CHAPTER 124: MARK MY WORDS... YOUR BELOVED MASTER WILL DIE IN MY HAND

"Lucifer?"

Camazotz was taken aback when he heard that name, his expression twisting in disbelief.

"You mean that guy?" His face contorted into something between disgust and mockery.

"That freaking useless bastard actually thinks of himself as a g—" But before the words could finish spilling from his mouth, the black-armoured woman shifted her gaze toward him. That single, sharp glance was enough to freeze his tongue in place and silence him completely.

The woman turned her attention to Dracula. She added, "So... using the relic, you were planning to drag him here?"

Dracula gave the smallest nod. His head trembled faintly, and his eyes fully regenerated... locked onto the woman with a strange intensity.

The woman blinked once, her face blank, before speaking in a low, detached tone.

"But that’s impossible. You cannot pull a creature out of the Seal. The Seal is something far beyond reach. Even gods themselves cannot interfere with it, and the relic created by the Fated one who sealed them all."

A faint, crooked smirk crept across Dracula’s lips as he forced the words out.

"Then... tell me, how do you think you came into this place? cough, cough... I know for certain the New Fated One carries both Divine and Fallen energy within his fragile human shell.

And I... I extracted that Fallen essence." His eyes darted toward Camazotz. "Of course, it didn’t go the way I had expected, but still... here you stand. I created a connection, a link. The relic alone may not be able to shatter the Seal, but it will provide me with the key to unlock it." His voice grew firmer as his face began to mend, the flesh painfully stitching itself back together.

Yet even as his skin knitted, his visage remained ghastly... hollowed cheeks, withered flesh clinging desperately to bone. He looked like a man drained of everything vital, the living image of someone starved for centuries, a body so deprived it resembled a shell more than flesh.

Camazotz frowned, narrowing his glowing eyes, "That Lucifer... he did have contact with the Fallen. He even commanded an army of them once. Maybe we could use that source as well, right? To track down the key?"

Nergal gave a grim nod. "Yeah. He could draw out the source... that much is true."

Dracula blinked, confusion flashing across his pale features, before his brows furrowed. "Source? Key? What are you talking about?"

Camazotz tilted his head back and then broke into sudden laughter, his sharp teeth glinting as his grin spread wide. "What the hell, really? You actually know Lucifer, yet you’ve never heard of the Source? Hah! That’s just sad, old man... so damn sad! Ahahah~"

Dracula’s frown deepened... Anger flickered in his crimson eyes, but still he remained motionless. His body wasn’t healing fast enough to act recklessly, and besides... that woman’s emotionless stare was locked on him, a weight heavier than any blade.

"Wait a second... Divine and Fallen both inside him? That human?" Nergal muttered in a frown.

Dracula gave a single nod. "Yes. I can’t explain how, but during the Blood Grail Moon, the Akashic Records themselves revealed it to me. There exists a human who carries both energies within his being... The New Fated one!"

Nergal’s expression darkened further. "Then doesn’t that mean... he is a god? He coul--"

The woman cut in without hesitation, "No. He isn’t a god."

"Then how the hell could a mere human carry not just the Divine, but also Fallen energy?" Camazotz frowned, leaning closer to Dracula with a sly, mocking smirk playing across his lips.... Seeing Dracula in this situation, Camazotz really wanted to bully you know!!

"Unless..." the woman interjected, frowning slightly, "he made contact with another Divine Being."

At those words, Nergal, Camazotz, and Dracula all raised their eyebrows in unison, their shock rippling through the tense air.

"That’s impossible!" Dracula barked, his voice breaking into a roar. "Those beings were sealed away long ago! Are you telling me that human managed to contact them? How could that even be possible?"

It was madness. No matter what, if there had been a Divine Being present, Dracula would have sensed it instantly. He knew it. He was certain of it.

There were No Divine Beings.

Nothing!

They had been sealed... All of them!!

They were locked away by the Fated One himself!

The woman didn’t answer immediately. She simply lifted her gaze toward Dracula, her expression unreadable, and then finally added,

"We all share the same goal... to find the relic, and to drag the Fallen out of its prison... isn’t that right?"

Dracula hesitated. Her words weren’t entirely correct, not the way he envisioned things, but still... he gave a slow, reluctant nod.

The woman raised her hand toward him, her pale fingers spreading slightly. "Then we shall cooperate..." As she spoke, black tendrils flickered and coiled from her hand, writhing like living shadows.

Dracula’s throat tightened. He gulped hard as he stared at the tendrils, shaking his head furiously. "No! I cannot lose my mind!" His voice cracked with both fear and fury.

More than anyone here, he knew the horror such corruption could bring. He had witnessed firsthand how it shredded the will, hollowed the soul, turned men into nothing more than vessels of madness.

If he accepted it, even for a moment, he would be gone. Nothing left of himself... only a shell that was occupied by another one!!

The woman’s face hardened. A faint frown creased her lips.

Camazotz, however, grinned like a predator catching the scent of blood. "Oh? So it’s fine when you use me like a test rat, treat me like experiments... but when it’s your turn, suddenly it’s too much?" His grin stretched wider, sharp teeth flashing. He turned toward the woman, eyes gleaming with mischief.

"Let me handle him. I’ll deal with this old bat properly."

The woman gave Dracula one last blank stare, her crimson eyes hollow of sympathy, before turning away without a word.

Camazotz licked his lips, slicing his own finger open. A black, sticky liquid oozed from the wound and dripped down, hissing faintly as it touched the ground. He stepped closer to Dracula, his presence oppressive.

Dracula’s eyes widened in raw horror. Of all things, the last nightmare he wanted was to become like them... tainted, hollow, stripped of everything that still made him himself.

"W-Wait! Wait!" Dracula’s voice broke into panic. "If you corrupt me, I might lose the ability to use the Records! Are you truly fine with that?" His desperate words echoed through the silence.

The woman stopped mid-step.

Camazotz clicked his tongue, annoyed.

"The current you is weak," the woman said coldly without even turning her head. "We have no use for someone who drags us down."

Dracula’s fists clenched... Every part of him wanted to roar back, to shout and tear into her arrogance... ’Who are you calling weak?’

But deep inside, he knew the truth of his situation. His strength hadn’t returned. His body was still a ruin. Right now... he was at their mercy. Either surrender himself and be devoured from within, or... find another way.

Through gritted teeth, he forced the words out. "I can heal myself... as long as I consume prey. As long as I reclaim the power my daughter stole from me." His voice burned with hatred as his crimson eyes gleamed.

The woman finally turned her head. Her eyes flared dangerously.

For a long, tense moment, she stared into him, then finally walked away, her voice cutting through the air like ice. "Do what you want."

Dracula’s lips curled into a thin, cruel smile. He shifted his gaze toward Camazotz, who snorted in annoyance and withdrew his hand, the black liquid retreating. His expression soured, twisted into disappointment. He had just lost his chance to claim a new plaything, and the frustration was clear in the twitch of his jaw.

"So... are we moving again?" Nergal finally asked, his tone flat, weary, as though he already knew the answer.

Camazotz smirked, his mood instantly flipping back to playful arrogance. "Of course. We need to sharpen our strength, don’t we?" He lifted his voice and shouted toward the retreating woman, "We’re going too. Are you fine with that?"

The woman didn’t bother to answer. She simply kept walking.

Camazotz gave a mocking snort. "Haughty as ever~"... not loud but whisper!

Nergal sighed deeply. The thought of consuming humans again made his stomach churn.. He was not a Monster, you know!!

Camazotz then swung his gaze back to Dracula, his grin gone, replaced by a snarl. "And you... You, freaking old man. Do as I say, if you still want the privilege of feeding on your prey!"

Kicking his healing body!

Dracula held back his fury, forcing it into a calm mask, but inwardly his thoughts screamed, ’This is all because of that bastard... that wretched human. You will pay for this! I’ll make sure you suffer until nothing remains!!’

Meanwhile, the black-armoured woman walked alone through the narrow, winding paths of the underground.

Her footsteps echoed faintly against the stone walls as she turned to the right, making certain she was out of the others’ sight. Only then did she slowly raise her hand, staring at the palm that flickered faintly with green particles of light.

The woman frowned with a cold voice, "Still resisting me? You truly have a strong will... Sister." Her fingers tightened into a fist as a dangerous smirk curved her lips.

"But next time... your beloved Master will die by my hands. Mark my words." Her eyes glowed with a crimson-green hue, dangerous and merciless.

’N-No...’

A pale, trembling voice echoed weakly in her mind. It was fading, fragile, almost breaking apart.

That whisper only made the woman’s smirk widen. Her eyes narrowed in cruel delight as she lowered her hand and walked further into the darkness.

****

Meanwhile, at Merlin Hospital—

In a separate, restricted section of the facility, Raphael stood wearing her white lab coat, surrounded by other doctors. Before them lay piles of human bodies and severed parts, stacked on metal trays.

A group of police officers stood nearby. One of them stepped forward and spoke grimly.

"As you can see... the number of dead bodies has been increasing. We haven’t found any evidence other than this: they were bitten, savaged by something... some kind of animal. You people need to identify them, as usual."

Raphael frowned, pressing her fingers against her forehead in frustration. Just yesterday, they had been brought piles of mangled human remains and asked to identify them... and now it was the same again.

"Just what’s going on here? Is there some kind of animal running loose?" one of the doctors muttered, exhaustion clear in his voice.

They had been dealing with this mess since yesterday, and the lack of sleep showed in their sagging faces. Some hadn’t even gone home to their families.

Raphael crouched down, picking up one of the severed parts with her gloved hand. She studied the bite marks with sharp eyes.

"It’s just like before... some wounds look like they came from human teeth, but others..." Her frown deepened, voice dropping. "Others are far too large. Almost like a bat’s bite—but bats don’t have teeth this big..." She muttered.

The officer’s voice grew firm, "We’re still searching. But because the number of victims has increased drastically, we’ve already expanded patrols. We’ve also issued an order: no one is allowed outside during the night."

"Night?" one of the doctors repeated, his voice uneasy.

"Yes," the officer said sharply. "So far, the victims were all last seen at night. Which means the culprit—or culprits, whoever or whatever they are—must be hunting after dark."

At those words, most of the doctors turned pale.

They all left the hospital late at night, long after their shifts. If the attacks were happening in the dark... what about them? Who would protect them?

Raphael, on the other hand, frowned as she glanced down at the bloodied remains.

’Is Leo fine?’ A quiet worry tugged at her heart. He was her only nephew... the last piece of family she had left.