"What you said is indeed very appealing, my father." Chadnomah hugged Makinos with crushing force, making his bones grind and ache.
Makinos struggled in terror, his own strength negligible compared to his son's monstrous power.
Chadnomah lowered his head, leaning close to Makinos's shoulder. Makinos shuddered, while Chadnomah's body convulsed with silent laughter. "But Father, can you tell me why your voice is trembling? Have you been a ruler for so long that you can't even tell a convincing lie anymore?"
Makinos desperately fought to escape. He realized, too late, that Chadnomah's intention had been revenge from the start.
Feeling Makinos's utter helplessness, Chadnomah gave a grim, satisfied smile and slammed his head down, his sharp fangs savagely tearing the flesh of his father's neck. He didn't use his venomous tongue to infect him; instead, like a true Beast, he simply bit through the artery.
"I will grant you a true Death, not this endless suffering that you forced on me. Thank me, Father. This is your son's vengeance, and his final gift to you."
Dark green, thousand-year-old life essence flowed out. Makinos frantically covered the wound, but the loss of life was unstoppable.
In one last, desperate attempt, Makinos staggered toward his daughter, who stood motionless nearby. "Through the transmission of Blood, your life and mine shall be passed on," he muttered in the ancient Vampire tongue. The dark green blood gathered its final power, forming glowing crimson characters at his fingertips—the oldest Bloodline incantation. Used by dying Vampire Elders, it condensed their life and will to forcibly graft onto one of their transformed kin.
Makinos disregarded the ancient laws against seizing a kinsman's body, his sole focus being survival. He would achieve Rebirth in his daughter's body.
The power of the magic condensed his life and blood into a single drop of emerald essence blood. He held it on his fingertips, using his last breath to point it toward Nysha. Upon contact, the essence would merge with her, and by the next full moon, he would be reborn in her form.
This was his final, terrifying hope.
Nysha retreated without hesitation.
Makinos crawled forward, unwilling to die, desperately trying to touch her shoe with his fingertips. But as he lunged, Nysha simply stepped back again.
"Let this impure Bloodline end here, Father." Nysha Makinos calmly removed the ring that symbolized the Makinos Family and tossed it into her father's flowing, foul blood.
Makinos's dry throat could no longer make a sound. His cloudy eyes fixed on his daughter in a final, venomous look of resentment, then slowly turned a stony gray.
The change spread rapidly across his body. Having lost the concentrated essence of his power, his already decaying body instantly crumbled, like shattered limestone exposed to cold air. He dissolved into fragments and dust.
Chadnomah, his vengeance complete, let out a loud, drawn-out roar—the cry of a wounded Beast, full of pain and profound despair. His life's only goal was gone. All he could do now was await his own end.
He turned silently, not even glancing at the pile of dust that had been his father, and walked toward the rooftop like a zombie. He wanted to see the Sun—an existence untouchable to Vampires—in his final moments.
"Wait, brother!" Nysha called out. Her eyes were like still water, showing no emotion.
Chadnomah turned, looking at his sister, who had been granted the luck he was denied. He waited to hear her request.
"Kill me, brother!" Nysha swept aside her long black hair, exposing her snow-white neck to him.
Chadnomah sneered. "Our father clung desperately to life, holding onto his power forever. And now, you have everything he possessed, yet you want to end it here?"
"The filthy Bloodline still flows through my veins. If you do not kill me, you cannot end everything of the Makinos Family."
Chadnomah stopped. He faced her, asking, "Are you truly decided? Is there nothing you wish to cherish?"
"When everything my father wove for me proved to be a lie, I made my decision." Nysha closed her eyes. "I should never have existed. The existence of Vampires in this world is simply a tragedy."
Walking to Nysha, Chadnomah gently touched her face. "You are so much like our mother. Perhaps you are right. It is time to end this filthy Bloodline and let you return to her embrace."
Watching Nysha nod silently, Chadnomah opened his jaw, and his deadly tongue bit into her neck. The virus injected into her felt like a line of burning fire in her veins. The intense, pervasive pain instantly incapacitated her.
She collapsed softly to the ground.
"You have six hours," Chadnomah stated. "After six hours, someone will come to end your life. Think about it: what regrets do you still hold?"
Looking at his convulsing sister, Chadnomah turned and left silently. He still needed to find the perfect spot to watch the sun rise.
Nysha lay on the ground, staring blankly at the dark ceiling. The agony tormented her, forcing her mind to wander, using aimless imagination to seek relief. In doing so, she realized her life was indeed full of too many regrets.
She had never lived like a normal woman—no shopping, no true friends, no love, no marriage, no children. Her life had been spent entirely within a dark, ancient castle, surrounded only by blood and conspiracy.
This was Makinos's fault, yes, but mostly it was due to her identity. Vampires in this world truly were a tragedy.
A crisp set of footsteps sounded nearby. Nysha tilted her head.
What she saw was a black-armored figure.
"Is my father's method so potent? To force an existence like you into this state?" Nysha asked, noting that Zhou Yi looked far more disheveled than before. His cloak was gone, and large sections of his armor were twisted, cracked, and severely damaged. The nanometal was attempting futile repairs.
"Your father's methods certainly refreshed my understanding, but it's a pity he's already dead," Zhou Yi replied, his tone flippant, though clearly an attempt to bring her comfort. "Otherwise, I would personally explain my shock to him."
Nysha smiled faintly, as if they were discussing a distant acquaintance. Having shed all identities and concerns, she was composed and elegant.
"That truly is a pity. I won't have the chance to witness any of this. Opportunities to see you flustered are rare."
Watching the Vampire woman who, ironically, understood him better than most, wither like a dying flower, Zhou Yi felt a profound pity. She was innocent. Her only mistake was her birth. It was a cruel joke of fate.
He knelt, gently resting Nysha's head in the crook of his arm, and teased softly, "If you can wait a little longer, I think you should be able to see exactly what you want on the London morning news. My fight was intense, but it definitely didn't stop the photography enthusiasts from getting their shots."
"Is that so? Then they are truly lucky," Nysha smiled, her fair skin beginning to pale. "Unfortunately, my time seems to be running short. Can you tell me what time it is now?"
Zhou Yi looked up. He sensed the sun's power. It was nearly sunrise in his original location.
Chadnomah's final roar of triumph and relief echoed from the rooftop, signifying the extinction of a lineage. He had fulfilled his terrible promise, personally ending everything.
Listening to Chadnomah's last sound in the world, Zhou Yi removed his helmet and spoke to Nysha. "It seems somewhat unfortunate. Today doesn't look like a beautiful day. Your brother is already screaming with rage."
Nysha tried to force a smile, but the internal agony prevented it. She could only manage a slight twitch of her lips. "It sounds ridiculous, but in the end, I feel that you are the only friend I ever had in my life."
"Although my requirements for friends are very high, congratulations, I acknowledge you as a friend." It wasn't lust for her beauty, but genuine affection for a soon-to-be-departed friend, that drove Zhou Yi to maximize her last moments.
"Is that so? That's wonderful." Nysha blinked. "Then, my hero friend, will you promise me one thing?"
"First, be clear. I can't do anything too difficult." His tone was his usual cynicism, but it masked a heavy sentiment.
"I want to see the Sun in a beautiful place, while I am still beautiful. Can you promise me that?"
Nysha's final request was one he couldn't refuse.
He lifted her in a bridal embrace and gently floated into the air. His psychokinetic shield, which could bend light, blocked the Sun's lethal rays. He ascended higher and higher, gradually vanishing into the cloud layers.
Much later, millions of feet above the Earth, Zhou Yi stopped, holding Nysha. Beneath his feet was the magnificent, azure Earth. In the distance, the golden Sun embraced the world.
Protecting a person with psychic power and traveling this far from the Earth was an immense strain, but he had no regrets. This was the only thing he could do for a friend's final departure.
"So beautiful!" Nysha exclaimed, gazing at the golden Sun and the blue Earth. "It is enough, thank you, my friend. If there is a next life, I hope I can meet you as a human. And... you can let go now."
Looking at Nysha, whose eyes were already closed, Zhou Yi slowly released his hands.
Her gentle body drifted out of his embrace, floating in the endless space. The sunlight struck her, and a deep blue flame enveloped her body like a final, ethereal dress. Slowly, she began to disappear.
Zhou Yi watched silently until she completely vanished from sight. He didn't know his mood; the weight of fate pressed on his heart, making him feel utterly powerless for the first time.
Collecting himself, he plunged back toward the Earth. The judgment of dawn was not yet complete. Even for his departed friend, he had to bring this tragedy to a definitive end.