Journey to Become the Zenith

Bloodline Echoes

When Victor and Videl walked back to the guild, Victor’s thoughts were no longer in the street before him.

His body moved beside her.

His mind had already gone elsewhere.

Back to the conversation.

Back to the queen.

Back to possibility.

The late afternoon light poured across the stone roads of Fantom City in long gold strips, merchants shouting in the distance while carriage wheels groaned over uneven streets. Yet Victor heard almost none of it.

Only the words turning again and again within him.

So the queen has the same ailment as Eon, and she didn’t call it a curse, instead it’s a blessing... I see, how interesting. An ability only given to her bloodline. The more mana she has the greater the power, but she would be unable to use even the simplest of spells. Well I guess that’s a fair exchange for such enormous power.

His lips curved faintly.

Excitement.

That dangerous kind.

This world never ceased feeding his hunger.

Victor was getting excited again. This world had more races than his previous one, and they even had bloodline skills. This world felt familiar at the same time different to Victor, which really excited him. The idea that there are bloodline related abilities, made him truly excited. Was it only the royal family that had such abilities, or does everyone have one, and they just haven’t noticed it yet?

His thoughts moved faster.

What if dormant bloodlines slept in commoners?

What if forgotten houses held powers no one understood?

What if strength here ran not merely through cultivation or training—

but ancestry itself?

It stirred the old conqueror in him.

Not greed.

Curiosity.

A scholar’s hunger trapped in a warrior.

Victor wasn’t a scholar, and his abilities mostly revolved around battle, so researching such a thing was not part of his expertise.

Still—

that only made him smile.

’I can always find someone to do the research for me. So not only do I need a blacksmith from the ancient forge clan, I also need a scholar to do my research. Also having dealings with the merchant guild might come in handy.’

His empire inside his mind was growing again.

Layer by layer.

A forge master.

A scholar.

A merchant network.

An underworld.

And perhaps—

a kingdom.

Beside him, Videl glanced sideways.

She noticed his stillness.

Not physical stillness—

the strange silence that came when Victor vanished into thought.

She knew that look.

He was building something dangerous.

Again.

A breeze stirred her long blonde hair.

She nudged his arm lightly.

"Whenever you go quiet like that," she said softly, "someone usually ends up conquered."

Victor looked at her.

Amused.

"Sometimes only reorganized."

"That is somehow worse."

A brief laugh passed between them.

Then Videl’s expression sharpened.

"So Vict, what do you plan to do?" Videl suddenly spoke breaking Victor’s train of thought.

Victor blinked.

"Huh? Do about what?"

"About Eon, it is possible that he is related to the queen. Seeing as he has the same ability as the royal family she must be related somehow."

Victor’s eyes narrowed.

That brought him back.

Back from abstraction.

Into the pieces on the board.

"Obviously I understood that, him having amnesia is a problem, but now that we have this new lead, we can investigate even deeper. Still... I wonder what happened, if Eon is really part of the royal family, what could have transpired for him to lose his memories and end up in the slums of Fantom City? Well I’ll decide what to do, once I have a clearer picture. Thanks for telling me this Val."

He still called her Val.

An old habit.

One he never corrected.

Videl smiled at it.

But her eyes carried concern.

"Of course, but Victor... What of your promise to Eon? You promised him that you could enhance his mana pool, but if he really has the same ability as the queen. Enhancing his mana pool is close to impossible."

Victor couldn’t help but smirk at what Videl said. This best friend of his, even after what happened to her, still remained ever pure.

Pure enough to worry over promises when kingdoms were moving.

He liked that.

Needed it, perhaps.

"Don’t worry about that Val, I’ll explain his circumstances to him. So is that all you wanted to talk about?" As Victor was saying this, he was already planning his next move. With this new information his plan of conquering the underworld of Skyfall, just got upgraded to a plan to conquer the entire kingdom of Skyfall.

Not through crowns.

Not yet.

Through foundations.

Through shadows.

Through inevitability.

Videl suddenly stopped walking.

Victor turned.

She was looking at him strangely.

Almost vulnerable.

"Yeah, that’s pretty much it... Victor I trust you... You know that right?" Videl then suddenly said something incomprehensible to Victor. Why would Videl suddenly say that?

For a rare moment—

he looked genuinely caught off guard.

Then he answered.

"Of course I know that. Why?... Are you somehow doubting me? If so that’s great, even though we’re best friends, you should always doubt me Val. Think for yourself and see what the truth is with your own eyes. Do not always blindly follow me. I’m happy Val, it seems like you grown somehow."

Videl froze.

Those words struck harder than any praise.

She had expected reassurance.

Maybe loyalty.

Maybe sentiment.

Instead—

he told her to doubt him.

To question him.

To see with her own eyes.

What kind of man tells those closest to him not to trust blindly?

Only one who feared becoming something monstrous.

Or one already aware he could.

Videl wasn’t expecting Victor to say what he just said. Victor was actually telling her to doubt him. Her best friend that seemed like he could do anything, had now asked her to doubt him, and see the truth with her own eyes. Videl was really confused by this.

And strangely moved.

"Why would you say that?" she asked quietly.

Victor looked ahead as they resumed walking.

"Because blind faith creates servants."

He glanced at her.

"I prefer allies."

That hit even harder.

Videl said nothing.

Could not.

For a while only footsteps echoed.

Victor seeing the confusion in Videl’s expression, couldn’t help but smile at his naive friend. He then patted Videl’s shoulders.

Warm.

Casual.

Yet grounding.

"You can think about what I just said later, for now let’s have a meal, for some reason I’m hungry again." After saying what he said Victor headed back to the adventurers guild. Videl who was left standing looking at her friend’s back shook her head, and followed after.

But as she followed—

she murmured under her breath.

"You tell people to doubt you..."

"...and somehow that makes me trust you even more."

Victor heard it.

Of course he heard it.

He only smirked.

Ahead, the guild doors came into view.

And beyond them—

Lane’s possessive stare.

Clara’s hidden confusion.

Politics.

Companions.

Schemes.

Bloodlines.

A queen.

A lost prince.

The pieces were gathering.

And Victor—

felt alive.