Chapter 230: Old Bonds

Chapter 230: Chapter 230: Old Bonds

Three weeks after the fall of the Apep clan, the consequences of Lucian’s blood manifested.

In the underground chamber of the ruined fortress — now secured by Knights of the Horizon operatives — Apophis al-Apep sat in meditation. His cultivation had exploded. The Late Grand Core bottleneck that had held him for decades shattered. His mana core expanded. His aura surged. THRUUM. Peak Grand Core Realm. His Shadow Serpent ability intensified — the serpents thicker, darker, more potent. Ssssss.

Heket had broken through to Early Grand Core. Her Shadow Manipulation evolved. Renenet had advanced to Peak Core Realm.

But the breakthroughs came with a cost neither they nor Lucian had fully anticipated.

A blood bond.

Lucian’s blood — the Origin Bloodline — had rewritten their bodies at a fundamental level. The connection wasn’t loyalty. It wasn’t the Loyalty Bond spell from his Mind Palace. It was something older, deeper and biological. Their blood now carried traces of his Ancient Vampire lineage — a permanent metaphysical link that tied their circulatory systems to his.

Lucian could feel them. Their heartbeats, their emotional states and their approximate locations. A passive awareness that hummed in the back of his consciousness like background noise. Thrum. Thrum. Thrum.

More disturbingly, he could issue commands through the bond. A mental impulse that compelled their bodies to obey. He tested it once. A simple command: Kneel.

All three had dropped to their knees instantly involuntarily. Their eyes had widened with horror as their own bodies betrayed them.

Lucian never used it again. The mental tax was severe — a sharp pressure behind his eyes that left him lightheaded. Hum. And the look in their eyes — the fear, the violation — told him everything he needed to know about the implications.

Apophis hated it. Heket feared it. Renenet didn’t fully understand it. But they obeyed.

Nice, France. The beach.

Morning. The sun hung low over the Mediterranean. Fwooooosh.

Lucian walked barefoot along the water’s edge.

He was alone. Clara and Rose were still training. Mickey and Ryan had gone into town. The beach was empty and peaceful.

Then his Blood Sense triggered to a different powerful signature that was neither his girls or the boys.

Lucian turned. A figure descended from the sky — carried by wind mana. Silver hair and green eyes. She landed on the sand thirty meters away. Tap. Her feet touched the beach. The wind settled around her. Fwooooosh.

She was tall. Her silver hair fell past her shoulders — identical to his. Her green eyes burned with an intensity that had no place in a teenager’s face. She wore a simple white dress.

Lena Grimaud.

Lucian’s body went rigid. His crimson eyes locked onto her face. He could never forget that lovely face. Even after more than 15 years. The last time he had seen her, she was three years old. A crying toddler in a basket. He had promised his mother to stay silent. He had promised to protect her.

Then Louisa had taken him. Separated them. And he had spent ten years believing he might never find her.

"Lena," he whispered.

Her green eyes glistened. Her lower lip trembled. For a moment, the formidable aura wavered — and she was just a girl looking for her brother.

"Lucian."

He moved across the sand. She ran too. They crashed into each other. His arms wrapped around her. He lifted her off the ground. Squeeze.

"You’re alive," she whispered into his chest. "You’re alive."

"Lena," he said. His voice cracked. "I’m here, Lena."

She cried soaking into his shirt. Her fingers gripped his back as if letting go would make him disappear again.

He held her as minutes passed.

Rose stepped out of the villa’s training room. Towel around her neck. Sweat on her brow. She looked toward the beach and froze.

Lucian was standing on the sand holding a beautifulwoman.

What the—

Rose’s eyes narrowed. She took a step forward. Another woman? On their beach? In Lucian’s arms?

Ryan’s hand caught her shoulder. Grip.

"Wait," Ryan said.

Rose turned. "Ryan, there’s a woman—"

"I know." Ryan’s expression was strange. His eyes were fixed on the beach. Behind them, Clara stepped out. She had been watching from the window.

Clara’s silver eyes widened. "I barely even recognise her."

Ryan nodded slowly. "Yeah. It’s been 13 years since I last saw her."

Rose looked between them. "Who is she?"

Clara’s expression softened. "She’s Lucian’s little sister."

Rose’s mouth closed as guilt hit her. She didn’t know. She didn’t know Lucian had a sister. Clara and Ryan had grown up with him in the orphanage. They knew his history, his pain and his family.

Rose knew almost nothing.

"I... I didn’t know," Rose whispered.

Clara put a hand on her shoulder. "It’s okay. He doesn’t talk about it much."

On the beach.

Lena pulled back. She wiped her eyes. Swipe. She looked up at her brother. The silver hair, crimson eyes, the hard features and his muscular frame. He wasn’t the scrawny boy from the orphanage anymore.

"You’re different," she said.

"So are you," Lucian said. "Last time I saw you, you were three."

"Last time I saw you, you were screaming my name as they dragged you away."

Silence.

"Lena... there are things I need to tell you."

"About the vampires?" Lena’s green eyes hardened. "I know."

Lucian’s eyebrow rose. "You know?"

"I’ve known for a while. The woman who took me from the orphanage — she told me everything about the vampire world. Their clans. Their hierarchies. Their crimes." Lena’s voice grew cold. "She prepared me."

"Who was she?"

Lena looked at him. "Seraphine D’Arc."

Lucian’s crimson eyes widened. Seraphine D’Arc. The woman who had descended from the sky in New Geneva. The woman who had summoned two S-Rank beasts. The woman who had driven the Titan Ape — Grimveil — back into the Black Forest. An Astral Realm cultivator. One of the heads of the Church of Dawn. Leader of the Paladins.

"She took you?" Lucian’s voice was quiet. Dangerous.

"She said she was protecting me," Lena said. "From the vampires. From the people who killed our parents. She said you were dead."

Lucian’s jaw tightened. "I’m not dead."

"I know that now." Lena’s expression shifted. "But you’re one of them."

"Yeah," Lucian said. "But not like the ones who killed our parents. Not like the ones who took you from me. My bloodline is... different. I was human until I was sixteen. Then a vampire named Louisa Du Maurier killed me. And my bloodline awakened."

Lena’s green eyes blazed. "Du Maurier. The one who tortured you. The one who—"

"Yes."

Lena’s fists clenched. Her aura flared. THRUUM. Mid Grand Core pressure rippled across the beach. Sand shifted. Fshhhh. "I’ll make them suffer. Every single one of them. All of them. I’ll—"

Flick.

Lucian flicked her forehead. Tap.

"Ouch!" Lena clutched her forehead. "What was that for?!"

Lucian smiled warmly.

"Revenge is mine, little sister," he said. "Your job is to stay alive and grow stronger. Let me handle the monsters."

Lena rubbed her forehead. She pouted.

Lucian’s Primordial Sight activated. He scanned her. Her status materialized before his eyes.

Lena Grimaud

Age: 16

Race: Human (Dormant Bloodline — Unidentified)

Cultivation: Mid Grand Core Realm

Abilities: SS-Rank Soul Manipulation, S-Rank Divination

Lucian’s eyes widened. Mid Grand Core at sixteen. An SS-Rank ability and an S-Rank ability. Soul Manipulation. Divination. These weren’t combat abilities in the traditional sense. They were something far more dangerous.

"You’re Mid Grand Core," Lucian said. "

Lena shrugged. "Seraphine trained me. She said I had talent."

Lena smiled with a hint of mischief. "Runs in the family, apparently."