My Blood Legacy: Bloodlines-Chapter 46: The curiosity to see the world for the first time.

Chapter 46: The curiosity to see the world for the first time.

The carriage moved along the road at a steady pace, the sound of the wheels against the ground creating an almost hypnotic cadence that filled the silence of the interior. Victor leaned back for a few minutes, simply feeling the movement, his eyes half-closed, as if he were organizing his thoughts after everything that had happened that day. But then, something changed.

He opened his eyes again.

And this time... he really looked.

Not just looking out the window out of habit or distraction, but with true attention, like someone seeing it for the first time. And, in a way, that was exactly it.

Outside, the world stretched out under the cold light of the night, illuminated by a high, clear moon that seemed larger than he remembered. The trees along the road moved gently with the wind, their leaves reflecting silvery tones, while the landscape unfolded in layers, depth upon depth, like a living painting that refused to remain static.

Victor rested his arm on the side of the window, leaning forward gradually to get a better view.

"...So this is how it is," he murmured softly, almost to himself.

It was strange.

Strangely... beautiful.

For most of his previous life, the world had been limited to closed rooms, half-open windows, and incomplete glimpses of something he could never truly experience. His frail and sickly body, always failing... always imprisoning him in a space too small for someone who longed for more.

Much more.

He remembered.

He remembers watching the sky through the glass.

Counting the hours by the movement of the light.

Imagining what it would be like to simply... leave the house.

And now—

He was there.

Traveling through that same world that had previously seemed unattainable.

Victor let out a small sigh, but there was no weight in it.

It was clear. Almost curious.

The carriage passed over a small rise, and the field ahead opened into a vast expanse of land that seemed to stretch to the horizon. The tall grass moved with the wind like silent waves, and in the distance, small lights indicated the presence of scattered settlements, each with its own life, its own routine, completely oblivious to his presence.

"Continent of Sangris..." he murmured, the name slowly emerging.

He knew it.

Of course he knew it.

But knowing... and seeing... were completely different things.

Sangris wasn’t just a territory dominated by vampires, it wasn’t just politics, power, clans, and conflict. There was something more there, something that didn’t appear in reports, nor in coldly told stories.

It was... alive.

The rolling hills, the vast fields, the dense forests that emerged in dark patches amidst the landscape... everything seemed to have its own presence, as if the continent slowly breathed under the night light.

Victor tilted his head, observing a group of denser trees that stretched along the road.

"Too beautiful for a place full of monsters," he commented softly, with a slight hint of irony in his voice.

But it wasn’t an insult.

It was more... an observation.

Because he knew exactly what existed in that place.

He knew what people did in the shadows.

He knew the kind of power that circulated through those lands...

And yet... it was still beautiful... Or perhaps... it was beautiful precisely because of that.

The carriage continued onward, now entering a higher area where the road snaked gently around a hillside. From up there, Victor could see further, and the landscape opened up even more, revealing a river that cut through the distant landscape, reflecting the moonlight like a long, silent blade.

He remained silent for a few seconds, just observing and whispering; he wanted to keep that image in his memory, because if he simply died, at least this time it wouldn’t be from some pathetic disease.

"I didn’t remember that...," he admitted, almost in a whisper.

In truth, he had never seen it.

In fact.

Before... everything seemed so distant... Now... it was there, within reach.

Victor placed his hand on his chest for a moment, as if confirming something simple.

His heart beat steadily.

His body reacted.

There was no pain.

There was no sign of weakness.

Just... presence.

He gave a discreet chuckle through his nose.

"...What a ridiculous difference," he murmured.

It was almost absurd.

The same person.

The same world.

But completely different.

The carriage passed through a small village in the distance, without entering directly, but close enough for Victor to see the lights on and vaguely hear the distant sound of voices, perhaps music, perhaps just ordinary conversation of people living their lives.

This time, he observed for a longer period.

Without haste.

Without judgment.

"Normal people...," he said softly.

There was something strange about that too.

Not in a bad way.

But in a... distant sense.

He wasn’t part of it.

He never was.

And probably never would be.

But even so... he observed.

Like someone who had finally succeeded, even if he didn’t belong anywhere.

The carriage moved on, leaving the village behind and returning to more open areas, where only the sounds of nature and movement persisted.

The wind entered gently through the crack in the window, lightly ruffling Victor’s hair.

He didn’t close it.

He left it open.

He felt it.

"So that’s it..." he murmured again.

There was no exaggerated emotion in his voice. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Nor excessive nostalgia.

It was... acceptance.

Curiosity.

Perhaps even a little satisfaction.

He turned his face slightly, now looking at his reflection in the window, blended with the landscape outside.

For a moment, the two images overlapped.

Him... and the world.

"This time, I will see everything," he said, now more firmly.

It wasn’t a grand promise.

Nor a dramatic oath.

It was simple.

Direct.

Almost casual.

But it’s true.

The carriage continued moving forward, taking him further and further into the interior of the continent of Sangris, towards something he knew would be neither simple nor peaceful.

Time passed almost imperceptibly inside the carriage.

The steady rhythm of the wheels, the gentle sway of the journey, and the comforting silence led Victor to a state of reverie, where thoughts came and went without settling on anything specific. He didn’t sleep, but he wasn’t fully present either, just... letting time pass.

Then something changed.

First, it was the light.

The moon, which had previously illuminated the path clearly and directly, began to be partially obscured, as if something large were emerging on the horizon. The shadow advanced slowly, occupying space and creating a sharper contrast in the surrounding landscape.

Victor frowned slightly.

And then he looked ahead more attentively.

The carriage was still moving forward, but now the road seemed to lead to something specific, something that hadn’t been there before... or perhaps was too far away to be noticed.

He leaned a little further towards the window.

"...Already?" he murmured softly.

What had previously been just a distant silhouette began to take shape as the carriage approached. First, a dark mass against the sky. Then, more defined outlines. Lines. Structures.

And then—

He saw it.

A castle.

Enormous.

Situated at the base of a high mountain that rose like a natural wall behind it, almost as if the earth itself had decided to protect that structure from everything around it. The mountain was steep, rugged, with exposed rocks that coldly reflected the moonlight, creating an almost intimidating scene.

And the castle...

It wasn’t just big.

It was dominant.

Tall towers rose at distinct points, some more slender, others more robust, all connected by dark stone structures that seemed to have been molded more for resistance than for beauty... and yet, there was an elegance there.

A dangerous elegance.

The outer walls were thick and imposing, encircling the entire main structure like a silent warning to anyone who approached without permission. Small lights shone in strategic points—windows, watchtowers, secondary entrances—indicating that, despite the apparent silence, the place was far from empty.

Victor remained silent.

Observing.

Absorbing every detail as the carriage continued to move slowly along the road that now clearly led directly to that place.

"...Not bad," he commented softly, almost without thinking.

But the tone didn’t impress.

It was... evaluative.

He tilted his head slightly, his eyes analyzing the heights, the access points, the blind spots, the possible entry and exit routes. It was automatic. Natural. Something he didn’t even need to try to do.

"Fortified... isolated... absurd advantage of the terrain..." he murmured, more to himself than to anyone else.

The mountain in the background wasn’t just an aesthetic element.

It was a matter of strategy.

Any frontal attack would be hell.

Any attempt at a siege... is complicated.

And yet—

He knew.

This wasn’t a common defense.

It was a matter of power. The carriage made a gentle turn, revealing a little more of the mountain base, where the castle seemed even larger from a closer angle. The road descended before climbing again towards the main entrance, creating a path long enough that any visitor would have to wait quite a while before arriving.

Victor let out a small sigh.

"Of course she lives here..." he said, with a slight hint of irony.