The canopy of the forest looked beautiful as I stared up. The light of the afternoon sun shone from the northwest, cutting golden orange rays through the leaves and branches.
Time slowed down around me as I admired the peace and quiet. I felt the soft gravel pressing on my head as I lay down on the ground flat on my back. I scooped a handful of stones into my left hand, small, grainy, with a few pebbles mixed in. They felt coarse, grainy, and most of all — sharp. Thoughts on being swallowed by the earth were pushed aside at the thought of being ground and shredded by these stones while I descend.
I felt myself take a deep breath.
I felt myself blink.
I felt tears welling in my eyes.
Then I felt a sharp stinging sensation all over my back. A combination of my body's delayed reaction to impact and the stones made my body bounce and pushed all the air out of my lungs. I released all the air with a huff of my nose and mouth before my body settled.
I lay flat, splayed, and fucking beat when a face distorts my view of the canopy. Sweat dropped from her brow down to my eyes, making me blink and wipe them with my sleeve which I then kept over my eyes.
"Again, Seren! Up!" Ryujin's voice boomed. All afternoon she decided to go with this drill sergeant concept, which she thought was entertaining every time she dropped me down on my ass as she trained me in hand to hand combat.
"Get up, or I'll throw you up!" she yelled again, her voice breaking every time as she tried to hold back a snicker or a giggle.
"You've been at it for two hours already," Chaeryoung said somewhere to my right. "Don't you think you need to rest?"
"I second..." I heaved heavily as time began flowing naturally again, "that motion..."
"Shin Ryujin..." Yeji's voice spoke somewhere to my left.
"What?"
"No fight lasts two hours," Yeji replied, "Rest. Both of you."
"Again," I raised a weary arm, "I second that motion."
"And that was an order, Shin Ryujin," Hwang Yeji said in her leader voice.
"I second that order, too," I panted, earning a giggle from Chaeryoung.
"Fine," Ryujin grumbled. "Get up, Seren."
I removed my arm from my eyes to see Ryujin extending a hand towards me. I took it and she pulled me up. I was about to thank her for the lesson when a wicked grin spread on her face.
"Shit —" was the only word that came out of my mouth before Shin Ryujin flipped me again, slamming me to the ground for the nth time this afternoon.
My back arched in the air. I groaned, more in irritation than actual pain.
"Shin Ryujin!" Chaeryoung was on me in an instant.
Ryujin chuckled and Yeji could only shake her head.
"Are you okay?" Chaeryoung asked in genuine concern as she helped me sit up.
"Yeah," I groaned like an old man. "That was more annoying than painful."
Chaeryoung gently brushed dirt and dust off my shirt. "I thought I could continue training you but... Seulgi said you need to learn to fight after what Sakura reported to the Triarchy."
"What did Sakura say?" I asked.
"Aren't you more interested in what she didn't say to the Triarchy..." Ryujin squatted opposite Chaeryoung, a towel and a bottle of water in her hands.
"Well, yeah."
Both Chaeryoung and Ryujin's heads snapped towards Yeji expectantly. I followed their gazes slowly to where the huntress was leaning against a tree trunk. She gazed back at us with tired eyes, which she rolled before sighing and making her way to join us on the ground.
"Well... first off... when we heard Sakura's report regarding the amphitheater incident, we thought something was... off... missing." She sat to my left, pulling her knees closer to her chest.
Chaeryoung snapped the towel from Ryujin's hand and began wiping my brow. Ryujin scowled before handing me the water bottle.
I dipped my head in thanks, opened the bottle and started chugging while my eyes remained on Yeji, urging her to keep going.
Yeji returned the eye contact, "We used Haerin to lure Sakura to our room and interrogate her, which... well..." her cheeks flushed, averting my gaze.
"Which what?" I asked, pausing my drink.
Ryujin snickered in front of me. I turned to her only to notice Chaeryoung was also blushing, her head lowered and her eyes staring directly at the now sweat-drenched towel she held.
"Is no one going to answer my question?"
"Well..." Ryujin said, grinning wickedly, "what Yeji expected to be an interrogation became a systematic dismantling of hers and Chaeryoung's feelings towards you."
I chuckled, raised my eyebrows while looking back and forth at Yeji and Chaeryoung.
Yeji shrugged, her ears growing redder, "I guess that's what you get for trying to interrogate an intel operative."
"I got to say, Seren," Ryujin leaned closer on all fours, thighs and hands placed on either side of me. The grin she gave me was still wicked, but with that familiar desire-driven glint in her eyes. "Yeji and Chaeryoung already fucked you a second time. I'm already feeling left out here —!"
"Shin Ryujin!" Chaeryoung admonished embarrassingly, pulling Ryujin off of me while Yeji's face scrunched in annoyance.
"Can we get back on track?"
"Only if you — hmmmh!" Ryujin's words were smothered as Chaeryoung wrapped the towel around her mouth.
I gave a dry chuckle at both huntresses before turning expectantly towards Yeji whose cat eyes were fixed on me.
She sighed again, "Well, short version is... whatever Sakura didn't tell the Triarchy, Yuna and Sullyoon told us when they called."
I nodded slowly, "so you guys basically know everything, then."
Yeji nodded.
"And...?"
"And what, Seren?"
"And you're still here... like Jimin said you would... thank you..."
A thank you didn't seem enough to show how much I was grateful to them. I guess the only way to repay their trust and friendship is matching this dedication that they are showing me. One question remains in my mind, though.
"Why?"
Yeji and Ryujin chuckled while Chaeryoung's expression softened even further.
"What kind of question is that?" Yeji mockingly teased.
"You're wondering why we still want to be your friend even if you have demon's blood..." Ryujin doubled down, her mocking tone more playful than Yeji's. "I got to say, Seren, with everything we've been through, I'm offended you think that way."
"I'm... sorry...?"
"You may have demonic blood, but..." Chaeryoung leaned towards me, looping her arms around my neck, "... you've been everything but a demon to us."
"Well... aside from being such a sex demon... I have nothing else to comment. Silver linings of having the Blood of Lilith, maybe, but hey... I'm certainly not complaining," Ryujin said, grinning — because of course it was Ryujin who would say something like this. The three of us can only laugh.
Chaeryoung studied my face, I looked back, smiling. Her eyes stared straight to mine as if she's reading my thoughts.
"That's not the only thing bothering you," Chaeryoung concluded softly.
A quick smile crossed my lips before I placed my hands on her thighs. "Minjeong..."
The huntresses nodded, understanding crossing their faces immediately.
"I assume you'll do what Chaewon did this morning?" Yeji asked.
I turned to her, puzzled, concern also flashing on my face. "What did Chaewon do this morning?" I was in the realm of the Lady of Spring all morning, so I didn't know what was happening outside.
"She and Aeri fought at the castle," Chaeryoung answered. "We presume it's because Chaewon does not want Minjeong to be taken by the citadel while Aeri thinks otherwise."
"Reports say that the entire south courtyard of the castle was on fire..." Ryujin added. "I would've paid to see that fight."
"What happened after? Is Chaewon okay?" I asked, perking up in concern.
"We don't know..." Yeji replied. "Our operatives were advised to pull back in case they get caught in the crossfire... with Chaewon's power being particularly volatile. Reports say that a chilling wind, like winter has prematurely arrived, was felt before the fight unceremoniously ended."
I sighed in concern, "Minjeong..."
"Most probably..." Yeji answered softly.
"So..." Chaeryoung leaned closer, searching my face for something. "Are you doing what Chaewon intends? Defy the Citadel and keep them from taking Minjeong?"
My jaw tightened. My gaze grew resolute. My decision was already made when Eunchae teleported us to the castle. My conversation with Princess Wonyoung, especially her support, only served to strengthen it.
"No," I replied.
All three huntresses fixed me with gazes ranging from curiosity to confusion to understanding.
"Eclipse Garden will."
Ryujin grinned widely. "I'm in."
"Wait, Ryujin... Seren..." Yeji pulled herself closer to us. "You're saying you'll drag the Garden into defying the Citadel?"
"You can always opt out, Yeji... all of you," I responded. "I know you have... responsibilities... allegiances... before the Garden, before me. I'll understand, and I won't hold it against any of you —"
"I'm in, too," Chaeryoung interrupted.
"Not you too, Lee Chaeryoung," Yeji exclaimed in disbelief.
"Don't say you don't want to, Yeji," Chaeryoung retorted.
"I do... I fucking do... not just for you, Seren. Minjeong has been a little sister to us as well, but..." Yeji defended herself. "The Triarchy..."
"Fuck the Triarchy!" Ryujin spat.
"Shin Ryujin..." Chaeryoung turned to her in alarm while Yeji glared at her.
"What? I'm just saying what you're all thinking," Ryujin shrugged her shoulders.
"They're always arguing amongst themselves — always thinking what's best for their faction, not what's best for us werebeasts as a whole and —"
"Careful, Shin Ryujin," a voice whispered from the shadows.
I activated aero sense to search for her location even though I recognized her voice. I sensed her behind a tree not ten meters from our location.
"If it were a different intel operative assigned here now, you'll be charged with sedition..." Sakura emerged from the tree as both huntresses' heads swiveled towards her.
"Tell me I'm wrong, Sakura," Ryujin challenged.
"Perhaps, perhaps not," Sakura replied while she padded softly and soundlessly towards us. "But talk like that is dangerous..."
"We already live dangerous lives, what difference does it make?"
"Because you're defying the thing that gives you somewhere to belong since your birth," Yeji replied.
"Eclipse Garden also makes me feel like I belong. Why can't we fight for it and the... family... we found there?!" Ryujin snapped back.
None of us were able to answer immediately, especially with that one word — family.
"Because..." Yeji finally began but was immediately interrupted by Ryujin.
"Why do we need the Triarchy's permission to fight for those we deem precious?"
"You know damn well why, Shin Ryujin," Yeji said softly, though I sensed that she was trying to hold back herself.
"Damn it." Shin Ryujin let her body fall down to the soft gravel, her arms and legs spread wide on her side.
Sakura smirked softly while Yeji closed her eyes in frustration.
"Perhaps the Triarchy can be convinced to a... compromise..." Sakura said.
Ryujin sat up immediately while I, Yeji, and Chaeryoung gazed up at Sakura.
"What are you saying?" Yeji asked.
"Well," Sakura shrugged, "we can always propose the Triarchy to support Eclipse Garden."
"Do you think they'll agree?" Chaeryoung asked.
"Of course not," Ryujin spat.
"Not with the current status quo..." Sakura said.
Our brows furrowed, once again gazing up at the werebeast intel operative.
"What exactly are you saying, Miyawaki Sakura?" Yeji inquired.
"What we need is authorization, right?" Sakura started. "Authorization that the Triarchy acknowledges the Garden and that they support it and its members' activities."
"The question is, how?" Yeji asked in frustration.
"Well, I think Lord Leoric would support us, being his subjects as predators. It would also help if we can get a senior hunter to support us..."
"Seulgi would..." Chaeryoung perked up.
Sakura snapped and pointed at Chaeryoung, "Exactly. Which means we can probably already rely on one vote."
"Lord Leoric's?" Chaeryoung clarified and Sakura nodded in affirmation.
"The problem is Lady Choi of the avians..." Yeji sighed. "We both know she always opposes things just because she likes to oppose things."
"If birds can be called bitches, then she's one," Ryujin growled.
"Shin Ryujin —" Chaeryoung admonished her, as always.
"What? It's not like you all don't think the same," Ryujin shrugged.
"She's still a member of the Triarchy... you're still expected to respect her..."
"Expected, Chaery," Ryujin pointed out, "not obligated."
Chaeryoung rolled her eyes, realizing the futility of her actions.
"Lord Nara of the herbivores on the other hand..." Sakura said as she sat down.
"Is indifferent to most of the proceedings..." Yeji provided. "Never actually contributing to discussions and just... votes whenever he needs to and provides no explanation why he voted the way he did."
"So," Ryujin leaned sideways to look at Sakura. "How do you plan on swaying even one of them to our cause?"
Indeed, I thought. Hearing their descriptions of the Triarchy members make it look like a Herculean task. One seems too zealous, while the other seems the exact polar opposite.
Going for one would be the safest option, I thought. After all, we only need two out of the three votes from the Triarchy, and since the girls are pretty confident with their Lord Leoric —
"We're going after all of them," Sakura stated nonchalantly.
A pause.
The huntresses' jaws dropped. Ryujin grinned widely.
I blinked, confused, but now sure that we were going to fail.
"You can't be serious?" Yeji whispered.
"I like it," Ryujin smirked.
"Of course you do," Chaeryoung rolled her eyes.
"What's the matter?" Sakura frowned. "Go big or go home, right? Besides, if we go after only one and fail... well, we fail," she shrugged her shoulders.
"This way," the intel operative continued, "we increase our chances of success —"
" — or failure," Yeji interjected.
"Like I said, go big or go home. Anyway, imagine if we succeed getting all three votes?"
"Then wake me up, for I am dreaming, Ms Miyawaki —" Yeji quipped back.
"Why not give it a try, Yeji?" Ryujin urged.
"Yeah," Chaeryoung agreed, making Yeji raise an eyebrow at her. "At least if we fail, we can say we tried everything we could."
Yeji sighed in frustration, knowing full well she has been outvoted. "The question remains, Sakura. How?"
"We have a contact with the avians, right?" Sakura said matter-of-factly.
Yeji and Ryujin's heads slowly turned to look at Chaeryoung.
Chaeryoung looked aghast. "Are you asking me to rope my sister into this?!"
"I am," Sakura replied.
"I'm not asking. I'm telling you to rope Chaeyeon into this," Ryujin kept grinning.
"You did say to try everything we could," Yeji added.
"Do I have any say in this?" I raised my hand.
"No." All four werebeasts answered.
"This is werebeast politics, Seren," Sakura said, "best leave it to... actual werebeasts."
"Got it..." I nodded once before returning my hand to Chaeryoung's waist. "I'll just enjoy having Chaeryoung in my lap, then."
Chaeryoung blushed, looking at me with bashful eyes.
"Yeah. Very sweet," Sakura playfully winced. "So do you think you can enlist Chaeyeon's help?"
Chaeryoung bit her lip, "I'll try... but..." she looked at my eyes, "no promises or assurances."
I nodded in understanding. She smiled back and gave my lips a soft peck while Ryujin cringed behind her.
"Now," Yeji heaved a sigh, "what is your plan for Lord Nara?"
Sakura smirked, "Haerin has a close friend in the green eaters — a rabbit to be precise. I'll tell her to get us in contact with her."
"Do we have a timeline?" Chaeryoung asked.
"Why? Is Chaeyeon too busy?" Sakura teased.
Chaeryoung rolled her eyes, "You know how she is."
"Fine," the intel operative chuckled. "Citadel agents usually arrive to take newly awakened sorceresses a week after their powers manifest, so..."
"We need to secure the Triarchy's support within six days," Yeji concluded.
"Is that possible?" I asked.
"I can talk to Chaeyeon tonight..." Chaeryoung answered, "I'll text you for any updates."
"I'll also talk to Haerin," Sakura chimed in, "but it may take a little longer, knowing how airheaded that kitten is."
"It's actually adorable," Yeji commented with a soft smile.
Even Ryujin let a smile slip, but I sensed her lip twitch through aero sense.
"Yeah? Just wait until she spaces out on the most important moments of a stakeout," Sakura sighed in exasperation.
"Give her a break," Chaeryoung said softly, "she's still young."
"That's the only reason why I put up with her," Sakura placed a palm on her forehead.
Ryujin scoffed, "admit it, Sakura. You've grown soft to the little kitty."
Sakura glared at her. Ryujin just grinned back.
"There's one thing that's bothering me, though," Yeji raised her index finger then slowly pointed it at Sakura.
"You're usually just nonchalant about everything," she began. "Always just observing, gathering information with those eyes and ears of yours."
Sakura returned Yeji's firm gaze. Chaeryoung and Ryujin also became wary all of a sudden.
"Say what you want to say, Hwang Yeji," Sakura said, low but not cold.
"Why are you doing this? Being so active about the welfare of Minjeong. You always distance yourself. Why be active now?" Yeji asked, direct and straightforward. Chaeryoung and Ryujin turned to her expectantly.
Sakura on the other hand, looked at me, and understanding dawned on my expression.
"I was there... at the amphitheater," Sakura began. "There when that siren sage Lee Jieun basically gave the Pale Princess and I our roles in this world."
"This wasn't part of your briefing with the Triarchy," Yeji quietly noted.
Sakura shook her head. "If I did, they won't believe me. Heeding a... vision, prophecy, guidance... whatever the fuck Lee Jieun gave that night... the Triarchy will see it as me losing faith in them."
"Are you?" Ryujin asked.
"No," came Sakura's immediate reply. "But Jieun said..." she hesitated for a heartbeat. Then she sighed, "she said I need to set the hearts of our race to support Seren and the Garden."
"Does this connect to that 'war is coming' part she said?" Chaeryoung asked.
Sakura nodded slowly.
"I'm not one to trust visions, and prophecies, and destinies. I trust information, verified information... but what Jieun said... it felt true... inevitable almost. Then I felt... fear..."
"Fear?" Ryujin murmured, like the word was alien to her.
Sakura nodded. "Jieun said we needed a united front... but if our leaders themselves are not, how can we expect to reach out to others? And I fear that would spell doom to our race here in Verrath."
Yeji's eyes softened in understanding. "How can we expect to unite with others if we're not united ourselves..."
Everyone went silent, even Ryujin.
"Anyway," Sakura broke the heaviness of the atmosphere as she rose. "That's probably enough drama for the day. I'll be off to find Haerin, better talk to her as quickly as possible."
I reached out to hold her hand, and I caught her wrist.
She paused, then looked down at me.
"Thank you."
A smile crept on her face before she nodded.
"Now let go. Chaeryoung's staring daggers at your hand on my wrist," Sakura teased.
"I'm not!" Chaeryoung denied vehemently.
She was. I sensed it through aero sense. But seeing her deny it was absolutely adorable.
I chuckled before letting Sakura's wrist go. She walked backwards, giving us a playful salute before disappearing behind a tree.
"So," I looked back at werebeast huntresses before me. "What now?"
"Now," Ryujin grinned again, "we go back to training."
"No!" Chaeryoung playfully objected. "No more of you beating Seren up, Shin Ryujin!"
Ryujin stared at her in shock, "I'm only following Seulgi's orders —"
"You're enjoying beating him up!"
Ryujin shrugged, "well, that's also true, but..."
"I'm not letting you beat him up again!" Chaeryoung pressed herself against me, wrapping her arms around my neck protectively.
"Oh come on, Lee Chaeryoung! You're being immature!" Ryujin rose and tried to pry Chaeryoung off of me.
"No," Yeji remarked dryly, "she's being saccharine."
"The hell does that mean?!" Ryujin barked, still trying to pull Chaeryoung off of me by her waist. "And are you not helping me?!"
"Nope," Yeji replied. "I'm far too tired to babysit the two of you for once," and she rose. She tensed her legs and leapt into the canopy, disappearing among the branches.
Chaeryoung and Ryujin paused to look at each other. Before Ryujin can move, Chaeryoung pushed my body down, pinning me between her soft but toned body and the ground.
"Shit! Damn you, Lee Chaeryoung!" Ryujin yelled, now trying to lift Chaeryoung off.
Chaeryoung laughed above me, and I couldn't help but do the same as I wrap my arms around her waist tightly. Well, if Chaeryoung wants to cling on me for the remainder of the afternoon, I'm certainly not complaining.
I should have been exhausted. After what happened with Lady Sooyoung, and after Ryujin spent the afternoon turning me into a human practice dummy, I thought my bed would call to me. I thought I would sink into it and wake up in an alternate timeline where none of this had happened.
Instead, my palms itched for the feel of my quarterstaff. By force of habit, I climbed up to the rooftop. The empty space felt, emptier. Around this time of night for the past days, Chaeyoung would be here, and Soyeon as well once.
They would train me. Chaeyoung was a... gentler, sparring partner, while I preferred having Soyeon point out my mistakes from the bulwark rather than bonk me in the forehead every time she corrected my bad form or habits.
It felt like weeks, but it had only been two days. Two days were all it took to incapacitate Joohyun’s personal guard. Her most elite Death Dealers.
Soyeon was first, right on this very rooftop... stabbed in the neck by the Glade Lord Indarin, kept fighting until we barely succeeded to hold the bastard down, allowing Saerom to thrust her glaive through his skull. It took seven of us, me, the Death Dealers, and the Huntresses, to deal with one Glade Lord — and with significant difficulty.
Saerom was taken down the next night, knocked unconscious, blood streaming from her ears when Wendy Son fired a point-blank sonic scream at her at the amphitheater — albeit the siren was holding back. Only Joohyun's timely arrival probably saved her from the siren.
And only hours after that, Chaeyoung herself was fatally injured while she was on her way to help us during the attack at Chaewon and Minjeong's house. Her team was intercepted by ghouls where she sustained an ugly gash to her stomach. Chaewon and I worked together to heal her — Chaewon cauterized the wound while I gave Chaeyoung fed on my blood.
They weren’t weak. They are still the best fighters I know after Joohyun. It's just... I think they're strongest whenever they fought together. Then again, that is true even for the huntresses.
Since then, I had no contact from my vampire friends. I hope they're recovering, but damn I miss training with them.
I closed my eyes and pressed my head against the wall. Aero sense was active, encompassing the whole of the rooftop. I reached beside me, to a wooden tumbler filled with iced chocolate. It was a pleasant surprise when I got home and found a package atop my kitchen counter. Inside were a wooden container of powdered cocoa and this very tumbler.
A note was placed on the cover of the container. A white piece of paper decorated with flowers on the side. I smiled when I read the note:
"Seren,
Here's my promise to give you a supply of our homegrown chocolate. I hope you keep loving it.
I enchanted the container so that I'll know when it's empty and I'll send you a fresh batch. The tumbler is also enchanted, it will maintain the temperature of whatever you place inside indefinitely, or until you consume it. It also cleans itself so... no need to wash it every time you finish using it. You better thank me, well, thank Yuna and Sullyoon for the idea, but it was actually me who did all the work.
Consider this a token of our friendship and the friendship of my realm.
I hope to see you again, in my realm or yours.
Yours in friendship,
Park Sooyoung."
I smiled at the Lady of Spring's message. I never even questioned how she managed to get these inside my apartment. I flipped the note to see something else written postscript.
"P.S.
The sex this morning was incredible. I hope to do it again. Maybe have Yuna and Sullyoon join. They said they were your first threesome, we could be your first foursome. *kiss emoji*"
For one stupid, welcome moment, the weight in my chest loosened. Then my cheeks burned at the memory of this morning. Then my body heated up after rereading that last part. I put the note down and opened the container. I started brewing, opting for iced chocolate to relieve the heat coming off my body as I recall the events of the morning and the invitation of what is to come.
Back on the rooftop, I brought the tumbler to my lips, feeling the cold sweet kiss of the chocolate and refreshing my body. I gave a contented sigh after I drank. I closed my eyes, resting my head against the wall again. That was when I felt a shift in the wind through aero sense. It felt like someone emerged from the shadows on the bulwark.
I smiled, eyes still closed. "Is it just me or do you tend to aura farm every time you appear, Lee Saerom?"
Saerom chuckled, "I don't know what you're talking about."
I opened my eyes and gazed up at her. She was wearing her usual attire: a crimson cloak billowing in the night wind, its hood shadowing her face, mask hanging at her neck, glaive strapped across her back.
"Good to see you back on your feet," I greeted.
"And you're still in one piece," Saerom greeted back.
"How're your sisters?"
Saerom sighed before effortlessly and smoothly dropping from the bulwark — did I mention she was aura farming?
"They're... stable," she began. "Soyeon lost a lot of blood, but fortunately, she was tended to quickly. She's now strong enough to do what normal humans can thanks to our enhanced healing as well — but she's still not recovered enough to fight at the same level she always does."
"Chaeyoung?" I followed.
Saerom dipped her head. She looked crestfallen. Knowing her past, the things she did that Chaeyoung told me, I could understand. "Chaeng is... still bedridden. Necrotic acid is... almost fatal to us vampires, being sort of undead as well. If you and the pyro-sorceress didn't do what you did for her, she may not have reached the coven back alive."
"How about Joohyun?"
Saerom huffed softly. "Contrary to the circumstances with the Wild Hunt, she won her father's approval for an investigation and neutralization operation against the warlock and necromancer who attacked you at Chaewon and Minjeong's house..."
"Why can't her father do the same against the Hunt?"
"Well," Saerom shrugged, "that's because Orion's brother, the fae king Oberon has not yet publicly denounced Orion as a traitor and a terrorist. In some twisted, diplomatic way, Orion remains Oberon's brother, and open hostilities against him might force Oberon's hand. Whether he'll support his brother or not, no faction or race would dare risk open war against the fae court."
"But we moved against Orion when we rescued Yuna and Sullyoon —"
"The coven's official stance was that it was a personal decision from the Pale Princess, Joohyun. Likewise, Orion would also hesitate openly declaring war against the coven because Oberon might not give him the diplomatic or military support."
"So they're basically in a stalemate. Neither can openly declare war against the other even though there were already confirmed skirmishes initiated by both sides..." I nodded. It's, confusing, to say the least, and most does not even make sense to me but, like Sakura said earlier, better leave Night Folk politics to actual Night Folk.
Night Folk politics. A maze built by people who preferred knives in the dark to honesty in daylight. That's probably why they're called Night Folk and not — that is enough stupid thoughts, Seren Vale.
Besides, not being in open conflict still allows us a little bit of freedom and wriggle room with our actions.
And finally, war — not good.
"So what happens to this... warlock-necromancer alliance? Coalition? Partnership? Whatever..."
Saerom released a restrained but amused chuckle, "Well, Joohyun's brother's Moon Guard was tasked with that investigation while she and my Death Dealers maintain intelligence and counter-intelligence operations against the Hunt."
"Think they'll find something?"
"We can only hope..." Saerom replied as a gust of wind blew her hood off her head.
I glanced up at her. Her usual sharp edges are softened by the moonlight and everything that happened. She was hauntingly beautiful, almost as ethereal as the Pale Princess, Bae Joohyun herself. It seems like she's not just her second in combat, but also in beauty.
It's been one hell of a two days for her as well. Nearly losing two of your sisters is something that will definitely shake anyone — even an eighteen hundred year old vampire like her.
"And you?" I finally asked.
A soft smile escapes her lips. She leans back against the bulwark wall and looks at the sky.
"I'm... fine, mostly. I had it way easier than my sisters."
"Did it hurt?"
She chuckled dryly, "Getting hit point-blank by a sonic scream? Honestly... no. I was out before my body registered any pain."
I smiled softly as I noted the look in her eyes. It was something I knew well, something I frequently saw in the mirror.
"You're feeling guilty."
Saerom scoffed lightly but otherwise, averted her gaze from me.
"You're thinking that at least... you should have protected them more. Or at most... that you should've suffered more than they did."
Another scoff, this time heavier, but tinged with history.
"What do you know of me?" There was almost a mocking undertone in the gentle way she delivered that question — as well as a layer of sadness deeper underneath.
"I know that there were seven of you..."
"I told you that..."
"Five of you were turned..."
"I also told you that..."
"And that you slew two of your sisters..."
A pause.
I became hyper aware of Saerom. I noted any movement from her limbs. I expected her to attack me. Even weakened, I have no doubt that Lee Saerom can still drop me as easily as Ryujin did countless times this afternoon.
"Chaeyoung told you..."
It wasn't a question.
"She did."
She sighed, then to my surprise, she pushed herself against the wall. She propped her glaive against it and walked to the center of the rooftop.
"Get up, Seren," she called for me sternly but gently.
Well, looks like she doesn't want to talk about it. And I'm not gonna push her, lest I end up a dummy thrown and slammed on the concrete rooftop.
"My sisters came here to train you," she continued, "I'll keep doing it for them."
Great, I thought. Looks like I'm still going to be a dummy again tonight. Difference is, I'll be thrown and slammed down on concrete — which I deduce is more painful to land on than soft gravel.
I set the tumbler aside and stood, adjusting the quarterstaff in my grip.
"Set the staff aside, I'm not training you to fight tonight."
That got me curious. I tilted my head, furrowing my brows at her. What I received in return was her usual stoic expression and sharp gaze.
I shrugged my shoulders, then flicked my wrist. The staff compressed into the compact trinket Sullyoon designed it to be before I placed it in my pocket.
"If you're not training me to fight," I began as I started towards her, "what are you training me on?"
"I know that Chaeyoung and you were..." she seemed to struggle for the right term. Or rather, she had a word in her mind that's just struggling to come out of her mouth.
"... intimate." She finally said after a long pause.
Well, that was a more... polite term than I was expecting.
"I... uh..." I stuttered, because I'm afraid of my back hitting the floor before me registering that Saerom even moved in place.
"Chaeyoung talks," Saerom said, sensing my hesitation. A hint of a suppressed chuckle was my only indication that she wont flip and slam my body.
"She said that you were the best she had in two centuries since that —"
"Half-elf, yes," I urgently finished for her so that my discomfort would also be finished quickly. "What does this have to do with training?"
Saerom tilted her head and raised an eyebrow with an expression that asked whether I'm stupid or not.
"Did you already forget what the Blood of Lilith gave you?"
"Uhh... an inability to deny sex when a girl initiates —"
"No, not that —" Saerom pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "The one that comes after that, Seren Vale."
"Ohhh," I said stupidly when it finally came to me. "That I assimilate the abilities of those I had sex with? You think I took something from Chaeng?"
Saerom nodded, "The ability she excelled at, even among the three of us: vampiric charm.”
I raised my brows in surprise. "Are you sure?"
"No. It's a guess. I could be wrong —"
"And if you're wrong?"
Saerom shrugged, "You have your staff and I have my glaive."
Please be right, I thought.
"Okay..." I nodded. "So how do we confirm if I took vampiric charm from Chaeyoung?"
"Before that, tell me what you know about it first."
"Well," my eyes wandered as I gathered my thoughts. "I know it's similar with the fae's glamour and the siren's compulsion. It allows vampires to influence... or, or... manipulate their... prey, victims... in order to lure them in a favorable position to feed on or turn."
Saerom nodded, "spoken from experience?" She smirked.
I chuckled, "Yeah. Was nearly drained dry by vampires before Seulgi and Joohyun stepped in."
"But as I understood from that story, it was also the first time you discovered you were immune to vampiric charm."
I nodded before sighing and smiling, "Joohyun called me a 'curiosity' that night."
"Now she calls you friend," she said with a tender smile.
I dipped my head curtly in gratitude.
"Now," her stern voice returned, "what you said was what non vampires know, of course."
I nodded. "The mechanics may be different, like how I thought faerie dust and glamour were one and the same — until Yuna taught me the difference."
"Faerie dust relies that the target sees the dust in order to manipulate their perception. The siren's compulsion is of course, auditory..." Saerom began.
"And vampiric charm?" I asked.
"... is olfactory."
I blinked twice. "It's... smelled?" I asked in a mix of surprise and confusion.
Saerom finally gave an uninhibited giggle. "It's breathed, to be precise. Not what you expected?"
I nodded. "I thought it'd be through eye contact or something related to it, seeing as your eyes turn red whenever you use your abilities."
"Understandable," Saerom responded.
"So if it's olfactory... then how —?" I pondered, scrunching my forehead and scratching my temple.
"For the talented, powerful, skillful, and experienced... it's odorless — which has always been the case for Chaeng..."
"But not for you?" I asked, noting the awe in her voice while talking about her sister.
Another chuckle, this one closer to a giggle, "Not at all. I'm the most inept in vampiric charm out of the three of us. Soyeon's the fastest and the best technical fighter, though I usually beat her through sheer strength. I however, am most proficient with shadow traveling."
"How does that work?" I asked.
"That's... not the lesson for tonight."
"Right, so... back to vampiric charm... odorless to those proficient with it and to those who are not...?"
Suddenly, my head recoiled as an alien scent reached me: iron, rain, and something darkly sweet beneath it.
I drew in a deeper breath and the scent became clearer and deeper. It smelled finely aged, like exquisite wine, but filled with violence, regret, and shame.
I felt it waft through my nose, worming its way towards my mind however, I felt the same filtering feeling I have in my ears when I resisted siren compulsion, but this time, in my nose.
"Do you smell it now?" Saerom asked.
I nodded.
"I imbued a simple command with it — 'come towards me.' But because you're resistant, you're just standing there, breathing my scent."
Was that a blush? Can't be. Must be me imagining things, or the red of her clothes reflecting on her cheeks.
"Okay," I muttered. "How do I do it?"
"For Chaeyoung, she usually just looks at her target," Saerom replied, "she could also control who's affected and who's not — which most of the time, Soyeon and I can't..."
"Sullyoon said naturally talented people are bad at explaining the technicalities of what they're good at," I quipped.
"That would probably apply to Chaeyoung as well," Saerom quipped back.
"Good thing you're not Chaeyoung."
Saerom smirked. "People who are bad at something tend to be worse at explaining things."
"But you can use it," I reasoned, "Sullyoon can't use faerie dust but she was able to explain it to me better than Yuna did — and she's a dryad, not a fae. Considering you're also a vampire, I see no reason that you can't..." I finished by shrugging my shoulders.
Her right lips curved upwards, "I can see why my sisters like you."
I smirked back, "Even Soyeon?"
Saerom laughed again, "She may appear apathetic at times, but the fact that she took the time to come here to help Chaeyoung train you speaks volumes on how she views you. Anyway, we're losing focus again."
"Right," I tried to suppress the smile that is forcing its way out of my lips. "So, how do you think I should do it?"
"Well," Saerom started, "what I do, and most other vampires, we pick a target and get close to them, the closer we are, the quicker they can smell us."
"Makes sense," I nodded, recalling how the vampires who took me before had to surround me. But being immune, they were forced to find an alternative — which of course, ended in them being killed by Seulgi and then by Joohyun.
"You can still activate it against someone from a distance," the Death Dealer continued, "but it takes a longer time. And if it's a crowded place and you don't have the same level of control as Chaeyoung or Joohyun, you might also affect others besides your intended target."
"Sounds... complicated..." I remarked.
"As is mostly everything when you're just starting."
Fair point.
"Okay. So I assume the... 'target'... for tonight, is you?" I asked.
Saerom nodded. "Try to do what I say. Select a target," she gestures at herself, "in this case, me. Concentrate on me, visualize that you're... trying to grasp me while not physically reaching for me. Then when you have visualized it, try to imbue a command."
"Like what you tried earlier? 'Come towards me'?"
"Yes."
"Okay." I took a deep breath, then I bounced lightly in place before shaking my body. I planted my feet on the rooftop floor. "Here goes nothing."
Saerom looked at me encouragingly. And with a nod from her, I began.
As if by instinct, I focused on Saerom through aero sense. Instead of spreading across the entire rooftop, I narrowed in on her, wrapping my consciousness around her body. I gathered aero sense inward until Saerom was all it held.
I felt... her. The coldness in her body. The fact that she's not actually breathing. I can even feel the absence of her heartbeat.
When I was satisfied that my entire consciousness through aero sense had her fully wrapped — I gave the command, "Come towards me," I thought hesitantly in my mind.
A beat passed.
Then another.
Then Saerom sways forward. Her upper body moved then her right foot — before she was able to stop herself.
"Good," she remarked quietly.
"Really?" I asked, not fully believing her.
She nodded. "I can smell you. I can even... feel, your scent all around me. I let my guard down purposely as well to see how strong you'll command me."
"What do you mean by that?"
"You basically have the first part covered, Seren — focusing and putting your target under the charm. I'd say it's frightening even, because you successfully did it on your first try. What you lacked was strength on the second part — the actual part where you influence your target."
"Is that why you were able to shake it off?"
Saerom nodded once again. "I felt you hesitate, Seren. Your scent... faltered for a moment."
"So you're saying..." I bit my lip. "That I should... give weight, or... conviction... with my commands?"
"Partly," Saerom replied. "Vampiric charm is knowing the right balance in releasing your scent and commanding your target. Commanding, or, charming, as most vampires call the process, also needs you to consider your target's willpower in conjunction with how you approach them. Sometimes, they need a more subtle and sensual approach, something Chaeyoung excels at. While others need a more forceful one, something Joohyun excels at."
"Didn't know vampiric charm is this complicated," I frowned as I scratched my head.
Saerom chuckled under her non-existent breathing, "Vampires have eternity to practice this so... we have all the time in the world to work on these... complications... as you call it."
"Well, I don't have that luxury, Lee Saerom," I replied flatly.
"Touchè. Anyway, like I said, you already had the first part covered. Now try to be more... willful, with your command." Saerom then nodded encouragingly.
I drew a deep breath once again. Aero sense was still wrapped around Saerom — and I willed it to wrap tighter around her.
I noticed her shake her head in discomfort. Her eyes wavering slightly. "That's a powerful scent," she murmured.
Okay. Looks like I really do have the first part covered — now for the command.
I pushed all the strength of will I can muster in my mind. I visualized aero sense hardening around Saerom, like I'm encasing her in stone, not sensing her through the air. Then I began to speak in my mind, "Come —"
And Saerom disappeared — just to appear in front of me in just half a second.
"What the —!" I exclaimed, my focus wavered and my aero sense was restored to cover the whole rooftop.
"— fuck was that?!" Saerom continued.
She staggered forward and I caught her by her waist. Her arms held mine to keep her stable.
"Hey, hey. Are you okay?" I asked in concern.
Her head snapped at me. Eyes wide, filled with confusion, shock, fear, and... desire?
"Your scent... fuck. Your scent... then the power in that command..." she stammered, taking heavy breaths not because she needs it to live, but because she needs it to calm herself down.
"Can you explain what just happened?" I asked in confusion.
"Like I said... your scent, Seren —"
"What's with my scent?" I asked urgently.
"You're fucking dangerous..." she remarked, which didn't help my anxiety. "You... have two distinct scents... each of them extremely powerful... my mind was out of it when I sensed your scent grow heavier on your second attempt — it only waited for the command. And when you gave it — my body, no.. I, I responded as quickly as I can."
"What are these scents?" I asked.
We were slowly stepping back to the bulwark as Saerom seems to still be off balance.
"The first..." her gaze was everywhere on my body, like she's devouring it. "The first was... protection, safety. You smelled like you were telling someone — you were telling me — that everything will be alright, that I'll be safe, my sisters, the coven, Joohyun — will be safe if I trust in you... and it was so powerful that I actually blindly believed in it."
Well that wasn't so bad, I thought. Because that was exactly what was going through in my mind. To do everything I can to protect them and help them as much as they have helped and protected me.
"And the second..." her voice dropped lower, more dangerous, like she's resisting that scent.
"It hurt my nose," she began, talking with an urgency I've never seen from her before, "like it burned after the calming scent of the first one, like a fiery aftertaste. But with that aftertaste... came, desire..." then she looked at me, a familiar look flashing in her now red eyes, "... lust."
I felt my back pressed against the wall. She had me pinned against it, her hands held my arms in an iron grip.
"Saerom —"
"Please tell me you've turned it off..."
Just to be sure, I switched aero sense off. "Yes. I already did."
"Then why is the feeling still there?!" She asked me loudly, almost screaming in my face.
"What feeling?" I asked, a mix of both anxiety and excitement warring with every beat of my rapidly increasing heartbeat.
Saerom kept breathing as if she'll die if she doesn't.
"Is it really off?" She asked again, like she's making sure her thoughts and feelings are now fully her own.
“It’s off, Saerom. I swear. If you want me to move, I will.”
"No, don't. Please... stay..." her breathing gradually slowed, her hands flexing on my arm.
Then her eyes caught and held mine once again. Her body tensed, rigid and stiff, but her grip loosened.
Just when I thought she's finally starting to calm down, she gave a light huff as her eyes half-closed, like she's finally surrendering to what she's feeling.
"I want you, Seren," she asked softly, almost hesitantly.
"Saerom —"
"Make me feel what Chaeyoung felt..." a whispered plea.
"Saerom —"
"Like she told us... make me feel alive again..."
Saerom lunged in like she's about to bite my neck, but instead, she went for my mouth.
Our lips met, our tongues crashed. My hands held her waist tighter, feeling the rough texture of the dragonhide shirt she wore.
Saerom kissed me with a passion nobody else did before. She kissed like it's the first time in eighteen hundred years that she finally allowed herself to let go.
And under the night sky, I held her as she did.
Saerom kissed like someone who has never kissed before. Her teeth clashed with mine, her tongue explored the inside of my mouth unabashedly, and her fangs prick my lower lip, making me hiss everytime she does.
"Does that hurt?" She shuddered as she sighed when she pulled away.
"A little bit —" a gasp escapes my lips as she lunged in again, this time she actually bit my lip. I tasted iron on my tongue before feeling Saerom's tongue flick on my lip. She licked and sucked the small trickle of blood before pulling away once again.
"Chaeyoung was right," Saerom said, her cheeks burning against the moonlight, "your blood tastes bittersweet."
"Exactly like how I smell?"
"No," Saerom shook her head softly. "It tastes like burned nectar."
"I... don't know how that tastes like..." I admitted, tilting my head.
"Neither do I," she breathed, mist rolling out of her mouth, "that was just what came to my mind, and it felt... appropriate..."
"Like right now?"
Saerom hummed with half-lidded eyes, "Yes. Like, right now."
Saerom meets my lips again, but softer this time, like she's consciously trying not to prick me with her fangs. I chuckled, finding her effort adorable and in stark contrast of what she usually projects herself as.
I felt her hand release my arms and move towards her neck. Her mask then falls, then her cloak and hood flutters down, taken by the wind for a few meters before landing somewhere on the rooftop.
I turned us around, pinning her against the wall. She gave a soft gasp — not of pain, but of anticipation. A hand trails across her back, feeling the familiar texture of the zipper's teeth that held her dragonhide shirt together.
I felt the tongue in between my thumb and middle finger, just where her nape meets her hairline. Slowly, with our lips still locked together, I pulled. Saerom gripped my shoulders, pulling me closer as I pulled the zipper down behind her.
Another shudder rocks her body as she felt my index finger track her spine while I pull down. It felt like my hand traveled for miles before I felt the familiar click of the zipper unclasping.
I pulled away. Saerom gasped in confusion, the dragonhide hanging loosely on her shoulders.
"I'm not carrying that heavy-ass shirt off of you nor am I letting it fall on our feet," I scoffed.
Saerom snorted. She rolled her shoulders, the dragonhide fell off her torso, and she tossed it aside like it weighed nothing.
Her breast were now free, modest mounds, probably the biggest among her sisters, with pale and hard pink nipples surrounded by the red flush of her body.
Before she can say or do anything, I dove in. I wrapped an arm around her waist to pulm her towards me, another hand cups one tit, rolling the nub on my palm while my tongue was pressed on the other.
"Fuck —" the Death Dealer hissed, her body arching, her head pressing against the bulwark wall. "Keep doing that, Seren," her breathing was labored, her eyes closed, her body rolling back and forth in search for more friction.
I focused my attention on the other nub. My hand traveled lower, towards her smooth and toned abs. I pressed firmly to steady her squirming, making Saerom whimper weakly in protest.
"Seren, please —" she croaked as I felt a thigh wrap around my hips.
"Please what?" I asked, breathing warm air on her nipple and making her shiver again.
"Lower —"
I chuckled, returning my attention to her tits while my hand on her stomach went further down, down until I felt the hem of her jeans on my fingertips. Saerom's body went stiff in anticipation.
"Keep going —" her tone grew lower with each thing she says.
I inserted my fingers inside her jeans, straight past whatever she wore underneath until I felt the wet and swollen divide of her slit. My middle finger stroked her wetness while my ring and index finger pressed together on the sides.
Another gasp tears off of Saerom's throat, her head whipping upward and her body jerking to press herself against mine. A hand pulls me off her breast, leading me needily to her lips.
She muffled her whimpers while she kissed me. My fingers worked her slit, rubbing her clit and stroking the dripping mound until I felt my fingers were coated by her slick juices.
That is — until I slowly prodded her entrance with my finger. Her head whipped back again, her body leaning back with her, forcing me to press her against the wall in order to prevent the both of us from falling down.
"Fuck —!" she wailed.
"Shit. You're tight, Saerom —"
And she was, tighter than Chaeyoung, her walls wrapping almost painfully against my finger if they were not as wet as they already were. Granted, Chaeyoung was more promiscuous, but I would expect this kind of tightness maybe from Soyeon who looked mostly apathetic — but not Saerom who looked like she can take any man out of a bar or club or alley without even using vampiric charm.
"Hnngh —" a whiny moan was Saerom's only response. The Death Dealer dipped her head, resting on my shoulder. Her hips started to move, trying to march the rhythm of my finger inside her.
Her pussy was a freaking wet dream. Dripping wet and inexplicably tight — even for my fingers. And she only got wetter and tighter once my fingers hit a spot inside her.
A pleasured scream tore across the night sky. "Don't stop! Don't fucking stop —!" Saerom's eyes were predatory. She bit her lip, drawing blood from where one fang pierced the flesh while she muffles her still extremely loud moans.
The combined noise of her whimpering and the lewd squelching of me fingering her has my cock aching to leave my sweatpants. The growing wet spot on her pants were also not fucking helping.
"Take it off —!" Saerom whined urgently.
I knelt, then yanked her pants and underwear off in one swift motion with my hand — and Saerom roared and squirted when her pussy was exposed in the cold chill of the night.
I flinched as my face was sprayed with her tangy juices. Instead of pulling back however, I lunged in, taking my mouth into her squirting pussy and my tongue pressed against her entrance.
Saerom's legs buckled and she collapsed on the floor, her hands pulling and pushing my head deeper into her folds. "Wait, Seren — I'm still — FUCK!"
A second wave crashes inside her body. I feel her squirm and twitch violently as a second torrent of cum shoots directly down my throat.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck —" was everything that was coming out of Saerom's while she watches herself cum on my mouth.
Then with a growl, she pulls my head towards hers while her pussy was still squirting, albeit not as strong as before, and staining my shirt and my pants. She pulls me for a torrid kiss where she sucked my tongue inside her mouth.
One of her hand wraps around my head, pinning it in place as she kisses me. The other strokes my hard member over my pants. She pushes my pants off with an urgency I've never seen from anyone — well, I could probably compare her to the time Seulgi popped my cherry because she was in heat and apparently, I "heightened" that feeling.
Saerom was now jerking me off with a grip so tight it made me hiss and pull away from her lips.
"Fuck, Lee Saerom —"
"Put it in, now. I need it... I need you —"
She strokes my tip, teasing the lips of her entrance. Her juices were dripping down the rooftop floor, and gods her pussy's hot — I never imagined a vampire could get this literally hot.
I pushed through, the tip breaking through her folds — and it was fucking tight, like it was resisting my entry. Saerom winced as if in pain. She laid her hand against my crotch, pushing and applying a little resistance.
"Slowly, Seren..." she whispered, her eyes fixed on where my shaft was connected in her.
"No way —" I exclaimed, panting above her.
Her eyes met mine, her expression went from confusion to embarrassment. Saerom just nodded subtly.
"Seriously—?"
Another nod, smaller than the last, "Since I was turned..."
Something snapped in my head. She never had sex since she was turned? I expected this of Soyeon — maybe, considering how apathetic she usually appears and her fixation on fighting and weapons — but Saerom? In eighteen hundred years?
Slowly but powerfully, I pushed my hips forward and deeper inside her. She was tight, yes, but she was also incredibly wet, which made the tightness almost non existent with how easily my shaft slid inside her.
Saerom's mouth was agape, releasing a silent moan, her head whipped back, and her eyes rolled upward. Her hands moved to my ass, urging me to move.
I started with a steady rhythm, relishing the way the soft and wet walls of her sex wrap around my shaft. Saerom's eyes were closed, like she's recalling a feeling she has long forgotten. Her hands urge me to move faster, her words were a plea I have all the intent to follow — "Faster, Seren... please..."
I obliged, slowly increasing my pace until Saerom was a moaning mess underneath me. Her hands now moved to grasp my neck, her nails digging sharply into the back of my head just before my hairline only served to heighten the pleasure that we were both feeling.
I slammed my hips downward, every thrust causes a small squirt of Saerom's slick to splash around my abdomen and into the floor below. Every thrust felt like it was met by with one micro orgasm from Saerom — and considering how fast I'm now going, she must be having a dozen of these micro orgasms every ten seconds.
I lost track of time. I barely even registered that I rose and carried her, pressing her now limp and overstimulated body against the bulwark wall as I thrust upward. Only small whimpers can now be heard from the Death Dealer. Her head rested against my shoulder, her arms looped loosely around my neck, her legs wrapped around my back and supported only by my hands on her thighs.
Suddenly, her pussy clenched — the telltale sign of another one of her orgasms. But this time was different — because her head suddenly jerked, her mouth suddenly found my neck, and her fangs found its way deep into my skin.
"Fuck, Lee Saerom!" I growled as the familiar cold and anesthetic feeling spread from my neck down towards my left shoulder. Yet my hips refused to stop, for I know she was getting closer to an orgasm that's worth a millennia — or so I hope.
Fortunately, she just bit my neck — she wasn't feeding on me because I can't feel the feeling of being drained that I felt when I let Chaeyoung feed on me.
What's getting drained though — would be my cock.
I felt the familiar pressure coiling in my core as Saerom's walls wrap tighter around my shaft. My thrusts grew erratic and Saerom's fangs on my neck plunged deeper.
I slammed her body down forcefully and Saerom reached the heights of pleasure first. With a scream muffled by my neck, I felt her juices gush from her walls, clamping my dick in a tight vice that made it difficult to move.
I felt her suck on my neck, no doubt drawing some blood. But the sensation was washed away when I saw white, and I released my seed deep inside Lee Saerom.
I held her tight as I stood still while unloading inside her. She held tighter as she unintentionally fed on my blood at the height of her orgasmic throes.
Finally, after what seemed like a millennia — I felt the cold sting of the wind on my ass. My legs buckled. Fortunately, I still had the sense and strength to turn us around before I sat against the bulwark wall with Saerom straddling my hips.
She looked passed out, her shoulders were not moving as opposed to my heavy breathing — but then again, she's a vampire, she doesn't need to breathe.
I stroked her hair as I waited for her to stir as my cock gradually grew flaccid inside her. Only once it slipped out of her pussy did she make any indication that she's awake.
A small groan of protest escapes her lips before she raises her head and looks directly at me. She still looked fucking immaculate, although with a far different glow within her, like all that fucking suddenly opened something inside her.
"That was —" she began.
"Worth the eighteen hundred year celibacy?"
Saerom scoffed. "I was about to say amazing, Seren Vale."
"You were," I chuckled.
"Shut up," Saerom averted her gaze, and it was weird seeing her flustered.
"Guess you'll be teaching me shadow traveling next time," I quipped.
Something of a huff and scoff escapes her chest, "You need to hone your control over vampiric charm first. That was dangerous."
"Yeah. I don't want to activate a freaking aphrodisiac unintentionally —"
"A freaking strong aphrodisiac at that. And you're also surrounded by a lot of women."
"That can't be that bad..." I quipped, smirking.
Saerom just scoffed, "Don't say I didn't warn you."
I then gave a soft giggle, "Consider me warned. So, what now? Do we continue training or —?"
My words were drowned when Saerom rested her head on the crook of my neck. She kissed the area where she bit me. "Can't we... stay like this for a while? I haven't been held for eighteen hundred years too," she asked softly. Melancholy filled her voice, like she's recalling moments from even before she was turned.
I smiled softly before wrapping her around my arms tightly.
"Take your time," I replied to the eighteen hundred year old vampire.
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