"Master! ~ I'm back!" A red-haired beast-eared girl in navy hunting gear stepped into the study.

Lilith was still buried in her arcane alchemy research as usual. Since she pioneered every experiment herself, progress crawled. She meticulously recorded each discovery in notebooks for future scholars. Tedious, yet thrilling—eternity spent unraveling one mystery...

Lilith had lost count of the years she’d studied alchemy, yet she persisted. Now, she focused on upgrading anti-magic obsidian collars.

"Welcome back..." Lilith murmured without looking up from her book.

"Then I’ll head out~" Luna replied.

After the Ice Festival, Luna hadn’t returned immediately. She’d planned extra time in town before heading back to Demon Castle—a deal she’d made clear to Lilith. The half-beast girl Allen met that day was indeed Luna, just in a different disguise and outfit. Allen hadn’t recognized her at all. Luna sighed inwardly.

*Though honestly, Allen did look stunning that day... Must’ve been the clothes.*

"Master?"

"Hmm?" Lilith finally lifted her head, her jet-black pupils unnaturally deep.

"Weren’t you supposed to capture Allen? Where is she now...?" Luna asked, a trace of doubt in her voice.

It was bizarre. She’d been gone from Demon Castle for five or six days. With Lilith’s power, catching Allen should’ve been like snatching a kitten. Yet no Allen in sight. Had she escaped?!

"..." Lilith stayed silent.

A pause. Then a sigh.

"Dead..." Lilith replied flatly, as if discussing the weather.

!!!!

In Luna’s memory, Allen was practically Lilith’s most prized possession. If truly dead, Lilith couldn’t stay this calm. Luna recalled the fury months ago when someone merely bumped into Allen...

"My lord, please don’t joke. I know you’d never kill her..." Luna said sternly, locking eyes with Lilith.

"She’s in the dungeon. Save her if you can... If she’s truly gone... bury her..." Lilith hesitated, as if weighing a monumental decision.

..................

*Tap tap tap...* The crisp echo of leather boots guided Luna through the dungeon. Countless cells formed a dizzying maze of cramped spaces.

*Whimper...*

Luna shivered. In the pitch-black corridors, she navigated by faint light seeping through tiny windows. Terrifying. Even as a Saint-tier mage and Sword Saint warrior, primal fear gripped her. Closer inspection revealed animal remains in some cells—human, half-beast, even Elf!

Demon Castle’s earliest lord had been a twisted monster. He’d built these cells beneath the library. Records mentioned his horrifying experiments: collecting refugees of all races to craft undying puppets. The Demon Hunter clan had executed him centuries ago. *These must be his leftover test subjects,* Luna thought.

Time had weathered the corpses to bones, leaving no stench—only chilling dread. Like the cell where a skeleton clutched the enchanted bars, eye sockets hollow and dark, silently screaming its starvation after the lord’s death.

*Ugh...* Luna flattened her ears and hurried past, regretting this route. The other entrance bypassed this horror zone.

..................

In the dim interrogation room, a crystal lantern cast hazy amber light. It felt almost warm—until the shadowed, rusted torture tools shattered the illusion. Beneath the glow lay a human-shaped lump on the floor. Wiping away crusted blood revealed a person.

Silver hair spilled wildly across the stone, tangled with dried blood—a strangely ethereal beauty.

"Darkness. Depth. Delusion," Luna whispered.

Those three words captured it all.

She knelt, gently flipping Allen over and checking her pulse.

One second... two... three... A faint tremor finally traveled up Luna’s arm. The heartbeat was barely there—but alive.

"Lucky devil," Luna murmured.

Aside from a head gash and scrapes from crawling, Allen seemed intact. Bloodstains on her clothes had mostly scabbed over.

"..."

Relief vanished as Luna ripped open Allen’s shirt to treat wounds. The sight stabbed her with cold dread. Two massive gashes marred Allen’s body. One on the left abdomen oozed yellow pus—a bandit’s work from the village battle Luna had witnessed. The other, below the ribs, was fresh: a deep knife wound, likely Lilith’s doing. The blade must’ve sunk to the hilt. Miraculously, it missed vital organs; otherwise, Allen would’ve died instantly. The wound hadn’t healed, yet bleeding had stopped. Twisted ribs hinted at brutal fractures. Horrifying.

Luna’s heart ached. Though they’d known each other barely a month, Allen was kind—and had become a true friend. Stubborn and airheaded, yes, but good.

"*Tch*... If you care so much, how would you survive her death?" Luna grumbled under her breath, annoyed by Lilith’s hypocrisy.

She chanted a healing spell. Green luminescence glowed from her palms as she stroked the wounds.

*Flowing lakes and seas, gather in my palm, wash away the world’s dust!*

A controllable water orb formed instantly in her hands.

"*Hss—*"

For ease, Luna tore off Allen’s ruined shirt, using the fabric to scrub urgently. *Her chest is so flat...* Luna noted absently.

The orb cleansed blood and grime effortlessly, leaving a faint floral scent. A small hole on Allen’s forehead and another at the back explained the head bleeding. Luna washed down to the torso, flushing out pus and clots. Smooth skin remained, marked only by the two sealed wounds and scrapes. Legs showed no injuries beyond the fractured bones.

She yanked off Allen’s boots to clean her feet.

"....!"

Bloodstained holes in the heels jolted Luna like an electric shock. She rolled Allen sideways, lifting one foot.

Both Achilles tendons had been severed—clean, precise cuts. Lilith’s work. Healing magic couldn’t fix this. *Now I understand those crawling trails,* Luna realized numbly.

"What... grudge could be this deep?"

She couldn’t believe Lilith would do such a thing.

The healing spell took effect. Allen’s eyes fluttered open mid-unconsciousness—but Luna missed it.

Allen sat up stiffly, movements jerky.

"Huh? Allen, you’re awake?!" Luna noticed and leaned closer.

"..."

"Allen?"

A chill crept up Luna’s spine. She shook Allen’s shoulder gently. No response. Allen’s grayish-red eyes were dilated, vacant—like a corpse’s stare.

"Allen?" "Allen! Wake up!"

Deaf to her cries, Allen sat motionless. Only residual warmth proved she lived.

"Allen! Don’t scare me!"

Luna tapped her cheeks. Nothing.

Then—Allen’s head snapped toward Luna. Blank, drifting pupils locked onto hers. Unreadable. Terrifying.

One second... two... three... They stared, frozen. At the third second, time lurched forward. Allen moved.

She lunged, jaws snapping at Luna’s supporting hand...

Only then did Luna see the four fangs sprouting in Allen’s mouth—vampire-like.

"*Aaah!*"

Allen snarled, teeth sinking toward the vein...