Maika's heart raced. A child born under the blood moon? That could mean so many things.
Her mind worked frantically as she continued reading, piecing together the fragmented details.
> "The flame is tied to the bloodline. Only those of Lucille's descent can awaken it. The Crimson Order seeks them, for they know that the revival of Lucifer's bloodline is the key to his resurrection. But the flame will not obey them. It will only listen to the true heir."
Maika slammed the book shut, her breath coming in sharp gasps. There was no time to waste. The Crimson Order was hunting down these descendants, and if they succeeded in finding them first…
She clenched her fists, the familiar burn of the black flame rising within her, a warning, a promise.
She had to find them. She had to protect them. Before it was too late.
---
Later that evening, Maika returned to the Landon estate, her mind still racing with the new knowledge she had uncovered. Carl was waiting for her in the drawing room, his face tense with concern.
"Maika," he said, his voice low. "You've been distant. What's going on?"
Maika met his gaze, her expression hardening with resolve. "The Crimson Order is not our only problem, Carl. There are descendants of Lucille still alive, and they hold the key to a power that could destroy us all. We have to find them before the Order does."
Carl's eyes darkened with understanding, but his voice remained steady. "What do we do?"
Maika stepped closer, the flame in her chest burning brighter as she spoke. "We find the descendants. We protect them. And we stop the Order, no matter the cost."
The moon hung high, veiled behind drifting clouds, as Maika stood at the threshold of the forgotten valley—an ancient land sealed from outsiders by generations of magic. Only one name had led her here: Lysus, the mage who once stood beside Lucille, the fabled daughter of Lucifer and Corinne.
It was through fragmented scrolls and whispers from forbidden grimoires that Maika traced the legacy of Lucille and Lysus to a single surviving bloodline—the Haru Clan.
Inside the quiet sanctum of the Haru Shrine, Maika stood beside the Matriarch, Lady Ayaka Haru. The air was thick with incense and memories as golden runes danced across the surface of the basin before them. A faint flame hovered above Maika's palm—dark and alive, hungry with power.
"You must prepare yourself," Ayaka warned, her voice like the whisper of old pages. "Lucille did not bear her bloodline with love. It was born of something far more dangerous."
Maika's gaze sharpened. "Tell me everything. The Council suspects the Crimson Order seeks Lucille's descendants for a reason. I need to know why."
Ayaka gave a slow nod and stepped forward, her fingers splayed over the basin as her magic summoned a vision from centuries past. "Then let the flame show you."
THE VISION BEGINS—
A swirl of golden mist unfolded into a stone fortress lit by candlelight. Standing at its heart was Lucille—the eighth and most rebellious child of the fallen Devil King, Lucifer. With flowing raven hair and eyes that shimmered like molten obsidian, she embodied temptation itself.
Lucifer had long since perished, destroyed by a combined rebellion of witches, lycans, and his own disillusioned children. But Lucille remained. Unbound, untamed… and unapologetic.
She craved sensation. Power. And control.
She found what she wanted in Lysus—a powerful mage renowned for his gift of Mind Control. He was married. Respected. But Lucille didn't care.
"She didn't love him," Ayaka's voice echoed alongside the vision. "She merely enjoyed him. The thrill. The chase. The destruction."
Lucille seduced Lysus over and over, shattering the quiet world he had built with his wife, Selaya. Though Lysus fought the temptation at first, her presence was intoxicating, and soon he fell.
From their union came two children, conceived not out of love, but lust and ambition: Celine, a girl of bright soul and healing fire, and Dracon, a boy born with quiet fury and the black flame sleeping in his veins.
"Lucille never raised them," Ayaka said softly. "She vanished not long after their birth. It was Selaya, the true wife of Lysus, who took in the children as her own."
Selaya—the gentle healer—fed them, clothed them, held them through the nightmares. She forgave her husband and embraced the children, even though their very existence was a wound carved into her soul.
Celine grew up in joy, trusting and full of light. Dracon, quiet and observant, loved Selaya deeply—but his heart carried a coldness even as a boy.
The years passed… until tragedy struck.
Selaya grew ill, and no spell, no potion, no medicine from Lysus could save her. She faded in winter, her final breath taken while holding both children close.
"Protect one another," she whispered, before the light left her eyes.
Celine mourned. Dracon changed.
Maika watched in silence as the boy's grief twisted into something hard, something sharp. The black flame flickered in his gaze—wild, untamed.
THE VISION ENDED—
Lady Ayaka closed the basin with a whisper of her hand.
"That was the beginning," she said. "Lucille's blood, scattered by accident—or perhaps, by intention. Celine's line became us—the Haru Clan. Gentle, hidden. But Dracon..."
"His line?" Maika asked, her voice tight.
Ayaka's expression darkened." Dracon sired more child than you can imagine"
"He followed her mother's will," Maika murmured, understanding dawning.
Ayaka nodded. "Yes, He is addicted to it."
Maika's jaw clenched. "I'll find Dracon's line."
Ayaka gave her a sorrowful look. "Be careful. You chase the legacy of a woman who burned everything she touched—not because she had to, but because she liked the feeling of watching it all fall apart."