The night’s calm is shattered by explosions of scarlet light and the sound of blades clashing.
The garden once owned by the Kurotsuki family... no longer deserves to be called a garden.
It’s nothing but scorched earth and massive craters.
Half of the villa has already collapsed.
The rest looks ready to crumble at any mont.
«Co on, try harder! How am I supposed to get stronger if you fight in such a ridiculous way?!» Chantal shouts.
She lunges at Itsu with another fierce strike.
She holds a massive blade made of tallic blood with both hands.
Her body glows with a fierce aura of deep crimson energy.
No trace of the Sacred Fla surrounds her – she chose not to use it, focusing only on mastering her Sanguis energy.
«Look, I’m already fighting at full power... you’re the one who should ease up a little...!» Itsu replies in a tired voice.
His body is covered in orange energy armor shaped like a skeletal fra, with bone-like spikes jutting out all over him – his Innatus-form.
His hands grab Chantal’s blade.
He manages to block it, but not without effort.
The force of the impact makes his feet sink into the ground.
Then, Chantal suddenly releases the sword.
She stretches her arms toward Itsu, who stands just a ter away.
Deep cracks open in her palms.
«Blood Word lv.1: Burst!» Chantal shouts.
A massive beam of crimson energy explodes from her hands.
It hits Itsu head-on, launching him dozens of ters away.
He tumbles violently across the ground.
It’s been four months since their training began – the sa day Hakuto and the others left for Estonia.
Since then, Chantal has trained nonstop, even at night, taking advantage of the fact that vampires don’t sleep.
She focused entirely on mastering the Blood Words – the most powerful vampire spells.
Blood Words are ranked from level 1 to level 5, based on their power and how much Sanguis energy they consu.
Level 5 spells are called ’Ultimate Blood Words’.
’Burst’ is a level 1 Blood Word, but during these months, Chantal has also succeeded in using level 2 spells.
The result left Itsu speechless.
It had taken him years to master those sa spells.
Chantal pulled it off effortlessly in just four months.
Itsu slowly gets back on his feet, exhausted and aching.
The skeletal armor managed to absorb the spell, but now it’s full of deep cracks.
One more hit and it would break apart completely.
«You’ve gotten damn strong...» Itsu mutters with a shaky smile.
At first, Itsu was stronger than Chantal while using his Innatus-form – though only slightly.
But their positions soon flipped.
After just one month, they were evenly matched.
Now, Chantal is a bit stronger than him.
Still, the training helped him too.
Because of Chantal’s constant pressure, he was forced to keep using his Innatus-form.
He went from being able to maintain it for just a few seconds to nearly half an hour without stopping.
«L-Let’s take a break...? I’m exhausted...» Itsu pants, completely out of breath as he raises his arms in surrender.
But Chantal doesn’t care.
She takes a fighting stance, her large sword pointed straight at him.
«You want to give up now, when I’m this close to breaking his so-called indestructible armor? Shin broke it with so effort – if I can do the sa, it ans I’m almost as strong as that old man was before he lost his arm like an idiot!»
Then, Chantal bends her knees slightly and launches herself forward.
She glides just above the ground, heading straight for Itsu.
The shockwave from her sudden dash cracks the earth beneath her.
But then...
Chantal stops halfway.
Sothing catches her attention – and Itsu’s too.
Bright red rose petals begin to fall from the sky – vivid like fresh blood.
They swirl in midair, as if carried by wind... but there isn’t any.
There aren’t even rose bushes nearby.
Their movent feels unnatural.
The petals follow strange paths, all drifting toward the sa spot in the garden – right near Itsu.
His eyes widen.
His jaw trembles.
He cancels his Innatus-form.
«Hey, stupid vampire, what’s wrong with you? What’s happening?!» Chantal shouts, gripping her sword even tighter.
She’s also hit by a strange mix of panic and awe.
A weird scent fills the air around them – the scent of a vampire, but it’s not Itsu.
«C-Chantal... get out of here... now!» Itsu murmurs.
His voice drips with fear.
His eyes stay fixed on the blood-colored petals.
In an instant, the strange rose petals gather together and start glowing even brighter.
Then cos a blinding red light.
When the light fades, a young and strikingly handso vampire stands where the petals had been.
He looks to be in his twenties, but his outfit is from another era.
A long black coat, a matching vest, a white shirt, and high-waisted trousers – the style of an 1800s dandy.
His hair is orange, just like Itsu’s, but a bit longer and slicked back.
He appeared from nowhere using a powerful form of transport magic used only by the strongest vampires.
It’s based on a physical principle humans also know – converting matter into energy and back.
By using this, a powerful vampire can transform his body into pure Sanguis energy, travel instantly, and reappear exactly where he wants.
Itsu clenches his teeth, fists trembling.
«It can’t be... what the fuck are you doing here?!» he snaps.
«Itsu... he’s a vampire too, right?» Chantal asks, stepping toward him quickly.
But Itsu shakes his head.
His eyes are filled with rage and tears.
«He’s not just a vampire... he’s evil itself! He killed my whole family and sold to Velshekar when he found out I had an Innatus... that bastard is Akashi Chihane... my older brother!»
Chantal’s eyes widen in disbelief.
«Your older brother...? You never told you had one! Actually... you two do look kind of alike...»
«I never told you because I stopped considering him my brother five years ago... to , he doesn’t exist anymore!» Itsu exclaims, his voice heavy with contempt.
«Oh, don’t be so dramatic...» Akashi interrupts, sounding overly and obviously fake in his regret.
«It’s been five years, and this is how you greet your dear older brother? You used to idolize , you know... looked up to like a hero. How things change. You’ve really broken my heart...» he adds, shaking his head in mock disappointnt.
«What the hell do you want from now?! Did Velshekar send you?! I don’t know anything and I have nothing to do with what happened four months ago!» Itsu snaps.
Akashi simply shrugs.
«The fact that you know sothing happened four months ago tells you do know sothing. When will you learn to shut up...? Lying is an art – and if you can’t do it right, it’s better to stay silent.»
Then, he turns to Chantal and stares at her, confused.
~According to Velshekar’s intel, she should be Chantal Carreaux. The description fits perfectly. But her eyes... her energy... she’s clearly a vampire. The odds of soone with the Sacred Fla being turned into a vampire are almost zero... So who the hell is she?~
«Hey, you, little girl...» Akashi says to Chantal. «...what’s your na?»
«My na is–»
«Her na is Morgana Dulcar!» Itsu interrupts before Chantal can respond.
She stays calm and nods silently.
«Morgana Dulcar...» Akashi repeats. «...and what’s soone from such a noble house doing on Earth?»
«That’s exactly what I’d like to know too,» Chantal replies firmly.
«As far back as I can rember, I’ve always lived here – on Earth. I don’t know who my parents are or where I co from, and honestly, I don’t even care. If they left here, they must’ve had their reasons. That’s all,» she finishes, fully backing up Itsu’s lie.
«Interesting...» Akashi says, though his tone lacks any real curiosity.
He turns toward Itsu again.
«Say goodbye to your friend and let’s go.»
Itsu nods without a word.
He’s terrified of his brother.
The fear and dread he feels for him are stronger than his hatred.
He agrees without question, just to stop things from getting worse.
But things escalate anyway.
«Hey, can’t you see we’re in the middle of a training session?! And you seriously think I’ll let you walk away with him after what he just told ?!» Chantal shouts.
«Morgana, please, just let it go...» Itsu pleads.
«Let it go...? Not happening!»
She turns to Akashi.
«Leave your useless brother alone and go back to wherever you ca from – unless you want to wreck you!»
Akashi smiles, clearly entertained by Chantal’s boldness.
«Morgana, don’t push it... I told you to stay out of this... It’s better if you don’t provoke him. You have no idea how strong he is...!»
His warning has the opposite effect.
Chantal grips her greatsword’s hilt tightly and points it at Akashi.
«Are you saying he’s stronger than you...?»
«He’s MUCH stronger than ...» Itsu says.
Chantal’s smile widens – pure excitent on her face.
«That’s exactly what I wanted to hear!»
A storm of Sanguis energy erupts from her body – way more intense than anything she used against Itsu.
She dashes toward Akashi, sword held high and ready to strike.
Behind her, the air tears apart like in the path of a hurricane.
«Uh, impressive...» Akashi comnts.
He stretches his arm forward, palm open.
A deep gash opens in his hand, and a small blood sphere forms.
«Morgana, stop...!» Itsu begs again – but it’s useless.
«...but your strength isn’t even close to beating . Blood Word lv.4: Deathorns!»
Huge crimson spikes, shaped like rose thorns, shoot up from the ground, ripping it apart.
A scream of pure agony escapes Chantal as the thorns pierce her body and limbs.
Blood pours from the deep wounds and her mouth – the pain is so unbearable she can’t even scream anymore.
She looks toward Akashi again – but he’s gone. Itsu too.
A mont later, the massive thorns trapping her dissolve into tiny petals.
The petals vanish into red smoke.
Chantal’s limp body drops to the ground with a heavy thud, landing on her back.
Her eyes stare up at the starry sky – she can’t even move a finger.
It’s like her whole body is paralyzed.
«I shouldn’t say this, but... Itsu’s brother is seriously hot...»
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