A Peacock Husband of Five Princesses by day, a Noble Assassin by Night

Kael was thrown off his feet, tumbling across the sand.

Shiera blocked a downward punch with her blade, but the sheer strength forced her to her knees. The steel groaned under the pressure.

The bandit leader stretched her arms, her nails were enlarged a bit, while her canines turned sharp.

"She's a vampire." Mia gasped, looking at her scarlet eyes, the pale face, and the changes in her transformation.

"Vampires don't exist, they are a legend, sis," Kael muttered under his breath.

"But, don't vampires only move at night? They shouldn't be able to handle the sun." Leiza shouted, brandishing her twin swords.

"You humans really love to talk too much, when you should think about running away instead." The woman said sweetly.

Licking her lips, she lunged at Shiera.

"NO!"

Kael staggered up with his hand raised. As a veteran who went through dozens of life and death battles with experts, it didn't take him long to realize they weren't a match for this vampire.

Of course, he was confident in taking it out in his demonic form, but it is the same reason why he ran away from that fire pegasus, too. He cannot risk his secret getting out.

"Nyx! Evacuate, Everyone!" He ordered in a hurry.

Nyx responded with a howl, a sound that split the air and shimmered with unnatural energy.

A glowing seal surged beneath each of their feet, and a blinding flash of light enveloped them.

But as its cool-down time hadn't ended and it forcefully unleashed the skill, Kael felt a burning sensation in his tattoo, feeling extreme pain in his arm.

"Argh…" He couldn't help but shriek in pain.

"Oh, where are you going, handsome…" The vampire reached for him, her hand shot into the flash of light, grabbing his arm. The flash of light slowly enveloped her too.

Kael was about to unleash his demonic power to push her away, as he could not let her transport with them.

But it was at this moment, the flash of light dimmed around Nyx, and it charged at him, pushing her with its head.

CRACK.

The vampire was hurled into the air, crashing into the sand hard. Meanwhile, Nyx stood before Kael, growling at the vampire that slowly rose to her feet.

Kael screamed. "NYX! No…"

The spell was completed, and he vanished.

Only the battered wolf remained, glaring at the vampire. Its eyes dulled, and its entire body shook as if it had lost its strength.

The vampire wiped off her frown and replaced it with a smile instead. "Well, since I didn't get the boy, I guess I will have to forcefully unbind your contract, doggie…"

*

"Ha…"

Kael gasped as he sat up, tiny specs of sand falling off his clothes. He looked around. They were inside a dimly lit cave, tucked between sharp cliffs of sandstone. The air was dry, and it smelled of smoke and blood.

Shiera sat beside a small fire, her expression unreadable. Orin and Leiza were also seen lying down.

"What happened?" Kael asked.

"I don't know, except for me and Mia, the three of you ended up in an unconscious state as soon as we got out of the place."

Kael looked around. Neither Nyx nor Mia was seen.

Kael asked. "Where's my sister? You said she was fine, though."

Shiera hesitated.

"Shiera." His voice hardened. "Where. Is. She?"

Shiera finally sighed, unable to meet his eyes. "She left. To get Nyx back."

The words hit Kael like a slap. His heart clenched. "What?"

"She left a few hours ago. Said she would handle it herself."

"You let her go?!" Kael shouted, stepping forward in disbelief and rage. "You knew how dangerous that enemy was! If Mia were really strong enough to face the enemy, she would have already done so. She's going to die."

Shiera's calm shattered in an instant. She scolded him instead. "Did you think I hadn't tried stopping her? If not for you, I would have even gone after her."

Kael's breath grew ragged for a moment. His hands clenched into fists. "I'm going after her."

He got up and turned around.

Shiera moved immediately, stepping between him and the cave's exit.

"No, you're not," she said. "You are weak without the wolf. You will be killed by desert sandstorms before you even reach her. I'll go after her. Since you woke up, just stay here and look after the other two."

Kael stared at her, his expression darkening. "Move aside, Shiera."

"Didn't you hear me clearly? I won't let you go," she added, voice low but firm.

For a moment, neither of them moved. Tension crackled in the air like a live wire.

Kael's hand then rose slowly.

A pulse of light flickered in the air beside him. And suddenly, a figure shimmered into form, and Cleo, the black cat spirit, appeared on his shoulder.

"Kael…" As Shiera furrowed her brows, looking at defiance, He mumbled. "You know what to do."

Cleo jumped from his shoulder, instantly transforming into some sort of energy being before flying into Orin.

In the next second, Orin woke up from his sleep. His eyes seemed blank, though.

But with a step, Orin appeared in front of Kael, shielding him from Shiera, who was already surprised by the shocking scene.

"Don't test me, Shiera," Kael growled. "Move aside."

"You're going to use him to fight me?" she asked, eyes narrowing on Orin. She once fought the Thousand-Faced spider once and she knew the expressions her friends made when they were possessed by her will. She knew exactly what happened. This unassuming black cat spirit possessed Orin.

But she didn't move aside. Instead, she replied. "You know he's injured. You're just forcing his body to move. I can knock him out in one move."

Kael didn't respond with words. Instead, he snapped his fingers, and Orin stepped forward, drawing the dagger instead of the sword.

The possessed body trembled slightly as the dagger was pressed against its own throat.

Shiera's eyes widened. "Kael... what the hell are you doing?"

Kael's voice was as cold as ice as he replied. "You said Orin is weaker than you. You said you could stop me. But will you take that risk? Will you gamble his life to stop me? Orin is nothing to me, Shiera. I wouldn't hesitate to kill him if that's what it takes for you to understand my resolve."

"You..."