Chapter 90: Divine Bloodline of the Great Bob!?

Chapter 90: Chapter 90: Divine Bloodline of the Great Bob!?

Nobody spoke for a few seconds outside the dungeon entrance. They were simply enjoying the fact that they were alive, together, and not currently being eaten by anything.

Kael looked at Lucien, then the dungeon, then bacl at Lucien again.

"So bro."

"What?"

"You didn’t get thrown down to Floor Six this time."

Lucien sighed. "Please don’t remind me."

"I’m just saying, we should celebrate."

"Why?" Zalor asked.

"Because he stayed on the correct floor, and thay we found him."

"Your standards have gotten remarkably low," Vex said.

"I found you guys, not the other way around." Lucien corrected Kael.

Rika laughed, and the whole group felt noticeably lighter for the first time in what had honestly been a very stressful day.

"Before we head out," Rika said as they walked toward the settlement, "we should sell the common materials here."

"Here?" Lucien asked.

"Prices are about the same as Bloodthorn and most merchants come specifically for dungeon loot, so they aren’t buying monster parts at reasonable prices." She ticked off her mental list. "Common monster parts, hides, fangs, venom, bloodsilk, we can sell them here, since the Guild also pays us more. Mana crystals, blood mana crystals, boss materials, anything rare, we keep it for the city."

"Makes sense," Kael said nodding.

Lucien glanced at his own storage ring, mentally cataloguing the sheer volume waiting inside it.

"I’ll sell some of mine too."

"How much?" Vex asked.

"A reasonable amount."

"Your definition of reasonable," Kael said, "is genuinely terrifying."

’He’s not wrong, with how much I had to give you to make you mine.’ Carmilla said in his head.

’You’re supposed to be on my side.’

’I’m your Goddess, so I have to be honest when due.’

The Guild settlement had grown considerably busier since they’d entered, adventurers streaming in and out, some merchants haggling over piles of monster parts, staff sorting mountains of loot.

At the sales counter, Rika handled most of the transactions while the clerk weighed and appraised item after item, Crimsonfang fangs, Bloodsilk bundles, Bloodveil membranes, venom sacs, Crimson Chitin, slime membranes, some common dungeon herbs, assorted low value cores.

When Lucien’s turn came, the clerk stared at his pile inside the provided storage pouches to transfer loot.

"...Did you clear half of the 5 floors dungeon yourself?"

"No."

"He probably wanted to," Kael said.

"I was busy."

The final tallies came in close together, Rika at 12,800, Kael at 11,400, Vex at 14,100, Zalor at 13,600, Lucien at 15,300, everyone comfortably wealthy by C Rank standards.

Kael stared at his payout. "That’s a lot of money."

"Rika said you spent most of last time’s on food," Lucien pointed out.

"That was an investment."

"In what?" Zalor asked.

"My happiness."

Rika secured a Crimsonwood Model carriage for the ride back, dark reddish wood, black reinforcement, silver-gray mana conduits, room for eight and more comfortable rather than luxurious.

"We have our transportation," she announced. "So do you want to leave now, or rest first?"

"I’m all set to go now," Vex said.

"Same," Zalor said.

"I’m fine either way, what about you two?" Rika added.

Everyone looked at Kael, who was already eyeing a nearby food stall.

"I need some snack for the road first ."

"We have food."

"Not good food."

"We’re leaving," Vex said.

"Wait!"

No waiting as he sprinted to the stalls anyway.

He returned with an alarming quantity of meat skewers, dried strips, bread, and something wrapped in leaves that smelled vaguely nice.

"We’re traveling for a few hours," Lucien said.

"So?."

"So why do you need all that?"

"What if I get hungry?"

"You’re always hungry aren’t you," Zalor said.

"Exactly so this is preparation."

Once the carriage rolled out and the Bloodmoon Wilds began sliding away behind them, Lucien finally settled into his seat and let himself relax.

He opened his status.

[Name: Lucien Dracul Aethernis]

[Race: Vampire]

[Age: 18]

[Cultivation: B (High)]

[Displayed: Mid C]

[Primary Bloodline: ??? — Divine]

[Secondary Bloodline: ??? — Mythical]

[Talent: Sanguine Genesis Crucible — Divine]

His eyes lingered on the question marks.

He selected the first.

[Bloodline Name Unassigned. This bloodline is newly created with no established record. As first known possessor, the Host must assign a name.]

He thought but nothing came. He thought harder but still nothing. Then, unhelpfully, he remembered Evelisse’s contribution to the family name debate weeks ago.

’Bob, the great Bob!’

He smiled despite himself, then shook his head firmly.

’Absolutely not.’

’The Divine Bob Bloodline, yeah, no way in hell am I naming it that.’

’Carmilla.’

Hmm?’

’What do I name a bloodline, you got any suggestions?’

’Why are you asking me?’ She asked after a bit of silence.

’Because I have no idea.’

’I don’t know, just name it after what it does, or maybe after yourself.’

’That’s it?’

’That’s basically what I did.’ She said sounding proud in her wisdom of naming.

’What?’ He said.

’Yeah that’s what I did when I made my bloodline, still remember it like it was just yesterday, anyway my bloodline’s called the Carmilla Bloodline.’

’...You really named your bloodline after yourself.’

’Obviously.’

’Why?’

’Because it’s mine, so why can’t I?’ She asked sounding genuinely confused.

He rubbed his forehead mentally. ’You’re ridiculous.’

’I’m a Goddess.’

’That doesn’t answer the question.’

She laughed, entirely unbothered, and he decided he’d think about names properly once he actually had time to examine what the bloodlines did, and maybe after asking the girl’s, though maybe not Evelisse and her Bob.

’I’ll name them at home,’ he thought. ’Once I understand them better.’

’Probably smarter,’ Carmilla agreed.

’Just don’t name one Bob.’

He nearly choked hearing her.

’I wasn’t going to.’

’Don’t lie, you thought about it.’

’For two seconds.’

’Yes and those were two dangerous seconds, imagine in the future you introduce yourself as Lucien of the Great Bob Bloodline, what would your descendants think of you, maybe they’d think you were on some divine crack.’

Hearing this Lucien had no comeback or response at her reasoning.

He moved to his stats, and his eyebrows rose immediately.

[Strength: 925 → 1225]

[Agility: 960 → 1360]

[Constitution: 925 → 1425]

[Intelligence: 720 → 920]

[Vitality: 1000 → 2000]

[Mana: 815 → 1115]

[Blood: 1750 → 3000]

’That’s a ridiculous increase.’

’You’re welcome,’ Carmilla said.

’I didn’t say thank you.’

’You were thinking it.’

’How did you know, you can’t read my thoughts anymore.’

’I can guess.’

’...’

’Also, you’re predictable.’

He decided not to dignify that with a response.

’Two bloodlines,’ he thought, still turning the strangeness over. ’Is that actually normal?’

’It’s very rare,’ Carmilla said.

’But it’s not unheard of. Some old families produce dual awakenings occasionally, but the requirements are brutal, the bloodlines have to actually coexist, be compatible enough not to kill the host outright, and even then one usually dominates eventually, if they are hostile and not balanced.’

’So I’m not special for having two.’

’You’re special for which two you have,’ she corrected. ’I still don’t fully understand how that combination even happened.’

He drifted to the Wife Bond reward menu, still unclaimed.

[Choose 2 of 5]

[1. Wife Slot +1]

[2. Heavenly Yin-Yang Scripture — Volume I]

[3. Marriage Tattoo Upgrade]

[4. Cultivation Rank +1]

[<anno data-annotation-id="afd96db6-5488-493e-8ffc-a529f9f40d98" data-title="<strong>&lt;em&gt;5.&lt;/em&gt;</strong>">5.¹</anno>]

The fifth option had grayed out, no longer needed, thanks to Carmilla’s rather more dramatic solution.

’Later,’ he decided. ’When I’ve got privacy and can actually think this through.’

He pulled out the Nightbat Matriarch’s compressed blood candy next from his storage ring.

Kael spotted it instantly. "Seriously, again?"

Lucien popped it into his mouth without comment.

"See?" Kael said, pointing at Rika like he’d just won an argument. "This is exactly what I mean."

"Just let him do his thing, it’s not like we stop you from eating." Rika said smiling.

[Ding!]

[Blood Trait Activated.]

[Blood Detected.]

[Race: Bloodveil Nightbat Matriarch.]

[Trait Extraction Beginning...]

[Trait Acquired: Echolocation (Uncommon) — Lv.5]

[Emits and perceives specialized sound waves through mana, generating detailed three-dimensional spatial awareness of nearby creatures and objects.]

[Trait Upgraded: Mental Resistance (Common) — Lv.10 → Mental Resistance (Uncommon) — Lv.5 ]

[Trait Upgraded: Wet Scent Arousal (Common) —Lv.10 → Mommy’s Scent (Uncommon) — Lv.3]

[Enhances detection of blood through Scent.]

He never even blink, already used to the ridiculous names, then, the last one made him pause.

[Trait Acquired: Bloodwings (Rare) — Lv.3]

[Manifests condensed blood and mana wings, granting enhanced aerial mobility and short bursts of powered flight.]

’That’s all I got from a boss?’

’Maybe that’s why it was the weakest.’ He thought.

’But now I’ve got wings,’ he thought, genuinely surprised. ’I can fly, actual flight.’

’Huh?’ Carmilla asked, catching the shift in his focus.

He explained the Talent abilities function briefly, and her interest sharpened immediately.

’That’s an excellent ability,’ she said.

’You sound more excited than me.’

’Because I want to see you fly.’

’Why?

’Because it’ll be funny.’

Somewhere in the middle of cataloguing everything, his mood dipped slightly.

’The Bloodmother candies, all gone, burned through them keeping myself alive during the blood war.’

’I never even got to extract one.’

’You used them to survive, Carmilla said, gentler than usual.

’I know.

’Then they were worth every drop, and it’s not like you can’t get more.’

’Still hurts a little.’ He sighed.

The journey settled into an easy rhythm, the carriage moving as Vex drove it, a lunch stop where Kael ate enough for three grown men, Rika complaining about it the entire time, Vex reading something he’d pulled from his pack, Zalor dozing against the window.

’Why is he eating again,’ Carmilla asked, watching through Lucien’s eyes.

’He’s always hungry.’

’Is he a special species?’

’No, atleast I don’t think so.’

’Are you sure?’

Lucien had to physically bite back a laugh, which earned him a curious look from Rika he waved off.

Hours later, Bloodthorn City’s walls finally rose on the horizon, massive and familiar as carriages and other modes of transposrt streamed through the gates in a steady flow.

Lucien looked at it, something settling comfortably in his chest for the first time since Bloodmoon Ruins had swallowed him whole.

’Finally back home.’

’So this is where you live?’ Carmilla asked.

’Yes, for now.’

’And your wives are here.’

’Yes.’

She paused, entirely too deliberate.

’I’m curious about them, my sugar baby’s wives.’

’Don’t.’

She giggled, delighted, as the carriage rolled through the gates and Lucien’s return to Bloodthorn City properly began.

<annotations style="display: none;">Vampiric Bloodline Stabilization</annotations>