The first thing Damien did after Valerie left him alone was bleed.
Not a lot, just enough.
He stood in his assigned quarters, which was a drafty room with a broken window and furniture that looked ready to collapse and pulled out a rusted dagger he'd found on the way up. The blade was dull, but it would work.
"This is insane," he muttered, pressing the edge against his palm. "Completely insane."
But he had already comprehended the Blood Altar. He knew exactly how much he needed. Fifty drops would give him five units of blood essence. Combined with his remaining resources, that would be enough for the first upgrade.
The question was whether his body could handle it.
Damien took a breath and dragged the blade across his skin.
Pain flared hot and immediate. Blood welled up, trickling down his palm. He held his hand over a clay cup he'd grabbed from the corner, watching red drops fall one by one.
[BLOOD ESSENCE COLLECTED: 0.1 UNITS]
The notification appeared after the first drop. So the system was tracking it. Good.
He kept going. Ten drops. Twenty. Thirty.
His hand throbbed. His vision blurred slightly at the edges. But the strange thing was, he didn't feel weaker. If anything, there was a weird energy building inside him, like his body was trying to compensate for the blood loss.
Maybe it was a lord thing. Maybe the system wouldn't let him die from something this stupid. Or maybe he was just running on adrenaline and poor decision-making.
Fifty drops.
[BLOOD ESSENCE COLLECTED: 5 UNITS]
Damien wrapped his hand in torn cloth from the bedsheet and grabbed the cup. His palm still bled sluggishly through the makeshift bandage, but he could deal with that later.
The castle was quiet as he made his way back down to the Blood Altar chamber. Twin moons cast silver light through the broken sections of ceiling, illuminating his path. Somewhere in the distance, something howled. Monsters, probably. A reminder that he had less than seven days before they came for him in force.
The altar waited in the darkness, its runic patterns pulsing faintly.
Damien approached and poured the blood into the central depression.
The reaction happened immediately, a red light exploded outward as the blood hit obsidian. The runes blazed to life, patterns spreading across the entire chamber like wildfire. The liquid flowed through the carved channels, following paths that suddenly made perfect sense to Damien's comprehension-enhanced mind.
[BLOOD ESSENCE DEPOSITED: 5 UNITS]
[BLOOD ALTAR AWAKENING]
The altar hummed, a deep vibration he felt in his bones. Then came the second notification.
[INFINITE UPGRADE ACTIVATED]
[TARGET: BLOOD ALTAR (INACTIVE, RANK F)]
[UPGRADE COST: 50 FOOD, 20 STONE, 10 IRON, 5 BLOOD ESSENCE]
[PROCEED?]
"Yes," Damien said aloud.
His resources drained instantly. Somewhere in his territory, fifty units of food, twenty units of stone, and ten units of iron simply vanished, converted into raw energy that flowed into the altar.
The transformation was beautiful and terrifying.
The obsidian platform began to shift. Cracks spread across its surface, but instead of breaking, the stone was reforming. The runic patterns grew more intricate, adding layers of complexity that hadn't existed before. New channels carved themselves into existence. The altar expanded, growing from a simple platform into something that looked almost organic—flowing curves and sharp edges blending together.
[UPGRADE COMPLETE]
[BLOOD ALTAR: RANK-E]
[NEW FUNCTIONS UNLOCKED]
[BLOOD ESSENCE GENERATION: PASSIVE (0.5 UNITS/DAY)]
[UNIT ENHANCEMENT: AVAILABLE]
[BLOOD RITUAL: BASIC TIER UNLOCKED]
Damien stared at the upgraded altar. It now pulsed with steady crimson light, and he could feel power radiating from it. Real, tangible power.
But more than that, his Infinite Comprehension had activated again during the upgrade. New knowledge flooded in—advanced blood magic techniques, ritual formations, essence manipulation methods that went far beyond basic understanding.
[NEW KNOWLEDGE ACQUIRED: BLOOD MAGIC (ADVANCED), ESSENCE MANIPULATION (ADVANCED), VAMPIRIC ENHANCEMENT TECHNIQUES (BASIC)]
He stumbled back, pressing a hand to his temple as information sorted itself in his mind. It was like learning years of study in seconds. Overwhelming but manageable.
And now he understood something crucial.
The Blood Altar could generate essence passively. Half a unit per day didn't sound like much, but it meant he wouldn't need to constantly bleed himself dry. More importantly, he could use the altar to enhance his guards and eventually create proper vampiric troops.
But there was something else. A technique he'd just comprehended, buried in the advanced blood magic knowledge.
Blood Resonance.
It would let him connect to anyone who'd contributed blood to his altar. Not control them—nothing that invasive—but sense them, communicate over distance, and share small amounts of power if needed.
Damien looked at his bandaged hand, then at the altar still glowing with his blood.
He was connected to it now. Part of him literally fueled this structure.
The implications were staggering.
"What are you doing?"
Damien spun around. Valerie stood at the chamber entrance, backlit by moonlight. Her crimson eyes were wide with genuine shock.
"The altar," she said, moving closer. "It's active. More than active—it's been upgraded. How did you..." She trailed off, staring at the pulsing obsidian. "This is D-rank. It should take weeks to gather enough resources for this. You've been here for less than three hours."
Damien had prepared for this moment during his walk back up to his quarters. He needed a cover story. Something believable that wouldn't reveal his talents but would explain the impossible.
"I used my own blood," he said, showing her the bandaged hand. "And I spent everything. All my starting resources."
"That's still not enough." Valerie circled the altar, examining it with the intensity of someone who'd seen this structure hundreds of times and never witnessed anything like this. "The conversion rate for mortal blood is terrible. You'd need to drain yourself completely for five units of essence, and that would kill you. Yet here you stand, barely even pale."
She was too smart. Of course she was—centuries of experience meant she could calculate resource costs in her sleep.
Damien shrugged, going for nonchalant. "Maybe the system liked my determination. Maybe my card has hidden bonuses. I don't know. But it worked."
Valerie's eyes narrowed. "You're lying."
"I'm really not."
"You're lying about something." She moved closer, studying his face. "I can always tell. Seventeen lords, remember? I know when mortals are hiding things."
They stood there in silence, the upgraded altar casting red light across both their faces.
Finally, Valerie stepped back. "Fine. Keep your secrets, Lord Ashford. But know this—I will discover the truth eventually. I always do."
"I'm counting on it," Damien said quietly.
That surprised her. "What?"
"In six days, you'll see what I can really do. Until then, I need you to help me understand this world. The monsters, the other lords, the rules we're playing by. Can you do that?"
Valerie studied him for a long moment. Then, inexplicably, she smiled. A real one this time, not mocking or cold.
"You're different from the others," she said. "I'm not sure if that's a good thing yet. But yes, Lord Ashford. I'll help you survive your first week. After that..." She gestured at the altar. "After that, we'll see if your mysterious talents are enough."
Damien nodded. "Fair enough."
She turned to leave, then paused at the chamber entrance. "One more thing. That Blood Resonance technique you just unlocked? Don't use it on me without permission. I'll know if you try, and I won't appreciate it."
Damien froze. "How did you—"
"D-rank Blood Altars unlock basic resonance." Valerie glanced back at him, crimson eyes glinting with amusement. "I told you, I know this structure better than you ever will. Get some rest, my lord. Tomorrow, we begin your real education."
She disappeared into the shadows, leaving Damien alone with his upgraded altar and racing thoughts.
She'd known about Blood Resonance. Which meant she probably knew a lot more about what the altar could do at various ranks. If he kept upgrading it, she'd notice. She'd start asking harder questions.
But he couldn't stop now. Six days until the monster wave. Six days to transform this ruin into something defensible.
Damien looked at his bandaged hand, then at the glowing altar.
His resources were gone. His blood had been spent. But he'd taken the first step.
Tomorrow, he'd take the second.
And Valerie would either become his greatest ally or his biggest problem.
Possibly both.