"Good," William smiled in approval before turning to Elle, who was still standing near the entrance. "Take out that case I wanted you to get earlier."
"Yes, sir." She quickly moved to get what he asked for and returned soon with an expensive-looking briefcase in hand, placing it on his desk.
The briefcase seemed rather heavy, as if it were made of some sort of sturdy material like metal instead of leather, like most regular briefcases out there.
It also had several security mechanisms, like a biometric scanner and retinal identification scanner, attached to it.
'Is the briefcase that special or something?'
Oliver thought before glancing at William, wondering what could be inside it.
"This is something I have prepared for a long time now..." William's words drew Oliver's attention as he looked down at the briefcase with intrigue.
The old man unlocked the briefcase after finishing the security clearance process, opened the lid, and gestured for his grandson to take a look inside.
And when he did, he became even more confused as he saw what was in the briefcase.
There were only a few small bottles that were filled with some strange liquid substance inside. It had a color similar to water but seemed slightly thicker too. The liquid inside also appeared to be slightly glowing under the fluorescent lights in the room.
It gave off a very mystical feeling that intrigued him as he wondered what it was and why his grandfather would bring this out now.
"Before I explain to you what this is, let me tell you a story first." William began with a calm expression while his grandson listened intently, curiosity clear on his face.
"Many centuries ago, there was a king who ruled over a great kingdom. He had everything a person could possibly dream of: wealth, power, women, fame... everything!" William paused for a brief moment and smiled, like he was reliving the glorious times.
"The kingdom under the king's rule had prospered greatly, bringing untold wealth and happiness for every citizen living in it. Because he was a wise ruler who never failed to achieve whatever he set his mind onto and a great leader with a strong vision who knew how to inspire people to achieve impossible feats!"
"But as time passed by, the king realized that his children, who were supposed to succeed him, weren't suitable enough to continue his legacy after his death. They didn't have any talent, much less his vision and ambition!"
"Although they could inherit his wealth, power, and fame, they couldn't do anything to ensure the safety of their kingdom because of their incompetence and laziness!" William shook his head at this point in his story, letting out a sigh of exasperation.
"Therefore, the king needed a solution to this problem. He couldn't live forever, and he didn't want his kingdom to be ruined by his unworthy heirs after his death."
He then looked at Oliver and asked, "What do you think he did?"
Oliver thought for a moment before giving his answer, "He should have used all his powers as the king to train some worthy candidates who can help his unworthy sons become good rulers."
William nodded in approval of this answer, but he wasn't finished with telling his story yet.
"Of course that's what everyone would think, but in reality... the king didn't do anything like that. Instead, he began seeking other solutions that would benefit not only the kingdom after his death but also after generations."
"That's when he came to know about how certain individuals with talent and good qualities, when married, could have offspring with similar or even better talents and qualities than their parents."
William smirked while continuing the tale, "The king then realized the importance of 'inheritance' when it came to ensuring the success of his lineage. And so, he made one of his most capable and beautiful daughters his bride and continued to have children with her. Children who possessed not only his bloodline but also inherited his talent for ruling a kingdom."
"However, things didn't go as smoothly as he wished they would. After several generations of such unions, the royal lineage had become weaker and weaker. And many genetic anomalies, like insanity, abnormal birth, and other health-related problems, started to become prevalent among those descendants of his."
Oliver nodded as he understood what was being told here. A family tree made up of incestuous relations would always lead to severe complications in the children. It was this common knowledge about genetic recombination that stopped humans worldwide from following this practice.
"I understand, but what's that got to do with these bottles?" Oliver asked, pointing at them, as he couldn't figure out the connection.
"Everything," William responded while reaching for one of the bottles, grabbing hold of it. "These bottles contain the solution to such problems."
"Huh? Solution for what?"
"I told you how the king realized the importance of 'inheritance,' right?"
"Yes..." Oliver answered in confusion, trying to follow along.
"Well, the king was right. Having two people with great qualities marry and produce offspring would always produce a stronger lineage than any random pairing."
"Okay, and...?"
"So, using that logic, I decided to create the perfect successor to my empire with the help of my daughters. To do this, I used advanced scientific research and secret experiments to tackle the issue of incestuous relations creating deformed children."
William held up the bottle with his hand proudly while flashing his grandson an evil grin.
"With this, I could have had children who not only inherited everything from me and my daughters but would also be healthier without the risks of genetic anomalies from inbreeding."
He shook the bottle, causing its liquid contents to slosh around inside.
Hearing those words, Oliver froze, staring wide-eyed at the bottle and back up to his grandfather's face, shocked.
"Wait, wait... did you just say that you could have but didn't?" He asked as he pointed out the important part.
[ Hey everyone! As promised, here's another 3 chapters based on your power stone votes! (Counted from the announcement)
Let's keep up this momentum — continue voting daily for a week, and I'll do another mass release next Saturday and Sunday!
You guys can do this! The rule is simple: the more votes, the more chapters you get!
30 Power Stones = 1 Chapter ]