Chapter 114: The Crest
Andrew’s body grew weak as the screen turned pitch black, Roanna’s laughter echoing endlessly through the chamber.
It was the kind of laughter that crawled beneath the skin: sharp, mocking, and drenched in satisfaction.
Lulu approached him cautiously, her voice trembling. "Is Seamus going to be okay?"
Her face was pale, her hands clutching his shoulder. "He won’t be cursed, right? I heard the one who kills the Emblem of Enigma suffers a great punishment."
Andrew shook his head, uncertainty twisting in his chest. He didn’t know the answer. But his gaze turned hard as he glared at Roanna, demanding one instead.
"You! Don’t you need my son for evolution? You must be insane to let him kill the protector of your own house!"
Roanna let out a low, cruel laugh. "Oh my, this is making me laugh even more."
She rose from her seat and began walking toward him, her long black hair catching the crimson shimmer of the bloody moonlight streaming through the grand windows.
Her red eyes glimmered with sinister delight as she spoke.
"He will fall into a coma... for a while," she said softly, tilting her head with mock sympathy.
"His soul will descend into the deepest hell before it reforms into something... different entirely."
Her smirk sharpened. "But at least his body will stay warm. He’s not dead, and we can drain his blood slowly."
"You! Damn you!" Andrew roared, struggling against the vines that held him, but his strength was fading fast.
"You monsters," David hissed, his voice shaking with disbelief. "You’re even worse than we thought."
Roanna shrugged, unbothered. "Don’t blame us. He’s the one who wandered into the Soul Gathering."
"That domain belongs to Corax, the bastard who ruined half our experiments. He took the souls of the children we used and locked them inside his realm."
Her tone darkened as anger flared in her expression. "We finally managed to seize that domain, but he hid himself within that cursed wood."
The Corvane experiments had twisted the Vitalis Core—reshaping, fusing, and corrupting it—forcing evolved cores into bodies that were never meant to hold them.
The core was close to soul, to be exact it was the place where the vampire soul reside in eternity. Without the soul, their cores would be empty husk.
It was how they created vampires with Blood Styles without true evolution. The cost was enormous: countless lives, even from the Seven Great Covenants, slaughtered to feed their ambition.
"We sacrificed so many cores," Roanna continued bitterly, slamming her heel against the marble floor.
"Rare, evolved crystals, all turned into worthless junk."
Andrew clenched his jaw, anger replacing the numbness that had gripped him. "How could you do something so monstrous without the Emblem’s punishment?"
For a brief moment, Roanna’s smile faltered. Her crimson eyes narrowed as she studied him. When she finally spoke, her tone was low and deliberate.
"Just like us, the Emblem of Enigma bears a Crest. That Crest gives them the power to pass judgment."
She leaned closer, her voice dropping to a whisper. "I hid his Crest far to the north. As long as they’re separated, he can’t use his Royal Judgment."
Both Andrew and Lulu froze. Even Isolde likely had no knowledge of such a secret.
Roanna straightened again, her smirk returning. "And your son... will become the next Emblem of Enigma once his soul is purified."
"That’s the price for killing one. Of course, it will take thousands of years for that transformation to complete."
Her words hit him harder than any blade could. Andrew’s heart sank, sweat gathering on his brow. Thousands of years. He might never see Seamus again.
Roanna’s tone softened mockingly. "So why not meet him one last time? I’ll allow it."
"Then release me," Andrew demanded, his eyes blazing with defiance. "I want to see him alone."
Sarah turned to Roanna for confirmation. The matriarch gave a simple nod, and the vines around Andrew dissolved into black dust.
He stood immediately, his breath ragged but his resolve unbroken.
"I want to see my daughter too!" David interjected, desperation flooding his voice.
"Of course," Roanna replied with a smirk.
She raised her hand, and the grand door of the dining hall creaked open. "You’re of no use to me now. Go. You’ll find her in the garden, inside the crow’s cage."
David didn’t hesitate. He sprinted out of the room without another word.
Andrew turned to Lulu. "Go with him," he said quietly.
She nodded and followed after David, leaving Andrew and Roanna alone.
"I’ll meet my son alone," he said firmly.
Roanna smiled faintly and snapped her fingers. A door appeared beside them, identical to the one Seamus had entered before.
Its frame shimmered with an eerie glow, humming softly as it opened.
Without hesitation, Andrew stepped forward and ran through it. The door slammed shut behind him, and darkness swallowed him whole.
Sarah sighed, the sound small and regretful. "I should not have used the blood pact if it would turn out like this."
Roanna turned away without a flicker of guilt. "Do not worry, Sarah. Plans change. We adapt and create a new one."
The view shifted beneath them and resolved into a throne room. It was vast and majestic, gilded with gold and veined onyx.
At the far end, a dark throne rose like a living shadow. Roanna moved with grace and settled onto the seat. She crossed one leg over the other while Sarah bowed deeply, every movement an act of reverence.
"At least Andrew cannot tell anyone about the Crest or the death of our Emblem," Roanna said, voice cool.
"Without that truth, no one can bring the Royal Judgment down on us."
"As expected, my lady," Sarah replied, eyes bright with admiration.
"You are sharp and brilliant. What about David, the vampire hunter. Should we not kill him now?"
Roanna toyed with a lock of black hair, twisting it between her fingers as if considering a trivial trifle.
"No. Let him live for now. I want to see how our daughter solves her problem. She is old enough to decide her own path."
Sarah’s expression shifted. "Then what comes next? Do we strike against the Velstrath?"
Roanna’s mouth curved into a thin smile as she shook her head. "Not yet. We must hide and gather strength. Put our doubles in place and move quickly. Elle and Lucien must be sent now."
Sarah swallowed and rubbed her temple. "About Lucien... he may be a lost cause. He is gone. I do not know where he is."
Roanna’s hands tightened into fists. "Is he a spy?"
"No," Sarah answered. "He is only someone who no longer wants to be involved in this. He shirks the mess."
"Very well. Leave him be for the moment. When the time comes, we will hunt him down." Roanna’s voice left no room for argument.
"Yes, my lady," Sarah said, bowing once more until her forehead nearly touched the floor.
Roanna settled back on the throne, eyes on the dark expanse beyond the windows. "Remember this, Sarah. We have not lost. We have taken a step back so that when we run forward, no one can stop us."
***
Lucien trudged through the swamp with an exasperated sigh, mud clinging to his boots as if even the earth wanted to hold him back.
The air was thick and damp, buzzing faintly with unseen insects. He kicked a loose rock into the water and muttered to himself.
"What a damn waste of eternity."
The truth was simple. He hadn’t become a vampire for power, or status, or the eternal game of politics that came with the covenants.
No, Lucien had turned for the most human of reasons: he wanted to stay young, wild, and free forever.
Reading books for decades without interruption, partying through centuries, gaming through the ages—it all sounded like a perfect, lazy dream.
And now here he was, knee-deep in swamp sludge, hiding from monsters and megalomaniacs.
"Damn... should’ve joined one of the smaller covenants," he muttered and leaned against a crooked tree, closing his eyes for a moment.
The wood was damp but sturdy. It smelled like moss and decay, oddly peaceful in its way.
A sudden chill ran down his spine. His instincts screamed, and he stiffened. Something powerful was coming fast.
Lucien spun around, trying to sense the presence, but before he could move, thin crimson like strings shot from the tree behind him.
They wrapped around his limbs. When he saw it closely that thing wasn’t strings, it was veins! His breath hitched, eyes wide with horror as the tree’s bark split open and a woman emerged.
"Ahh... found the rat," she said with a smirk.
"F-Fleur!" Lucien stammered, trying to keep his voice steady. "You wanted to get inside the mansion, right? I can help you, yeah, I’ll help you get inside!"
Fleur tilted her head, her grin sharp and amused. "As expected from you. Betraying your house already? Don’t you have any shame?"
Lucien swallowed hard, sweat trickling down his temple. He knew what her power could do, it was terrifying.
"I’ll tell you everything," he said quickly. "Their plans, their movements, everything. Just... don’t kill me."
Fleur’s grin widened as she leaned closer, the crimson veins tightening around him. "Interesting. Keep talking."