When Xueluo woke, she found herself lying on a sofa.

After blinking hard a few times, she noticed her wounds had already healed.

*Am I recovered?*

Muttering softly, Xueluo pushed herself up on the sofa. But just as she tried to stand—

[**I suggest you rest a while longer, Contractor.**]

"Guya?"

Hearing the vampire’s slightly weary voice in her mind, Xueluo whispered back.

"Are you alright? You sound... off."

[**No. That old man simply triggered my Blood Rage.**]

Guya sighed lightly, her tone resigned.

[**I thought Half Vampires like you couldn’t touch such things. But that so-called Half Vampire Blood Hunter... he seemed to know far too much.**]

A pause followed—as if Guya had taken a breath, though Xueluo couldn’t fathom where she’d draw air from.

[**Brutal as it was, Contractor—feel your blood now. Truly feel it.**]

At Guya’s words, Xueluo focused on her veins.

Just as described, her blood now hummed with a strange connection. She could *control* it. Guya continued:

[**You can now wield what we Blood Kin call Blood Magic. Not human magic fueled by mana. We shape our blood into weapons, wings... anything you can imagine.**]

Another pause.

[**Elder Blood Kin can even poison an enemy’s veins with their blood, then make them explode from within.**]

"Elders? Aren’t *you* an elder?"

*Or should I say... auntie?*

[**I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that ‘auntie’ remark. And may *your* whole family be aunties.**]

*You totally heard it.*

Ignoring Xueluo’s thought, Guya pressed on:

[**Yes. With time, you could master it all.**]

Her words sparked a flicker of disappointment in Xueluo.

[**But using Blood Magic feeds your thirst. Human blood is its fuel. Overuse... I can’t promise you won’t snap like that old man did.**]

*So I’ll need constant blood refills...*

Xueluo slowly pressed a hand to her face and sighed.

"Ugh. This just got incredibly troublesome."

"Incredibly troublesome?"

The door swung open the moment she finished speaking.

Irina and Rosalia stepped in. Irina held a water bottle.

"Feeling better, little sister?"

"*Brother*."

Xueluo took the bottle anyway. After a sip, she clicked her tongue in surprise.

It tasted like...

*nothing at all.*

"After your fight with Grandpa, we carried you here," Rosalia murmured from the side before Xueluo could dwell on it.

"Then we called your sister. Thank goodness you’re unharmed."

"Yeah. Same here."

Xueluo set the bottle down, face stern.

"And she’s my *younger* sister. I’m her *older brother*."

"Ohhh~ Here we go again~"

Irina swooped in, wrapping Xueluo in a tight hug and ruffling her hair.

"My cute little sister~ Still so adorably stubborn~ Big sister wants cuddles~ How about a kiss?"

"N-no! That’s weird! I refuse! ...Though a kiss might be nice... Can I keep *just* the kiss? Say it properly—‘Want a kiss, *oniichan*?’"

[**Hearing you’re still an airhead puts my mind at ease, Contractor.**]

————————————————————————————————

While Xueluo bickered with her "sister,"

in a derelict hunter’s cabin not far away, Zerich’s daytime students gathered.

At their center sat Odell—

still paralyzed, unable to move a muscle.

"We saw Irina head toward the dojo. Probably to fetch Xueluo," one student whispered.

Odell nodded, clapping his hands together.

"Then you all know what comes next?"

Nods rippled through the group.

*Eliminate Xueluo and Irina. Clear their spots.*

That was the unspoken goal. With Xueluo’s arrival, Odell’s position was threatened. Remove them both, and they could "fairly" compete for the two slots.

"But Odell... Xueluo *is* strong," another voice hesitated.

"Can we really win?"

"Don’t worry. No matter how strong she is—"

Odell waved a hand.

From the shadows behind him stepped a figure in black robes—the same man who’d appeared with Edward on the commercial street.

In the dim light,

the Hymn Guild emblem on his chest glowed faintly white.

The Soulblade at his waist—a weapon only formal Hymn Guild mages carried—shimmered with silvery light.

"This is my cousin, Cithrius. He’s here to help."

Odell slapped his knee.

"He’s Edward-sama’s *personal bodyguard*! With him, we’ll crush those two bitches!"

Gasps rose from the crowd. Cithrius spoke softly:

"Well... after hearing Odell’s story, Edward-sama took a slight interest. Just confirming—the silver-haired girl. Xueluo, was it?"

"Uh? Ah, yes, cousin."

"I see..."

Cithrius shifted his hand in his pocket.

A garlic fog bomb rolled between his fingers.

*Watch that girl.*

Edward’s words echoed in his mind from the car ride days ago.

"Then let’s keep an eye on her," he murmured.