A young male lion with scant hair on his neck pranced around the field restlessly.
He was alone, no companion whatsoever, as he had always been. This was Burdo.
Currently, he was roaring at the sky as if challenging the heavens. His roar was deep and mature, striking the listeners to believe he was confident.
*ROOAAAR!*
Another roar came from ahead, louder and more fear-inducing despite the distance. With the roar came a massive lion running towards Burdo with anger.
The pride leader had had enough, his eyes glowed a fiery red that matched the glow coming from his.
The rage within him had nowhere else to go. If he didn't vent on Burdo today, he wouldn't be satisfied.
He had thought that the golden cub with the mysterious aura would be the most troublesome one among his male offspring.
Kael turned out to be a pretty chill lion as he grew older. The only unsettling thing was how Kael kept causing division within the pride without really doing anything.
Pavel had become his subordinate and there was no need to worry about him strength-wise for a long time.
But Burdo was the personification of 'Mine Mine Mine'. At first, he was always keeping to himself, only taking action when it was time to eat.
As he grew older, Burdo developed a deep desire for things that weren't his yet. He was unresponsive when some females interacted with him but became overly aggressive when the same females interacted with other males.
Even if he had eaten to his satisfaction, he didn't like others eating. The beating he had received as a result didn't really do anything.
As soon as he could, he would disturb the premises with roars to challenge the pride leader.
When it came to dealing with potential threats to his reign, the pride leader was very strategic.
He knew that the first one or two years after a cub was born, the instinctive connection between mother and child would be so strong that breaking it would cause problems within the pride.
Even if that cub was a potential challenger, it was always better to let the motherly instinct die off first.
At the same time, there was still a possibility of turning the said challenger into a subordinate just like he had done with Uncle and Pavel, although a very low possibility.
These factors contributed to him being willing to let Kael go when any other lion would have just killed him then and there for being so threatening.
But if he did, not only would he have lost a potential subordinate, the pride females would have reacted badly and the mating season for many years to come would have been very unbearable for him.
Now that Burdo and the others were older, the instinctive bond between mother and child should have worn off, making it easier to dispose of them without opposition from the consorts.
Burdo, seeing his father running towards him was a bit fearful but the greediness in his eyes overshadowed that fear. He wanted everything that his father had.
The temperature kept on increasing as the pride leader drew closer. Burdo subconsciously took a step back but when the pride leader was upon him, he lunged forward with all the power he could muster.
*BAM!*
A heavy paw found its way to Burdo's belly and he had the wind knocked out of him. His entire body was slapped away like a weightless pest.
Kael, who was watching from a distance, could not help but stand up in shock. 'Did he get stronger?'
Burdo was not yet fully an adult but that didn't mean he didn't have a tremendous weight. Even though the pride leader was strong, he shouldn't have been able to fling Burdo the way he did just now.
The pride leader didn't wait for Burdo to get up before descending upon his son. Red hot claws flew through the air.
Burdo reacted by laying on his back with all four of his paws facing upward, this was a defensive posture.
When in this position, he could defend himself better with four limbs instead of two. But to be in this position was to mean he was already half defeated.
Kael didn't know if he was seeing things or if the pride leader was intentionally holding back.
Attacks that would have broken Burdo's limbs by now only left scorched claw marks.
The sound of father and son growling over and over at each other resounded for close to a minute.
The pride leader eventually clamped down on Burdo's neck. Burdo could feel the unnatural heat burrow into his defenseless skin. Now, his eyes were clear.
All that was needed was for the pride leader to twist his massive head or twitch his jaw muscles for Burdo to be as good as dead.
The pride leader, however, didn't. He kept Burdo in a lock, waiting for his son to do the needful.
'Don't submit...' Kael thought, wanting to learn more about the pride leader.
Burdo had come to the realization that his strength did not match his desire. How was he supposed to have everything his father had if he couldn't even land a scratch on him?
He relaxed his body and stopped kicking his feet in retaliation. This was an act that could more or less be seen as a sign of submission.
Kael sat down while shaking his head, he immediately lost interest in this fight. The lionesses that had been watching were expressionless, including Nalii.
Nalii had long lost her attachment to her son Burdo. Right now, he was just another male lion she knew fighting for dominance.
The pride leader released Burdo, leaving four shallow burnt holes on his neck. Burdo had lost, what next now?
The pride leader stood by the side, waiting for Burdo to get up.
As soon as Burdo was on his four feet, he immediately took off in the opposite direction.
The pride leader did not chase after him. He just watched as his son continued running until he was out of sight.
Burdo was now officially expelled from the pride. The only other person that could threaten the stability of the pride right now was Kael.
Fortunately or Unfortunately, the pride leader would not have to wait much longer before he faced his golden boy.