Chapter 32: My Scion (Part II)

Never to be lonely—what an enticing vow.

I leaned against Alastor’s chest, losing myself for a fleeting moment.

Alastor slowly lowered his head, his deep blue eyes gazing into mine like profound, bottomless pools. Gradually, he leaned closer and closer, until we were nearly at zero distance...

"Lord Archon..." a trembling voice rang out abruptly.

Alastor’s eyebrows twitched. Turning a deaf ear, he remained persistent in his approach, puckering his lips as he prepared to kiss me.

"Lord Archon..." The voice was just as persistent.

Alastor’s eyebrows twitched again. A vein popped on his forehead, and he froze.

"Lord Archon... AHHH!" With a pathetic scream, a dark shadow was sent flying through the air by a kick.

Alastor turned around in a fit of rage, his expression dark and predatory. "Do. You. Want. To. Try. Dying. Once. Too?!"

It turned out to be those same unlucky fellows from before.

"Lord Archon... help us..." The unlucky soul wasn't intimidated at all. Instead, he lunged forward and grabbed Alastor’s leg, wailing as if he’d found his own mother.

"Eh?" Alastor blanked out for a moment, scratching his head.

"A group of Exorcists has broken into the Demon Realm... they’re killing every demon they see..." The unlucky guy had clearly forgotten that Alastor had just thrashed them earlier; he was crying so hard his face was a mess of tears and snot, looking pitiful to the extreme.

"Exorcists?" Alastor frowned slightly. "How many?"

"Ten!"

"Only ten? Are you all pious saints now? Have you gone vegetarian?" Alastor mocked.

"They aren't ordinary Exorcists. Those men have the Holy Cross crest branded on their foreheads!" the fellow said, shaking and shivering, looking like he hadn't yet recovered from the shock.

The furrow between Alastor’s brows deepened a bit. I couldn't help but wonder—was that Holy Cross crest something of great significance?

"Alastor?"

Alastor kicked the unlucky fellow away and turned back to me with a smile. "Let's go. I'm taking you back to the human world."

"That... Holy Cross crest?"

"Let's get you back to the human world first." Alastor took my hand and turned to leave.

"Master! Master..." Before we could take more than a few steps, a petite figure came chasing after us from a distance.

It was Lily.

"Master, wait for me..." Running all the way to us, Lily bent over, panting for breath with her hands on her knees, her face deathly pale.

I narrowed my eyes slightly, remembering her ulterior motives. That time she had lured me out into the sun—if it hadn't been for Sol's Daywalker blood, I probably would have been melted by the sunlight long ago.

Noticing my gaze, Lily instinctively took a step back, shrinking slightly. She looked at Alastor. "Master, when the Sabbat withdrew from the Demon Realm, they destroyed the gates to the human world, throwing the order between the two realms into chaos. The High Priest of the Inquisition has already led ten Exorcists into the Demon Realm. Now... the entire realm is in a state of total upheaval."

I noticed Lily's white dress was stained with blood; she looked quite bedraggled.

The Inquisition? I felt like I had heard that term somewhere before. Then, I froze. Rose had mentioned that Gareth was a priest of the Inquisition!

"Master! You are the Archon of the Demon Realm! It is daytime, and Her Majesty is in a deep sleep. You cannot just ignore them..." Lily took a step forward and knelt before Alastor, her slender fingers tightly clutching her tattered hem. Her bloodless cheeks were flushed with agitation.

I looked at Lily. It was strange—she was clearly human, wasn't she? Why did she care so much about the life and death of demons?

Alastor paused and looked down at me. "Aurora, I’m sorry..."

I nodded. "Go back."

"You're going to go on alone?" Alastor asked in shock.

"Yes. I need to go back."

"Whether you admit it or not, whether it was voluntary or not, you are one of the Blood Kind now. The Inquisition will not let you go," Alastor said, looking at me with rare seriousness.

"It doesn't matter. I have this." Lowering my head, I gently twisted the silver ring on my right index finger. After everything that had happened, I would have to be an idiot not to understand the power of this ring.

It was the only thing my Creator had left me.

"Are you going to abandon me?" Alastor leaned in, looking at me pitifully, blinking his eyes like an abandoned puppy.

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. A breeze brushed past my face, causing my hair to flutter.

"Aurora, I will protect you. I will protect you," Alastor said, cupping my cheeks and speaking with mushy sincerity.

Suddenly, the wind grew stronger and stronger, until it seemed as if the very elements were shifting.

The sun sank away bit by bit. In just an instant, day had turned into night. I stared blankly as the last sliver of sunlight vanished.

In the darkness, there was the faint sound of jade pendants clinking against each other.

From the shadows, a figure slowly emerged. A man with silver hair and white clothes was carrying a pale, beautiful child. Their presence was so powerful it was impossible to ignore.

It was Albus and the Queen.

"Alastor, where are you taking my honored guest?" The Queen sat quietly in Albus’s arms, smiling.

Honored guest? Was she talking about me?

Alastor instinctively took a step back, pulling me behind him.

The Queen raised an eyebrow slightly. "You like her that much?"

Alastor kept me shielded behind him, saying nothing.

"The Inquisition has sent out its finest this time. My injuries have not yet healed, so I must borrow the power of Aurora." The Queen smiled, her cat-like eyes glinting with coldness. "You should understand—from the moment I had you bring her to the Demon Realm, this day was inevitable. It’s just that... the day has arrived early."

My head was buzzing. Suppressing my discomfort, I tugged at Alastor’s hand. "Alastor, what does she mean?"

Alastor did not turn back to look at me.

"Was meeting you... not a coincidence?" I pulled at his hand, my voice trembling slightly.

"The truth wasn't supposed to be revealed so soon, but with this chaos in the Demon Realm, I have no choice but to use your power ahead of schedule." The Queen leapt down from Albus’s arms and, with bare feet, bypassed Alastor to walk slowly up to me. "That time in the underground palace, your power was a pleasant surprise."

As she spoke, she took hold of my right hand. I found myself unable to move, forced to stand stiffly as I watched her slowly pull the silver ring—the one I could never take off—from my right index finger.

The moment the ring was removed, I felt a strange transformation taking place in my body. My vision turned the color of blood. My fingers became as sharp as blades. Uncontrollably, I let out a scream—a sensation both foreign and familiar.

I saw the land of the Demon Realm covered in misery; I saw countless demons being slaughtered; I saw the crosses held by the Exorcists of the Inquisition.

My body felt incredibly light. I swept into the air, my fingers like knives, lunging straight toward the slaughtering Exorcists.

"Her Majesty the Queen!"

Someone suddenly cried out in shock.

"It's Her Majesty!"

"The Queen has returned!"

A surging wave of cheers shook the earth. The demons being slaughtered grew excited as if seeing a savior, and they began to gather behind me.

A wild smile played on my lips as I lightly licked the blood from my fingertips and turned toward the stunned Exorcists.