And the years passed quickly, Trevor growing up until he was now sixteen years old, having learned to love the mansion and everyone who lived there while also improving greatly in his training to the point where he could now fight on equal footing with Mr. Hans in both jiu-jitsu and MMA — part of that, of course, being due to the naturally superior physique of the Belmonts, and what a physique it was, for Trevor now stood at 1.86 meters tall with well-defined muscles in all the right places, blue eyes, short brown hair, and without a doubt he was far more handsome than he had been in his previous life, sometimes still surprising himself when he looked in the mirror, and who could blame him, since in his previous life he had always had a small belly that simply never disappeared, whereas now he had defined abs that would make most men jealous.
Aside from admiring his own physique, Trevor had also learned several other skills: he could now throw daggers and hatchets with great precision, had trained extensively in how to fight using those weapons, and had undergone several types of training to develop resistance to poisons and to learn how to fight even while under the effects of paralysis — he wasn't completely immune, but he could recover far faster than a normal human, another benefit of his Belmont lineage. His mastery of the whip had also improved greatly through regular lessons with his grandfather, constantly training through sparring sessions, and his skill improved at an impressive speed until, when he was fifteen, Trevor achieved something he had never imagined: he defeated his grandfather in a sparring match. It was a huge accomplishment, because for years he had lost to Lucius in completely devastating fashion, but over time the gap between them had slowly narrowed until finally he managed to defeat him, and though Trevor thought his grandfather would be sad, the exact opposite happened — he had never seen Lucius so happy, and whenever the old man met a hunter friend, he made sure to brag, saying things like, "My grandson is a prodigy," or "The greatest Belmont talent in generations," or any other exaggerated compliment he could invent to boast about him.
Trevor had also grown very close to his grandfather, and on weekends he helped wash his car — a black 1975 Chevy Impala that made Trevor's heart almost melt whenever he saw it, which was how he discovered that he and his grandfather shared a passion for automobiles, and after washing the car religiously every Saturday, Lucius would always take him for a drive, sometimes going out for ice cream, other times eating some junk food that was definitely not part of Mr. Hans's diet plan, those small moments being extremely important in strengthening the bond between grandfather and grandson.
Over the years, Trevor also received several gifts from Lucius, both on his birthday and at Christmas, most of the time new video games but occasionally different things — one Christmas, for example, he received an extremely powerful computer for the time, which ended up being one of the most important gifts because with it he could now follow the news about Beacon Hills more closely, still not remembering exactly what year the events of the series began but certain that when it started, some strange news would appear, some disappearance or mysterious death, and at that moment he would know it was time to act. Another important — and more recent — gift was a combat outfit that looked very similar to Richter's outfit from the Netflix series: a blue Victorian-style suit with shoulder guards and gloves, light-colored pants, sturdy boots, and on the chest and back the Belmont family crest embroidered in gold, the outfit also having a support at the waist to carry the whip along with compartments for herbs, holy water, and throwing knives. Lucius explained, "This is our family's traditional outfit. We wear this when we go to fight or hunt," then smiled and added, "My father gave me mine when I was your age, and now I'm giving you yours. I took the liberty of choosing the design. I hope you like it." Trevor immediately smiled and said, "Thank you, Grandpa. It's amazing. You nailed the colors and the style," and Lucius laughed, replying, "Good. I chose it with you in mind." After that, Trevor continued receiving gifts on birthdays and Christmas, all of them very special, but none with quite the same importance as those — however, he also received a gift from someone else: his friend from the library.
The night after his birthday — the same one when he received the computer — Trevor went to the library as usual, and when he entered, he found Adrian sitting in the armchair reading a book, as always, and Adrian looked up when he noticed Trevor, raising an eyebrow at the smile on his face and saying, "I see you're very happy tonight, young Belmont." Trevor laughed and replied, "Hehe… it's because yesterday was my birthday. And my grandfather gave me a computer." Adrian looked genuinely surprised and said, "Oh," closing the book, "Then I must congratulate you, young Belmont. Time has passed quickly. It feels like yesterday when you were only as tall as my waist." Trevor laughed and said, "Yeah. Thanks for the congratulations."
Adrian seemed thoughtful for a few seconds before saying, "Hmm… I think I should give you something," and when Trevor tilted his head, Adrian continued, "As compensation for all those years without gifts," then moved his hand behind his back as if searching for something, and after a few seconds he pulled out a small object — a simple silver ring — and placed it on the table. Trevor slowly picked up the object and began examining it, finding it elegant but quite simple, without any extravagant decoration, and he said, "Thank you very much, Adrian. You didn't have to." Adrian replied calmly, "It's nothing. The name of this ring is Lapis Lazuli. It brought me a lot of luck when I was younger. So don't forget to wear it." Trevor nodded and said, "Alright," slipping the ring onto one of his fingers, and though he didn't feel anything different, he said nothing because, after all, a gift was a gift, and that ring certainly looked expensive.
Then Adrian said something unexpected: "One more thing, young Belmont. I will be traveling in a few days. This will probably be the last time we meet." Trevor was surprised and asked, "What? Why? Where are you going?" Adrian replied calmly, "I've stayed in your grandfather's house for too long already. And I have some matters to take care of in Japan." Trevor stayed silent for a moment before sighing and saying, "Well… If this might be our last conversation…" He stood up and extended his hand. "It was good meeting you, Adrian." Adrian smiled, also standing up and shaking Trevor's hand, and the moment their hands touched, Trevor was startled because Adrian's hand was cold — strangely cold — and Trevor probably let his surprise show on his face because Adrian simply smiled and said, "It was a pleasure meeting you, young Belmont. You are, without a doubt, the most polite and interesting Belmont I've ever met. Very different from your ancestor Trevor."
Suddenly — flutter — in the blink of an eye, Adrian disappeared with the sound of bat wings flapping through the air, and Trevor stood there in complete shock, freezing for a few seconds before he began putting the pieces together in his head: Adrian, vampire, old friend of the family, mysterious ring. He placed a hand over his face and muttered, "I'm an idiot…" because all those years, he had been talking to none other than Dracula's son — the man who fought alongside Trevor Belmont and Sypha against Dracula, the character his mother used to tell him stories about when he was a child — it was Alucard himself, and he hadn't realized it.