Almost a month had passed since the twins returned from the city of Melrose.
Sunlight slipped through the cracks of the large wooden barn. The animals spent their day in peace, and even Nikolai the rooster was unexpectedly quiet and obedient. The smell of fresh hay mingled with the scent of wildflowers drifting in through the open door.
"Lucky, catch!" Grace's bright voice cut through the calm silence as she tossed a small ball. "Come on! You can't lose to Alice again!"
"Alice, faster, over here," Grey encouraged his own favorite, who was already racing toward him, deftly slipping between the stalls.
Grace threw up her hands in despair as she watched Lucky charge forward, shoving aside the animals nearby. He looked like a bull that would sooner crash into a mountain than go around it. At this rate, her pet would never catch up to the nimble Alice.
"That's not fair, we need to compete in an open space!" she complained, scratching the Cerberus's three slobbery muzzles.
Grey happily flopped down onto a bale of hay, and Alice settled comfortably in his lap, waiting for praise.
"Woo-woo-woo (I'm the fastest)," the fox whimpered.
"Woof-woof-woof. (But I'm stronger./You're no match for me in a fight./When are they going to feed us?)" Lucky echoed back, each of his heads preoccupied with its own concerns.
"Did you forget that we already tried in the forest?"
"The forest, the barn, it's all the same. Obstacles everywhere," Grace muttered. She had no intention of admitting defeat.
Grey spread his arms to the sides. "Speed has always been Alice's advantage. Lucky is focused on strength. Just look at him. That's not a dog, that's a barrel on legs. I'm surprised he can run at all."
"Yeah, yeah, you're the smartest one..."
"Come on, don't be upset. Little big sister, you didn't forget that I promised to make you a gift, did you?" Grey tried to change the subject.
"I remember! You let it slip when we were walking through the castle with Rose."
"Well, I finally finished it," he said, slipping a hand inside his shirt and pulling out a small bundle from the bottomless pocket already sewn into it.
"Look, it's a picture story. I drew it myself," Grey boasted. "It took me several months. I nearly turned into a shut-in while working on it.
It's a story about several girls who can transform into fairies. They go to school, sing and dance, and in their free time they punish villains. I'm sure you'll like it.
You have to read it from right to left, and the speech bubbles are the characters' lines."
Grace immediately snatched up the gift and began examining it.
Her eyes lit up with curiosity. She loved stories, and here she could not only hear one, but actually see it too.
What an interesting and unusual idea...
"This is so cool!" Grace exclaimed and threw her arms around her brother's neck. She loved the gift. "Thank you, big brother. How did you even come up with something like this?"
Grey scratched his head and answered, "Honestly, I dreamed this story. You know how I keep having strange dreams. For several days, I couldn't stop humming, 'Only together are we strong, free to work our miracles, always striving onward, toward victory.' I thought I was going insane."
Grace immediately clapped a hand over his mouth. "Please, stop... my poor ears..." She paused for a moment, then asked, "Do you think maybe you're one of the seers? Like that famous vampire clan in Wallachia Rose told us about, the ones who can see the future?"
"Ahahaha, probably not. Since I can't grow stronger, all I can do is dream. Admit it, you're just missing your new friend. Now you're dragging vampires into even the most ordinary fantasies," Grey said with a smirk.
"And look who's talking! I saw you stroking the new bead on your bracelet," the girl shot back, pointing at the bead Rose had given him.
"You can't just barge into my room like that!" Grey exclaimed, immediately starting to tickle his sister.
"A-ha-ha-ha-h-a-h. S-stop it, y-you're playing dirty," Grace laughed.
"T-tell me honestly, did you two kiss?" she mumbled after catching her breath. The question made her blush a little.
"W-what are you even saying? I've only ever kissed you..." Grey blurted out without thinking.
"A-ah, quiet, quiet. Y-you still remember that evening..."
"M-mhm," the boy nodded shyly.
"D-did you like it?" she asked unexpectedly.
"You little demon, enough of that, what if Mom hears?"
"Just answer. Yes or no?!" Grace shouted more aggressively now. Her eyes were shining so brightly it looked as if they were about to burn a hole through her brother's body.
"Yes, I liked it! What about you?"
"I liked it too."
Their little exchange was being watched with great interest by four pairs of eyes. One belonged to Alice, and the other three to Lucky.
=========
While the children played in the barn, a lone human figure slowly moved through the thick fog curling between the trees of Nightingale.
A middle-aged man clad in armor marked with mysterious symbols walked as if he were strolling down a familiar path rather than through a dangerous forest shrouded in mystery.
His light hair was carelessly brushed back, revealing finely sculpted features and a slightly raised chin. His eyes, the color of molten gold, seemed to see something beyond ordinary sight.
He wore a faint frown, as though he were contemplating a difficult question.
The forest around the stranger had gone still in anticipation. The birds fell silent, the animals hid deep in their burrows and nests, afraid to reveal their presence even with the slightest rustle. Even the trees themselves seemed to part before him, yielding the way.
His easy, unhurried stride only deepened the sense that his appearance here was no coincidence.
His lips curved into the faintest smile, as if he were looking forward to an interesting meeting.
He was heading for the Village of the Forsaken.
Strangely enough, no one noticed his approach. Only when the stranger's figure appeared at the edge of the village did one of the residents spot him and shout loudly,
"Old Man Ma, get out here!!! We have visitors!"
At that unexpected cry, the entire village froze for a moment.
The man stopped at the boundary of the village. He stood there motionless, his expression unchanged, as if he had long known his arrival would cause quite a commotion.
He waited, waited for an old friend.
"Pompey?!" Grandpa Ma shouted as he hurried out of the village. "I see you're not alone," he added in a slightly lowered voice.
"Marcus Crassus, it's been a long time. I see you're still as lively and cheerful as ever. Could it be that the years truly have no power over you?" Pompey replied with a half-smile.
That brief exchange plunged the village into an even deeper silence.
Constantine and Constance stepped out of the hut looking slightly disheveled, but with determined expressions. Albedo interrupted her experiment on cell mutation and immediately began whispering something in haste, her hands moving through a series of complex gestures. Jack seemed to vanish into thin air, while Catherine quickly ordered Cassia to hide the children in the shadows and bring them to Albedo.
"You didn't answer my question, Pompey," Grandpa Ma said, his voice turning very serious.
The man seemed completely unaware of the tension around him. He kept smiling, but his eyes carefully studied everyone present.
"You know, Mark, I came because I'm curious."
"Curious about what?" Grandpa Ma tensed, ready for any turn of events.
Pompey paused, his gaze briefly settling on one of the huts, where the figure of a young neko woman had just slipped inside.
"I want to know why so many powerful beings have gathered in this little village. And of course, I'm very interested in what kind of problem all of you have run into, that made you promise those narrow-eyed fellows 50 million?!" he said sharply, pulling a small bundle from inside his clothes.
"My old friend, perhaps I can help you with something. I'll only take half..."
The moment the paper saw the light, the tension in the air became almost tangible.
Grandpa Ma's fingers trembled slightly as he reached out to take the bundle. He knew perfectly well what it was.
It was the letter he had sent in desperation, after Celine's treatment had failed completely.
A letter of last hope for Gray. A letter of shameful pleading to old enemies. A letter in which he had promised 50 million to draw the attention of an entire clan of healers from the Empire of the Six Pillars.
Mark's emotions did not escape Pompey's watchful eye. He also noticed that the villagers had not reacted with excessive surprise. It seemed they already knew what this was about.
"H-how did you get that?" Grandpa Ma asked, looking slightly lost.
Ask an "old friend" for help? He was not nearly that insane.
He knew that without a direct order from Pompey, Catherine would never have been hunted down in the Roman Empire in the first place. It would have been sheer madness to ask him for help in treating Gray. Right now, he could only hope the children would remain unnoticed, and that Albedo would manage to send them away.
He had to buy time.
"Mark, have you really forgotten who I am? I am a full consul of the most powerful empire of humanity. There was simply no way I wouldn't learn about this. So tell me, what exactly is your problem?"
"Yes, yes, dear son-in-law. I'm also quite curious what you were hoping to achieve," a hoarse, completely unfamiliar voice rang out from the forest.
Suddenly, the air trembled, and another group materialized beside Pompey.
It was Orion, the king of the Magic Empire, whose aged figure radiated power and wisdom. He was accompanied by three others: a mage carrying a staff covered in intricate symbols, a runic knight in armor, and a man with a restrained aura, clearly a specialist.
The appearance of two powerful rulers in a tiny village on the edge of Nightingale would have shaken the entire world if anyone found out about it.
Did they know something?
Meanwhile, Cassia had quietly delivered the twins to Aunt Albedo's hut using shadow teleportation.
The children's pets sat motionless in their arms.
Stepping out of the shadows, everyone froze in silence. On Grey and Grace's faces, confusion, disorientation, and unease were clearly written.
They had never been thrown into Cassia's shadows so abruptly before—this was a clear signal of absolute danger.
Catherine was instantly at the children's side.
She pressed their heads gently but firmly to her forehead, using Soul Transmission, a ability available only to the Skyborn, to give urgent instructions.
"My babies," her voice spoke directly into their minds, "stay silent and listen, don't make a sound! It's very dangerous here. Two rulers have found us, and their subordinates must be nearby as well. Apparently, they don't know we're here yet. But it's only a matter of time. If anyone sees us, it will all be over. You won't survive the aftermath of a battle between Skyborn."
Catherine paused for a moment, struggling with dizziness from the intense use of Soul Transmission.
She shook her head and continued:
"Now we're going to use Grandma Albedo's teleportation magic to leave the village. Close your eyes and relax. That's the only way we'll survive today."
The children nodded obediently, their eyes wide with fear. They understood the grave danger they were in and didn't want to be a burden. Grey and Grace stood perfectly still, holding their pets tightly, who seemed to sense the looming peril as well and remained completely silent.
Meanwhile, Aunt Albedo deftly traced intricate runes on the floor of the hut. Her hands moved with inhuman speed and precision. The air around them began to shimmer, charged with magical energy.
"Orion, f-father-in-law, what are you doing here?" Grandpa Mark blurted out in shock, watching as one figure after another emerged from the dense undergrowth. "How did you get here? Could the Vampire King really be so blind as to let strangers roam freely through his territory?"
"Ahahahah, Mark, who better than you knows that money and obligations work wonders. I wouldn't be surprised…" Pompey's words were cut off by the shout of a mage.
"For two hours! I sense a spatial disturbance. Someone is teleporting!" the old man shouted, standing beside Orion.
Pompey glanced toward the unassuming hut and widened his eyes in astonishment.
"The Child of Prophecy!.." he could not restrain his exclamation as he discovered something shocking.
"Stop the teleportation, NOW!" Pompey roared.
Before he even finished speaking, a spear materialized in his hand, and without a second thought, he hurled it toward the hut. Courtesy and old friendship no longer mattered to him. He wanted to eliminate the "Child of Prophecy" as quickly as possible, before the teleportation could be completed.
"Uuuumgh!" came a painful groan from Constance, who had tried to redirect the flying spear with telekinesis, but failed under the enormous surge of mana Pompey had poured into the throw.
"CATTY!" Grandpa Ma bellowed, rushing toward Pompey and Orion.
He knew he wouldn't be able to block the attack completely, so he aimed to delay the enemy just long enough to give Catherine a few precious seconds. His adopted daughter was only a Skyborn of the First Heaven. Her level could not even be compared to Pompey's own power, or that of his subordinates. Mark could only hope that she would manage to escape along with the children.
Catherine's Soul power was focused on communicating with the twins, so she didn't react immediately to Pompey's sudden attack.
When the spear was only a few meters from the hut, she was still crouched in front of Grey and Grace. Such a stance was far from suitable for combat, and at a battle of this level, a single mistake could mean the difference between life and death.
Catherine gave herself a self-deprecating smile and sharply pushed the children toward the portal that had just formed.
Her abdomen was pierced through. Blood sprayed in every direction, turning the hut crimson. The sheer volume of mana poured into the attack tore the building apart into tiny fragments. Everything was destroyed, as if by a bombardment.
Only two small figures remained intact and unharmed. They took shelter behind their mother, using her as a living shield of flesh and blood.
The events unfolded so rapidly that Grey and Grace, still weakly developed, didn't even grasp what had happened. Their small bodies flew toward the portal lifelessly, as if in slow motion.
The last thing Grey saw was his mother's bloodied form, her face twisted in pain, framed by the shattered remains of the hut and Grace's frantic screams.
"MOM!!!!"
Then his vision went dark.