"Hmm~"
Siren tilted her slender neck back, her eyes gazing blankly at the sky.
In that moment, as Vlad drank the blood of the banshee, a sweetness unlike anything he had ever tasted overwhelmed his senses, stimulating his otherworldly palate.
Thankfully, he managed to regain control before the abnormal thirst overtook him.
He glanced down at Siren, whose hazy eyes and blissful expression rested peacefully against his chest.
He caught her just in time, holding her weakened body tightly in his arms to prevent her from collapsing.
Vlad's gaze turned strange as he looked at Siren, his eyes flickering with thought, as if he had suddenly realized something.
"What is this special energy in her blood?"
He could feel the immense energy coursing through him, released as her blood rapidly digested within his body. But within that power, there was something else — something strange. Even though it was just a tiny trace, it had almost caused him to lose himself.
And yet that faint trace of energy seemed to dominate most of the blood flowing through Siren's body.
Still cradling her in his arms, Vlad couldn't shake off a chilling realization.
"Could gods truly exist in this world?"
Thinking about Siren's origin only made his suspicions grow stronger.
But if gods did once exist — where were they now?
As far as Vlad knew, for hundreds of years, there had never been any verifiable sign of divine beings. Only distant, mystical legends whispered through the ages.
Then suddenly, a spark of insight flashed through his mind.
"Thankfully, we weren't born in that era," Vlad murmured, lifting his head slightly.
He remembered something Mina had once said to him — a rambling phrase from an old witch.
At that moment, all the confusing pieces of the past seemed to click into place.
"That era must've been thousands of years ago."
"Could something have happened back then to make the ever-present blood moon vanish from the sky? And so, all those extraordinary beings began seeking out the rare places where the blood moon still appeared — and made their homes there?"
"Whatever power was capable of erasing the blood moon... it could only have been the gods."
"But what exactly happened? And if the blood moon disappeared, why does it still reappear in specific places? And more importantly, where did those gods go?"
"Wait... the demon of Broken Tooth Mountain is also said to be from that time."
Thinking this far, Vlad frowned and tapped his head in frustration. He had never been so close to uncovering the world's ancient truths.
The more he learned, the more he realized that the world was far more complex than he had believed.
Yet when he stepped back and considered it rationally, it all seemed reasonable.
A world filled with so many extraordinary beings — of course gods could have existed at some point.
He just hadn't thought to view things that way before.
"Woo~ Vlad, just now I felt like I was flying..."
He looked down to find Siren slowly recovering from her dreamy state, her voice still soft and foggy. Her dazed expression made Vlad chuckle.
"Oh? Then why don't you describe it to me?" he teased playfully.
The mischievous tone immediately made Siren blush, flustered and unable to respond.
Vlad smiled. As she buried her face in his chest in embarrassment, he gently reached up and removed the golden mask from her cheek, gazing at her delicate, blushing face.
"I'll be leaving at dawn, little fairy. Will you stay here, or come with me?"
He traced her soft, warm cheek with his fingers, brushing over her lips that shimmered like tiny rubies.
Still embarrassed by the silly things she had said moments ago, Siren suddenly jolted upright when she heard Vlad's words. Panic filled her eyes.
"Y-You're leaving?"
"Yeah." Vlad nodded calmly.
Seeing the hesitation and anxiety in her face, he gently asked:
"Little fairy, will you come with me?"
In terms of strength — and as a woman — Vlad wanted Siren by his side. She was clearly the strongest among the extraordinary creatures he had encountered recently, and her potential was unmatched.
Siren seemed moved by the invitation.
But after a moment of silence, she slowly shook her head.
Vlad frowned slightly. He reached out to lift her chin, her expression dim and uncertain, and asked:
"Can you tell me why?"
Her cat-like pupils stared into his for a long moment before she answered in a quiet, hesitant voice:
"I can't leave here yet."
Seeing his confused expression, she added:
"I can only leave once I become an adult."
Vlad's heart skipped a beat. He stared at her — a girl with a youthful face, yet an oddly mature aura — and asked in surprise:
"How old are you?"
Siren blinked, then raised her fingers and began to count with both hands.
Vlad's eyelids twitched.
"I'm already forty-seven. I'll be an adult in three more years."
He stared at her wide, innocent eyes, his mind momentarily blank.
He had thought he was dealing with a youthful, enchanting young girl — only to find out she was, technically, an aunt.
"What's wrong?"
Siren waved her hand in front of his face, confused by his stunned expression.
Looking at the girl — or rather, the "aunt" — before him, Vlad shook his head to clear the mess of thoughts piling up in his mind.
He forced himself to focus.
"Why do you have to wait until adulthood? Why can't you just come with me now?"
Unexpectedly, Siren lowered her head shyly, her face flushed. After a moment of hesitation, she leaned in close to his ear and whispered.
Vlad's eyes widened in disbelief. Then, seeing the deep blush on her cheeks, realization hit him.
Siren had explained that upon reaching adulthood, she would not only experience a tremendous growth in power — but more importantly, she would be able to reshape her body and be free of the burdens she now bore.
And only here, in this particular body of water, could she complete that full transformation.
That was why she had remained here for so many years.