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nThe Lucifer Lineage was in the midst of a great celebration! Not only had Matriarch Lilith given birth to a bouncing baby boy, who was of such high purity that he might as well be a reincarnation of the progenitor, but Horned Demon Master Dominic also had a child with his wife, a lovely baby girl with sparkling eyes.

nEveryone in the lineage was celebrating and making merry, completely ignorant of the fact that there was a dark and solemn atmosphere going on among their upper echelon.

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"Absolutely not! Are you crazy?! I'd rather die!

" Dominic slammed the table as he roared this with bloodshot eyes, glancing at everyone in the room with killing intent. Meanwhile, his wife, who was a woman from the lineage, was sobbing by the side.

nFyre stood by the side silently, a slightly troubled expression on her face, while Lilith's eyes were also bloodshot and filled with craziness.

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"Dominic! How can you be so cruel?! Do you want to watch your nephew die?!

" She screamed while holding a deathly pale and silent Draco in her arms, the infant's face scrunched up in pain.

nDominic was not pressured by this at all as his voice did not falter in its firmness.

"No! I am sorry about what is going on with Draco, but I am not going to sacrifice the life of my own child for yours!

"

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"Dom, you know we are not asking for your child's life. We just need her to undergo a blood exchange with Draco, that's it. The procedure will be monitored by us and will be completely safe if-

" Dante, who had been silent all this while with a heavy demeanor, finally spoke.

nDominic cut him off resolutely.

"Brother, forget it. I respect you, so there's no need to try and fool me. The procedure is safe, fine, but what I am worried about is not the procedure, but what comes after.

"

nDominic's eyes pierced everyone in the room as he looked around.

"Draco is suffering from an ancient bloodline disease that used to occur frequently among the first batches of bloodline descendants, over purity.

"

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"His bloodline is simply too pure and too powerful for that small body to regulate it. It would even out when he's older, but he probably won't make it till then, that I understand. So I can respect your desperation.

"

nDominic's tone became cold.

"But I am not a common member of the lineage. I know of this ancient disease and I know how our predecessors used to cure it in the past. By 'dumping' the impure parts of the bloodline in another infant and swapping it for very pure human bloodline, it can ease the difficulty of the infant and allow them to reach adulthood.

"

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"However, the requirements are stringent. The receiving infant needs to be of the same generation as the afflicted one, around the same age, and the receiving infant needs to have a low concentration of lineage blood, the lower the better.

"

nDominic gritted his teeth.

"I and my wife have already come to terms with the painful fact that Gremory will not have any bloodline abilities since she is born with nearly no bloodline purity, and now you want us to risk her life? Forget it!

"

nThere was a thick silence in the room after Dominic bluntly revealed the truth, but Lilith was not about to give up.

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"Exactly, so it would benefit young Gremory if this goes through! With Draco's bloodline purity being so high that it might reach the progenitor, it might activate the weaker bloodline in her body and awaken her abilities!

" She argued with gritted teeth.

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"Lilith, don't patronize me! What you're talking about is a perfect scenario and the best ending, which only has a 20% chance of occurring at best. What is more likely to happen is that my daughter will be burdened by the powerful lineage blood in her body from Draco and be killed!

" Dominic roared.

nLilith choked on her words and couldn't continue.

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"Do you think I am stupid? If what you said had even a 50% chance of coming true, I would have spoken with my wife and we would have considered it more deeply. It would allow Gremory to have some footing in our clan and not be sent out because she is bloodline inept!

"

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"But the chances are so low that we would be basically taking a heavy gamble with her life. If anything goes wrong, who will take responsibility, huh? Huh?!

"

nLilith had tears at the corners of her eyes, shaking Draco, who was swaddled in her arms and had begun to cry as a black light flashed around his body, a sign that his bloodline was acting up again.

nDominic saw this, and his fierce expression faltered slightly. That was his nephew after all, and the son of his own big brother. Watching the baby suffer did not give him any joy or comfort, but he knew the alternative was impossible.

nIt was basically sacrificing one life for another. It was something no true parent could stand for.

nDante, who had been silent all this while, seemed to make a decision at this point.

"Alright Dominic, I called you here privately so we could discuss this as a family, but your answer is firm and makes sense. I cannot rightly pressure you anymore like this.

"

nDominic's heart skipped a beat when he heard the cold voice of his elder brother, knowing that something had fundamentally snapped between them that could never be fixed. However, he knew what was at stake and what he was trying to protect, so he couldn't afford to slink back at this time.

nDante turned and left the room with Lilith, who glared at Dominic with anger. Dominic couldn't help but slump his shoulders after they left, feeling depressed. Seeing that Fyre was the only one left, she couldn't help but ask her.

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"Fyre… did I make the right choice?

" he asked with a shaky voice.

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"Of course you did. Whether it was from the perspective of a father or even a brother, you made the right choice. We all recognize that, even Lilith,

" Fyre responded without hesitation, making Dominic feel better.

nHowever, she walked forward and patted him on the shoulder with a hint of sympathy.

"However, that is only your own personal choice.

"

nDominic was confused by this message until about 7 days later, when the clan's entire upper echelon?was summoned for an emergency meeting. There, Dante revealed the problem to the jubilating clan, which caused all their faces to change.

nThey then discussed solutions, considered everything from every point of impact until the matter came back to the simplest yet most troubling one. Dominic repeatedly made it clear that this option was out of the question, but as Fyre said, that was his own choice.

nThis was a clan, with a general mutual interest but differing thoughts. Eventually, Dominic was voted out by a landslide majority to have the blood exchange undergone, to which he obviously would not accept and rebelled.

nHe was suppressed by the others forcefully and locked up while the exchange was to happen. Dominic roared and shouted for hours on end, cursing and swearing bloody revenge on everyone.

nHe was shocked when before the ceremony was about to begin, he had a visitor in the form of Dante. Dante brought a stool and sat outside Dominic's confinement, bringing over a pizza from the pizzeria that the two of them loved to visit when they were younger but had now closed down.

nDominic was silent while he watched his older brother with bloodshot eyes.

"How did you get the pizza?

"

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"I found the old baker and paid him a thousand euros to make one for us just now,

" Dante answered as he split the pizza in half and passed it through the bars to Dominic.

nDominic quietly received it and began to eat. When he tasted that familiar flavor, he could almost see the carefree days of their youth when they were unbeaten by the world and courageous enough to even face God.

nHow did things come to this?

nDominic could not help but shed tears as he ate, while Dante sighed deeply.

"You know, I made a decision on my way here. I can spin it however I want, but the fact is that I forced my brother to sacrifice his child for mine.

"

nDominic raised his head with confusion while Dante poured himself some wine. He was startled by the calm and firm look on his elder brother's face, especially as he uttered his next thunderous words.

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"So it's simple. If my niece dies because of what happens tonight, I will accompany her in the afterlife and make sure she is happy and taken care of.

"

nDominic's head went blank as he rose to his feet in shock.

"No, you can't!

"

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"Why can't I? Does it make sense for me to risk my niece's life without bearing any fault? If she dies, what am I supposed to say to you, sorry?

" Dante countered immediately.

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"A life for a life. If my niece dies because of my son, then I will follow her. How can I let precious little Gremory head to the afterlife all alone as young as she is? Someone has to be there to guide and protect her.

" Dante spoke calmly, taking a big bite of the pizza.

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"So consider this a possible final supper. I thought about it and felt that in my last moments, I definitely want us to eat this delicacy we both loved no matter what.

" Dante said as he raised his glass to Dominic and drank heartily.

nDominic was silent for a while before speaking with a cold tone.

"Brother, people have always said that I am the one with the brains between us, and today, I finally agree.

"

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"What the ** is wrong with you? What on earth makes you believe that after losing my precious daughter through this treacherous procedure, I would feel relief or joy at seeing my older brother die as well?

"

nDante was left speechless by this and went silent.

"So then, what am I supposed to do?

"

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"Cancel the procedure before it's too late!

" Dominic almost begged as he pressed his hands against the bars locking him in.

nDante hesitated greatly but sighed in defeat.

"You know I can't. It has probably begun even as we speak, and stopping now would ensure both infants die.

"

nDominic closed his eyes in pain and let go of the bars before slinking back into the back of the cell and sitting down on the floor. When he opened his eyes, there was only cold apathy and extreme distance in them.

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"Then there is nothing for us to talk about and nothing to forgive. You and the clan made your decisions.

" He stated coldly.

nDante felt deeply saddened by this but knew that the trigger had already been pulled and he could only hope for the best now. As such, the two continued to eat in silence, but there was no longer an air of brotherhood between them.

nLater that night, the results were out. The procedure had been massively successful, and both infants had survived the process due to what was likely a miracle. Draco was now fine and would definitely live to adulthood, while Gremory was also somewhat healthy and was even displaying hints of activating her bloodline above the 20% purity mark.

nThis was good news that should have eased the tension, but as Dominic had stated, the decision had been made. The hatred that had been formed was not so easy to resolve with just this.

nMaybe things could have gotten better in time as both kids grew up and years passed, since time could dull any wound and soothe all anger.

nHowever, a few weeks after the procedure, Gremory, who had been fine for all intents and purposes, suddenly underwent a bloodline awakening. However, due to a strange bloodline rejection, rather than awaken into power, she underwent a backlash and became crippled for life.

nThe already tense situation within the top echelon of the clan soared to a breaking point.

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