Naturally, these feelings aren't as impactful on a thirty-year-old man as they are on a sickly hopeless ten-year-old kid. But still, the fact that they're there is concerning. Negative emotions are very tricky for a cultivator. They are the primary cause of qi deviation since they can potentially give birth to heart demons. It is quite the traumatic experience from what he's heard, enough to hinder further cultivation even long after getting rid of those demons, and that's because they leave vulnerable cracks on the victim's cultivation base, facilitating their reoccurrence in the future.
Wang Shu breathed slowly in an attempt to psych out Oliver's emotional impact on himself. He could only sigh at how troublesome things are getting.
Suddenly, there was a knock on his door. "Come in, please" he called softly.
Butler Walter opened the door and entered gracefully, followed by three maids each holding a tray of what Wang Shu assumed would be his dinner. They placed the smoking meal on the table, bowed silently and left as quietly as they came.
"Young master, please come and have your dinner," said the butler warmly. He tried to sound as kind as he could as to not aggravate the child anymore. The poor thing keeps getting more and more disappointments the longer he lives making himself feel at a loss as to how to shelter his charge from more heartbreak.
Wang Shu nodded and went on to have his seat, then proceeded to gobble up his food with relish. He hasn't eaten this much for the last twenty years of his life. After all, no one starts the fasting period at ten years old back in the Azure cloud continent, so it was easily perceivable how much of a special existence he was compared to the rest. If anyone of his acquaintances saw him right now they would probably stare open-mouthed, all signs of his previous elegant image shattered forever. Oh well, it's not like he really cared for what anyone thought of him.
Butler Walter noticed that his young master's appetite seemed to have increased today and was as equally relieved as he was concerned. He opened helplessly:" young master, please stop eating, your body can't take anymore or you'll feel uncomfortable later"
Wang Shu blinked innocently at him and the butler almost staggered at how cute Oliver looked. Having those pale blue gems, clear as an ocean, stare at you in what could only be described as adorably childish inquisitiveness melted Walter's heart into a puddle.
"But... there's so much left" Wang Shu wondered almost pleadingly, he's still feeling very hungry. Food is now his only way of energy intake, there's no helping it. He absolutely won't admit that he missed eating such delicacies in his previous life. He secretly sighed at how hypocritical he sounded.
"We usually prepare a lot of different dishes to help increase your appetite, but even so you wouldn't normally eat more than a few bites..." the butler hesitated, "it's good that you want to eat more but you can't have so much this suddenly"
Wang Shu pouted slightly but nodded eventually. His butler is right; he has to take it slowly.
The butler almost squealed at his young master's pout. What is with him today, it's the first time he found it hard to compose himself when dealing with the young noble. The kid's expressions are particularly cute today.
Wang Shu was indeed unreservedly letting his mood reflect on his face, young Oliver's trust in his attended influenced his treatment to the butler. He would unconsciously let his guard down in front of the people he trusts.
Walter then put Oliver's medicine bowl in front of him an urged him to drink. Wang Shu stared disgustingly at the goopy mud-colored liquid and almost threw up his entire dinner.
"Can I not take it tonight?" he pleaded in between gags.
"How is that possible! Young master that concoction is very precious, you know the high priest prepares it himself for you every day to take. You absolutely can't skip on your medicine or else your health will relapse!" The butler looked at Oliver's unwilling expression and almost laughed at his childishness. Still, he would never compromise when it comes to his young master's health.
Wang Shu resigned to his fate and drank the thing in one go, scowling at how bad it tasted then hurriedly followed by a cup of sweetened water offered by the butler to wash off the bitter aftertaste. It was honestly the most disgusting thing he ever had.
After cleaning up, the butler helped Wang Shu change into his silk pajamas, tucked him in bed and prepared to leave only to be stopped by Oliver's soft inquire:" Is there really no cure for my illness?"
The butler froze and uncomfortably looked back at his charge's drowsy eyes staring at him, barely fighting off his sleep. Seeing that he didn't look sad, just curious, he was surprised, to say the least. Oliver was never willing to talk about his disease with him. A few years back he was obsessed with collecting books and medical diaries about the deathbell disease but then one day he stopped. A clear sign of resignation and surrender to a doomed fate. There is no escaping death for him.
The butler swallowed audibly, but still went walked back to the kid's side and distressingly spoke, hesitation and discomfort seeping through his quivering voice: "there is none that I know of... the priest thinks that if you take it easy, with the help of the medicine, you have a couple more years to live, once your body develops an immunity there's nothing more they could do"
Wang Shu contemplated for a while then nodded:" tomorrow let's have a look at the library" though Oliver already read through the collected materials, he is a kid, after all, there's bound to be so many things that could fly over his head.
"As you wish, young master" seeing Oliver close his eyes to sleep, he quietly slipped out of the room expression somber.
Although his young master didn't show it, it seems like the arrival of that Gustave kid fanned his will to live. Whether that's a good or a bad thing, only the future could tell.