Chapter 172: Raymond

The warm tea helped calm my racing heart, but it did nothing to ease the sharp, throb of the gashes on my thigh.

After Elena headed upstairs to her private study, the rest of us slowly cleaned up the dining table. Nobody said much. The relief of not getting thrown out into the night by an angry S-Rank hunter left Carmilla, Leo, and Mia completely drained.

They quietly slipped into their rooms, leaving the house wrapped in a peaceful silence.

I limped up the wooden stairs to the second floor, drag-stepping my bandaged left leg.

When I finally pushed open the door to my bedroom, the cool draft from the slightly open window hit my face. I didn’t bother turning on the main overhead light. I just clicked on the small yellow lamp sitting on my bedside desk, tossing my dirty coat into the laundry hamper near the corner.

I slowly sat down on the edge of my mattress, letting out a long, ragged breath.

I then pulled the heavy blanket up over my waist. The white bandages wrapped around my thigh felt tight and stiff, the cheap green salve Elena used was constantly stinging with a cold burn.

Pain is a very effective teacher, her words echoed in my mind.

I leaned back against the headboard, staring up at the dark wooden beams of the ceiling.

My eyes closed, but sleep didn’t come.

The moment the room went dark and quiet, the noise inside my head got louder.

I kept seeing Adrian’s pale face resting limply on my shoulder. I kept hearing the soft CLACK of the small sobs of Room 304. I kept seeing little Yuna, pulling on her father’s lifeless hand, begging him to wake up and taste the apple pie she had baked for him.

He had fought like a wild monster in that dark cavern just to earn enough money for her medicine. He had taken a lethal gravity blade strike to his stomach, holding on to his very last breath just to make sure the golden tear of the Heart Tree made it back to his daughter.

And in the end, he had died on a dirty death.

My right hand squeezed into a tight fist beneath the blanket.

It felt heavy. It felt like a scar that wouldn’t fade away.

I had leveled up twice tonight. My stats had increased, and I had unlocked a new system function called Item Synthesis. On paper, I was getting stronger. But sitting alone in the dark, the extra strength felt completely hollow.

CREAK.

The subtle sound of the bedroom door turning broke my thoughts.

I opened my eyes and looked toward the doorway.

Viora was standing in the soft yellow light of the hallway.

She didn’t say a word. She just stood there in the doorway, her purple eyes turned to the opened window where a bit cold wind was coming in.

"Viora?" I asked, my voice slightly raspy from exhaustion. "What are you doing up? Your stomach is going to bleed again if you keep walking around."

Viora didn’t answer right away. She pulled the door closed behind her until it shut with a tiny CLICK.

She slowly walked across the floor as her bare feet made no sound at all. She stopped right beside my bed and ’glanced’ down at me with a soft expression that I had not seen on her face much.

She pulled back the corner of my blanket.

Without asking for permission, Viora carefully climbed onto the bed and laid down right beside me.

She rested her head on the pillow next to mine, pulling the blanket up over both of our shoulders and the faint, fresh scent of sweet soap drifted off her hair.

I froze for a second, my heart skipping a small beat. "Viora... what if Auntie notices or sees you here?"

"Let her," Viora whispered softly, her eyes staring straight into mine from just a few inches away. "I don’t care."

She slowly reached her left hand out from under the blanket. Her slender, warm fingers gently slid into mine, interlock our hands together on top of the mattress. Her grip was soft, but firm enough to let me know she wasn’t letting go.

"You’re thinking about him, aren’t you?" Viora asked quietly.

I took a slow breath, looking down at our joined hands. "I can’t get his daughter’s voice out of my head, Viora. We saved her life. But we couldn’t save him."

"We aren’t gods, Woo Jin," Viora murmured, her thumb gently tracing small, soothing circles across the back of my hand. "We are just hunters trying to survive in a broken world. You brought him back home. You gave his family a chance to live without pain. That was more than anyone else would have done."

I didn’t answer. I just squeezed her hand a little tighter.

Viora shifted slightly, leaning her body closer to mine until her shoulder was pressing against my side. She rested her cheek gently against my upper chest, right over my heartbeat.

"I was terrified in that gate tonight," Viora whispered, her voice dropping so low it was almost a breath. "I was terrified of losing you."

She paused, taking a soft breath against my shirt.

"So I had to finish him off quickly." she continued softly.

"I told you I wouldn’t leave you," I said softly, resting my free hand gently on top of her shoulder, pulling her just a tiny bit closer so she felt safe.

"I know," Viora murmured, her eyelashes fluttering shut as she snuggled deeper into the warmth of the blanket. "That’s why I’m here. Because when I’m next to you... the dark doesn’t feel so heavy."

The room fell quiet again.

I closed my eyes, letting out a long, peaceful sigh.

Meanwhile, the lights inside Elena’s private study were still burning bright.

The study was a massive room filled with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves made of dark mahogany wood. Hundreds of leather-bound books, ancient scrolls, and classified guild maps lined the walls.

Elena was standing near the large bay window, holding a crystal glass half-filled with amber liquid. She took a slow sip, her sharp blue eyes looking out at the dark, rain-soaked garden below.

TAP. TAP.

A soft knock sounded at the heavy oak door.

"Enter," Elena said calmly, without turning around.

The door creaked open, and a tall man wearing a dark blue suit stepped into the room. He had slicked-back grey hair, a thin mustache, and a small silver crest pinned to his lapel—the mark of the Association Administration.

"Lady Elena," the man bowed respectfully, keeping his hands folded behind his back. "I apologize for arriving at such a late hour. The report you requested from the Central Bureau has just been compiled."

"Did anyone track you to the villa, Raymond?" Elena asked, her voice cool and even.

"No, my lady. I used three separate spatial masking charms on my vehicle. The Hunter Association believes you are still resting at the Grand Hotel."

"Good," Elena said.

She turned away from the window, walking over to her desk and setting her glass down on a wooden coaster. She pointed toward the leather chair across from her. "Sit."

Raymond took his seat quietly, reaching into his inner coat pocket and pulling out a thick, pitch-black folder sealed with a red wax stamp. He placed it carefully on the desk, pushing it toward her.

"The news from the Northern Gates is bad, Lady Elena," Raymond said, his tone turning dead serious. "The rumor about the Vampire Noble Houses is no longer just a rumor."

Elena broke the red wax seal with her nail, opening the black folder.

Inside were dozens of high-resolution photographs, handwritten field reports, and ancient parchment translations. The top photograph showed an empty, ruined city block somewhere in the far northern mountains, covered in thick black ice and deep red mana stains.

Elena flipped through the pages with speed, her eyes scanning every single line of text.

"The House of Blood," Elena muttered softly, her brow furrowing slightly. "They have broken the ancient treaty?"

"Three days ago, Lady Elena," Raymond confirmed, leaning forward. "A high-tier gate opened inside the Northern Barrier. But it wasn’t a normal monster break. The mana signature recorded at the site matched the Pureblood Lineage—the same signature that disappeared after the Great War twenty years ago."

Elena stopped flipping pages. Her gaze landed on a specific document—a family crest showing a silver rose wrapped around two crossed daggers.

"Pureblood mana..." Elena murmured, her mind instantly flashing back to the pale-skinned girl standing in her dining room an hour ago. Carmilla’s crimson eyes, her freezing skin, and the distinct, subtle chill in her mana signature.

"We suspect that survivors from the fallen Noble Houses are fleeing south," Raymond explained quietly. "They are hiding among the human population, using masking charms and synthetic blood to blend in. The Association has already formed a specialized execution squad to hunt them down. If any unregistered vampires are found, they will be executed on the spot—no trial, no questions asked."

Elena closed the black folder with a quiet SNAP.

"The Association is full of paranoid fools," Elena said coldly. "They jump at shadows and burn down entire villages just to catch a single mouse."

"Be that as it may, Lady Elena," Raymond cautioned softly. "If the Central Bureau finds out that you are harboring any unusual guests... it could compromise your position as the S-Rank Representative and as the Association Director."

Elena slowly leaned back in her chair, steepling her fingers together beneath her chin. Her face was completely unreadable, her sharp blue eyes gleaming like cold steel under the brass lamp light.

"Let them try to search my house," Elena said, her voice dropping into a dangerously quiet register that sent a shiver down Raymond’s spine. "I would love to see an Association executioner step one foot over my front porch."

Raymond swallowed hard, bowing his head slightly. "Understood, my lady. I will keep the surveillance reports away from the Bureau’s main network."