After a moment, Xiamir stood holding Yiyi’s hand at the gates of the Night Court.
The towering black wooden doors loomed overhead, intricately carved with intertwining Blood Sakura patterns, every petal’s vein so exquisitely detailed that it seemed as if blood might drip from them at any moment.
The door knockers were two ruby gems the size of pigeon eggs.
Bathed in the warm lantern glow from the eaves, they radiated not warmth, but a cold, eerie light, like the eyes of a hidden blood clan.
Xiamir raised her hand; her silvery-white fingertips had barely brushed the icy door knocker when, with a creak, the wooden door was pushed open from within.
A white-bearded blood clan elder stepped out, dressed in a perfectly tailored black tailcoat, his cuffs embroidered with dark golden trailing vines that shimmered softly as he moved.
Pinned to his chest was a silver badge, engraved with the rose emblem of the blood clan’s court—a symbol of status.
He was Tuangelaas, the butler of Lilith Sicilya, his face always wearing an air of sternness, his mouth barely ever curving up, not even at the corners.
Tuangelaas’ gaze first fell on Xiamir, then he nodded slightly.
With precise formality, he bowed deeply, his grizzled beard hanging down to his chest, nearly brushing the floor.
As he straightened, he stepped aside, making a “please” gesture, his voice respectful and utterly unruffled: “Lord Xiamir, please come in. Her Majesty the Empress has instructed that you meet her at the usual place. She has been waiting there for quite some time.”
“This old bat is really too much.”
Xiamir snorted lightly, a touch of familiar annoyance in her tone, her silvery brows arching just so: “I came all this way, and she won’t even bother to come greet me in person?”
Though she grumbled, her steps did not falter.
She pulled Yiyi along and walked through the doorway.
“Hey, hey, hey! Slow down!”
Yiyi stumbled a couple of steps as she was dragged forward, her little short legs scrambling to keep up, the hem of her pink pajamas brushing over the threshold, stirring up a bit of breeze.
She struggled to free her tightly held hand, tilting her head to stare at Xiamir’s profile, her voice full of wariness: “What are you taking me to do?!”
“To see Lilith, of course. What else would I be doing?” Xiamir glanced down at Yiyi, her tone matter-of-fact.
“I don’t want to see her!”
Yiyi immediately scrunched up her little face and shrank back, her tiny claws gripping Xiamir’s clothes, suspicion brimming in her eyes: “Are you trying to sell me off as a slave to someone else!? Tell me now!”
Remembering the rumors she’d heard in the Human Empire about the “blood clan snatching children,” Yiyi grew more and more anxious, her voice rising with panic.
Xiamir—could it be she finds me troublesome and now wants to sell me to the blood clan Empress as a blood thrall!?
The thought made Yiyi’s eyes sting and her grip on Xiamir’s clothes tightened even more.
Xiamir was momentarily stunned by her words, then burst out laughing, flicking Yiyi’s forehead lightly: “What on earth is that mess in your little head? If I wanted to sell you, I would’ve done it back at the Ice Palace. Why would I go to all this trouble to bring you to the blood clan?”
“Ow!”
Yiyi covered her forehead and shrank back, but still glared at Xiamir defiantly, her pout so pronounced it could hang an oil jar: “Then why are you taking me to see this Lilith person?! Don’t tell me you’re not selling me to someone else!? Hmph💢!”
The more she spoke, the more justified Yiyi felt, her little shoulders tensing up until she resembled a bristling cub.
Xiamir watched her puff up in anger, helplessly shaking her head.
She reached out to ruffle Yiyi’s hair, making her already messy hair even more tousled: “Silly Yibao, Lilith is the blood clan Empress. What could she possibly want that she doesn’t already have? Why would she need to buy you as a blood thrall?”
She paused, her fingertips gently rubbing the blush at the tip of Yiyi’s ear, her voice growing even softer: “And besides, you’re my little one. Why would I ever sell you? Yibao, how can you be so silly, silly enough to be adorable.”
Yiyi was taken aback by these words.
Her grip on Xiamir’s clothes loosened, and a faint blush crept up her cheeks.
She turned her face away, deliberately avoiding Xiamir’s gaze, though her voice had lost its earlier bravado, reduced to a quiet mumble: “Who—who’s your little one… I—I’m not silly! Mm…”
Despite her words, she no longer retreated, obediently following in Xiamir’s footsteps into the manor.
Despite her words, she no longer retreated, obediently following in Xiamir’s footsteps into the manor.
Tuangelaas, seeing that the two were no longer at an impasse, quietly turned to lead the way, his black coat sweeping over the floor, refraining from disturbing the rare peace.
The palace’s corridors wound ahead, blood-red vines hanging from outside the eaves swaying in the breeze, filtering warm crimson light onto the ground, making the shadows of the three stretch and shrink by turns.
After only a short while, they arrived at a rear garden bathed in the light of the blood moon.
The garden was filled with Blood Sakura.
The fallen petals on the stone path looked like a pale red velvet carpet.
Tuangelaas halted, stepping aside to gesture “please,” his voice still steady:
“Her Majesty is inside. Dragon Emperor, please enter.”
Xiamir gave a soft “Mm” in response and was about to lead Yiyi in when the little one suddenly yanked her wrist away.
“I’m not going!” Yiyi shrank back, her little claws clutching Xiamir’s sleeve, her eyes reddening but her voice still raised in defiance: “Xiamir, let me go! Even if I die, I won’t let you sell me!?”
She stared fiercely at the half-open wooden door to the rear garden, the rumors of the “blood clan snatching children” from the Human Empire rising in her mind again, panic welling up inside her.
What if the one waiting inside wasn’t the blood clan Empress, but bad people out to snatch kids?
What if once she went in, she’d never get out again?
The more Yiyi thought about it, the more anxious she became, her fingertips trembling slightly.
Xiamir looked at Yiyi’s tense little body and caught the panic that couldn’t be hidden in her eyes.
With a helpless sigh, her voice softened: “Alright, alright, Yibao, you can look around nearby for a bit. I’ll go see Lilith and then come back to get you, okay?”
“Really?”
Yiyi looked up at once, her crimson slit pupils full of doubt, but she couldn’t help loosening her grip on Xiamir’s sleeve a little.
Xiamir ruffled her head and smiled, nodding: “Really, when have I ever lied to you? There are blood clan attendants nearby. Don’t wander off too far, just stay here in the corridor. I’ll be back soon.”
Yiyi bit her lip and thought it over before finally letting go and retreating two steps, still eyeing Xiamir with suspicion: “Fine, I’m going. Bye!”
Despite her words, Yiyi didn’t actually go far, instead hiding behind a nearby pillar.
She peeked out carefully, watching the wooden door to the rear garden, afraid that Xiamir would “go back on her word.”
Xiamir saw the half of Yiyi’s little head poking out from behind the pillar and couldn’t help but smile before turning to follow Tuangelaas into the rear garden.
The great doors slowly closed, shutting out the scene within, leaving Yiyi alone in the corridor.
Every now and then, Yiyi rose onto her tiptoes to peer inside, her little claws still clutching her clothes.
Part of her hoped Xiamir would come out quickly, but she was also curious about what was inside.
She looked around, blinking, and after a moment of consideration, decided to have a look around.
Yiyi whispered to herself for encouragement, loosening her grip on her clothes, her crimson slit pupils scanning her surroundings with curiosity: “Since I’m here, I—I’ll just take a look around, hmm.”
The blood-red vines outside the corridor trailed down to the ground, their leaves shimmering with a fine luster.
Yiyi reached out to touch them, but the cold sensation at her fingertips startled her, making her withdraw her hand immediately.
Afraid that, just as the rumors said, the vines might wind around her hand.