The howl of the night wind swept through old windows that had remained shuttered for far too long. Moonlight grazed the faded curtains, and the only sounds within the room were the soft rustle of paper and the young man's heavy breath. Edward sat at a wooden desk, scarred with scorch marks from his previous magical outbursts. His face was grim, silent, and unnervingly still.
Sheets of paper were scattered everywhere—ancient incantations, hand-drawn sketches of memories, and arcane diagrams he had mapped out to analyze the magical auras surrounding Alice. In the flickering candlelight, the sharp intensity of Edward's eyes reflected off the pages. Above the stone wall, a magical projection he had extracted from Alice's energy hovered in the air. A deep violet pulse radiated outward, and within it, the silhouette of a black-haired woman appeared for a fleeting moment. It lasted only seconds, yet her shadow and her smile were hauntingly unforgettable.
"Who are you…?" Edward muttered. He had never seen this woman before, but a cold sensation pricked his chest like a sharpened blade.
The sound of the door creaking open came from the old wooden stairs. Henry walked in, a wooden box in his hands.
"Is that the vision you pulled from Alice?" Henry asked, eyeing the projection.
"Yes. But I don't know who she is. Her power… it's strange. Terrifyingly well-hidden."
Henry pulled a circular scrying lens from his box—a tool designed to detect ancient bloodlines within magical shadows. "A common vampire couldn't mask their traces this effectively."
"You think she's…?"
"Certainly not ordinary. Perhaps she's linked to… Resurrection Magic," Henry said softly. "The kind used on Tyler's high-ranking thralls."
Edward stiffened, his body tensing. "Are you sure?"
"I'm not certain yet, but that's what I intend to prove." Henry tilted the lens toward the projection of the woman. The light focused on her eyes before blinking a warning signal. "There! A specific vascular pattern… This is a Pureblood, resurrected by the power of the 'Dark Shadow.'"
"Her name?" Edward demanded, his gaze hardening.
"Not clear yet. I need to cross-reference the clan archives." Henry stowed the lens and pulled out a magical communicator. "Give me one more night. I'll find out who she is."
Edward nodded, but his mind was in turmoil. Deep inside, a whisper from the past echoed: If Alice's pain wasn't caused by me… then who has been hurting her like this?
Architectural Design Office – Late Morning
Sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the top-floor office, casting a pale golden glow on Alice's sleek wooden desk. She sat before her computer, brows furrowed in concentration, her eyes dark with the exhaustion of several sleepless nights.
"Alice, take a break, dear. You'll collapse at this rate." Luceria's gentle voice drifted from behind.
Alice looked up slightly. Luceria, dressed in a simple white blouse, approached with a steaming cup of coffee. Her smile was so tender it seemed harmless, yet her eyes held an unreadable glint.
"Didn't sleep again last night, did you?"
"Just a lot on my mind," Alice replied curtly, taking the cup. Luceria slid into a seat beside her, resting her arm lightly on the edge of the desk, watching Alice as if reading her thoughts.
"I've been watching you for days, Alice… It's like your soul isn't in your body. Is something haunting you?"
Alice turned away, lowering her gaze without answering.
"He came back, didn't he? That man from your past." Luceria's voice dropped, but it rang clearly in Alice's mind.
Alice's lips parted slightly before she whispered, "Yes… Edward is back."
At the mention of his name, Luceria's eyes flashed with a momentary hardness before softening once more. "And has he explained anything? About vanishing for so long…?"
Alice was silent, her grip on the coffee cup tightening.
"You know, Alice…" Luceria leaned in closer, her voice silky but laced with a faint, sharp bitterness. "A man who vanishes without a word and returns like nothing happened… he doesn't love you. He loves his own convenience."
Alice turned to look at her, her gaze steady, and asked directly, "Do you… know him?"
The question made Luceria flinch for a fraction of a second before she regained her composure with a faint smile. "No, dear… I've just heard the name… from others. But one doesn't need to meet him to see how much he has made you suffer."
Alice stared at her, the atmosphere in the once-quiet room turning murky. She took a sip of the coffee Luceria had just handed her. Her vision began to blur slightly; her hand holding the cup trembled. Luceria sat by, watching with a cold, predatory spark in her eyes.
"Don't worry… I'm just helping you relax," Luceria said, her voice a deceptive honey. She moved her hand over the coffee in a subtle, sweeping gesture. Alice felt a wave of lethargy wash over her. She tried to fight it, but her eyelids felt like lead.
"Why do I feel… so weak…?" she murmured, before slipping into unconsciousness.
Suddenly, a shadow materialized—Daren, Tyler's right hand. His crimson eyes fixed on Alice with hunger, his lips curling to reveal sharp fangs. Luceria's beautiful face turned icy and authoritative.
"Daren… don't even think about getting too close to her," she warned, her voice freezing. "She belongs to the Master… to Tyler. No one else."
Luceria stepped forward as Daren faltered, though he didn't fully back down. He stared at Alice, his voice thick with craving. "But the scent of the werewolf blood in her… it's intoxicating. I want a taste for myself."
Luceria cut him off instantly. "Restrain yourself, Daren. The Master gave orders: she is to be brought to him unharmed. Her blood is not for us—not yet."
Luceria channeled a surge of dark mana, which coiled around Alice's body like a shroud. Alice felt a sudden chill, a weight so heavy she couldn't resist even in her sleep. Daren's form began to dissolve into the shadows, pulling the unconscious Alice along with him. Before vanishing, Daren shot Luceria a resentful glare, loathing her constant interference.
Outside the Office Building
Henry stood beneath the shade of a tree, his eyes hidden behind sunglasses as he tracked the top floor. He held a piece of parchment—a magical sketch of Luceria's face glowing within a pale blue circle.
"Too much of a coincidence for this woman to appear right when Alice started changing…" He tapped the circle, and a faint resonance echoed. "Her reflection… it doesn't move in sync with her body. This is high-level Shadow Mimicry."
Henry gritted his teeth and whispered, as if sending a direct message: "Edward… you need to see this for yourself. The real enemy is much closer than we thought."
Edward, alerted by Henry, arrived with a grim expression, his sharp eyes filled with a mixture of suspicion and dread. He found Henry waiting in the shadows, avoiding the scorching sun.
"Henry… any news?" Edward asked in a low voice.
"Her name is Luceria. She's no ordinary employee," Henry said, sliding his glasses down. "I caught a trace of her shadow magic. It's too complex for a human."
Edward's brow knitted. "Shadow magic? You mean…?"
"She wields dark arts. She uses charm and mental manipulation… specifically on Alice."
As they spoke, Luceria stepped out of the building with a composed expression, her hand gripping her bag tightly. She sensed something was off. Someone is following me… she thought, looking around cautiously while maintaining an air of indifference. She smirked to herself. "You can follow the scent of my power, Edward… but it will be too late." She then vanished into the shadows.
Edward and Henry watched her leave alone. The realization hit them like a physical blow: Alice wasn't with her.
"Alice… she isn't with Luceria," Edward whispered, his voice trembling with alarm. "Does that mean she's… really gone?"
Henry, sensing a disturbance in the vampiric energy of the area, tried to hone his senses. "There's something else… a scent of vampire power I don't recognize coming from that office. It wasn't from her… it's a danger signal."
Edward bolted toward the office, his heart hammering against his ribs. When he burst into the workspace that usually rang with Alice's laughter, he was met with a silence so absolute it felt like a void. Her desk was abandoned. Not a trace of her remained.
Edward stood frozen, staring at her bag and phone left on the desk. The simmering heat in his chest erupted into a raging fire.
"Why… why did she vanish like this? Why wasn't I careful? Why?!" His voice cracked with a mixture of fury and self-loathing. He slammed his fist onto the desk, his knuckles turning white, his body shaking with uncontrollable heat. He slammed the desk again, the sound echoing through the empty room, but it did nothing to quench the fire inside.
"This is all my fault… if I had just stayed by her side…"
His inner darkness finally boiled over. A faint red light flickered from his hands, and raw magical energy began to leak from his trembling fingertips. Edward threw his head back, gasping for air he couldn't catch. With a guttural roar, he unleashed his power.
Objects around the room began to levitate. Papers swirled in a chaotic whirlwind; glass cups and pens shattered against the walls. Desks and chairs rattled as if a hurricane had been trapped within the four walls.
"I won't let her go! I will find her, no matter the cost!"
The booming resonance brought Henry running into the room. He grabbed Edward's arms, holding him firmly. "Edward! Calm down! Alice needs you to be steady right now. Use your head! We will find a way to save her together!"
Edward looked at Henry, his eyes wild and shimmering. The magic was still overflowing, but Henry's steady voice acted as an anchor. Slowly, the energy began to recede.
"…I'm sorry… I just…" His voice trailed off, his eyes reddening from the vulnerability he tried to hide. Henry gripped his shoulder tight.
"You don't have to carry this alone. We'll get through this together… trust me."