The Bloodline System Chapter 1685 1685: Tombstone
Previously on The Bloodline System...
His attire consisted of simple, unassuming black trousers. Long, dirty blond hair draped over his shoulders, swaying rhythmically with every step he took.
But his countenance…
His face remained frozen in a cold, expressionless mask...
Yet, it carried a depth of emotion so intense that the children nearby froze, as if some instinctual part of them recognized his identity.
One of the boys reached out and tugged his friend’s sleeve.
"That man… he looks familiar."
The other boy nodded slowly, unable to fully grasp why he felt the same way.
The man spared them no glance. He didn't even seem to register their presence. With an air of inevitability, his stride led him directly toward the roadside cemetery.
He moved past rows of burial plots, past ancient stones cracked by the passage of time, and past flowers long since wilted by the changing seasons.
Then, he came to a halt.
He stood directly before the tombstone inscribed with the name:
ANGY VILANDROBADIA.
The surrounding world fell into a sudden silence.
Even the wind seemed to hold its breath, refusing to rustle the leaves.
His knees bent as he lowered himself into a slow squat, burdened by the immense weight of the grief he bore. For the first time since his arrival, his hand moved... trembling slightly as he reached out to touch the surface of the grave marker.
His fingers traced the engraved letters with a level of tenderness that no living soul had ever witnessed from him. Again and again, his thumb brushed the corner of the stone, as if he were trying to catch a lingering trace of warmth she might have left behind.
A crimson flower materialized between his fingers, and he placed it gently upon the earth.
He did not speak.
He did not weep.
He did not utter a single word of farewell.
However, a sorrow so dense and heavy radiated from his form that the sky itself seemed to dim, as though the sun were bowing its head for the man who had saved the entire universe… and lost the only thing he truly desired in return.
---
Miles away, within the heights of the MBO Tower, Falco snapped upright as his senses suddenly spiked.
His heart hammered against his ribs.
"—no way," he breathed.
Without a moment's delay, he snatched his device and dialed E.E.
E.E answered immediately, his voice breathless.
"You felt that too?!"
Falco gave a sharp nod, even though E.E could not see him clearly through the holographic feed.
"It's him," Falco confirmed. "Gustav. He has returned to Earth."
E.E didn't bother to respond; he simply terminated the call to alert the others.
Within mere seconds, Endric, Aildris, Elevora, Ria, Sersi, and Xanatus all received the same abrupt message via their communicators:
GUSTAV IS HERE.
They all reacted with the same stunned silence before their voices erupted in a chorus of disbelief and frantic desperation.
"But where?" Ria muttered. "He has been completely hidden for years."
"He doesn't wish to be found," Aildris added in a low tone.
Endric rubbed his temples. "If Gustav came back now—after the funeral—after everything—what is the first place he would visit?"
A sudden, collective realization silenced the communication channel.
Then… all at once…
"THE CEMETERY!"
They took to the sky like bright blurs of energy, streaking across the landscape as they raced toward that one familiar location.
E.E was the first to arrive, having only to step through a spatial vortex.
He materialized near the children who were still playing in the street.
"Hey—did any of you see a tall man with long blond hair and a red jacket pass by here?!"
The kids nodded vigorously.
"He went into the cemetery!"
"He looked really sad!"
"And… he looked familiar!"
"Shit," E.E exhaled, his chest tightening with anxiety.
One by one, the others warped in:
Endric.
Falco.
Aildris.
Elevora.
Ria.
Sersi.
And the rest of the group.
Together they sprinted across the cemetery grounds, rushing past headstones until they reached the spot they feared most.
Angy's grave.
But standing before it… was no one.
Gustav had already vanished.
Yet, something remained behind.
A single rose lay on the soil, still shimmering faintly with the final traces of his energy.
And beside it…
A note was tucked neatly under a small stone.
The wind blew softly, fluttering the edges of the parchment.
E.E froze in his tracks.
Endric's face turned pale.
Falco swallowed with difficulty.
Aildris finally moved forward, picking up the note with hands that trembled.
He unfolded it.
The group leaned in closer.
The world seemed to hold its breath.
The note said:
---
"Don't look for me.
I am not lost.
I just don't belong here anymore.
Take care of each other.
Live the life we fought to protect.
Angy would want that.
—Gustav"
---
The moment the final words were read, E.E covered his face with both hands.
"Fuck…" he whispered, his voice shaking.
Ria turned away, his eyes burning. "Rival!"
Falco clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.
Sersi bit her lip as tears fell in silence.
Aildris's jaw shook with emotion.
Endric's shoulders slumped as a deep shadow of grief crossed his features.
Sersi shook her head over and over.
"No… Gustav… you're not alone…"
But he was gone once more.
He had chosen to vanish, and no one knew for how long he would stay away.
He had opted for solitude over returning to a world where Angy no longer lived.
Because for him…
The universe might have been saved.
But his own world was still broken.
The group stood before the grave as the wind swept gently through the cemetery. The rose lay still, a symbol of love, sorrow, and a goodbye they were never ready to accept.
E.E eventually broke the silence.
"He saved EVERYTHING…" he muttered with bitterness. "Every single little thing. The universe… the planets… us… all of us…"
He kicked a pebble with force, sending it flying away.
"BUT HE COULDN'T SAVE THE ONE PERSON HE WANTED MOST."
Falco placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"He isn't abandoning us. He's just… in pain."
"IN PAIN?!" E.E snapped before his voice broke. "He's dying inside."
Endric closed his eyes.
"He will return one day," he said softly. "But not today. Perhaps not for years. Maybe not for centuries. But he will return."
Aildris exhaled a slow breath.
"Until then… we will protect what he restored."
Everyone nodded, despite the heaviness in their hearts.
Slowly, one by one, they turned to leave the grave.
But Endric remained for a moment longer, staring down at the rose.
"…Thank you, Angy," he whispered. "For giving us back our brother."
He reached out to gently straighten the flower on the ground before finally turning to walk away.
The cemetery returned to its silence.
The sky grew a bit darker.
And somewhere far away—so distant that even their collective senses could never hope to find him—Gustav walked alone, trailing his grief like a never-ending shadow…
And beginning a new journey that no one could follow.