In the silent depths beneath the Kingdom of Mystveil, Inside a wide, dimly lit basement, the Captain of the Holy Knights, Vesilisa, sat cross-legged in the center of a large glowing magic circle. Strange materials—bones of unknown creatures, shimmering powders, and silver threads—were placed carefully around her. In each corner, a candle burned with a blue flame that danced without wind, casting eerie shadows across the stone walls.
In one corner of the room, Vladmir sat quietly on a wooden chair, his sharp eyes fixed on her. He didn't move, barely even breathed, as if waiting for something sacred to end. The silence stretched, broken only by the faint humming sound coming from the circle.
After several minutes, Vesilisa's eyes slowly opened. The light in the circle dimmed and finally vanished. Vladmir immediately stood up, brushing off his back as he approached her.
"So? What did you find out?" he asked, his tone calm but curious.
Vesilisa gave a small, confident smile. "Nothing's changed. The ritual will succeed, I'm sure of it. But… we'll need to do a few more things."
Vladmir raised an eyebrow. "Do what, exactly?"
"Just wait a few days," she said softly, looking thoughtful. "And make sure to use Feyre's powers on Scarlett."
"Wait a few days? Why?" Vladmir frowned, confusion written across his face. "And Feyre? How much difference can that vampire even make?"
He clicked his tongue in irritation. "Aren't you supposed to see how things will turn out? What a waste of time." He sighed, stomping his foot lightly on the cold floor, the sound echoing faintly.
Vesilisa's eyes narrowed. Her lips curved downward, her expression turning stern. "I don't see the future," she said sharply. "These are the words I received from the Goddess of Time herself. If she says we wait, we wait. If she says Feyre will be useful, then she will be useful!" Her voice rose, filled with restrained anger and conviction.
A tense silence followed, but then Vesilisa's expression softened into a sly smirk. "Of course," she added, "we can also use this time wisely. Perhaps send a few traitors to gather information—or let our female spies charm Scarlett's men into turning against her."
Vladmir let out a short laugh, shaking his head. "A battle of seduction? Against her?" He chuckled again, unable to hide his amusement. "That's like comparing a small lake to the ocean. Or a cat thinking she can roar like a lion."
Vesilisa's lips twitched. For a moment, she looked like she was about to smack him on the forehead, but before she could move, the air around them suddenly rippled. A loud crack echoed as the space in front of them split apart like shattered glass.
From the rift stepped Arthur, his expression calm and emotionless as always.
"Auren agreed," he said in his usual flat tone. "He's with us now."
Vesilisa quitely nodded,"A wise decision indeed!", She said
Meanwhile vladmir didn't say anything, He started clicking the points together with their plan and found it very satisfying.
"It seems you Goddess's suggestion was right, If auren is with us, We need few days to prepare against this threat known as Scarlett and also we can use him as distraction while we'll complete out work!", Vladmir muttured lightly.
"Hmph...Now you understood!", Vesilisa snorted to herself with pride
"Well then, You go send feyre to dreadhaven sneakily and you Arthur, Find real full names of all warlords as much as you can, Specially the dark knight, Vergil!", He ordered.
One needed real full name of warlords and something that belongs to them to awaken them again, For example a sword.
Although scimming through bunch ancient books to find real name and see if it's real or fake seemed time consuming and frustrating to do in just few days but compare to vesilisa's work, It was still easier.
Scarlett's senses were just too strong, She sensed igris before he could even enter DreadHaven, So sneaking feyre in was very difficult.
----
"Why am I the villain here?", Scarlett shouted looking at the newspaper.
"How should I know?", yumi replied.
"What happened?", Lunatic came from behind looking at the newspaper in scarlett's hand.
Scarlett told her about what was written in the newspaper, It also made lunatic alight surprise but also not so surprising.
"Well it was only logical that vladmir had ways to control the press, This is definitely a good advantage!", Lunatic added thoughtfully.
"Sigh, I was thinking of finally raising prices of golden apples but now I'll have to wait again", Yumi sighed and took the newspaper from scarlett's hand.
"Ha!, No worries, How about we just have sex and relieve our mood?", Lunatic said wrapping her succubus tails around scarlett's thighs.
Vesilisa gave a slow, quiet nod. "A wise decision indeed," she said, a note of satisfaction in her voice.
Meanwhile, Vladmir remained silent. His mind was working, clicking the pieces of their plan together like a perfect lock. A deep sense of satisfaction settled in his chest as the final picture formed. "It seems your Goddess's suggestion was right," he murmured, his voice low and thoughtful. "If Auren is with us, we need a few days to prepare for this threat, Scarlett. We can use him as a distraction while we complete our work."
"Hmph... so now you understand," Vesilisa snorted to herself, puffing up with pride.
"Well then, you,"Vladmir said, pointing, "go send Feyre to Dreadhaven. Be sneaky about it. And you, Arthur,"he turned to the other, "find the real, full names of all the warlords, as many as you can. Especially the Dark Knight, Sparda."
The order hung in the air. To awaken a warlord, you needed two things: their true, full name, and an object that belonged to them, like a sword. The thought of skimming through countless ancient books, searching for a single name and then verifying if it was real or just a myth, was frustrating.
It felt like an impossible task for just a few days. But compared to Vesilisa's work, it was still the easier job. After all, Scarlett's senses were terrifyingly strong; she had sensed Igris before he had even set foot inside Dreadhaven. Sneaking Feyre in would be a nightmare.
***
"Why am I the villain here?" Scarlett's voice boomed with frustration, She wanted to slamm the newspaper down. The bold print of the headline seemed to mock her.
"How should I know?" Yumi replied, not even looking up.
"What happened?" Lunatic drifted from the bed from behind scarlett, her curiosity piqued. She leaned over Scarlett's shoulder, her gaze falling on the crumpled newspaper in Scarlett's hand.
Scarlett quickly explained what the article claimed. Lunatic's eyes widened in a mix of surprise and, somehow, complete lack of it. "Well, it was only logical that Vladmir had ways to control the press," she said, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "This is definitely a good advantage for him."
"Sigh," Yumi breathed, her shoulders slumping. "I was just thinking of finally raising the prices on golden apples, but now I'll have to wait again." She reached out and took the newspaper from Scarlett's hand, her own mood souring.
"Ha! No worries," Lunatic chimed, her voice dropping to a seductive purr. She wrapped one of her smooth, succubus tails around Scarlett's thigh, the touch light but deliberate. "How about we just have some fun and relieve our mood?" She glanced over at Yumi. "Wanna join, Ms. Yumi?"
"N-no, I'm good," Yumi stammered, her face flushing a deep red. She spun around and immediately left the room, eager to escape.
Scarlett's lips twitched, fighting a smile. She smacked Lunatic lightly on the back of the head. "Do you ever think of anything other than sex?" she grumbled, though there was no real heat in it. "Let's go get changed. I have a lot of work to do."
With Xao and Li Feng gone, the weight on Scarlett's shoulders felt heavier. Li Feng had been the army general, his firm hand controlling DreadHaven's soldiers and their training schedule.
Cryptus handled the police, keeping a fragile order within the DreadHaven Now, both duties were hers.
The constant threat of an unexpected attack hung in the air like a storm cloud, forcing her to keep security tight and push everyone with relentless drills.
Thankfully, she wasn't completely alone. She had subordinates she could trust, like Cryptus, Baron Nova, and Arpeus Nova etc. For the next few days, she handed the day-to-day security duties over to them, but she insisted on leading the training for the new interns herself. She needed to see their potential with her own eyes.
Days passed in a tense, strange quiet. Despite the chaos of the assassination attempt just a week ago, there was no sign of an attack from Vladimir's side.
It was as if the night they tried to kill all the leaders had never happened. The silence was unnerving. She constantly checked in with Kroenen, Xao, and Li Feng, but their reports were always the same: no sign of Vladimir's forces.
The only real problem was the growing number of protests, sparked by the lies Vladimir's propaganda was spreading about them.
Right now, Scarlett was trying to steal a moment of peace. She sat on the farming side of DreadHaven, resting in the cool shadow of a large tree.
This was where the place's food was grown, and nearby, a whole grove was filled with the sparkling leaves of golden apple trees, each one guarded by patrols. In the distance, she could hear the joyful shouts of children playing in the outskirts. Of course Evadne was among them.
Scarlett watched them, a small, smile touching her lips as she took a bite from a golden apple. Its sweet, crisp juice was a welcome comfort. "Irish and others are coming tonight, The decorations still aren't finished yet," she thought, the worry creeping back in as she took another bite.
But then, a shadow fell over her, sudden and cool. Scarlett looked up, her guard instantly back in place. A girl stood there, her skin as pale as moonlight. She wore a flowing dress of red and black, and her ears came to sharp points.
"Excuse me, beautiful miss," the girl said, her voice soft and polite. "Do you know the direction to the DreadHaven Public School?" As she spoke, her lips parted, revealing sharp, pointed fangs.
"And you are?" Scarlett asked, Although she already knew, but she wanted to hear it from her.
"I'm Feyre. A vampire," the girl answered with a polite smile. "I just arrived to join as a new teacher. I used to live a very isolated life, but I recently heard about this place and decided it was time for a new experience!"
"A vampire," Scarlett thought, a flicker of interest sparking within her. "In every story, vampires are creatures of vast knowledge. She's suited to be a teacher." She gave a slight, approving nod. Her gaze drifted to Feyre's long, flowing red hair and her striking red eyes. "You're out here in the daylight without any trouble. You must be pretty strong, even for a vampire."
"Hahaha... you flatter me," Feyre laughed, a light, musical sound. "But I do have this," she said, gesturing to the elegant black umbrella she held, which cast a perfect circle of shadow around her.
Scarlett gave her the directions, and with a simple wave, Feyre bid her farewell and walked away. Scarlett watched her go, her eyes following the girl's retreating back until she disappeared into the distance.
A sudden tug on her clothes pulled her from her thoughts. She turned and saw Evadne, his small hand clutching the corner of her shirt. He looked up at her with an innocent, hopeful smile.
"My lady, you've been watching us for a long time," he said softly. "Do you also want to play with us?"
Scarlett looked down at him, but she didn't answer. She didn't move. A sudden, urgent thought had seized her mind, a puzzle piece clicking into place with horrifying clarity.
"Aoto is also coming..."
The thought hit her like a physical blow. Her eyes narrowed, really looking at Evadne—at his soft features, the gentle curve of his jaw, his long eyelashes. It was almost impossible to tell he was a boy at first glance.
She immediately knelt, placing her hands firmly on Evadne's small shoulders. Her expression was deadly serious, her voice a low, firm command.
"Evadne, For the next few days, you are a girl."