It was midnight and the full moon was at its peak.
A large medieval royal carriage could be seen drifting with the wind during the witching hour.
Inside the carriage, was a young man who had been asleep until the cold wind of the night gently caressed his face and stirred him awake.
Aster slowly opened his eyes and the first thing he noticed was a lantern glowing on a small hook attached to the roof of the carriage.
The bright red flame burning inside the lantern instantly caught his attention; because never had he seen a fire burn with such a color.
He pushed his palms against the seat so he could sit up but then he noticed something strange about his arms.
They looked smoother and younger than he remembered them being.
It almost looked like his arms were those of a fifteen-year-old, but why would his arms look so young when just this morning they had been those of an adult?
'Huh? Wait a minute.' Aster paused his train of thought when he suddenly recalled what had just happened to him.
A few hours ago, Aster had been shot, not once, not twice, but three times. So shouldn't he be in pain right now?
Aster swiftly lifted his shirt up and noticed how smooth and flat his stomach was.
But more importantly, his skin showed no signs of bullet holes and there were no scars as well.
"How is this possible?" Aster uttered in disbelief, but then he heard a soft female gasp which seemed to have come from within the room he was in.
Aster lifted his gaze and noticed a small girl sitting on the opposite seat, which was a bit far from him, but there was also a small table placed between the two of them.
The little girl was half-wrapped in a blanket and from the look of things, it seemed that she had been asleep, like him, and had just woken up as well.
She groggily rubbed her eyes, which made her look cute, and Aster couldn't help but notice her small, round cheeks, along with her bright crimson eyes and short red hair.
However, what really caught Aster's attention were the two fuzzy ears above her head, which seemed similar to those of a raccoon. Still, before he could make sense of what he had just seen, he noticed a fluffy tail peek out from under her blanket, and it started wagging cutely when she stared at him.
Aster stared back and the little girl's eyes shimmered with joy as her mouth widened into a smile.
Then she swiftly leaned forward, causing her blanket to slide down her lap as she opened her mouth to yell.
"Mom!!"
"Mom! He's awake!!"
"My new brother is awake!!" The little girl yelled out excitedly, and Aster glanced around, trying to make sense of the situation, but he couldn't find anyone else in the room aside from the two of them. Then, he realized that the little girl was actually calling out to someone outside and not inside the room.
'Huh? Is this…?' But Aster's attention was suddenly focused on something else when he realized that the room he was in might not actually be a room.
He looked around the space and noticed the small curtains which were tied back with cords, then he looked out of the window and his eyes widened in surprise when he noticed the clouds which were right outside.
They weren't on the street, and neither was he, looking at the sky from the ground; he realized, they were above the ground and were gliding through the air.
Aster could also see a few stars which were a lot bigger than any other stars he had seen from the ground and his mouth dropped open in shock.
He directed his gaze back to the little girl and just before he could open his mouth to ask her what was going on, the carriage door suddenly slammed open, forcing Aster to jerk his head toward the entrance.
A huge gust of wind blew into the carriage and a female walked in with a huge smile on her face.
She was about seven feet tall and Aster couldn't deny that she was definitely the most stunning woman he had ever seen.
However, what really caught his attention were her horns and pointy ears.
These weren't the kind of features one saw on a human, so what exactly was she?
Also, did the girl actually have a tail?
Aster wondered what was going on and why he kept seeing people with weird things attached to their bodies. Vivian then began to speak and her mesmerizing voice instantly pulled him out of his thoughts.
"Oh my, you're right, Lily. He's awake."
Lily giggled and swiftly leaped up from her seat to launch herself into her mother's arms. "Hehehe… You see? I told you he would wake up. So does this mean the three of us will be a family now?" Lily asked as she wrapped her arms around Vivian's neck.
Vivian laughed indulgently and hugged the little girl back, then she nodded in response to her question.
"Of course, sweetie. Mommy is going to take good care of the two of you and the three of us will be one big family." Vivian rubbed her nose against Lily's nose as she said that and the little girl couldn't help but giggle with excitement at what the future held for the three of them.
Meanwhile, Aster was still trying to make sense of everything that was playing out in front of him.
'What is going on?'
'Why am I here?'
'And why did she call me her brother?'
'Should I ask them what's going on?'
'Maybe this is some kind of misunderstanding.' Aster wondered if he should just assume that this was a dream or if he should ask the two people before him to explain what was happening, but before he could do so, he suddenly heard another female voice coming from the Coachman's seat.
"Your Majesty, we're about to leave the human realm and will be approaching the portal leading to Evermore shortly."
"Thank you, Hallie." Vivian thanked her before she lowered her gaze to Aster whose eyes were now wide with shock from what he had just heard.
'Did she just say portal?' Aster became even more shocked as he found it hard to believe what he had just heard.
Seeing this, Vivian couldn't help but smile as she opened her mouth to draw Aster's attention toward her.
"Astaroth?"
She called out and Aster subconsciously lifted his gaze toward her. "Welcome to Evermore, your new home, and the home of demons, vampires, and other supernatural beings."