MIGHT AS WELL BE OP Chapter 1048: Cage

A brief moment of deep thought claimed Anthony as his mind wandered across countless ideas, until he pivoted toward Bryan with a direct question: "Do you really want to be the Crowned Prince?" Though he'd consumed plenty of kingdom novels mirroring the Dragon Empire's ways, Anthony craved Bryan's personal viewpoint, straight from one enduring that very role, over mere imagined stories.

Truth be told, not every prince yearned for the Crowned Prince title, yet refusal was impossible; the inherited power and privileges morphed inevitably into chains around their ambitions and fates, trapping them beyond escape or rebellion without dire fallout.

"I really don't," came Bryan's sighed reply. He spun toward another couch in his chamber, collapsing onto it with a blend of casual slump and heavy load, then queried, "Why do you ask?"

Ignoring Bryan's probe entirely, Anthony fired back with, "Why don't you want to be the Crowned Prince or even like it?" His steady gaze locked onto the Royal Dragon ahead.

Silence hung over Bryan for a beat before he uttered calmly, "Because of my father," the words simple yet burdened by a profound undertone that lent them depths far beyond their surface.

Far from clarifying, the answer puzzled Anthony further, his brows furrowing just a touch in quiet intrigue, but Bryan preempted any follow-up by laying out his thoughts in a measured, introspective flow.

"Though my father sports a perpetually blank mask, the Crown's dullness presses down on him hard—I sense it. Words aren't needed; his ache for lost thrills and unfettered liberty shines through, a life unbound by rules. He yearns to roam and discover, stealing every spare moment to clash with stray demons across distant worlds, slipping back as if untouched, chasing a forbidden itch. Yet duty as Dragon Domain's Emperor forever bars his true wishes," Bryan halted shortly, his delivery firm but rich with insight.

"His eyes betray the hopes pinned on me, awaiting my Planetary breakthrough. The instant it happens, he'd likely bolt that very day, gone for good without a backward glance. No one anticipates the Angel invasion like him—it's his ticket out of the Domain to unleash in battle, free from duty's iron grip," Bryan pressed on. As Crowned Prince, he'd invested endless hours with Iserios, piercing the facade to grasp the man within.

"Like him, I burn to roam not only this world but the vast Galaxy too. Scant knowledge fuels my burning curiosity, impossible to dismiss, yet my role keeps me chained to the Dragon Domain—rare outings only for formal councils, say to the Elven Domain or Human Domain," his sigh escaped as he vented the deep-seated torment of his station, long festering inside.

Bryan met Anthony's stare; Anthony had figured the Dragon relished his spot, but clearly, he despised it wholly, resentment simmering beneath.

"My elder brother Heinz stands apart—he craves the Dragon Emperor throne, drilling and dreaming of it from boyhood, pouring his soul into that aim, only for fate's cruel cap to crush his visions," Bryan sighed onward, a subtle sorrow lacing his brother's name.

First named Crown Prince, Bryan dreaded a rift with Heinz, fearing shattered bonds and brewing strife, yet Heinz took it in stride. Hurt and fury flickered, sure, but he confronted the harsh truth of his bounds and futility, a rare grace.

"Aren't there talent pills or elixirs to boost talent?" Anthony nodded before adding, "If available, Heinz could surely pop one, amp his talent, seize the Crowned Prince role, and smash that crippling barrier."

Shaking his head, Bryan countered, "If such a wonder existed, you don't seriously believe other Domains wouldn't launch wars over it, right?" His voice shifted rhetorical. "And why hold onto it? They'd gulp it down themselves on the spot. Father would too, no doubt. Everyone hungers to climb higher, stride farther on their Dao, whoever they might be," he wrapped up with firm resolve.

Should such a wondrous pill or elixir surface, folks might fancy parents saving it for heirs out of devotion, but Blue Planet's harsh truth scoffed at that. Love binds parents to young, yet not all gifts suit passing down—kids must blaze their trails.

In reality, no talent-boosting pills or potions grace Blue Planet or any charted corner of the Acarnis Galaxy. Were they real, clans, lineages, and elder houses would hoard and deploy them ruthlessly, forging invincible might over gambling on luck.

Such treasures eluded all but Anthony; even Lucian—the reincarnated system wielder globe-trotting the Galaxy to pilfer rare talents—lacked one for his love, Veronica. Word getting out would ignite galactic war, the lone brake being instant self-use to erase rivals' claims.

Even then, conflict wouldn't die; it'd fester into stealthier, deadlier shadows, as hunters eyed consumers for refinement into fresh elixirs, dooming lives to raw materials.

Bryan's take resonated with Anthony; princely glamour blinded outsiders, but to him, it screamed shackle—a lavish jail masked as boon. Envision Galaxy-conquering might stifled by dusty edicts from forgotten eras, useless to today's chained souls.

Were he in their boots, Anthony would've torched that idiotic law ages back, overhauling all for liberty over lockdown. No advice for Bryan, though; Dragon Domain's ancient codes might forbid Emperors meddling freely, ensnaring even sovereigns in bygone fetters.

All Anthony mustered was a sympathetic sigh for Bryan—the lad rotted in a grand, plush dungeon of clout, splendor, and pressure. Someday, he'd mirror Iserios, biding time till his heir claimed the throne, dumping the load to seize long-craved freedom.