Chapter 6
762words
A month later, a sliver of wrongness finally cut through my numb grief.
I watched over Gracie's "body." It was still cold, but perfect. Not a single sign of decay.
Just as I was about to summon the clan's most ancient illusion master to examine it, a commotion erupted from the direction of the Sanctum.
When I got there, I found the halo of light around Isolde's child had become blindingly bright.
Clan members were writhing on the ground, crying out that their blood curse was worsening.
The symptoms, which once struck monthly, were now a daily torture.
"This is wrong," an elder reported to me, panicked. "A newborn's blessing should soothe our pain, not amplify it."
I looked closely at the infant.
It did glow, but the light made me sick. It felt like it was covering up something rotten.
Just as I was filled with doubt, the baby let out a piercing shriek.
The sound tore through my eardrums and made my blood boil.
Worse, every vampire in the Sanctum collapsed at the same time.
They clutched their heads as the blood curse hit them with unprecedented violence.
"What is happening?!"
The alchemist rushed in, his face pale.
"My Lord! This child... he's not purifying our bloodline! He's draining the life from all of us!"
With that shriek, the golden halo around the baby began to peel away.
Like a false mask, it revealed a twisted, evil truth.
That wasn't the Ancestors' blessing.
It was some kind of vile, stolen, parasitic curse.
"Impossible!" I took a step back.
The alchemist trembled with fear.
"The Blood Resonance ritual... it was never meant to create life! It was a forbidden blood curse to steal the Ancestors' blessing!"
"This child is a parasite! It's killing us all!"
With that, the infant's disguise fell away completely, revealing the parasitic thing it truly was—a grotesque creature of writhing suckers and black, pulsing veins.
"Finally..." Isolde cradled the monster, a crazed smile on her face. "If I can't have your love, then the entire clan can be food for my child! You all owe me this!"
In a fit of rage, I blasted Isolde away and threw the demon-spawn into a sealing ward.
But it was no use.
The blood curse was already out of control. Without a powerful purification, the Crimson Court would soon be extinct.
I stumbled back to my chambers, wanting one last look at Gracie before I died.
But when I opened the coffin, I froze.
The body I had guarded day and night... was melting.
The once-lifelike skin was turning into gray mud. In the middle of the pile lay a deactivated glamour rune.
"A fake?"
My hand trembled as I scooped up the mud. My mind blanked. Then, a tidal wave of wild, ecstatic joy crashed over me.
She isn't dead!
It was a double, made by an illusion!
"That clever, damn she-wolf..." I was laughing and crying at the same time. "Gracie, you tricked me! How dare you run from me with a trick like this!"
Just then, the alchemist burst in, holding a tattered ancient tome.
"My Lord! There's a way! The ancient texts say only the legendary Bloodspring of Life from the werewolf holy land can destroy this demon-spawn's curse!"
"The werewolf holy land?" I snapped my head up, my eyes sharp.
"Yes. The Moonlit Holy Mountain, deep in North America. It's controlled by the powerful werewolf royal family. Outsiders can't get in."
Hearing the word "werewolf," my instincts screamed.
Gracie was a werewolf.
She faked her death and ran. Where else would she go but back to her own kind?
I remembered her timid nature. A low-ranking wolf, probably an omega, cast out from her own pack. If she ran back to them, she was probably hiding in some slum, barely surviving.
Or maybe she was on her knees before those arrogant royal wolves, begging for scraps?
"Hah..." I let out a cold laugh and straightened my disheveled collar.
She must be terrified. How could she possibly survive in that brutal world without my protection?
Maybe she already regrets it. That's why she left the glamour rune as a clue. She's waiting for me to save her.
Women. Always with the games.
"We're leaving!"
I stood up, fighting to suppress the curse's effects.
"Our target is the Moonlit Holy Mountain. We're going to take the Bloodspring and save the clan. And while we're at it, I am bringing my disobedient, runaway mate home. This time, I'll make sure she never leaves my side again."
