The Art of Immortality sensed Allen's danger and sped up its flow, but it still couldn't keep up with the rate of lifespan drain.
His life force was vanishing so fast that in no time, only three years remained, yet Lilia showed no sign of letting go.
If this continued, she would start eating his actual lifespan. The Art of Immortality could replenish the added years, but it might not be able to restore his real life.
Allen let out a helpless sigh. He shouldn't have been so kind-hearted in the first place.
"Hey, Lilia, don't blame me. You brought this on yourself." His eyes turned cold and cruel.
He raised his hand and began condensing a massive fireball. Roaring waves of heat surrounded him, making his skin burn and sting as if it were about to catch fire.
Just as he was about to strike, a thought struck him. He cast Earth Shield on himself to block the terrifying power of the Forbidden Spell. Closing his eyes, he sent the giant fireball crashing down toward Lilia.
Boom!
Deafening roars filled the air, and the ground trembled slightly.
Crack... crack...
Then came a faint sound of breaking stone. The hard Earth Shield was now covered in deep cracks. Even the shield was nearly unable to withstand the Fireball.
The surrounding fire burned fiercely.
"Huh? Why is the drain still happening?" Allen's expression darkened. His arm was still firmly locked, and his life was still slipping away.
As the flames died down, Allen's eyes widened in disbelief.
In front of him lay a petite woman curled up in his arms. Her arms were wrapped tightly around his forearm, her small mouth pressed against his skin, greedily sucking the blood.
Her long red hair was loose, fluttering in the wind like dancing flames, making her look even more alluring and sinister.
But the strangest thing of all was that Lilia was wrapped in a massive black cape. It was this black cape that had absorbed the damage from the Forbidden Spell.
A chill ran up Allen's spine.
That wasn't a cape. It was a pair of enormous wings, just like the wings of a devil.
"A vampire!?"
Allen's voice trembled. He had only seen this dangerous and evil species in ancient books.
But Lilia was the City Lord's daughter. How could she be a vampire?
Was the entire Blackspire ruled by vampires?
"Hiss..."
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his wrist. Allen hissed in agony.
His skin and flesh were rapidly withering, making him look like a dried-up corpse.
The extra hundred years from the Art of Immortality were draining away in seconds. Now, it was starting to eat into his own actual lifespan.
It's over!
Allen's heart sank in despair. He was about to be drained dry by a vampire! Was there a more humiliating way to die?
[Beep. Art of Immortality has reached Rank 1 Level 2. Lifespan increased by 100 years.]
"Huh?"
Allen's eyes lit up. Hope flared in his chest once more. Just in the nick of time, the Art of Immortality had finally broken through to Rank 1 Level 2.
A surge of powerful life force erupted within him. Allen's shriveled skin began to regain its luster, and his flesh was restored.
At the same moment, Lilia started to regain her senses. She slowly lifted her head, a smile on her lips, her eyes filled with pure bliss and satisfaction.
She had never felt so alive. It was like being reborn.
"Ah, a monster!"
Lilia finally looked at Allen's face. She was horrified. His skin was wrinkled, and he looked ancient and frail.
She jumped back, pushing him away.
Allen felt a terrifying force slam into him. His body felt like a dry straw; he was sent flying through the air and crashed hard against a massive boulder behind him.
"Are you kidding me!" Allen cursed in anger. His bones felt like they were falling apart. "Lilia, you ungrateful wretch! I'm the monster? Why don't you check yourself in the mirror first?"
"Y-You're Allen?" Lilia's eyes widened in shock as she realized the truth.
The old, withered man in front of her suddenly underwent another strange transformation. His wrinkled skin tightened, and his cloudy eyes cleared up. He was handsome and young again—it was Allen.
"W-Why did you turn into that monster a moment ago?"
Lilia let out a sigh of relief, but she felt a pang of guilt. She faintly guessed that Allen had aged because of her.
"Ah!"
Suddenly, a piercing scream tore through the air. Lilia looked down at a dark shadow on the ground. Two giant devil wings were sprouting from its back.
It was her shadow.
"Allen, what happened to me? Save me, quick!" Lilia panicked. She angrily tried to tear the wings off her back, but it was useless.
She ran frantically toward Allen.
"Don't come over!"
Allen jumped back in alarm. Lilia wasn't human right now. Just a casual push from her had sent him flying.
If she attacked with full force, even as a The Heaven-Cursed, he couldn't defeat her.
"Allen, what's wrong with me?" Lilia stopped in her tracks, tears welling in her eyes. She looked small, helpless, and begged him for help.
"You're a vampire. Didn't you know?" Allen said, exasperated.
Legends said vampires were evil creatures, and he wanted to kill her.
But he could sense that Lilia wasn't as evil as the stories described.
Besides, there was one most important reason: he wasn't strong enough to fight her right now.
"Impossible!" Lilia argued angrily. "I'm human! How could I be that evil thing? Are you doing something to me?"
"Hey, I just tried to save your life! You almost sucked me dry, and this is how you treat me?" Allen was furious. If he could beat her, he would slap this little girl a few times.
Lilia fell silent. She knew she had indeed been drinking Allen's blood.
She remembered Allen's pathetic state just moments ago, and guilt swelled in her chest. Her voice dropped to a whisper. "I'm sorry... I didn't mean to..."
Seeing Lilia looking so pitiful, on the verge of tears, Allen's anger faded away. He could only shake his head and accept his bad luck.
Lilia sat beside the campfire, looking completely lost. Her wings were folded tight against her back, and her head was bowed low. Her shoulders shook as she sniffled quietly.
Allen's last spark of anger dissipated too. He sat down next to her and asked curiously, "So, you didn't know you were a vampire?"
"I... I'm not!" Lilia shot her head up instantly. A pair of tears still hung from her eyes, but seeing the black devil wings behind her, her voice lost all its strength.
"I have no bad intentions, I was just curious," Allen said, his mood surprisingly calm.
Humans viewed vampires as enemies, but that was just what the Church of Light taught. After years of living in the slums, Allen knew the truth: the Church of Light was the real vampire, sucking the blood of the poor to feed themselves.
To be honest, Allen felt a bit grateful toward Lilia's father, Lucas, the City Lord.
The previous City Lord didn't care about the slum dwellers. Almost every day, people died of starvation or sickness.
But four years ago, when Lucas became City Lord, he changed things immediately. He improved life in the slums, allowed people there to work in the city, and often gave them aid. Life had improved slightly. At least in recent years, no one had starved to death.
"Oh right, is Lucas, the City Lord, also a vampire?" Allen asked curiously.
"Don't talk nonsense," Lilia argued angrily, "My father isn't, and neither am I!" But her words lacked any real conviction.
Look at her right now; anyone could tell she was a vampire.
Lilia's tone softened. She looked at Allen and begged, "Allen, please, keep this a secret. Don't tell anyone, okay?"
If this news spread, it would hurt her father's status as City Lord. Worse, the Church of Light might try to eliminate them.
"Sigh, I'll keep your secret, of course. But what about you like this? People will spot you immediately."
Allen sighed helplessly. He held no malice toward Lilia and really wanted to help this girl.
Lilia fell silent for a moment. Then, she said firmly, "Allen, do me a favor. I'm going to stay in this secret realm forever. I won't come out. You go back and tell my father that I've died. Tell him not to grieve."
Allen was speechless. "Do you think your father would believe that? He might just think you were killed by me."
"I don't care," Lilia replied somewhat like a brat. "You just have to keep this secret."
Allen ignored her and walked over to Lilia. Curiously, he touched the wings on her back.
They were smooth and tough, yet as hard as steel. Even a Forbidden Spell couldn't damage them.
Lilia must be a special kind of vampire.
"Hey, stop that! Don't touch me like that!"
Lilia trembled slightly. It felt like Allen was teasing her, causing a strange mix of tingling and numbness.
"Are you going to help me or not?" she demanded, clinging to Allen's leg.
Allen didn't bother to deal with it.. He walked over and sat down nearby, then spoke up. "Legend says that long ago, vampires lived among humans. When they didn't transform, they were indistinguishable from people. Try to retract your wings and see if you can."
"Really?" Lilia looked doubtful, but she tried to pull her wings back in.