It was night. Drayen sat on his bed, his back straight. He talked to Wing. "Wing, what is the ability he used? Did you analyse it?"
[It's a passive ability of the Werewolf. It's very rare.]
[You would awaken one if you had more luck or a higher-grade bloodline.]
Drayen went into his own thoughts. He was very angry. The arrogant boy was also Rank 1, and this was the difference between them. He was helpless as he stood staring while he attacked Lina. Abilities were what defined the Nightborne. He had just two abilities—Few Butterfly Dust for healing, and Moon Butterfly Eyes. No passive, and he didn't even have an attack ability. Moon Butterfly specialized in support rather than attack. He would be defeated instantly if he had gone to fight him without a gun.
Drayen asked, "Wing, I have so many bloodlines. You have collected enough data through the books and other sources I provided. Anyway, did you find anything that could be an advantage for me?"
[Yes]
[Your low-grade bloodlines wouldn't grant you much at first.]
[Because they're the lowest grade. There will be an advantage at Rank 2.]
Drayen's eyes squinted. How would he have an advantage? More than that, it wasn't easy to achieve Rank 2. A person needed 80 Rank One cores to reach the threshold. And then he would need 8 Rank Two cores to break that threshold and achieve Rank 2. This was the challenge for breaking a rank. You had to collect 8 cores of the upper rank. If you had a lower bloodline, you would have to keep farming Rank One Tainted and gain abilities before going for Rank Two Tainted. The real problem was reaching Rank 2.
"How?" he questioned.
[You know about passives, right?]
"Yes. Passives are abilities that change the body itself once awakened, and they use no Nightmare Essence. And it's very difficult to awaken one with a bloodline below First Grade."
[But you can easily exchange Rank One cores for Rank Two.]
He understood what it was saying. It was telling him to reach Rank 2 through the Moon Butterfly bloodline. Gain Rank 2 cores by killing Rank 2 Tainted, then exchange them for Rank 1 cores of his other bloodlines and try to gain passives.
"Are you sure? Most materials on multiple bloodlines say you can't do that." Drayen's eyes narrowed in doubt.
[I can't fully confirm this, but after analyzing all the data I have—and your body—I believe you don't have any conflicts among bloodlines. Even passive abilities you can stack without problems.]
[Yes. I am 100 percent sure about conflicting bloodlines. But stacking passives—I'm about seventy percent sure.]
He questioned, "So no other advantage now?"
[No. Rebirth took most of the mysterious power. So you got all the bloodlines at the lowest grade. Even second grade would be better, but currently you don't have any advantage.]
[If you are lucky, you can make some combo skills with other bloodlines to increase your combat power.]
He gave a long sigh as he saw the cores in his hands. There were only two cores. In 10 days he could have gained more abilities, but because of school he had to give half of his loot. He had only absorbed 12 cores till now. Most of the days he only got one core due to school taking another.
He closed his eyes as he began to absorb the core. After a few moments he had absorbed one—no ability. His eyes clearly showed disappointment. He absorbed another, and his disappointment increased further.
In the morning, it was Sunday—a holiday. He went to Kira's house.
Drayen knocked on the door.
"Coming. Wait."
After a few minutes, the door opened. Kira had just woken up, her hair messy, wearing night pants and a shirt. His mind wandered as he stared at her—cute.
He waved the covers. "I brought breakfast," he said, showing the cover in his hands.
She yawned as she stretched her arms. "Come in, wait for me to freshen up."
After a few minutes, they started eating. Kira had freshened up and was wearing casual clothing. Drayen asked, "Did you complete level 34 in JD?"
"No. I was busy. The fucking monster just won't die." There was a hint of anger in her eyes.
Drayen laughed internally. She was so good at dealing with Tainted, yet she was awful at video games. He asked in a curious way, "Kira, which rank are you?"
She looked him in the eye as she said, "Finally couldn't hold your curiosity, huh?" Kira knew he was a curious bee. Even she was surprised he held out this long.
He just laughed it off.
Kira said smugly, "Rank 2 in number, but I can combat with Rank 3 easily."
Drayen smiled. "Why didn't you rank up then?"
Kira glared at him. "Are you doubting me about dealing with Rank 3?"
He waved his hands quickly. "No, no!"
She exhaled once and leaned back slightly. "Well… it's not really a secret. I have seven bloodlines. If I push for Rank 3, they'll start conflicting."
Drayen froze. For a moment, he wondered if he had heard her wrong. Seven?
She noticed his expression and snorted lightly. "What's with that face? Oh—right. That shadow at your awakening? That was me." She smiled teasingly.
He stared at her, unable to form a proper sentence. She was the shadow from that day… and she had seven bloodlines? His mind stormed with questions.
Before he could speak, she continued casually, "And honestly, I'm pretty sure you also have multiple bloodlines."
He almost choked on his food as he coughed. Kira always struck fast, always hit the center of the target.
She tilted her head. "During awakening, people appear near others with similar bloodlines. You appeared near me. So—simple logic."
Drayen acted like he was panicking and dumb. "Whaaat? So I'll also get stuck at Rank 2?"
She said calmly, "Probably not, but we have to check to know for sure. I guess you'll get stuck at Rank 3. I have seven, so I'm stuck at Rank 2. Don't be disappointed—you'll understand that it's actually good news."
Drayen had known this. He had checked all the materials and sources regarding this. If you have two bloodlines you will get stuck at Rank 3, but if you have more you would be stuck at Rank 2. As for all bloodlines—there was no one born like that.
She sighed softly, disappointment flickering in her eyes.
Before she knew it, they had finished eating. The mood had gotten too heavy for a morning meal, so she clapped her hands suddenly. "Let's just play a game. We'll think about this later. Hehehe."
Drayen was nervous as heck because there were always experiments on non-conflicting bloodlines. His hands were sweating. He was happy she diverted the issue herself. He let out a long sigh.
"Yeah, let's go," he said.
They took out their mobile phones as they started playing. Slowly Drayen was immersed in the gaming. It was like the reveals had never happened.
"Hey, use the special ability. Now!" he shouted.
"I am trying, wait!"
"No, no, no, the boss will kill us!" Drayen panicked.
"Did you not practice?" he asked.
"I have a job, you know." Kira lied.
"Oh, look who's talking. Want me to open your profile? It literally shows how many hours you played this month. You play more than me—just admit you suck at the game."He snorted as he noticed her lie.
They had become more casual as they got closer. First she used to call him for gaming. Then he used to regularly come to her house and they would have breakfast. Now they looked like buddies rather than teacher and student.
He squeezed his phone when he saw the word—Dead.
She was angry at herself as she dropped her phone on the sofa.
He breathed out; this boss they had been stuck on for a long time now. "Let me teach you."
He came behind her, holding her hands as he began teaching her his moves. She felt his breath brush against her ear. He was close—too close. She hadn't realized when the distance between them had vanished.
Her cheeks turned red as his hands guided hers. Her fingers stiffened for a moment.
Why… why is my heart beating so fast? When did we get this close?
It was the first time she truly noticed it.
Her hands slipped. He groaned, "Where is your mind? Focus."
She looked at his face—up close, so serious. There was a soft gulp, then she nodded quickly.
Next day, outside Mr. Dordo's office, Zuko was standing.
He took a deep breath; his hands were still shaking. He knocked on the door.
"Come in," Dordo answered.
Zuko pushed the door open. His hands felt weak as he stepped inside. Mr. Dordo was searching for a book, but he looked up and met Zuko's eyes. Zuko's face was pale, yet there was a firm determination in his gaze.
"Mr. Dordo… I want to change to mysterious school."