Time passed, and the soft sound of melting snow blended with the rustling of bushes whipped by the wind. Ronnie stood still, observing nature’s agitated dance, until a clump of snow fell from a tree branch to his left and hit him square on the head, transforming his adult form into that of a child.

  "I hate days like this," he muttered, brushing the snow from his hair.

  "Have you seen Patrick?" a voice called from behind, growing closer.

  "… He’s been locked in his room with that girl all day," Ronnie replied, turning to face Annie, hesitant to reveal the full truth.

  "…"

  "I’m worried about Patrick. He hasn’t fed on human blood in a long time."

  "Why?"

  "What do you mean ‘why’? You know perfectly well that a lack of sustenance makes us unstable… and trust me, you don’t want to see Patrick losing control," Ronnie said, finishing with a deep sigh.

  "Mmm…"

  "Anyway," he continued, breaking the silence as he approached Annie and stared up at her boldly. "You look different. Did you change your lipstick?"

  His cheeky question brought a flush to Annie’s cheeks. Flustered, she grabbed a handful of snow from a nearby bush, shaped it into a ball, and threw it at him. The impact instantly transformed Ronnie back into his adult form.

  "What are you doing?!"

  "You look better this way," she replied, turning her back on him and walking away.

  If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  ━━━━━━???━━━━━━

  Meanwhile, miles away from Sorine, on the outskirts of Sainte-Coline, inside “Le X,” Devon’s henchmen were holding an unwelcome meeting with a striking man with flowing hair and scarlet eyes. Their discontent was evident—they were well aware of their guest's sly and chameleon-like nature. Nevertheless, their boss had decided to take this uncertain gamble.

  "Can you keep an eye on them?" Venus asked the young man sitting across from her, her voice tinged with unease.

  "I haven’t had anything entertaining to pass the time lately," Haru replied, idly twirling the straw in his amber-colored cocktail.

  "How can you trust this guy?" Ben added, his tone bitter as he glared disdainfully at the young man.

  "He’s more efficient than you," Virus stated with his trademark seriousness.

  "And I don’t come from a cursed lineage, which limits your range of effectiveness," Haru added with a mocking smirk, pointing his straw at Ben.

  "Say that again if you dare," Ben growled menacingly, his intent to kill evident.

  "I wouldn’t do that…" Venus playfully warned.

  "You come from a cursed lineage—why not just accept it?" Haru taunted, his red eyes gleaming as he prodded Ben further with his straw.

  In a split second, rage consumed Ben. Instinctively, he lunged at Haru, knocking him to the ground and driving his fist through Haru’s side.

  "This… is to teach you to watch your mouth," Ben snarled, his hand dripping with Haru’s blood.

  Despite Ben’s fist having gone straight through him and the floor now pooled with blood, Haru’s lips curled into a satisfied smile. The blood seeping from his wound began to branch out, forming tentacle-like extensions that pierced through every part of Ben’s body with astonishing speed.

  "I warned you…" Venus remarked, as Ben’s figure collapsed to the ground, exhaling his final breath.

  The blood-like extensions, as swiftly as they had impaled Ben, returned to Haru in the blink of an eye, taking with them their prize—Ben’s blood—reconstructing Haru’s torn tissue almost instantly.

  "What a waste of a shirt. I really liked this one…" Haru muttered as he eyed the hole in his garment. He wiped the blood from his torso and licked his lips before adding, "So, who do you want me to keep an eye on?"