"How is that even possible?"
Normally, if they truly were Saiyans, ordinary humans should never have been able to conceal their existence so perfectly.
After all, they weren't called a 'warrior race' in the original legends for nothing.
"When do you think a person stops trying to increase their own strength?"
A time when a person stops seeking power...
"...When they no longer feel they lack anything."
It was easy to imagine. One only had to look at those who already grasped both wealth and absolute authority.
"Don't tell me...!"
"Your guess is correct. Even before I was born, the Son family had already fallen, forgetting their original purpose and succumbing to corruption."
Of course, they hadn't been corrupt from the very beginning.
However, aside from a few exceptions, the descendants—unlike the First Ancestor—lacked a bellicose nature. One would almost doubt they shared the same bloodline.
Consequently, the only times they ever stepped onto the battlefield were when their comrades or family were in immediate peril.
In the beginning, this wasn't much of a problem.
To those fighting against the Honkai, the Son family members who stood as their shields were nothing short of heroes.
However, as Schicksal gradually evolved into a more political entity, the Son family became a thorn in the side of the House of Apocalypse.
The initial intent to support the Son family quickly withered. Once other nations realized that only Schicksal could respond to the Honkai threat, the House of Apocalypse tasted a level of power that proved intoxicating.
What the House of Apocalypse eventually wanted from the Son family wasn't a wolf that hunted on its own terms, but a dog that barked only when commanded.
Thus, they utilized their political leverage and vast capital to trample the Son family, attempting to force them to their knees.
But that only incited fierce resistance from the clan. Worse, it caused the very people who looked up to the Son family to turn their backs on Schicksal.
So, they changed tactics. They exploited a single, specific weakness.
The fact that the Son family were gluttons.
Saiyans are naturally high-capacity eaters. At their peak, a single individual can easily consume fifty servings in a single sitting.
While that appetite has lessened as the bloodline thinned and mixed with humanity, even now, a single member eats for four.
Even little Bronie puts away two servings as her baseline.
Regardless, the resulting food expenses were astronomical.
The House of Apocalypse decided to provide for that bottomless hunger.
They provided material abundance without lack.
By bestowing both luxury and political influence, the House of Apocalypse subtly and meticulously corrupted the Son family. Eventually, the taste of power manifested in the clan as specialized traits: arrogance and cruelty.
From a Saiyan perspective, it was a return to their primal roots, but from a human perspective, it was a nightmare made flesh.
Furthermore, realizing that their authority originated from Schicksal—specifically the Apocalypse line—it became impossible for them to act against their patrons.
In fact, they didn't hesitate to become the House of Apocalypse's henchmen just to maintain their status.
In other words, everything had gone exactly as the House of Apocalypse desired.
"But that path led to a critical flaw."
The Son family has always struggled with fertility; heirs are few and far between.
When there was only one child in a generation, they were raised with extreme overprotection.
The problem was that with each passing generation, the birth rate dropped even further.
As a result, their deployments to the front lines became increasingly rare.
From the House of Apocalypse's perspective, the Son family was starting to look like a 'chicken rib'—useless but too valuable to throw away.
It was during this period that Otto Apocalypse became the Overseer.
Otto didn't stop providing for the Son family as his predecessors had.
He simply began to take back the power they had been gifted, piece by piece.
At first, the Son family didn't pay it much mind.
His influence was stripped away so gradually that they failed to notice until it was too late.
A few of the sharper minds caught on, but because members of the Son family lived much longer than ordinary humans, they assumed they could simply reclaim their influence once Otto grew old and died.
Yes... that was before they realized how abnormal Otto Apocalypse truly was.
By the time they understood, everything had already fallen into Otto's hands.
With all practical authority transferred back to the Overseer, the Son family was nothing more than a hollow shell.
"Fortunately—or perhaps unfortunately—Otto Apocalypse lost all interest in the Son family after that."
According to the oral histories, he only acted that way because he was personal friends with the heir of the Son family at the time.
Kallen Kaslana, Otto Apocalypse, and Evan Son.
The Overseer himself often remarked that these three were the closest of friends.
As the ages passed and the 'Super Saiyan' became nothing more than a legend even within the clan, Overseer Otto began to take a direct interest in the family again.
"The reason... was to manifest that legend into reality."
To give birth to a Super Saiyan, he personally intervened in the family's affairs.
He intended to use such a being as a ultimate trump card against the Honkai—against 'God' itself.
He clung to the legend of the being that had supposedly repelled the Herrscher of the Finality, an entity that appeared far earlier than anticipated.
"And he actually did it. He gave birth to a Super Saiyan."
As Father speaks, he fixes his gaze on me. I can't help but let out a low groan.
Does that mean I am that Super Saiyan?
The 'me' before I lost my memories?
So my first awakening didn't happen during the 3rd Eruption after all.
However, an incident occurred that even Overseer Otto hadn't predicted. When I ascended to the Super Saiyan state, the sheer energy aftermath combined with the concentrated Honkai Energy at Schicksal headquarters caused a momentary dimensional tear. The Sea of Quanta was exposed for a fleeting second, and it swallowed the nearest entity—the Super Saiyan—effectively expelling me from the world.
It happened in such a flash that no one could react. Afterward, once the dimensional walls repaired themselves, the aftermath had caused so much destruction and death that Overseer Otto shifted all the blame onto the Son family. With that, the Son family was erased from Schicksal's history.
Years later, Overseer Otto assigned Bianca Ataegina—who had become an A-Rank Valkyrie—to a mission alongside Rita Rossweisse to retrieve an object called the Ether Anchor.
He gave Rita the specific data on the Super Saiyan, charging her with a secret mission to find and bring him back.
I have memories of what happened after that.
While wandering the Sea of Quanta and traveling with Shakespeare, I happened to encounter Bianca. We saved a Bubble Universe together, and eventually returned to reality to face Overseer Otto... but I have no memories of what happened immediately after meeting him.
When I finally woke up, I saw my Mother looking down at me, tears streaming down her face.
Presumably, the reason I lack those specific memories is that they belong to a past that the current 'me' no longer possesses.
The trigger for a Super Saiyan is intense rage born from a tranquil heart.
It's not just any anger... I can't even begin to fathom the depth of the rage and sorrow required.
"But why are you telling me all of this now?"
"Because you are the survivor. You are my brother's son."
"Ah, I see. So that's why Bronya said my family records were strange."
On paper, my lineage—who my parents and relatives were—would have all been listed.
Since my biological father was my current father's older brother... the reason I wasn't listed under my current father but rather under my uncle—my birth father—must have been what drove Bronya to investigate.
"Wait, Honey... Are you saying the Kevin here isn't my biological son, but your brother's?"
"...Yes."
"Then what about my son? Where is my real Kevin?!"
"...Honey, a long time has passed since then."
"Where is my real son?!"
"Stop it... It's time to let that child go."
"...What?"
"You already know. No, you've felt it for a long time now."
—Our son, Kevin... he is no longer in this world.
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