Chapter 87: The Cost of a Breakthrough

Both of them turned as the heavy metal door slid open.

The head butler walked in, looking as composed as ever. His uniform was spotless, and his expression gave nothing away.

His gaze briefly fell on the damaged testing machine.

He paused for a moment.

Then he quietly looked away, pretending he hadn’t seen a thing.

"Young Miss. Mr. Lucian."

He bowed politely.

"The clan head would like to see you both in his private study. He asks that you come immediately."

Evelyn crossed her arms. "Did he say what it’s about?"

"No, Miss. He simply instructed me to bring you both to him as soon as possible."

Lucian nodded. "All right. Thanks."

The butler bowed once more and left the room.

As soon as the door closed behind him, Evelyn turned to Lucian.

"Do you think he suspects anything?"

Lucian glanced at her. "Suspects what?"

She stared at him as if he had to be joking.

"That you’ve just broken through to the next realm, obviously!"

"Oh. Probably."

Evelyn narrowed her eyes. "And what about the machine?"

Lucian glanced at the cracked impact pad before looking back at her with a faint smile.

"That depends on whether anyone asks about it."

"Lucian, the thing is practically begging for help!"

As if to prove her point, the machine suddenly let out another warning beep.

Lucian shrugged. "Well, we’d better get out of here before it starts screaming."

"You’re unbelievable."

Evelyn shook her head and headed for the door. Lucian followed, doing his best to ignore the increasingly frantic beeping behind them.

Unfortunately, escaping the testing room didn’t mean Lucian was out of trouble.

Sterling Manor was an impressive place, even by the standards of the wealthiest cultivation families. Marble floors stretched beneath towering ceilings, and enormous windows offered beautiful views of the sprawling gardens outside. Along the corridors stood suits of armor and ancient weapons, each displayed behind reinforced glass.

Everything about the manor screamed wealth, elegance, and perfection.

Which made Lucian’s newfound strength a rather inconvenient problem.

He didn’t feel any different from before. Walking felt normal. Breathing felt normal. Even moving his fingers seemed exactly the same as it always had.

There was nothing about his body that made him feel as though he’d suddenly gained an extraordinary amount of power.

And that was precisely the problem.

His strength had increased dramatically, but he still had no idea how to control it properly.

As they approached Magnus’s private study, Lucian reached out to steady himself while turning toward the entrance.

Unfortunately, his hand landed on the bronze doorframe.

CRUNCH!

A sharp metallic sound rang through the corridor.

Lucian froze.

Evelyn stopped and slowly followed his gaze.

Four deep indentations had appeared in the bronze, each one perfectly shaped like a fingertip. The metal had caved inward beneath his grip.

Lucian stared at his hand.

Then he slowly released the frame.

A tiny piece of bronze broke loose and dropped onto the marble floor.

Clink.

For several seconds, neither of them spoke.

Evelyn finally turned toward him. A smile spread across her face, but there was something in her expression that made Lucian immediately suspicious.

She grabbed his arm and leaned closer.

"If you break my father’s door, too, you’re paying for the repairs yourself."

Lucian looked at the damaged frame, then back at her.

"To be fair, I think the doorframe started it."

Evelyn’s smile disappeared.

"Keep talking, and I’ll make you pay for the entire corridor."

Lucian wisely decided that staying quiet was the best way to survive the next few minutes.

He straightened his clothes and approached the study door with considerably more caution.

At this rate, he might end up destroying half the manor before the day was over.

Magnus was waiting inside.

Considering how urgently they’d been summoned, Lucian doubted his uncle wanted to discuss the damaged testing equipment. Still, he couldn’t help wondering what had prompted the sudden meeting.

Breaking through to the Martial Master Realm was only the beginning. There was still plenty he needed to learn about his newfound strength, not to mention the abilities he had yet to explore.

But first, he needed to find out why Magnus wanted to see them.

Lucian raised his hand and knocked twice.

"Come in," a cold voice called from inside.

He glanced at Evelyn, then carefully pushed the door open.

Neither of them noticed the thin crack slowly spreading through the damaged bronze frame behind them.

The heavy doors opened, revealing Magnus’s private study.

The room was furnished with dark mahogany wood, giving it a dignified and somewhat imposing atmosphere. Shelves lined the walls, filled with ancient tomes, restricted manuscripts, and various relics that looked as though they had been collected over generations.

Polished mahogany furniture occupied the center of the room, and a large table stood in front of the windows overlooking the manor’s gardens.

Magnus sat at the head of the table, waiting for them.

His black, well-tailored clothes gave off a fitting aura for his post. His silver hair peaking out from the sides of the front part of his head was nicely combed, giving him an overall sense of beauty and elegance.

But those who met him would soon enough discover that his most striking feature by far were his eyes.

His piercing ice-blue gaze held a sharpness to them that allowed nothing to hide from its inspection. This, coupled with the aura of silent authority that he naturally exuded, gave him an air of mystery that even the residents of the estate themselves could not deny.

Magnus never had to shout to be heard.

Generally speaking, a simple glance from him was enough to silence a room.

Evelyn walked up and gave a respectful bow to the older vampire.

"Father."

She then took a seat at the table, and Lucian followed suit.

"Uncle Magnus," Lucian greeted.

Magnus merely waved a hand dismissively. "Sit down. I believe there are a few things I need to bring up with the both of you."

Lucian was halfway through taking a seat when a sharp CRACK echoed throughout the grand hall of the Baskerville estate.

Everyone turned their attention to the source of the sound. Lucian narrowed his eyes at the crackling sound coming from beneath his boot. A thin fissure had formed in the floor directly under his foot.

He gave the spot a long, lingering stare before slowly withdrawing his boot. "...Sorry."

Evelyn turned towards him, her eyes wide. "You’re joking."

Lucian looked up at her with an expression of complete and utter innocence. "What?"

She let out a weary sigh and took a seat next to him. "Nothing. I’m just already calculating how much of this mansion would still be intact by the end of the day."I didn’t mean to damage it," Lucian scoffed. "That’s what you said about the testing machine!"

Magnus raised a single eyebrow. "The what?"

Evelyn immediately turned to her father. "It was nothing important! Just some machine! There was a little accident, that’s all!"

She tried to cover up what had happened, hoping that Magnus would drop the subject.

Lucian snickered. "A little accident, huh?"

"Don’t you dare laugh!" Evelyn shot at him.

Magnus observed the two of them for a long moment, already forgetting the reason why he had called them in the first place.

Almost.

He had called them in here to discuss something of great importance; something that could potentially change the entire future of his family for the better or for the worse.

But the moment his gaze fell on Lucian, an odd feeling began to well up in the back of his mind.

It wasn’t the feeling produced by the young vampire’s new body or the confidence in his stride. These things he could easily explain. No, this was something else entirely.

Something that was much harder to put a name to.

In addition to the odd sensation that seemed to surround Lucian, Magnus picked up on occasional waves of his nephew’s spiritual energy. To an ordinary vampire, these disturbances would have been impossible to detect.

But not for someone of Magnus’ caliber.

His expression darkened as he continued to stare at Lucian.

If his assumptions were correct, then this meeting would turn out to be more important than either of the young vampires could have ever anticipated.

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Sorry, I accidentally duplicated this the content one more time in this Chapter. I can’t remove it. I apologize for the inconvenience. I will fix this later on.

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Both of them turned as the heavy metal door slid open.

The head butler walked in, looking as composed as ever. His uniform was spotless, and his expression gave nothing away.

His gaze briefly fell on the damaged testing machine.

He paused for a moment.

Then he quietly looked away, pretending he hadn’t seen a thing.

"Young Miss. Mr. Lucian."

He bowed politely.

"The clan head would like to see you both in his private study. He asks that you come immediately."

Evelyn crossed her arms. "Did he say what it’s about?"

"No, Miss. He simply instructed me to bring you both to him as soon as possible."

Lucian nodded. "All right. Thanks."

The butler bowed once more and left the room.

As soon as the door closed behind him, Evelyn turned to Lucian.

"Do you think he suspects anything?"

Lucian glanced at her. "Suspects what?"

She stared at him as if he had to be joking.

"That you’ve just broken through to the next realm, obviously!"

"Oh. Probably."

Evelyn narrowed her eyes. "And what about the machine?"

Lucian glanced at the cracked impact pad before looking back at her with a faint smile.

"That depends on whether anyone asks about it."

"Lucian, the thing is practically begging for help!"

As if to prove her point, the machine suddenly let out another warning beep.

Lucian shrugged. "Well, we’d better get out of here before it starts screaming."

"You’re unbelievable."

Evelyn shook her head and headed for the door. Lucian followed, doing his best to ignore the increasingly frantic beeping behind them.

Unfortunately, escaping the testing room didn’t mean Lucian was out of trouble.

Sterling Manor was an impressive place, even by the standards of the wealthiest cultivation families. Marble floors stretched beneath towering ceilings, and enormous windows offered beautiful views of the sprawling gardens outside. Along the corridors stood suits of armor and ancient weapons, each displayed behind reinforced glass.

Everything about the manor screamed wealth, elegance, and perfection.

Which made Lucian’s newfound strength a rather inconvenient problem.

He didn’t feel any different from before. Walking felt normal. Breathing felt normal. Even moving his fingers seemed exactly the same as it always had.

There was nothing about his body that made him feel as though he’d suddenly gained an extraordinary amount of power.

And that was precisely the problem.

His strength had increased dramatically, but he still had no idea how to control it properly.

As they approached Magnus’s private study, Lucian reached out to steady himself while turning toward the entrance.

Unfortunately, his hand landed on the bronze doorframe.

CRUNCH!

A sharp metallic sound rang through the corridor.

Lucian froze.

Evelyn stopped and slowly followed his gaze.

Four deep indentations had appeared in the bronze, each one perfectly shaped like a fingertip. The metal had caved inward beneath his grip.

Lucian stared at his hand.

Then he slowly released the frame.

A tiny piece of bronze broke loose and dropped onto the marble floor.

Clink.

For several seconds, neither of them spoke.

Evelyn finally turned toward him. A smile spread across her face, but there was something in her expression that made Lucian immediately suspicious.

She grabbed his arm and leaned closer.

"If you break my father’s door, too, you’re paying for the repairs yourself."

Lucian looked at the damaged frame, then back at her.

"To be fair, I think the doorframe started it."

Evelyn’s smile disappeared.

"Keep talking, and I’ll make you pay for the entire corridor."

Lucian wisely decided that staying quiet was the best way to survive the next few minutes.

He straightened his clothes and approached the study door with considerably more caution.

At this rate, he might end up destroying half the manor before the day was over.

Magnus was waiting inside.

Considering how urgently they’d been summoned, Lucian doubted his uncle wanted to discuss the damaged testing equipment. Still, he couldn’t help wondering what had prompted the sudden meeting.

Breaking through to the Martial Master Realm was only the beginning. There was still plenty he needed to learn about his newfound strength, not to mention the abilities he had yet to explore.

But first, he needed to find out why Magnus wanted to see them.

Lucian raised his hand and knocked twice.

"Come in," a cold voice called from inside.

He glanced at Evelyn, then carefully pushed the door open.

Neither of them noticed the thin crack slowly spreading through the damaged bronze frame behind them.

The heavy doors opened, revealing Magnus’s private study.

The room was furnished with dark mahogany wood, giving it a dignified and somewhat imposing atmosphere. Shelves lined the walls, filled with ancient tomes, restricted manuscripts, and various relics that looked as though they had been collected over generations.

Polished mahogany furniture occupied the center of the room, and a large table stood in front of the windows overlooking the manor’s gardens.

Magnus sat at the head of the table, waiting for them.

His black, well-tailored clothes gave off a fitting aura for his post. His silver hair peaking out from the sides of the front part of his head was nicely combed, giving him an overall sense of beauty and elegance.

But those who met him would soon enough discover that his most striking feature by far were his eyes.

His piercing ice-blue gaze held a sharpness to them that allowed nothing to hide from its inspection. This, coupled with the aura of silent authority that he naturally exuded, gave him an air of mystery that even the residents of the estate themselves could not deny.

Magnus never had to shout to be heard.

Generally speaking, a simple glance from him was enough to silence a room.

Evelyn walked up and gave a respectful bow to the older vampire.

"Father."

She then took a seat at the table, and Lucian followed suit.

"Uncle Magnus," Lucian greeted.

Magnus merely waved a hand dismissively. "Sit down. I believe there are a few things I need to bring up with the both of you."

Lucian was halfway through taking a seat when a sharp CRACK echoed throughout the grand hall of the Baskerville estate.

Everyone turned their attention to the source of the sound. Lucian narrowed his eyes at the crackling sound coming from beneath his boot. A thin fissure had formed in the floor directly under his foot.

He gave the spot a long, lingering stare before slowly withdrawing his boot. "...Sorry."

Evelyn turned towards him, her eyes wide. "You’re joking."

Lucian looked up at her with an expression of complete and utter innocence. "What?"

She let out a weary sigh and took a seat next to him. "Nothing. I’m just already calculating how much of this mansion would still be intact by the end of the day."I didn’t mean to damage it," Lucian scoffed. "That’s what you said about the testing machine!"

Magnus raised a single eyebrow. "The what?"

Evelyn immediately turned to her father. "It was nothing important! Just some machine! There was a little accident, that’s all!"

She tried to cover up what had happened, hoping that Magnus would drop the subject.

Lucian snickered. "A little accident, huh?"

"Don’t you dare laugh!" Evelyn shot at him.

Magnus observed the two of them for a long moment, already forgetting the reason why he had called them in the first place.

Almost.

He had called them in here to discuss something of great importance; something that could potentially change the entire future of his family for the better or for the worse.

But the moment his gaze fell on Lucian, an odd feeling began to well up in the back of his mind.

It wasn’t the feeling produced by the young vampire’s new body or the confidence in his stride. These things he could easily explain. No, this was something else entirely.

Something that was much harder to put a name to.

In addition to the odd sensation that seemed to surround Lucian, Magnus picked up on occasional waves of his nephew’s spiritual energy. To an ordinary vampire, these disturbances would have been impossible to detect.

But not for someone of Magnus’ caliber.

His expression darkened as he continued to stare at Lucian.

If his assumptions were correct, then this meeting would turn out to be more important than either of the young vampires could have ever anticipated.