Chapter 238 — The Successor

Chapter 238: Chapter 238 — The Successor

Chapter 238 — The Successor

A voice immediately cut in.

"And how do we know the base isn’t a trap?"

Victor looked toward the speaker.

It was the same person who had accused him of lying before.

"How do we know the Evil God Organization didn’t send you here specifically to pull us out of hiding?"

The masked figure leaned forward.

"We’ve remained hidden and survived for far too long to risk everything because of the word of a fourteen-year-old boy."

Victor’s jaw tightened.

"This isn’t a whim."

He raised the feather slightly.

"I’ve given you evidence."

Victor returned the feather to his storage ring.

Then he pointed toward his shoulder.

"And Nala is right here."

The Firebird stared back at them.

"She is Rakasha’s daughter."

For the first time, the room truly erupted.

"The Guardian Spirit’s daughter?"

"Impossible."

"That’s just a Firebird."

"There’s absolutely no way."

Victor stared around the room.

His frustration grew with every voice.

"You’ve all been hiding for so long that you’ve given up on actually taking out the Evil God Organization."

Silence fell.

Then a furious voice rang across the room.

"Preposterous!"

Another masked figure stood.

"How dare you assume we don’t want to destroy the Evil God Organization? We’ve been fighting them longer than you’ve been alive, boy."

Victor immediately looked toward him.

"Then why are you hesitating?"

The room went quiet.

Victor stepped forward.

"You finally have an opportunity to locate one of their bases. You have someone standing in front of you who can lead you directly to it."

His voice rose.

"And instead of making a move, you’re cowering in fear."

"How dare you!"

The masked figure slammed his hand down.

"You come into this place and accuse us of cowardice? Do you even know where you are?"

Victor stared at him.

"No."

The answer seemed to catch several people off guard.

"And apparently, that doesn’t matter."

His gaze swept across the room.

He didn’t know their names.

He didn’t know their faces.

He didn’t even know where in the Tower he was standing.

But he knew what mattered.

Lyra was still somewhere in Region F.

Every minute they spent arguing was another minute she remained in the hands of the Evil God Organization.

Victor clenched his fists.

Old fogies.

That was the only thought going through his exhausted mind.

He’d run himself nearly into the ground to get here.

He had brought them Rakasha’s feather.

He had shown them Nala.

He’d given them the location of a base they’d supposedly spent years trying to find.

And somehow, it still wasn’t enough.

These old fogies aren’t going to believe me.

For the first time since entering the room, doubt crept into his mind.

Maybe coming here had been a waste of time.

But if they wouldn’t believe him...

What else could he possibly do?

Victor was starting to lose heart.

He looked around the enormous room, but there wasn’t a single person who seemed to be on his side.

Even Elder Benton hadn’t said a word.

Victor’s gaze eventually settled on the figure sitting at the center of the room.

The man wore a white mask like many of the others, but there was something different about him. His position alone told Victor he was probably one of the most important people here.

And strangely, he’d barely spoken.

His strength was so far beyond Victor’s that he couldn’t even begin to measure it.

Silence settled over the room.

Victor lowered his eyes.

What else can I show them?

He needed their help.

Whether he liked it or not, he couldn’t leave empty-handed.

Finally, the man at the center spoke.

"So you were inside the Sanctuary."

Victor looked up.

"And you met the Guardian Beast."

The man’s eyes narrowed behind his mask.

"But why?"

Victor remained silent.

"Why would she give you her feather? Why would she tell you anything?"

Victor frowned.

It was a fair question.

Why him?

His gaze shifted toward Nala.

He could explain how he’d met Rakasha, but that wouldn’t answer what the man was really asking.

At first, Victor had believed Rakasha gave him the feather mainly because of Nala. It allowed her to locate him if necessary.

But then Rakasha had appeared later.

She’d warned him.

She’d told him about Samal.

About the Evil God Organization.

About things she had no reason to tell some random fourteen-year-old human.

There had to be more to it.

Victor looked at the masked figures surrounding him.

"Before I left the Sanctuary, Rakasha gave me a warning."

The room quieted.

"She told me to watch out for the Evil God Organization."

Victor paused.

"But she also told me to look for those who still follow Samal."

Several people shifted.

Small movements.

But Victor noticed them.

His eyes moved from one mask to another.

"Are you not the ones who follow Samal?"

His hands tightened at his sides.

"Or have I come to the wrong place?"

The man at the center stared at him for several seconds.

Then he answered.

"You are correct."

Victor’s eyes sharpened.

"But you need to understand something, boy."

The man’s voice remained calm.

"If we trust you and this goes wrong, what happens afterward?"

Victor didn’t answer.

"Who will preserve alchemy? Who will continue fighting for humanity?"

His gaze swept across the room.

"We are humanity’s last stand. Trust is not something we can afford to give easily."

Victor slowly nodded.

"I understand."

And he did.

That didn’t make the situation any less frustrating.

"But I don’t know what else I can show you."

There were things he could reveal.

The Black Phoenix Flame.

The Library.

The ancient formulas he possessed.

The truth behind the Spirit Accumulation Pills.

Any one of those might change the conversation.

But Victor couldn’t do it.

Not yet.

Because there was still one possibility he couldn’t ignore.

What if these people aren’t truly Samal’s followers?

What if he was wrong?

Everything he’d revealed so far was dangerous, but survivable.

The Black Phoenix inheritance was different.

Once that secret left his mouth, there was no taking it back.

Victor briefly considered giving them an ancient formula instead. Something valuable enough to prove he possessed knowledge from the Sanctuary without revealing where that knowledge truly came from.

Maybe that would be enough.

Before he could decide, another masked man spoke from the left side of the central figure.

"Honestly, boy, I don’t believe we can trust you."

Victor turned toward him.

"Your story is too far-fetched. Even if you truly found one of the Evil God Organization’s bases, that doesn’t mean it isn’t a trap."

The man leaned forward.

"If we send even one member and lose them because of this, the loss would be immense."

Several people nodded.

"Every person in this room is important. We cannot gamble lives on your word alone."

Victor lowered his head.

That was it.

There was nothing else he could do.