Chapter 2: Leaving

How to Fall Asleep?

Without life, one naturally dies, even vampires. Without the hope of life, sleep becomes inevitable. I slowly lost all my senses and fell into a deep sleep, or rather, a long slumber, for this sleep would last forever.

But suddenly, someone disturbed me. I didn't know who it was, but I could tell that several humans had entered the Jiying Fortress and even entered the room where I was. They weren't making a mess or sneaking around like ordinary thieves. I could feel them standing quietly in front of the coffin, and I could no longer sleep peacefully.

"He's not here?""Mm.""Then how do we explain this?""Maybe she can help us.""You mean…" I suddenly felt the coffin lid being opened, but at that moment, I lay there as if dead, not breathing, not opening my eyes, because... I wasn't interested in them.

"She's…""I don't know, but she's probably related to Safarot!""So you're planning to take her back?""Mm, bring her and the coffin onto the ship."

After that, everything became pitch black inside the coffin again, probably because the lid sealed everything out. After a moment, the coffin was lifted, swaying unsteadily as it was taken out of the room, out of Jiying Fortress, but where it was going, I had no idea. Honestly, I didn't want to know either. After all, it's just a long sleep, an unconscious sleep, no different from death. It didn't matter where I was, but I just hoped they would put me down quickly. Such a big commotion made it hard for a vampire to sleep.

The bumpy journey never stopped. Left, right, up, and down, it kept swaying. When I could no longer bear it and was about to break out of the coffin, suddenly everything stopped. They must have put the coffin down. I had no idea where it was placed. What I wanted was quiet—a place to sleep. The outside world no longer concerned me, so as long as they didn't disturb me, I wouldn't bother them.

But just as I adjusted myself to sleep, bang! The ground suddenly tilted strongly, the coffin slid and bumped into something. My head hit the side of the coffin, and it hurt a little. I rubbed it, and I woke up slightly. Just as I was about to reposition and fall asleep again, the coffin slid to the other side—bang! This time, I hit the other side of my forehead, and it hurt a lot.

Enough! I grumbled, raised my hand, and the coffin lid was thrown off again.

Gorgeous blood-red eyes gleamed cold as ever, revealing sharp fangs. I spread my silver wings and looked down at the space below.

Where is this? Looking at the empty surroundings, white walls, and a square shape, it was like an iron box. The only exit was an iron door. I gently pushed it, and a sliver of light came through from outside. It seemed like it wasn't night. I instinctively sealed the first-level seal and walked out.

It was a ship.

The endless water stretched around me. I looked at the distant harbor, a place from my memory. There, there was the Bald Tavern, where I had bickered and fought with him. Although I wasn't asleep now, I had truly left. I had walked away.

But… could I really let go of everything from the past, everything related to him?

The calm water was disturbed by the ship's wake, creating layers of waves. The wind over the water was incredibly strong, pulling at the corners of my skirt, making a whistling sound. But my heart was calm—calm like a newborn baby, only without crying.

Suddenly, there was an explosion on the right side. The ship tilted, and I grabbed the railing to steady myself. Fortunately, I wasn't in the coffin now, or my forehead would've taken another hit.

"Boss, we were ambushed by vampires. The casualties are heavy.""Who's leading the team?""It seems like the prince of the Blood Kingdom.""What? He's personally leading the team?""Mm, though he hasn't made a move yet, we saw his blood-colored robe just now. It can't be wrong.""Damn it!" He spat, continuing to curse, "This damn sun won't come out, but the ghosts sure did! Go, lower the lifeboats, bring that girl in the coffin with us. We're leaving!""Yes!"

I heard two people talking above on the second deck.

Blood Kingdom? Prince?

How long have I been asleep? Did I sleep forward or backward in time?

But I was curious to see who this prince of the Blood Kingdom was. With that thought, I started walking up. But the explosions continued, and the surroundings were filled with smoke. I couldn't see anything, and the air was thick with impurities, making it hard to breathe. I coughed nonstop.

"You… didn't die?" Half-closing my eyes, I held my mouth as I walked forward, suddenly bumping into something. Looking up, I saw a pair of wide, surprised eyes, and the person asked three words.

"Quickly, damn it, Lao Niu, what are you doing? Are you looking for death? Hurry up and bring that girl here, quickly!" Before I could react, the person had already picked me up and ran towards the source of the sound.

Suddenly, I felt my body fall. Looking closely, we had already reached the lifeboat, and at that moment, the lifeboat quickly pulled away from the big ship. Looking at the people standing at the bow, both he and I froze.

How could it be him? He had changed so much.

"Lao Niu, she…" Suddenly, one person cried out, interrupting my thoughts. He was serious and tough, his voice low and deep, with the calm of a mature man. His gaze also carried some hostility, like a killer.

"Don't ask me, I don't know anything. We met her on the way here. Ask her anything, and she won't say a word. Seems like she's mute." The guy carrying me, named Lao Niu, waved his hand toward the other person.

"But she was clearly lying in the coffin, she should've been dead… but now she…""Boss! Could she be a vampire?" Suddenly, the third person on the lifeboat stared at me in horror, his voice trembling.

"This…" The familiar man, their boss, hesitated for a moment, then grabbed me, pinching my chin, and forcibly opened my lips to look. He reassured them, "No! She's just a human girl, not some demon."

"Then… how was she in the coffin?" Lao Niu still seemed suspicious.

"Maybe she was taken by Safarot to be used as food. But he happened to leave, and we got here first. Otherwise…" He glanced at me, "Little girl, don't be afraid. We won't hurt you. We're Night Hunters. We only kill vampires."

"…" I didn't react at all. Only kill vampires? Putting aside the fact that vampires are not that easy to kill, even if they have the ability, they should know that there are some vampires who don't harm others.

"Boss, she really seems to be mute." Lao Niu said, showing some sympathy toward me.

"Ah, poor child." The boss sighed and patted my shoulder.

"Then… boss, should we hand her over to the young master? You know, the young master doesn't differentiate between humans and vampires. He might…" Lao Niu looked at me and made a throat-slashing gesture.

"Well… if we don't hand her over to the young master, this mission will be a total failure. And with the casualties on the ship, how could the young master let us off?" The boss looked at me, hesitant, shaking his head.

"But… are we using a little girl's life to save our own, boss? I'm afraid we won't have the face to see anyone again." After hearing Lao Niu's words, I finally raised my eyes to look at him. This person was rough and simple, but he wasn't unpleasant.

"Alright, stop talking. We'll try to persuade the young master when we get there. At least we don't want him to hurt her."

Lao Niu nodded. There were only four of us on the lifeboat, including me. We looked at the vast expanse of water, and no one spoke anymore. I never liked talking, and since I had already been taken as mute, I certainly wasn't going to speak now.

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A hundred years later, life continues. Though Safarot was temporarily gone, these so-called Night Hunters had appeared. Perhaps as long as you're alive and open your eyes, bonds will appear. Just like now, Luvian had no more attachment to Safarot. But can Luvian really let go of the one person she would live and die for?