“Is the renowned reputation of the Sephiroth Holy Knight Order all just rumors? You can’t even catch a single demonic beast.”

Iscallion, who was on edge like a wary cat, seized the moment to provoke.

But Gined was not as easygoing as Cullin.

“There’s no need to be so sharp. We’ll be leaving soon, Count.”

Gined’s calm response only further irritated Iscallion.

Just as Iscallion’s face twisted savagely from being counter-provoked, the entrance stirred once again.

‘Who is it this time? It can’t be the Crown Prince, right? That would be truly shameless.’

Contrary to my worries, it wasn’t Pinion who entered the hall, but the attendants from the Crown Prince’s palace. They were carrying a box larger than most people.

“This is a gift from His Highness the Crown Prince.”

“Thank you for bringing it. Please convey my deepest gratitude to His Highness.”

I wasn’t even curious about what was inside that ridiculously large box. Whatever it was, it would make excellent firewood.

While dealing with the Crown Prince’s attendants, Gined was already preparing to leave.

I hurriedly followed him.

“There’s no need to leave on my account.”

“It’s the host’s duty to see off honored guests.”

“Am I an honored guest?”

“Of course. Here’s a secret: the person I was most pleased to see at today’s party was you.”

Gined smiled calmly.

It was only natural that my heart fluttered at that smile.

‘Gined Roengreen, the thief who stole my heart, you are guilty…’

Unaware of his impact, Gined left the mansion with a light heart.

After seeing Gined off, I returned to the banquet hall with a sense of regret.

As expected, Iscallion was sulking.

“Leon, what did I tell you before?”

“That obsessive men are boring and tiresome.”

He answered dutifully, despite pouting.

“No, not that.”

“Mature people know how to respect others’ privacy.”

“Good, you’ve remembered well. Keep that in mind from now on.”

I patted his shoulder sternly, like a soldier.

The reality of having to pin my future on a boy who hadn’t matured at all hit me hard.

***

The boisterous party ended before midnight, using security issues as an excuse.

After returning to my room, I changed clothes and started opening the mountain of gifts.

I first checked the gifts from the two male leads.

Iscallion had somehow procured a massive pink diamond, while Gined’s gift was a handwritten scripture. The neat handwriting resembled its owner perfectly.

But…

‘No matter how much it’s from Gined, this is a bit…’

My high expectations cooled down. What man in the world gives a gift like this to the woman he likes?

Each sentence containing the teachings of God seemed to scold my lasciviousness.

Gined’s gift only proved that he held no feelings for me beyond human affection.

As I wallowed in disappointment, the coal spoke kindly.

“Mate. I have something to show you as well.”

“Really?”

I eagerly looked at the coal, abandoning Gined’s dreadful gift.

This was only the second time I’m receiving a gift from a non-human being, excluding Enril.

In response to my expectations, the coal puffed up his body. Diamonds that were densely attached fell off with a clatter.

Soon after, he transformed into the very hunter statue he had once been.

‘Hmm?’

As I looked at him, who’s now a statue again, I noticed one difference from before. There were balls placed at each joint.

“When we went out of the mansion last time, I saw this at a doll shop. Now, I can move as you wish.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the coal began to walk towards me with a creaking sound.

I bit my lip to suppress a scream.

‘Does the coal hate me too?!’

I managed to stifle the scream, but couldn’t help but step back.

A self-moving statue was not just unpleasant. It was downright creepy.

Shahar, who had cornered me against the wall, knelt awkwardly like he was proposing and extended his hand. A small glass bottle emerged from his hand, containing a silvery liquid that shimmered like mercury.

“Happy birthday, my mate. It’s modest, but please accept it.”

“W-what is this?”

“It’s an elixir made from the narcissus flower.”

The narcissus flower was extremely rare, one that couldn’t be obtained even with a fortune.

It looked very similar to a daffodil, but unlike the plentiful daffodils, it was said to bloom only once a year near the River Lethe in the Underworld.

Its rarity gave it powerful properties, and creating an elixir from it was said to bring even the dying back to life.

Despite its hallucinogenic side effects, the elixir was invaluable to someone on the brink of death.

Even though I received a legendary elixir that past emperors had coveted, Shahar’s eerie appearance overshadowed the significance of the gift.

“Th-th-thank you so much. I-I-I really like it…”

I tried to disguise my trembling as laughter-induced shaking and avoided looking directly at him.

“But no matter how great the gift, it can’t compare to you, Shahar. As long as you’re by my side, I don’t need anything else.”

After uttering these insincere words, I awkwardly opened the nearest box to change the subject.

“Well, then, let’s open the next box…”

The moment I saw what was inside, my trembling stopped as if it were a lie.

Inside the box was a single shiny earring.

It was the very earring I had given to Janet.

Even with my dull senses, I could tell something was wrong.

With trembling hands, I picked up the earring. The hook part was bent, as if someone had forcibly removed it.

There was also a neatly folded piece of paper inside the box.

I quickly unfolded it.

Midnight, September 27th, Abandoned House

September 27th was tomorrow.

The problem was that today was almost over.

“Shahar. What time is it now…?”

“11:40 PM.”

“Damn it!”

A curse slipped out before I could stop it.

“There’s no time for this! Janet seems to have been kidnapped! It must be the guy the drunkard mentioned!”

I didn’t care about Janet’s safety, but I couldn’t stand the thought of losing my hair.

I hastily threw on a coat and urged Shahar to head to the location mentioned in the note.

There were many abandoned houses in the capital, but the note likely referred to the one where Janet had been lured before.

Fortunately, since we were flying at full speed, we barely arrived at our destination before midnight.

I took a deep breath in front of the old door that looked like it might fall apart at any moment. Then I knocked cautiously.

It wasn’t fear. I just didn’t want to provoke the unknown opponent.

“Is anyone there?”

“Welcome. You’ve arrived just on time.”

The door slid open, revealing a man behind it.

He was exactly as the drunkard had described: tall and somewhat thin, with red eyes and pale skin that screamed vampire.

‘How dare this corpse summon a lady at this hour?’

…is what I wanted to shout, but I maintained polite language for smooth communication.

“Hello? I heard my subordinate is here.”

“You’ve come to the right place. Please, come in.”

The man, who acted as if this dilapidated house was his own, picked up a chair and offered it to me.

“Thank you.”

“Not at all. As you can see, my household is quite modest, so I can’t even offer you a drink.”

“It’s alright, hahaha.”

I laughed awkwardly, trying to guess what this vampire’s intentions were in calling me here.

Since he was of the same race as Janet, perhaps the two of them knew each other.

“Let me introduce myself first. My name is Michalis. I am the leader of the vampires. I am also the one who sent Janet to you.”

“So, that means you’re the vampire lord…?”

“That’s correct. You’re quite sharp.”

Michalis admired me with a smiling face. His tone and gestures were so polite that it was hard to tell if he was complimenting or mocking me.

But such things didn’t matter at all.

My heart was about to leap out of my chest at the realization of his identity, which was far more significant than I had expected.

Clutching Shahar like a lifeline, I barely managed to speak.

“Before we have a conversation, can I confirm that my subordinate is safe? After all, I’m currently taking care of her and we’ve even made a contract, so I must take her with me. Ab, so, lute, ly.”

If the roots of my hair were not safe, there would be no room for negotiation, no matter who the other party was.

“Of course. Please wait a moment.”

Michalis turned into black mist and scattered into the air in an instant.