Chapter 175: Chaper 175

Kath’tan ditched the witch in the leisure room, not caring if she remained there or wandered off on her own. He could already guess where Dulce would be taken, so he warped again.

Moira watched him take a step back and vanish with some trepidation. The only one she felt completely safe around was Dulce, but she wasn’t quite sure she wanted to go seeking him out just yet.

She glanced around at the pleasant room and picked a comfortable spot to sit. Dulce would eventually come looking for her, she just had to be a little patient.

In Dulce’s room, he and Asael had already returned. They stood close to the cold hearth, barely any distance between them.

Dulce was a little disoriented, he had been warped away without warning, the events unfolding in quick succession.

Asael still held his hand, his other hand now on his waist, keeping him close. "Take at least one of us along whenever you leave the cottage."

Hesitance flashed in Dulce’s silver eyes, "I don’t think there’s a need to drag you all along every time I need to run a little errand...."

"There is," A third voice joined the conversation.

Kath’tan stood directly behind the obstinate Vampire, leaning forward so that his lips were right next to his ears, itching to see his expression.

Dulce just had to turn his face to the side slightly to meet Kath’tan’s burning gaze. Simply standing like this, he could feel the warmth pouring from the Demon.

"I’m certain there wouldn’t be another repeat of today," He said calmly, their positions unwittingly reminding him of the first time Ruoxi fell into hunger.

It was a rare occurrence for them to agree over anything so he put his foot down, knowing that if he didn’t, he would lose.

"Not to mention, it was simply a minor mishap and no one was hurt." He doubled down, turning a blind eye to the Vampires who had gotten injured.

Asael’s eyes darkened as he swept them over Kath’tan, "This isn’t debatable." He said coolly.

In the Hells, he was a well of information, places, people, items. On Earth, he needed to find an efficient alternative - this was the perfect solution.

"Surely, reporting my whereabouts should suffice," Dulce also refused to back down.

"You weren’t where you said you would be," Kath’tan pointed out, scowling.

Dulce winced, trying to take a step back from Asael only to bump into the other Demon. "An outlier. Mishaps can’t be completely avoided."

Asael closed the distance he had tried to put between them, too focused on the matter to care about Kath’tan’s proximity. He nodded, his agreement a surprise."Exactly why we’ll be coming along."

Dulce bit down gently on his cheek, he was rapidly losing ground. He had good reasons for refuting their generous offer; firstly, he didn’t want to trouble them. Secondly, his speed made errands easy, it would be more troublesome to take a Demon along with him every time he needed to step out of the cottage.

Kath’tan caught his free hand, his purple eyes narrowing. "Are there places we can’t follow you to?" Despite his light tone, there was danger in his eyes.

Dulce actually gave it some thought, "I doubt that... but...."

"Then it’s decided," Kath’tan cut in gruffly, reluctantly taking a step back. "The witch is in the leisure room," He revealed, not because he cared for her well-being but rather because he wanted her gone from the cottage as soon as possible.

Dulce pressed his lips into a thin line, visibly disagreeing but unable to come up with any more counters. Reminded of Miss Moira, he made another attempt to step back away from Asael and this time, the Demon let him go.

"Let’s discuss this further, another time," He lingered to say.

Kath’tan was already on his way out of the room, "There’s nothing to discuss." He tossed over his shoulder.

Asael didn’t move, he lowered his gaze on the Vampire’s face. "Regardless of your stance on the matter, I won’t let you leave alone."

Dulce sighed, knowing that there was no preventing Asael from trailing him. "Did you have dinner?" He changed the topic of conversation.

He still hadn’t given in, he would bring up at subject at a later time, when his capture wasn’t as fresh in everyone’s minds. Although, it was a bit of a stretch to refer to it as a capture.

"No."

Dulce glanced out of the parted curtains in his bedroom, it was incredibly late, it might be best to just retire for the night and have a hearty breakfast tomorrow.

But first, he still had to see Miss Moira. "I’ll return," He murmured absently, leaving the room.

He found her curled up on a rug on the ground, fast asleep, unwilling to stain his furniture with the grime that clung to her.

Dulce didn’t rouse her, instead, he picked her up and took her to a guest room, placing her on the bed. She hummed in comfort when she sank into the much softer bed, a thick blanket settling over her sleeping figure. It would be morning soon, they would speak after she woke.

He stopped by Ruoxi’s room on his way back, curiosity nudging him to open it. He found it empty, it made his brows furrow, worried about the Demon.

He picked up the pace to his room, relieved to find Asael patiently waiting. "Ruoxi isn’t back yet," He relayed with concern, "Do you think...."

"He’s imbued with the strength of a Holy Demon," Asael said bluntly, adding without feeling. "He won’t die."

Dulce was far from reassured by this, but he had no choice to wait for the Demon to return on his own time.

He was soon all alone in his room and only then did he stop to take himself in. Plagued with worries, he made his way to the bath to wash away the events of the day. He sat absentmindedly at his dresser to brush his hair when he was done, a distant howl drawing his gaze to the curtains.

-+-

Ruoxi stumbled slightly when he stepped out of the portal into his mother’s manor, it made him frown, his pupils shrinking.

Qingyi showed up in record time, immediately charging him. "Don’t you dare leave again without paying a visit t Lady Lihua... huh?" She trailed off. She had hastily latched onto him before even getting a proper look at him.

"Ruo... R-Ruoxi are you alright?" She trembled, deeply shaken by the sight in front of her.

Without waiting for his answer, she warped with him to Lady Lihua’s side, in a panic.

"Lady Lihua! Lady Lihua! Ruoxi is... Ruoxi is dying!"

Lady Lihua had just been about to take off her robe before retiring to bed, she paused, taking in the surprise that had suddenly appeared. "Ruoxi?" She said in shock, immediately going over.

"I’m fine," Ruoxi finally managed to grit out, "It’s not my blood."

Lady Lihua had already gotten to him then, fussing over him as well. "It’s not? Who did you beat up?"

"Some Vampires," Ruoxi said shortly, trying to extricate himself from their grasp.

"Isn’t your lover a Vampire?" Qingyi blurted out.

Ruoxi warped away without giving an answer, his frown never easing off his face. He felt completely wrung empty of energy, was it due to using his charm?

He nearly fell into the bath, barely catching himself in time. Lotuses bloomed in the bath, and amidst the steam, pink mist was almost visible.

With the blood washed off him, his pallid skin was visible, even the color of his eyes were dulled. He frowned, he knew he was stronger but he had never attempted to test out his newly acquired strength.

It was no surprise though that such power came with downsides, previously, he still had a few days before the faint hunger pangs arrived but simply cleaning out a small coven of Vampires had left him starving.

Ruoxi planned to take a simple bath and then return to Earth, but the heated water lured him to sleep, his upper body supported against the rim of the pond.

-+-

Morning arrived with a bustle, Moira waking up early and immediately going on a quest to find Dulce after finding herself in a guest room.

Dulce provided her a change of clothes and a warm bath and soon she was bright-faced and clean, her willful hair tied down in a braid down her back.

"Are you alright?" Dulce asked politely.

Unable to speak, Moira nodded vigorously, a smile stretching out her lips.

"What are you going to do now?" Dulce asked, offering her a quill and some paper. "Will you be able to undo the spell?"

Moira lowered her head and scribbled furiously, lifting the paper to face him.

Dulce studied the sheet of paper in front of his, his eyes widening. "Me? You want me to undo the spell?"

Moira nodded with gleaming eyes, hastily scribbling a little more to say ’Yes! Yes!’

Dulce scratched his head, his hesitation showing on his face. It was a cloudy autumn morning, so he wore his overcoat, his hair tied back from his face.