MIGHT AS WELL BE OP

Three days had passed since Anthony raced alongside Ernest and eighteen other racers on the racetrack. Within this short yet vibrant time frame, he and Vega had explored every location they could, indulging themselves in moments of joy, exhilaration, and peace. Together they experienced the kind of happiness that only two people deeply connected to one another could ever find, each discovering a rare comfort and tranquility in the presence of the other.

At the moment, Anthony and Vega could be seen seated closely together on a soft couch within the cozy walls of Vega's private chamber. For once, they had decided to remain indoors within the vast estate, choosing stillness over adventure since they had been away from home for three long, restless days.

"It's nice to laze around and just relax once in a while," Anthony murmured, his tone carrying a rare gentleness as his fingers caressed Vega's delicate palm, which he held firmly yet tenderly in his own.

"I wonder what would have happened if you weren't this talented," Vega intoned calmly, her gaze thoughtful, her voice steady yet filled with curiosity.

"What do you mean by that?" Anthony asked as he arched one eyebrow, his expression tinged with confusion.

"I mean exactly what I said," Vega replied, her lips curling into the faintest of smiles. "You are far too lazy. If you didn't possess the natural talent you do, you would probably still be stuck struggling at the Mortal Mana rank, even at this moment."

Anthony chuckled in amusement, his laughter soft but genuine. Outwardly, he always carried himself with an air of laziness, projecting the image of someone indifferent and unconcerned. But, those who truly knew him, or rather, the rare few who caught glimpses of his reality, understood that behind closed doors, Anthony worked with quiet diligence.

Talent, he believed, was meaningless if not used properly, and he made certain to put his abilities to work, even if others could not see it.

"Isn't that rich coming from you?" Anthony retorted with a sigh, a playful glimmer dancing in his eyes. "You, who relies on a clone to cultivate and then transfers all the gains directly back to your original body, tell me, isn't that the very pinnacle of laziness and cheating? Sometimes, I wonder how someone could awaken such a talent in the first place."

Vega's lips parted into a wider smile, though she said nothing at first. She too carried a lazy personality, but hers was born out of convenience rather than indifference. After all, a clone of hers could cultivate without pause, twenty-four hours a day, three hundred and sixty-five days a year, while sending every ounce of progress back to her original self without suffering backlash or consequence.

Vega had been making use of this talent since she was ten years old, and she had long since grown accustomed to its comforts.

Of course, Anthony had once attempted the same feat. His intelligence, after all, was not for show. He had created clones to cultivate in his stead, hoping for the same miraculous results as Vega. Unfortunately, while his clones could indeed cultivate, none of their gains ever returned to him.

Unlike Vega, he was forced to put in the effort himself. He had even gone so far as to consult the system, searching through its endless list of purchasable abilities. But when he saw the exorbitant price of such a clone-transference skill, he had not dared to gaze at it twice.

"I'm simply making use of my talent. What exactly is wrong with that?" Vega shot back, her lips curling into a playful smirk.

"Nothing wrong at all," Anthony replied with an even calmness. "But if we are discussing laziness, then perhaps you ought to add yourself to the list. After all, imagine how much stronger you could become if you and your clone trained simultaneously. That would mean double the results, wouldn't it?"

For a moment, silence lingered in the air. Vega's smile faded slightly as Anthony's words pressed against a thought she had entertained countless times before. Her parents had suggested it, and she herself had pondered the possibility, yet in the end, she had chosen convenience. Rather than cultivate alongside her clone, she allowed it to handle the tiresome work while she dedicated her time to refining her combat skills and honing her techniques. It was a decision born less from weakness and more from personal preference.

Seeing her silence, Anthony merely smiled and chose to change the subject.

"So, what do you want for your birthday?" he asked suddenly, his voice casual but his mind already drifting toward possibilities. "Are you going to throw a party? Well… Veronica is basically your only friend, so I suppose you can't really throw a party with just one person."

"I'm not particularly fond of birthdays," Vega replied calmly, almost dismissively. "And don't bother getting me any gifts either. There's nothing special about birthdays, really. People like us can live extremely long lives; in the face of such time, birthdays lose all meaning. Besides, why wait for one day in the year to gift someone something, when you can offer them gifts every day if you truly wished?"

Anthony stared at her in silence, his thoughts entangled in uncertainty. He did not know if this was one of those mysterious techniques women employed, the kind where they claimed they did not want something but secretly expected the opposite, leaving the burden of interpretation on the man.

'I wonder how the bloodline awakening will go,' he thought quietly to himself.

Her birthday was only a few hours away, and with it would come changes Vega herself could not anticipate.

'Will her bloodline awaken exactly at midnight, or will it emerge at some random hour tomorrow?' Anthony's thoughts swirled restlessly.

'And what about Klaus and Amara? Will they explain everything to her beforehand, or will they allow the awakening to occur naturally while feigning ignorance, only to reveal the truth afterward? Will they act as if it is nothing, then later give her an explanation?'

Questions continued to churn through his restless mind. It was precisely because of this impending awakening that Anthony had insisted they return to the estate a day before her birthday.

Vega might have been oblivious, but Anthony was not one to take chances. What if her bloodline stirred earlier than expected? What if signs began to manifest before midnight struck? He needed to be within the estate, where Klaus and Amara could intervene if anything went awry.

'What should I get her as a birthday gift?' Anthony pondered to himself.

This would be Vega's first birthday with him in her life, and to Anthony, that alone made it significant. It was the year she would turn twenty, the year she would awaken her bloodline, a milestone unlike any other. It was not simply a birthday; it was a pivotal moment in her existence. Anthony refused to ruin it by giving her nothing at all, or worse, by presenting her with something unworthy of its meaning.

And yet, the dilemma persisted. He knew not what to give.

He possessed countless treasures, items of great value and power that others would beg to obtain. But Vega was not just anyone. She was not someone to be placated with mere wealth or baubles. She was the love of his life, the first girlfriend he had ever known across two lives. She was his better half, his anchor, his completeness, his missing piece found.

How could he simply select something expensive at random and hand it to her, as though she were just another girl? No, Vega deserved more. She deserved something meaningful, something unforgettable, something that could stand as a symbol of everything she meant to him.

'I swear, I might give myself a splitting headache at this rate,' Anthony sighed inwardly, running a hand across his forehead as though the weight of his thoughts pressed heavily upon him.