Chapter 14: You Will Have To Work Hard
As soon as Vivian’s hand came into contact with William, a small bead hidden deep within William’s soul suddenly lit up.
William himself didn’t feel anything unusual, but Vivian’s body stiffened for a brief moment as if she had been electrocuted.
However, not even a second later, she returned to normal and her expression did not change in the slightest.
She simply wiped away the beads of sweat from William’s forehead before calmly pulling back her hand.
"Shall we go?" She asked with a faint smile.
William sighed inwardly and nodded before beginning to walk in the direction Vivian had pointed out earlier.
’Well, it’s not like it will affect me much even if she comes along. As long as she doesn’t come into contact with my blood, she shouldn’t do anything absurd,’ He thought and relaxed slightly.
Vivian looked at William’s figure with a thoughtful expression, her usually calm eyes carrying an unusual seriousness.
’Is it really possible?’ She wondered inwardly, feeling deeply shocked.
She followed after William, walking a few meters behind him while remaining lost in thought.
"By the way, we still haven’t introduced ourselves properly, have we?" She suddenly spoke before increasing her pace and walking beside him.
"I am Vivian. Vivian Bloodworth."
’I already know,’ William thought inwardly before calmly replying,
"I am William."
Vivian’s eyes flashed slightly the moment she heard his name, as though she had just confirmed something important and a smile appeared on her face.
"You have a good name."
"Uhh... thank you," William replied with a strange expression because, for some reason, he felt that the vampire lady was behaving somewhat differently than she normally should.
’Maybe she is having another one of her episodes again,’ He muttered inwardly and decided not to think too much about it.
"Junior, do you live in the Rosco Barony?"
William’s body stiffened the moment he heard what Vivian had just called him. He looked at her and asked in a low voice.
"Lady Vivian, why are you calling me junior? I don’t understand."
A look of amusement flashed through Vivian’s eyes when she saw William’s reaction, and she laughed softly.
"With your talent, I am sure you will definitely be able to enter the Sun and Moon Academy, which is the best academy in the Silver Wing Kingdom. I also attend the same academy, so wouldn’t that make you my junior?"
’So that’s why she called me junior...’ William sighed in relief and nodded.
"You are right, Lady Vivian. I am indeed planning to join the Sun and Moon Academy."
’After all, how else am I supposed to kick the rotten asses of every noble if I don’t go there?’
William had not forgotten what he had told Leon when Leon asked him what he would do if he were given a chance to go back in time.
And naturally, he fully intended to keep his word.
Vivian did not appear surprised by William’s answer, as though she had already known he would eventually join the same academy.
The two of them continued moving forward, and a few minutes later, William also sensed the anomaly in the surrounding Aether Energy and was finally able to determine the location of the Astral Rift.
Surprisingly, he didn’t encounter a single monster as they got closer to the rift, even though monsters would normally gather around areas saturated with chaotic Aether Energy.
’Must be because of her...’
William glanced at Vivian from the corner of his eye as she walked casually with her hands behind her back.
Although she appeared completely harmless on the surface, William knew better than anyone that there was absolutely nothing harmless about her.
Soon, they arrived near the rift, and William finally saw it.
A dark blue crack in space, roughly two meters wide and one meter long, hovered a few centimeters above the ground.
’Finally found it...’
William sighed inwardly in relief the moment he saw the Astral Rift.
Vivian also looked at the rift with narrowed eyes before once again assessing its level.
"It’s indeed a Rank One Astral Rift..." She looked toward William. "Are you certain you want to enter it? There will definitely be monsters at the Star Warrior level inside."
"I need to go in," William answered in a serious voice.
The Astral Rift was the only way for him to complete the trial. If he didn’t enter it, finding suitable monsters to complete the trial would become extremely difficult.
Moreover, one of the main reasons he had wanted to enter the Astral Rift this early was to avoid any unforeseen accidents.
According to his memories, it should still take more than twenty days before this Astral Rift was officially discovered.
If he truly wanted to, he could have waited a few more days to further increase his strength before entering.
However, he had still chosen to search for the Astral Rift now precisely to avoid complications later on.
And after seeing Vivian appear here, he became even more determined not to waste any more time.
In his previous life, William was one hundred percent certain that Vivian had never come to the Rosco Barony.
In fact, she hadn’t even heard of the place until he himself mentioned it to her in the future.
But now, she was standing right beside him.
William had no idea what had caused this change, but if something as significant as this could happen, then there was no reason the timing of the Astral Rift’s discovery couldn’t change as well.
As such, he needed to complete his trial as quickly as possible before anything unexpected happened.
The closer they got to the rift, the more clearly William could feel the chaotic Aether Energy surrounding it.
Taking a deep breath, he wasted no more time and turned toward Vivian.
"Thank you for your guidance, Lady Vivian. I will be going now."
Vivian shook her head slightly and spoke in a low voice.
"Just be careful inside."
"I will."
William nodded and took a step forward to enter the rift.
But just as he was about to step inside, Vivian suddenly spoke again.
"Junior, if you loved someone but rejected them because of certain circumstances, would you choose them if you were given another chance?"
William paused after hearing Vivian’s question and looked at her thoughtfully.
Vivian still wore the same gentle smile as before, but the fists hidden behind her back were clenched tightly.
William remained silent for a moment before finally speaking softly.
"The instant you reject someone, you also lose your right to choose them. Even if you are given a second chance, you no longer have the right to decide for them."
He paused briefly before a faint smile appeared on his face.
"Instead of choosing them, you can only try your best to make them choose you instead."
Vivian’s hands visibly relaxed after hearing William’s words, and a bright smile bloomed on her face.
"If that’s the case, then you will have to work hard, Junior."
"Huh?"
William looked confused after hearing Vivian’s strange response, but before he could think further, he suddenly felt a gentle push from behind.
The next instant, his body was pushed directly into the Astral Rift.
