Someone burst in, drawing the attention of the rampaging Landon Hawthorne.
He shot a savage look in her direction, raised the object in his hand, and charged at Aria Sterling.
Aria Sterling sensed the aura of her own talisman on him. 'It seems the dark figure that attacked the servant in the backyard is connected to Landon Hawthorne.'
'But it's definitely not Landon himself!'
'There's something foul living inside Landon Hawthorne's body.'
Seeing Landon attack her with a wooden decoration, Aria flicked a talisman from her palm, striking him between the brows.
But it was no use.
The talisman simply fluttered to the ground.
Shocked, Aria had no choice but to dodge.
CRASH! The wooden object in Landon's hand slammed into the wall. By then, Aria had already darted behind him.
The frenzied Landon packed a powerful punch, but his reflexes were a bit slow.
By the time he realized she had moved and turned to attack again, Aria had already grabbed another decorative object and, without hesitation, smashed it against the back of his head.
Landon didn't go down immediately. Instead, he turned to face Aria, still holding the wooden object.
The red glow in his eyes faded, and his own consciousness began to return.
He stared at the object in Aria's hand, felt the sharp pain at the back of his neck, and grit his teeth. "You... damn... wo... man..."
With that last word, he collapsed to the floor, his eyes shutting as he lost consciousness.
"Look at the mess you are. Still trying to act so tough?" Aria tossed the object aside and flicked on the room's lights.
She scanned the room, then grabbed one of Landon's arms and dragged him over to the bed.
She examined his body and discovered that he was indeed possessed by a Fiend, and had been for some time.
It was because this Fiend was hiding in his body that Landon always emanated such a dense, chilling aura.
However, the Fiend hadn't fully awakened, so it could only emerge at night, instinctively feeding on the life essence of others to grow stronger.
The dark figure that had attacked the servant in the backyard was likely the Fiend's manifested form after leaving Landon's body.
It had even deliberately taken on Landon's appearance to feed on the life essence of the living.
If anyone else were possessed by a Fiend, it would be a simple matter to expel or control it. But Landon's case was different.
Born on the day The Wraithgate opens, his bizarre fate and constitution of ultimate Yang energy made him a natural vessel for a Fiend.
Once inside, the possession was tantamount to a binding, making separation and expulsion incredibly difficult.
If the Fiend were to fully awaken, Landon would be completely consumed. He would lose all of his own consciousness and human emotion.
'This is a tricky situation,' Aria thought. 'I'll need to plan this out carefully.'
To separate and subdue the Fiend, she would have to study Landon's rare destiny.
'If Landon can be saved, perhaps I can find a way to save myself, too.'
'This trip to Valerium is turning out to be quite fruitful.'
'This guy is seriously unlucky. Not only is he possessed by a Fiend, but he's also a genuine basket case.'
'Then again, that's a good thing. It gives me leverage.'
「Early the next morning」
Landon Hawthorne woke to find himself lying on the floor beside his bed.
His entire body ached from sleeping on the hard floor all night.
The back of his neck, especially.
Landon remembered everything that had happened in his room last night.
'That woman has a death wish!'
He washed up, changed his clothes, and headed downstairs as a servant entered to clean his room.
The moment Aria reached the bottom of the stairs, she heard Landon interrogating the butler. "Why is she still here? Do I need to teach you how to throw someone out?"
"Mr. Landon, you and your wife are legally married. It wouldn't be right to throw her out," Uncle Carter reasoned, then added in a hushed voice, "Mr. Landon, no one died last night. Perhaps your wife's destiny..."
"Don't give me that nonsense! Get her out of here, right now!" Landon, completely deaf to reason, roared in a fury. "You married me off without my consent! Whoever went and got that marriage license can take this woman away themselves! I don't want her!"
Aria walked up and stood beside him. "I came here of my own free will," she said. "I married Landon Hawthorne. Who exactly do you expect me to leave with?"
"I don't care who you leave with! Just get out of my sight, now!"
'She broke into my room on her very first night here and saw what I was like. This woman really does have a death wish!'
Just then, a deep, resonant voice boomed through the hall. "Who is it you want out of your sight?"
As he spoke, an elderly man entered the grand hall.
Behind him, an assistant pushed a wheelchair carrying an older man.
Uncle Carter quickly explained to Aria, "That is Mr. Landon's father and his eldest brother."
Aria understood.
She had heard a few things about Landon Hawthorne before arriving yesterday.
Landon held a very senior position in the Hawthorne family's generational hierarchy.
He was the son Master Hawthorne had in his old age; he was already in his fifties when Landon was born. As is often the case with the youngest child, the old master doted on this son he'd had so late in life.
Landon had six older brothers. The eldest was sixty years old, while Landon himself was only twenty-seven.
Unfortunately, of Master Hawthorne's sons, some were dead, some were disabled, and others were deeply estranged from the family.
Even the most favored son, Landon, hadn't fared much better.
As this information flashed through her mind, Aria noticed Master Hawthorne sizing her up.
She lowered her head with a smile. "Father, Eldest Brother, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Aria Sterling, Landon's wife."
She was perfectly composed, showing not a hint of intimidation.
Her gentle words and graceful bearing made her the very picture of a lady from a distinguished family.
Master Hawthorne was clearly pleased. He offered words of comfort, "Aria, you mustn't be afraid. The rumors you've heard are all false. Our Landon is a human being. He doesn't drink blood, and he doesn't go mad. That's all just baseless gossip."
"Yes, I know," Aria replied with a demure nod.
Master Hawthorne was even more satisfied. He turned to Landon and said, "Look at your wife, so well-behaved. She doesn't even mind that you've had so many engagements broken. What more could you ask for?"
"Father." Landon was exceptionally irritated, but with his father and eldest brother present, he couldn't afford an outburst.
A glance at the poised and elegant Aria beside him only fueled his irritation.
In the end, he relented. "Fine. Since you've already arranged it, Father, we'll do it your way."
'When it came to getting him married, his father was incredibly stubborn.'
'Even after his fiancées died one by one, and those that followed fled in succession, the old man never gave up. He'd tirelessly find new prospects, throwing more and more money at the problem.'
'He had already given up and resigned himself to his fate, but his father simply wouldn't have it.'
'Whatever. The women around him always found out the truth eventually. When Aria wanted to leave, no one would be able to stop her.'
Seeing him about to head out, his father stopped him. "Upstairs. I need to speak with you!"
Master Hawthorne called Landon away, while Landon's eldest brother called out to Aria.
「In the study」
Landon reached up and pressed his throbbing temples.
He felt like he was about to snap, but he couldn't lose it in front of his father.
He forced his voice to remain level. "Father, I can agree to let Aria stay here. But that's it. I can't do anything more!"