Our little side quest aside, the move to the Elven Forest proceeded smoothly. The moment after I silenced that perverted Werewolf by exiling him to another country, the Warp Gate operators had returned with the green light.

Evidently, the Elven Forest had been preparing for my transfer, and everything was prepared in a timely fashion. In fact, the efficiency of this move scared me a little, given that I knew how elusive and reclusive the Elves were.

But I wasn’t complaining.

The sooner I could reunite with Rosalyn, the faster I could close this chapter of my life behind me. Furthermore, getting as far away from the Blackburn House seemed to be a great idea, given the odd looks that others gave me.

The Hero who killed Eyghon. The Rising Star of the Vampire world. The Saviour of the Blackburn Family.

Names I’d thought would never be attached to me were now part and parcel of my everyday life. Everywhere I went, I could hear whispers of those epithets. Every time I talked to someone, I would hear those names come out of their mouth.

If I could be completely honest, it felt sickening how quickly people could change their tunes.

One minute, I was a nobody that barely anyone cared about. The next, they were lining up outside my door, begging me to remember their names.

Tch, it doesn’t matter if they were humans or Vampires; everyone here was so superficial. Fortunately, I had my three lovers guarding my back and being the solid rock that anchored my position.

Maybe once I reunite with Rosalyn, we should find a remote place in exile and spend the rest of our days in peace.

As my mind was thinking of all the possibilities that my future path could take, the Warp Gate had been opened, revealing the passageway to the most isolated continent on the planet. Peering through the tear in Space, I saw a large number of trees and plants. They were easily over a hundred metres in height, with thick overgrowth blocking any sort of vision. It felt like I was entering a prehistoric jungle that hadn’t been changed for millions of years.

No, while unchanging for a million years would be a stretch, there was no denying that the Elven forest had remained pristine and untouched for centuries. Everything I was looking at could easily be over a thousand years old. Every tree, every flower and every blade of grass.

They were all overflowing with life…

What a beautiful scene. Perhaps, there’s only one place on the planet where life remains so abundant.

Without even thinking, my feet moved instinctively, drawn by the allure of the ancient forest. Fortunately, three pairs of hands stopped me before I unconsciously stepped into the gate.

Ysabelle laid claim to my left hand. Irina took my right elbow. While Lilith hugged my waist. The three girls stared at me, forcing a bead of sweat to break free from my forehead.

“We’re going in together, Jin.”

“Haha, my bad.”

That’s right… I couldn’t act alone anymore. No matter how much I was enamoured by the beauty of the untouched land, my life wasn’t just mine now. I had Irina, my precious little sister, to care about. Lilith, my first and only Bloodmate to love. And finally, I had Ysabelle. My betrothed and the woman I would forever treasure.

And now… I was going to meet my fourth lover.

Our lives were forever intertwined, and I couldn’t remain so selfish anymore. Putting on a brilliant smile, I confidently strode into the portal and declared with one breath.

“Alright, let’s go and make our family whole again.”

??

“They’re finally gone…”

Jin’s prompt departure away from the Blackburn House wasn’t done unsupervised. Heck, ever since Jin had returned from Eyghon’s belly, every move that he made was kept under tight surveillance. Day and night, someone was on his tail, keeping track of who he’d met, what he did for that day and even the things he did.

Naturally, Jin and his three lovers had noticed those flies swooping around, but the spies were largely ignored since they didn’t cross any ethical lines. Not to mention, Jin knew clearly who his voyeurs were and only showed what he wanted them to see.

Which was exactly why the three Vampires in the council chambers, where the image of Jin’s departure was playing on screen, could only let out a bitter sigh.

“Twenty-five-years-old and he already has this insight… It’s scary to think what will happen if we allow him to grow.”

General Enzo shook his head and did his best to stifle his laughter. The more he looked at his future son-in-law, the more pleased he got. The Blackburn Head vividly remembered the day when Jin came over to his room with Ysabelle by his side. Boldly, Jin declared that he would take Ysabelle as his wife and would make her happy for the rest of her infinite life. He’d also demanded General Enzo to give them his blessing, which was an oddly refreshing sight for the Vampire standing at the top of his family.

There was a fine line between confidence and arrogance.

An arrogant man wouldn’t know his place in the world and think everything was beneath him. On the other hand, a confident man knew precisely where his standing was. He knew where he was strongest and the areas he lacked.

Jin’s demeanour that day didn’t once scream arrogance.

General Enzo vividly remembered the calculative way he broke down what benefits the Blackburn House would reap if they supported him. In particular, the innovative ideas about creating a future power plant that could provide infinite electricity using his Creation magic or the improvement of the Warp Gates using his Spacetime magic. Not to mention, Jin had the raw power to defeat a Demon Lord.

They were all enormous benefits that the Blackburn House could get. And the only price Jin wanted was Ysabelle’s hand in marriage.

To General Enzo, that was a cheap price to pay, especially since Ysabelle was already enamoured with the man.

“What do you think, Innocence? Do you think he’s the second coming of Dracula?”

“… You sure are irritating, you know that, right?”

Contrary to General Enzo’s gloating, Matriarch Innocence wasn’t as thrilled. She stared at the empty Warp Gate terminal for the longest time, not knowing what she should do about the young man who ‘stole’ her successor.

While their relationship wasn’t on a knife’s edge, it couldn’t be described as cordial. It all began when the Matriarch belittled and underestimated the man in the Everwinter Estate. Back then, she had no idea what a meteoric rise Jin would take. Even when Irina told her that Jin would one day stand at the top of the world, Matriarch Innocence just took it as a passing curiosity.

It was a mistake she shouldn’t have made, given her many years of experience as an ancient Vampire. Therefore, the white-haired lady changed the conversation to hide her lack of foresight.

“Why are Veralyn and her grand-niece in the Elven Forest? Didn’t you say that they were preoccupied with other matters?”

“Apparently, their business was with the Elves.” General Enzo shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. “You know how secretive the Shadowgarden House is. If they don’t want us to know what’s happening, we will likely never find out.”

“Tch, how amazingly useless.”

“Hey!”

Matriarch Innocence moved her attention away from the musclehead and looked at the only other person in the room.

“Do you know anything, Sirius? The Moonreaver House supplies the Shadowgarden House with the most Warp Gates and Nightmare Realms. Surely you must know something.”

Sirius, who was still conflicted about seeing his precious little sister disappear in the arms of another man, snapped his eyes back at the world’s strongest female Vampire.

“Forgive my impudence, Matriarch. But have you ever uncovered the shroud of the Shadowgarden House before? Even if we tried, the Moonreaver House would get nothing but the ire of the Shadowgardens.”

Although Sirius’ remark was rude and direct, Matriarch Innocence took no offence.

Because… Of the three people present, she was the one most familiar with the mystique of the Shadowgarden House.

The Shadowgarden House was the Vampire race’s intelligence unit, their FBI or CIA if one had to make a comparison. No, judging by their unique set of skills, the Shadowgardens were far more dangerous than any intelligence agency the world had ever seen.

It didn’t matter if it were day or night. All of their agents were trained to operate in plain sight. Not just that, their unique characteristics enable them to use espionage techniques that most could only dream about. It was said that if the Shadowgarden House wished for it, all of the world’s animals, plants and even rocks would move to gain information.

In terms of pure information gathering, the Shadowgarden House was second to none. Heck, second place was so far away that they might as well be playing in a different league altogether.

If the Everwinter and Blackburn Houses were the swords of the Vampire race and the Moonreaver House was their shield, the Shadowgarden House was the glue that kept Vampire Society stuck together.

Throughout the years, they sabotaged attempts from the Holy Church to exterminate Vampires, warned about incoming threats from the Outer Demons, and manipulated the politics of the world to favour Vampires…

The list of accomplishments the Shadowgarden House had achieved was endless.

Should they fall, the Vampire race wouldn’t be that far behind.

Which was why their secrecy was so integral to the continuation of the lives of every Vampire. Even if it meant deceiving members of their own race.

“The Elves and the Shadowgarden House, huh? I wonder what kind of relationship they have?”

The will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!