Published at 27th of August 2026 7:17 pm

Chapter 1041: What happened to equality? [Ko fi Bonus Chapter ]

This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl

Many of them couldn’t help but consider what Asher gaining the golden orb truly meant. It meant that there was definitely treasure in the Blessed Lands, and Asher was living proof of that, but whether the youngest had taken the only treasure there or if there were more, they had no way of knowing.

They could only find out by going there themselves.

Even Azaron himself had gone to the Blessed Lands out of sheer curiosity. Everyone who was strong, especially after reaching the Soulstar Life Rank, always at least went to the Cursed Lands out of sheer curiosity to see where the beginning of all things had truly started, and not just imagine it through what they had been told.

"Should we head to the Cursed Lands and pack all the stones, pebbles, and rocks we can find?" Mary spoke aloud as it seemed like the only ideal thing to do at this point.

"Might as well start mining the Cursed Lands," Ezekiel mused.

Asher simply ate ever so slowly as they seemed to have forgotten about him momentarily.

Azaron and Malrik looked at one another. They seemed to have thought of the same thing at the same time. But what the two of them were thinking, only they knew, as this father-and-son pair were quite the mysterious duo.

Thalric, who had been silent, spoke, "Personally, I just pity the Orchid Auction House. Their manager must have thought he sold some useless pebble, just for him to suffer the biggest loss of an entire generation without him even knowing."

At his words, a few of them couldn’t help but chuckle as they remembered the manager that must have sold the pebble to Asher. They wondered if the man might just commit suicide if he found out what he had just lost.

Xavienne’s eyes shifted towards Asher as she wondered if she should just follow her little brother and head to any auction house they could find.

Azaron drummed his fingers on the glass table in thought. After a moment of contemplation, he finally spoke.

"Do you know what the golden orb you talked about was?" he asked.

Asher, who had been eating, stopped yet again, then nodded as he began to speak after dabbing his mouth with a white napkin. "After I merged with the golden orb, I received information about what it was in my mind. If I didn’t receive that information, I wouldn’t have had any knowledge about the affinities I had come to gain and might have lived my entire life without knowing."

He lied, as he had only known through the system.

"And what was it?" Malrik asked calmly.

Asher stayed silent for a moment, then replied, "The Star Core Fragment."

The moment those words left his lips, a few Wargraves shot to their feet in pure shock. Even those who remained seated were no better. They all doubted their ears, even Azaron, who thought nothing could really surprise him in this life, sat frozen.

Who didn’t know about the Star Fragment that fell upon the planet? It was the reason why they all possessed abilities and awakened, it was the reason why the Wargrave family existed, and it was why the Zarethorne Empire existed.

And now, they were being told that the same Star that was the cause of everything actually had a core fragment. What could be more shocking than this?

It was as though the more their youngest spoke, the more stunned they became.

"We really need to visit the Cursed Lands," Wuthenya spoke, her eyes shooting towards the clock hanging on the wall.

It was already 6 PM; it was too late to go today. She couldn’t afford to wait until tomorrow, she wanted to go as soon as possible.

’If only we didn’t spend four hours talking about random things and asked the youngest about this from the beginning, we might have already departed,’ she thought to herself.

"I agree," Xavian replied as the seriousness of the matter had just skyrocketed.

Olivia seemed to consider something, then simply spoke her mind, "If Asher merged with a Star Core Fragment, could there be more Fragments like the one he merged with?" she asked.

At her words, everyone’s eyes trembled at the thought of what could be. If they acquired a Star Core Fragment, how powerful would they become? If someone like their Father or Malrik fused with one, how ridiculous would they become?

"Asher," Malrik spoke, "according to the knowledge you received, how many Star Core Fragments are there? Any information you have relating to it will help the entire family," he stated.

Asher shook his head as he replied, "I don’t know, brother. It was never part of the knowledge I got. Whether the one I fused with is the only one or if there are more, I can’t confirm," he answered.

Asher personally didn’t know. He hadn’t asked the system if there were more; he had simply merged with the Star Core Fragment and dove straight into training.

Malrik stayed silent for a moment, then nodded his head in understanding.

’Thank the stars that I covered the entire dining hall with Solar Energy before we started asking him about his affinity and all this,’ Malrik thought to himself, as he had taken precautions beforehand.

He was simply being cautious, perhaps even too cautious, after all, the reveal of mind control had dealt a devastating blow to many people’s trust in their maids and butlers.

Azaron stayed silent as his mind spun. He couldn’t help but suddenly feel that the Cursed Lands was becoming dangerous. It was just a feeling he had; he didn’t know why. After all, how could such a pebble remain hidden for twenty thousand years?

"I can’t help but feel jealous, you know," Thalric spoke with a sigh as he settled into his seat and turned to Asher. "Only you got the Star Core Fragment, and you even got the Fruit of Dawn. You might as well be the one blessed by the World instead of Arianna," he stated.

Everyone nodded their heads as they couldn’t help but agree. They hadn’t even asked him about what he gained from the Fruit Of Dawn, but they shelved that question for now. The Fruit Of Dawn’s evolution paled in comparison to the current matter at hand.

Azaron raised his gaze towards Asher as he spoke, "Is there anything else you gained that you can tell us? Again, only if you wish to share. I’m not pressuring you as the Patriarch or anything of the sort," he clarified.

Asher nodded as he replied, "I understand, Father." A smile appeared on his lips for a moment as he spoke, "One of the things I gained is an ability called Perfect Astra Energy Control."

The moment Asher said this, they couldn’t help but suck in a deep breath of air in pure astonishment. How many people dared claim they possessed perfect control over Astra Energy? Nobody.

And yet, sitting here, their youngest sibling had gained it for just one copper coin and by enduring some minor pain. To them, the gains were simply too much at this point. They couldn’t help but complain that the stars were becoming unfair to them.

What happened to equality?

_____

Bonus Chapter sponsored by Aura Nova through Ko-fi

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