One Piece: Blood Clan

Alone at the training ground, Burs withdrew his Blood Bag and took a long, deliberate swig.

"Tum tum tum tum tum~"

Almost immediately, a soothing warmth surged through his abdomen. His face flushed with an almost unnatural crimson, and his entire body brimmed with renewed strength.

Without hesitation, he resumed his training. That single gulp had only been about half a unit of blood—but it took him the entire night to fully digest it.

In contrast, during his earlier days of training, he would need to replenish his blood after merely two hours. Clearly, human blood still delivered superior results. Still, at his tender age, his capacity was limited, and he simply couldn't consume as much as an older vampire might.

A system notification chimed in his mind:

[Congratulations, host. Conditions satisfied. Your Basic Swordsmanship has advanced to Beginner Swordsmanship.]

"Whoa, I actually broke through? Let me check this out," Burs murmured, glancing at his updated skill list.

Beginner Swordsmanship (0/100000) (Increases sword technique power by 40%)

A 40% boost in swordsmanship power—impressive indeed. He wondered how much farther this would take him before he could literally cut through steel.

Then another alert sounded:

[Host's swordsmanship has reached a significant threshold. Event triggered: Treasure Hunt.

Mission Briefing: Somewhere within the Ikano family's domain lies the ancestral treasure. Please locate these treasures.]

The prompt startled Burs for a moment. Treasure in his own family? Since his breakthrough in Basic Swordsmanship had triggered this quest, it was likely that the treasure was related to blades or high-caliber weaponry—perhaps even a legendary sword akin to the fabled "Supreme Great Cutter of Twenty-One Works."

Well, such an absurdly named weapon was unlikely—but most probably it was some kind of prized blade. With the villa being fairly compact, there must be secret doors or hidden basements where such heirlooms might be stashed.

With that in mind, Burs spent an hour searching his parents' room and other nooks and crannies. Finding nothing of note, he decided to rest; after all, the mission carried no strict time limit. Sooner or later, the treasure would reveal itself. Over the following weeks he wandered the vast corridors and hidden corners of his family's villa, methodically checking every possible location.

Three months later, Burs stood before a partitioned chest. Shaking his head, he realized it wasn't the treasure he sought—it contained nothing more than a modest cache of coins.

Although he hadn't found the fabled treasure, those three months of searching had taught him just how wealthy his family truly was. Just a month ago, he'd discovered a concealed door in the villa—a secret passage bursting with piled-up riches and a fortune of one hundred million Beli. In one night, he'd experienced the thrill of true overnight wealth.

To be safe, he had already stashed a portion of that wealth inside his Blood Ring. Even though he'd recently climbed to Level 11, the Blood Ring's capacity hadn't increased much. For now, he could only secure part of the family's ancestral fortune—money and treasures accumulated over countless generations deserved careful protection.

Yet after so long of searching, Burs began to feel a nagging unease. What if the treasure wasn't hidden within the villa at all? After all, his family's domain might extend well beyond a single mansion.

Considering his father had once been a count, was it possible that the entire East Bro Village fell under their influence?

The possibility made his brow furrow. Expanding the search area so dramatically would pose its own risks—he couldn't simply barge into other people's homes, nor could he easily recruit accomplices.

For now, he decided to continue searching within the villa, hoping for any hint or clue.

Just then, a crisp set of footsteps sounded outside his room. Recognizing the familiar tread of Sister Grey, Burs quickly returned the chest to its hidden spot.

Within seconds, Sister Grey entered, and their eyes met.

"Young Master Burs, have you been searching for something lately? If so, perhaps I can offer you some assistance," she inquired softly.

"You know what I'm looking for?" Burs asked, genuinely surprised.

She hesitated a moment before replying, "I remember when I was little, our master once told me that deep beneath—within the darkest underground—the Ikano family keeps something of great importance. I was curious enough to search for it, but I found nothing. He said that only someone of the Ikano bloodline could ever uncover it."

"Deep underground… the darkest place?" Burs echoed. He mused that his family's basement wasn't particularly dark thanks to treasures that emitted their own soft glow. Could there be another secret passage or tunnel?

"Grey Sister, do you recall any hints about that pitch-black underground?" he pressed.

She smiled wistfully. "Hmm… I don't know. The head of the house didn't say much—just something like a fairy tale to lull me to sleep."

"A fairy tale? What was it exactly? Do you remember any details?" Burs asked, his curiosity piqued.

After a thoughtful pause, she replied, "I think it went something like: on a moonlit night, when the sky is cloaked in darkness, stand atop the highest tower of the castle and gaze west. There you will see a demon with long horns, and beneath the demon's feet lies the gateway to the underground… I'm afraid I can't recall more than that."

"Really? Can't you remember any more?" Burs urged gently.

"I truly can't recall any further details; I was barely three or four years old at the time," she admitted with a rueful smile.

Seeing her distress, Burs decided not to press further. "That's fine, Grey Sister—you've already been a great help."

"Glad to be of assistance. I'll take my leave now," she said before departing. She'd long known that the Ikano family held many secrets but never intended to pry too deeply into her master's affairs.

As Burs watched her leave, he thought to himself, "At nightfall, stand atop the castle's highest point—the villa, which was once a castle before it was transformed into this sprawling mansion. Gaze west on a full-moon night… Could it be that the 'demon' is merely a shadow of something else? Today is the 12th; in three days it will be the 15th. Then I can verify if this legend holds true."

Before he knew it, three days had flown by. When Burs opened his eyes, he found that the sun had set and the moon shone bright and full. He quickly climbed to the roof, positioning himself to look due west.

Although Grey Sister claimed she had once attempted this search without success, Burs felt compelled to try on his own. After all, the night as seen through vampire eyes was an entirely different spectacle from that of normal men.

In the enhanced clarity of darkness, it took him less than a minute to spot a silhouette—a projection reminiscent of a horned demon.

"That… That must be the direction of the wine cellar," he murmured.

With his target confirmed, Burs melted into a shadow and sprinted off toward the wine cellar, determination blazing in his eyes.