Sith stood up, her crimson eyes half-lidded. "Relax. I was keeping an eye on you. That's what I was ordered to do."

"By who?"

"By Master, obviously," she said with a scoff. "And before you misunderstand…" her voice slowed, eyes glinting with mischief, "I would remind you that I don't have a summoning contract with him. My contract is with the Wolf Lord, Nyx, but in his absence, Kael is next in line to command me, and I can't refuse any of his orders. Of course, not that I worry about that, though. Master is just someone I gave my heart and soul to."

Mia narrowed her eyes at her words.

Meanwhile, Sith's voice dipped, and her cheeks flushed lightly as she continued, interlocking her fingers. "That means… I belong entirely to him. If Master says stay, I stay. If Master says kneel, I kneel… If Master says Come and serve me, I will happily ser…"

"Okay, okay, I get it." Mia cut her off, making a face.

Sith coughed, snapping out of her momentary fantasy, and returned to her stoic tone.

"What I meant is… because of the contract type, I don't have access to his current location unless he's within my perception range."

"So… you have no idea where he is?" Mia's voice tightened, clearly anxious.

Sith shook her head. "I don't feel his presence nearby. He said he was going to check the village. And it's been a few hours."

Mia bit her lip, tension growing in her eyes. "This place… It's too dangerous for my brother. We have to find him. Follow me."

Mia rushed down the creaking stairs, staff gripped tightly in her hand. Sith, now back in her vampiric form, followed in swift, noiseless steps.

But the moment her feet hit the ground floor, she froze.

There, standing by the broken counter, the fat, bald innkeeper from the previous night.

"You…!" Mia's eyes flared with raw fury. "You rat-bellied bastard!"

She raised her staff, but before she could strike, the man calmly tossed a parchment in her direction.

Reflexively, she caught it and unrolled the scroll.

The parchment was rough, ink smudged by haste or decay, yet the message was clear—chilling in its simplicity.

"Your brother is in my hands. Come to the Cave Shrine with Primordial Headbane after sunset, and bring 10,000 gold coins. Or else…"

Mia's fingers clenched around the scroll, eyes flashing. "Sith, grab him!"

Before Sith could leap forward, she paused, her crimson gaze narrowing. "It's useless," she said flatly.

"What do you mean?" Mia hissed.

Sith's fangs glinted as she took a step forward, eyes locked on the man. "That's no human. It's a spell construct."

The innkeeper smirked, his form unnaturally still. "Heh… of course, a vampiress would notice. Sharp instincts indeed. I just didn't expect you to hang out with these humans. That's completely out of my calculations."

With a casual shrug, he continued. "But, you're right. I'm not real. Just a projection. A dummy, animated and controlled via long-distance spell relay. You can destroy this body—it makes no difference. Your brother will still die if you don't follow instructions."

Mia's jaw tightened. "What do you want with us?"

The fat man gave a slow, eerie grin. "As I have told you, I'm just a messenger of the Head God. Whatever I do, I just follow the will of the Headgod. And as for the letter's content, it's simple. Go to the cave shrine with Primordial Headbane and the money."

"Headbane?" Sith asked, brows furrowed. "What even is that?"

The man blinked, a bit amused. "You don't know? Headbane is the miracle elixir our village is famous for. But it is nothing but a diluted version of the Primordial Headbane. And listen carefully, beneath this inn is an old, ruined shrine. There, we stored the Primordial Headbane, which is basically a wine barrel in layman's terms, although this one is a little special because it is brewed by Master himself."

He leaned closer across the counter. "But you'll want to move fast. That wine will draw in the Head Emissaries, you know, the ones who attacked you last night. They wander near it like moths to fire, obsessed with claiming it. IN order to claim it, they won't hesitate to shred you into pieces. That's the risk you are going to take."

"Consider this a... tip from this humble inn owner," he said with a chuckle.

"Oh, and one last thing…" he added, his smile curdling into something malevolent. "Don't forget about the gold."

Without waiting for a response, the man's body crumbled to ash, disintegrating in a puff of green smoke.

A tense silence followed.

Mia clenched her fist around the parchment, trembling with fury.

Sith exhaled through her nose. "This reeks of a ritual."

Mia turned toward her. "We're going down to that shrine. Right now."

Sith nodded.

Both of them began searching for the shrine's entrance. The inn owner didn't tell them about the entrance. So, they have to find it first. First, they searched the periphery of the inn. When they found no such entrance route, they went back into the inn and started searching the hall and then the kitchen.

Dust floated in the air as Mia moved cautiously, eyes scanning every crevice and corner. The cracked tiles underfoot groaned with each step.

"There has to be a way down," Mia muttered, pulling open cupboards and shifting shelves in the kitchen.

Sith wordlessly paced the opposite side of the room. Her sharp gaze settled on a large wooden cupboard, old and heavy, lined with ceramic bowls, cracked plates, and copper goblets.

"Here," Sith called out. "Help me move this."

Mia joined her, and with a rough heave, the cupboard scraped across the floor, revealing a dark, gaping hole in the wall, wide stone steps descending into the earth.

"Here it is," Mia said, gripping her staff tighter. "Let's go."

The two stared at the entrance for a moment. Then, without a word, they stepped inside.

Along the stone walls, torch sconces flickered with eerie, living flames, untouched by time or decay. The flames cast twisted shadows that danced alongside them.

As they descended, they passed skeletal remains, some whole, others torn apart. Bones were scattered on the stairs, and among them were strange etchings, ritual circles, and warped drawings painted in faded crimson.

"Blood and wine," Sith muttered, brushing her fingers across a symbol. "These are ritual signs. This place… should be a place of sacrifice."

They walked in silence, the air growing heavier with every step.

Finally, they reached the main chamber, a vast underground sanctuary, dimly lit but expansive. Wooden barrels, some the size of wagons, hung from the ceiling, suspended by thick ropes.

The scent of fermented spirit bamboo wine was thick in the air, sweet but sour, warm yet oddly metallic.

"This should be the Primordial Headbane," Mia whispered.

They walked into the chamber cautiously, their boots echoing against the stone.

Right as they reached the center of the shrine, one of the barrels overhead trembled.

Thud.

Another barrel shivered—then another. The ropes strained, groaning under sudden tension.

"Something's wrong," Sith said, looking up sharply.

And then…

BOOM!

The largest barrel exploded, shattering into splinters above them.

A tidal surge of golden-colored, thick wine burst downward, cascading toward them like a flood.