Victor remained silent for a long moment.

The offer from Elyndros was tempting, but that was not the reason he hesitated. His thoughts wandered toward the black wind city itself. There was nothing tying him to this place anymore.

His father despised him.

There had never been warmth between them. No pleasant childhood memories existed in his mind. The Walker family had either hated him openly or treated him with cold indifference. To them, he had always been an embarrassment.

Even the city itself felt empty to him now.

There was no emotional attachment left.

Finally, Victor raised his head.

"Will you give me a shop there?" he asked.

The moment those words left his mouth, Elyndros’s eyes lit up brightly.

"Of course," the old sage replied immediately. "You can choose a shop in the very center of the capital itself. As for saving my granddaughter’s life, I will personally fill that shop with one hundred million worth of cultivation materials. I will also assign attendants and workers to help you manage everything. What do you say?"

Before Victor could respond, Arthur suddenly stepped forward with a frown.

"Hold on, old man," he barked. "Why should the boy go to your Moon Empire? This is still his homeland. His roots are here in the Great Sun Empire."

Arthur looked toward Victor seriously.

"If you come with me to the capital, I will personally grant you an auction house in the capital with 100 million worth of materials and attendants as well as a flying jet."

"Huh? Why not my Storm Empire?" Lyria joined in immediately. "Compared to both of your empires, ours has the strongest elemental cultivation environment. It would suit him perfectly."

The three sages stared at one another with hidden competition.

They all understood Victor’s value now.

Originally, they had only been shocked by his strange healing ability, but after seeing everything during Diana’s recovery, they realized the situation was even more terrifying than expected.

Comprehending forty elemental spells within a single month was already absurd.

But comprehending spells from four different elements simultaneously was monstrous.

Even sages would struggle to achieve such a thing.

And then there was his mana control.

For seven continuous hours, Victor had poured mana into Diana’s body without collapse or instability. That level of endurance and precision was enough to frighten even legendary experts.

No one doubted his future anymore.

If he survived, becoming a sage was almost guaranteed.

Naturally, every empire wanted him.

Victor looked between the three powerful sages with a strange expression.

"Huh?" he asked. "Are the sires fighting over me?"

The three sages turned toward him at the same time.

"What do you think?" they asked in perfect synchronization.

Victor scratched his cheek awkwardly.

"Ah... actually, I wanted to ask something."

"What is it?" Elyndros asked.

"Where does Lady Diana live?" Victor asked carefully. "She is from the Moon Empire, right? Does she stay there all the time or somewhere else?"

The expressions of Arthur and Lyria immediately darkened.

Meanwhile, Elyndros nearly burst into laughter.

The two sages instantly understood the boy’s intentions.

Victor was already completely enchanted by Diana.

Honestly, they could not even blame him.

Any man who saw Diana would inevitably be captivated by her beauty and presence. She was called the Demonic Princess for a reason.

The real problem, however, was Diana herself.

Normally, she treated everyone with cold indifference.

But toward Victor, she behaved completely differently.

The softness in her eyes earlier had not escaped anyone’s notice.

She had even allowed him to hold her into his embrace as well granting him an absurd wish.

For Diana, that was practically unbelievable.

"Hahahaha!" Elyndros laughed loudly. "Where else would she live? Of course she stays in the capital of the Moon Empire."

Then he added proudly,

"She even owns a martial hall there. Occasionally, she teaches disciples personally."

Victor’s eyes immediately shone brightly.

"Then I’ll go to the Moon Empire," he declared without hesitation.

Arthur sighed heavily.

Lyria rubbed her forehead in annoyance.

The boy did not even try to hide his motives.

"Take care of him properly, old man," Lyria said coldly while looking at Elyndros. "If he suffers injustice in your empire, I will personally come for a visit."

Arthur nodded in agreement.

"This boy belongs to humanity’s future generation now. Don’t let petty politics touch him."

Elyndros waved his hand dismissively.

"Sure, sure. You two worry too much."

Then his gaze shifted toward Victor.

"We will leave shortly."

At that moment, another figure approached them cautiously.

It was Valkan Walker.

The old man’s expression looked somewhat awkward as he stopped before the sages.

"Sires," Valkan said respectfully, "Victor is still a member of the Walker family. He is also still a minor. Is it really appropriate to take him away from his clan? A child still needs the warmth of family."

The instant those words were spoken, Elyndros’s expression turned icy cold.

Warmth of family?

This same man had abandoned Victor without hesitation earlier.

Now that Victor had revealed terrifying talent, suddenly the Walker family remembered blood relations.

The hypocrisy disgusted him.

Arthur and Lyria looked equally displeased.

However, before any of the sages could speak, Victor exploded first.

"Old bastard, who are you?" Victor barked furiously. "How dare you stand between me and Lady Diana?"

Silence fell instantly.

Even Elyndros nearly lost control of his laughter.

Valkan’s face turned completely red with humiliation.

"I am Valkan Walker," he said stiffly. "Your ancestor."

"So what?" Victor replied coldly. "Didn’t your family throw me away already?"

His voice became sharper with every word.

"Now suddenly you care about family?"

Victor stared directly into Valkan’s eyes.

"Listen carefully. Once I become a sage, you and the rest of the Walkers can proudly tell the world I belong to your clan. I won’t stop you from boasting then."

His gaze became completely emotionless.

"But right now, I do not give a damn about any of you."

Then he added quietly,

"Except Rudi."

The entire scene was still being broadcast live throughout the world.

Millions watched in stunned silence.

That single day turned Victor Walker into one of the most discussed names across humanity.

People saw the sages competing over him openly.

They saw Diana’s unusual treatment toward him.

And they heard him shamelessly declare his feelings for the Demon Princess Diana despite being only an Apprentice.

Naturally, the world’s reactions became chaotic.

Far away inside the Moon Empire, a handsome young man around twenty years old watched the broadcast with bloodshot eyes.

The wine glass in his hand shattered violently against the wall.

"Diana is mine," he roared furiously. "Mine alone."

His face twisted with obsession.

"I’ll make you disappear for daring to look at my woman."

Beside him, a trembling naked woman sat on the bed in fear.

The young man turned toward her with violent eyes before pouncing forward like a starving beast.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in another hidden location, a hooded man quietly watched the transmission.

"Another prodigy..." he muttered softly.

His eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Diana alone is already troublesome enough. If this boy also becomes a sage, our mission may fail entirely."

He slowly took out a communication device.

Then he spoke coldly.

"Eliminate him the moment an opportunity appears."

In another empire, a handsome young warrior stared at Victor through the screen.

Unlike the others, there was no jealousy in his eyes.

Only burning battle intent.

"The sages acknowledged him?" he muttered.

A fierce smile slowly appeared on his face.

"Good. I will wait until he grows stronger before challenging him."

Back at the city, Victor quickly packed his belongings before waking Rudi up.

"Sir," Victor said respectfully toward Elyndros, "we are ready."

Rudi still looked completely lost.

Everything had happened too quickly.

One moment Victor had been an abandoned nobody.

The next moment sages were fighting over him.

Elyndros nodded calmly.

Then with a flash of light, a massive dark flying jet emerged from his spatial ring.

Its surface gleamed with black metallic runes while terrifying energy fluctuations surrounded it.

At the same time, Diana suddenly appeared nearby as though she had materialized from thin air.

Victor immediately brightened.

"Hello, Lady Diana," he said eagerly. "Please take care of me from now on."

Diana lowered her eyes slightly.

"Okay," she replied softly.

Rudi nearly fainted again.

The four of them boarded the jet together.

Moments later, the aircraft shot into the sky with explosive speed, disappearing beyond the clouds almost instantly.

The surrounding reporters desperately wanted interviews, but Arthur directly forbade anyone from disturbing Victor.

One hour later, the jet descended smoothly into the Moon Empire’s capital.

"We have arrived," Elyndros announced.

Then he looked toward Victor with amusement.

"Would you like to visit my estate first?"

Victor immediately shook his head.

"I will only enter your estate when I am worthy enough to ask for Lady Diana’s hand in marriage," he declared firmly.

Rudi’s eyes rolled backward instantly.

He collapsed unconscious onto his seat once again.

This time, he even coughed up a little blood from pure shock.

Throughout the entire journey, he had already felt like he was sitting on top of a volcano.

Now Victor had openly declared marriage intentions directly before two supreme sage.

Meanwhile, Diana’s face turned bright red.

Her heartbeat accelerated uncontrollably.

She knew Victor was being shamelessly bold. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

But strangely enough, she did not dislike it at all.

In fact, a hidden part of her genuinely liked hearing those words.

Elyndros stared at Victor for several seconds before bursting into loud laughter.

"Hahahahaha!"

The old sage’s eyes shone with amusement.

"Brat, let us see whether you can truly honor those words in the future."

Then his expression became calmer.

"Alright. You and Rudi will head to the shop now. A butler has already been assigned to you. From today onward, he will serve as both your manager and personal guard."