Blood Awakening - A Sister's Choice

Nikolai looked down at Anya's face. Her eyes opened wide as she realised Nikolai wasn't joking around with her. 

'How can a mere squire help my vampire blood awaken?!'

At first, Anya was utterly bewildered by his offer. After all, a squire was not even a thrall. How could he claim to awaken her vampire bloodline? It was an insult—Anya was sure of that and felt the slight trust she gained in him shatter, crumbling into dust.

That's why she started acting violent and lashing out.

Her deepest desire was to be of help to her sister, to be of value to the only family member, apart from Selene's birth mother, in the entire clan.

'Can this stupid man really help? What if he does something to me?'

"Anya, although you might have doubts. I am not joking with you or playing around to hurt you."

"H-How can a mere squire--"

Nikolai's lips lifted into a bitter smile. Anya noticed that his eyes never changed. He didn't turn away or say sweet words to change her mind or deny her claims. 

"If I were a mere squire, could I act against your sister's wishes?"

His answer was simple.

"From the start, I was never your sister's squire, nor do I have to listen to her orders."

"Fweh?! But... I saw you fighting Sebastian and the noble..."

[Are you sure you wish to tell her? This could affect you in the future. If she told Selene, what if she found another squire?]

'I know, but lying to someone who is at the end of their tether doesn't sit right with me. Suppose I awaken her vampiric blood. Anya would never tell her sister, and she would have a chance to enjoy life; otherwise, all that's left for her is a breeding doll.'

[It seems a little naïve, but I can already sense you are not doing this out of sexual desire or affection...]

'I want to back; turning her will give me leverage over Anya—she will be in my debt, and thus, if things go wrong, she will become my insurance.'

[So you figured it out. That if you awaken her, Anya will be slightly influenced by your words, akin to a member of your bloodline.]

"I fought because I wanted money, and your sister is amusing to tease." 

Nikolai meant in the way she would give him more money when he threatened her a little or how she became extremely submissive when drinking blood. 

However, Anya took it a different way; money meant nothing to those in this world. It was just a means to an end and used to build a foundation or protect that lineage.

'He protects my arrogant and moody sister without orders? Is he a masochist that likes my sister?!'

Although Anya loved Selene, she didn't deny that her sister's personality had issues, and while they were speaking, slight misunderstandings were forming in her mind. Like how his apartment is close to Selene, meaning he wanted to be as close as possible to rush to her side. 

Even looking after Anya, she twisted in her mind to be some strange act of love towards her sister, and she felt more convinced.

'Well... better than the slimy nobles who use their family's powers to suggest marriage, this poor, handsome beast doesn't make me feel sick... Maybe I can let him pursue my sister if he makes me like her even more so.'

"Can you really do it?"

"About fifty-fifty, it's just that what might happen. I have no idea."

"....Then....try it..."

"Hmm?"

"I said try it!"

Anya then closed her eyes, grabbing her skirt with both hands, wondering if it would be painful because, the last time her parents tried an awakening. She ended up bedridden and sick for months.

'Eliza, how do I awaken her bloodline.' 

[Hmm? You acted so confident and cocky, didn't you know?]

'....Please...I just knew the theory thanks to how I was awakened...'

[Oh? I see! Then remember how Selene and that little wolf awakened you? In the same way, nice and simple, drink her blood and then let her drink yours. I will handle the rest this time, but remember the sensation as you will have to do it yourself next time.]

'Alright, thank you, Eliza.'

Nikolai then pulled Anya towards him, her face at the same height as his abdomen, forcing him to lean down. He ignored the look on her face, closed his eyes following the instructions from Eliza, and felt the strange feeling of his blood moving through his body.

"Ugh..."

Nikolai's Vampiric blood moved slowly through his veins as though they were tiny snakes crawling through his body, making his whole body feel tingly. It was a strange sensation but not unpleasant, and the more the blood moved, the more Nikolai felt a connection to it able to move it faster, guiding it towards his wrist.

'This is...amazing...is this what it felt like when I was awakened?'

[Stop getting excited. First, you must drink her blood, and not her human blood but the sealed vampiric blood that is locked within her heart, the same principle as what you are doing now, but controlling Anya's blood instead.]

'I understand...'

The moment Nikolai's fang hovered over the creamy neck of Anya, he slowly sank them inside, causing her to grab his chest tight. A great pain assaulted Anya for a few seconds due to how much longer Nikolai's fangs were than a regular vampire's—he then grabbed her shoulder, almost crushing her bones to keep her in place.

"Agh.... it hurts.... burns.... Nnngh!"

"S-Sister... help me..."

'Now...the hardest part...this is going to suck...literally...how the fuck am I going to find the hidden vampire blood? Anya is a pureblood; her blood is fucking thick like maple syrup!'

After drinking Anya's blood, the taste was far different from Selene's. However, it wasn't disgusting; rather, it reminded me of the sweetness of maple syrup, which was far different from the metallic taste of human blood.

'I have to do this quick before she faints or dies...'

[There, can you feel it? Sense her blood, use your blood art and guide that small, dark crystal into your body.]

"Agu... please... it's strange...."

The crystals she spoke of were the ones that appeared when he killed other monsters, ones that strengthened him. It was something he would need to ask Eliza about later, because she never mentioned such a thing earlier, that they were found inside vampires and likely other races.

'Found it.'

It was the size of a pea, and when he reached it, he sensed an odd barrier blocking his approach. However, the moment he willed it towards him, a black shadow enveloped the barrier, and it cracked, shattering as the dark crystal began to flow through Anya's veins towards her neck.

However... this caused her to endure extreme pain while the taste of her blood became more delicious, causing Nikolai's mind to become slightly unfocused.

"Nnngh... agh... ah! Nngh! Ah!"

'Fuck... it's the same as when I drink Selene's blood...'

Nikolai was becoming intoxicated.

[FOCUS Nikolai!]

'I am trying....'

Nikolai used his willpower, forcing his mind to focus and found his mind regained its calm, though the taste of her blood became more to his taste, while the face of Anya was now completely pale.

'Eliza, what do I do with it once it enters my body?'

Nikolai felt the dark crystal approaching his mouth as he continued to drink Anya's blood, trying hard not to swallow the liquid, causing his mouth to become dry and uncomfortable.

[When the crystal approaches your fangs, let it in and swallow it along with the blood. Then it's time for you to give her your blood, and I will guide a small fraction of your vampiric blood into her body.]

'I understand.'

Nikolai swallowed the crystal of the vampiric bloodline from Anya before his eyes widened.

[Racial Level: +1]

 Vampire (Progenitor 10% (+5%) Awakened)

[Strength: 50 (+11), Endurance: 53 (+10), Dexterity: 39 (+7), Agility 44 (+6)]

[Intellect: 35 (+6), Wisdom: 39 (+9), Charm: 50 (+20)]

Meanwhile, as Nikolai was stunned at how much he gained from that small blood crystal from Anya, Elizabeth then began to control his blood; a similar crystal, a tiny amount smaller than the one inside Anya, began to travel through his veins as a burning sensation spread through his body.

"Aggh... Eliza, what the fuck?!"

The pain was intense, but what surprised him was that a strange barrier surrounded the blood crystal, preventing it from entering his bloodstream at first; Eliza seemed to have shattered herself, making the crystal change shape as it finally began to follow her command.

Intense pain made his muscles contract and his teeth grit, but as it moved, he felt a sense of relief. As his blood crystal approached his wrist, he instinctively placed it against the soft lips of Anya, where even though she was pale and completely drained, her small fangs extended and slipped into his skin.

"Mmmm!"

'How... the fuck... is she already... biting me...'

Nikolai was shocked, but at that moment, the moment the Blood Crystal entered Anya's body, a strange phenomenon happened.

"Nnngh... ah!"

She moaned again, her body reacting to the foreign presence in her body.

'W-What is happening...'

Eliza didn't speak, as Nikolai could only hold her tightly while she desperately sucked on his arm, sending sensations through his body, which was a strange feeling.

'I'm not aroused, but why does this feel so good... like being hugged by a family member...'

It was a strange experience. Nikolai had never drunk blood from another vampire, so he only had Selene's to go off, but the difference between the two was that he felt the desire to ravish Selene while he wanted to protect and adore Anya.

"Ah...ah... it's hot... my body..."

Anya was trembling, and her entire body felt like it was on fire.

'I-It worked?!'

Nikolai was astonished as Anya's fangs slipped out, and her mouth, stained with his blood, stopped her bite with a pop sound.

"I-Is it over?"

[Yes, it is... though the amount I gave her is barely anything. It will take a few hours to finish her awakening... but she will suffer.]

'Why? I thought it would be painless like me?'

Eliza chuckled and sighed. As Nikolai didn't understand that while he was asleep, he screamed in pain for hours, almost making the residents call for an ambulance or the police... and the process was not painless.

Anya dropped to the ground without power in her limbs as they convulsed and trembled like someone having a stroke. Her eyes changed from wide open to rolled back, but now her pupils were slowly turning crimson, starting from the small ring around the eye and filling the rest in like a colouring book.

"I'm going to put her in my bed... I don't want her to suffer.....Hah!" When he lifted her off the ground, he noticed her weight increased slightly. Not only that. "Did she grow taller?"

[Hahaha... you're such a worrywart.]

Eliza giggled, and Nikolai placed her on the bed before covering her in blankets.

"Eliza, she looks in pain. How long until it is over?"

Nikolai sat down next to the bed, looking at her and for the next three hours, he observed her suffering, agonised cries and sudden profuse bleeding from her entire body...

—⁂—

[Name: Anya (Báthory) Tepes]

[Heritage: Dhampir (Dual Progenitor)]

[Age: 28]

[Racial Level: 1]

[Clan: Tepes (Progenitor, 10% Awakened), Báthory (Progenitor, 10% Awakened)]

—⁂—

He didn't realise it yet, but while swallowing part of her Valen bloodline, Nikolai replaced it with his Báthory blood, meaning that if the two were to be analysed via DNA, they would be considered half-siblings because of how a Vampiric seed works, replacing most of her genes and bloodline with his mother's bloodline.

However, because of Nikolai's third bloodline. His cursed god's blood, he didn't gain the Tepes traits or bloodline, and instead, that small crystal transformed into Báthory blood.

From this moment on, both he and Anya would awaken their bloodlines together. However, what changes would happen after Anya became part of his clan, Nikolai did not know.