Even as the ice of death rapidly spread through his veins, Lord Kim's mind remained blinded by a twisted, reckless obsession. Caught in a strange, dizzying mix of advancing paralysis and feverish impulse, he could no longer hold back. With sudden, desperate strength, he lifted Rehany and laid her down across the sprawling mattress behind them.
Blinded by the intoxication of his own warped desires, he ripped away the remaining fragments of Rehany's blood-red garments and discarded his own belt. Driven by the delusion of a conqueror claiming his final prize, he hungrily leaned in closer over her.
Despite the heavy atmosphere, a faint, rosy flush bloomed across Rehany's pale cheeks not out of weakness or ordinary bashfulness, but as a silent, mocking facade masking her dark, monstrous amusement at his supreme foolishness.
As Lord Kim hovered over her, he suddenly grabbed both of Rehany's wrists, pinning her hands firmly to the mattress above her head. He believed this gesture cemented his absolute dominance. Yet, he remained utterly oblivious to the truth: this confinement was entirely part of Rehany's design, a trap where the hunter had willingly walked straight into chains of her own forging.
Consumed by blinding delusion and supreme arrogance, Lord Kim pressed forward, driving himself deep into Rehany's glacial, flawless body. He was utterly convinced that this final act sealed his absolute, undisputed victory.
Yet, at that exact second, instead of offering any resistance, Rehany's hands moved with deliberate grace. She reached up, pressing her freezing, pale fingertips firmly against Lord Kim's broad, sweat-slicked, six-pack chest. Her touch sent a sharp, involuntary shiver racing down his spine.
The feel of her hands against him, paired with the faint, crimson flush on her cheeks, only amplified the primal heat roaring inside Lord Kim. He was entirely blind to the dark reality of what was happening. That gentle grab was not a gesture of submission, but the final, chilling catalyst waking the monster within. Rehany's entire body shuddered not from mortal desire, but from a wicked, predatory thrill as her lethal venom began to aggressively drain the very last vestiges of his life force. Lord Kim remained completely oblivious, thrusting blindly into his own living grave.
Twenty minutes later, the violent shaking of the bed resumed with a fierce, rhythmic intensity, echoing their movements from earlier. Lord Kim's body was rapidly nearing total exhaustion, the lethal venom inside him steadily draining every last ounce of his remaining strength. Yet, at that exact moment, a sudden, unstoppable surge of power erupted from deep within Rehany, causing the entire wooden frame of the bed to shudder violently once more.
As a breathless, trembling Lord Kim tried to pause, thinking the climax was over, Rehany suddenly shifted, taking complete control. With swift, fluid grace, she moved to take something or make her next calculated strike. Panic-stricken and completely drained, Kim instinctively tried to pull his hand away. In a flash, Rehany caught his wrist, pinning his hand firmly against her chest.
Leaning in close, a cruel, crimson smile curved across her glacial lips as she whispered right against his ear:
"Shhhh... we're only getting started."
Lord Kim's large hands no longer possessed their previous strength; the relentless venom had reduced them to a heavy, trembling weight. Fighting the creeping paralysis, he slowly raised his hand toward Rehany's pale cheek. With a delirious, fogged gaze and a touch that hovered between desperate affection and fevered delusion, he lightly traced the contour of her soft cheek with his long nails as if trying to anchor himself to the breathtaking, terrifying ruin before him.
His eyes drifted half-shut, his vision blurring until all he could perceive through the hazy darkness was the wicked, triumphant curve of her crimson lips and the chilling abyss waiting to swallow him whole.
The deep stillness of the dead of night had swallowed the palace whole. The grandfather clock struck three in the morning, plunging the halls into an eerie, pin-drop silence. Amidst his heavy, drugged slumber, Lord Kim's eyes snapped open.
His body still ached with the lingering, paralyzing numbness of the venom, a heavy fog clouding his exhausted mind. Right at that moment, a soft knock rattled his chamber door. A trusted palace servant slipped inside, bowing his head low as he whispered nervously, "My lord... Your father, the Grand Lord, has summoned you immediately."
A cold jolt shot through Kim's chest. A summons from his father at this ungodly hour could only mean something momentous. Shaking off the thick haze of exhaustion, he forced himself out of bed and made his heavy way toward his father's private study.
Stepping into the vast, dimly lit room, Kim found his aging father, Lord Alderic, seated in his high-backed throne-like chair with a severe expression. Keeping his head respectfully bowed, Kim spoke in a weary, hushed tone, "Father...?"
Lord Alderic fixed a cold, piercing gaze upon his son. A cryptic, unsettling smirk touched his lips as he broke the silence. "Kim... I know that your legal and formal marriage took place in secret long ago. I care nothing for those old papers or the quiet, hidden ceremonies of the past."
Kim raised his head, blinking in confusion.
Leaning forward in his chair, Lord Alderic's eyes gleamed with a manic ambition. "But now, I want something entirely different. A brand-new, magnificent spectacle. A grand, imperial wedding of royal proportions—the likes of which this entire empire has never witnessed! The people must know that the heir to this house is claiming his true queen with absolute splendor. The grandeur of this celebration must leave everyone breathless."
Stunned by his father's sudden, bizarre demand in the middle of the night, Kim stood frozen in place. Was this extravagant royal wedding command the dawn of a new political era, or simply the opening act of an even darker, inescapable trap?
Lord Kim stood frozen in shock at his father's words. But the very next moment, his father dropped an even more staggering and mysterious revelation, banishing any remaining trace of sleep from Kim's mind.
Lowering his voice to a low, chilling whisper, Lord Alderic said, "You may not know this, Kim... but many years ago, a Queen of the Phoenix ruled this empire. Her ancient, primal power has never truly faded. I have heard that she possesses a supernatural sight that can pierce the light itself, alongside a deadliness akin to the venomous power of a serpent."
Hearing those words, Kim's blood ran cold. The description eerily matched the terrifying, toxic nature of the woman he had just been with Rehany.
Lord Alderic didn't stop there; he drove the secret deeper, a twisted smirk curling his lips. "I know they call her a vampire hybrid, and some whisper she is a strange, blood-drinking breed. She is no ordinary mortal woman and you know that better than anyone. She was so breathtakingly, unnaturally gorgeous that once, Lord Demon's own son went completely mad for her. He would have gladly wagered his entire kingdom and his life just to catch a single glance of her smile!"
As those ancient, dark legends spilled from his father's lips, Kim's head spun. Had he truly entangled himself with a creature whose very shadow had once driven the mightiest princes of the empire to absolute madness?
Lord Alderic leaned even further forward in his chair, the cryptic smirk on his face vanishing into an expression of profound, chilling dread. His voice dropped to a harsh, accusing whisper.
"Do not forget, Kim... you are the one who forged her into this monster. You are the one who turned her into a vampire with your own hands."
Hearing those words, Kim's head spun violently. The dark memories of that cursed night flooded back into his numbed mind—the night he had willingly dragged Rehany into this immortal, blood-drenched existence.
Without pausing, Lord Alderic drove the terrifying truth home. "And worse still... she possesses the true nature of a Phoenix, capable of rising and being reborn from her own ashes. The dark pact forged between the two of you has locked your bloodlines together in an inescapable bind. But now... I realize what a catastrophic mistake this is. Because if you die, Kim... she will not. She will remain, and her wrath will tear this entire empire down to dust."
Hearing his father's grim prophecy, the floor seemed to vanish beneath Kim's feet. He finally realized the horrifying scale of his own undoing: he had bound himself not to a wife, but to his own executioner.
A cold shiver raced down Kim's spine as his father's words hung heavily in the air, dragging a deeply buried memory to the surface. Trembling, he looked at Lord Alderic, his voice faltering with a sudden surge of dread.
"Father... long before our marriage, she warned me. She looked right at me and said—'You are making a catastrophic mistake.'" Kim swallowed hard, his face pale as the realization crashed over him. "Back then, blinded by my own arrogance and a reckless, all-consuming obsession, I didn't understand what she meant. I... I completely brushed it off and paid it no mind at all."
Lord Alderic's expression darkened, the weight of the impending doom settling heavily over them both. They had walked blindly into a trap of their own making, tethering themselves to a force far older and more destructive than any empire.
Seeing the profound terror etched across his father's face, Kim felt a strange jolt of confusion. Despite the agonizing venom burning through his veins, he tried to steady his voice and cling to a sliver of false bravado. Looking at Lord Alderic's trembling hands, Kim blinked and asked, "Father... why are you so terrified? You are one of the most powerful lords in this entire empire! Can't your might and our massive armies crush a single woman?"
Instead of being reassured, Lord Alderic looked at his son with a mixture of disbelief and absolute horror. He grabbed Kim by the shoulders, his voice dropping to a harsh, desperate whisper.
"You fool..." Lord Alderic hissed, his eyes wide with dread. "You still don't understand, do you? How can mortal strength and steel fight a creature that rises reborn from her own ashes? A single drop of her venom can turn this entire palace into a mass grave before our guards even draw their swords. We are standing on the edge of an abyss, Kim... and we brought the monster right to our own throne."
Lord Alderic's voice hardened with a desperate, calculating resolve. "There is only one way to survive this impending doom—this grand wedding must take place. Through this ceremony, the old pact between you two will not only be renewed, but her volatile, world-ending power can be bound within a formal, ritualistic framework."
He paused, fixing a piercing, intent gaze upon his son. "Go. Summon the Peacock Prince immediately."
Without wasting another second, Kim dispatched a royal courier to summon the enigmatic Peacock Prince to the study. Moments later, the heavy doors opened, and the prince stepped into the dimly lit room.
The moment he assumed his human form, the entire chamber seemed to brighten with an otherworldly glow. His striking, breathtaking beauty and effortless royal aura were enough to captivate anyone. There was a mesmerizing, dazzling elegance to his features, combined with a proud, effortless grace entirely unseen in ordinary mortals. Stepping forward with absolute composure, he stood before Kim and Lord Alderic, entirely unfazed by the sudden, dead-of-night summons as if he held secrets of his own that gave him absolute immunity to fear.
With a faint, mocking smile and an air of chilling self-assurance, the prince tilted his head. "Why this sudden summons in the dead of night, Lord Alderic? What urgent crisis requires my presence within these stone walls?"
Irritated by the arrogance dripping from his tone, Lord Alderic's eyes narrowed into sharp daggers. He leaned forward, locking his gaze directly onto the prince, and snapped out a name to cut through the games
Dimitri
At the sound of the name, the prince's brow furrowed sharply. A flash of cold displeasure crossed his striking features as he retorted, "Not Dimitri! My name is Lio Leonel."
Observing his son's lingering confusion and the peacock prince's sharp correction, Lord Alderic let out a long, heavy sigh. He slowly rose from his high-backed seat, fixing his steady, calculating gaze directly on the royal guest, and spoke in a deep, authoritative tone.
"Very well, Lio... mistakes won't be made again. Now, tell us what is your next move to pull us back from the edge of this catastrophe?" Lio offered a faint, sardonic smile and stepped toward the center of the room, folding his hands behind his back. A dangerous, thrilling glint flickered in his eyes.
"There is no need to panic, Lord Alderic," Lio said, his voice smooth and unnervingly calm. "Rehany's ancient power and her phoenix fire can only bring total devastation as long as she remains unbound. That is precisely where we must play our hand."
Lio paused, turning his gaze toward Kim with a sharp, calculating smirk. "This wedding will not merely be a royal ceremony—it will be our trap. While the entire empire's eyes are fixed upon the grand celebration, I will weave an ancient, inescapable binding spell. It will shackle her vampire blood and her phoenix soul to the altar of the crown. She may rise from her ashes a thousand times over, but she will never be able to break free, nor step a single foot beyond our control."
Lord Alderic held his breath, drinking in every word of the deadly strategy. Beside him, Kim's chest tightened with a suffocating dread, knowing they were walking deeper and deeper into a labyrinth from which there might be no escape.
Lord Alderic immediately pressed a hand to his brow, deep worry lines furrowing his forehead. "Your strategy sounds brilliant on paper, Lio... but there is a major danger you are completely underestimating."
He shot a sharp, warning glance between Kim and the Peacock Prince, his voice dropping to a gravelly, serious register. "That girl is not just powerful; she is cunning and dangerously intelligent. And her greatest asset is her loyal companion a Japanese Nekomata cat. Its split soul and lethal, supernatural magic can tear apart even the strongest containment spells in a heartbeat. Are you entirely certain your binding can withstand the interference of that creature?"
For a fleeting second, the confident smirk vanished from Lio's face. Hearing the name of the Japanese Nekomata cat slip from Lord Alderic's lips caught him entirely off guard, causing him to take a sharp half-step back as his immaculate, royal composure fractured for a single, stark moment.
Recovering quickly, Lio forced a cynical, mocking edge into his voice. "A Nekomata? Are you truly speaking of that split-souled beast whose dual tails can spread the very fires of hell?"
Shaking off any lingering hesitation, Lio stood tall, a terrifying arrogance radiating from his entire posture. A dangerous gleam flickered in his eyes as he raised his voice, echoing with fierce bravado.
"Listen to me, Lord Alderic! To the ordinary world, that creature might be a legendary nightmare, but my magical mastery runs deep within the very foundations of this palace. No matter how formidable that Nekomata's magic may be, I possess ancient, immaculate relics capable of blinding even its dual-tailed spirit! If that feline dares to step forward and try to rescue Rehany, I will cut off its twin tails with my own hands and hang them from the gates of this fortress as a warning!"
Panic choked the words in Kim's throat. Struggling to steady himself, he lashed out at Lio, his voice rising to a frantic shout.
"Have you lost your mind?! You have no idea what you're dealing with—they are soul-bound, the very core of each other's existence! If even a single hair on Rehany's head is harmed, that creature will lose its mind and tear this entire place apart. You don't know what she's like, and you haven't seen what I have—that Nekomata is terrifying on a completely different level!"
Lord Alderic shivered even more at his son's desperate outcry. Both of them knew all too well that no matter how easily Lio brushed it off, the reality on the battlefield would be infinitely bloodier and far more catastrophic than he cared to admit.
Cutting off his son, Lord Alderic asked in a trembling, horrified whisper, "What exactly did you witness, Kim? Just how terrifying is that Nekomata's power? Tell me everything!"
Drawing a ragged, chest-heaving breath, Kim spoke with a pale, ashen face, "Father, you both think it's just a common beast... but you are dangerously wrong! That night in the palace courtyard, when I came face-to-face with it in the dead of night, it felt as though every gate of hell had blown wide open at once. Just looking into that creature's eyes makes your blood run cold one eye blazes like a burning coal, while the other is pitch-black, like frozen, bottomless darkness!"
Shuddering at the memory, Kim's voice rose with urgent intensity. "When the dark shadow of its dual-souled magic swept across the courtyard, the temperature of the air dropped below freezing in the blink of an eye. The heavy stone pillars iced over and cracked right down the middle! And that's not all... when those twin tails ignite with that eerie, haunting blue flame, you feel as though the entire empire could be reduced to ashes in a single second. In the face of its lethal, suffocating presence, even our strongest imperial guards crumbled into the dust. Believe me, it isn't just an animal it is a walking, breathing curse of death!"
A heavy, chilling silence fell over the room as Kim finished describing the Nekomata's horrifying manifestation. Lord Alderic locked his hands together, his face etched with deep anxiety. "If this monstrous power is true, a simple magical trap won't be enough. We need to understand these Japanese as well... Who are they, really? How did they manage to tame such a terrifying spirit?"
Leaning back against the wall with a cold, sardonic smile, Lio's eyes flashed with a thrilling, dark curiosity. He began to explain in a deep, confident tone,
"The Japanese are a mysterious race from the distant East who have lived alongside the hidden forces of nature for thousands of years. Their homeland is shrouded in misty, ancient islands, where countless spirits roam the deep mountain forests. They are not ordinary mortals; for generations, their ancestors have forged blood-and-soul pacts with supernatural entities and Nekomata just like this one.
Those Japanese Onmyoji or shamans are nothing like ordinary sorcerers. They carve arcane seals and talismans using their own blood, binding terrifying, dual-souled beasts like that cat to use them as their ultimate guardians. Just as Rehany wanders alone carrying the blood of a phoenix, those Japanese have nurtured the Nekomata's destructive power within the shadows of their own hidden history. That is why we cannot underestimate them for a single second!"