"Alright, as I was saying… they died here." Caius began, his voice heavy. "The next trial forced us to choose between saving our loved ones from death… or watching them be slaughtered. You might have an idea of how cruel that sounds, but that wasn't even the hard part. No… after you made your choice not to save them, it would start again—this ti, you might be in the body of the killer… or in the body of your loved ones."
He paused, his voice growing darker.
"In a nutshell… many died trying to protect you all. And in the end, only ten billion survived to face the final trial."
Caius fell silent as chairs suddenly materialized behind the powerhouses, who slumped into them weakly.
This... this was too cruel.
This was insane.
"Hahaha. You think that was hard?" Caius laughed bitterly. "We were thrown into a hundred-man arena. Only one was allowed to survive. You had to kill ninety-nine others to live. We… we killed fellow humans to survive. That included your surviving geniuses."
He didn't let them process it.
"And even then, the survivors numbered more than a thousand, right? But then ca the transformation. We were turned into sothing else. Sothing stronger."
Caius's tone turned cold, brutal.
"We are the Dreadborne."
As he spoke, his body began to morph. Behind him, the other eleven survivors transford too—Dared, Liya, Trul… all of them. They grew to over two ters tall. Their human forms remained, but scales crawled across their skin, and their eyes turned a faint, terrifying crimson.
No claws—yet their aura surged like a tide of destruction.
"This… this bloodline..."
"The aura... it's..."
The powerhouses gasped as dread gripped their hearts. Regret pierced through them.
Why had their geniuses died? Why did these survive?
This aura—they all stood at the planetary realm, and even the weakest among them were close to the galaxy realm with their new forms. As for Liya, she had already reached the galaxy realm. Caius… he stood at the quasi-galaxy realm.
Before the transformation, only Liya and two others had even reached the planetary realm. Liya had been at the peak, the other two at high and middle levels, respectively. The rest had been at the legendary realm.
Now?
Now, all of them were invincible under the galaxy realm.
Regret. Pain. Jealousy.
All of it twisted into envy, hatred, and dangerous resentnt.
"These cubs… they shouldn't have revealed this," Drezan growled. "They're putting their families at risk. Except for the one from the military, Caius from the royal family, Liya from the Duke family, and Dared from the destroyed assassin organization—the rest have weak backgrounds. If they die tomorrow—? No. I can't let these geniuses be destroyed because of aristocratic jealousy."
General Drezan clenched his fists. He had already made his decision: he would inform the military.
Humanity's future couldn't be jeopardized by brain-dead aristocrats.
"Like I said, we are the Dreadborne Organization. Touch us… and prepare to face the consequences." Caius's voice rang out, indifferent, yet sharp as steel. He knew exactly what the powerhouses were thinking.
Those with weak backgrounds felt grateful.
Who said the eldest prince was a waste?
Even if he had been… he was no longer.
And now? He was their protector. A born leader.
Just then, several auras descended.
The powerhouses and Drezan froze.
"Multi-universal… multi-universal!" Drezan's eyes widened in horror.
The powerhouses dropped to their knees, their faces pale.
This… this was a warning.
A threat.
A command.
They dared think of eliminating the Dreadborne?
BOOM.
A clash of auras.
The terrifying pressure was suddenly withdrawn.
Drezan let out a heavy sigh of relief.
"The Marshal made a move." His tone turned icy. "My advice? Be careful, or you'll drag your families into ruin and get erased from existence."
The powerhouses gritted their teeth, rose from their knees, and vanished—likely off to warn their families.
But Drezan wasn't calm. He knew these bastards too well.
They would make trouble.
The Federation would be restless in the coming days.
"You all should return to your families. And Eldest Prince…" Drezan turned to Caius, his tone heavy. "Be careful. Especially now. The Crown Prince… he—"
He didn't finish. He didn't have to.
Caius nodded, understanding completely.
The Crown Prince would now see him as a threat.
And the royal family? They were not to be trifled with. Their hands reached deep. Their true strength was unknown. All the ancient families, even those with multi-universal beings, submitted to the royal family—including the legendary Hollowind Family.
"Thank you, General. We'll take our leave." Caius said with a calm smile as Drezan nodded, waving them off. The dozen of them teleported out, appearing in front of the military base.
"Thank you, Eldest Prince!"
Those among them with weak backgrounds imdiately bowed and thanked Caius.
After so sincere gratitude and flattery, they all departed—leaving only Caius and Liya.
"Liya," Caius said seriously, "I know with the Dreadborne behind us, you feel free to act however you want—and probably plan sothing crazy. But understand this. If I'm to fight for the throne, I'll need the Duke Family. I need all the help I can get. Don't eliminate them. Convince them. Make them lay low… the Crown Prince is dangerous."
Liya sighed, nodding.
"After all… I taught him everything he knows," Caius thought grimly.
"But… Caius, can I co see you?" Liya asked gently.
Caius opened his mouth paused then shook his head.
"You must not be seen with . Not unless I make a move. If I don't… you must never co see . Don't even try."
Liya looked like she wanted to argue—but Caius had already turned away, walking toward the royal palace.
"Damn your brother… I'll kill him," Liya thought coldly, before walking off toward her family estate.
**********
anwhile...
As Dared left the military compound, a familiar face awaited him.
His father.
"Son," the man called out warmly, walking toward him.
"Good to see you, Dad," Dared smiled, his father's hand resting firmly on his shoulder.
"You've grown," his father said softly.
Though Dared had only been gone a month, his entire presence had changed—his body, his face, even his voice had matured. No longer the cold, angry boy. Sothing had happened.
Sothing that forged a man.
"Yes, I have, Father. And you were right. The Assassin Organization… I'll rebuild it. I promise you."
His father smiled, nodding.
"I believe you."
Together, they turned and walked ho.
"Caius… the battle between your royal family and my bloodline has officially begun," Dared thought calmly.
He knew.
Caius would try to eliminate him.
He would try to wipe out his family.
But for now… Dared had no power to stop it.
And the crown prince was no longer a waste. Even if he was a bastard, he could fight for the throne now.
The Federation was entering a new storm.
A lot is happening.
What will happen next?
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