Elara dreamt of crowns again.
But this time, they bled.
Not metaphorically — they bled.
A dozen silver tiaras dripped thick red ichor onto a velvet pillow. A voice whispered in a language she didn't recognize, but understood anyway:
> "The blood remembers. The blood obeys."
She awoke in a cold sweat.
Balthazar was sitting on her chest.
"You drooled," he said casually. "It was unseemly."
---
She groaned, pushing the smug cat off. Her whole body ached. "Did I… did I actually fight a ghost version of myself last night?"
"Yes. You screamed, stabbed yourself, declared independence, and banished a centuries-old specter. All very noble. You also fell asleep on a haunted chaise lounge, which frankly wasn't noble."
"And the pendant?"
Eryx entered the room, holding a silver tray.
"Still embedded in your skin," he said. "Glowing slightly."
She peered at the mirror on the wall — and there it was. The red gem nestled at her collarbone pulsed faintly with every heartbeat.
"Well, that's not normal," she muttered.
---
Eryx placed the tray down. It contained a single steaming cup of tea, a rolled parchment, and — inexplicably — a cookie shaped like a bat.
"I figured you'd have questions," he said.
"Oh good," she said, sipping the tea. "Let's start with: Why is my chest jewelry humming like a cursed microwave?"
"It's a blood sigil," Balthazar replied, tail flicking. "It means the manor has accepted you."
"I didn't ask to be accepted! I came here because rent was cheap and ghosts weren't on the brochure!"
"That pendant isn't just ornamental," Eryx said. "It marks you as the heir."
"To what?"
"To the Valeblood legacy."
---
Elara stared.
"I'm sorry. Heir to a what now?"
"The bloodline," Eryx said carefully. "You carry the last living trace of House Valeblood. Or, to be precise, the only living vessel it has left."
"Okay," she said slowly, "so I'm a ghost's reincarnation, I own a house that eats people, and now I've apparently inherited a dead family's cursed dynasty. Anything else? Am I also secretly a werewolf? Vampire princess? Reincarnated dragon librarian?"
"Yes to one of those," Balthazar said cryptically.
"Which one?!"
"You'll find out."
---
Eryx unrolled the parchment and laid it before her.
An old blood-red family tree spread across the page, with names inked in fading script. Most were scratched out or marked "deceased."
Only one branch remained.
And at the bottom, her name was written in fresh ink.
> Elara V. Graves
Her breath caught. "How…?"
"You signed the lease," Balthazar said with a shrug.
"That was a binding agreement," Eryx added. "Legally and supernaturally."
"I thought it just waived pet fees!"
"Technically, it waived your mortality clause."
She blinked. "So I'm… stuck?"
Eryx met her gaze. "You're chosen."
---
A long silence.
Elara stood up and walked to the window. The mist outside hadn't lifted. The gardens below were overgrown and crawling with vines that moved slightly when she stared too long.
"The First Elara made the pact," she said slowly. "What exactly was it?"
"She married into the Valeblood line," Eryx explained. "Not just me. The whole line. The manor. The magic. The curse. Everything. She bound her soul to the house."
"And then died?"
"Several times, actually."
"How romantic."
He tilted his head. "You sound bitter."
"I sound normal. This is insane."
"You've only just begun remembering," Balthazar said. "There's more to come. Much more."
---
Suddenly, the front doors of the manor boomed open.
The three of them froze.
Eryx stepped forward, teeth bared. "We weren't expecting company."
"Nor should we be," Balthazar hissed. "No one gets through the veil without permission."
Footsteps echoed through the marble hall.
Deliberate.
Booted.
A young woman strode into the foyer — tall, confident, and wearing a dark velvet coat embroidered with silver thread. Her eyes gleamed crimson.
She stopped, regarded Elara, and said:
> "So. You're the new blood."
Elara blinked. "Excuse me, I'm not doing vampire interviews right now."
"I'm not here for you," the woman said. "I'm here to see if you're a threat."
"Who are you?"
"I'm Valeria Valeblood."
Eryx narrowed his eyes. "That's impossible."
"You're supposed to be dead," Balthazar added.
Valeria smirked.
"I got better."
---
Elara stepped forward, crossing her arms. "Let me guess — long-lost cousin? Forgotten descendant? Evil twin?"
"I'm your niece," Valeria said simply. "Sort of."
"Sort of?"
"We're blood-bound by oath. I died a century ago, but the house didn't let me go."
"Charming."
"You wear the pendant," Valeria said, eyeing her chest. "That means you're heir. But it doesn't mean you're worthy."
"I didn't ask for this!"
"No one does."
Elara looked to Eryx, who had gone pale. "Is she dangerous?"
"She's a Valeblood," he said. "That's synonymous."
---
Valeria walked past them into the main hall, her fingers brushing the walls. The house groaned softly.
"She knows how to speak to it," Balthazar muttered.
Valeria turned back. "The manor remembers me."
"Then why are you here?" Elara demanded.
"Because the bloodline is thinning. We've lost too many. The First Elara is stirring again. And this time, she won't settle for whispers and dreams."
"So she's not gone?"
Valeria shook her head. "She's never gone. She's just buried. And now that you wear the pendant, she'll come for you."
Elara swallowed.
"Great."
---
Valeria approached until they stood face to face.
"You have power now," she said. "Blood-bound, soul-marked, heir-chosen. But that makes you a target."
"By who?"
"By everything else that wants what the First built. The ones beyond the walls. The ones who feed on memory. The ones who already know you've arrived."
Eryx looked at Elara gravely. "They'll come for you now. One by one."
Valeria nodded. "You have one week to prepare."
"Prepare how?"
"To survive."