Harem System In A fantasy World

Chapter 479: Miracle

Lucius and Lilith stared up at Celeste’s levitating form with worried gazes.

They had been here for almost a full day now, and whatever process her bloodline ascension was going through was taking far too long.

Every so often, a massive pulse of radiant blood energy would erupt from her body, rush out of the cavern, and spread into the skies above Dreadmoor Hollow.

These waves of energy would then descend over the territory, empowering and strengthening every vampire they touched.

Those who had been stuck at the same stage for decades suddenly felt the walls holding them back crack apart as some of them broke through instantly.

Others found their bloodlines growing purer, if only by a fraction, their bodies becoming stronger, and old injuries they had long since accepted beginning to heal.

It was nothing short of a miracle.

By this point, news that Princess Celeste’s bloodline was undergoing an ascension had reached nearly everyone in Dreadmoor Hollow.

It was no surprise that a grand celebratory atmosphere had already taken over the territory, with vampires gathering in the streets and their courtyards beneath the bloody sky.

Most of them looked toward the dark, menacing castle built atop the steep cliff, eagerly awaiting news of the princess’s successful ascension.

Inside the castle, the elders had all gathered within the ominous throne room with bated breath.

Morgana and Oberon were among those waiting as patiently as they could. For them, the wait was perhaps even worse.

They were so close to the holy land that every pulse of Celeste’s power caused the walls and floor around them to tremble, yet Lilith had strictly forbidden anyone from following her inside.

So they could do nothing but wait.

Back inside the gloomy cavern of the holy land, however, the most astonishing detail of Celeste’s breakthrough was not the suppressive aura radiating from her body.

It was her hair.

The long strands whipping violently around her had turned a pure white that almost looked like freshly fallen snow.

The crimson energy surrounding her only made the contrast more striking.

Her pale figure floated above the basin containing the Ancestral Heart, her white hair trailing behind her as glowing, blood-red, vein-like lines pulsed across her skin.

With every beat of the ancient heart beneath her, the cavern trembled, and another wave of power rolled through Dreadmoor Hollow.

"When do you think she will wake?" Lilith asked. The worry in her voice was impossible to hide.

Lucius only shook his head.

He had no way of knowing.

Most vampires would awaken immediately after finishing their bloodline trial, but whatever Celeste was experiencing could no longer be compared to an ordinary trial.

This was something else entirely: Something that neither of them had ever witnessed before. Lucius’s gaze never left his daughter.

His fists remained clenched at his sides, and every time her body trembled beneath the overwhelming power flowing through her, his instincts screamed at him to intervene.

But he could not. They had already reached a point where any interference might do more harm than good.

All he could do was stand there, wait, and trust that Celeste would endure.

However, if Lucius had been more focused on himself, or rather, if he had not been so completely absorbed in Celeste’s condition, he would have noticed that something about him had changed as well.

His aura had grown deeper. His mana core had expanded, and the invisible wall that had held him back, keeping him at the Pseudo-Saint stage for so many years, was simply gone.

Lucius was no longer a Peak Sage.

At some point during the repeated waves of power released by Celeste’s ascension, he had crossed that final threshold.

He was now a Saint. Lilith slowly turned her head toward him. At first, she merely frowned, and then her eyes widened.

"Lucius..."

He did not look at her.

"What is it?"

Lilith stared at him in disbelief.

The pressure surrounding her husband was not as overwhelming as the suppression coming from Celeste, but she could feel it. Maybe it had taken her so long to even notice it just because it was being overshadowed by Celeste’s Ascension.

It was also subtle because he was not intentionally releasing his aura, but to someone as familiar with him as she was, the change was unmistakable.

"You..." Her voice faltered.

Lucius finally glanced at her as Lilith stepped closer, her crimson eyes scanning him from head to toe. "You broke through."

Lucius frowned. "What?"

"You broke through," she repeated, louder this time. "You are a Saint now."

For a moment, Lucius simply stared at her, then turned his attention inward with a frown. It took him only a moment to realize that she was right. He could feel it, but how had he missed it!?

The vast reserve of power within his core and the depth of his aura were unmistakable. His eyes widened.

"How..."

He looked back toward Celeste as another pulse of crimson energy erupted from her body.

Lucius felt it clearly. The energy swept through him, resonating with his bloodline and strengthening the newly formed foundation of his Saint rank.

Lilith followed his gaze.

"It was her," she whispered.

The realization settled over both of them slowly. Celeste’s ascension had pushed a Peak Sage into Sainthood.

And if her bloodline could produce such an effect before she had even fully awakened, what would happen once the transformation was complete?

The thought filled Lilith with wonder and fear. Lucius looked up at his daughter again, his expression becoming even more serious.

"Celeste," he muttered.

As though responding to her father’s voice, Celeste’s fingers twitched, and the Ancestral Heart beneath her gave a violent beat.

Boom!

The entire cavern shook.

Cracks spread across the stone walls, and a pillar of crimson light erupted from Celeste’s body, tearing upward through the ceiling of the holy land without damaging the stone.

Outside, the bloody sun seemed to grow brighter, and every vampire in Dreadmoor Hollow froze.

Those celebrating fell silent while those who had been kneeling reverently raised their heads toward the bright crimson pillar.

The elders inside the throne room shot to their feet. Deep within the cavern, Lucius and Lilith stared upward as Celeste’s eyes slowly began to open.

For a brief moment, there was nothing behind them but blinding crimson light, and then the pressure descended.

It spread through Dreadmoor Hollow like the authority of an ancient monarch returning to claim her throne.

Lucius’s newly formed Saint aura trembled beneath it, and Lilith’s knees nearly buckled. Across the territory, every vampire felt their blood respond.

A feeling of submission slowly filled their hearts, and even though none of them could understand why, their blood knew what their minds had yet to understand.

The being awakening within the holy land was no longer merely their esteemed royal princess. Celeste Chronos had become something far greater than any of them could even begin to imagine.

A kind of existence they had all lost any hope of ever bowing down to in their formerly mighty clan.

And as the towering crimson pillar outside slowly began to thin out, signaling perhaps the long-awaited end of this momentous occasion, three figures suddenly appeared in the throne room with a sharp rush of displaced air and violent distortion of the space around them.

Morgana, Oberon, and the other gathered elders were shocked beyond words.

Several of them instinctively prepared to attack, their auras surging as mana gathered around their bodies, ready to attack this daring intruder!

However, the sight of a familiar figure standing among the three newcomers calmed them down, if only a little.

Elion casually craned his neck from side to side, cracking it as he looked around the gloomy interior of the uniquely crafted castle.

The throne room was enormous, built from smooth black stone that seemed to absorb the crimson light shining through the tall windows.

Blood-red banners hung from the towering walls, each bearing one crest or the other, while rows of dark pillars stretched toward the distant throne.

"We got here faster than I thought," Elion said lightly as he turned to face the gathered vampires, who looked at him with varying expressions.

Dorian could only sigh and shake his head.

He had already tried to persuade Elion to make a proper entrance. He had even offered to introduce him at the gates before they respectfully made their way through the castle and into the sacred throne room.

But the boy simply refused to listen.

’A future prince consort has to make a proper, flashy entrance,’ Elion had said.

Dorian was already beginning to regret telling him what position he might hold within the clan.