Blood Awakening: The Strongest Hybrid and His Vampire Bride

"Are you alright, Nikolai?" Ivan's low voice echoed in the brightly lit room, with several candles flickering along with the luminous lights in each corner.

"I'm alright, Dad... just, it feels annoying."

Nikolai sat across from his father and discussed the previous night. Lunaria returned to her former body and seemed to rejoin the Nosferatu clan. He wanted to smash the walls and shout at the top of his lungs. A ball of fire that never faded grew in his chest after coming to his senses.

[Don't feel so pressured, Nikolai... this needed to happen.]

Even if that might be true, he felt a weight on his shoulders. The feelings that Luna hid inside her chest, parting words about helping his mother... how could he blame Luna in the future if they became enemies?

'She's doing it for me... I am convinced.'

"Then... does your chest feel ablaze, with an emotion and destructive desire that you cannot control?"

"Yeah..."

Ivan didn't speak unless needed usually.

However, Nikolai was the exception for this war-forged lycan.

"I cannot help you with those emotions—nobody in this mansion can, only yourself and Lunaria... since it's impossible to meet her right now. Then find a new way to expel them."

"..." Nikolai clenched his fists—although he understood his father's words, the feeling of Lunaria left remained fresh in his mind.

"If you are struggling to think, how about the arena or tower... or some monster nests? I have documents on some that you could easily destroy right now."

"...though I would suggest speaking with those girls first and seeing if they will help you."

[Your father is correct! You shouldn't be alone right now, Nikolai!]

Elizabeth's voice was like a soft melody. He smiled upon hearing it. The warm atmosphere it brought soothed his nerves.

His father put a large hand on top of his head and rustled it before getting up from the couch. It brought a small smile to Nikolai's lips as he looked up at him.

"You are my son, so I imagine you are like me... there's no better feeling than seeing you overcome every obstacle before you." Ivan took a deep breath before lifting a picture frame. "I was like you, keeping everything bottled up and struggling alone... that was until meeting your mother. She taught me that sometimes, you cannot solve things alone." In the image was a beautiful woman with black hair, Ivan and a young Nikolai.

"Dad..."

'He's right... this fire and anger inside me, with them around me, I think I can deal with it much better.'

A large hand fell on Nikolai's shoulder as he passed. "Even if things become grim in the future, we'll still be here for you and Luna. Whatever she decides in the end doesn't matter. I cannot abandon Selina and Vlad's daughter either, so don't try and carry it alone."

"Thanks—if I were alone, maybe I would have fallen into the same negative thoughts as before." Standing up from his seat, he walked towards the door, gazing back at his father, staring at his mother's portrait so intently.

.

.

. Continue your saga on empire

Nikolai gathered Nikita, Selene, and Risa in one of the many meeting rooms in the mansion at midday while Sarah joined in a suit and held a tablet.

The atmosphere was somewhat tense, but none of them seemed down. Risa and Nikita stared holes through Sarah, who stood in the corner, tapping away and occasionally flicking her gaze towards Nikolai, who was sitting in the centre of the room. "Nikita, Selene, Risa... I gathered you to decide how we move forward."

Risa moved sluggishly, clearly the night before affecting her muscles and body, as she leaned back and looked at Nikolai as he spoke, her lips pressed together and eyes narrowing.

"...well, what do you all say about going to the tower or looking into the current state of the slums, specifically monster nests?"

Nikita's ears flickered, hearing the slums and monster nests—rather, her eyes widened at hearing Nikolai speaking about them, her face as if saying, "You never asked me to do this before! I am so happy!" she screamed in her mind, wanting to hug and squeeze Nikolai tightly to herself.

Selene saw how happy Nikita seemed upon hearing Nikolai mentioning slum monster nests and looked down as if deep in thinking.

The other day, when she found Nikolai in a horrible state after being attacked, it made her worry. Even if her strength could help right now, what if the supreme elders of the Nosferatu and enemy families targeted him?

"I am interested in the towers... Since they are the only place, we can grow stronger easily." Selene said calmly, watching Nikolai as he alternated his gaze between her and Nikita. 'If we go there, we wouldn't have to deal with troublesome people...'

"I prefer either of those options as well! We need to get strong enough to where only the strongest might stand above us, so let us take any opportunity to grow!" Nikolai added before he leaned back and let out a sigh.

Risa's lips moved, but no sound came out. Instead, she sighed and leaned forward. "Both, then?" she said without hesitation.

"Hey," A whisper came from Selene toward Risa, who glanced at her. "What do you mean by both?"

"Don't be dumb... if our dear husband says that, don't argue over which is better and just choose to do both!" Risa stretched and smirked. "Isn't it obvious?"

"Hmm, husband? Are you being cheeky, Cat?!" Nikita's eyes narrowed before Risa puffed out her chest and snorted.

"Nikolai accepted me last night, and I am no longer different from you!" Her eyes sparked, and everyone turned their attention to Risa, especially Sarah, whose eyebrows arched.

"Is that true, Nikolai?" Selene's low yet cold voice echoed through the room as she turned her gaze with a sharp glare in her eyes toward him. "Is what she said true?"

"Y-yes... last night we confirmed our feelings. I am the one at fault and should have spoken sooner." When Nikolai admitted his feelings, Risa's lips curled, creating a smug face as she mocked Nikita, who pointed at her. It seemed as if these two would never see eye to eye.

'Damn that cat! After I went and warned her not to overstep her bounds!' Nikita clenched her fist. 'She did something with my master?! That little minx... she must've seduced Master into being so intimate!'

The white-haired wolf's thoughts didn't stop racing as she closed her eyes and balled up her fists. 'No... since Nikolai accepted her, I shouldn't be petty...'

"I see, congratulations, Risa." Nikita almost bit her tongue while speaking, as if being nice to the cat was impossible.

Not long after admitting his feelings, the room started to calm. Sarah's gaze changed slightly, while Nikita and Selene also became more attentive.

"Since you mentioned doing both, what is your idea?" Nikolai smiled, his hand spread out, and he pointed to Risa, who looked surprised when he asked.

"Ah... well, for the tower, it's probably best to enter in pairs or alone because we are trying to grow stronger, not earn money." Risa's first words caused both Nikita's and Selene's brows to lift. "It'd be best to tackle that daily, I assume? And we should split ourselves based on strengths. Then what about the slums and monster nests?"

"I agree that would be the most optimal way..." Selene pondered the reason for suggesting this, and then she added. "What if the tower we alternate partners with Nikolai choosing one of us each day, while the others pair together..."

"Yeah! That sounds like a great idea!" Nikita's tail wagged behind her. She liked the idea because every third day, she would be with Nikolai; although she wanted to always be with him, if she lost the role and it was someone else who got the chance to always be with him... it would be a total loss.

"...Sarah, how do you view that idea?"

"Hm, it seems you'll need help managing your new schedule for the next few weeks. How will we deal with the other two issues? Maybe for the nests, you could perform them as a group, and the slums... 'we' could help."

When Sarah mentioned 'we', she meant the twenty thralls that Nikolai had created, and she now lived in the tower beside him.

For the slums, Risa suggested going once a week alongside the nests, which seemed reasonable, given its position in the outer area. "However, can you and those thralls handle that? What if you fail and cause trouble for Nikolai?" Selene's eyes narrowed, glaring at Sarah.

"Our master ordered us to visit the tower for at least two hours a day, and since then, our average combat power has surpassed even the most loyal thralls and squires."

Although only his squire, Sarah, didn't back down when speaking to Selene—her training as a business manager and facing the arrogant monsters trying to buy the land she secured helped her, and she couldn't afford to cower now, not after Nikolai put such an important mission in her hands.

Her glasses shone in the sunlight from outside, and her blue irises stared directly into Selene's, the intensity growing between the two.

Sarah broke eye contact and returned to tapping on her tablet with a soft smile.

"...Well, I guess I will trust you with that," Selene muttered softly, crossing her legs and clearing her throat before turning to observe Nikolai's reaction.

'I never imagined she would become like that...' Risa examined Sarah, feeling impressed by her words and actions.

Nikolai listened intently to everyone's comments while stroking his chin. He nodded his head in agreement, saying that the ideas sounded good and promising.

However, it was best to keep their options open for any unforeseen changes.