[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-journey-to-become-the-zenith":3,"chapter-journey-to-become-the-zenith-journey-to-become-the-zenith-chapter-9":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Journey to Become the Zenith",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1828546,2432,"Chapter 9: The Price of a Hero","journey-to-become-the-zenith-chapter-9",9,"\u003Cp>The Price of a Hero\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The village elder was convinced that Videl had the blood of a hero coursing through her veins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That belief burned brightly in his aged eyes as he stood before the gathered men of Kanal Village.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Through the dim light, oil flames trembled on rough wood. Moving dark shapes danced, uneasy, almost alive. Thick odors hung - smoke first, then body heat, then that old sharpness of panic left behind after what happened at Red Bear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man pressed on, voice steady as he unfolded his idea.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something deeper stood behind their eyes - no accident, just quiet certainty.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something made it happen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was destiny.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Videl might just rise as the one who follows after the Hero, he said. Yet something about her stood out beyond mere talent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whispers moved across the room like wind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hope stirred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fear crept up from behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finding his way through layers of talk, the old man touched at last on what he truly meant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Everyone here should help pitch in to pay for Videl’s entrance to the Knight Academy.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A hush settled over everything. Stillness took hold without warning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>People who trusted him still felt their muscles tighten.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"She still cannot attend this year,\" the elder continued. \"The minimum age is sixteen. And the entrance fee is two gold coins.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two gold coins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A flash of sound hit the air. The silence cracked open. Words fell heavy, sudden, sharp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Faces turned ghostlike on a few of the men.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A few gasped suddenly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some people who were ready to step in just seconds earlier turned their eyes elsewhere.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man lifted his arm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I will shoulder half the cost myself. I will pay one gold coin. The remaining one gold coin will be shared among all of you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shock erupted again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Up rose a man.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m sorry, Elder, but why should we pay for Videl’s schooling? It’s already hard just to survive. I barely have enough for my own family.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes, that’s right!\" another agreed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More followed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fists balled tight at his sides, Videl’s dad stood stiff. A vein pulsed near his temple, jaw set hard against what came next.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something rose in his chest, a noise fighting to get out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet they refused to obey him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just a single gold coin sat far beyond his reach.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One stood so far apart it could’ve been another world entirely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thump went the old one’s walking stick against the tiles.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Silence cracked open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fools you are!\" he shouted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The room froze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Funny thing, his voice rising like that - never happened until now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Have you forgotten who saved your pitiful lives?! If Videl had not killed that Red Bear, we would have sent every man available to fight it - and even then there would be no guarantee of victory! Many of you - no, all of us - would be dead!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His gaze burned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"So tell me - are your coins more precious than your lives?!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Faces showed quick flashes of shame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still, the world pulled inward again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Even so!\" one man protested. \"If we help Videl attend the academy, we’ll still die. Not by beasts - but by poverty!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some nodded grimly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The elder snorted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Die of poverty? Truly, Brenton? The meat you eat is shared by our hunters. You won’t starve. The taxes are heavy, yes - but not fatal.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A sudden stillness came into his gaze, like a blade catching light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Or is it because you need that money for the prostitutes you visit every time you go to town?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brenton turned pale. His skin lost its warmth, suddenly dull under the light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The old man turned his gaze toward those beside him, the ones who’d stood firm when it mattered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I may be old, but I am not blind. Do you want me to tell your wives?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A hush dropped like a stone. Silence clung to every corner of the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One man stammered, \"I’ve never even touched another woman!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hmph. I know all your dirty secrets. I have a good informant.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A hint of warmth touched his eyes. The hardness there began to fade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Instead of wasting money on nonsense, use it for your savior. For our savior. If Videl becomes a knight, this village’s status will rise. Our taxes may lessen. She may even protect us from that cursed marquis.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This time, things felt different. A change had settled in without warning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fear gave way to a quiet possibility. Then came hesitation, softened by something almost like belief.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A small smile touched the old person’s lips.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Young fools. If I began with this, you would agree half-heartedly and regret it later. So I forced your true feelings out first.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Folks everywhere seemed to agree on one point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What a sly old fox.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After that came talk of the test needed to get in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Reading.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Writing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though Videl didn’t pass the written part, success in the hands-on section might make up for it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Dave,\" the elder said, smiling mischievously, \"you were once a merchant. Teach her.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dave sighed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Of course. As if I could refuse.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Only much afterward did it hit him\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe he’d show Victor how it works, then Skyla might catch on too, after that Lane could join in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beyond the building’s edge, just past splintered planks, two ears per child caught every sound. A fence stood guard, rough and unpainted, while silence held breath between whispers. Each pair crouched low, watching cracks where light cut through.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her fingers tightened on his arm. The fabric bunched under her grasp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Victor is amazing... everything changes when he moves.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lane nodded quietly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One girl felt it, just like the other. A quiet match of minds slipped between them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Walking next to him was what they had in mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not below.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beneath a tree, Videl stayed by herself, arms around her legs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Over and over, that second played back in her mind. The scene wouldn’t stop repeating. Again it came - clear, sharp. Each time felt heavier than before. That instant stuck, looping without warning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Victor standing in front of the bear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Victor smiling calmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She took the lead while Victor moved aside. Quietly, he gave her space to rise. His silence spoke louder than motion ever could. A pause became his answer. Light found her through his stillness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Breathing became harder than usual. Stillness pressed against her chest like a quiet weight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why does he always look like that... like he belongs above everyone else?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her hand moved slow, landing flat against her ribs. A breath caught underneath it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It matters that we both move forward, not just me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I’m aiming to find that same spot he’s standing on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beyond the village, a long way off -\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fate started shifting. A slow tilt unfolded. Things moved differently now.\u003C\u002Fp>",1137,"2026-06-09T06:06:36.650Z",1,"novelbin.me","2f9ca1ba142db22611dbc760ce6aa68b53a700d8254c1fafdbca8e167cc76f7c","journey-to-become-the-zenith-chapter-10","journey-to-become-the-zenith-chapter-8",253,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fjourney-to-become-the-zenith-cover.jpg"]