Upon entering the tavern, Liam saw a slightly chubby man wearing fairly nice clothes sitting at the bar. Curly golden brown hair sprouted from his head but balded at the crown of his skull. Hearing the door open, the man faced Liam. The silly grin on his face straightened. The redness of his cheeks dissipated.

“You must be Liam?” the man asked, standing from the stool after setting down his tankard.

“Yes. Thanks for coming out to meet me on short notice,” Liam replied.

“Hmm… your eyes definitely look similar…” the man said while approaching him. “Please pardon my rudeness.”

“It’s fine. I get it.”

“Who might this lass behind you be?” Cici’s father asked, glancing at Nora.

“Nora’sel,” she instantly replied.

“Ah, I see. Nice to make your acquaintance… Anyway,” the man asked, returning his attention to Liam, “do you mind leaning down a bit, please?”

“Sure.”

“Hmm… Not the most handsome fellow, but yes, it is the same,” the man said, turning toward the bar once more. “Looks even purer than my daughter’s.”

Ignoring the comment on his appearance, Liam said, “I was hoping to ask a few things.”

“I could say the same,” the man said. “Oh, names Ivan, by the way. Ivan Aborinzi.”

Furrowing his brows, Liam muttered, “That sounds familiar…”

“Perhaps you heard it somewhere before now. Anyway, sit. I have questions.”

“You aren’t the only one,” Liam replied while he and Nora walked over to the bar.

When Liam and Nora sat on stools next to Ivan, the man gestured for the bartender to leave them alone. In response, the man nodded and walked through the kitchen door while wiping a glass.

“So,” Ivan said, resting his elbows on the counter, “Cecilia said your eyes changed after she met you. How?”

“Before I answer, I need to know if your bloodline is connected to mine,” Liam replied.

“Hmm… Well, I suppose I can’t argue with that. I will say that my family is small, our bloodline thin. In fact, Cecilia is my only child, and we have no more relatives.”

“Is that absolute?” Liam asked.

“As far as I know, unless we have distant relatives not recorded in our familial records.”

So they keep detailed records, Liam mentally noted.

“You didn’t have any more children?” Nora asked.

“No…” Ivan answered. “My wife fell to the pox when Cecilia was still a child, and I never remarried…”

“Sorry I brought it up, then…” Nora muttered, resting her chin in her hands.

“It’s in the past, young lady. Pay it no mind,” Ivan replied, spinning the remaining liquid in his tankard. “Now, I’m sure you didn’t want to hear the musings of an old man. So, moving on, our bloodline goes back to long before the age of the Gakrud Empire… Your face tells me you know nothing of history…”

“I don’t,” Liam replied.

Sighing, Ivan muttered, “What happened to the days when people cared about learning?”

“All I need to know is whether or not you are familiar with the ones called Ancientbloods,” Liam said, trying to move the conversation further.

“Well, yes, by name,” Ivan replied, raising a brow. “I wouldn’t go spouting off that name everywhere all willy-nilly if I were you.”

“I’m going out on a limb here for some answers,” Liam said.

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“And it might get you into trouble one day if you get too concerned with it,” the man retorted. “Anyway, yes, I know the name, and I’m one of a small number of people in the Empire that doesn’t see them as a bad thing.”

“So are you connected to them, or not?”

“In a way, considering a bastard son started our bloodline. Hard to tell based on the writings. If you’d like to like to look at it, I believe it would be in your best interests.”

“I can’t read,” Liam said, “All I’m curious about is what kind of people they were.”

“Hmm… Sad that most people no longer read in this land as well…” the man muttered. “And, the people? Nothing I can say about them besides old legends. They are treated as devils in myths, though my familial records simply refer to them as ancient rulers, though it is vague at best.”

“Is that it?” Liam asked.

“Mmm… I suppose you might be able to find more about them in the Leabhar Library, but even then, I’d be surprised if they didn’t burn the records before now.”

“Leabhar Library… Where is it?” Liam asked.

“Near the Capital,” Nora answered. “If you’re desperate, I can show you at least that much.”

“Even though you can’t read?” the old man asked. Then, he mumbled, “Do people even teach logic to their children anymore?”

Liam briefly closed his eyes at the offhand insult before saying, “If I go, it won’t be until after I learn the written language here.”

“That’s all well and good, but how about you tell me how your eyes ended up like this, hm?”

“My skin changed color, too.”

The man blinked. “You seem to have encountered an ancient relic perhaps?”

Rubbing his chin, Liam muttered, “I guess you could call that annoying geezer a relic… Basically, I somehow ended up in a tomb made by them. The spirit of the former leader changed me into one of them and asked me to restart his clan.”

Eyes widened, Ivan quietly asked, “Restart the clan? You met them?”

“Yes.”

Looking around warily, Ivan whispered, “If the gods catch you, you’ll be dead for sure.”

“If you refer to Sanguis, he already knows.”

Ivan’s jaw dropped. “By Sangu- no, nevermind. Do you understand what you’ve gotten into?”

“Well, I can’t do anything about it now,” Liam replied, rolling his eyes. “That bastard intends to use me for something later, so I’m probably safe for now.”

“You’ve basically jumped into the river to bathe without realizing it was filled with vipers,” the man muttered, holding his head. “No, before that, how are you going to restart the clan?”

“I’m not sure on the details yet, but I assume it will take a while.”

“What about your life? Don’t you have your own goals?”

“As long as I’m still alive, I don’t care what goals others’ give me,” Liam answered, standing from his seat, which also prompted Nora to stand.

“Before you go…” the man muttered, “If you happen to be successful in your endeavors, please let me know. I’m sure I can be of use to you. My daughter could as well.”

“That’s her choice, isn’t it?” Liam asked in response. “Either way, how would you help and why?”

“I sell tomes and I can teach. As for why…” the man fell into thought for a moment. “We are, in a loose sense, related, so I suppose it would only be right to do so.”

“I’ll think about it when the time comes,” Liam said. “Thanks for your time.”

Then, he nodded and exited the tavern with Nora, leaving the old man to his ale.

The man stared at the door for a minute until the bartender returned and asked, “So he’s the man you wanted to meet with?”

“Yes.”

“Do you believe he is worth helping?”

“Maybe. I haven’t seen his actions yet.”

“Let me know if you choose to do so, sir.”

“You wouldn’t need to follow me on that path, Daanos.”

The bartender focused on Ivan and said, “You helped me get off the streets. I’ll trust your decision.”

“Hmm… I wish you would start living your own life like the others.”

“I have no wish to, sir.”

Sighing, Ivan pushed his half-empty tankard forward. Then, he stood and said, “Please learn to live for yourself. A man like me is not worth living for. If you’ll excuse me.”

“Good day, Mister Aborinzi.”

After the short exchange with his former pupil, Ivan stepped into the guild lobby just in time to see Liam and Nora leave through the front doors. From there, he walked over to the reception desk with a slight limp in his gait.

Upon seeing her father, Cecilia asked, “So, how’d your little meeting go?”

“If that man ever asks for your help, please do all you can to do so. He will need it,” Ivan replied.

Raising a brow, she asked, “Is he related to us, then?”

“Not exactly, but he is connected to our ancestors,” Ivan answered, though he decided to avoid mentioning the gods as much as possible in case any of them heard the conversation.

“I guess I can try to overlook his attitude next time, then,” Cecilia muttered.

“If our records are correct, our ancestors lived far brasher lives than he has.”

“Doesn’t change the fact that he’s not the easiest person to deal with.”

“Perhaps. However, he certainly carries a heavier bloodline than us. Actually, maybe you should try getting on his good side? You’re already twenty-seven and haven’t even looked at anyone yet.”

“He’s already got that red-eyed woman.”

“But, if he is restarting the ancient clan…”

“Not interested.”