" I asked you a question, Hajime!!".
An overwhelmed Hajime stood pinned against the limestone brick wall as icicles slowly closed in. Bianca was burning with fury. She cursed at Hajime, furious about how he made her worried all night. She then repeated her question, this time in a more murderous tone.
" I said, where were you last night?".
Hajime thought long and hard about what to do. He couldn't reveal the vampire garden to Bianca yet. But, a single person camping in the Ambrosia Woods alone, sounded even crazier. With a look of, " I know what to do" written on his face, he suddenly went down on all fours to ask for forgiveness.
Giving a long winded explanation of his encounter in the forest, he left out the vampire garden and instead said he registered in an inn, since he was too tired to sneak past the guard.
Bianca lowered the floating icicles and disintegrated them. She stood up from her lounge chair and crouched near Hajime's head. Placing her hand on his head, she gave a small smile, saying; " all is forgiven then". Hajime stood up and for the first time in a long time, he felt relieved that some
one worried for him, asides an unseen phantom living inside a divine relic.
Out of sheer emotion, he got up and pulled Bianca into his arms. The embrace was soft and relaxing. It left Bianca dumbfounded. Her calm and collected demeanor melted away because of it, leaving behind a young lady, madly infatuated with a young man.
But she wasn't opposed to it. She squeezed back and they shared a moment of true affection.
After his visit to Bianca, Hajime made way to the Ambrose City library, popularly called the great hall of sacred tomes. The entry fee was a large limphere, for normal people. However, adventurers could have the fee reduced to two limpheres. He was curious about how the vampire resurrection ritual worked and why he was still alive.
What Hajime didn't know was that, he was in fact a vampire.
[ World records; book 2: races]
The vampire race emerged in the tenth year of the human-demon warfare. Demons disguised as humans fed demon flesh and blood to unsuspecting and hungry commoners. Their objectives were to create a dark being. A being strong enough to turn the tides of the war. However, most of the Humans' bodies rejected the demon flesh.
In the twentieth year of the forgotten age however, a little girl's body perfectly assimilated with the demon flesh. Her physical body changed and her hair turned pale white. Her beautiful matching pink eyes, became mismatched, with her right eye turning blood red.
Under the guidance of the demon lord's subordinates, she became known as Scarlet Lilith, the blood queen. When human-demon offspring became possible, she took the responsibility of overseeing their domain.
Vampires were fast, with sharp hearing and an intense blood lust. The demon lord only made them hunt at night, which led to the false rumour that vampires were enemies of the sun.
[ In the spirit realm]
A White haired phantom sits on the balcony of a luxury castle. Looking to the horizon, she calmly taps her finger on the table beside her, sipping a small cup of tea. A gust of wind disturbs her regal gown and blows around the luxurious curtains hanging by the window.
From behind her, a masked figure approaches.
His mask oddly iconic. It had a constellation on it. Lily, without the need to turn, identifies the figure.
" I see you're finally here....It took you long enough, Orion".
" My dear Scarlet Lilith, I see you're doing well, I'm glad". Lily on the contrary is not in the mood for small talk and asks that he cut to the chase.
Orion is amused and asks how her Master is fairing. He came bairing a message from The Revered One.
Back at Ambrose,
Hajime found nothing worth noticing. The books in the library knew nothing of the ritual that brought him back to life.
He was ready to head to the guild for an assignment, when he felt a shift within him.
Earlier that day, while embracing Bianca, Hajime had placed a threat detection spell on her. He was suddenly worried. He bolted into the alley way and vanished into darkness.
At the guard post;
A tall shadow looms over Bianca's bleeding body. In her hand is her divine arms, ISOLDE. Using the blade to support her body weight, she staggered on her feet, only to be brought down by a swift kick to her stomache. The masked figure is annoyed and asks.
" Where is your boyfriend, girl". On the outside of the guard post, every single guard had been killed. It was a blood bath. A shield prevented outside interference. Hajime got to the guard post and saw countless corpses of passer-bys and guards, brutally dismembered. He reached out and felt the magic barrier. He knew this barrier all too well.
It was the spirit type spacial magic, " Domain of Spirits". To deactivate it, one must overload the spiritual energy by countering it with its weak element, darkness. Pouring out an insane amount of mana, he swore to tear whoever would harm his friend to pieces. The barrier broke,and Arachnid knew, the time had come. He shifted his mask slightly, showing a monstrous smile. Hajime activated Sky Walker and scaled the wall of the post tower. At the top floor, a sudden speedy shadow dashed into the room. It was Hajime with Bianca in his arms. Seeing the wound on her forehead and the blood on her uniform, he was sure of one thing. Whoever sent him wanted no loose ends. He placed Bianca on a couch and approached the masked assassin.
" Who are you!??". Hajime asked impatiently, a look of disdain perfectly mirrored in his expression. The masked assassin tapped the side of his mask and it morphed, concealing his mouth and revealing glowing green eyes. There was a mark on his forehead. The marked seemed to have been engraved there by magic. Hajime slowly realized who or rather what he was up against.
With shock on his face and slight trembling in his tone, he said;
" THE HUNTING SHADOWS". In his line of work as a thief, he knew them all too well. An agency of blood crazed killers ready to kill anyone for the right price. They were the under pillars of aristocracy and the silent agents of the monarchy. Cold hard killers. He instantly confirmed that Nejima knew he was alive. The masked figure called out his name, " Hajime Grimm". Which proved his suspicions. The Arachnid had no intention of fighting with such an underhanded tactic. This was only to draw his attention.
" Hajime, I have a fondness for the strong. I believe that true pleasure lies in facing the strong and seeing the look of horror in their eyes when you utterly destroy them. As such, I leave you to prepare. Midnight tomorrow, at the highest point in the Ambrosia Woods. You may decline, that is if you'd like to watch me take away everything you hold dear".
Hajime snared and agreed. The Arachnid slowly vanished into a black smoke, leaving the ruins of destruction.
At that moment, Lily arrived. With Hajime kneeling beside the collapsed body of Bianca, he cursed at his own shortcomings. Lily was puzzled and read his memories, finding out what happened. She knelt beside Hajime and said, she's still alive but not for long. Touching her forehead, Lily explained that she was poisoned from Arachnid's attacks. The poison is curable, but there was no time. Hajime turned to Lily and said with tears,
" It's my fault she's hurt. I have to save her. She can't leave me too". Lily reflected on her master's words and felt nostalgic. She had an idea.
" Master Hajime, there may be away to recreate the phenomenon I'm used to ressurect you and reanimate you. This might restore her body and cancel out the poisoning".
Hajime looked at her and knodded in approval.