The smell that permeated the Academy's West Wing was not that of dust and old parchment, but of ozone, formaldehyde, and a hint of sulfur. It was here, in the bowels of the Department of Alchemical Research, that the so-called "Rare Bloods" were studied from every conceivable angle. To the outside world, this place represented the pinnacle of magical progress; to Lucian, it was a polished slaughterhouse.
Professor Valerius, a man whose gaunt silhouette and thick glasses gave him the appearance of a scholarly insect, tapped his desk with a metallic quill.
"Today, ladies and gentlemen auditors, we will address the Taxonomy of Fluids. Mana is not merely spiritual energy; it is carried by iron and plasma. That is why some of you are born to rule, and others… to serve."
His yellow, piercing eyes settled on Lucian, who was trying to blend into the background in the last row.
"Take our dear Mister Kurogane, for example," Valerius continued with a predatory smile. "An F-Rank. Statistically, his blood should be as inert as ditch water. And yet, I've received intriguing reports about his… recent reflexes. Mister Kurogane, would you be so kind as to provide a sample for our demonstration?"
Lucian's heart skipped a beat. Aria, standing against the back wall with her hands neatly folded over her maid's apron, clenched her jaw. Their telepathic link crackled with cold fury.
If he touches your blood, I'll rip his head off and drink his brain, Lucian.
Stay calm. We can't run now.
Lucian rose slowly.
"Professor, I wasn't aware that a theory class included blood sampling."
"Oh, it's purely voluntary, of course," Valerius replied, even as two armored guards subtly moved closer to the exits. "But refusing an opportunity to contribute to royal science would be… suspicious."
Shizuka Hoshi, seated in the front row, turned in her chair. She watched Lucian with a devouring intensity, her fingers idly playing with a lock of her black hair. She wanted to know as well. She wanted to understand how this "Zero" had pinned her down.
Lucian approached the podium. On the examination table rested a [Spectral Analysis Crystal]. This artifact could decompose every particle of mana within a fluid to reveal its genealogical origin. If even a single drop of his blood touched that crystal, the entire world would know he carried Primordial Blood.
"Extend your arm, young man," Valerius ordered, producing a silver lancet.
[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION]
[CRITICAL DANGER: BLOOD DETECTION IMMINENT]
[AVAILABLE SOLUTIONS:]
[Crystal Corruption] (Cost: 200 Primordial Mana)
[Artifact Overload] (Risk of explosion)
[Shadow Call: Substitution]
Lucian chose the first option at the exact moment the lancet pricked his index finger. He released a pulse of corrupted mana through his pores, aiming directly at the crystal's core.
A drop of blood fell. Red. Perfectly normal to the naked eye.
The crystal began to hum. But instead of projecting the complex sigils of a noble lineage or the dull glow of a commoner, it suddenly turned pitch black. A fetid smoke seeped out.
"What the—?" Valerius leaned in, adjusting his glasses. "That's impossible. The crystal is… it's dead?"
"It seems my blood is even more mediocre than you thought, Professor," Lucian said with feigned embarrassment. "It must have short-circuited the device due to a total lack of mana."
Laughter erupted across the amphitheater. Marcus, his arm still in a sling from the previous day, shouted:
"Even machines refuse to taste his rat piss!"
Shizuka, however, did not laugh. She had stood up and moved closer to the podium, staring at the remains of the shattered crystal. She ran a finger over the blackened surface and brought it to her lips, tasting the ozone-heavy air. Her eyes widened. She sensed not weakness, but a power so dense it had become indescribable to a human tool.
"Class dismissed!" Valerius barked, visibly furious at the loss of an expensive artifact. "Everyone out! Mister Kurogane, we will speak again."
Lucian hurried out of the hall, but the moment he entered the dim corridor leading to the gardens, a firm hand seized his wrist. He was yanked with surprising strength into a hidden alcove behind a tapestry.
Shizuka slammed him against the cold stone wall, her face mere centimeters from his.
"Don't lie to me, Lucian," she whispered. "That crystal didn't burn out from weakness. It burned out because it couldn't contain what you are."
"You're imagining things, Shizuka. I'm just—"
She cut him off by placing her hand on his chest, directly over his heart.
"I can feel your heartbeat. It's slow. Calm. Far too calm for someone who just sabotaged a royal test. You're like a blade hidden in a straw scabbard."
She leaned closer, her scent of cherry blossoms and cold steel flooding his senses.
"I want you, Lucian. Not as an ordinary lover. I want you as my secret. I want to face you every day until one of us can no longer walk. If you give me what I want… I'll keep your secret. Otherwise—"
"Otherwise what?" a cold voice interrupted.
Aria emerged from the shadows of the alcove, her maid's form already beginning to dissolve. Her red eyes burned in the darkness like infernal embers. She grabbed Shizuka's arm and squeezed until the young woman's bones began to groan.
"Let him go, little samurai, or I'll turn you into hallway decoration," Aria hissed.
Shizuka did not retreat. On the contrary, a spark of joyous madness lit up her blue eyes. She drew her wakizashi with her left hand and leveled it beneath Aria's chin.
"So the maid finally bares her fangs," Shizuka sneered. "Are you jealous? Afraid I'll understand his true nature before you do?"
"I'm not jealous of a corpse on borrowed time," Aria replied, her nails elongating into steel claws.
[SYSTEM ALERT: HAREM CONFLICT IMMINENT]
[MEDIATION OPTIONS:]
[Domination by Force] (Requires demonstration of power)
[Parody: Comedic Escape]
[The Rare Blood Pact]
Lucian felt control slipping away. If they started fighting here, the entire academy would be alerted. He activated his new skill: [Blood Chains].
Filaments of purple light burst from his palms, instantly wrapping around both women's wrists, binding them to each other—and to him. The magical pressure forced them to drop their weapons.
"That's enough!" Lucian roared, his Monarch aura finally exploding, if only for a few seconds.
Aria and Shizuka froze, subdued by the natural authority suddenly radiating from him. Aria shuddered as her need for submission resurfaced, while Shizuka felt her legs weaken, her obsession with strength having just found its absolute master.
"We're not killing each other here," Lucian said, catching his breath. "Shizuka, you want to know what I am? Fine. But it comes at a price. You will become my eyes and ears within the Academy's high nobility. In return, I'll train you in secret."
Shizuka smiled, her eyes gleaming with possessive light.
"A contract… I accept. But I want proof. A mark. Like the one she has on her neck."
Aria let out a muffled snarl, but Lucian silenced her with a look.
"Not a blood mark. Not yet. But you'll help me investigate Valerius. He's hiding something in his underground laboratory. I smelled other rare bloods… bloods that scream."
[LEVEL UP! LEVEL 10 REACHED]
[SYSTEM EVOLUTION IN PROGRESS…]
[NEW FUNCTION UNLOCKED: PRIVATE BLOOD LABORATORY]
Later, after Shizuka had left with a promise of loyalty—unstable, but real—Aria shoved Lucian onto the bed in their room. She was no longer shouting. She was eerily silent, which was far more dangerous.
She began unfastening the buttons of her own dress, her hands trembling slightly.
"You offered her a pact… You bound her to you with your blood."
"It was necessary to silence her, Aria."
"I don't care about necessity!" she exploded, throwing herself on top of him, pinning him beneath her weight. "You looked at her with the same authority you impose on me. She's infected by you now. I can smell her on your clothes."
She bit into Lucian's shoulder—not to feed, but to mark him, leaving deep impressions of her teeth.
"I'm going to have to punish you for that, Master… or maybe you should show me just how indispensable I am to you."
She pulled a small vial of black liquid from beneath the bed—something she had stolen from Valerius's laboratory.
"This alchemical poison… it multiplies nerve sensitivity tenfold. If we mix it with your blood while I serve you… imagine what we'll feel."
Lucian saw the system message flash.
[WARNING: SMUT / EXPERIMENTAL EXPERIENCE DETECTED]
[POTENTIAL GAINS: +500% MANA / RISK: LOSS OF MENTAL STABILITY]
He looked at Aria's mad, sublime face. He knew he was playing with fire, but to defeat the Blackwoods—and monsters like Valerius—he would have to become a monster himself.
"Do it, Aria. Show me what blood can truly offer."
As muffled cries of ecstasy and pain began to echo behind the magically soundproofed walls, a shadow watched their window from the neighboring rooftop. Shizuka sat on the tiles, caressing the scar the blood chains had left on her wrist.
"Soon, Lucian…" she murmured. "Soon, it will be my turn to scream your name."