-BOOOM!!

The entire Capital of Valachia shook like a leaf in a hurricane as the thunderous explosion echoed through every stone street and marble tower. Citizens scrambled for cover, their faces painted with terror and confusion as they craned their necks upward to witness something quite exceptional yet terrifying.

High above the city, two figures danced a deadly ballet against the blood-red moon that hung like a watchful eye in the darkened sky. The air itself seemed to crackle with mana, and every heartbeat felt amplified in the sudden, suffocating silence that followed the blast.

One combatant possessed long, flowing hair that shifted between deep purple and midnight black, cascading around her like liquid shadow. The other sported crimson locks that seemed to burn with their own inner fire, whipping violently through the air with each movement. Both moved with inhuman grace and speed, their forms barely visible to the naked eye.

Down in the streets, panic mixed with morbid fascination. Everyone in Valachia had heard the whispered rumors about the birth of the new Vampire Witch but now, staring up at this supernatural showdown, nobody could figure out which girl was the real deal.

The dark-haired one moved with an eerie calmness, like she was simply taking an evening stroll rather than engaged in mortal combat. That composure matched everything they'd heard about the Vampire Witch's legendary self-control and eerie calm. But then again, the red-haired fighter radiated that bone-chilling ruthlessness that the Vampire Witch was infamous for. Both were clearly vampires – that much was obvious from their impossible speed and the way they seemed to defy gravity itself.

"Alicia!" Amaya called out.

Alicia was completely gone, lost in a frenzy that made rabid animals look tame by comparison. Dark blood swirled around her like living armor, pulsing and writhing as if it had developed its own twisted consciousness. The crimson liquid seemed to seep from her very pores, coating her skin until she looked more like a creature forged from nightmares than anything human. With each passing second, the aura around her grew more intense, more suffocating.

"I'll rip you apart piece by bloody piece for stealing even a single second of my time with my Senior!" Alicia's shriek was pure madness. Her voice cracked with obsession so intense it made the watching crowd take instinctive steps backward.

She launched herself forward like a crimson comet, her golden rapier materializing in her grip with a flash that temporarily blinded anyone foolish enough to look directly at it. The rapier was her own rapier made of the Branches of the Holy Tree of Eden but the pressure radiating from Alicia felt like standing too close to an active volcano. Where before she had been merely dangerous, now she was absolutely terrifying.

The transformation was hard to ignore. Just days ago, Alicia had been at the Seventh Ascension but now she was operating at Demigod level, having somehow rocketed up three entire Ascensions in what felt like the blink of an eye.

Amaya sighed as she extended her hand, and blood answered her obediently and fluidly. The crimson liquid gathered and solidified, forming a crimson lance. She met Alicia's charge head-on, their weapons clashing in a shower of sparks that lit up the night sky.

-BOOOM!

The second explosion made the first one look like a gentle tap. Shockwaves rippled outward in visible distortions, shattering windows three blocks away and sending both combatants skidding backward through the air.

"I'm not trying to steal Darling," Amaya said, her voice maintaining that same calm that made Alicia's eye twitch with barely controlled rage.

But that single word – 'Darling' – was like pouring gasoline on an already raging fire. Alicia's expression didn't just darken; it transformed into something that belonged in the deepest circles of hell.

"He is MY Darling! MINE! Not yours, not anyone else's – MINE!"

-BAM!

The next exchange wasn't even close. Alicia's newfound power made their previous clash look like a warm-up exercise. Amaya found herself completely overpowered, sent crashing into the stone plaza below with enough force to create a crater that spider-webbed outward for dozens of feet. Chunks of marble and granite flew in all directions, forcing the gathered crowd to scramble for whatever cover they could find.

But Amaya wasn't done. She rolled to her feet with supernatural grace, dust and debris cascading from her clothes – only to find Alicia already bearing down on her like a crimson angel of death.

"You know what I think?" Amaya smirked. "I think Darling actually loves the previous Alicia more."

Alicia stopped mid-air as if she'd slammed into an invisible wall, her entire body going rigid with shock and fury. Her hand began to rise.

Above them, the blood moon seemed to pulse in response to Alicia's emotional state, its light growing more intense and casting everything in shades of crimson and shadow. The lunar enhancement washed over her like a blessing from some dark deity, amplifying her already terrifying power until the very air around her began to shimmer with mana and blood.

She raised her golden rapier high above her head, and blood burst from her skin like geysers, taking shape in the air around her. Hundreds – no, thousands – of blood spikes materialized, each one perfectly formed and sharp enough to pierce dragon scales. They hovered around her like a constellation of death, awaiting her command.

"What do YOU know about my Senior?!" She screamed.

"He's my Darling and we're engaged, so of course I know a lot about him." She accompanied this bombshell with the most casual shrug imaginable.

The word 'engaged' hit Alicia even harder.

She flinched so hard she nearly dropped her rapier, her face cycling through disbelief, denial, and pure, unadulterated rage in the span of a heartbeat.

"You're NOT her!" Alicia shrieked, her voice breaking on the words. "You can't be! She would never... he would never..." Her voice started stuttering and becoming incoherent as memories flashed inside her.

She released her attack right after. Thousands of blood spikes streaked toward Amaya like a crimson meteor shower, each one capable of punching through solid stone.

Amaya gripped her blood lance and spun it like a baton, the weapon becoming a blur of motion. At the same time, a massive nine-layered mana circle materialized behind her, each ring glowing with different symbols that hurt to look at directly. She hurled the lance like a javelin, and the weapon split into hundreds of copies, each one intercepting Alicia's spikes in a display of precision that bordered on the supernatural.

The sky lit up like the world's most violent fireworks show as blood spikes and blood lances collided and exploded, raining crimson droplets down on the terrified city below.

"I'm sorry I haven't been here for you when you needed me, Alicia," Amaya said, her voice tinged with genuine sadness now as she looked up at her opponent.

The Raven family had been falling apart since before she was born. Her mother and father's marriage had crumbled after her father cheated on with another woman behind her back, leaving everyone to pick up the pieces. Living with her mother should have been a refuge, but duty demanded she also spend time at the royal castle in Ravenia, where her grandfather Lazarus ruled there quite ruthlessly..

Lazarus was the kind of man who smiled while ordering executions, and her older brother Cyril was cut from the same cloth – maybe even worse. The palace felt like a tomb where happiness went to die, despite the presence of her other brothers, Victor and Sirius.

Victor and Sirius were decent people trapped in an indecent family. Sirius had basically checked out of family politics entirely, staying neutral to the point of invisibility. Victor, meanwhile, was rarely around because Cyril made it crystal clear that bastard children weren't welcome at the main table.

Alicia's only escape from the suffocating atmosphere had been her training sessions with Elizabeth and Selene from another vampire house. Elizabeth especially had become like an older sister to her, a role model.

But then Elizabeth started having her episodes – periods where she'd become unstable and dangerous, lost in memories of trauma that Alicia couldn't understand. The training sessions stopped, and with them, Alicia's one source of genuine happiness.

When Elizabeth finally stabilized after meeting Connor, Alicia had been overjoyed. But the person who came back wasn't the same Elizabeth she'd idolized. This new version was... different. Still kind, but distant in a way that made Alicia feel more alone than ever.

That loneliness had been eating at her for years, growing like a cancer until she'd met Edward who filled up her loneliness.

But somehow Edward became even closer to Elizabeth…

"I don't care!" Alicia's grin was pure madness. She ran her finger along her rapier's edge, drawing her own blood and letting it soak into the golden metal. "All I want is my Darling by my side. With him, I'll be complete. I'll be happy. I'll be everything I was meant to be!"

Her voice dropped to a whisper that somehow carried more menace than her screams.

"He's the only one who matters. The only one who's ever mattered. I'd burn down the entire world who rejected us," Alicia said but this time clearly it wasn't really her speaking. "Then I will live with MY Senior forever."

"Darling has other women," Amaya said. "Do you really think Alvara will care about your desires, Alicia?"

The mention of another woman's name was the final straw. Alicia simply vanished – not teleported, not moved quickly – actually disappeared from visible existence before reappearing directly in front of Amaya with her rapier already in motion.

The blade found its mark, slicing a deep gash across Amaya's arm that immediately began gushing dark blood. Amaya leaped backward, her calm demeanor finally cracking as she stared at the wound that refused to heal as quickly as it should have.

Alicia was preparing another attack when Amaya suddenly shifted her attention away from the battle entirely.

"I know you're here," Amaya called out to the empty air. "Come out."

Daleliah stepped into the moonlight, her expression unreadable but her posture suggesting she'd been watching the entire fight.

"Rucain probably asked you to keep me alive," Amaya continued, not seeming surprised by the newcomer's appearance. "So Alicia could assimilate the remaining half of the Vampire Witch inside me."

Daleliah remained silent but she was wary.

"But I know you have doubts about it," Amaya pressed, a knowing smile playing across her lips.

"How would you know that?" Daleliah's voice was carefully neutral.

Amaya's smile widened, and for the first time, she looked genuinely warm instead of coldly beautiful. "Because I am the Vampire Witch, and I gave you my blood. I'm also the one who took you by my side after your family was slaughtered by humans."

Daleliah's carefully maintained composure shattered like glass.

"Your loyalty, Daleliah, is to me, not Rucain," Amaya said. Her crimson eyes glinted in the eerie glow of the blood moon. "Once I reclaim my power, I want you to take me away from Valachia. This is an order."

"Yes." Daleliah nodded without hesitation.

At that moment, the sound of hurried footsteps drew closer.

"Amaya!" Edward's voice rang out as he finally arrived on the scene, his face pale with strain, his breathing heavy from rushing. Relief flickered across his features—until his eyes landed on Daleliah standing at Amaya's side. His expression darkened instantly, suspicion burning in his gaze.

"Don't worry, Darling," Amaya reassured softly. "She is with me."

Edward's teeth tightened, but he gave a curt nod, forcing himself to believe her for now. His gaze then shifted upward, where Alicia hovered in the blood-soaked sky, her unstable aura blazing like wildfire.

The moment she spotted him, Alicia's crimson eyes lit up with manic delight. "Ah~ Darling, you came for me?" She giggled. "Come here, it's dangerous there!"

Edward ignored her laughter, his tone serious as he turned back to Amaya. "How do we release her from this state?"

"By taking her off guard," Amaya replied simply.

His brow furrowed. "And how exactly do we do that?"

Amaya's gaze softened, almost sorrowful, as she took a step closer. "Darling… do you trust me?"

"Yeah. I trust you."

Amaya's hand rose gently to his cheek, her touch cool and trembling. He saw tears trailing down her face, glistening in the moonlight. "I was happy… so happy to see you again, Darling," she whispered.

"What—?"

-Spurt!

Before he could finish, a sharp pain tore through his stomach. His eyes widened in shock as Amaya's hand drove into his abdomen, crimson blood staining her pale skin.

"...!" Edward gasped, the air rushing from his lungs. A violent cough wracked his body, blood spilling from his lips.

Amaya pulled her hand free, taking a step back.

"D–Darling?!" Alicia's scream split the night. She vanished in a blur of speed and reappeared at Edward's side in an instant, her trembling hands pressing desperately against his wound. "Darling! Senior! NO! Nooo! DARLING! LOOK AT ME!!!" Tears streamed freely down her cheeks as her voice broke into hysterical sobs. She shook him, her hands slick with his blood.

Though the wound wasn't deep enough to kill him outright, the sight of Edward hurt shattered what little control Alicia had left. Her instability spiraled violently, her emotions boiling over into pure madness.

-Spurt!

This time it was Alicia's turn to gasp. Amaya's hand pierced straight through her chest.

"Ah—" Alicia's eyes went wide, blood dribbling from her lips. Then her body convulsed violently as crimson light erupted from her wound. An ocean of blood poured out of her, twisting unnaturally before surging back toward Amaya.

Edward, clutching his wound, watched as his Alicia screamed. "HAAAAA!!" Her cry tore through all of Valachia, echoing across the city like a dirge.

He knew instantly what was happening. His eyes dimmed with dread. "No… Amaya… don't…" He muttered hoarsely, understanding what she was doing..

The blood storm wrapped around Amaya's form, devouring her completely. Crimson mist seeped from her skin, cloaking her in an unholy aura. Piece by piece, her face and body dissolved into blood, vanishing as the last of Alicia's essence was drawn into her.

Minutes dragged by, each second unbearable.

Finally, the crimson shell surrounding Alicia cracked apart, falling away like shattered glass. Her flaming crimson hair dulled into a pale blonde, her skin almost ghostly, her eyes half-lidded and unfocused. Barely conscious, she toppled forward.

Edward caught her just in time, pulling her weak body against his chest despite the blood still soaking his own wound. He looked up—only to see Amaya reborn, her entire form cloaked in blood, her presence colder, darker, more terrifying than ever.

When the crimson eyes snapped open, a cold shiver raced down his spine. He could feel it—the oppressive chill of something monstrous.

"...!"

Before he could move, Daleliah swept in, grabbing Amaya and hauling her away with inhuman speed.

"W–Wait!!" Edward tried to follow, stumbling forward, but his body betrayed him. His knees buckled, and he collapsed back onto the stone, blood dripping from his lips.

"We have to leave," Sylvia's voice cut in sharply. She appeared at his side.

Edward shook his head. "N–No… Amaya… she's—"

"You can save her later!" Sylvia snapped, her eyes flashing with anger. "Look at yourself, Mael! Do you want to die here and fail again?!"

Edward froze, stunned by her sudden outburst. His breath came in ragged gasps as he pressed a trembling hand to his wound.

Sylvia stepped forward, scooping the unconscious Alicia into her arms. "I'll carry her. You follow me."

Edward stood frozen for a heartbeat, his gaze locked on the distant direction where Amaya had been taken. His chest tightened painfully.

"Amaya… I—I won't lose you again…" He whispered hoarsely, his vision swimming.

-Thud!

His strength finally gave out.

Edward collapsed to the ground, his body going limp.

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