Back at the hotel...
Varin lay on the bed, the two elven sisters fast asleep beside him while he stared at the ceiling in silence.
I should call Lilith and debrief her on everything that's happened these past few days, he thought.
He carefully slipped out of bed and walked over to the table. Kneeling beside it, he traced a complex symbol across its surface with his finger. The crimson lines shimmered before blooming into a glowing magic circle.
"Still got it," he muttered with a satisfied grin.
A moment later, Lilith's holographic figure emerged from the circle.
"I thought you died," she remarked flatly.
Varin placed a hand over his chest in mock offense.
"Very funny. You really hate me... don't you?"
"Just a little."
"So," Lilith continued, "why did you call?"
Varin's playful expression faded.
"He lost control again."
"I'm aware."
Varin blinked.
"Wait... how? Have you been spying on us?"
Lilith rolled her eyes.
"Don't flatter yourself. Unlike you, Dracula actually cares enough to keep me informed."
Varin frowned.
"Then why aren't you here by his side?"
"Because not even a monkey would trust you to operate a Bifrost..." she replied without missing a beat. "...you bloody numbskull."
Varin let out a laugh.
"That was a good one." He shook his head before his smile slowly faded. "But should we be worried about Dracula? It wasn't a pleasant sight whenever those episodes happened in the past."
Lilith fell silent.
After a moment, she finally spoke.
"I think it'll be fine."
Varin raised an eyebrow.
"Why do you say that?"
"Just a feeling." She glanced away for a brief moment. "Dracula... seems to be in a better place than he used to be."
Varin remained quiet, waiting for her to continue.
"Even so," Lilith said, "I'll keep an eye on things. Just in case."
She looked back at him.
"Is that all?"
"Yeah."
"Good. Don't contact me again unless you're leaving... or someone is dying."
Before Varin could answer, the crimson projection dissolved, the magic circle fading until only the empty tabletop remained.
Varin stood there for a long moment, staring at where she had been.
"A better place..." he murmured to himself.
"...I wonder why."
Back at the hospital, Dracula sat quietly beside Diana's bed, watching her.
She lay on her back with her eyes closed, a faint smile resting on her lips.
"What's making her smile so much... Is she not asleep?" Dracula wondered.
"I can feel you staring at me," Diana said without opening her eyes. "I'm not sleeping."
Dracula immediately turned his head away.
Diana let out a quiet chuckle.
"It's fine."
She slowly opened her eyes.
"Can I ask you something?"
Dracula looked back at her.
"Go ahead."
"Why are you helping me?"
He said nothing.
"Ever since we met, I've been trying to understand your motive," Diana continued. "You agreed to help a poor, desperate woman carry out a revenge plan that wasn't even thought through... all because I offered to cut your hair? There has to be more to it than that."
Silence answered her.
"Are you chasing excitement? Do you just find my anger entertaining? Or are you trying to reclaim Sanguinastra?"
"...I won't lie," Dracula finally replied. "I do find you amusing."
"I knew it," Diana muttered.
"But amusement alone isn't enough to make me involve myself."
He paused.
"For centuries, I've searched for the answer to a question I've never been able to resolve... and strangely enough, you fit the description."
Diana blinked.
"That's... cool, I guess?"
A brief silence settled between them.
"Now let me ask you something, Diana."
"Uh... sure."
"You don't seem comfortable with people dying. Watching Varin and me kill clearly disgusts you."
His crimson eyes settled on hers.
"If Tharion were standing before you right now... would you kill him?"
The warmth vanished from Diana's face.
"Forgive my tone going forward," she said quietly. "I believe there are people who shouldn't lose their lives. Every time I watch you or Varin kill someone, it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth."
Her fingers slowly clenched around the blanket.
"But that monster..."
Her breathing grew heavier.
"Tharion deserves to die."
Mana began to seep from her body.
"He walks around believing God Himself protects him."
Her voice trembled.
"He hunted down my father... murdered him..."
The room's air grew noticeably heavier.
"He didn't stop there."
Her trembling intensified.
"He came after me... after my brothers and sisters..."
Crimson mana leaked wildly from her body, distorting the air around the hospital bed.
"He butchered every single one of them... and left us there to rot."
Her eyes shook with hatred.
"And my brother... my brother searched for your coffin... risked everything... freed you... all so he could abso—"
Dracula's hand gently covered her face.
"That's enough."
His voice was barely above a whisper.
The words cut through her rage.
Diana's eyes widened.
The violent surge of mana instantly dispersed.
Only then did she realize what had happened.
Her breathing was ragged.
"...I lost control."
She stared blankly at the crimson traces of mana still fading into the air.
Diana's vision blurred as tears welled in her eyes and spilled down her cheeks.
"I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." she cried, clutching Dracula's shirt with trembling hands.
"Does God truly hate us? Why are we called the spawn of the devil? Is Sanguinastra... hell?"
Dracula hesitated.
Slowly, almost awkwardly, he wrapped an arm around her.
"...I don't have answers to all your questions," he murmured. "And even the answers I do have may leave you in a worse state than you already are."
The door burst open.
Several nurses rushed into the room, only to stop in unison at the sight before them.
"...Oh."
One of them scratched the back of her head.
"False alarm."
The group quietly shuffled back out, closing the door behind them with embarrassed smiles.
Dracula watched them leave.
"Diana cries remarkably loud..." he thought. "It reminds me of a young Lilith."
"I miss the children at the orphanage," Diana whispered after a long silence. "I wish we could bring them here."
"When the Elders are dead," Dracula said, "the future of Sanguinastra... and its people... will rest in your hands."
Diana blinked.
"What does he mean by that?"
Dracula rose to his feet.
"Come. Let's get some fresh air."
"But... I haven't been discharged yet."
"I'll take care of that. Just get yourself ready."
She silently watched him leave the room.
Outside the room
Dracula approached the nurses' station and lightly tapped the counter.
"I would like someone to be discharged."
The nurse looked up with a welcoming smile.
"Of course. What's the patient's name?"
"Diana Morvain."
She searched through a few files before nodding.
"Normally we wouldn't discharge someone this early, but since she's a vampire and her healing ability is exceptional, she should recover just fine outside the hospital."
Dracula's crimson eyes drifted across the busy hallway before returning to her.
"I see."
The nurse slid a clipboard across the desk.
"Just fill out these forms and she'll be free to leave."
Dracula stared at the paperwork for several seconds without moving.
The nurse tilted her head.
"Is something wrong, sir?"
"...No."
He lowered his gaze to the page.
"I simply remembered something."
He picked up the pen and began writing.
As she waited, the nurse glanced between him and the patient's file.
"And what is your relationship to Miss Diana?"
Dracula didn't even pause his writing.
"Her fiancé."
"...Congratulations."
"Thank you."
He slid the completed paperwork back across the counter.
The nurse glanced down at the signature.
Roland Ferrum.
She looked back up just in time to see him walking away.
"...Didn't seem like much of a talker," she muttered to herself before continuing with the discharge process.