Gospel of Blood

A myth!

A descending myth!

As he gazed at the shadowy figure on the high platform, Albrecht felt every hair on his body stand on end, and the demonic tail behind him bristled instantly.

As a Legendary who had lived for over two thousand years, Albrecht had encountered numerous myths in his long life.

Although the figure on the platform did not exude a particularly powerful aura or radiate the supreme divine might he remembered from other myths, the moment he saw them, his soul and body couldn’t help but tremble.

He felt a kind of suppression emanating from his very bloodline.

When his eyes met the figure’s through the layers of mist, his entire magical power became sluggish and stiff.

It was the natural intimidation of a higher-level being over a lower one…

For a Legendary demonic bloodborne like Albrecht, whose level of life was higher than his own, only a myth!

Combined with the symbol that had spread throughout the Blood Demon Cult, the figure’s identity became clear.

God Nyx…

The figure was undoubtedly God Nyx!

Realizing this, Albrecht felt an unprecedented sense of life-threatening danger. Not even the time he had angered the Blood Demon Archduke by slacking off in war had frightened him this much.

The reason was simple: this was a myth who bore hostility towards the Blood Demon Cult.

And now, he was almost certain that it was this myth who had forcibly summoned him and exposed him to the Holy Court in Lutecia!

The myth had come with ill intentions!

Albrecht was filled with dread, his mind racing to find a way out.

Simultaneously, he struggled to mobilize his sluggish magical power and tried to activate his bloodline power to keep as calm as possible, preparing to use a teleportation spell to escape at any moment.

However, as he attempted to stir his bloodline power, something even more horrifying occurred…

Albrecht was shocked to find that his bloodline power suddenly became active and alive, feeling strange and resistant!

It was as if it had its own life, wanting to break free from his control.

It felt as though his bloodline power had found its true home and longed to leave him to return to its mother’s embrace!

Feeling the change in his bloodline, Albrecht’s eyes widened. He looked at the figure on the platform again, his expression growing increasingly uncertain.

This sensation of bloodline agitation was not unfamiliar to him, he had experienced it long ago.

That was two thousand years ago, in an era of countless myths and an undivided bloodborne…

The crimson mist on the throne became more distinct, and the figure on the throne grew more majestic.

The surrounding scene became clearer, and a strong sense of déjà vu and familiarity rose in his heart.

As this familiarity and the agitation of his bloodline merged, ancient memories surged forward, and the throne and castle before him gradually overlapped with a scene from his distant past…

It was also a majestic and solemn castle.

Grand murals depicted the rise of the bloodborne, with the six Blood Princes and numerous Dukes kneeling on one knee, worshipping the supreme Blood Throne.

On the throne, an ancient God with an indistinct face looked down at the bloodbornes, Their gaze indifferent, like seeing ants.

As memory and reality overlapped, the figure shrouded in crimson mist became clearer.

Finally, the appearance of that ancient God in Albrecht’s memory emerged, as clear as a rock revealed by receding tides.

Silver hair, a dreamlike exquisite face, skin so pale it seemed almost transparent, and a pair of crimson-gold eyes that seemed to pierce through the stars and time…

The figure on the throne now aligned with the ancient God in his memory. Even though shrouded in mist, it was unmistakably the same person.

In that blurred memory, the patterns carved on the throne also became clear.

One was of thorns.

The other was of roses.

The two intertwined, forming a mysterious and beautiful symbol!

With the memory clear, the last trace of color drained from Albrecht’s face.

His eyes widened even more.

His entire body trembled, his mouth agape, his face showing shock and horror, while his heart was in turmoil…

Oh God!

When had he forgotten these crucial memories?

The so-called God Nyx!

Thorny roses were not symbols that had appeared in recent years, nor were they the symbol of the so-called God Nyx!

They were the roots of the Bloodborne, the oldest progenitor, the source of all bloodline power, the smybol of the True Ancestor of Blood!

‘God Nyx’ was not a resurrected bloodborne myth, she was the Supreme of the Bloodborne, the Eternal Night Monarch, who created the bloodborne and swept the world, the True Ancestor of Blood!

She… She… She was the True Ancestor Blood!

She had returned!

Albrecht’s face was filled with shock and horror, fear and unease, with even his left hand clutching his wound, and his standing legs began to tremble.

But soon, the look of terror and shock was replaced by a changing expression.

Fear and horror quickly faded, replaced by admiration and excitement.

Although this admiration and excitement seemed somewhat forced and stiff, Albrecht adjusted quickly.

Like a face-changing actor, Albrecht’s face swiftly filled with joy, though within the joy, there was a strong sense of grief.

Then, with a “thud”, he knelt on the ground, prostrating himself before the figure on the Blood Throne, his voice choked with emotion.

“Your Excellency, the True Ancestor! Praise you, great Progenitor! You have finally returned!”

When Albrecht looked up again, his eyes were moist with tears.

He showed piety and fanaticism, his gaze towards the throne filled with sincerity and longing, devotion and respect.

To hell with the Blood Demon Cult! To hell with the Dark Apostles!

This terrifying being had returned, and saving his own life was now paramount. He was now a fervent follower of the True Ancestor!

At this moment, Albrecht was so “moved” that he almost believed it himself.

Charlotte: …

Watching the Dark Apostle she had pulled into the ancient Dark Night Castle slide to his knees, her expression turned somewhat peculiar.

She wanted to tell him that she could hear every thought in his mind clearly. No matter how fanatical or joyful he acted, it was useless.

Of course, she only thought about it.

The ancient Dark Night Castle could listen to the inner thoughts of the intelligent beings within it, a secret of Charlotte’s.

However, unlike Yurst from before, Albrecht, though a Legendary Blood Duke, seemed unaware of this fact.

Under these circumstances, Charlotte naturally wouldn’t reveal it voluntarily.

She was just a bit surprised that this Dark Apostle had knelt so quickly, even faster than Yurst and Nice. Should she say he was thick-skinned enough, or quick-witted enough?

Heaven knows she had expended extra divine power to refresh 『Blood Summoning』 and took advantage of his weakened state to summon him, all to control him without alerting the Blood Demon Archduke, or even to kill him outright and devour his bloodline power in the Dark Night Castle.

But… before she could make a move, he had already knelt.

This left Charlotte somewhat at a loss.

Weren’t the members of the Blood Demon Cult supposed to be death-defying lunatics?

The Dark Apostle before her didn’t seem the least bit brainwashed by dark power into madness and impulsivity. Instead, he was cowardly and adaptable…

This rendered her plan to strike before he could resist useless.

The guy had simply knelt down!

With a face full of respect and longing, he had even relinquished his magical and bloodline powers, completely abandoning any idea of escape, directly changing sides.

Oh no, it wasn’t just giving up, it was switching allegiance outright.

In Charlotte’s perception, Albrecht’s mind was now wholly focused on how to please her to save his life.

His gaze was filled with fanaticism and worship, longing and respect, but underneath it all was unprecedented tension, caution, anxiety, and unease.

How to put it…

Having experienced Yurst’s trembling explanation when he “defected” to her, Charlotte could somewhat understand Albrecht’s actions through empathy.

But his look of longing was honestly a bit sickening.

There was no helping it. No matter how naturally he switched sides, Albrecht simply didn’t suit that expression.

His appearance… was just too robust.

Albrecht was a demon before becoming a bloodborne.

Or more accurately, a Hellhorn Demon.

The Castell family records mentioned such demons, noting they lived in a different dimension known as “Hell.”

Their most notable traits were their height and strength, with horns on their heads, making them muscle-bound behemoths.

Among the many dimensions inhabited by demons, Hellhorn Demons were notably robust, ranking quite high.

Summoners in the mortal world often called them forth as labor or meat shields.

Albrecht’s build was “slender” compared to those depicted in the records, but only in comparison to the illustrated “mountains of muscle.”

In reality, Albrecht’s human form stood at least two meters tall, possibly over two and a half meters. Even if not a “mountain of muscle”, he was comparable to the American giant Schwarzenegger from Charlotte’s previous life, exuding an imposing presence just standing there.

Though he had lost his right arm, he showed no signs of weakness.

In fact, the loss of his right arm made him look even more rugged.

And now, this tower of a man, with a fierce man’s face, wore an expression of a giant baby looking at his mother.

Even knowing he was faking it, even though his face was handsome, it was still quite repulsive.

No…

It was precisely because he was handsome, but overly “maturely” handsome, that the expression was even more repulsive.

How to put it…

It was like walking down the street and suddenly having a tall, muscular man kneel before you, looking cute and calling you mom.

Charlotte twitched her lips, trying to ignore his expression to avoid having nightmares later.

Still, his giving up resistance allowed Charlotte to relax a bit.

A Legendary is still a Legendary.

Even heavily injured, who knew if someone who had lived for thousands of years had hidden tricks?

Although the Dark Night Castle was her domain, where she was the master once someone was brought in, a victory without a fight was always best.

Controlling the Dark Night Castle also consumed divine power, and saving it was always a gain.

Moreover, when she had fought Duke Yorok of the Nez Clan in the mental world, she had only managed to hold her ground.

The power of the True Ancestor’s Liberation was no stronger than a Legendary. A Legendary figure fighting for their life would always be a trouble.

Everything… better to play it safe.

However, his quick submission made her hesitant to kill him outright.

The Blood Demon Cult had committed many atrocities, and the Dark Apostles’ crimes were unspeakable.

These were not only recorded in the church’s records but also in the Castell family’s library.

Charlotte hadn’t intended to converse much with a Dark Apostle.

Her initial plan was to drag him into the Dark Night Castle, strike while he was weak, kill him, absorb his power, read his memories, and escape before the Blood Demon Archduke could detect her and before the church arrived.

But now, his quick submission made her hesitate.

Forcibly absorbing bloodline power was the simplest and most brutal method, but although it could boost Charlotte’s power in the short term, there was a risk of too much bloodline power causing her to fall into slumber again.

His quick kneeling and surrender opened up more options for Charlotte.

For instance, planting a mole within the Blood Demon Cult!

Of course, Charlotte was well aware that Albrecht’s submission was due to the situation.

He saw her as the historical True Ancestor of Blood, and his fear of her stemmed from the past.

He was only temporarily yielding to “power”…

Moreover, he was not pure, he was a genuine Blood Demon Cultist, a high-ranking member.

He possessed the chaos and evil of demons, and the fickleness and unpredictability of demons. Despite his current respect, Charlotte had no doubt he would turn against her given the chance.

He could be used as a tool against the Blood Demon Cult.

But he was not suitable as a follower.

Charlotte had some vague ideas.

However, she didn’t act immediately and instead looked at Albrecht again.

She had brought him into the Dark Night Castle for a while now and heard a lot of his inner thoughts, even unexpectedly gaining some ancient secrets.

Some things had piqued her curiosity.

Thinking of this, Charlotte looked at the demonic bloodborne before her again. She slightly inclined her body, looking down at him from above, her voice lazy yet majestic.

“Albrecht…”

“When did you recognize my symbol?”

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T/N: I think I need to put this to clear up confusion regarding bloodborne’s myths. Although it might be considered a minor spoiler. For those who pay attention to the detail, it might seem odd that although there are ‘only’ 6 princes yet Charlotte’s divine identity still remains unknown. It was because there were more bloodborne myths than the True Ancestor and the Six Princes, but the Prince, or leader of each clan status was special. The Six Princes are those who followed the True Ancestor since she started participating in the War of the Gods. Meanwhile, other bloodborne myths were the Gods and Demigods that lost and chose to surrender to the True Ancestor, and to ensure they didn’t rebel, the True Ancestor turned them into bloodborne to gain control over them and overall their status was lower and even much lower than the Dukes because they are just war trophies and the race’s weapon of war.