"…Your orders, Lady Elara?"

  Hearing the maid's question, Elara's lips curved ever so slightly.

  "Vanessa, is this the tallest building in the area?" She asked, turning to her beautiful maid with an unreadable smile. Behind her was another skyscraper, even taller than the one they stood on.

  "Of course not, Lady Elara. Can you not see the building behind you?"

  For the first time, Vanessa opened her eyes, revealing a pair of innocent-looking purple orbs that glowed with an ethereal light.

  Elara's lips twitched. A rare crack appeared in her composed demeanor. It had already happened once with Alvin's ridiculous words, and now she had to deal with her annoying maid.

  Elara took a deep breath to calm herself after regaining the quirky reply of her maid, but she took a deep breath to calm herself on time. "Then what are we doing here?"

  Vanessa tilted her head slightly, feigning confusion. "Are you feeling unwell, miss? … But vampires don't get sick." A moment later, she added, "You asked me to take you somewhere high, but you never specified how high." She even showed a look of concern towards Elara.

  A sharp crack echoed through the air as Elara clenched her hands, forming a fist. Even through the noise coming from the bustling city below, the sound of her bones grinding below was unmistakable.

  Elara's chest heaved up and down; her annoyance was burnt by the platform beneath them. Elara slammed her feet on the ground before turning to where Alvin lay motionless with a huff.

  The boy should have died long ago, but her blood worked its magic. The bleeding had stopped, and his heart was beating slowly.

  The heartbeat appeared to be very weak, but it was there.

  From his stable breathing, she could tell his vitals had stabilized.

  He would live if she made him.

  "If only someone knew healing spells, we wouldn't have to turn him in in such haste." Tough, she asked as if to herself. Vanessa's steps faltered.

  But, ever the perfect maid, she quickly stabilized herself. "Miss, have you forgotten? Healing spells don't work on vampires. They only make the injury worse, not heal it." Then, with an amused glint in her eyes, she added, "But if you wish, I can learn them… just for you~"

  'This damned maid and her sharp tongue!' Elara seethed internally, and she wanted to rip something apart to ease her frustration. 'She wants to be a perfect maid, yet her tongue is far from perfect.'

  Vanessa's lips curled up slightly when she noticed her mistress's frustration. But she knew better than to press further. Instantly, she returned to her previous calm demeanor.

  Elara turned away, her expression hardening. "Prepare for the ritual." After noticing

  Alvin was showing signs of awakening, which meant they were now on the clock.

  Vanessa's playful demeanor also shifted instantly. "Miss, are we going to use 'ingredients' available here?" She asked; there was a hint of solemnness to her voice. "You decided to ditch the ritual we should be performing at the last moment."

  Elara's gaze darkened, but she shook her head. "We'll have to improvise. There is only so much time before the auspicious hour. Just gather the things we have in the locker. We have to start the ritual." Her crimson eyes swept over the city below, watching the oblivious humans with a chilling glint. "The main ingredient will be my blood. As for the feast…" she trailed off in the middle, but Vanessa understood the meaning behind her words.

  Without saying anything, she vanished from the spot.

  A moment later, Alvin's eyes fluttered open. The first thing he felt was the heavy wind against his face and open wounds. He blinked in surprise, letting everything he had been through sink in, and then he turned to see Elara standing beside him.

  "Where… are we?" His voice was hoarse. He tried to sit up, but the weight of exhaustion kept him down. "Wait… how did we even get here?"

  Elara glanced at him before looking away, annoyance flickering in her expression. "Apparently, we are on the second tallest skyscraper in Hong Kong." She shot a glance at the building behind them, "much to my irritation."

  She looked at the skyscraper like she wanted to blow it up with her eyes.

  But sadly… she was not powerful enough.

  Alvin frowned, hearing her words, but before he could question her further, he felt a wave of weakness assaulting him. His hand intellectually went to the wooden log embedded in his stomach.

  He could feel that his body was functioning. His wounds were still the same, but somehow he was alive.

  "This is the place where I have decided to perform your ritual." Elara turned back to him, no longer paying attention to anything else.

  "When did I agree to your proposal?" Alvin asked, raising an eyebrow.

  He did not outright reject her, which made Elara sigh in relief inwardly.

  She had feared that Alvin would resist the proposal. She had learned about what humans who knew about their kind thought of them. Even the Internet was filled with horrific depictions of their kind.

  "I will skip everything else as we don't have enough time. So tell me, are you ready to be a vampire? If you have any questions, I can give you a few minutes, as that's all you have left."

  Alvin stared at her for a second before finally asking, "Why are you doing this?"

  He had seen her indifference towards those who died with him, and here she was, trying so hard to save him.

  "There is no time to dwell on details, but know this," Elara paused, her eyes becoming firm and clear. She finally said, "I have some selfish reasons for saving you. Once the ritual is complete, you will be bound to me."

  Alvin's fingers froze against the wooden log.

  "Bound to you?" His voice was quiet, wary as he looked at her with narrowed eyes, "Does that mean I will become your servant or something?" The mere thought of being someone's slave is unsettling for someone who knew the taste of freedom. He could not simply become someone's slave.

  "Does that mean I will become your servant?"

  Alvin could not help but feel a bit conflicted inside. 'Do I really have to let go of my freedom just to live? But'… His gaze fell on him, who was trembling ever so slightly. Since when have I started fearing death'?

  "If it were before, I would have made you my pais—a servant who lived and died for me." Elara replied honestly. She noticed the slight tremor in Alvin's body, though his face remained calm.

  "Before?" With his mind being as calm as ever, Alvin caught the main point in her words.

  Elara nodded softly, "I have decided to make some changes to the ritual just for you." She pressed the emphasis on the last words to make him understand that she was taking unnecessary steps to save his life.

  She could have simply made him her servant by saying that she had no other way to save him, but instead she was being transparent with him about it.

  And Alvin understood these things as well: "I really appreciate that. I truly do."

  Elara nodded, satisfied by his gratitude, but her smile held a warning: "Don't be happy too soon. In exchange for the second chance at life…" Elara put a serious look on her face, staring at Alvin with a deep look in her eyes that made him feel like his thoughts lay bare before her.

  Despite the calmness, Alvin felt himself a bit tense at this moment. 'Here it comes! Is she finally going to tell me what she wants in exchange for my life?'

  Time seemed to have slowed down for Alvin; all the voices in the background faded; he could only hear the sound of his own breathing.

  Elara kept staring at him and asked, "...Are you willing to swear your loyalty to me?"

  Alvin blinked.

  Confused about what she meant by those words.

  Oh, was it any different than being her servant? But then he thought deeply about it.

  'Why would she ask this if she is not going to make me her servant?' He wondered; a frown appeared on his face.

  As if seeing through his thoughts, Elara clarified, "From this day onwards, you will be living with me; vampires have no place in the human world. At this moment in my life, I need people whom I can trust by my side. Not as a servant or a subordinate but as a partner whom I can leave my back to."

  Alvin was caught off guard by her words. It would be a lie if he said he knew she might ask something like this. All he wanted was to live, but now he found himself in a web of complex vampire problems.

  Since he somewhat understood that Elara was some kind of nobility among vampires, he knew the dangers around were in no shortage. Being affiliated with her meant he would have to take on these unnecessary dangers.

  But…

  Now that there was a way before him to survive, he felt a bit conflicted with how to proceed from here on. Alvin relaxed his body and closed his eyes, allowing his thoughts to wander.

  He felt like he was drifting into a dark void with no one there but him. Suddenly, an aged voice reached his ears.

  'Why did you do that, kid?' The voice trembled in anger, 'No matter what reason you had, promise me something…'

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  The voice trailed off, and Alvin opened his eyes; his gaze was filled with a newfound purpose and clarity.

  He looked at the patiently waiting Elara in the eye and said, "For me, loyalty is like a rope." He raised his hand towards the woman, and she looked at it with a curious look in her eyes. "Two people holding each end. If you are willing to hold onto yours, I will never let go—even if it means dying with it in my hand."

  "You are willing to save me; that alone makes me indebted to you. After today, you will be my benefactor. And I am not the kind of person who bites the hand that feeds me."

  Elara's gaze alternated between his eyes and his hand, still hovering in the air. The next moment her lips curled up into a sweet smile; she moved forward and took his hand, holding it tightly.

  "I am glad to hear that," she said. "And don't worry about me letting go of this rope of yours." Alvin looked at Elara with a confused look on his face as she continued, "This ritual we are about to perform on you will…"

  Her voice drifted in the air, but Alvin felt each word that left her mouth bearing weight on his heart. He opened his mouth a few times, but no words came out of it.

  After staring at the now-silent Elara for a few seconds, he uttered, "Very well, I am willing."

  Elara smiled in relief, hearing his response; an unknown tension lingering on her body suddenly dispersed.

  Alvin, on the other hand, stared at the starry sky without blinking; Elara had shattered several myths about vampires and other things for him. In just a single night, his whole world had flipped upside down.

  Vampires were incomparably powerful compared to humans. Alvin saw it firsthand when Elara crushed the steel railing of the helipad with nothing but her bare hands to express her annoyance earlier.

  He stared, mouth slightly open. If this is just a fraction of what vampires can do… then what are the strongest ones like?

  He looked at the moon for a few seconds until something clicked in his mind: "Why are we even here?"

  He got so lost in the flow of their conversation that he even forgot about this.

  "That place was already in ruins, and the local authorities had sent their force to the scene," Elara explained, watching a look of disdain forming on Alvin's face.

  Alvin clicked his tongue. "They sure took their sweet time." As if thinking of something, a fierce glint flashed through his eyes before it faded. 'No, even if they had earlier, nothing would have changed. But… even then, I cannot help but get angry at them'.

  Alvin was feeling a wave of emotional roller coaster, going from feeling anger, hatred, and all other kinds of emotion to unnerving stillness. In the end he gave up, thinking much about it.

  "When can we start? I am dying here." He looked at Elara and made a joke to lighten his mood.

  Elara replied. "Just a bit more; someone is bringing some things we need for the ritual. Even if you die before we can start, you will be turned by the ritual on time." Joking back with him.

  "Not creepy at all," Alvin replied with a dry chuckle.

  To pass the time, Elara and Alvin continued to talk; it was mostly Elara speaking and Alvin asking questions from time to time.

  They mostly talked about what vampires were like. Elara cleared several of his misconceptions about vampires—silver was fatal against vampires, but the stronger a vampire is, the more difficult it is to kill them with such means.

  His greatest relief came when he learned that, due to Elara's lineage, he would have some immunity to the sun.

  Alvin also asked how she was able to survive the fire before, to which she replied, "It wasn't strong enough to harm me. But at that time, I reacted on time and used something to protect myself, or my clothes would have been burned."

  Alvin realized she was more concerned about her outfit than the fire itself.

  It was then his mind went to what she was wearing—an elaborate, traditional Japanese outfit. Why would a vampire wear something like that on a regular day? Even Rin, who had deep ties to Japanese culture, refused to wear such attire unless absolutely necessary. She called it a hassle.

  Yet, in the end, he decided against it.

  Noticing Alvin had gone quiet, Elara raised an eyebrow. "No more questions?"

  She did not mind his endless curiosity. If anything, she understood. He had lost the only people he cared about, and his life was about to change forever—all in a single night. She was happy to keep him distracted for as long as it worked.

  Alvin sighed, turning his attention to the distant hum of the streets below. "Even if I learn all of this… it's still too much."

  His voice grew quieter. "No amount of knowledge will prepare me for what's to come."

  A moment later, his hands clenched into fists.

  "I have to change. No," he exhaled sharply, resolve hardening in his voice, "I will adapt."

  Elara studied him, her crimson eyes dark with unreadable emotions. "Are you afraid of hurting humans?"

  She had never been human herself. She didn't fully grasp their differences—their fleeting lives, their fragile bodies, their easily broken hearts.

  Alvin hesitated. "No… I'm not sure." He looked up at the night sky, exhaling softly. "I guess I'll find out when the time comes."

  Elara remained silent.

  He was saying goodbye!

  Not just to the people he lost, but to the person he used to be, to being a human.

  She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, something flared to life before them.

  A flash of light. A magic circle glowing at their feet.

  Vanessa had returned.

  The young woman stepped out of the magic circle; her long maid outfit with a frill maxi skirt swayed under the strong wind at the top. Her striking ruby-green eyes gleamed in the dark. A golden outline traced the edges of her irises, making them shimmer with an ethereal glow. She blinked once, tilting her head.

  "Did I interrupt something?"

  Alvin blinked in shock, still in shock from her sudden appearance. On the other side, Elara's expression darkened slightly; she was more than familiar with the fake innocent expression of her maid.

  She chose not to acknowledge Vanessa's comment and strode towards her.

  Alvin, still looking at the scene with a tilted head, recalling the woman's effortless entrance, muttered, "So that's how we got here..." as his realization dawned upon him.

  He knew moving him would result in his early death, but by using something like 'teleportation,' it seemed possible.

  Elara gestured toward the maid, "This is Vanessa. She has been my aide since I was young."

  Despite the annoyance with which she glared at the woman, her voice held an unmistakable fondness. Alvin could tell that they had a deep bond between them that went beyond servant and employee.

  This made him more assured about his future with Elara.

  Vanessa, unfazed by her mistress's stare, smiled warmly and performed a graceful bow. "Pleased to meet you, Mr. Waiter. I am Miss Elara's maid, Vanessa."

  Both Elara and Alvin felt their eyebrows twitch. Mr. Waiter?

  Her bow was lower than necessary—whether intentional or not, it gave him a good view of her cleavage. Alvin quickly averted his eyes, unsure whether she was simply teasing him or simply unaware.

  "...Nice to meet you." His words came out more strained than he had hoped.

  Vanessa straightened, her eyes twinkling with an amused glint.

  "My name is Alvin," he added, afraid she might continue to address him similarly. "It would be great if you addressed me as such."

  Vanessa chuckled, clearly entertained. But before she could push further, she caught sight of Elara's darkening expression from the corner of her eye.

  "As you wish, Mr. Alvin."

  She then turned to her mistress and handed her a small velvety pouch. "These are all the materials we had available. It should be enough for the ritual."

  Elara took the pouch from her, and her fingers tightened around it before she shifted her gaze back to Alvin. His face contorted from time to time in pain.

  She took a step closer. "Alvin. Can I call you that?" Her hands absentmindedly fiddled with the pouch in her grasp.

  He gave her a weak nod.

  "The ritual we are about to perform is called the Eternal Night Ritual."

  Alvin watched as her slender fingers dipped into the pouch—deeper than should have been possible.

  He was sure she was not playing any sort of pranks on him once she pulled out something from her pouch.

  The first thing she brought out of the bag was a long, skeletal spine—still attached to the skull of the animal it once belonged to. Fresh blood dripped from the bones, forming a small pool of blood on the rooftop floor.

  Alvin's face paled even more than it already was.

  "What is that?" He had known such a magical ritual would not require ordinary 'ingredients.' But they were certainly 'unique.'. Seeing a freshly pulled-out spine and skull bone—it sent chills through his broken bones.

  "This is the spine of an adult werewolf we had captured recently on our trip out in the human world." Elara was busy with the ingredients, so Vanessa—who had personally gathered them—answered instead.

  Alvin's first reaction was to see traces of blood on her hands or clothes, but there were none. He nodded silently. But it took a moment for her words to fully register.

  "Wait… There are werewolves in his world, too?"

  Vanessa chuckled lightly, a teasing lilt in her voice. "Your reaction is adorable. There are many other races here. Now that you've stepped into the supernatural world, you'll encounter them in due time."

  It was only due to Elara's power working on him that Alvin was able to keep his cool and not make a fool of himself. The amount of information he had just taken in was too much for any normal person.

  Maybe only weebs and people who have a certain level of mental fortitude might be able to stay composed in the face of such dangerous beings.

  But now, with his mind working at a fast pace, he had already accepted it. Maybe it was exhaustion. Maybe it was the lingering numbness from everything he had lost. Either way, he forced himself to focus, pushing aside any thoughts that would only complicate things further.

  Alvin groaned at his increasing pain, and his vision had already started to get blurry once more.

  But at this moment, his attention snapped to Elara when he noticed something glowing in her hands.

  It was a tuft of grass—except the blades were shimmering under the moonlight, reflecting silver hues like liquid mercury. At its center, a small bud remained tightly closed as if waiting for something.

  "That is Moonwort," Vanessa explained, her voice taking on a scholarly and passionate tone. "A magical herb closely linked to the moon. It's one of the core ingredients of this ritual—it will allow us to channel the moon's power."

  Alvin could feel her passion and craze towards such things straight from how eagerly she explained everything to him.

  She continued narrating as Elara retrieved more ingredients from the bag—various herbs, crushed minerals, and powders of unknown origin. But the moment Elara pulled out the final item, Vanessa fell silent.

  Alvin followed her gaze.

  It was a glass vial.

  His curiosity deepened; that was until he saw Elara's hand tremble.

  There was no mistaking it. Her fingers clenched around the vial, her knuckles turning white. For the first time, she looked… hesitant.

  Elara met Vanessa's gaze, expression unreadable. A tense silence settled between them, stretching long enough that Alvin almost spoke—but something told him this moment wasn't his to interrupt.

  "Shall I start the ritual, young miss?" Finally, Vanessa broke the silence with a warm, almost encouraging smile.

  Elara did not answer at first. Then, without a word, she gave a firm nod.

  Turning to Alvin, she spoke in a softer tone.

  "During this ritual… you will die."

  Alvin stilled.

  "But that will only be for a while," she continued almost instantly, worried he might panic. "When you wake up again, you will be reborn as a vampire."

  Alvin nodded; he exhaled through his nose, his gaze drifting to the glowing materials floating around her.

  "… Well, I did read something like that," Alvin muttered to himself; he wanted to chuckle but only coughed up blood. His injuries were relapsing.

  Seeing his state worsening, Vanessa did not delay anymore. She stepped forward and started chanting.

  "Es... Vel... Ril… Qu…"

  From the cracked gaps in the concrete floor under her feet, some pieces of rubble flew out, and a large muddy bowl materialized in her hands. The ingredients flew, floating around Elara—one by one—and began to move toward her.

  Her hand glowed with a golden-colored, ethereal mist of energy.

  The first ingredient that was used was the spine itself. It was crushed and reduced to a fine powder as it fell into the bowl. Then came the herbs and the powdered minerals, each element dissolving into the growing mixture. The moonwort was added last, its luminous glow dimming as it was ground into the concoction.

  And then—the blood.

  Vanessa took the vial from the silent Elara with a smile and poured the contents into the bowl; a strange force seemed to shift the air. Everything around them started to get affected by these changes.

  Elara took the bowl in one hand and conjured a thick pestle in the other, and she used the club-like object to crush and mix everything together; her chants never stopped.

  A silver flow rippled through the mixture, making it look less like liquid and more like living moonlight.

  Down below, the city's humans continued their lives, blissfully unaware of the supernatural ritual unfolding above them. If they had looked up, if the buildings weren't so bright—perhaps they would have noticed the way the moonlight had begun to spiral unnaturally.

  Vanessa's expression grew serious.

  The ritual had entered an important phase.

  Elara stepped forward, the bowl in both hands. Giving one last look to her maid, she moved to where Alvin lay, his breathing shallow.

  She crouched down, kneeling beside him, and started carving strange symbols on the helipad below them. They formed a massive circle with the young man as the center, large enough to cover half the helipad.

  She set the bowl on the side.

  "It will hurt a little." Elara got close to Alvin once more and murmured, cupping Alvin's face gently in her hands.

  Crack!

  Before he could react, darkness swallowed his vision.

  And just like that… Alvin died!

  A moment of silence stretched in the air; Elara stared at the shocked look on Alvin's face for a second before laying it back down on the floor.

  Then—

  "Miss, you do realize he was on the verge of dying in a few seconds anyway?" Vanessa's casual remark froze Elara in place.

  For a second, she stayed in a standing and half-crouching pose. But then, without a word, she straightened up.

  She turned away, pretending not to have heard anything.

  Vanessa chuckled before resuming the ritual.