My first question was really simple.
"WHY THE HELL IS EVERYONE IN HERE?!"
The response came fast and loud enough to rattle my skull.
"BECAUSE YOU GOT KNOCKED OUT, IDIOT!" Effie yelled, her voice echoing through the room like a war horn.
I groaned, clutching my head. My ears were ringing so hard it felt like someone had stuck a bell in there.
After the sonic assault died down, Kai chimed in, calm as ever.
"Well, after you got knocked out, Effie needed a place to put you. She almost broke the castle door trying to carry you inside. Then she insisted on staying here too, just in case."
Aiko sighed dramatically and took over the explanation.
"I decided to pay my debts by covering your stay here for the week. So we're even now."
Even. Even?!
Damned money-grubbing midget.
How in the hell were two soul shards supposed to make us even?
"Wait," I said, sitting up slowly, "didn't that nightmare creature have four soul shards?"
Effie scratched the back of her neck, suddenly very interested in the floor.
"Well, I kinda… gave them to Sera. Y'know, to pay her back for healing you. Twice. And for paying for our first week here."
I stared at her in silence. Then, with all the energy of a dying man, I grabbed a pillow and slammed my face into it.
There was a loud thunk.
"…The hell?" I muttered.
That was not the sound a pillow should make. I pressed my hand against it — the surface was firm, cold, and weirdly sticky.
I turned it over, and my eyes widened.
It wasn't a pillow.
It was condensed blood.
Dark red, glossy, and completely solid.
"The hell?" I repeated, louder this time.
I looked around. The entire bed — sheets, blanket, everything — was soaked in dried and semi-dried blood. The faint metallic smell hung thick in the air.
Slowly, I turned to look at Effie.
She tried, valiantly, to avoid my gaze.
"Effie," I said, deadpan, "why is my bed a murder scene?"
She shifted uncomfortably, her face going pink. "Well, uh… I had to feed you somehow. You were out cold for like a whole day, and healing wasn't working. So I just… threw a bucket of blood on your face."
I blinked.
"From… who?"
She didn't even say anything. Just pointed.
At Seishan.
The pale woman stood by the door, as silent and unreadable as ever.
I sighed, too tired to even be surprised anymore. "Of course. Sure. Why not."
I closed my eyes and focused, letting my Aspect flow through me. The blood soaked into the bed pulsed faintly — it was real, dense, and surprisingly clean. With some effort, I gathered it, pulling the liquid free from the sheets and compressing it into a bucket beside me.
When the bed was clean again, I gave a weak smile. "Thanks a lot, Seishan. I owe you one."
She blinked, expression unreadable — then, to my utter confusion, winked.
My mind short-circuited for a second.
Was… was I being threatened? Or flirted with?
Because if this was flirting, I was definitely missing the manual.
Still, out of sheer social panic, I winked back — awkwardly.
I swear I saw her grey skin flush just slightly darker before she turned and left, silent as a shadow.
Kai whistled lowly. "Well, look at that. Blood boy's got admirers."
I ignored him and groaned. "Can everyone please leave? I've got something important to test out."
Effie crossed her arms. "And what exactly are you planning to 'test out' while still looking half-dead?"
"Don't worry about it," I said, trying to sound mysterious and failing miserably.
After a few minutes of bickering — mostly from Effie — they finally cleared out, one by one. The door closed with a click, leaving me alone in the quiet room.
I exhaled slowly, staring up at the ceiling. The faint echo of the moonlight dream still pulsed in my chest.
Something had changed in me.
The blood in my veins felt heavier, denser. When I flexed my hand, I could feel it move — not just through me, but with me.
"Alright," I muttered, cracking my knuckles. "Let's see what I can test out first."
First, I tried to condense blood.
I used the bucket Seishan had given me The surface rippled faintly as I dipped my hand into it. It felt heavy and warm, pulsing faintly, as if alive.
I began to spin it.
At first, it was just motion — a slow, spiraling swirl like stirring syrup. But then something shifted. The blood began to thicken, drawing itself inward, coiling tighter and tighter as I focused. My hands trembled slightly, and I could feel the pull in my veins — a strange connection, as if I was trying to twist my own circulation.
Then, with a quiet snap, the swirling mass collapsed inward.
When I looked again, what once filled the bucket was now no larger than a tennis ball — a perfectly smooth orb, dark and gleaming like garnet glass.
I blinked. "...Huh. Guess that's progress."
It didn't make sense — an entire bucket of blood compressed into something that could fit in my palm. The density was unreal. I could feel the pressure radiating from it, as though it could burst any second.
I poked it experimentally. It was solid, but faintly elastic.
"...Interesting."
Next, I tried changing its shape.
That's where things got weird.
It didn't move as easily as regular blood. It resisted, stubborn and heavy, like trying to bend cooled metal instead of liquid. I gritted my teeth, focusing harder, and the surface began to stretch and shift.
An arrow — sharp, sleek, deadly. Then a triangle, perfectly symmetrical.
And then, for no real reason other than sheer curiosity, I tried to make something… stupid.
Two small, red shapes — rough, imperfect, but definitely guns.
Mini blood pistols.
They looked ridiculous.
They also looked awesome.
I turned them over in my hands, impressed with myself. Of course, they didn't work. I didn't even know how to form the inner mechanisms, and the barrels were completely hollow and fragile — but damn, they looked cool.
"Alright," I muttered, grinning. "Not bad for a first attempt."
After a moment of admiring my useless creations, I had another idea.
If condensed blood was tougher, what would happen if I used it to reinforce my armor and weapons?
The thought alone made my pulse quicken. I pressed my palm against my crossbow, letting a thin trickle of condensed blood run along its limbs. It spread across the weapon like molten metal, hardening instantly into a faint crimson sheen.
The texture changed — smoother, denser, stronger.
Encouraged, I extended the process to my armor, coating the plates in a thin, dark layer. It felt heavier but sturdier, as if I was wearing something ancient and unyielding.
But the real outlier came when I tried using my own blood.
Just a few drops from my palm — nothing more.
The reaction was immediate. My blood condensed faster, cleaner, tighter.
The energy inside it was alive, volatile. When I pressed it against the armor, it fused seamlessly, shining faintly before settling.
That small amount — just a few drops — felt equal to liters of ordinary blood.
I stared at it for a moment, genuinely impressed.
"...Well, that's terrifying," I muttered.
I wasn't sure whether to be proud or afraid.
And as for Seishan… I decided not to ask where she got that blood in the first place.
There were things better left unspoken, and that woman gave me the distinct feeling that the less I knew, the longer I'd live.
When I was finally done experimenting, I leaned back, letting the condensed blood dissolve into the bucket again. Surprisingly, it hadn't exhausted me nearly as much as I expected.
Condensing blood — even my own — was draining, sure, but manageable.
It was as if my body had adapted to it overnight.
Still, I couldn't help but wonder why.
Was it because of the figure in the dream? The man beneath the bleeding moon — the one whose blood could become anything?
If so, then this was only the beginning.
[You have unlocked the first seal of your aspect legacy]
Well now I know what the next thing I'll look into will be