The Prodigy of the Hidden Realm

Despite being a year older than Aiden, Jacob was just as weak and delicate as their father, Thomas, and couldn't hold his own against the bully, Aiden. It wasn't long before Aiden had landed several punches on him. However, Jacob, now furious from seeing his sister's blood, fought back hard, and for a moment, it seemed like they were evenly matched.

The sounds of the scuffle quickly drew Clara and Mary from the back rooms.

"My baby! You little brat, get off him!" Clara's voice rang out as soon as she spotted her son beneath Jacob, her motherly instincts kicking in. She rushed forward, grabbing Jacob by the collar, but the two boys were holding onto each other so tightly that she couldn't separate them.

"Such misfortune! I've never let a single finger touch my dear Aiden, and now look at him, beaten like this!" Clara cried dramatically, collapsing to the side as she turned to Mary, lamenting her son's fate.

"Jacob, stop!" Mary hurried over, ignoring Clara's theatrics, and began trying to calm Jacob down. "Tell me what happened. Your father and I will sort it out, just don't let anger take over."

"Mom... Boohoo..." Jacob sniffled, his anger and confusion overwhelming him, but when he heard his mother's voice, he reluctantly let go of Aiden, though not before Aiden took the chance to punch him a couple more times. Despite the blows, Jacob obeyed and stepped aside, standing silently.

Clara rushed to Aiden's side, holding him protectively. "My darling, how could you let this happen? You tell me, what's going on here!" She glared at Mary, her voice sharp.

Before Mary could respond, Clara continued, "No matter what, your son hurt mine, so what's going to happen about it?"

Mary frowned, feeling her blood pressure rise. Clara had already jumped to conclusions without hearing the full story. "Clara, don't be hasty. We haven't heard everything yet. If my son was wrong, we will take responsibility for Aiden."

But Clara, in her stubbornness, refused to accept any other possibility. "What misunderstanding? I saw everything clearly. It's your son, Jacob, who attacked my Aiden!" She pointed at Jacob, her eyes flashing with fury.

"Mom..." At that moment, Lily's soft voice cut through the tension. Her face pale, she was sitting on the floor, clutching her bleeding wrist.

"Lily, what happened to you?" Mary gasped in horror, immediately noticing her daughter's injury.

"Boohoo, it was Aiden... He not only stole my rice cake, but he also pushed me down! Look at all the blood..." Lily couldn't hold back her tears as she explained, her voice trembling with fear and pain.

"What?! Impossible!" Clara screamed, looking at Lily's bloodied wrist. "Aiden would never do that. You must have hurt yourself and are blaming him!"

But Clara's denial did nothing to ease Mary's growing anger. "Don't lie. My daughter's injury is real. It's clear that your son, Aiden, hurt her!" Mary snapped back.

Clara, realizing the gravity of the situation, now saw that she couldn't deny it any longer. Still, she clung to her pride, unwilling to accept blame. "It's all a misunderstanding, really! It's a misunderstanding!"

"Misunderstanding? We'll let the heads of the households decide," Mary said, her voice cool and firm. She immediately picked up Lily, intending to take her inside and treat the wound. As she left, she requested neighbor Mrs. Walker to follow her to the hill to find Thomas and the others.

Mrs. Walker, who had been watching the scene unfold in the house, couldn't resist the urge to rush over and inform them. She muttered to herself as she walked, "I knew it. Tomas Emerson coming back would stir up trouble. Only a couple of hours, and look at all the mess already. Who knows what else will happen later..."

Having lived next door to Clara for years, Mrs. Walker knew all too well the woman's unreasonable and sharp nature. She also understood the elder branch of the family's small-mindedness. So, when the second family returned, it was no surprise that tensions flared.

When Mrs. Walker reached the hill, Thomas and his two brothers were busy fixing the thatched roof. Their mother, Abigail, was handing tools to her eldest son, when she noticed Mrs. Walker approaching. "What brings you here? Is something wrong at home?"

Mrs. Walker wasted no time and exclaimed, "Oh, it's bad, really bad. You all need to come home right now! Drop everything and go!"

The urgency in her voice startled them all. Thomas stumbled slightly, his heart racing with worry. " Mrs. Walker, what's happened?"

Abigail's eldest son, John, was just as concerned, but Mrs. Walker remained tight-lipped, refusing to explain until they reached the house. "Just go home, quickly. No time to waste!" she insisted.

The group hurried back to the house, only to be greeted by Mary and Clara, who were both standing in the living room with dark expressions.

"Ah, finally, you're back, dear husband!" Clara exclaimed with relief, as if she had found her lifeline.

"What happened?" John asked, scanning the room. He quickly noticed the tension and immediately feared that this was another fight between his wife and Mary.

After catching up with the situation, Thomas, his face red with anger, turned to John. "Brother, you'd better ask Clara about it. I'm not the one who can explain this."

John, looking more confused and upset than ever, turned his attention to Clara. "What's going on here?"

Clara flashed a nervous smile. "It's just a misunderstanding, really. Jacob is still just a child. You should forgive him this once."

"Misunderstanding?!" Mary laughed bitterly. "I remember you saying there was no misunderstanding before, but now suddenly it's a misunderstanding. My daughter almost had her tendon severed, and you want to call it a misunderstanding? What's your excuse for that?"

Clara's face stiffened. "It's not like that, really. I'm just—"

"You're just making excuses!" Mary interrupted.

"Let's hear it from the girl herself," Abigail added, looking concerned.

Clara hesitated, but it was too late. Before she could defend herself further, Thomas quickly recounted what had happened. "Brother, you tell me—what kind of 'misunderstanding' can turn into something so violent? Is there some deep grudge between our families that we don't know about?"

John was silent for a moment, finally taking in the full picture. He now understood how serious the situation was and that his nephew had caused real harm.

Clara, trying to salvage the situation, muttered, "But Jacob did hit Aiden too. So, isn't it fair now?"

"Shut up!" John scolded her sharply, causing Clara to shrink back in fear. She fell silent, knowing that her usual manipulations would no longer work.

After a long pause, John sighed. "Alright, I think what we need now is for Aiden to apologize to Lily. After that, I'll take ten coins and pay for a doctor to treat her wound. Then, we'll consider this matter settled. Does that sound fair?"