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Journey to Become the Zenith

Chapter 173: Hidden Pieces on the Board · Oct 23, 2026

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Chapter List (490)

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151 Chapter 151: When Silence Carries Weight 2026-10-23
152 Chapter 152: A Missing Piece in the Game 2026-10-23
153 Chapter 153: Heat, Steel, and Unspoken Claims 2026-10-23
154 Chapter 154: Blood in the Trade Routes 2026-10-23
155 Chapter 155: A Hunt That Went Wrong 2026-10-23
156 Chapter 156: The Edge Before the Hunt 2026-10-23
157 Chapter 157: The Spear Chosen in Silence 2026-10-23
158 Chapter 158: Storm over the Grasslands 2026-10-23
159 Chapter 159: Spear Dance Beneath a Frozen Sky 2026-10-23
160 Chapter 160: The One Waiting Outside the Guild 2026-10-23
161 Chapter 161: The Queen’s Shadow 2026-10-23
162 Chapter 162: Bloodline Echoes 2026-10-23
163 Chapter 163: Shadows Beneath the Northern Lanterns 2026-10-23
164 Chapter 164: Kings Beneath the Shadows 2026-10-23
165 Chapter 165: The Blessing Hidden in Blood 2026-10-23
166 Chapter 166: A Bloodline Hidden in Ashes 2026-10-23
167 Chapter 167: Bloodlines and Hidden Thrones 2026-10-23
168 Chapter 168: The Blood Oath 2026-10-23
169 Chapter 169: The Valkyrie’s Questions 2026-10-23
170 Chapter 170: A Blade Between Loyalty and Ambition 2026-10-23
171 Chapter 171: Flames Beneath the Blade 2026-10-23
172 Chapter 172: Threads Beneath the Underworld 2026-10-23
173 Chapter 173: Hidden Pieces on the Board 2026-10-23
174 Chapter 174: Training the Subordinate 2026-10-23
175 Chapter 175: A Morning That Shook the Guild 2026-10-23
176 Chapter 176: The Price of a Favor 2026-10-23
177 Chapter 177: A Favor That Binds Fate 2026-10-23
178 Chapter 178: The Road Beyond the Walls 2026-10-23
179 Chapter 179: The Weight of a King’s Shadow 2026-10-23
180 Chapter 180: The Lesson Written in Pain 2026-10-23
181 Chapter 181: A Blade That Demands Blood 2026-10-23
182 Chapter 182: Strength Forged Through Exhaustion 2026-10-23
183 Chapter 183: Between Power and Temptation 2026-10-23
184 Chapter 184: A Path Divided Beneath the Same Sky 2026-10-23
185 Chapter 185: A Circle Tightens, Silence Breaks 2026-10-23
186 Chapter 186: A Storm of Voices, A Promise Made 2026-10-23
187 Chapter 187: Shadows Beneath the Academy 2026-10-23
188 Chapter 188: The Crown Hidden in Shadows 2026-10-23
189 Chapter 189: The Weight of a Warning 2026-10-23
190 Chapter 190: The Girl Who Followed Through Eternity 2026-10-23
191 Chapter 191: The Truth Beyond Reincarnation 2026-10-23
192 Chapter 192: The Chains Beyond Fate 2026-10-23
193 Chapter 193: The Chains Beyond Fate [Part-2] 2026-10-23
194 Chapter 194: The Beginning of the Trap 2026-10-23
195 Chapter 195: The Meaning of a Hero 2026-10-23
196 Chapter 196: The Dream Beyond Hypocrisy 2026-10-23
197 Chapter 197: The Road She Chose 2026-10-23
198 Chapter 198: Fangs Beneath the Dawn 2026-10-23
199 Chapter 199: Beneath the Quiet Mask 2026-10-23
200 Chapter 200: Encirclement 2026-10-23

Hidden Pieces on the Board

”Eon, Brinda... how many subordinates of yours could be considered mages?”

Victor’s question lingered in the chamber like incense smoke after ritual.

For a moment, nobody answered.

Even the torch flames along the stone walls seemed to quiet.

Eon leaned back, black eyes narrowing as if searching old memories buried beneath instinct.

Then he gave a rough snort.

”I don’t have anyone like that. If they had the capability to be mages, they wouldn’t be in the slums.”

He was almost about to spit in contempt at the bitter truth of it, but stopped himself.

Perhaps because Victor sat before him.

Perhaps because old habits no longer fit the man who had just sworn away his life in blood.

His words were crude, but they carried the hard philosophy of the streets.

Magic was privilege.

The slums birthed knives.

Not scholars.

Not spellcasters.

Only survivors.

Victor gave no judgment.

Only a thoughtful hum.

”Hm.”

Then his golden gaze shifted.

To Brinda.

She had been waiting.

Of course she had.

At once her posture softened into practiced elegance.

She tapped a finger against her cheek and blinked in that deliberately cutesy way she used when trying to charm him.

”Hmmm...” she murmured, pretending to count.

”I have two girls who can be considered beginner level mages...”

Her lips curved.

”And one man who could be considered an intermediate-level mage.”

She tilted her head.

Then added almost teasingly,

”Though if Sir Victor personally trained them... perhaps they could become much more.”

Lane rolled her eyes.

Clara looked away, suppressing a smile.

Videl merely watched Victor.

Always watching.

As if reading thoughts beneath his silence.

Brinda hoped—again—that Victor would notice her little performance.

But Victor had long since evaluated her.

Her beauty.

Her ambition.

Her utility.

And in the cold place where he judged women worthy of entering his deeper world...

she had not reached the standard.

So he ignored the bait.

Entirely.

Which somehow made Brinda want his attention even more.

Victor’s fingers tapped the armrest once.

Twice.

Then he spoke.

”I see.”

His voice sharpened.

Command replacing reflection.

”Eon.”

The former Ox King straightened instantly.

”Call ten of your best men.”

”And bring them here.”

Victor turned.

”Brinda.”

She sat up.

He said her, ”Brinda, call the three mages you have... and eight more subordinates skilled in combat.”

”Bring them here as well.”

She blinked.

Not because she had not heard.

But because she wanted explanation.

Victor saw it.

And cut it off before it began.

”Huh?”

A dangerous softness entered his tone.

”Didn’t you hear me?”

A pause.

Then:

”Go now.”

The air in the room shifted.

That was not a suggestion.

That was sovereign will.

The moment the two heard Victor say go now, Eon and Brinda said nothing further.

They rose.

Moved.

Obeyed.

As naturally as breathing.

Though Brinda paused half a second longer.

Long enough to glance over one shoulder.

Trying to read what scheme brewed behind those golden eyes.

But Victor had already withdrawn into that unreadable stillness.

And she left.

The door shut.

A heavy wooden thud.

Then silence.

Only torch crackle.

Only breathing.

Only the sense that something vast had begun moving.

Clara was first to break it.

Her purple eyes narrowed.

”You’re building something military.”

Not a question.

An accusation.

Victor smiled faintly.

”Perhaps.”

Lane folded her arms.

”Perhaps means yes.”

Victor looked amused.

”I do enjoy how suspicious all of you have become.”

Brinda’s empty chair seemed still to hold her perfume.

Videl finally moved.

Approaching Victor.

Softly.

Quietly.

”What is it you’re planning, Victor?”

Her voice carried no suspicion.

Only trust.

Which made it heavier.

Then she stepped closer still.

And lightly touched his shoulder.

A gesture so small others might miss its intimacy.

Victor looked up.

For a heartbeat the strategist vanished.

Only the man remained.

But then—

calculation returned.

”You’ll see...”

He said it almost gently.

But Videl did not move.

Her sapphire eyes searched his.

Not as subordinate.

As the woman who knew him best.

”Don’t be too hasty, Val...”

He used the shortened name only he used.

And Lane noticed.

Of course she noticed.

A faint jealousy flickered.

Victor continued.

”I’ll explain what I’m planning when those two return.”

But before the silence settled, Clara crossed her arms.

”You enjoy making everyone dance in fog.”

Victor raised a brow.

”Only because unveiling too early ruins theater.”

Clara clicked her tongue.

”There you go again speaking like some villain.”

Victor leaned back.

”History often mistakes visionaries for villains.”

Eon’s absence made the room strangely lighter.

And yet tension remained.

Lane moved closer to Victor’s chair.

Lowering her voice.

”This has something to do with those rumors you’ve been gathering, doesn’t it?”

Victor did not answer.

Which was answer enough.

Clara saw it.

And exhaled.

”You really intend to turn Fantom City upside down.”

Victor’s lips curved.

”No.”

He looked at her.

”I intend to turn the kingdom upside down.”

Silence.

Heavy.

Sacred.

Even the torch seemed to dim.

Videl did not look shocked.

Only proud.

As if hearing destiny spoken aloud.

Lane’s black eyes glimmered.

She whispered,

”And I thought the underworld was your ambition.”

Victor answered,

”The underworld is merely the roots.

I intend to own the tree.”

Clara stared.

Half disturbed.

Half enthralled.

This was why common sense failed around him.

Every answer only opened greater questions.

After a pause, Victor rose.

Slowly pacing.

Hands clasped behind his back.

Like a warlord before campaign.

He spoke, not fully to them.

Almost to himself.

”In war, people notice armies.

Fools notice crowns.

The wise notice supply lines.

Information.

Movement.

Invisible structures.”

He stopped.

Turned.

”And I prefer building what cannot be seen until it is too late.”

Clara muttered,

”That is an alarming thing to hear from someone smiling.”

Victor laughed.

Then unexpectedly looked at Lane.

”And you?”

Lane blinked.

”What?”

”Do you trust me enough not to ask?”

Lane stepped beside him.

Without hesitation.

”Yes.”

Simple.

Absolute.

Something in Clara shifted seeing that.

A strange warmth.

Or envy.

She did not know.

Victor noticed.

He noticed everything.

Then deliberately lightened the mood.

”If all goes well...”

he said,

”I may have to make titles for all of you.”

Clara snorted.

”Oh? And what would mine be?”

Victor pretended deep thought.

”The furious sword wife.”

Clara nearly drew steel.

Again.

Lane actually laughed.

Even Videl hid a smile behind her hand.

The tension broke.

For a moment.

Then footsteps echoed faintly from beyond the hall.

Returning.

Pieces moving back to the board.

Victor’s expression hardened once more.

The playful young man vanished.

Only ambition remained.

And Videl, seeing that transformation, understood.

Whatever he was about to reveal when they returned...

would be another step toward something irreversible.

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