Action and Consequences

The event that just took place makes Zed wonder, 'What exactly happened to me?'.

Zed can feel his body, He has his conscious but something just amplify his anger and take control of Zed's body.

"Host Bloodline went rampage because of the host's emotion, This problem will occur if the host fails to beat them"

A hologram appeared in front of Zed suddenly.

'Beat them what exactly do you mean by beating them?' asked Zed in his head to the sorcery.

"Beat them in your dream".

These simple words make Zed realize everything that happened, All of his nightmares is in sync with his bloodline power. Zed already assimilated with Draugar and Doppelganger bloodline, and he is beaten every time he gets the nightmares, 'Does it means that if I fail to beat them my bloodline will have the probability of taking over my body?'.

"Yes, It can be dangerous sometimes"

This new information makes Zed scared about his doppelganger bloodline because when he dreams about that monster, it is always a different scene, unlike Draugar where he always in the desolate plain.

While talking to the sorcery, Zed forgets all that happens around him.

Fabiola is unconscious while Cathleen's corpse is in front of him, This scene makes one think that a bloody murder just happened and Zed is the perpetrator.

Zed glance at Claus and the hooded man, Based on the clothing of the hooded man Zed can determine that they are from Jestin City.

Zed feels his body got better, all the wounds on his body is closing at a visible rate and leaving no trace of it. The Draugar bloodline is giving all their properties when it took Zed's body so Zed's body gains rapid healing properties making all his wounds healed.

Lifting Cathleen's corpse and putting Fabiola on his shoulder, He then goes out of the mansion heading to Maxwell's residence.

While walking, the onlookers is avoiding Zed at all cost.

Lifting a dead body in front of him, an unconscious girl on his shoulder, and blood leaking out of his mouth making the onlookers picturing what just happened in their heads wildly.

"Oh my god, Nobles this day has a weird fetish"

"Really? Biting the girl until their death is a fetish?"

"Poor peasant girl, They shouldn't have make that noble mad. Look at what happened now"

"My little boy, don't you ever fight back a noble just ignore them okay?"

The crowd is judging Zed just by looking at Zed's appearance, Even advising their children based on their thoughts about Zed.

After walking for a while, A group of patrolling guards approaches Zed.

"Hey you, What did you do! don't think we guards will turn a blind eye to this" said a soldier clad in armor with a star on his chest signing that he is the leader.

Zed glance at the soldier and said, "Mind your own business".

After looking at Zed's face they immediately recognize him, "I'm sorry young master, We are blind please let it slide just this once".

In this era, Nobles killing others is a common thing, When nobles reaching a certain rank they can even do anything to peasant without getting any punishment from the king because the king needs their help in fending off or war with other kingdoms. Nobles or Highly ranked fighters will be compensated handsomely when they join a fight but they can skip the fight by paying a certain amount of gold to the king.

Zed ignores them and proceeds to walk towards his destination.

He arrives at Maxwell's mansion, Cathleen's father.

Zed put Fabiola down gently and knocked on the door, Soon a stepping sound was made and the door opened.

Maxwell opened the door leisurely, When he sees Zed with Cathleen on his hand he was appalled.

"Who did this?" Maxwell's aura is rampaging, his eyes are popping with deathful glare, and He clenches his fist so hard that it bleeds.

"I did it" replied Zed.

Maxwell's eyes went round, He was confused as to why did Zed do this.

"Why? I let you take care of my daughter, I TRUSTED YOU" Maxwell screamed in agony looking at his daughter's body. His hands are trembling trying to touch Cathleen's face, "My daughter...Cathleen...".

Zed kneeled on the ground with Cathleen's corpse still on his hands, "This is all my fault, I am not capable of protecting her, Please do as you wish to punish me as long as it is within my discretion"

Maxwell's legs turn into jelly, He still stares at his daughter's corpse trembling.

After a good ten minutes of silence, "In respect of my daughter, I will not cripple you or kill you But I still cannot let you go just like that. I demand level four Flagellation Ritual tomorrow on the central section of the Taztarus Kingdom, after that, you will need to help Eplodon City when it's in trouble because Cathleen loves the city so much. Do you agree and make it into an oath by god's hand?" demanded Maxwell to Zed.

"I accept the oath, I will be punished by level four Flagellation Ritual tomorrow and help Eplodon city when it's in trouble" answered Zed decisively.

Flagellation Ritual is a ritual for punishing people for their misdeeds by whipping them, It is divided into five levels where level one will be whipped by a whip made of Normal beast skin for one thousand times and level five will be whipped by a whip made of Predatory beast skin and imbued with fire frevor for five thousand times.

Zed will be given a level four Flagellation Ritual where he will be whipped by a whip made of sharp Wild Beast skin for four thousand times.

Zed arrived at his mansion in the middle of the night almost morning, The ritual will be held when the sun at its peak so Zed decided to rest before the torturous day.

He put Fabiola on the other side of the bed after stripping her clothes and proceed to sleep beside her.

This night Zed will try to beat the monster inside his dream, 'I hope it's Draugar bloodline this night because if it's Doppelganger I think I cannot do it'

After a while, Zed passed out on his bed.

Zed opens his eyes and he is still in his bedroom, He looked around and found someone sitting on the other side of the bed.

She has blond hair sitting quietly giving her back to Zed, there is a hole on the middle of the girl's abdomen.

"Cathleen?" Zed called out.

"Why did you kill me? All I wanted is to be with you" The girl said in a soft voice.

Sweat started to run down Zed's forehead, He knows that he is in a dream but he cannot help but to be heartbroken hearing the words. Zed tried so hard to resist the sadness by saying 'It's not real' over and over again inside his head.

"Now, I don't love you anymore" Hearing this Zed is shocked and put on his guard, "On the contrary, I hate you now".

Zed feels something will come, He just felt it so he put all his senses up to block the soon to come attack.

The girl turns her head back slowly and suddenly, the girl's body turns into grey colored, her body changed into a thin monster and her eyes glow bleak red.

Zed is still frightened by the monster's appearance no matter how many times Zed sees it, just as Zed looking at the monster, the monster attack.

The attack is swift, Zed cannot see anything before he wakes up on his bed sweating.

'Doppelganger is too tough to beat, Playing with one emotion, Scary looking appearance, and Swift attack that I cannot even see. 'I need to get stronger to suppress my bloodlines' Zed thought with a determined look.

Zed looks out of the window, 'Cathleen...Because of my rash action at the Lovlarix recruitment, I put people I care in trouble. I shouldn't be rash anymore, I may be strong but people around me may not'

With that, the day of the ritual arrives.