“Thud!”
Just as Phyllis was testing other ways to use the lightsaber, a loud noise echoed from a distance.
‘That direction is…’
Phyllis turned her head to look.
It was the Castle!
“What happened?”
Phyllis put away the lightsaber and jumped onto a tree, then peered through the canopy toward the Castle’s location.
The Castle was fine.
Or rather, from what she could observe of its exterior, nothing seemed wrong.
There was no smoke and no visible damage.
‘What was that loud noise just now? Did the Blood Tribe attack? Or was it the Machine Race?’
Phyllis pondered the possibilities behind the sudden sound.
“Thud!”
Another loud noise rang out.
Phyllis immediately lost interest in playing.
No matter what was happening at the Castle, she had to go back.
That was Carola’s home.
Well, it might also be her future home.
Phyllis returned even faster than she had arrived.
“Oh no! I forgot the fish!”
Halfway there, Phyllis remembered the fish she had left in the tree hollow.
However, there were more important things to do now.
As for those fish, she hoped they could find their way from the tree hollow back into the lake.
“Sorry!”
Carrying a sense of guilt toward the food, Phyllis arrived back at the front of the Scarlet Dungeon’s Castle.
The sun had gradually sunk into the earth.
The closer she got to the Castle, the more she felt through the Mark on her neck that Carola seemed to have returned.
Before she could even step inside, Phyllis noticed a figure standing in front of the Castle.
It was Carola!
“No, it wasn’t Carola!”
It looked like her at first glance, but at a second glance, Phyllis saw that this figure was very different.
Although her hair and eye color were the same as Carola’s, her build was more petite.
Furthermore, this person wore a slightly oversized black dress that didn’t quite match her small frame.
Her long white hair was a bit messy, and she held a menacing, dark-red two-handed greatsword that was nearly as tall as she was!
“A vampire?”
Most likely, she was a vampire of the Brujah Clan, the same clan as Carola.
Phyllis stopped in her tracks.
If it wasn’t Carola, then any other vampire was a dangerous existence to her.
However, perhaps because Phyllis was upwind, her scent wafted toward the small, white-haired vampire girl.
“Sniff, sniff…”
The little vampire girl’s dainty nose twitched a few times.
“Ah… I smell something delicious. A little kitten that snuck out?”
‘I’ve been discovered!’
Phyllis felt that she really needed to practice her Stealth.
Her current proficiency level had allowed her to be caught twice in a single day.
With that thought, Phyllis turned and ran!
Her 50 Agility allowed her to cover a great distance in an instant!
“Hehehe… Don’t run, little kitten… Let me see what kind of treasure could make that cold Sister Carola leave such a heavy ‘Mark’…”
The white-haired girl’s voice followed her like a shadow, sounding cheerful yet spine-chilling.
Her speed was actually faster than Phyllis’s!
“Clang!”
A dark-red figure swept across the ground, instantly intercepting Phyllis.
The little vampire girl shouldered her exaggerated greatsword and tilted her head, looking Phyllis up and down as the latter nearly fell from the sudden stop.
Her gaze lingered particularly on Phyllis’s exposed neck and blue eyes.
“You really are cute.”
The little vampire girl opened her mouth, revealing her sharp fangs with a brilliant smile.
“Let me introduce myself. I am Dalila, Dalila Brujah. I am Sister Carola’s… younger sister. Though she’s not very willing to admit it.”
Dalila approached, and at some point, she had easily plunged the greatsword into the ground with one hand.
She pressed herself almost directly against Phyllis, sniffing deeply.
“Ah… this scent… Sister Carola must really like you, right? Keeping you in the Castle, drinking your blood… oh, and you even have a Collar! How nice.”
Her tone carried a childish envy, but a spark of jealousy flashed deep within her eyes.
With her back against the earth and no way to retreat, Phyllis’s heart pounded wildly.
‘What’s going on? Where’s Carola? Didn’t I just sense her? What does Carola’s sister want?’
“W-What do you want to do, meow?”
Phyllis asked her question while staring at Dalila, who looked about seventy or eighty percent similar to Carola.
“I’m so hungry… I just moved around a bit. Since Sister Carola has drunk your blood, it must be delicious, right? Let me have just a little taste, okay? Just a tiny bit… I won’t be as greedy as her, and I won’t tell her, either.”
Dalila’s finger brushed against Phyllis’s neck, gently stroking the bite mark Carola had left behind.
‘This is infidelity! Carola, where are you?! If you don’t show up, I’m about to be…’
Phyllis’s body was stiff, but her brain was racing.
Just as Dalila’s fangs slowly approached Phyllis’s neck—
“Enough, Dalila!”
A voice so cold it could freeze the air rang out abruptly.
Phyllis and Dalila froze at the same time.
A tall figure stepped slowly out from the direction of the Castle, carrying a wrath so thick it was almost tangible under the moonlight.
Her long white hair drifted as if caught in a phantom wind, and her blood-red pupils were locked onto the hand Dalila was using to touch Phyllis’s neck.
“Carola!”
“She was here!”
“And she looked… very, very angry!”
Dalila retracted her hand like lightning, her face breaking into a sweet, innocent smile.
“Oh, Sister Carola! You’re here? What a coincidence. I was just ‘taking care’ of your lost kitten for you.”
Carola ignored Dalila, her gaze falling on the shaken Phyllis.
“Phyllis, I believe I said you were not allowed to leave the Castle?”
Phyllis hung her head, not daring to look at Carola.
“Oh my! It looks like Sister is going to punish the little kitten. Then I won’t disturb you anymore. I’m leaving!”
Seeing that things were going south, Dalila waved at Carola.
Her figure began to fade, leaving behind only a trail of lingering, playful laughter filled with a hint of reluctance.
Only Carola and Phyllis remained on the open ground.
The silence that filled the air put even more pressure on Phyllis than when Dalila had been there.
Carola walked closer step by step, her high heels making distinct crunching sounds as they stepped on fallen leaves.
She stopped in front of Phyllis, looking down at her.
Then, she reached out her hand.
Phyllis thought Carola was going to hit her or choke her, so she closed her eyes in fear.
But the expected pain never came.
Instead, Carola’s hand gently cupped Phyllis’s cheek.
“As you wished, I am back.”
“I…”
Phyllis opened her eyes and felt a sting in her nose.
Her eyes began to mist over, and the longing she had been hiding in her heart finally exploded.
“I was so worried about you! Meow!”
Phyllis hugged Carola, subconsciously rubbing against her several times.
Carola leaned down and, with Phyllis’s cooperation, swept her up into her arms!
It was a princess carry again!
However, Phyllis didn’t feel shy this time. Instead, she buried her head in Carola’s chest with a sense of relief.
Dalila had truly terrified her just now.
“Where is Dalila? Did she leave?” Phyllis asked, still a bit uneasy.
“She came today to deliver several Blood Tribe Prisoners. She went back as soon as she handed them over.”
Carola’s words put Phyllis’s heart at ease.
However, Carola’s next sentence made Phyllis’s heart skip a beat again.
“Phyllis, do you want to leave this place?”
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