Arthur walked through the palace hallways, looking calm but thinking hard. He felt Valentina's jealousy through their blood bond so strongly it surprised him.
He went down a quiet hallway to be alone with his thoughts. The dim lighting matched how he felt.
"That's interesting," he said quietly to himself while leaning against the wall. The blood bond was doing more than he expected. It wasn't just sharing feelings—it had somehow shown him images through someone else's eyes, probably one of Valentina's spies.
His system confirmed this discovery: the blood bond let him track emotions from farther away and sometimes showed images when emotions were strong.
It recommended staying emotionally calm around potential new partners.
This worried Arthur. If Valentina could see through her spies' eyes when feeling strong emotions, what else might she discover? Could she find out about his plans for Lysandra or Beatrice?
Suddenly, he felt Valentina's possessiveness and saw a flash of her pacing in her room with wine in her hand.
"Seven hells," Arthur whispered, touching his temples. The connection was getting stronger, not weaker. This made everything more complicated.
He needed to handle this before meeting Valentina tomorrow night. If she could sense his interest in other women, his plans for a harem would face problems. Valentina might have submitted to him physically, but she was still proud and ambitious—and now seemed to feel she had a claim on him.
Arthur continued walking with new determination. He would need to convince Valentina his interest in Lysandra was only political, though the blood bond might reveal if he was lying.
As he neared his rooms, he felt another wave of emotions—curiosity and excitement—but from someone else.
His system indicated this was from an unknown source, someone he hadn't bonded with but might be naturally compatible with.
Arthur stopped. This wasn't Valentina. These feelings seemed lighter and brighter. Before he could even process it, he heard someone he knew calling his name.
"Big bro! I found you!."
Beatrice turned the corner, her face bright with real joy. She was in the blue-and-silver Royal Academy uniform.
Her hair was bouncing as she hurried over to him, looking like someone trained in combat. with how smoothly she was moving despite being so petite and she just 18.
"I've been searching all over for you!" she exclaimed, almost running right into him when she finally stopped.
Arthur looked at her more carefully. Had he somehow felt her emotions before he saw her? That shouldn't happen without a blood bond. Unless...
"Hi there," he said with a smile. "What has you running around the palace so late?"
Beatrice's hazel eyes lit up in the torchlight. "I wanted to show you what I've been practicing! Master Fenwick thinks I might get into the advanced fighting classes next term if I keep getting better."
Suddenly, she jumped into his arms, hugging him tight with her small, young body. Her perky boobs, were pressed up against him, driving him crazy.
"I've missed you so much, big bro," she said in a soft, playful tone that suggested more.
"You never come by the Academy anymore… don't you miss me?"
[Potential Harem Candidate Detected: Beatrice]
[Compatibility: 85%]
[Current Relationship: Familial Admiration]
[Warning: Blood Relation to Current Ally (Elliot)]
[Special Attribute Detected: Latent Magical Sensitivity]
Arthur was surprised when he saw the notification about Latent Magical Sensitivity. That explained why she seemed to feel a connection before she even showed up.
Some people just naturally pick up on magic—it's not common, but it happens. If Beatrice had this ability, she might be sensing something different about him without knowing what it was.
"You seem different," she remarked as she stepped away from their hug and gave him a curious gaze
Arthur got a bit nervous. "Different how?"
Beatrice just shrugged it off. "Not sure. Just different. Good different though! Like you're more... you." She smiled. "That sounds weird, right?"
"Not as weird as you think," Arthur said carefully. This was interesting but risky. If Beatrice could sense magical energy, she might notice when he was using his powers—or she might be extra affected by them.
This made her more important than he'd first figured.
"Hey," he said, putting his hand on her shoulder and leading her to the courtyard. "Let me see those combat moves you've been practicing."
Beatrice looked up at him excitedly. "Really? You're not too busy?"
"Never too busy for you, kiddo."
As they walked, Arthur thought about the possibilities. Beatrice's sensitivity to magic could make her a valuable friend—or a problem if she sensed too much.
He'd have to play it smart with her. The thought of turning her innocent admiration into something stronger got him pumped, especially since it'd rile up Elliot and Gareth to see her so loyal to him.
"By the way," Beatrice said as they walked, "you are popular in my schoo right, they're talking about you."
"Oh really?" Arthur asked. "What do they say?"
"That you've changed. That you're not shy anymore." She looked at him seriously. "They say you're dangerous now."
Arthur chuckled. "And what do you think?"
Beatrice smiled brightly. "No one knows you better than me, big bro."
"Thanks," Arthur replied, patting her head after moving his hand from her shoulder. "They really don't."