’Uh... I knew this would happen.’

The Heart family’s pursuit of the Veys had nothing to do with glory or history. They wanted the same artifact Julien was after, and that one desire had fueled countless strategies over the past century.

All of that, a century of careful strategy, had been stripped down to something blunt and ugly. Kill as many Veys as possible. Threaten Purple into compliance.

When Purple gained the alliance of Theo, Ally of Mankind, the Heart family had no choice but to go quiet. For weeks, not a single Vey had lost their life.

But the Heart family’s alliance with the Voss family, who rivaled the Veys, though more competitively than violently, made one thing clear. It was only a matter of time before they moved again.

Julien was well informed. And he knew that Lovis, smart as he was, wouldn’t move without precaution. With the ability to converse with the souls of his deceased family members, he would have left at least a soul or two behind to shadow him.

’I suppose spending time with that witch improved my thinking... a little.’

The possibility of being shadowed led him to another conclusion: the date of the meeting between the Heart and Voss families would likely be changed. And if he had to guess, he leaned toward it being pushed forward.

Why?

Purple had spread her wings after her recognition as a hero. The Vey family had been highly compensated, and their name now carried weight that few could match, renowned as the most powerful family and one that even the High Court thought twice about crossing.

This had opened a massive gap between the Vey family and their rivals. And all of it had happened while Purple was still in her Ordinary State.

She carried the knowledge of over a thousand souls, and if she were allowed to keep growing, that gap would only become impossible to close.

The eavesdropping ghost had almost certainly heard of their plan to infiltrate the Jubilee House auction. An event that would force Purple to use her full power was the perfect storm for her growth, and they would know that.

They would want to strike before it happened. And he knew Lovis well enough. The man was too arrogant to take any other approach.

By this point, Julien had already walked into the Voss family’s construction site, the meeting held within the one building that stood complete among the rest.

He had slaughtered every guard at their post, and conveniently, since neither Lovis nor Cain wanted anyone overhearing their conversation, all the workers had been dismissed long before he arrived.

Julien stretched his muscles and pulled the blood from the corpses, shaping it into a spear.

Before him stood Cain and Lovis, both flanked by their kin, both wearing the same dazed and confused expression. Unable to understand how he had gotten there. There had been a ghost shadowing him after all.

Julien wasn’t fazed. He looked as calm as ever, but underneath that calm, he was slightly annoyed.

"We don’t have to drag this out any longer, do we? I heard some very bizarre news yesterday. Apparently, my friend possesses the Inheritance of Morningstar, and for some reason, that really ticks my soul."

Lovis sneered, biting his lip so hard it had nearly drawn blood.

"How did you get here? You were in your room moments ago!"

Julien sighed and moved toward him with an almost bored annoyance. Lovis’s eyes sank to a deeper red than they usually were, and then, from his pocket, little puppets fashioned from blood burst out and moved toward Julien in fast, frantic succession. Almost comedically so.

"My Inheritance is simple. It lacks the flashy displays of the others, which somehow makes it fit me perfectly. I’m starting to understand why I was chosen to wield it."

He didn’t get to finish. Cain was already moving toward him, rage pouring out in curses as a blade formed in his hand.

This was his first time seeing Cain in person. Purple had used the word "monkey" to describe him, and he had thought she was just being mean. He reconsidered that now. The man’s face was covered in nothing but hair.

He chuckled.

Calm as he appeared, his anger still bled through the surface. He had thought it through. He wasn’t going to fight Cain.

"Emotional State, Third Form, Crimson Halos."

The remaining blood in the corpses moved before Cain could reach him.

They reformed into halos around the kinsmen of Lovis and Cain, wrapping around him with a firmness that stopped him cold. Spikes erupted from the halo and buried themselves deep into the ground, locking him in place.

The agonizing screams drew Cain’s attention for just a moment, and that was all Julien needed. A fair fight with Cain wasn’t something he could win.

The man was a ranked Moon Killer, wielding an Inheritance that let him forge swords from souls.

Julien may have been tier-5 and technically a Moon Killer himself, but taking on someone ranked 177th wasn’t a hassle he was ready for. He was going with his most powerful attack.

"Protector State, Execution of Tainted Blood." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

It felt as though the air itself froze. Every drop of blood from every corpse in the room was drained, the kinsmen’s included, and forced into something that felt like confinement.

Lovis and Cain looked horrified.

Everywhere they turned, there was nothing but blood, slowly rising, swallowing them like an ocean. And they heard their own distorted and horrified cries. Even though neither of them was crying.

"Jeez, I hate this form."

Julien sneered.

A halo rotated above his head, each turn releasing drops of blood that fell onto him. His eyes went entirely red, not a trace of white remaining, crimson streaming down his face like tears.

His whole body carried the weight of sorrow. The sadness that filled him was old and familiar, the day his parents died was still fresh in his heart.

He exhaled.

"Are you going to listen to me now?"

"..."

He found a suitable place and settled himself, careful not to sink too far into the sadness.

"This explains why my appearance looks so dull. Your ghost didn’t witness me forming a fake body with my blood or the puppets I used to follow you. In my Emotional State, my Inheritance merely intensifies the red glow in my eyes."

He knew they wouldn’t hear him. This was their execution. Each of them was drowning in sorrow deeper than anything they had felt before, seeing nothing but blood. Breaking through was possible, but he knew none of them had the willpower.

"Let them try. I can always give them a real execution... by ending their lives."

His eyes swept the room in search of Purple. The form was making him look, and feel, more depressed than he already was, and he didn’t like it. He had held on as long as he could. Any longer and he would start sobbing.

"Whoa... I didn’t think you had it in you to take them on."

Speak of the devil...

Julien smiled painfully. Real tears nearly followed.