The wind howled across the rooftop of the Combat Department, carrying with it the faint, metallic scent of mana and the distant groans of the city beyond the academy walls. Bruno sat lazily at the very edge of the concrete precipice, his thick legs dangling over the five-story drop without a care in the world. He reached into his pocket and pulled out another cigarette, placing it between his lips.

Lucian didn’t wait for an offer. He leaned over, plucked the unlit cigarette right from Bruno’s mouth, and placed it between his own lips. He snapped his fingers, a tiny spark of light mana igniting the tip, and took a long, slow drag. The ember glowed a fierce crimson in the twilight.

"So, what do you say?" Lucian asked, exhaling a thick plume of gray smoke into the cold evening air.

Bruno stared at him, his dark eyes narrowing as he studied the silver-haired boy. The submissive pet he remembered from years ago was gone. In his place stood a devil wrapped in human skin, radiating an aura that made the air heavy. The question tugged at a memory buried deep in Bruno’s mind, pulling him back two years into the past.

Flashback: Two Years Ago.

The Remmos family had been invited from Germany to France by the Du Maurier family. The Remmos were an underground crime syndicate, notorious for their shady black-market businesses, enforcement, and brute-force tactics. But the Du Mauriers... they were a completely different breed. A vampire family hiding in plain sight, though the Remmos family head, Baron Remmos, knew exactly what they were dealing with.

The meeting took place in a secret location deep within the ruins of an old French chateau. The head of the Du Maurier family, Louisa Du Maurier—the very woman who would eventually drain Lucian dry and throw him off a cliff—sat across from Baron Remmos. She was breathtakingly beautiful, but her eyes held the terrifying, predatory coldness of a monster.

While the family heads talked business and territory, the children were confined to a lavish waiting room down the hall. Bruno Remmos, the son of Baron, sat sprawled on a velvet sofa. Beside him stood a young blonde guy, his personal butler, silently holding a silver tray.

On the opposite side of the room sat Lemora Du Maurier, the daughter of Louisa. She was a year older than Bruno, radiating an aura of dark nobility and untouchable grace. And standing rigidly at her side, like a loyal, beaten dog, was a young Lucian. Back then, Lucian was just a regular, trained human. A blood bag. A pet.

Bruno, arrogant and bold, had taken a liking to Lemora. He walked over, his heavy boots thudding on the rug, and began to flirt, throwing out sleazy compliments and cocky smirks. Lemora looked at him with absolute disgust, rejecting his advances without a second thought.

Unaccustomed to being told no, Bruno’s expression darkened. He reached out his massive hand, aiming to grab Lemora’s wrist. "Don’t be a fucking tease, princess. I can show you a good—"

A hand caught his wrist. Iron grip.

Bruno looked down, genuinely surprised. It was the pet. Lucian.

Lucian’s eyes were cold, devoid of the submission Bruno expected from a human servant. "Don’t touch her," Lucian had said, his voice quiet but sharp as a blade.

Bruno’s face twisted in rage. "You little piece of sh—"

A fight was about to break out. The young butler tensed, ready to draw a weapon. But before a punch could be thrown, Lemora stepped forward.

"Enough," she commanded, her voice echoing with natural authority. She turned on her heel, her dress swishing. "Lucian, we’re leaving."

Lucian released Bruno’s wrist and followed her out of the room without another word.

Bruno stood there, rubbing his wrist, watching them go. A slow, wicked smile spread across his face. He sat back down on the sofa. "I like the fierce ones," Bruno murmured. His young butler silently stepped forward and poured him a cup of dark red wine.

A few moments later, the Remmos family was preparing to leave the chateau. As they walked down the grand marble hallway, Louisa Du Maurier suddenly appeared. She walked straight up to Bruno.

SLAP!

The sound echoed like a gunshot. Bruno’s head snapped to the side, his cheek instantly bruising, the taste of blood pooling in his mouth.

Baron Remmos tensed, his guards reaching for their weapons, but Louisa’s aura flared. A suffocating, bloodthirsty pressure crashed down on the hallway, making it hard to breathe. She was an Astral Realm cultivator. To her, they were insects.

Louisa looked down at Bruno with an evil, condescending smile. "That’s for my daughter, dog."

Since Louisa was overwhelmingly strong, Baron Remmos signaled his men to stand down. They swallowed their pride and left.

End of Flashback.

Bruno took a drag from a newly lit cigarette, the ember flaring in the dark. He looked at Lucian, whose crimson eyes were glowing faintly in the night.

"Where’s your master?" Bruno asked, a mocking edge to his voice.

Lucian’s expression didn’t change. "A lot has happened. But I’m no longer with the Du Maurier family. In fact, I will love to destroy every single one of them if I have the power."

Bruno let out a bark of laughter. "It seems you were betrayed. What were you expecting? A human among vampires... of course you were going to be discarded. But why the fuck do you smell like them?"

Lucian sighed, taking another puff. The smoke curled around his pale, handsome face. "At this point, all those are irrelevant. Bruno, let’s grow strong together. And I promise you Louisa’s head. And who knows, you can even get that bitch’s daughter."

Bruno laughed again, a deep, rumbling sound that echoed over the rooftop. "Wooo, that bitch must have really done a number on you. You’re radiating a lot of killing intent right now. It’s fucking intoxicating."

Bruno flicked his cigarette ash over the edge. "But anyway, that’s one of the reasons I came to this academy. To get stronger. How about you work for me?" Bruno smiled, a predatory glint in his eyes. "You were always a good fighter. I could use a loyal enforcer."

Lucian looked at him flatly. "I’m asking for a partnership."

"Alright, you are so boring," Bruno snorted, shaking his head. But the grin on his face showed he accepted the terms.

The two finished their cigarettes in companionable silence, the unspoken agreement solidifying in the cold night air.

"I’ll see you around, partner," Bruno said, standing up and stretching his massive frame.

Lucian gave a small nod and turned toward the stairwell doorway. He descended the stairs, his footsteps completely silent against the concrete. As he walked through the bustling streets of Havenford, his mind drifted away from Bruno and the Du Mauriers. A familiar, hollow ache settled in his chest.

Lena.

He wondered where she was. If she was even still alive. And if she was... would he even recognize his sister if he saw her? It had been years. She was taken by a beautiful lady in white. Was she suffering? Was she being used as a blood bag like he had been?

The thought fueled the cold rage in his heart, but he pushed it down. He had to be patient. He had to get stronger.

When he finally reached the three-bedroom house he shared with Clara and Rose, the lights were off. He paused at the front door, closing his eyes.

Blood Sense.

The world lit up in his mind. He felt the rhythmic thumping of heartbeats through the wooden walls. In the room to the left, Rose’s heartbeat was slow, steady, but accompanied by a faint, mutated mana signature—her half-zombie, half-human state stabilizing as she cultivated.

In the room to the right, Clara’s heartbeat was completely silent. Of course. She was a turned vampire now. But he could sense the slow, thick flow of blood energy circulating through her veins. She was also cultivating, pushing her S-Rank Psychokinesis and Ice Control to their limits.

Satisfied that they were safe, Lucian entered the house, locked the door behind him, and went straight to his room.

He sat cross-legged on his bed. With a thought, a blue screen materialized in front of him. He navigated through his system inventory, pulling out the item he had been waiting to study.

A glowing parchment appeared in his hands. It was heavy, radiating a dense, metallic scent of blood. The scroll was covered in ancient, pulsating red runes that seemed to shift and writhe the longer he looked at them.

The Blood Clone spell scroll.

He didn’t have a star ignited in his Crimson Origin Palace yet. The palace was locked, its limiters still firmly in place. But according to the system rules, by studying the spell scroll and comprehending its essence, he could force the ignition of the first star.

He unfurled the parchment across his lap. He placed his hands on the runes, closing his eyes. The moment his fingers touched the ancient paper, a jolt of raw, primal energy shot up his arms and directly into his Sea of Consciousness.

Lucian dove deep into the study of the scroll, the ancient, bloody secrets of his lineage whispering to him in the dark.