Blood God Reborn as the Mudblood Heir

Peter did not answer immediately. The night air moved through the training yard, but it did not cool the heat inside his chest. He stood before Lucard with a cracked wooden sword lying on the ground between them.

Lucard had offered him something else. A path, but a terrible one.

Peter swallowed once and looked at Lucard carefully. "Young Master, can you really do it?"

Lucard did not smile. "I do not offer what I cannot attempt."

"That is not the same as yes."

"No," Lucard said. "It is more honest than yes."

Peter lowered his eyes for a moment. He had served nobles long enough to hear empty promises. Lords promised rewards. Mages promised safety. Merchants promised fair prices. Most of those promises were covered with perfume and lies. Lucard’s words were different. They were colder. They did not comfort him. But because they did not comfort him, they sounded closer to truth.

Peter raised his head again. "If I survive it, will I become stronger?"

"Yes."

"Strong enough to protect Lady Jenny and Young Lord Jake?"

Lucard looked at him for a long moment. "Stronger than you are now."

Peter’s jaw tightened. "That is not what I asked."

"It is the only answer that is true," Lucard said. "No one can protect everything he wants to protect. Not forever. Not from everything. Anyone who tells you otherwise is selling a dream to a desperate man."

Peter’s face became still.

Lucard continued, "But if you survive, your body will be much stronger. Your movement speed will rise. Your reaction will sharpen. Your recovery will improve. Most importantly, your closed aura path may open. If that happens, Rank Four will no longer be a wall in front of you. It will become a door."

Peter’s breathing changed. Rank Four. Aura. The word had sat inside his heart for years like a stone he could not lift. He had trained. He had bled. He had followed House Vardros through disgrace and ruin, but he had never crossed that line. Many Rank Three knights died before touching aura. Some lived old and bitter, always one step away from becoming more. Peter had feared that would be him.

Lucard’s voice became harder. "Listen carefully before you answer. I will be clear. It will be painful. If you die during it, that may be mercy. But if you do not die, you will feel pain worse than death. Not for a breath. Not for a moment. It will last for at least three days."

Peter’s face tightened, but he did not look away.

Lucard stepped closer. "Your blood will boil without boiling. Your bones will feel as if ants are eating them from the inside. Your muscles will tear and repair again and again. Your body will try to reject the change. Your mind may beg for sleep, but I will not let you sleep too deeply because if your will leaves your body, you may not return properly. You may scream. You may hate me. You may ask me to stop. If I stop at the wrong time, you may remain crippled. So if you agree, I will continue unless your body truly breaks beyond saving."

Peter was silent. The training yard felt larger than before. The walls, the posts, the moon, and the shadow of the house all seemed to wait for his answer. Then Peter lowered himself to one knee.

"I agree."

Lucard looked down at him. "Think again."

"I already have."

"No. You have wanted strength. That is not the same as thinking about the price."

Peter’s voice became rough. "Young Master, I have watched too much. I watched House Vardros burn. I watched your father and mother die. I watched Lady Jenny become afraid to speak because every word might bring another insult. I watched Young Lord Jake hide behind people because he was too young to understand why enemies wanted him. I watched you stand before dangers I could not stop."

His eyes reddened, but he forced his voice to stay steady. "If I remain weak, I will watch again. I would rather suffer for three days than watch for the rest of my life."

Lucard did not answer for several breaths. Then he said, "Good."

Peter lifted his head.

Lucard turned toward the house. "Stand. We will not do it in the yard."

They moved to the lower storage room under Silver Ash House. It was quiet, stone-built, and far from the bedrooms. Lucard chose it because screams would be harder to hear outside. He sent a servant away, dismissed the nearby guards, and ordered Peter to remove his armor. Peter obeyed without a question.

Soon, Jenny arrived with Jake behind her and Brant at her side. Peter had not called them. Lucard had. Jenny’s face became pale when she saw Peter sitting on a thick blanket in the middle of the room, wearing only simple training clothes. A bucket of clean water, folded cloths, several knives, bandages, and two bottles of healing potion had been placed nearby.

"What is this?" Jenny asked.

Peter lowered his head. "My lady, I asked Young Master Lucard for a way to become stronger."

Jenny looked at Lucard. "And this is that way?"

"Yes."

"Is it dangerous?"

"Yes."

"How dangerous?"

Lucard answered calmly, "He may die."

Jake’s face changed. "Peter?"

Peter immediately looked at him. "Young Lord, I chose this."

Jake shook his head. "No. You cannot die."

Peter’s expression softened. "I will try not to."

"That is not enough."

Lucard looked at Jake. "Then give him an order."

Jake looked confused. "What?"

"You are the future head of House Vardros. If you do not want him to die, order him to live."

Jake stared at Lucard, then turned to Peter with wet eyes and a serious face. "Peter, I order you to live."

Peter froze. For a moment, he looked as if the words hurt more than the coming pain. Then he bowed his head deeply.

"Yes, Young Lord."

Jenny looked away for a second and blinked hard. Brant stood near the door, silent. He was a Rank Four knight. He knew how hard crossing that wall could be. He also knew that no normal method could promise what Lucard had spoken of. His eyes held doubt, fear, and respect at the same time.

Lucard looked at Jenny. "You should leave."

"No."

"It will not be pleasant."

"I know."

"You may not like what you see."

Jenny’s voice became firm. "Peter served us when no one else did. If he suffers for House Vardros, then House Vardros will not turn away."

Lucard looked at her, then nodded once. "Stay by the wall. Do not interfere." He then looked at Jake. "You also stay there. If you cry, do it quietly."

Jake wiped his eyes quickly. "I am not crying."

"You are about to."

Jenny held Jake’s shoulder and led him to the wall.

Lucard turned back to Peter. "I will use a blood art on you. Its name is White Blood Cell Modification."

Peter frowned slightly. "White blood cell?"

"Inside blood, there are small things that protect the body. Think of them as tiny soldiers that fight sickness and foreign harm. In normal people, they are weak and blind. This art will awaken them, strengthen them, and force them to rebuild how your body responds to danger."

Peter listened carefully.

Lucard continued, "Your white blood cells will become more aggressive. They will eat damaged blood faster. They will carry small traces of my controlled blood power through your body. They will attack weakness, tear away bad parts, and force your flesh to repair stronger. Your muscles, bones, nerves, and blood paths will be pushed beyond their current limit."

Brant’s expression changed. He understood enough to be horrified.

Lucard said, "If it succeeds, your body will not only become stronger. Your aura path will be scratched open from the inside. I cannot make you a true Rank Four with only one touch. But I can break the wall enough for your own will to push through."

Peter asked, "What do I need to do?"

"Endure."

"That is all?"

"That is everything."

Peter took a deep breath. "Then do it."

"No delay?"

"No delay," Peter said. "If I wait until morning, fear will only have more time to speak."

Lucard raised one hand. A thin red line opened on his own fingertip. Blood gathered there, dark and bright under the lamp. He did not use much. Peter’s body would not survive too much of his blood directly. Instead, Lucard spread the drop into dozens of hair-thin threads. The blood threads floated in the air like red needles.

Jenny held Jake tighter. Peter sat straight and closed his eyes.

Lucard placed two fingers against Peter’s chest. "Do not resist my blood at the start. Resist the pain later. Understand the difference."

Peter nodded once.

Lucard pushed the first thread into Peter’s chest. Peter’s body stiffened. The second thread entered his arm. The third entered his neck. More followed. Each thread was thinner than a hair, but each carried Lucard’s will.