"Wh—what does that mean?"
The old man tried to surge forward and grab Aren by the collar, but his legs buckled before he could reach him. He stumbled, and Miu barely managed to catch him before he hit the floor.
"You!" Oran rasped, his voice cracking. "Young man, what did you say?! How dare you shame our village when you know nothing about it—!"
"Mayor," Aren said quietly. "There is no ascension."
"No, no, stop! Stop it!"
"The Half-Ascended aren't people who touched the source of ether and failed to climb higher. They aren't closer to god or a proof that the heavens remembered Tigan."
"They're victims of a failed experiment." His gaze shifted toward the corpse on the mattress. "They probably heard the promise of being given a Bloodline through Bloodline Injection…and took it without hesitation."
"What does that…" the old man started.
