- 4 hours ago
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00:00In the vampire world, every one of us gets bound to a contract partner when we turn 18.
00:06At the family's coming-of-age ceremony, Cole, my contract partner, knelt before the crowd and kissed my sister's fingertips.
00:15Only the most powerful Bloodland Lord deserves to be my contract partner.
00:19A weak nobody like Ella doesn't deserve it.
00:22He snapped the contract ring I gave him right in front of everyone.
00:26The backlash hit him so hard he coughed up blood.
00:28But he still tore apart our blood oath without lynching.
00:31He expected me to beg.
00:33I pressed my fingerprint onto the contract document and said,
00:37As you wish.
00:38The second the Blood Oath shattered, something stirred deep inside me.
00:42The ancestral Bloodline, locked away for 18 years, started waking up.
00:47Cole's elite power collapsed on the spot.
00:50I wiped the blood off my hand.
00:56Without my bloodline feeding yours, you're nothing but an average contract partner.
01:02He curled up on the cold stone floor, teeth clenched, glaring at me.
01:06Ella, you're ruthless.
01:09But no matter what dirty tricks you pull to keep me, I only care about Bianca.
01:14Bianca hiked up the hem of her velvet gown and rushed to his side.
01:19The veins at Cole's temples were throbbing.
01:21His elite power was hemorrhaging out of him.
01:25The blood flowed from the corners of his eyes.
01:28The worst sign of Bloodline collapse.
01:34Bianca ripped a pendant from her neck.
01:36A crimson gem dangled from the chain.
01:39The Magnus clan's greatest treasure.
01:42The holy blood amber.
01:43She sliced her own wrist open without a second thought and dipped the amber into the gushing blood.
01:50The gem flared with a dark red glow.
01:52She pressed it to Cole's chest, right over his heart, and activated it with her blood magic.
01:58It barely kept him alive.
02:00He stopped vomiting blood.
02:02Some color crept back into his face.
02:04His breathing steadied.
02:06He jerked his head up.
02:07Those eyes that once swore an eternal oath to me had nothing in them now but venom.
02:11You'd rather destroy me than let me go?
02:14I always knew a bedridden weakling like you had a twisted mind.
02:17I just stood there, watching him fall apart.
02:20Inside me, the sealed ancestral bloodline was shredding through my veins and bones.
02:25I bit down on the tip of my tongue, hard.
02:29The pain was the only thing keeping me conscious.
02:32My mouth filled with blood.
02:34I could smell something buried in it.
02:37Something ancient.
02:39Something that didn't belong to any ordinary vampire.
02:43To everyone else, I probably looked ready to collapse.
02:47I forced a smirk.
02:49It's just oath-breaking backlash.
02:51My voice came out flat.
02:53Not a ripple.
02:54You call yourself an elite?
02:56Can't even handle the price of breaking a blood oath?
02:59Cole lost it.
03:03His pupils went crimson.
03:05Fangs out.
03:06Bullshit!
03:07That was my own talent!
03:09You can't even form blood magic!
03:11And you think you can take credit for my power?
03:14If it wasn't for Bianca's holy blood, Amber, you would have killed me today!
03:19He turned to Bianca, and just like that, his whole face changed.
03:24Soft.
03:25Wounded.
03:26Bianca, thank God for you.
03:29I always knew only you were worthy of my loyalty.
03:33Bianca's eyes went red.
03:35She put on her best heartbroken look.
03:38Cole, stop talking.
03:41Your health comes first.
03:43Then she turned to me.
03:45Disappointment.
03:46Pain.
03:47Every bit of it calculated.
03:50Ellen.
03:51I know you've been sickly and lonely your whole life.
03:55But Cole is innocent.
03:57How could you use such a vicious method to hurt him?
04:00No matter how jealous you are of me, you shouldn't play with someone's life.
04:05That did it.
04:06The guests erupted.
04:07This second daughter is pure evil.
04:10Breaking a contract is one thing, but trying to kill him?
04:14She's weak, and she still wants to chain down an elite?
04:18Selfish.
04:19The eldest daughter is a saint.
04:21She even used the clan's greatest bauble to save him.
04:25The whispers piled on.
04:27I didn't fight any of it.
04:29Every ounce of energy I had was going toward holding down the forest building inside me.
04:37If the ancestral bloodline blew now, everyone in this hall would die with me.
04:41I wasn't ready for that.
04:44Not yet.
04:47Enough!
04:48The roar shook the entire hall.
04:51My father, clan lord Magnus, shoved through the crowd and marched straight to me.
04:56He didn't spare a glance at my bleeding hand, just raised his arm and slapped me across the
05:01face.
05:02The blow carried the full pressure of a high-ranking vampire.
05:06I had nothing left to dodge with.
05:08I hit the ground hard.
05:10My lip split.
05:12Blood ran down my chin and dripped onto the stone.
05:15He stood over me like I was something stuck to the bottom of his shoe.
05:19Your sister was kind enough to take in your contract partner and you dare try to kill him in front
05:25of everyone?
05:26How did I end up with a daughter who brings nothing but shame to this clan?
05:30I wiped my lip and looked up at the man they called my father.
05:34I didn't poison him.
05:36That was normal backlash from breaking a blood oath.
05:40Word by word.
05:41Clear as I could make it.
05:43He laughed.
05:45Cold.
05:46His eyes full of loathing.
05:48Still making excuses?
05:50Cole is an elite.
05:51A simple contract break couldn't do this much damage.
05:55You poisoned the contract document because he rejected you.
05:59Cole jumped right in.
06:05Lord Magnus is right.
06:06I felt something poisonous drilling into my bloodline core.
06:10If Bianca hadn't saved me, I'd be a corpse right now.
06:13Right on cue, Bianca tugged at Lord Magnus' sleeve.
06:16Tears rolling.
06:17Father, please don't be angry.
06:19Ella just lost her head for a moment.
06:22Lock her up for a few days to reflect.
06:24Don't hurt her.
06:26She sounded like she was begging for mercy.
06:28She was handing down my sentence.
06:31Lord Magnus snorted.
06:33Waved his hand.
06:35Take this oathbreaker to the ice vault.
06:37No one visits her without my permission.
06:40Not until she hands over the antidote.
06:43Two guards grabbed me by the shoulders.
06:45One on each side.
06:47The bloodline reshaping itself inside me had taken everything.
06:50I couldn't even struggle.
06:52They dragged me toward the doors.
06:54As I passed Cole, he leaned in close.
06:57Low enough that only I could hear.
06:59Ella, this is what happens when you go against me.
07:03I peeled my eyelids open.
07:06Cole, remember what you said today.
07:09Don't ever come clouding back to me.
07:10He snorted.
07:12Like it was the funniest thing he'd ever heard.
07:16Cloud back to you?
07:17I'd rather jump off a cliff than look at you again.
07:25Deep inside the ice vault.
07:27Cold gnawing into my bones, inch by inch.
07:30Two heavy iron chains held me up from the ceiling.
07:34My lower body sat in black ice water.
07:37The freezing cold and the scorching heat of the ancestral bloodline tore at each other inside.
07:41Me.
07:42My blood vessels ripped apart, then stitched back together.
07:46Over and over, even breathing, tasted like blood.
07:51I don't know how long it went on.
07:53Then the heavy iron door scraped open.
07:56A beam of harsh light cut through the dark.
07:59Bianca and Cole, together, she wore a white fur cloak and carried a hand warmer.
08:05Every inch the noble lady, he wore the dark gold coat of the Magnus clan's chief guardian.
08:12But his face was sickly pale, and his steps weren't steady.
08:15The holy blood amber was holding him together, but it couldn't stop the collapse.
08:20Not really.
08:21Bianca gave a little shiver and pressed closer to Cole.
08:24God, this cellar is freezing.
08:26He wrapped his arm around her shoulders right away.
08:29Bianca, you're too delicate for a filthy place like this.
08:33Then he looked down at me.
08:35Pity and contempt.
08:37Mixed together.
08:39Ella, how long are you going to keep up this stubborn act?
08:42He walked to the edge of the pool, looked down at me.
08:46The holy blood amber saved my life, but the healer says your poison already reached my blood.
08:52The only cure is heart's blood from the one who cast the poison.
08:56That's you.
08:57My head hung low.
08:59Sweat dripped through my tangled hair.
09:01I heard every word, and I couldn't help it.
09:05I laughed.
09:06Cole's brow furrowed.
09:08What are you laughing at?
09:09I raised my head.
09:14Let him see the mockery on my face.
09:17I'm laughing because you're not just an ungrateful parasite.
09:21You're a stupid one too.
09:23I already told you.
09:26Oath-breaking rape lash.
09:28But you keep calling it poison.
09:30You want my heart's blood?
09:33You think you deserve it?
09:35His hand whipped through the air.
09:38A lash of blood magic cracked against my shoulder.
09:41The sound of tearing flesh bounced off the walls.
09:44I grunted.
09:45Bit my lip.
09:46Didn't scream.
09:48Ella, don't push your luck!
09:50He was glaring at me like I owed him several lifetimes.
09:53I spent ten years as your dog.
09:56Took every hit, every blade for you.
09:59All I'm asking for now is a little heart's blood.
10:03Who are you to refuse?
10:06Cooperate.
10:07And I might let Bianca give you a spot as a blood slave in her household.
10:12My stomach turned.
10:16Blood slave?
10:17I almost choked on the words.
10:19Cole, is your head full of mud?
10:22You're a parasite who climbed the ranks by feeding off your host.
10:27And you actually think you're somebody?
10:33That hit a nerve.
10:35His pupils flared deep breath.
10:38Fangs out.
10:39Hand raised to strike again.
10:41Bianca stepped in front of him.
10:44Cole, don't.
10:46She turned to me.
10:48Fate concern painted on so thick it was almost impressive.
10:52Ella, how can you say that to Cole?
10:54He's doing this for your own good.
10:57You'll freeze to death down here sooner or later.
11:01Just give him your heart's blood.
11:03I'll ask father to let you out myself.
11:06I stared at her.
11:08Bianca, drop the act.
11:09It makes me sick.
11:11You want my heart's blood?
11:13I said, dream on.
11:16Her smile froze.
11:17Then she sighed.
11:20Ella, you always pick the hardest road.
11:23She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small box carved from dark wood.
11:27My pupils shrank.
11:29That was the ebony box.
11:31My mother's ashes.
11:34What are you doing?
11:35Put that down!
11:36I thrashed against the chains.
11:39Metal clinked through the vault.
11:41She turned the box over in her hands.
11:44A cruel smile curling at her lips.
11:48Ella, I know your mother's ashes are the most precious thing you have.
11:52What if my hand slipped?
11:54What if this box fell into the ice water?
11:57Would your poor dead mother shiver down there in the cold?
12:00She held it out over the pool, loosened her fingers, just a little.
12:06Bianca!
12:07Don't you dare!
12:12My eyes went red, locked on her hand.
12:15The ancestral bloodline inside me surged in response, slamming against my veins, trying to break free.
12:22But I was in the middle of the most critical stage.
12:25I couldn't channel a single shred of power.
12:29Cole leaned against the wall, arms crossed.
12:32Ella, give in, or your mother's ashes soak in the ice water forever.
12:39One drop of heart's blood for your mother's peace.
12:43Good deal, if you ask me.
12:46I clenched my jaw until my teeth ached.
12:49My mouth tasted like iron.
12:51They had me.
12:53They knew exactly where to hit.
12:55The words scraped out through my teeth.
12:58Fine.
13:00I'll give it to you.
13:03Bianca tucked the box back into her pocket.
13:06Satisfied.
13:07See?
13:08That wasn't so hard.
13:13Cole pulled out a dagger and a jade bull.
13:15Walked up to me.
13:17Drove the dagger into my chest.
13:19Without a beat of hesitation.
13:22Pain tore through me.
13:24My whole body shook.
13:27He carved out my heart's blood with practiced hands.
13:31No mercy.
13:32Not even a flinch.
13:34Warm blood ran down the blade into the bowl.
13:37A faint, strange fragrance rose from it.
13:40The scent of ancestral blood.
13:43Nobody in the room recognized it.
13:45He finished.
13:48He finished.
13:48Tossed the dagger on the ground.
13:50Smart choice.
13:52He cradled the bowl and walked out.
13:54Bianca followed.
13:56At the doorway, she stopped and turned back.
13:59Oh, Ella.
14:01Almost forgot.
14:02Your mother's ashes?
14:03I had someone dump them in the garbage pit behind the mansion ages ago.
14:08That box was just fireplace ash.
14:11She covered her mouth, giggling.
14:15Rot in here.
14:20Her words hit me.
14:23Bianca!
14:24I'll kill you!
14:25I thrashed like a huge animal.
14:28The chains dug into my wrists and ankles.
14:31Blood turned the ice water red.
14:34All they left behind was laughter.
14:37The iron door slammed shut.
14:39Alone.
14:41Freezing dark.
14:42I survived the worst stage of the ancestral bloodline's awakening by myself.
14:48Three days later, the door opened again.
14:51Guards dragged me out.
14:53All the way to the clan's public judgment hall.
14:56The light hit my eyes and I had to squint.
14:59The hall was packed.
15:01Elders, core members, all of them.
15:04Lord Magnus, in the clan leader's seat.
15:07Bianca and Cole stood at his right.
15:10They looked like the perfect couple.
15:12Across from them, a young man in a pale coat.
15:16Julian.
15:17My fiancé.
15:19Something flickered inside me when I saw him.
15:22A faint, stupid spark of hope.
15:26Julian.
15:27My voice barely came out.
15:29He turned, saw the blood all over me, and stepped back.
15:34Actually stepped back, like my blood might stain his clothes.
15:41Ella, don't say my name.
15:43It makes me sick.
15:47Cold.
15:48Ice cold.
15:49I stared at him.
15:52Julian.
15:53What did you just say?
15:58He reached into his coat and pulled out a dark silver oath ring.
16:02Held it up.
16:03That ring.
16:04The one he begged me to accept.
16:07On his knees.
16:08Three days in the snow.
16:10Ella, you're eaten up by jealousy.
16:12You tried to kill Cole and you've been cursing Bianca behind her back.
16:16My wife has to be a woman of noble blood and pure heart.
16:19Someone like Bianca.
16:21Not a vicious piece of trash who can't even form basic blood magic.
16:26He hurled the ring to the ground.
16:28I stared at the pieces.
16:30The whole thing felt like a bad joke.
16:35You were the one who begged me, Julian.
16:38On your knees.
16:39You said you didn't care whether I could use blood magic.
16:42And now you want to play the saint?
16:45His face flushed red.
16:47He jabbed his finger at me.
16:49I was blind.
16:50Your helpless little act fooled me.
16:52You're not worth a single strand of Bianca's hair.
16:56Right on cue, Bianca stepped forward.
16:59Took Julian's arm.
17:00Julian, don't be so harsh.
17:02Ella just loved Cole too much.
17:05She lost her head.
17:07She turned to Lord Magnus.
17:09Eyes glistening.
17:11Father, Ella made a terrible mistake.
17:13But she's still my sister.
17:16Please, spare her life.
17:19Cole jumped out.
17:20Bianca, you're too kind.
17:23She doesn't deserve anyone's sympathy.
17:26Lord Magnus, if this Oathbreaker stays in the clan, she'll be nothing but trouble.
17:36The elders nodded along.
17:39Indeed, my lord.
17:41This girl must go.
17:43Strip her status and cast her out.
17:45Lord Magnus looked at me.
17:47Not a trace of warmth in those eyes.
17:50Nothing fatherly.
17:51Nothing human.
17:53Ella, you tried to murder the clan's chief guardian.
17:58You're jealous of your elder sister.
18:00You refuse to repent.
18:02Today, as lord of the Magnus clan,
18:05I declare,
18:07Ella is stripped of her bloodline status,
18:10her family name revoked,
18:12reduced to a commoner,
18:13and banished from this clan.
18:16Effective immediately.
18:17Every word,
18:18a knife in my chest.
18:20I looked around the hall.
18:22All those sanctimonious faces.
18:24Then I threw my head back and laughed.
18:27Laughed until tears ran down my cheeks.
18:30What a noble, righteous Magnus clan.
18:33What a pure, flawless Bianca.
18:36You cursed, rotten bunch.
18:39You deserve each other.
18:40Lord Magnus slammed his fist on the table,
18:43shot to his feet.
18:45Insolent.
18:46At death's door and you still dare run your mouth.
18:50Guards, throw her out onto the street.
18:53Guards moved in.
18:56Then Cole grabbed his chest.
18:58His face went chalk white.
19:00A choked groan.
19:02He went down.
19:04Cole!
19:04Bianca screamed and caught him.
19:11His body convulsed.
19:13The bloodline collapsed
19:15but the heart's blood had suppressed erupted again.
19:18Worse than before,
19:19black blood oozed from his eyes,
19:21nostrils,
19:22and ears all at once
19:23that he doubled over
19:24and coughed up another dark mouthful.
19:26The healer rushed over.
19:28Checked him.
19:29Went pale.
19:31Lord Magnus!
19:33My lady!
19:34His core damage is too severe.
19:36That heart's blood wasn't nearly enough.
19:38If we don't find a pure bloodline source immediately,
19:41he won't survive the night.
19:43Bianca panicked.
19:46Then do something!
19:47Get every blood medicine from the vault!
19:50All of it!
19:51The healer shook his head.
19:53His gaze drifted to me.
19:56Ordinary medicine won't work.
19:57Only the bloodline core of a plantive can cure this.
20:01Silence.
20:02Dead silence.
20:03Every eye in the room landed on me.
20:05Lord Magnus looked at Cole.
20:08Then at me.
20:09His gaze settled.
20:11No hesitation.
20:12Just cold calculation.
20:15Ella.
20:16He softened his voice.
20:18Gentle.
20:18Gentle.
20:18Almost.
20:19But underneath it.
20:21Cold enough to kill.
20:22You've been cast out.
20:24A bloodline core is wasted on a nobody like you.
20:28Give it to Cole.
20:29Consider it your final contribution to the Magnus clan.
20:32I stared at this man.
20:34My own father.
20:36A bloodline core sits deep in the spine, woven into bone and nerve.
20:41Ripping it out of a living body means cracking the spine open and tearing out a crystal of power embedded
20:46in flesh and marrow.
20:47If the victim survives at all, they're left as an empty shell, weaker than any ordinary human.
20:59Magnus, I am your daughter.
21:01Every word threw gritted teeth.
21:03The mask came off.
21:05I don't have a daughter who shames this clan.
21:08You're worthless bones for an elite's life.
21:10That's the greatest honor you'll ever have.
21:13Do it!
21:13No mercy.
21:15Not a shred.
21:17Her guards pinned me to the stone floor.
21:20Rough hands crushed my shoulder blades.
21:23Cole staggered up with Bianca's help.
21:25His pale face twisted with hunger.
21:28His pupils went deep red.
21:30His lips trembled.
21:32The raw craving of a vampire facing the purest blood.
21:36Ella!
21:37You owe me this!
21:38He drew a gleaming surgical knife and came toward me, one step at a time.
21:43With your bloodline core, I'll lock in my elite power for good.
21:48Maybe even push past it.
21:50Don't worry.
21:51After I become the strongest, I'll have Bianca light a candle for you every year.
21:56My cheat pressed against the cold stone.
21:59I watched him come closer.
22:01Cole, aren't you afraid of what comes next?
22:04He threw his head back and laughed.
22:06Karma?
22:07The strong eat the weak.
22:09That's the only truth.
22:11You can't even fight back.
22:13You think you get to talk to me about karma?
22:16The knife went into my back.
22:18I screamed.
22:20The blade scraped along my spine.
22:22Crying my bloodline core loose from the bone.
22:25Like a hot iron clamp shoved into my spine, wrenching out something fused to the marrow.
22:30Inch by inch.
22:34Cracking bone.
22:36I could hear it inside my own body.
22:38Louder than anything else.
22:41Blood poured out.
22:42The floor turned red.
22:44The Magnus clan watched.
22:46Some looked annoyed.
22:48Like I was ruining their carpet.
22:50Julian turned away.
22:52He couldn't look.
22:54But he kept holding Bianca's hand.
22:56Bianca smiled.
22:58Pain.
22:59Pain all the way down to the soul.
23:01But inside that agony, the ancestral bloodline finally found its way out.
23:06The second my bloodline core was torn free, the last seal shattered.
23:10Destruction and rebirth crashed together inside me.
23:14Then merged.
23:16Perfectly.
23:17Coal ripped out a pale crystal soaked in my blood.
23:19Held it up and laughed like a madman.
23:22I got it!
23:22I finally got it!
23:25I lay face down in a pool of blood.
23:28Barely breathing.
23:30Everyone watching saw a dying husk.
23:33I didn't beg.
23:34I laughed.
23:36Quiet.
23:37Wet.
23:38Blood bubbling in my throat.
23:40It echoed through the silent hall.
23:42Bianca wrinkled her nose.
23:44What are you laughing at?
23:46Lost your mind?
23:47I managed to lift my head.
23:50A flicker of dark gold in the depths of my eyes.
23:53I'm laughing because soon enough, you'll all be on your knees.
23:57Begging me.
23:59Lord Magnus waved his hand.
24:01Can't shut up, even when she's dying!
24:04Throw her into the Forbidden Wasteland!
24:07Let the beasts deal with the body!
24:09Two guards dragged me out like a corpse.
24:12Behind me, Cole was shouting about fusing the bloodline core.
24:16The crowd was congratulating Bianca and Julian.
24:19Bianca's voice floated after me.
24:21Let her die on her own.
24:23Light.
24:24Careless.
24:29The Forbidden Wasteland.
24:31Edge of Magnus territory.
24:33Dead end.
24:33Thick black fog.
24:35All year round.
24:36The valley floor crawling with bloodthirsty beasts.
24:39Even a high-ranking vampire wouldn't survive the fog.
24:43The two guards stopped at the cliff's edge and tossed me on the ground like a sack of garbage.
24:48The first one spat.
24:49Dammit.
24:50Dragging us out to this hellhole in the middle of the night.
24:53The second one rubbed his hands together, eyes crawling over my body.
24:58Quit complaining.
24:59Look at her.
25:00This second daughter might be ruined.
25:02But that face?
25:03Still the prettiest in the whole clan.
25:05He crouched down.
25:08Rough fingers grabbed my chin.
25:10Forced my head up.
25:11Used to be so high and mighty.
25:13Wouldn't even look at guys like us.
25:16Now look at you.
25:17The first guard moved in.
25:19A sick gleam in his eyes.
25:22She's dead meat.
25:23Anyway.
25:24Beast food.
25:26Why don't we have a little fun first?
25:28They shared a look.
25:30Let out ugly laughs.
25:32Hands reaching for my torn clothes.
25:35Then a voice.
25:36Cold.
25:37From somewhere behind them.
25:40How would you like to die?
25:41They froze.
25:43Looked down.
25:44The woman who was supposed to be dying was getting to her feet.
25:48The wound on my back was closing.
25:50Fast.
25:51Visible.
25:52A dark gold glow rippled across my skin.
25:56Ancient patterns surfacing.
25:58The markings of a fully awakened ancestral bloodline.
26:04I opened my eyes.
26:07No more black.
26:08Liquid gold.
26:09Shifting and molten.
26:10Ancestral pressure slammed down on them.
26:13Their fangs retracted on their own.
26:15Instinct.
26:16A lesser vampire facing an absolute superior.
26:20The first guard's legs gave out.
26:22He hit his knees.
26:24Eyes wide.
26:25You.
26:25Your bloodline core was ripped out.
26:28The second tried to run.
26:30His body wouldn't move.
26:32Something had seized his blood.
26:35I raised my right hand.
26:37Bloodline core.
26:39I don't need that anymore.
26:42I closed my fist.
26:44Their blood boiled at the same instant.
26:47Two dull thuds.
26:49They burst apart from the inside.
26:51Didn't even have time to scream.
26:53I brushed off my hands and walked to the cliff's edge.
26:57Jumped.
26:59Meanwhile.
27:01The Magnus clan's ritual chamber.
27:04Coal lay strapped to a stone altar.
27:06Ancient runes covered the surface.
27:09Black candles threw flickering shadows.
27:12Glass containers of blood reagents lined both sides.
27:16The dark red liquid churning slowly.
27:18Bianca and Lord Magnus watched.
27:20Waiting.
27:22The healer ran the transplant.
27:25Once the core is implanted in Coal's spine.
27:28His elite power will fully stabilize.
27:31Maybe even advance.
27:33Lord Magnus stroked his chin.
27:36Eyes sharp.
27:37The healer aligned the bloody core with Coal's spine and eased it in.
27:44At first, smooth, a surge of blood magic erupted from Coal's body.
27:50His energy climbed.
27:52His loose fangs grew sharp again.
27:55The icy blue glow returned to his eyes.
27:59Bianca's face lit up.
28:00It's worked!
28:01Then Coal's face twisted.
28:03His eyes flew open.
28:05He screamed.
28:07His rising power didn't just stop.
28:10It reversed.
28:11His blood magic was draining out.
28:13Through the implanted core at a terrifying speed.
28:16He snapped the restraints and sat up.
28:19Stared at his hands.
28:21What's happening?
28:22Why am I losing my power?
28:24His nails were shrinking from sharp claws into soft, brittle human nails.
28:29He scrambled off the altar and grabbed Bianca's legs.
28:32Bianca!
28:33Save me!
28:34Please!
28:35My power is gone!
28:37No!
28:38No!
28:39She recoiled.
28:40Kicked him off without thinking.
28:42What the hell is wrong with you?
28:44What happened?
28:45You said the core would fix everything!
28:47The healer checked.
28:49Then his face drained of color.
28:53He sank to the floor.
28:54It's over.
28:56The core didn't fill the gap.
28:58It acted like a black hole and drained every last drop of Coal's power.
29:03He's weaker than a normal human now.
29:07Coal lay on the floor.
29:09Staring at nothing.
29:11Bloody fangs scattered around him on the coal tiles.
29:19The bottom of the forbidden wasteland.
29:23No daylight ever reached here.
29:26Dozens of red eyes watched me from the shadows.
29:29Hungry.
29:29The biggest beast came first.
29:32Size of a small hill.
29:34It roared and lunged, jaws wide, blasting reeking air.
29:38I didn't blink.
29:40Down.
29:41One word.
29:42Dark gold energy punched through the beast's skull.
29:45The massive body crashed to the ground.
29:50Every other creature in the shadows went quiet.
29:53Whimpering.
29:54Shrinking into the dark.
29:55I walked over scattered bones.
29:57Heading deeper.
29:59My mother's real legacy was sealed down here.
30:02The final destination of my ancestral awakening.
30:06An ancient blood beast blocked the entrance to the ruins.
30:09Enormous.
30:10Shape between a giant wolf and a bat.
30:13Black flames burning across its fur.
30:16Pairs of bony wings on its back.
30:19Nine savage heads on one body.
30:22The absolute ruler of the wasteland.
30:24A horror left over from a forgotten age.
30:28All nine heads roared at once.
30:30The ground shook.
30:34Beauty vampire.
30:36You dare set foot in my domain.
30:41I walked straight into the pressure.
30:44Step by step.
30:46Dark gold light gathered behind me.
30:48Forming the towering shadow of an ancestor.
30:51Ancient markings covered every inch of my skin.
30:54I lifted my chin.
30:56Kneel.
30:57Or die.
31:00The roar cut off.
31:02All nine pairs of eyes went wide with something I had never expected to see in a beast.
31:07Fear.
31:08It felt the suppression in its blood.
31:10The ancestral bloodline was the original master of all vampire creatures.
31:14Its massive body shuddered.
31:16Then all nine heads lowered to the dust.
31:18Great master.
31:20Your ancient blood servant lives to serve.
31:24I stepped onto the beast's head.
31:27Watched the ruined doors open.
31:29My time had finally come.
31:32Back at the Magnus estate.
31:34Things were falling apart.
31:36Cole, the mighty chief guardian, was curled up in the corner of a woodshed.
31:41Filthy clothes.
31:42Tangled, reeking hair.
31:45Without vampire power to sustain him.
31:47His face had gone gaunt and rough.
31:50His once blue eyes had faded to a cloudy gray.
31:53The shed door flew open with a kick.
31:56Bianca walked in, holding her nose.
31:59Bianca!
31:59You finally came to see me!
32:01He threw himself at her.
32:04Hands and knees.
32:06Reaching for her dress.
32:08She kicked him flat on his back.
32:10Get off me!
32:11Don't touch me!
32:12You think you can touch my clothes?
32:15He rolled on the ground, staring up at the woman he'd sworn his life to.
32:19Bianca!
32:20You can't do this to me!
32:23I broke my oath with Ella for you!
32:25I ended up like this because of you!
32:27He was screaming.
32:28He opened his mouth, trying to bare his fangs.
32:32But his gums were bare.
32:34Every last fong gone.
32:36Nothing but raw, swollen flesh.
32:39She looked down at him.
32:42She laughed.
32:43For me?
32:44Don't flatter yourself.
32:47You betrayed Ella because you're greedy.
32:50You wanted to ride my coattails to the top.
32:53My guardians have to be the strongest.
32:55You can't even match an ordinary guard now.
32:58What use are you?
33:00He went rigid.
33:02Lightning striking.
33:03He finally got it.
33:05To Bianca, he'd always been a tool.
33:08The second he lost his value, she tossed him.
33:12Something snapped in him.
33:14No!
33:14It's that bitch Ella!
33:16He was screaming, wild.
33:18She did something to the core!
33:20If I find her, if I drink her blood, I'll recover!
33:25Fianna, send people to the wasteland.
33:28Bring her back.
33:30Please!
33:31I'm begging you!
33:32Bianca didn't even try to hide her disgust.
33:36Are you insane?
33:38The forbidden wasteland.
33:39She fell in there.
33:41There wouldn't be bones left.
33:43Even if she were alive.
33:44You think she'd save you?
33:46She turned for the door.
33:48Threw her last words over her shoulder.
33:51Someone get this trash out of the estate.
33:54My ceremony is tomorrow.
33:56I don't want him here.
33:58Cole crumpled to the floor.
34:00The tears finally broke.
34:02He thought about the last ten years.
34:05Every time he got hurt, Ella used her own blood to heal him.
34:09Every time he needed something, Ella moved heaven and earth to get it.
34:14He destroyed all of that with his own hands.
34:17Ella, I was wrong.
34:20I was so wrong.
34:21He sobbed in the empty shed.
34:23Nobody answered.
34:25The Magnus estate was decked out for celebration.
34:28Today was Bianca's investiture as blood daughter.
34:31Official heir.
34:33And her engagement banquet with Julian.
34:36The hall gleamed.
34:37Gold and crystal everywhere.
34:40Nobles and clan leaders lined up to congratulate.
34:42Lord Magnus sat in the seat of honor.
34:46Beaming.
34:47Soaking it in.
34:48Bianca wore a deep red ceremonial gown and a dark silver crown.
34:52Every inch a queen.
34:55Julian stood beside her in white.
34:57Polished.
34:58Charming.
34:59The perfect couple.
35:01He took her hand.
35:06Bianca.
35:07You look beautiful today.
35:09She smiled, shy, lowered her gaze.
35:13Julian, from now on, we'll be together forever.
35:16The celebration hit its peak.
35:19Then a filthy, stinking figure burst out from a corner of the hall.
35:23Bianca, you can't marry him.
35:26You promised to make me your chief guardian.
35:29Cole, stumbling, wild-eyed,
35:33he'd slipped past the distracted gate guards for one last try.
35:36The hall went silent.
35:42Everyone stared at the man who looked like a vagrant.
35:45Who is this beggar?
35:47How did he get in?
35:49Wait.
35:49Is that Cole?
35:51The Elite?
35:53My God.
35:55What happened to him?
35:57Bianca's face went dark, humiliated.
36:00Guards!
36:00Get this lunatic out of here!
36:02Guards swarmed him, threw him down, punching, kicking.
36:08He couldn't fight back.
36:10All he could do was scream.
36:12Bianca!
36:13You can't be this heartless!
36:16I gave everything for you!
36:21Julian stepped forward, planted his foot on Cole's face.
36:25A piece of trash making a scene.
36:28You've disturbed Biana.
36:30That alone is unforgivable.
36:33Cole's face was crushed into the floor, blood and tears running into his mouth.
36:38Through the crowd, he caught Bianca's eyes.
36:41Cold.
36:42Empty.
36:43The last shred of hope inside him died.
36:46The guards reached for him.
36:48Boom!
36:49The hall shook.
36:50The massive red doors, forged for an ancient iron, blew apart into dust.
36:58Debris and wind tore through the hall.
37:00Guests stumbled.
37:02Screamed.
37:03Lord Magnus shot to his feet.
37:06Blood magic flaring.
37:08Who dares attack the Magnus class?
37:10The dust settled.
37:12A massive black shadow filled the entrance.
37:14The ancient blood beast.
37:16Nine savage heads.
37:18Pushing through the fog.
37:19Bony wings blocking the doorway.
37:21Behind it, countless red eyes glowed in the dark.
37:25Every predator from the forbidden.
37:27Wasteland.
37:28Assembled in silence, bowing to their new master.
37:32And on top of the largest head.
37:34Me.
37:35Black gown.
37:36Hem whipping in the wind.
37:38My once pale, sickly face now radiant with power.
37:42Dark gold eyes burning with the light of the ancestral bloodline.
37:46Ancient markings drifting.
37:47Across my neck and arms.
37:50I looked down at the terrified crowd.
37:52The Magnus clan is throwing a party.
37:55And nobody invited me for a drink?
37:58My voice was quiet.
37:59It reached every ear.
38:02The pressure behind it, absolute.
38:05Silence.
38:06Every vampire in the room felt it.
38:08Suppression from the source of their blood.
38:11Fangs retracting on their own.
38:13Bodies wanting to kneel.
38:15Bianca's face drained white.
38:16Her finger trembled as she pointed at me.
38:19E-Ella?
38:25You were thrown into the wasteland!
38:28Are you alive or a ghost?
38:30I patted the beast's horn.
38:32It growled low.
38:35Dust shook from the ceiling.
38:38Dear sister.
38:39You're not dead yet.
38:41How could I leave before you?
38:44I leaped off the beast's head.
38:46Landed on the red carpet.
38:48Started walking toward the platform.
38:51I came to collect what's owed.
38:53Lord Magnus snapped out of it.
38:55No relief.
38:57No joy.
38:58Just rage.
39:00You cursed piece of trash!
39:02You survived, and you dare bring this thing in here and ruin your sister's ceremony?
39:07Guards!
39:08Take her down!
39:10Dozens of elite shadow guards drew their weapons and came at me from every direction.
39:14Bianca stood on the platform.
39:16A flash of satisfaction in her eyes.
39:19Ella, so what if you crawled back?
39:22Today you die again!
39:24I stopped walking.
39:26Didn't look at them.
39:28Raised my right hand.
39:29Spread my fingers.
39:32Ancestral pressure poured out of me.
39:34Every guard froze midair.
39:36Their blood stopped listening to their own hearts.
39:39It answered too.
39:41Me now.
39:42Dozens of bodies burst apart at once.
39:45The guests scrambled backward.
39:47Looking at me like I was a monster.
39:49Lord Magnus' fangs retracted against his will.
39:53His legs were shaking.
39:55What?
39:55What are you?
39:56His voice cracked.
39:58I didn't answer.
39:59Kept walking.
40:04Julian was staring at me.
40:06The ancestral markings glowing across my skin.
40:09And something.
40:11Ugly crossed his face.
40:13Shock.
40:14Fear.
40:15But mostly greed.
40:17He dropped Bianca's hand.
40:18Rushed over.
40:19Put on his most loving expression.
40:22Ella.
40:23Thank God you're alive.
40:26The truth is.
40:27I've always had feelings for you.
40:29He grabbed for my shoulder.
40:31Voice dripping with eagerness.
40:33The broken engagement?
40:35Biana and Lord Magnus enforced my hand.
40:38I had no choice.
40:39You're so powerful now.
40:41Let's start over.
40:42My family will always have a place for you.
40:44I looked at his fickle, shameless face.
40:48My stomach turned.
40:50Julian, you disgust me.
40:53I kicked him square in the chest.
40:55He flew backward.
40:57Crashed through the offering table.
40:59Popped up blood.
41:01Couldn't get up.
41:03Then, from a corner of the hall, a wailing cry.
41:07Ella!
41:08Ella!
41:09Is that you?
41:11Cole shoved through the crowd.
41:13Battered.
41:13Bloody.
41:14He threw himself at my feet.
41:16Tears, snot, and blood all over me.
41:20He stared up at me.
41:22Ella!
41:23I knew you were alive.
41:25You came back for me, right?
41:30Glammed his forehead into the stone floor.
41:32Again and again.
41:34I was wrong!
41:35I know I was wrong!
41:38Bianca never loved me.
41:40She used me!
41:41You were the only one who was ever good to me!
41:44His shaking hands reached for the hem of my gown.
41:47Ella!
41:48Let's make a new blood oath.
41:50I swear I'll be your guardian.
41:52No one else's.
41:54I'll be your dog!
41:55Your slave!
41:56Anything!
41:57I don't care!
42:00Just feed me your blood one more time!
42:02Please!
42:03I don't want to be a cripple!
42:05I looked down at him.
42:07The man who used to grind me under his heel.
42:10Now lower than a worm.
42:12I crouched.
42:14Met his eyes.
42:15He was practically glowing with hope.
42:18Cole, you really think wagging your tail will make me forgive you?
42:22His face lit up.
42:24He thought I was softening.
42:26Nodded like crazy.
42:28Yes!
42:29Ella, you're so kind!
42:31You used to cry if I got even a tiny scratch.
42:36Forgive me, and I'll kill Bianca right now!
42:39I'll do it!
42:40He spun around, glared at Bianca.
42:43I watched.
42:45Let the contempt settle deeper into my face.
42:48Then I stood up.
42:49Looked down at him.
42:52Cole, do you actually believe you were talented?
42:56My voice held nothing.
42:58You think you were some rare elite?
43:00You were nothing.
43:02A mediocre nobody who grew a few scales by feeding off my ancestral blood.
43:08Without me, you wouldn't qualify to sweep this floor.
43:15His face froze.
43:21No.
43:22Impossible.
43:22I earned my power through training.
43:25He could barely get the words out.
43:27I raised my right hand.
43:29Palm aimed at his spine.
43:31Is that so?
43:35Then let me take back what's mine.
43:38Time for you to feel what it's like.
43:41Having your bloodline core ripped out.
43:44I clung my fist.
43:48Crack.
43:49A sickening snap from inside his body.
43:52He screamed.
43:54His back arched until it looked ready.
43:56To break.
43:58The core fragment.
44:00The one he'd stolen from me.
44:02Tore through his flesh and flew into my.
44:04Hand.
44:07Blood sprayed everywhere.
44:09Without the core.
44:10Cole went limp.
44:12Couldn't move a finger.
44:14Eyes vacant.
44:15Throat wheezing.
44:17Finished.
44:18Every vampire feature was gone.
44:20Eyes cloudy white.
44:22Skin loose and dry.
44:24He looked like an.
44:26Old man drained of everything.
44:28I held up the bloody fragment.
44:31Comfortable with my bloodline core.
44:33Were you?
44:36I crushed it to powder.
44:39Let it scatter in the air.
44:41The hall was dead silent.
44:43Lord Magnus read the room.
44:45His legs buckled.
44:47He dropped to his knees.
44:49Ella.
44:51This is all my fault.
44:53Tears.
44:54Forehead on the floor.
44:56Laying it on thick.
44:58I was old and foolish.
45:00That wicked girl Bianca blinded me.
45:03You're the true pride of the Magnus clan.
45:06Forgive me.
45:08The clan is yours.
45:10Whatever you want.
45:11Father and daughter.
45:13Together we could make this the greatest clan in the world.
45:17I looked at this man.
45:18Ready to sacrifice his own daughter for power.
45:22Now groveling to survive.
45:25Pathetic.
45:26Begging now.
45:28I walked up to him.
45:30When you pinned me down and ripped out my bloodline core.
45:34You didn't look like this.
45:36I stopped having a father that day.
45:38Bianca watched Lord Magnus kneel.
45:41Panic took over.
45:42She knew I wasn't going to let her walk.
45:45She yanked a dagger from her waist.
45:48The blade was coated in something dark.
45:50Ancient toxic.
45:51Blood.
45:52The clan's secret weapon.
45:54Supposed to corrode any vampire's core.
45:56She lunged at my back.
45:58Ella.
45:59Die.
46:03Watch out.
46:05Julian called from across the room.
46:08Fake as always.
46:10I didn't turn around.
46:12Just swung my hand back.
46:14The dagger.
46:15The one that was supposed to kill high ranking vampires.
46:18Shattered against a.
46:19Stone pillar.
46:20Along with the hand holding it.
46:23My fingers closed around Bianca's throat.
46:26I lifted her off the ground.
46:29Her legs kicked in the air.
46:31Face turning purple.
46:33Clawing at my hand.
46:35Let.
46:36Go.
46:36Her dark silver crown fell.
46:39Hit the floor.
46:40Broke apart.
46:42I looked at the face that had lorded over me for years.
46:45Dear sister.
46:47Your precious power means less to me than dirt.
46:50My grip tightened.
46:52Ancestral power surged down my arm and flooded into her body.
46:56Her blood vessels ruptured.
46:58One by.
46:59One.
47:00Every ounce of blood magic she'd built up over the.
47:03Years.
47:04Torn apart.
47:07My power.
47:09My face.
47:10She screamed.
47:15The ancestral power didn't just strip her abilities.
47:19It burned black scars across her face.
47:22Permanent.
47:23Never healing.
47:25I dropped her next to Cole.
47:27She clutched her ruined face.
47:29Rolling on the ground.
47:31Nothing left of the regal blood.
47:33Daughter.
47:34She and Cole.
47:35Both broken.
47:37Lying together in a pool of blood.
47:40A perfect match.
47:41I looked over my shoulder.
47:43You two deserve each other.
47:46Tear each other apart in these ruins.
47:48I turned to Lord Magnus.
47:51Still on his knees.
47:53Shaking.
47:54Ella.
47:55Let me go.
47:56I'll give you everything the clan owns.
48:00He kept smashing his forehead into the stone.
48:03All dignity gone.
48:05The Magnus clan?
48:07I laughed.
48:08Soft.
48:09Full of scorn.
48:12This filthy place makes me sick.
48:15Depressed my palm to his chest.
48:17Ancestral power burned through his veins.
48:20Every blood magic channel in his body.
48:23Destroyed.
48:24His eyes rolled back.
48:26His power vanished.
48:28All of it.
48:29Gone.
48:30His hair turned white in seconds.
48:33Wrinkles crawled across his skin.
48:35He aged decades in a.
48:37Heartbeat and hit the floor.
48:42Without vampire power, time collected its debt.
48:46The shockwave spread.
48:48The walls of the Magnus Hall started weeping black, rotting blood.
48:52Generations of clan lords had poured their blood into the foundations to form a barrier.
48:58With the current lord destroyed, the barrier had no anchor.
49:02The whole structure began to rot from the inside.
49:06Walls cracked.
49:07Pillars snapped.
49:09The ceiling groaned.
49:11Black blood oozed from every fracture.
49:14The stench of decay filled the air.
49:17Guests screamed and stampeded for the exit.
49:19I didn't look back.
49:21I walked to the ancient blood beast waiting outside.
49:25Jumped onto its back.
49:27The beast roared.
49:29Spread its massive bone wings.
49:31Behind.
49:32Me.
49:33Every creature from the.
49:34Wasteland howled in unison.
49:37The night wind caught my gown.
49:39I took one last look at the prison that had held me for 18 years.
49:43Bianca was clawing at Cole's face in the rubble.
49:46Cole was biting her arm with whatever he.
49:49Had left.
49:50Two people who once called themselves noble.
49:53Tearing at each other like wild dogs.
49:56Lord Magnus sat vacant in the ruins.
49:59White haired.
50:00Mumbling to himself.
50:02Julian lay trapped under a fallen slab.
50:05Leg broken.
50:07Screaming for help.
50:08Nobody came.
50:10Exactly what they deserved.
50:12Let's go.
50:13I patted the beast's back.
50:15It launched into the sky.
50:17The blood fog that had hung over Magnus territory for as long as.
50:21Anyone could remember broke apart.
50:24A cold.
50:25Full moon.
50:26Moonlight spilling down over me.
50:29Silver and unbroken.
50:31Cold.
50:32But free.
50:33From today.
50:35I.
50:35Ella.
50:36Live only for myself.
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