Scars

“Boss, what you predicted has already happened.”

The agent wearing a clown-smile mask knelt devoutly on the ground, and behind him, the ancient being who had just awakened from his coffin sat quietly in a chair, gazing at the Tarot cards in his hand.

“Has it already begun? Heh heh…”

A hoarse, dry voice, as if a corpse had spoken again, his withered fingers continuously rubbing the Tarot cards.

Even though his clothes had been changed, the strong scent of decay emanating from his body was still hard to conceal.

“Has that young imp, Hart, died?”

“Yes, everything is as you predicted. His life force extinguished not long ago. I have already dispatched the entire mercenary guild of the auction house to apprehend the target.”

The agent bowed his head, reporting the situation truthfully.

“Very good, proceed as normal. What about the auction hall situation?”

An old, emaciated hand turned the Tarot cards face down on the table, and his crimson eyes stared intently at the now lifeless crystal ball.

“Personnel have already been dispatched to blockade and suppress. According to your orders, none shall be left alive!”

“Excellent.”

“However, Boss, among this time’s guests is a descendant of the current Empress. With her identity and strength, she probably isn’t someone ordinary mages and mercenaries can deal with.”

The agent asked after a moment of consideration.

“Then you shall deal with her yourself. Do not concern yourself with her identity, nor need you deliberately hold back. Since she violated the rules, you shall properly entertain my lovely, never-before-met grand-niece!”

In an instant, the ancient vampire who had awakened from the coffin let out a chilling laugh. Years had stripped the vitality from him, but his meager desire and immortal will had allowed this Vampire Prince to live until now.

“As for the Elf Princess? She is an old friend of mine. Although she may no longer recognize me, the knife marks and searing pain she left on my body have never let me forget that memory!”

“Let the present you atone for the past!”

As the words fell, countless bats surged from the opened coffin. The ancient prince raised the goblet on the table and drained the fresh elf blood within.

Inside the auction hall.

Avia vigilantly scanned the immense venue, which had already descended into chaos.

The air was thick with the rich scent of blood, making her involuntarily tighten her grip on her Blood Whip.

The chaos came too suddenly, catching even her off guard.

Earlier, the pair of silencing crystals she and Selina had prepared in advance had shattered.

Silencing crystals were used in pairs; once one was crushed, the other would also shatter, signifying an unstoppable act of violence.

Immediately after, the auction, which had been proceeding smoothly, was suddenly surrounded by a group of mercenaries in iron armor and mages wielding staffs.

The haughty guests, who hadn’t even had time to understand the situation, were already met with cold blades.

It was an indiscriminate slaughter, and the targets of the slaughter were the guests who had been invited to the venue.

The once high and mighty VIPs had now become unarmed lambs to the slaughter.

Dismembered limbs and severed arms, mixed with blood, thoroughly stained the glittering floor.

Looking around, apart from the noble young master who had initially competed with her and had successfully escaped using a spatial displacement tool, all other guests had become fallen souls beneath the blades of the iron-blooded mercenaries.

Now, she was the sole survivor in the entire hall.

Avia flicked her Blood Whip, and at her feet lay quite a few corpses of the mercenaries who had previously attacked.

Looking at the mercenaries and mages gradually surrounding her, Avia’s previously cold expression suddenly broke into a smile.

“So that’s it. It seems this massacre wasn’t an accident, but premeditated, correct?”

The silver-haired girl proudly looked at the blood-stained mercenaries, speaking with a mocking tone.

“Lady 23, you have violated the auction’s prohibition by bringing a forbidden person into the venue. To ensure the confidentiality of the auction, Secret Order No. 3 will now be executed. All those present today, show no mercy!”

The leading mercenary-mage recited his lines, his blade already beginning to gather battle aura.

“Show no mercy? Kill me? With just you all?”

Avia asked three consecutive questions, her crimson eyes filled with disdain.

The mercenaries and mages surrounding her seemed to have their souls controlled.

Although they knew the vast disparity in strength, at the leading mercenary’s command of “Kill,” everyone rushed forward recklessly.

In an instant, various blades accompanied by colorful magic filled all visible space around Avia.

The barrage of fire covered strikes turned the light in one’s vision into a uniform white.

With several deafening explosions, thick smoke enveloped the battlefield.

Until a strong gust of wind arrived, tearing through the smoke and dust.

A crimson crystal formed a massive shield, standing firm in the center of the battlefield.

A silver figure emerged from the gaps in the giant shield, completely unharmed.

And with the upward curve of her lips, the blood-red long whip in her hand lashed out like a monstrous demon, wantonly tearing apart every flesh and blood body present.

When the dazzling light faded, the blood and severed limbs on the ground seemed even thicker. Avia gestured, retracting her long whip, and this time, only she remained standing in the entire hall.

“Boring, uninteresting, meaningless.”

Avia shook her head, seemingly a bit disappointed.

This was her first time taking action after her bloodline stabilized.

She had thought that so many people would at least keep her engaged for a few rounds, but they were just a disorganized mob.

She turned to leave and rendezvous with Selina, but suddenly a voice behind her stopped her in her tracks.

“Since these people cannot satisfy Her Highness Avia, why don’t I have the honor of exchanging blows with you?”

Avia turned around, looked up, and squinted at the figure in a black tailcoat that had appeared out of nowhere, suspended mid-air in the hall. Her Blood Whip reappeared in her hand.

The aura emanating from the person before her had reached the pinnacle of the High-level, a strength fully enough to warrant her serious attention.

But this person’s identity…

“Are you the boss behind this auction house?”

Avia remembered that the first time she attended a black market auction, the auctioneer presiding was this man with a clown-smile mask and a black tailcoat.

“How could that be? I am merely an agent, managing all the properties here on behalf of the true master.”

Although standing still in the air, the agent still elegantly bowed to Avia in a gentlemanly manner.

“I’m just not interested in you. I disdain to treat anyone who doesn’t even dare to remove their mask as a true opponent.”

“Has my mask troubled Your Highness, then? If so, I am willing to remove it, after all, only you and I remain here.”

With that, the agent reached up and removed the mask from his face. And when his true face was revealed before Avia’s eyes, the girl’s pupils involuntarily widened.

“Vampire? No, how is this possible?!”

Avia frowned in confusion.

Long before she began her studies at the Academy of Revelation, she had thoroughly researched the surrounding industries and situations. Empress Adil had generously entrusted her with inspecting the nearby vampire enterprises.

However, in the Vampire Empress’s secret documents, there was no mention of any vampire-related enterprise connected to the black market in this vicinity.

That was the Vampire Empress’s secret document, with information gathered by the empire’s most elite Shadow Department and intelligence network.

Yet, a vampire was actually able to operate such a large-scale black market and auction house near the Academy of Revelation, seemingly outside the Vampire Empress’s control.

“No need to be surprised, Master’s existence has long since transcended the Vampire Empress’s control.”

Avia clenched the Blood Whip in her hand, utterly disbelieving the other party’s words.

Although she had never acknowledged Empress Adil as her mother in her heart, she had never denied Empress Adil’s power as the Empress.

That uncontrollable submission, originating from the soul and deep within the bloodline, would hold true even for a child connected to her by blood.

“Who knows? Perhaps Her Highness has knelt for too long and forgotten how to stand.”

The vampire youth waved a hand, his light tone carrying a hint of blood.

“Boastful!”

Avia had no more patience for this person’s nonsense.

She lashed out her Blood Whip, creating crimson ripples and a bloody wind.

“Get out of the way, or I don’t mind letting you taste the outcome of having your limbs severed!”

“I’m afraid I cannot comply.”

The agent had barely spoken when, in an instant, a sharp sonic boom erupted near his ear.

Then, blood splattered, and accompanied by a red arc of light like thunder, the agent’s arm was directly torn off by the tip of the Blood Whip.

The vampire youth calmly turned his head to look at the gruesome wound on his right arm. There was no sign of pain or anger in his crimson eyes.

“Truly worthy of being the daughter of the current Empress. Such powerful magic is awe-inspiring. It’s a pity, though, no matter how strong, she’s just an old wild cat with a collar and chain.”

As if to prove something, the agent controlled the circulation of his vampire bloodline. Immediately, countless granulations at the wound began to reorganize and heal at a visible speed.

But Avia was clearly not so foolish as to give him time to heal. Once again, she swung her Blood Whip. Powerful magic enveloped the whip, creating a stunning red arc in the air.

The whip cracked like thunder, but this time, Avia’s attack missed.

The vampire youth seemed to have anticipated it, falling from the air, his clean leather shoes elegantly and naturally landing on the ground, dodging the attack.

“By Master’s command, allow me to properly entertain Her Highness Avia today.”

A blood sword entwined with crimson thorns appeared out of thin air.

The agent held the sword in one hand, his other hand behind his back, the tails of his tailcoat swaying slightly with the air current. His posture was like an elegant knight, standing still, awaiting his challenger’s move.

“Drip, drip, drip…”

Hot blood dripped into a pool of blood, making a crisp sound.

The silver-haired girl flicked the remaining blood off her blade.

Her emerald eyes surveyed the already fallen corpses around her, and the killing intent deep within her eyes slowly dissipated.

“Hmph…”

The girl slowly exhaled. After venting the emotions that had been suppressed in her heart, her rationality returned somewhat.

Before this, her mood had been truly suppressed.

As the Thief Saint, she had seen slaves of various races.

She had originally thought she could face these scenes with a calm heart, but when that pair of sisters were exposed to her eyes in such a tragic state…

Selina admitted that it was a level of anger she had never felt since becoming an elf.

Perhaps the elf bloodline was indeed changing her thoughts constantly, or perhaps the elves’ innate sensibility made it impossible for her to be absolutely rational and calm.

In short, in this matter, enduring until Hart brought out the ingredients for the elf growth serum was already Selina’s limit.

Whether in the past or now, she had never been bloodthirsty.

The girl’s heart always maintained reverence for life, but this time, having harvested the lives of dozens of mercenaries in succession, her heart was unprecedentedly calm.

“Clap, clap, clap…”

Suddenly, a sound of applause echoed through the quiet space.

Selina turned her head to look at the black figure that had appeared at the secret room’s doorway.

“Truly excellent, such swift and fierce blade work, harvesting the lives of these useless individuals in just a few strokes. Your Excellency’s blade work truly leaves me in awe.”

A hoarse, withered voice entered her ear canal, causing an innate discomfort. Selina turned and aimed her blade at this sudden, uninvited guest.

“So, have you seen enough, Vampire?”

Her cold voice was imbued with an icy gaze.

Her voice, her eyes, were like a blade directly piercing the other’s soul.

Yet, the figure hidden in the darkness seemed unaffected.

His hoarse laughter was like dry tree branches swaying in the winter wind, containing nothing but desolation and death.

“Of course not. Although the blade work just now was astonishing enough, I know your true strength is not merely this. Your speed is far, far too slow compared to before…”

With each word, the figure stepped out of the darkness, until fully exposed before Selina’s eyes.

Pale, elderly hair casually draped behind him.

Deep furrows and wrinkles covered his pale skin.

His exquisite Gothic noble male attire was brand new, but countless years had passed over this body.

The only traces of life were decay and witheredness.

Those eyes, the color of blood and night in the darkness, represented the ancient race before her.

“What are you talking about? I don’t understand.”

Selina subconsciously tightened her grip on the hilt of her blade.

Her previously relaxed muscles instantly returned to a tense state.

“Don’t understand? Heh heh, this truly is the funniest joke I’ve heard since I awoke. Do people really change their memories just because they changed their appearance?”

The shriveled, hoarse laughter intensified Selina’s sense of unease. Staring at this decaying, almost mummified vampire, even if she scoured her memories, she couldn’t find anyone she had ever fought or known who resembled him.

“Who exactly are you?”

“Don’t recognize me? Heh heh, perhaps. After all, that memory, for you, might just be a battle record you can casually discard. But for me, it is like an immortal bone-eating maggot, gnawing at my flesh day and night, corroding my soul, making me recall the pain of that night…”

The vampire reached out and unbuttoned his clothes.

As he moved his arms, his garments automatically fell to the ground.

Using the faint firelight, Selina clearly saw the vampire’s exposed body.

What shocked her most was that on this decaying body, he had left nothing but gruesome scars, like centipedes crawling and clinging to his skin, making one tremble with fear.

“You?!”

“Remembered? These scars, even after decades, still remain on my body, impossible to erase. And all of these are thanks to you, Conde!”

The vampire snarled hoarsely, his distorted profile seemingly releasing all the hatred accumulated over decades in this moment.

“That night, 13 years ago, in Drake Noble Manor, you wielded a pair of Mithril Twin Blades and stopped my blood ritual. And these 135 scars on my body were all left by you, one by one!”

The Vampire Prince’s voice seemed to carry some magical power, pulling Selina’s consciousness back to that night 13 years ago.

That night was not only special for the Vampire Prince, but also an unforgettable day for Conde at that time.

As the memory gradually cleared, more and more past memories surged into Selina’s mind. Those past events she didn’t want to recall, the truths she didn’t want to face, or even the abandoned identity, all surfaced like fleeting dreams and illusions…

A red crescent moon hung high in the sky. Ominous bats had already covered the dark night sky.

Sitting on the roof of a luxurious house, Conde let the cold wind blow across his cheeks. His pitch-black eyes appeared bitter and helpless under the starlight.

He looked at his single unique hand. Since that old geezer died, he had never felt as lost as he did today.

When the long-sought-after thing lay before his eyes, the cruel truth made him forget the excitement of finding his blood kin.

His agitated blood cooled as if doused with cold water, and as the night wind carried away the warmth from his skin, his heart gradually grew cold with the biting wind.

His so-called orphan status was not due to being born without parents.

He had actually anticipated this, as he was adopted after being found at the orphanage entrance.

Such a situation usually meant poor couples were unable to raise their child, thus leaving the child at the orphanage entrance, hoping for a kind person to adopt them.

Conde originally thought this was his story, but when he heard the truth directly from the mouth of the mother who shared his bloodline, all illusions shattered.

There were no poor couples unable to raise a child, begging for adoption by the wealthy.

It was merely a pair of nobles who despised the child they had borne, deeming it inauspicious, and thus discarding it to fend for itself…