“We were told that a long ti ago, a very long ti ago, that the Southern Continent purged our kind from their bloodline.”
“We?”
“The Bloodless,” Synthia clarified. “Though…”
I caught the hesitation in her voice.
“You still aren’t treated the sa as those with systems,” I guessed. It wasn’t that surprising. System users held an overwhelming advantage in power, and traditional cultivation thods were not really enough to close the gap.
Synthia nodded. “More or less. We’re rare, too. In my entire family, even among the branch families, I’m the only one. And even then, only one person was ever kind to .”
“Okay.” None of this was that much of a shock to . How Bloodless were treated didn’t really matter to . But the fact that they didn’t exist at all in the State of Stars... that worried .
Synthia was proof that Bloodless could be born naturally, even if rarely. Presumably from parents with systems.
‘So that ans they have to be born where you’re from, right?’ Luna asked.
‘Yes. And yet… I’ve never t a single one. None of my friends have ever heard the term Bloodless. At least I think.’
A cold realization started to creep in.
‘Soone is eliminating your people.’ Luna speculated.
The thought sent a chill through . Maybe being separated from the State wasn’t such a bad thing. I was strong enough to hold my own, probably even more so now. I seriously doubted anyone from the camp within the recruits could do much to anymore.
But what about Trevor? How much ti did he have before...
I set the thought aside and focused back on Synthia.
“So, you’re treated poorly due to your weakness, but you're different. Explain your power,” I pressed. “Even among cultivators, you’re uniquely strong enough to have survived up to here in the trial.”
She shifted on the couch, clearly uncomfortable with the prying.
“I need you to answer,” I added. “Broadly, for now.”
That seed to ease her. Yet another sign that I’d gotten too comfortable sharing my own secrets.
“I was taught the basics of Force gathering at a young age, in preparation for various tasks in war,” she said. “Everyone is in Voxter, though I don’t know how it works in other kingdoms. But… the survival rate of Bloodless is not high. So, Gre—” she caught herself, “—my friend helped escape.”
I ignored her obvious attempt to hide her friend’s na. He wasn’t important anyway.
“The basics of cultivation in Voxter seem much stronger than in the State,” I mused. If people there could summon spiritual weapons, learn techniques from statues, and cultivate even without systems… the State would have lost a long ti ago.
‘You rember Callum told his underlings to share their findings, too.’ Luna reminded , her hue shifting slightly.
‘Which only makes this more confusing.’
Almost as if she had read my thoughts, Synthia responded. “Our basics probably aren’t any better. Even I didn’t know there was anything beyond Core Formation until coming to this place. But… are you so sure the nobility of your country isn’t aware of the techniques you’ve seen?”
That stopped for a mont.
“The Bal family?” I asked.
“Nobility,” she confird. “And mine as well.”
I frowned. Elric didn’t seem to know about any of this. Neither did Drake. If they did, they never shared it. But Elric was all but disowned and Drake was an outcast. Lyra was also a noble, but I had no idea of her situation. Either way, maybe they themselves weren't hiding anything, but higher up than them? No way to know... yet.
But for Synthia, why would a family that mostly hated her share any secrets?
She said she ran away, so how did she get this far? Where did she learn her techniques? What was her cultivation thod?
Was it like mine? The circuit system? Or was it more like Kaz’s?
Too many questions. A headache started forming from all the speculation. I've had enough of this for now.
“Let’s take a break,” I exhaled. “Want to check out the plaza from earlier?”
She looked relieved, standing up with a short breath. “Yeah, I’d like that.”
I turned toward the door but was stopped by a voice that was no longer as quiet.
“You were told to wear sothing in here, right?” Synthia reminded . “Probably don’t want to break the rules on our first day out, right?” She smirked.
“Yeah, probably not,” I chuckled then realized sothing. “What about your clothes?”
She glanced down at her outfit, sothing better suited for battle than for an ideally ‘safe’ sect. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “I’m not technically a mber, so maybe just sticking with you is enough?”
“No idea.”
“Helpful.”
“I am the reason you’re here. That makes helpful.” I justified.
Synthia scoffed. “Had you let use my attack, we both could’ve been mbers.” She laughed as she spoke, so I assud she was half-joking, but it’s not like I had any say in whether the fight happened or not.
‘Could you have even survived the attack?’ Luna teased.
…Actually, good point.
“With all that power, the result would’ve been the sa. Only one of us would have been accepted, right? Except there wouldn't have been any servants.” I gave her a knowing smile.
She froze completely, eyes widening.
…What? Is there sothing wrong with my smile? People always react weirdly to it.
‘Maybe you’re just weird-looking. Can’t tell, though. You’re all giant monsters to .’ Luna oh-so-helpfully added.
‘I don’t think she froze because she thinks I’m a giant monster.’
Synthia swallowed, her voice quieter than before. “I—I wouldn’t have killed you.”
I let out a brief laugh. “With all the elents in your att—”
“YOU DO KNOW!”
‘Oooooh. She froze because yo—’
‘I know, Luna!’ I grumbled at my mishap.
But Synthia wasn’t letting this drop. “Can you sense… or can you see Force? Different types?”
I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “I could really use a break. Rather than just telling you, let’s exchange information. You tell how you absorb energy, and I’ll tell you how I see it.”
“Fine, I ca—”
“Later, though.” I cut her off, already heading for the bedroom. “I’m tired of all this.”
‘Are you sure you don’t want to figure this out now?’ Luna asked.
‘I am. Either way, I’m starting to think this has to do with the Essences. The goal might not be to absorb the energy, but to figure out how to form elental essence... without relying on these realms.’
The bedroom was simple. Apparently, even as a Core Disciple, extravagance wasn’t on the nu. Unless… This was their idea of extravagance. In that case, I wasn’t eager to see what the lower-ranked disciples’ quarters looked like.
I walked to the obvious closet and pulled it open. Black... just black. Pants, shirts, a coat, each piece dark and uniform, with a glimring yellow sash, dangerously close to gold.
I wasn’t exactly a fashion expert, but the sect’s wardrobe choices didn’t seem to be making any bold statents.
At the bottom of the closet, however, I spotted sothing else. A brown variation of the sa clothes, and a smile found its way onto my lips.
“Synthiaaaa?”
“What?” she called back. “What’s taking so long?”
…Was I taking that long? “I think I found the servant’s clothes.” I grabbed a set of the glamorous dirt-colored apparel and made my way to the door.
As I reached for the handle, a warning ca from the other side. “You better be wearing clothes.”
I huffed. “What kind of person do you think I am?”
Then, with perfect aim, I chucked the outfit at her.
Bullseye.
The fabric smacked right into her face before she could react.
I slamd the door shut before she could retaliate. “Feel free to use any room in MY HOUSE to get dressed,” I called back smugly.
‘You are trying to be friends with her, right?’ Luna asked, her tone filled with genuine confusion.
‘Hey, nothing says friendship like being mildly annoying.’
‘I’m starting to see why you don’t have many friends.’ Luna shimred in amusent, her version of a chuckle.
I ignored her and rummaged through my own clothes. The pants stretched at the seams, definitely one of those one-size-fits-all situations, and the shirt was both wide and long, almost oversized.
Honestly, it was a bit uncomfortable. I had to tuck in a fair bit of the fabric just to avoid looking like I was wearing a tent.
The robe was long, reaching down to my ankles, but cinched shorter when I fastened the sash around my waist. I gave myself one final adjustnt before turning toward the full-length mirror near the bed.
“Alright. Mont of truth.”
‘What?’
I took a deep breath and stepped in front of it.
The mirror’s polished surface reflected my full height perfectly, ready to judge my majesty.
And man, was I majestic.
It had been a while since I’d really looked at myself. For the most part, I hadn’t changed.
This was still my body… though, technically, I should be missing my right arm.
There were so differences, though. Compared to my ti at ho, I was definitely more muscular. My hair had grown past my ears, though it didn’t seem any easier to ta than usual.
All in all? Not bad.
Could definitely use a warm shower and a bath, though. That’s for sure.
This place had to have one, right? I an, if I was allowed servants, they had to have sothing to do. nial tasks like preparing als or drawing baths… though, sohow, I doubted Synthia would be interested in either.
But, of course, I wasn’t allowed to have an ego for more than a couple of monts.
‘You still look like a monster.’
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