Chapter 479: What Do You Think?
Silence filled the area after Damian finished telling the man everything.
The sun hung overhead, unchanging, but the air itself felt heavier now.
The man sat perfectly still, his breathing becoming rougher with each passing second.
Then his hair began to rise, crimson strands lifting as if caught by wind that didn’t exist.
His eyes blazed, crimson light spilling out like fire.
"I... how dare..."
His voice came out low and dangerous, power radiating from him in waves.
"How dare that beggar treat my grandson like this?! Like some tool to be moved around a board?!"
His hands clenched into fists at his sides, knuckles going white.
"And that hooded bastard! Erasing memories! That son of a bitch!"
The broken sword materialized in his hand again, his grip so tight the weapon trembled.
"I... I..."
He stood abruptly, the movement sharp and violent.
The sword cut through the air in a slash that made reality itself seem to flinch.
"If I was alive– if I could reach them– I would tear them apart piece by piece for what they’ve done to my grandson!"
Another slash, this one carving a line across the peak that glowed with crimson light.
"Using a child! Manipulating his entire life! Making him suffer!"
His breathing was ragged now, chest heaving as rage consumed him.
Then he turned back to look at Damian, preparing to continue his tirade, and stopped completely.
Damian was smiling.
The expression looked almost foolish, wide and genuine despite the tear tracks still visible on his face.
"You..."
The man’s glare fixed on Damian, confusion mixing with his anger.
"What are you smiling about?"
But Damian’s smile only became wider, reaching his eyes in a way that made them shine.
’Is he... is he just happy because I’m angry for his sake?’
The man’s thoughts stuttered.
’Just this much is enough to make him happy? Someone being angry on his behalf? Someone caring enough to rage at the people who hurt him?’
His chest tightened, something breaking inside at how little it took to put that expression on his grandson’s face.
He took a deep breath, forcing his fury down through sheer willpower.
The broken sword dissolved back into nothing as he moved to sit beside Damian again.
Then his hand settled on Damian’s head, patting gently.
"You have suffered so much, little Damian." His voice came out thick with emotion he couldn’t quite suppress. "I... don’t even know what to say. What words could possibly be enough?"
Damian’s smile faded slightly, warmth spreading through his chest.
’I don’t need anything. This is already more than I ever expected. But–’
"Grandpa." His voice was quiet. "What do you think? What’s really going on with my current life?"
The man looked up at the sun, his expression becoming thoughtful, though his eyes twinkled at the address.
Nobody spoke for several breaths.
"I don’t know how much of what that Elizabeth girl said is true."
His voice was measured now, everything pushed aside by the need to think clearly.
"Even if she did see visions of your past life, are they something that really happened?"
He paused, letting that sink in.
"Seers are troublesome beings, little Damian. Once they see a vision, they believe in it entirely, with absolute conviction, without ever questioning–"
His crimson eyes shifted to look at Damian directly.
"–whether what they’re seeing are their own visions, or something that a higher being who has embarked on the path of the law of fate is showing them."
BOOM
The realization hit Damian like a physical blow, making his eyes go wide.
’Indeed.’
His thoughts raced.
’Even if Elizabeth believes what she said was true, did it really happen? Was there really a hooded figure at the end of my first life? Or was that just part of a vision someone else fed to her?’
"Little Damian... If you want to make someone believe your lie, you mix it with half-truths that the other person already knows."
The man’s voice was quiet, carrying weight.
He didn’t continue, but both of them understood what he was implying.
After some time, the man spoke again.
"As for what really happened, no one knows for certain." His voice was calm. "But if there really was a hooded figure who erased your memories, then it means there are two sides in this whole game of chess you’ve been caught in."
Damian’s attention sharpened completely.
"If you think more closely about the words he said according to what Elizabeth told you, he mentioned you as being the chosen one of the old beggar."
The man’s fingers drummed against his knee.
"And that you won’t be able to change the future and go against ’them’."
He paused for emphasis.
"This ’them’ is one side. They definitely seem to have powerful seers among themselves, and they want the future to remain unchanged and events to unfold exactly as they’ve foreseen."
His expression became sharper.
"But they aren’t all-knowing... You haven’t encountered anyone from their side yet, at least not that you recognized."
’That’s true.’
Damian’s thoughts confirmed it.
’The hooded figure appeared once and vanished. Nothing since then that I could identify as coming from him or that side. If they really exist then... who are they?’
The man continued, his voice becoming quieter.
"The other side is the old beggar."
He looked at Damian seriously.
"You’ve already seen the signs of his involvement everywhere. He is... I don’t know what he really is, but he doesn’t seem to be a seer or someone who follows the law of fate."
"Hmm?"
Damian’s confusion showed clearly on his face.
The man’s expression became more intense.
"He knew about everything that would happen... Everything, little Damian."
His voice dropped.
"He placed a seal in your mind with some memories, knowing that a person from ’their’ side would appear in the future trying to erase them."
Damian listened to his grandfather’s perspective silently, his mind completely focused on his words.
"I still don’t know how he even knew about our family’s fate."
The man’s hands clenched slightly.
"You have to understand, even if a top-tier seer who’s walked deep into the law of fate wants to see the future, if a being like me who was the strongest human is involved, all their calculations and visions would become unstable."
He tapped his chest.
"Being so powerful, my fate isn’t something that can be easily interfered with or predicted. The stronger someone is, the harder it becomes for seers to see their future clearly."
He looked at Damian directly.
"But he knew our family would be destroyed. So he gathered those unnamed four, decades before you were even born, and positioned them to save you at crucial moments in your life."
"..."
Silence spread around them like a physical presence.
"But... can’t he be the God of fate himself?" Damian’s question came out hesitant. "Wouldn’t that explain how he knows everything?"
The man looked at Damian, his expression becoming complicated.
"There are limitations to each law, little Damian... Especially once you become a law yourself and reach that level of existence."
He paused, choosing his words carefully.
"And Fate is the most mysterious of all. If he truly is the God of fate, then he has to follow fate’s rules."