Chapter 400: Royal Blood Bastard

Luke stayed quiet this time. He left room for her to continue.

“If none of this had happened… would you have gone back?” he asked. “Or would you have chosen revenge anyway?”

Allison didn’t answer right away.

When she finally spoke, it didn’t sound like she was talking to him at all. More like she was talking to something deep inside herself.

“I don’t know anymore. Should I avenge my adoptive mother’s death? Or should I honor what she wanted before she died and actually try to live?”

Luke listened without interrupting. Then said, softly:

“So you haven’t made that decision yet. That’s good. It means the question still matters to you. It means you’re still alive. All that’s left is dealing with the obstacle that is your family.”

She looked at him. “Still trying to make me stay alive?”

“I told you,” Luke replied, eyes steady and calm again. “I have one trick left. But it only works if you help me. The trick is that I beat you using words.”

“It won’t work,” she said. But this time, there was no sharp edge to it. Just exhaustion.

“I’m going to try anyway.”

Luke took a moment to gather his thoughts. Then, still lying in the snow, he looked at her.

“The real problem is the woman in charge of your family. She’s the one who wants you gone.”

Allison didn’t speak.

“Why does she hate you?”

The silence that followed wasn’t dramatic. Just heavy.

“I told you… I’m the result of a betrayal. And that’s serious. Very serious, when it comes to noble families. Even worse when it’s an ancient clan. A dragon blooded clan.”

She still didn’t look at him. She just kept going.

“My father doesn’t lead the family anymore. We were already in crisis back then. My ancestor from the first system generation was the one who ruled. He married a dragon through an arranged union. He was a powerful member of the world government. And he died. He was the only ruler of the first generation to die.”

Allison breathed slowly.

“That death put the Rhiannon family into a deep decline. One of the world’s kings had fallen. We lost our footing among them. My father was supposed to take his place, but he wasn’t the type. He had no talent. No ambition. Just drinking. Spending wealth.”

Her gaze dropped to the snow.

“Among all the descendants of my great ancestor, he was the weakest. In level. In ambition. In presence. The only power he had was our name. And he still threw that away. He cheated on his wife. Had an affair with a maid. And I was born from that.”

Luke said nothing.

“So I grew up there. The child of the family’s failure. Raised in a nest of greedy, power starved, arrogant people. Humans are already naturally drawn to ego and vanity.”

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She finally lifted her eyes to Luke. Slowly.

“Now imagine a family of kings. And then imagine that those kings are half dragons. The pride, the ego… all of it is multiplied.”

There was no anger on her face. Just weariness.

“No one there liked me. Not even my father. Even though he was a failure, he was supposed to inherit the family as the eldest. But…”

“You were born,” Luke said gently.

“Yes.”

She blinked, tired.

“I am the proof of his betrayal. The living reminder of his mistake. I’m his failure, given form.”

Her voice dropped to almost a whisper.