"So, Ira," Akuma said as they walked, "did the Querons attack your home too? Is that why you ended up here?"
They were already approaching the Fourth District.
"Yes," Ira answered quietly. "I'm from Erasmus. The Knights slaughtered my family. While I was running away, I happened to meet Lycan."
"So you're from Erasmus," Viel said with a thoughtful nod.
"We were lucky the Querons never found us," Lycan added. "They're incredibly ruthless."
"You guys were lucky you ran into us," Sagittarius chimed in proudly.
Behind them, Mist and Xerxes walked in silence.
"I've got a strange feeling about one of them," Xerxes whispered.
"Which one?" Mist asked.
"The boy from Erasmus," Xerxes answered.
Mist glanced at Ira. "...I feel the same."
Both of them wanted to know who Ira truly was.
.
.
.....
Aria quietly ate her meal while secretly observing Sheen.
Sheen, meanwhile, was completely occupied admiring himself in a mirror.
"Sigh... You're ridiculously handsome, Sheen," he praised himself.
"Tsk. Stop complimenting yourself already. It's annoying," Tresvain scoffed.
Beside him, Owen sat alone, calmly playing a game of chess by himself, while Hades and Spring silently played cards.
Aria lowered her gaze.
All of them... every single one of them...
They're good people.
They're all being controlled by the Mirce Lorde.
Like Aria, they were vampires...
Special vampires.
"I'm heading out for a while," Arkanus said before leaving the room.
Aria's eyes followed him.
Arkanus...
No matter how deeply she had searched Sheen's memories, she had found nothing about him.
Who exactly was Arkanus?
Since the day she had been captured, she had never once seen his face. He always wore a mask and rarely spoke.
Yet there was something strangely familiar about him...
His aura...
"Who... are you really?" Aria whispered to herself.
.
.
.....
"W-Who are you?" Heberlin asked nervously.
He and Zander had awakened to find themselves tied down inside a glowing magic circle.
"Relax, bro," Xenon said casually. "This'll only take a few hours. After that, you'll remember all of us."
"Don't you think we're being a little too rough on them?" Blake asked.
"Don't worry," Yvess replied with a grin. "We did the exact same thing to you two."
"Jerk," Blake muttered.
Lucas stepped forward and began chanting.
"AAAHHHHH!!"
Heberlin and Zander screamed in agony.
"Memoriae huius filii restitue. Redde eum nobis!" Lucas chanted.
Blake leaned toward Zake.
"Do you understand anything Lucas is saying?" Blake whispered.
"Nope," Zake whispered back. "Maybe he's talking about food. He might be hungry."
Thud!
Xenon smacked both of them on the head. "Would you two shut up already?"
The two rubbed their heads sheepishly.
"S-Stop... please!!" Zander cried.
"Just endure it a little longer," Lilith encouraged.
Several minutes later, the screams gradually faded.
Both Heberlin and Zander became weaker and weaker until they finally lost consciousness.
The magic circle's light slowly disappeared, signaling that the spell had been completed.
"Is it over?" Yvess asked.
Lucas nodded.
"Kun, take them to one of the rooms," he ordered.
Kun immediately lifted the unconscious pair, carrying one over each shoulder with ease.
.
.
.....
"Whoa..."
Xylon's jaw dropped as he stood before the magnificent gates of an enormous mansion.
"We've arrived, Your Majesty," Arden said.
"T-This... belongs to me?" he asked in surprise.
"Yes," Arden replied.
Xylon looked up at the inscription engraved on the gate.
Serolf Residence
Without anyone touching it, the massive gate slowly swung open.
"Please, come inside," Arden said.
The two entered together.
As they walked through the vast garden, Xylon was left speechless by its beauty.
Rows upon rows of crimson roses stretched endlessly in every direction.
Suddenly...
A memory flashed through his mind.
A woman...
A beautiful woman picking roses in the garden.
"A-Arden..." he called.
"Yes, Your Majesty?" Arden responded.
"Did... did a woman who loved roses ever spend time in this garden?" he asked.
Arden smiled gently. "As far as I know, Her Majesty adored roses. That is why you ordered this enormous garden to be filled entirely with red roses."
An inexplicable sadness settled deep within Xylon's heart.
Is it because... the Queen is gone?
They continued into the mansion.
The interior was breathtaking.
Elegant chandeliers hung from the ceiling, antique furniture filled every room, and the entire residence carried the timeless charm of old aristocracy.
They climbed a grand staircase before entering a long, spacious hallway.
Xylon suddenly stopped.
Portraits lined both walls.
"Who are they?" he asked.
"They are the Nobles," Arden answered. "Your closest friends."
Xylon began reading the names beneath each portrait. "Xenon Serolf... Heberlin Serolf..."
"They're your cousins," Arden introduced.
"My cousins?" he grinned proudly. "No wonder they're as handsome as I am."
He continued walking.
"Zander Grimaldi... Seven Blake... Zake Park... Yvess Furukawa... Stephen Eveson... Lilith Holyson... Aria Malkovich..." he continued reading their names.
They eventually passed Arden's portrait.
"...Wait. You're seriously the only one without a surname?" he said.
Arden quietly shook his head.
A few steps later, Xylon stopped once again.
A larger portrait hung in the center of the hall.
It depicted himself standing beside two young men.
Beside it hung another portrait—that of a breathtakingly beautiful woman.
"You are the one in the center," Arden explained. "The two beside you are your sons."
"And this..." Arden pointed. "is the portrait of the late Queen."
Xylon quietly read the names.
"Xylon Vladimir Serolf... That's me. Akuma Vladimir Serolf... Viel Kyuri Serolf..."
He carefully studied the two princes.
That's strange... one of them doesn't look anything like me.
Then his eyes shifted to the Queen's portrait.
Queen Jade Serolf.
She was... incredibly beautiful.
The two continued walking.
At the very end of the hallway was another collection of portraits, separated from the others.
"And who are they?" Xylon asked.
"They are the fallen Nobles," Arden replied solemnly. "They sacrificed their lives for the kingdom."
Xylon read each name.
In Loving Memory of...
Rebeus Grimaldi
Genevieve Furukawa
Maddison Lyngdon
Kan Vaseliscu
Phoenix Broider
"They were more than your Nobles, Your Majesty," Arden said softly. "They were your family."
Xylon was about to respond when—
BLAAGH!!
"WAAAH! What was that?!" he immediately hid behind Arden as a gigantic monster emerged from one of the rooms.
"...Kun?" a familiar voice called.
Both Xylon and Arden turned.
A man with long silver hair stepped out of the room.
The moment he saw Xylon, his eyes widened in disbelief.
He instantly fell to one knee. "Y-Your Majesty..."
Xylon leaned closer to Arden.
"...Do you know him?" he whispered.
"His name is Lucas Degula," Arden replied. "A warlock. He's one of our allies."
"I-I see..." Xylon cleared his throat awkwardly. "Mr. Lucas... you can stand up now."
Lucas rose respectfully. "It brings me great joy to know that Arden has finally found you, Your Majesty."
At that moment, the others inside the room came rushing out.
Xylon froze.
Every one of them...
They were the same people from the portraits.
"Xylon?" one of the men called out.
"At last..." a young woman whispered with tears in her eyes.
"The King has finally returned!"
Xylon blinked several times.
Wait... hold on...
Can someone please give me a moment to breathe?
.
.
.....
The vast dry steppe was completely abandoned; no animals moved, no plants grew, and no people lived nearby.
Cedrick stepped out of his small, old, run-down cottage and sat down on a wooden chair outside.
From there, he gazed toward the royal palace standing proudly atop the distant mountain.
He let out a weary sigh.
Unlike the others, Cedrick had never lost his memories because he wasn't born a pure-blood vampire.
He had once been human.
Slowly, he took a worn photograph from his pocket.
It was a picture of the woman he loved.
"...Aria."
Six years had passed since they were separated.
Not a single day had gone by without him missing her.
He had tried countless times to enter the Second District, but every route was heavily guarded by the Querons.
He longed to know whether his friends...
And Aria...
Were still alive.
.
.
.....
Deep within Hell...
"Hurry! Open the portal!" the Prince of Demons commanded.
"Y-Yes, Your Highness! It's almost complete!" one of the demons replied.
The prince clenched his fists.
He had to cross into the realm of vampires...
No matter what.
Because he had to save the woman...
The woman he had once loved.