___

• [BLOOD BOND] : (Active ability)

A type of control spell, allowing the user to permanently form a bond with the target which last till either the user or the target dies. If the user of this ability dies before the target, the target would perish alongside its master. The target becomes depended on the user and will gladly sacrifice his/her life in order to protect its master without a second thought. The target (slave) becomes acquainted with its master's way of thinking and rapidly adapts to it. In rare cases, the slave and master gain the ability of telepathy and can use it to talk between themselves.

The success rate of the ability depends on the intelligence of the target. Lower intelligence the target has, the higher the probability of success becomes.

[ Rank: S ]

[Mana cost: 2000]

[ HP cost: 0.1% of max HP of the target] (Lost amount of HP can be recovered using a potion or other healing skills.)

[Cooldown: 1 Week]

___

'Blood Bond, an ability which is unique and one of its kind... the potential of this skill is endless, but nothing in this world comes without a price...' Arnold thought and scrolled down below to reveal the dangers of using this skill...

___

WARNING ⚠

If for some reason the bond wasn't able to form, it might lead the target to lose all his/her sense and may or may not go berserk. if during this time the target harms someone else, the user of this skill would be penalised for the target's actions.

___

This was the information Arnold had kept to himself and refused to tell anyone about it. This was also the reason, why he was so persistent on being alone with Allen while he tried to form the bond with him. The system only informed him that there would be a penalty for failure but didn't inform him about the nature of the penalty. Would it be a temporary debuff? Or maybe a permanent one? Maybe he'd lose a fraction of his health or maybe something else. He wasn't sure about it and had no intention of trying to know about it either. Thus it was better for him if he was alone with Allen during the procedure.

"I still don't get why are you so adamant about going in alone?" Nathan questioned Arnold, "But seeing that you're going out of your way to help him, I think you should be allowed to do whatever you like."

Nathan looked at Nina and Nicole, who nodded their heads in agreement, "It's settled then... by the way how long would it take for the process to complete?"

"A couple of minutes should be enough, but considering that it's my first time using this ability, it might take up to five minutes or so." Arnold answered back.

"I see. Well not that I can help you out regarding this matter, so all the best. We'll be waiting for you to deliver the news." Nathan said as Arnold left the room.

Duke and marshal, who were guarding the room joined him as he passed through the door. While they were exiting the building, Arnold came across one of the privates who had escorted Allen towards his new quarters and asked him for the directions. At first, the private was stunned when he saw two enormous ice golems that were standing behind Arnold like his bodyguards but was snapped back to reality once Arnold started speaking.

"He's been a-allotted the private g-guestroom 117 in the barracks... f-first r-room on the r-right of the first f-floor." The private stuttered and stepped aside, once Arnold thanked him and left with the golems at his toe. (Author's note: I guess y'all know why it's 117.)

Soon he was standing in front of the guestroom that the private had told him about.

'117... the Chief wouldn't like this...' Arnold thought and smirked before knocking on the door. Allen soon opened the door.

"I told you to not disturb- oh it's you. What do you want now? I have no business with you." Allen asked while eyeing the golems who were standing behind Arnold, "Oh... I see you've been tasked to be my bodyguard. Hm, I'm quite disappointed, I hoped they'd send your sister to do the job, not because she's a SS ranked warrior, but because she's cute, just my type."

"Don't worry sir, it's just a temporary arrangement. You'll soon get someone else as your bodyguard." Arnold barely managed to keep his temper in check and played along with Allen.

"They better do. I can't even bear the thought of seeing your face every day, from when I wake up till when I sleep." Allen smirked and let them in, oblivious to their intention, "So are these boulders supposed to protect me?"

Arnold waited till he and the golems were inside the room before answering back.

"Sadly, no. They are not here to protect you." Arnold smiled and snapped his fingers, "They are here to restrain you."

The golems pounced on Allen like a pair of hyenas and grabbed his hands and legs while lifting him in the air.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING? I'm the head of the family! YOU WON'T GET AWAY WITH THI- mmhmhmmmmm!" Allen shrieked with all his might before Arnold plug his mouth with a tablecloth lying nearby.

"Yeah yeah... You should have thought about it before talking shit about my sister. Hold him tightly, I don't want him to start squirming like a pig before its slaughter." Arnold said before he activated the ability.

As he activated the ability, weird sensation spread across his right hand. He couldn't feel his hands anymore, and before he knew it, his forearm turned black as if it was completely drained of blood, but that wasn't all... the nails of his fingers turned blood red and got longer and longer. By the time the transformation stopped, his nails were four inches long and he felt like his hand would fall off any moment.

Allen, who was witnessing the entire thing, was scared shitless. He wanted Arnold to stay as far as it was possible, sadly he couldn't escape even if he wanted to.

Arnold didn't know what he was supposed to do next, but his instinct was telling him to do something... all of a sudden, Arnold clasped Allen's neck and stuck his nails into it. A moment later the blackness of his hand started fading away, his natural colour gradually returned.

Even though Arnold had punctured Allen's neck, surprisingly no blood came out of it. Soon Allen's eyes turned white and his pupils were nowhere to be found.

Only one thought crossed Arnold's mind...

'Don't you dare die from something like this!'

***

FIVE MINUTES LATER...

Allen's was lying on the floor, while Arnold kept pacing around the room they were in.

"Since he isn't going *berserk*. The only possible outcome is that the ability was successful and the bond has been formed..." Arnold mumbled, "But then why the hell he isn't getting up!"

Arnold slapped Allen hard across the face and a message popped up on his interface.

___

Bond formation... SUCCESS!

Transformation complete!

You've earned a new Ally!

[ALLY TYPE] : [Blood Brother]

[Blood Brother]: A unique type of Ally, who would fight till his last breath to honour his comrade who specialises in close range combat techniques.

[SYNERGY EFFECT]:

[Once Enemies, Now Brethren]:

(When attacking the same target)

Strength (STR) boosted by: 15%

Agility (AGI) boosted by: 12%

[Gain more allies to unlock better synergy effects.]

You've gained your first Loyal Ally to aid you in your battles.

EXP: +4500

___

"... I wanted a servant. NOT A FCKING BROTHER!"