NOVEL NEXT Chapter 115: Awakening The Blood - 1
The sun was still high when Ethan and Lirael had left the slave trader's shop. The streets hummed with the lazy rhythm of afternoon life—vendors calling out, horses clattering past, the faint scent of roasted meat and spilled ale drifting in the air.
They stopped by a tavern for lunch, then returned to the same quiet inn they had stayed in the previous night. Inside their rented room, the muffled noise of the city faded, leaving only the creak of wood and the faint rustle of curtains stirred by a summer breeze.
Lirael sat on the edge of the bed, arms folded defensively across her chest.
"You… what do you plan to do?" she asked, her voice sharper than intended.
Ethan tilted his head, half a smirk tugging at his lips. "You really have your mind always in that place don't you? Don't tell me you thought I was going to—" He took a slow step forward, deliberately teasing. "Well, if you want me to, I could…"
Her eyes widened. "No! Move away, you brute."
"...Tsk. Mood's ruined," he sighed, chuckling as he leaned back against the wall. "Relax, elf. I didn't bring you here for that. We're here to boost your power."
Her brows furrowed. "Boost… my power? Didn't you say you were going to help that healer girl?"
"Not in stats," Ethan said, his tone shifting serious. "But in blood."
"Blood?" Lirael echoed, blinking.
"Yeah." He crossed his arms. "The system's connected to you, so I can see things you can't. Your bloodline's been watered down over the generations. What you're carrying now? It's barely a fragment of what it once was."
She gkt confused. "Weakened? No… that can't be. My mother—she could sweep through hordes of monsters with a single arrow. People called her the Azure Gale. Our line was one of the strongest among elves." Her voice dropped, a shadow passing over her expression. "But after my father died, politics crushed us. Raenor pulled strings, chained us under the Thalmyr family. He tricked my mother, drained her strength before she even realized it…"
Ethan lifted a hand gently. "You don't need to tell me more if it hurts." His eyes locked on hers, steady and unyielding. "What matters is this: right now, your bloodline is only at 0.3% of its true potential. The system says I can restore it—to a full hundred percent. And if we do it before your class assignment quest, you'll gain much more."
Her lips parted, stunned. "Zero point three…? No wonder… I…" She clenched her fists, voice trembling. "So how? Such a potion—does it even exist? Wouldn't it cost a fortune?"
Ethan stepped forward this time, but his presence was steady, not teasing. He crouched in front of her, meeting her eyes.
"First—don't ever call yourself weak again. Not while you're with me. And second—money isn't something you need to worry about."
He flicked open his system interface.
> SP: 90,560
Bloodline Awakening Potion: 50,000 SP
-50,000 SP
"here," he said simply.
With a faint ding, a bottle of shimmering liquid materialized in his hand. The vial was carved crystal, runes etched faintly across its surface. Inside swirled a liquid of impossible colors—emerald green melting into silver, streaked with faint threads of gold. It pulsed faintly, as if alive, casting an otherworldly glow across the dim room. The air itself seemed to hum with power, carrying a faint scent of ozone and fresh rain.
Ethan held it out toward her.
"This," he said quietly, "is your chance. Drink it, and your bloodline will awaken in full. I don't know exactly what will happen… but I do know this: you'll never be the same again."
Lirael's gaze lingered on the vial, its shifting colors reflected in her eyes.
"You… you also don't know what will happen?" she asked, voice thin
Ethan shook his head. "No. But as always, I'll be right here. You won't go through it alone. Trust me—I won't let anything happen to you."
Her lips pressed into a tight line. "It's not that I don't trust you. It's just…" Her voice faltered, and unbidden, a memory clawed its way back.
Veyron's hand. The way he had seized her wrist, yanking her close, her strength meaningless against his. The helplessness and the suffocating shame.
Her fingers twitched, brushing instinctively at the very spot where he had once gripped her. A shadow hardened her eyes. "If… if this can make me stronger, then I'll do it. I'll never let myself be powerless again."
For a moment, silence hung between them. Then Ethan stepped forward and drew her into his arms. His warmth surrounded her, steady and grounding. He lowered his head, pressing a gentle kiss against her forehead.
"You'll be strong enough," he murmured, his voice low and firm, "to tear bastards like Veyron apart."
Something inside her cracked—some coiled, unseen tension breaking. Against his chest, the trembling in her body eased. With him, there was no suffocating grip, no helplessness. Just… safety. Something she hadn't felt in long before she met him, it startled her.
Her breath slowed, her hands clutching faintly at his tunic before loosening. "…You always make it feel different."
Ethan lingered for a heartbeat longer, then gently pulled back. He lifted the potion, the swirling liquid casting dancing light across the room, and placed it into her hands.
"This is yours. Your choice. Once you drink it, there's no going back."
He stepped away, giving her space. The glow of the potion painted her pale fingers in emerald and silver as she stared down at it, her reflection rippling in its surface.
---
Status Window — Subject: Lirael Vaerune]
Designation — Servant
Age: 122
Race: Elf (Awakened) (Abyssal Oceania Sovereign High-Elf — Bloodline Dormant)
Title: — None
Talent: "Indomitable Tide" (Shared)
Level: 9 — (85,977 / 78,235) (overflow)
Attributes
STR — 18.5
VIT — 26.0
CON — 24.0
AGI — 25.5
STA — 24.0
INT — 30.0
MANA — 22.0
Unassigned Stat Points: 0(20)
(I have changed how stats are shown, now only it will only be in multiple of 0.5, it doesn't change anything major...but now its easier to keep track of it.)