Silence lingered.
Heavy.
Unsettling.
---
Kael's words still echoed in Zael's mind.
Worlds beyond theirs.
Power that made level one thousand seem… ordinary.
---
Kael exhaled slowly.
Then continued.
---
"In those worlds…"
A pause.
---
"…the real path to power doesn't even begin until after the sixth class change."
---
Zael's eyes narrowed slightly.
---
Kael's voice remained steady.
---
"Everything before that…"
"…is just preparation."
---
"A foundation."
---
"Some call it the pre-awakening stage."
"Others call it the foundation stage."
---
His gaze lowered back to Zael.
---
"But the meaning is the same."
---
A pause.
---
"You're building toward one moment."
---
"Bloodline Awakening."
---
Silence.
---
Zael spoke.
---
"…And that determines everything?"
---
Kael nodded.
---
"Yes."
---
A pause.
---
"More than talents."
"More than skills."
---
His eyes sharpened slightly.
---
"It determines your ceiling."
---
Zael didn't interrupt this time.
---
He listened.
---
Carefully.
---
Kael continued.
---
"The earlier your bloodline awakens…"
---
"…the higher your potential."
---
Silence.
---
Zael frowned slightly.
---
"…So the best awaken immediately at level one thousand."
---
Kael shook his head.
---
"No."
---
A pause.
---
"That's just geniuses."
---
The air shifted slightly.
---
"Average people…"
---
"…don't awaken at level one thousand."
---
"They delay."
---
"Not by choice most of the time."
---
"But because they can't meet the conditions."
---
"Or because their foundation isn't enough."
---
"They struggle."
"They stall."
---
"And by the time they awaken—"
---
"They've already fallen behind."
---
Silence.
---
Kael's gaze sharpened.
---
"Geniuses are different."
---
"They reach level one thousand…"
---
"And awaken immediately."
---
"No delay."
"No hesitation."
---
"They step onto the next stage the moment they qualify."
---
A pause.
---
"And that alone…"
---
"…puts them above most of the world."
---
Zael nodded slightly.
---
Logical.
---
Clean.
---
But Kael wasn't finished.
---
His next words came slower.
---
Heavier.
---
"…But even among geniuses…"
---
"…there are anomalies."
---
Silence.
---
Zael's eyes sharpened.
---
"…Anomalies?"
---
Kael nodded.
---
"Yes."
---
A pause.
---
"They don't wait for the threshold."
---
The air tightened.
---
"They break it."
---
Zael's pupils shrank slightly.
---
"…What?"
---
Kael's voice dropped.
---
"Some awaken their bloodline…"
---
"…before level one thousand."
---
Silence crashed down.
---
"That shouldn't be possible."
---
Zael's voice was calm—
But firm.
---
Kael gave a faint nod.
---
"It shouldn't be."
---
A pause.
---
"But it happens."
---
His gaze turned distant for a moment.
---
"Rarely."
---
"But when it does…"
---
"…those people are monsters."
---
"True monsters."
---
"Because they don't just have more time—"
---
"They break the system itself."
---
Silence.
---
Zael's mind moved rapidly.
---
Child of Dao.
---
A class that already ignored rules.
---
Kael's voice came again.
---
"And those kinds of existences…"
---
"…don't live normal lives."
---
A pause.
---
"They attract things."
---
"Attention."
---
"Danger."
---
Zael's gaze sharpened instantly.
---
"…Like you?"
---
Silence.
---
For the first time—
---
Kael didn't deflect.
---
He didn't avoid it.
---
Instead—
---
He answered.
---
"…Yes."
---
The word was quiet.
---
But absolute.
---
Zael stilled.
---
"…Explain."
---
A long pause followed.
---
Longer than before.
---
Then—
---
Kael spoke.
---
"…Five years ago."
---
His voice was calm.
---
Controlled.
---
But something underneath it had changed.
---
"I was attempting my second class change."
---
A pause.
---
"The quest…"
---
"…wasn't normal."
---
Zael didn't interrupt.
---
Kael continued.
---
"It turned into an inheritance dungeon."
---
Silence.
---
Zael's eyes narrowed slightly.
---
Inheritance dungeons weren't standard.
---
They were rare.
---
Dangerous.
---
Unpredictable.
---
"I barely survived."
---
Kael's voice didn't change.
---
But the weight behind it did.
---
"Severe injuries."
---
"Near death multiple times."
---
A pause.
---
"But I cleared it."
---
Silence.
---
"And when I did…"
---
"…I received something."
---
Zael's gaze locked onto him.
---
"A hidden class."
---
Kael's voice dropped slightly.
---
"Child of Thunder."
---
The name itself felt heavy.
---
Violent.
---
Unstable.
---
Zael didn't speak.
---
Kael continued.
---
"It gave me power."
---
"A lot of it."
---
A pause.
---
"But that wasn't the problem."
---
Silence.
---
"It did something else."
---
Kael's eyes darkened slightly.
---
"…It awakened my bloodline."
---
Zael's pupils shrank.
---
"…Before level one thousand."
---
Kael nodded.
---
"Yes."
---
A pause.
---
"Blood of Tribulation."
---
The air grew heavy.
---
Even the name carried weight.
---
Danger.
---
Destruction.
---
Something unnatural.
---
Zael's voice came low.
---
"…And you told someone."
---
Kael went still.
---
Then—
---
"…Yes."
---
A pause.
---
"I was young."
---
"I didn't understand what it meant."
---
His jaw tightened slightly.
---
"I trusted the academy."
---
Silence.
---
"The next day…"
---
A pause.
---
"…it was gone."
---
Zael froze.
---
"…What?"
---
Kael's voice didn't change.
---
"Destroyed."
---
"People dead."
---
"Everything erased."
---
Silence crashed down.
---
Zael's chest tightened.
---
"…And you?"
---
Kael's eyes darkened.
---
"I was taken."
---
A pause.
---
"Captured."
---
Silence.
---
"For six months…"
---
"…I was experimented on."
---
Zael's fingers clenched instantly.
---
"…For what?"
---
Kael's gaze hardened.
---
"To extract it."
---
A pause.
---
"My class."
---
"My bloodline."
---
Silence.
---
"They couldn't."
---
A faint, cold edge entered his voice.
---
"So they tried harder."
---
Zael's breathing slowed.
---
Controlled.
---
But heavy.
---
"…And you escaped."
---
Kael nodded.
---
"Yes."
---
A pause.
---
"Barely."
---
Silence.
---
Then—
---
Kael looked directly at him.
---
For the first time—
---
There was no distance.
---
No rank.
---
No authority.
---
Just truth.
---
"I didn't leave because I wanted to."
---
A pause.
---
"I left…"
---
"…because staying would have gotten you killed."
---
Silence.
---
Zael didn't move.
---
Didn't speak.
---
Because this time—
---
There was nothing to argue against.
---
Nothing to deny.
---
Only reality.
---
Kael exhaled slowly.
---
"I couldn't come back."
---
"Not then."
---
"Not after that."
---
A pause.
---
"Even now…"
---
His voice lowered slightly.
---
"…I'm not sure I should have."
---
Silence stretched.
---
Zael's fist clenched.
---
"…And you still think I'm not ready?"
---
Kael didn't hesitate.
---
"Yes."
---
The answer was immediate.
---
Unwavering.
---
And absolute.
---
The air tightened instantly.
---
Zael's eyes darkened.
---
"…Then I'll become ready."
---
A step forward.
---
"…Fast."
---
Silence.
---
Kael watched him.
---
Long.
---
Carefully.
---
Then—
---
"…Level thirty."
---
A pause.
---
"First class change."
---
His voice steadied.
---
"Reach it."
---
"Stabilize your path."
---
"Prove you can stand."
---
A final pause.
---
"Then come find me."
---
Silence.
---
Zael's gaze didn't waver.
---
"…And then?"
---
Kael turned.
---
"…Then I'll tell you everything."
---
He began walking away.
---
This time—
---
Without stopping.
---
Without turning back.
---
Zael stood there.
---
Silent.
---
But inside—
---
Something had shifted.
---
Not confusion.
---
Not anger.
---
Something sharper.
---
Clearer.
---
A direction.
---
Level thirty.
---
First class change.
---
The next step.
---
And beyond that—
---
The truth.
---
Zael's eyes slowly hardened.
---
"…I'll get there."
---
A whisper.
---
But absolute.
---
Because now—
---
This wasn't just about strength anymore.
---
It was about stepping into a world—
---
That had already tried to take everything from him.
---
And this time—
---
He would be ready.
---
[END OF CHAPTER]