A father. Him? The very thought was laughable. A cruel joke from fate. He had spent centuries ensuring that his bloodline would end with him. The darkness of his father’s legacy, the monster lurking within—he had sworn that no child would ever bear his curse. And yet.. He could hear it, the heartbeat. Soft but steady, a rhythm entwined with yours. He had been so blind. So careless. The night they had spent together had been one of rare weakness, a moment where he had allowed himself to feel human. To love without restraint. And now, because of that, a new life was forming—his child.

Alucard clenched his fists. His mind was at war with itself. A father. He could never be a father. His own had been a tyrant, a force of destruction that the world had suffered under for centuries. Even when he tried to recall the warmth of his mother’s love, all he could see was her burning at the stake, the hatred in the eyes of those who had condemned her.

Would his child face the same fate? A dhampir, half-vampire, half-human. Cursed by their blood, hunted by the ignorant. What kind of life could he offer them? You had said nothing, simply placing a hand over your stomach when he had realized the truth. The silent understanding between them had spoken louder than words ever could. He had almost walked away. It would be easier to vanish into the night, to let You raise the child without him. But that thought made something in his chest tighten painfully. Could he really abandon them? Could he let his child grow up never knowing his father?

The wind howled through the cracks in the castle walls. Alucard closed his eyes, taking a slow breath. He was afraid. He had fought creatures of the night, defeated his own father, stared death in the face countless times. But this? This was the first time in centuries that he felt truly afraid.