Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

Ryza's reason got the better of her. It simply wasn't worth it to lash out and paint herself into a corner just for a moment of satisfaction. 

She pressed her thumb against her forefinger, pushing its nail out to become more prominent. Then, with a single, unhesitant action, she pierced it into her chest. 

A flow of blinding red blood flowed outward, shimmering as bright as a star. There were very few that could say they had ever seen a Sky God bleed, but now Ryu could definitely count himself among that extraordinarily small number. 

Not only did the blood of a Sky God carry overwhelming vitality, just being in its presence was a form of blasphemy. Ryu had been in many Ruins before where a Sky God's blood was actually part of the main defensive mechanisms. Blood sacrifices were among the best methods to create powerful formations, so it was unsurprising that this was the case. 

Ryza's blood carried with it the heft a Sky God's blood should. Despite how seemingly easy it looked rolling down her finger like that, Ryu knew well that just a single drop weighed a seemingly impossible amount. 

"I swear to never infringe upon…"

Ryza paused, clearly waiting for Ryu to speak his name. In response, his lip curled, a light chuckle leaving him. 

"Ryu Tatsuya."

The Holy Battle Ground quaked, the swords becoming greatly agitated. 

Ryza's own gaze trembled as well, suddenly realizing that when Ryu said he had a lot of enemies… It wasn't a joke in the slightest. Unfortunately, having already come so far, there was no turning back in the slightest. She really was screwed. 

"… Ryu Tatsuya's benefits until the day my foundation is healed."

Ryu's smile didn't fade even with Ryza's caveat. By the time such a thing was healed, let alone having to rely on Aberardus, Ryu was confident that he'd be able to handle Ryza himself. It was only a matter of time. 

A crackle of thunder rang through the starry skies as a bolt of crimson lightning fell. Seeing this, Ryza knew there was simply no going back. 

She stared deeply at Ryu. 

"Are you… Really a Tatsuya?"

"Do you think I could withstand the backlash if I wasn't?" Ryu answered perfunctorily. 

"But…"

Ryu's expression darkened when he heard Ryza begin. Clearly, he could tell where she was going with this, but he didn't care to answer. 

Ryza, though, having come to understand Ryu's limits, wouldn't be off put by a mere gaze from a junior. No matter what Ryu said, the fact that he was still forced to compromise meant that there was little to nothing he could do to her. 

"… How? Did you receive their legacy?"

Ryu's gaze shifted away from Ryza. Clearly, he didn't plan on answering. However, rather than becoming annoyed, Ryza smiled. 

"You don't have to answer, but nothing in my oath guaranteed that I would get Supreme Blacksmith Wynhorn's help for you. The only reason I've gone so far is because I need to get rid of this flaw on my heart, and to do that, I need to understand you. If you aren't going to tell me anything, why do I have to go the extra mile?"

"I don't take kindly to threats."

"Who said it's a threat? It's just a transaction."

Ryza was very curious about this matter. The disappearance of the Tatsuya practically happened over night. Of course, it wasn't this exaggerated, but a war that was so short might as well have felt like a single night to someone who had lived as long as she had. 

Plus, Ryza was slowly beginning to understand Ryu. He was someone who wouldn't bend when it came to matters of pride, but that didn't mean he wouldn't bend in other ways. If she was humiliating him and talking about some terrible deed he committed, maybe he wouldn't even spare her a glance even if it meant not being able to see Wynhorn. But, this was a different matter entirely. After all, Ryza was only asking a bit about Ryu's history. 

She was essentially trading a conversation with Ryu for a small favor. Something like this shouldn't infringe on Ryu's pride at all. 

"My parents are Himari and Titus Tatsuya. I didn't receive a Legacy, I was born a Tatsuya."

When Ryu spoke these words, there was a particularly silent lull around Titus Tatsuya's name. It felt quite odd and quite hollow. It was a subtle feeling that Ryu almost didn't catch, but when he did, his brows furrowed. 

It had been a long time since he spoke his fathers name aloud. No one could force him to, and he didn't particularly want to either. 

The last time he had, he had been asking a member of the three main Necromancer families about him. But, now that Ryu thought about it, the reaction he received then might have been twisted due to the fact it was an artificial world… 

He wasn't sure what to think. 

Ryza, however, felt like she had been steam rolled. 

Himari and Titus were two individuals far beneath a Sky God's notice. However, the same could not be said of Saint Tatsuya and Saint Kunan. Both were men just a step away from the Sky God Realm and both were men the Sky God community had a sharp eye on. This was because there was a good chance that both would leap over the False Godhood frame and directly form True Godhoods. 

By extension, their children, were well known, on top of being the Patriarch and Matriarch of one of the martial world's strongest Hegemonies. 

And a step further… Their son and their grandson was a name that had rocked the entirety of the martial world because of his birth… 

A birth with the momentum of a Sky Gods breakthrough. A Great Circle Ancestral Grade Talent. The wielder of the number one ranked Heavenly Pupils in all of existence… 

Ryu Tatsuya. 

"You… You're…"

Ryza was at a loss for words.