Chapter 76: A King Without a Banner.
"...How about you join my faction?"
Silas looked at the boy, who was far more mysterious than he let on. He didn’t know what it was about him, but simply looking at him gave even Silas, someone two major ranks above him, the creeps.
Silas knew such fear should have been impossible to feel naturally from someone so young and weak, so he shrugged it off as the boy’s Talent... or perhaps some work of some artifact.
Still, that didn’t change the fact that there was definitely something... suspicious about him.
And for someone like Silas, having someone like Zenith as an ally was far better than having him as an enemy.
Giants, among all the races, were considered barbaric and simple-minded, beings who acted purely on instinct.
They had inherited the purest bloodline of Gods according to legends and history and yet in current time they were treated as nothing more than a joke.
Silas hated that.
He hated seeing his people reduced to nothing more than slaves used for battles.
Even when they were more than that.
He wanted to create a future where his people were respected not only for their strength but for the many other things they excelled at.
He didn’t want any more of his brethren to be used as pawns in pointless wars, only to meet their end.
Still, he knew where he stood in this vast world.
He was nothing more than a speck of dust in the grand scheme of things and that was precisely why he needed people like him, people with the will to defy anything that stood in their way.
And... this boy, Zenith Von Ruinbringer, possessed exactly that.
He was certain that if the boy was smart, he would accept the offer. After all, it made no sense for him to refuse.
He would be spending the next three years at the academy and with the stunt he had just pulled, he should know how many enemies he had already made.
Not to mention, from the rumors Silas had heard, Zenith had even managed to anger the founder of the Nobility Faction, Maximus, a professor known for his disdain toward commoners and his habit of taking revenge over the pettiest slights.
"Not interested."
The white-haired boy didn’t look even slightly tempted as he shook his head.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
For a moment, Silas was too stunned to say anything else.
"I said, I am simply not interested in joining any kind of faction."
Zenith replied with a polite smile.
"You don’t seem to understand the situation."
"The academy is currently divided into three major factions — the Royalists, made up of the nobility, the Traditionalists, who believe seniority must be respected and finally, the Meritists, led by me, who care solely about merit."
Silas immediately began to explain.
"And you, my friend, have already made enemies of two of them. Not only have you angered the founder of the Royalists and humiliated one of their core members, but you have also made it seem as though you have no respect for seniority. Do you really think they will just leave you alone?"
"Right now, your best option is to join my faction. If you do, I promise to support you to the best of my ability and even help you secure the position of Student Council President after my graduation."
He leaned forward.
"So, what do you say? Do you still intend to reject my offer?"
Silas smiled again.
He probably hadn’t understood the situation he was in before.
That was what Silas believed had led to Zenith’s rejection.
As for supporting him in becoming the Student Council President? Silas had no intention of doing that because he already had a successor, someone from his own race.
The academy’s faction was merely a small piece of his greater ambitions, in a way, it was a means for him to judge who would prove useful in his future plans.
"Still not interested."
Zenith rejected him once again.
"If that’s all you wished to discuss, I will take my leave, Senior. My sister is waiting for me."
For the first time since their conversation began, a flicker of anger crossed Silas’ face.
"Are you truly rejecting my offer? I have been benevolent enough to offer you protection from the other factions but you have chosen to throw away even that goodwill."
At those words, Zenith turned around, still smiling.
"Goodwill, huh? That’s a nice word you have chosen for something so blatantly arrogant. You say your faction cares only about merit but among all major factions, isn’t yours the only one that separates its members based on race?"
He continued in the same knowing tone.
"And lastly, someone as biased as you, who doesn’t even acknowledge the fourth faction made up of commoners and judges everyone based on race... how could I possibly trust you to honor your promise? Especially when you have already chosen your successor."
His voice turned slightly cold.
"Also, you were right. I am hiding far more than you can see. But trust me... you wouldn’t want to find out what I am hiding. So, just as you gave me your advice, let me give you some of my own."
He walked up to Silas and patted him on the shoulder as a concentrated wave of bloodlust erupted from Zenith, freezing Silas where he sat.
Even breathing became difficult as cold sweat covered his body.
"Stay the hell out of my way because if you don’t... we are going to have a problem, a problem you won’t want to see the end of."
The bloodlust lasted only a second before vanishing as if it had never existed.
"Hope you understand my warning."
With those words, Zenith turned around and left without a hint of hesitation.
Meanwhile, still seated in his chair, a deep frown appeared on Silas’s ever so calm face.
How dare that pathetic bastard... try to intimidate me?
Even after experiencing Zenith’s bloodlust firsthand, Silas refused to believe he was truly powerful.
He was convinced it had been nothing more than the effect of some artifact... or perhaps his Talent because in his mind, an eighteen year old having that immense of a bloodlust was simply impossible.
And even if that bloodlust had been intimidating, he knew it couldn’t harm him directly. More importantly, Zenith was still nothing more than a first-year student at the Awakened Rank, someone Silas could crush with ease.
Silas gritted his teeth as his grip on the table tightened.
"I will make sure you regret rejecting my offer while you still had the chance, Zenith."