54 Make You Better Than Me Unedited

"Big Bro!"

"Teacher!"

Eddie and Elise ran to Nex with a tearful face, ignoring the high-ranked NPC that they just talked to, and hugged him tightly rubbing their tears and snot on him without any care.

"There, there," Nex smiled and patted both of them, after finishing that magic fruit and doing some healing breathing technique and spells, he recovered enough to move again and interact without much trouble.

"From Elise, I would expect to be a crybaby," he laughed and pinched Elise's nose, making the girl blush and pinch his side while muttering "Bully".

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"But from you Eddie?" he crouched to Eddie eye-level and stared with a smirk at the kid who seemed to try stopping more tears from coming out, "I thought you would be like your sister and give a hit or two, along with all of those words."

"That is because you are too high."

"Huh?"

*Bang*

Before Nex managed to react to Eddie's words, a small forehead smashed strongly against his and almost caused him to fall from his position. And before he managed to completely balance back, Eddie tackled him to a bear hug.

"I was scared."

"I'm sorry," Nex sighed and rubbed his back, 'He really is Jane brother.'

After he managed to calm him down, Nex stood up and nodded to the group of people from the Saint side that stared at him with a various expression on their face. He then looked to where the arena was and saw two figures there, one tall, and one short that swung a sword with all of its strength.

♦♦♦

"You should have told me that kid is an Arch-Human, I would have just kick you two out and lock the door."

Nex smiled at Louis rumbling and stared at the back of Roland who swung his sword with all his might.

"You say it as if you would actually do it."

"Ha! You're probably right!" Louis snorted, "I wouldn't do that, I would probably knock him unconscious and send him to an old lady I know, he may learn girly techniques there but at least he would a ton of seniors sisters that would take care of him really good. Who knows? Maybe there would be a lot more Arch-Human descendent in a couple of years."

Although there was a barrier that prevents them from being heard, Roland's back still shivered while one of his slashes.

"You sure love to pretend to be the bad guy," Nex shook his head and then asked, "Say, how much do you mind the capital Azuresky family being messed with?"

"Those phony bastards?" Louis made a face like he wanted to spit a bad taste in his mouth, "Where did you bring that idea from? Last thing to do before death?"

"Your first words were enough," Nex smiled and pointed at Roland, "This kiddo over there is the child of their young miss and someone they exiled from the kingdom, and when the time is right I will take him with me and get him reunited with them. Even if it means facing the whole family head-on."

"What?" Louis furrowed his eyebrows and his face turned serious, "You know you can't simply do that. Even though they are stuck-up snobs, they are still a loyal and major part of the kingdom. To mess with them couldn't be treated else as fighting the kingdom."

"I know," Nex agreed and put his hand on Louis's shoulder, "That's why I need your help."

"What? You think that because I got that stupid title of Saint that I can just flex a muscle and they would let me interfere in their internal affairs?" Louis, strangely enough, didn't pay much attention to Nex's hand and just shook it off and gave Nex a glare, "This is politics, not a show of strength. You need to play their game if you want for it to end well. And since it's just the two of us behind that child, you, who don't have the authority to be taken seriously, and me, that isn't allowed to intervene, there is nothing much that could be done aside from waiting for him to have the power to deal with them on his own."

"That's right, " Nex nodded, "We can't directly help him get back to his parents, neither of us has the correct type of power. To say the truth the best will be to let Roland grow and gain enough power to have standing in the family."

"If you understand the situation, " Louis said with a suspecting face, "Then why are you talking like you want to do something else?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Nex's face turned serious as his eyes flashed with a gleam of anger that made even Louis flinch and become vigilant, "A child should not have any reason to not be able to be with his parents. The fact I agree to not use force and be patient is me being lenient. If it was me from until not long ago I would have already got his mother out of there even if it means tearing everything in that place to shreds."

"Then what do you want to do?" Louis asked carefully, he wasn't afraid when he met people stronger than him, but he didn't dare to underestimate or be lax with this seemingly young man that is only a First Awakening No-Rank. He knew probably better than everyone else in Superbia that this person is more dangerous than any Saint or Noble Devil, and if he decided to do something, there aren't many things that could stop him.

"It's simple," Nex face returned to a smile and the tense atmosphere suddenly vanished as if it never existed, "We give Roland the power and authority to be a decision-maker in his family right now."

"What!?" Louis's eyes widened he stared at Nex like a fool, "You want to give an eight-year-old a stature that will allow him to have control and influence in one of the core families of the kingdom? Do you even listen to what are you even saying!?"

"I tell you my plan later," when Nex waved his hand at Louis as he said those words he was already on his way to the small kid that didn't stop swinging the sword.

"This Big Brother needs to apologize and cheer up his little brother first."

♦♦♦

"I thought that just yesterday I taught you how to properly swing your sword," as Roland swung his sword down for the who-know time, he suddenly heard a familiar voice behind him and his eyes were already wet before he managed to turn around completely.

"That Louis isn't doing a very good job if he doesn't bother to teach you the basics," Nex smiled gently and received Roland charge head-on.

"Big Brother!"

"Geez, what's up with everyone today? Crying at the moment they see me," Nex pretended to grumble as he lowered himself and hugged Roland, he patted his back and murmured, "All I did was to be in an "almost dead" state but it doesn't matter now. Right?"

"Wahh! I'm sorry! It's all my fault!" Roland was like a fully broken dam as he sobbed with tears continuously streaming from his eyes.

"Too early huh?" Nex laughed dryly and resumed soothing the kid, "Before I answer what you just said can I know why you were trying to train so hard when you don't know how to and there is no one who will direct you?"

"Because I want to be strong!" Roland lifted his head and said with eyes full of burning will, "Strong enough to protect the ones I care about and stand on my own so only I would get hurt instead of the ones I hold dear!"

'Why does a gentle kid like him need to say those words,' Nex thought bitterly while he became filled with deep dejection. He knew better than anyone what the results of walking this path. Every time someone close to him died in the past he swore to get stronger so no one else other than him will get in harm way.

But in the end, when he got stronger than anyone else, he was almost completely alone without having any will to have new connections and with barely any emotions. If it wasn't for "her" who was with him all the way and the opportunity to have a new start on Earth, he would have killed himself the moment after he killed Dramiel.

"Roland," Nex opened his mouth and without letting the kid any more time to react, he flicked his forehead so hard that he flew backward a few meters and fell on the ground.

"B-big Brother?" Roland asked terrified, too shocked to even cover his bleeding forehead. Nex right now looked like a completely different person, with dead cold eyes and an indifferent face that gave him the feeling of a ruthless beast that got angered beyond measure.

"Let me ask you a question," Nex seemed like he couldn't care less about Roland's reaction, "Do you think I am strong?"

"W-what do you mean?" Roland became confused.

"Answer me!" Nex raised his voice, not caring that his voice is echoing throughout the dojo and cause everyone to watch him. He lifted the petrified Roland by his collar and asked again, "Do you think I am strong?"

"I-I do think you are strong Big Brother!" Roland didn't dare to let Nex wait any longer and immediately yelled his heartfelt answer, "To me, you are the strongest! And I want to have the same strength to protect as you!"

"Pathetic."

*Crash*

Nex threw Roland to the ground so that he smashed strong only on the ground and curled slightly in pain.

"Nex! What the hell are you doing!?" Jane became shocked and ran toward the two to stop this craziness. But before she could get close to them someone stopped her and didn't let her advance.

"Young lady, I prefer you would stay out of this," Louis put his hand before her and blocked her without turning his gaze away from the scene, "If there is someone that can rescue this child from ruining himself, then it's that man."

"Are you out of your mind!?" Jane went past him and tried to continue but a transparent barrier appeared and didn't let her move even an inch forward. Distressed she turned around and yelled at the Saint, "Do you actually think it's okay to hit a small child like that!?"

"You should watch this situation more clearly," Louis didn't care and kept watching, "I know you could see what's in the heart of those two."

"What are you talking about…!" Jane turned back and stared at two while using her Empath power. But as she stared at the two her voice died down until she stifled a sob and covered her mouth as her eyes filled with tears.

Roland's mental state was filled with fear and confusion from the current situation, but she could clearly feel from him that the will from the answer he just gave didn't lessen and even increased! And on the other hand, she could clearly feel the agony and bitterness Nex is feeling upon staring at the kid, it was as if he knew what's on Roland mind as well and it's bringing him a torment so great that the only time she sensed something like that from him was when he dreamt about his mother!

"Nex, please… I'm begging you…" Jane whispered softly, she finally realized what's going on and it brought her great fear thinking what would happen if something went wrong, "Don't push it too far, the heart of you two will break to pieces if you don't be careful."

Nex may have heard her pleas but his expression nonetheless, didn't change. He walked to in front of the pained Roland and once again opened his mouth.

"Another question, why do you think I am strong enough to protect people?"

"I-it's because you are able to protect everyone while you are the only who gets hurt!" Roland managed to recover somewhat and answer back.

"If you are able to do this and defeating the enemies, then it means you are able to protect the people you love and are the strongest!"

"Incorrect."

Nex grabbed Roland by the neck and lifted him up in the air with on hand. Although he didn't choke him, he did put strength in his grip and caused the kid to show a face of pain.

"The last question," Nex expression was still cold as he saw the child squirming in his grasp, "If I am the strongest as you say, then why am I need to get wounded when I fight?"

"It is... it is…" Roland became stunned as the words entered his head and raised questions in his mind, and he desperately thought for a solution, "It is because you need to also protect-"

"It is because I am weak!" Nex got Roland face to right in front of his and yelled those words while staring directly at his shocked eyes before throwing him back to the ground.

"W-what?" the throw wasn't hard, but Roland was too shocked to land on his legs and instead fell to the ground, he stared at Nex with a blank gaze that rapidly got white, "B-big Brother what are you talking about? You are the strong-"

"No, I am weak," Nex crouched and stared at Roland with a sad smile, "I am only in my First Awakening and although I could fight some Second Awakening monsters, I'm helpless against anything higher than that. Or else I could have saved your grandma before she was stabbed or defeat Louis without lowering his strength."

"B-but, why do I always have the feeling that you are the strongest there is? It can't be a lie!" Roland didn't want to give up and immediately answered back. Nex saying about himself that he is weak and isn't capable of much shook the frim image inside of his head that there is nothing his big brother can't do.

"That is because I am very very strong in the world I come from. I'm a Traveler did you forget?" Nex patted his head and smiled gently, "Although I can get strong in a short time by defeating monsters, for now, I am a weak person that needs to get hurt if he wants to protect until he grows strong enough."

"I don't care!" Roland rejected fiercely, "If I can protect others, I don't mind getting hurt! I will just grow stronger while getting hurt and suffer for the ones I care about!"

"I don't allow you to say!" Nex expression turned fierce and he grabbed Roland's shoulders as he spoke in a freezing voice that didn't leave room for mistakes, "Nor do I allow you to grow stronger like that!"

"Why not!?" for the first time, Roland was mad at Nex. he couldn't understand why his Big Brother that always supported him suddenly say these things.

"Because that's the path I took for as long as I can remember!" Nex said while staring straight at Roland with pained eyes, "Ever since I was weak, I took this path. I fought and fought, with barely any proper break to heal the wounds that covered all of my body and be with the people I wanted to protect. I know better than anyone what walking this path will do to you and because of that I am not going to let you walk it."

"Why!?" Roland felt shame and unwillingness filling his body, "Is it because you think I am too weak to do it!?"

"No," Nex suddenly smiled softly and hugged Roland, burying the unprepared kid into his embrace.

"It is because I am going to make better than me."

"W-what?" Roland felt as if all of his bad emotions disappeared and were replaced by shock. To better than Big Brother!?

"The path I went through was the most foolish one," Nex smiled bitterly as he began to cast the best healing spells he could on the kid, rapidly healing all of the injuries he caused him, "I desperately fought to protect while putting myself on the line to not let anyone get hurt. But I was only a weak kid who didn't know the basics of training, so before I knew it kept losing my close ones again and again. And when I finally started to know how to get stronger I was already too scared to get close to people again, and as for the few who managed to get through and reach me, I wouldn't let them help me from fear that something will happen to them and in the end, I lost them just like I did before."

"Roland," Nex released the kid and stared at his eyes that were full of tears of regret, "It's okay to push yourself to the limit to get stronger. If you want to truly be strong, it's something you must do. But relying on just yourself without letting others to help or share the burden with you just to get stronger is the last thing I want you to do. You did not start alone and without any help like I was. You do not need to fight all the time to protect people like I were. And you will not need to fight on your own," he smiled, "Because I am here to help you."

"Big Brother!"

Roland hugged Nex and cried loudly.

"I'm sorry!"

"It's okay, it's my fault anyway."

Nex smiled and let the kid cry for a few minutes before he cast on him a sleeping spell that made start to fall asleep.

"Sleep well," Nex gently closed the kid's eyes and lifted him up.

"Because I am going to do whatever it takes to make sure you won't do the mistakes that I made."