My Blood Legacy: Bloodlines

Victor still had not told the truth about having returned from the future.

Not because he had given up on the idea, nor because he did not trust Carmilla, Scarlet, Serafall, or the other people who were now part of his life. In truth, after everything that had happened over the last few months, hiding it was becoming increasingly difficult. Some questions had already been asked, some suspicions had begun to emerge, and Rowena had come far too close to the truth without even realizing it.

Even so, Victor continued keeping that secret for one very simple reason: he did not want to turn everything into chaos before the moment that actually mattered.

In his mind, revealing that he had already lived another life would change nothing right now. Carmilla would probably try to learn every detail about her own future. Serafall would immediately begin investigating every name he mentioned. Chysis would reorganize half the family’s military forces. Scarlet would become worried about every threat that might reach Victor, and all of them would begin acting according to information from a timeline that had already been altered so many times that it might no longer exist in that form at all.

Victor preferred to wait.

For months, he had destroyed practically everything he knew as a possible cause of that future. Edgar Valentine was dead. Jake had been prevented from following the same path. Natasha had survived the illness that was supposed to kill her. The prodigies of the Valentine Family were still alive, Carmilla and Scarlet had been freed from their seals, and the werewolves’ movements had been discovered much earlier than expected. Victor himself was no longer someone Serafall would need to carry while fleeing a fortress in flames. His body, technique, and power were on another level.

Even so, he did not consider that enough.

He wanted the perfect result.

Everyone alive.

The Valentine Family overcoming what should have destroyed it.

And after that, a future he could finally call his own, without having to compare every choice to a death he had already lived through.

When he was certain that night would never happen again, Victor would tell them everything.

Until then, he would wait.

At that moment, however, his greatest problem was considerably more mundane.

"I prefer normal clothes."

Victor stood in front of a bed covered in suits Serafall had set aside for him. Carmilla remained beside the wardrobe examining other pieces while Scarlet knelt on the mattress, pulling coats, sashes, and accessories from different boxes. Victor was beginning to suspect his mother had prepared all of this long before any invitation to the Gala Ball had appeared.

Carmilla looked at the simple shirt he was still wearing.

"That is normal clothing for training."

"It’s comfortable."

"You are going to a ball for vampire high society."

"I still only need pants and a shirt."

Scarlet raised her head.

"You really want to walk into a hall full of the most important families in the Realm wearing a shirt that has probably already been torn during training?"

Victor looked at his own sleeve.

"This one is new."

Carmilla approached and tugged a small loose thread near his shoulder.

"You wore this today."

"I barely trained."

"Victor."

He sighed.

Carmilla let go of the fabric and began arranging the clothes across the bed.

"Dinners and gala events among vampires are not merely parties. Appearance matters because status matters. You are the son of General Serafall and the grandson of Marshal Chysis. People will watch how you enter, who you speak to, what you wear, and even how long you remain beside a particular family."

"That sounds exhausting."

"It is."

"Then I don’t see the advantage."

"You don’t have to like it to use it."

Victor crossed his arms.

"If someone judges me because I chose the wrong clothes, that’s their problem."

Scarlet gave a short laugh.

"It matters the moment you want to become stronger."

Victor turned his gaze toward her.

Scarlet discarded a piece she did not like and continued searching.

"You’re always talking about power. But power isn’t just being able to cut a mountain. If you enter a room looking important, important people treat you like someone important. If they trust your position, they offer things they would not show just anyone. Techniques, information, contacts, alliances."

"That sounds exactly like my mother’s speech."

"Because she’s right."

Victor made an annoyed expression.

Scarlet smiled.

"You know that. After you impressed Rakshasa, you received two of the most powerful techniques a vampire could ask for. You didn’t get those just because you showed up and asked."

"I fought too."

"Exactly. You showed value."

Carmilla nodded.

"Clothing is merely another way to do that before you even open your mouth."

Victor looked at the absurd amount of clothing spread across the bed.

"I still think it’s excessive."

"You don’t have to like it," Carmilla replied again. "You only need to look good."

Scarlet finally pulled out one of the options.

"This one."

Victor looked.

It was the first outfit Serafall had set aside, and it certainly did not look like something chosen to go unnoticed. The attire had a dark base somewhere between black and deep blue, fitted to the body and designed more like a noble uniform than a conventional suit. Bluish panels with cold reflections covered the chest, surrounded by golden details and small embroidered crests. Decorative cords crossed part of the torso, secured by metallic pieces, while the shoulders had a more structured finish and the high collar preserved a military appearance.

The sleeves were dark and fitted, and the set came with black gloves. There were also ornamental bands near the arms and chest, with golden designs subtle enough not to turn it into a costume, but striking enough to make it clear that whoever wore the outfit held a high position.

Victor stared at it.

Scarlet held the set up in front of him.

"I think it’s this one."

"That looks like a prince’s uniform."

"You practically are one."

"I’m not."

Carmilla examined the outfit.

"That really does suit you."

Victor looked at her.

"You too?"

"Your dark hair will match the blue, and the golden details make it more formal without making it too bright." Carmilla stepped closer to inspect the cut. "Besides, your shoulders became broader after the refinement. This structure will look good on you."

Victor rubbed a hand over his face.

"You two are taking this way too seriously."

Scarlet held the outfit against his chest to compare the size.

"You’re not taking it seriously enough."

Victor looked at the clothes and then at the two women.

"I’m not wearing all those cords."

"You are."

"Scarlet."

"You’ll look handsome."

"That isn’t an argument."

"It’s the only one that matters to me."

Carmilla gave a small laugh and picked up one of the gloves.

"Put it on."

Victor looked at her.

"Now?"

"We need to know whether Serafall got the size right."

"She probably did."

"It probably doesn’t fit."

"Why?"

Carmilla touched his chest.

"Because your body has changed a lot in the last six months."

Victor looked at his own arms. She was right. Body Refinement had not drastically increased his size, but his structure was different, especially around the shoulders, back, and legs. The clothes Serafall had bought before his training might genuinely no longer fit properly.

Scarlet pushed the outfit toward him.

"Go on. Try it."

Victor took the clothes.

"You two are going to keep watching?"

Both answered at the same time.

"Yes."

Victor fell silent.

Scarlet smiled.

Carmilla crossed her arms.

He looked at the outfit again.

"I could just change in another room."

"You could," Carmilla replied.

"But you won’t," Scarlet added.

Victor let out a long sigh.

"I survived the Heavenly Demon’s training just to end up being used like a dress-up doll."

Scarlet pointed toward the folding screen in the corner of the room.

"Stop complaining and go."

Victor started walking in that direction with the outfit in his arms.

Before disappearing behind the screen, he looked again at the amount of clothing Serafall had bought.

"My mother really planned all of this."

Carmilla smiled.

"She knows the son she has."

Victor remained silent for a few seconds before admitting:

"That’s a difficult argument to contest."

Scarlet tossed one of the gloves over the screen.

"And put everything on."

"I heard you."

"The cords too."

"Scarlet."

"Everything."

Victor did not answer again.

The two women heard only the irritated sounds of clothes being changed behind the screen.

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