“WHAT will happen to her after that?”

Eunbi couldn’t help but to be anxious about the future of the girl that she treated as her daughter. Jisoo has been in care since she was a baby. She could clearly remember how Sakura appeared in her garden that one night. Her clothes were stained with blood and her eyes had no soul at all. In her hand is a baby wrapped in a white cloth that was also blood-stained.

The memory of that day is so vivid that she can feel how the breeze of the autumn wind hit her softly as she went towards Sakura who broke down right after she got a hold of her.

“What will happen to you?” Eunbi then looked at Sakura with those worried eyes. The vampire remained silent for a while.

If Jisoo is exposed as a vampire, there will still be a problem even if her past memories won’t resurface. Her birth is not in the registry of vampires. Her existence will be a big question and her red streaks won’t help at all. Even if she gets it dyed, investigators will still probably check her hair.

“It will be fine…” Sakura sighed. “As long as her past memories won’t resurface, she’ll remain the sweet girl that she is. We can say that you just found her somewhere…”

“But the hair colour…” Eunbi turned to Sakura’s way. “They will surely find out that she is a royal. They will trace who is the royal who died at the moment of her birth. What will happen to her? To both of you…?”

“Let’s just face it when that happens…” Sakura took a hold of the wheel. “I’ll make sure that you two will be safe.”

Silence covered the two. Eunbi still couldn’t convince herself that everything will be fine. She’s worried about Jisoo but she’s also thinking about Sakura’s welfare. She will surely be accused of treason if the Vampire Kingdom finds out that she disobeyed the King’s order.

It wasn’t her fault that she couldn’t kill the phoenix.

She is deeply in love with that very soul…

Having her dispose of the said phoenix will kill her from the inside.

“I will try to find out ways of how we can feed Jisoo with blood without her noticing it. If the suppressants won’t work anymore then there would be no other way but to feed her or else, she would berserk.”

Suppressants aren’t new to vampires. Most vampires take it while they are at work or when they are around many people to avoid unnecessary urges.

Eunbi reached for Sakura’s hand. She could feel how worried the vampire is as well. She can feel it clearly, deep within her heart, bringing pain on her shoulder.

“Sakura…” The lady called.

Sakura looked at her with her lips pressed into a faint smile. “You could feel it, right? How much I am troubled right now…?”

Eunbi then placed her hand on her own left shoulder before looking at Sakura straight to her eyes. “I do… I can feel how much you are sincerely worried for her.”

Sakura then reached out for Eunbi’s face and gently caressed it. “I am also worried about you… I dragged you to this mess of the vampires…”

The vampire then carefully zipped down Eunbi’s jacket and the human was just letting her do it. Knowing that her car is heavily tinted and no one will see them, Sakura helped Eunbi in taking off her jacket while the latter just complied with what she wanted. She knows well how the vampire likes seeing the masterpiece that she has done unto her body.

Sakura then saw that Eunbi had prepared. She didn’t just get her jacket but changed into a v-neck shirt. She might be scary at times but she’s still the same Eunbi that she knows—the caring and thoughtful Eunbi who is in love with her.

“Do… you want some drink?”

Sakura had to gulp. She’s been expecting to hear it from her but that still got her offhand.

“Eung…” The Vampire nodded her head and Eunbi felt the need to touch her face.

“It has been so long, right?” The lady asked while looking at how Sakura is surveying her skin. The Vampire then slightly pulled down Eunbi’s shirt which revealed more of her shoulder and there she saw it—the crescent-shaped, red mark on the lady’s shoulder.

“Eung…” Sakura answered under her breath. Her breathing is getting more and more warm. “I wonder how long it has been…”

She then started tracing the mark with her fingers and then she decided. There’s no way that she would say no to this offer.

“Let me turn on the heater first…” Sakura said, letting go of Eunbi for a while. “I removed your jacket so you might be feeling—”

“There’s no need.” Eunbi halted her. “You will be… more than enough…”

IRENE is standing in front of Seulgi's room for she lost track of how many times she has done it since morning. After she had hushed Seulgi from crying last night, the younger called it a day and just asked Irene to sleep.

She hasn't given any explanation about what happened. Seulgi just said that she isn't a zero and cried about the hardships that she has gone through after years of being in exile.

Irene didn't want to leave her side but Seulgi insisted that she should go and sleep in her room. She tried to understand the situation thinking that she needs some time to contemplate about the happenings on her own. The vampire also sent a message to her father-in-law in hopes that he and Seulgi might get closer through the event.

But what's making her worried now is Seulgi not opening her door. She did respond to her knock earlier but she told her that she doesn't have the appetite for breakfast. Seulgi also said that she needs some time to be alone.

"My day-off..." Irene sighed to herself. She understands that Seulgi might've learned something that really shocked her but at least she shouldn't drive her away like this. It's making her restless. She could feel deep inside that Seulgi is really sad. The thought of Seulgi having a down spirit didn’t even let her sleep well last night. Her thoughts are filled with Seulgi and she hates that she can’t do anything about it.

She’s suspecting that the hickey has something to do with it but she just can’t believe that a mark like that can act like that of a vampire. It’s just too impossible.

Irene knocked again and sighed. “Seulgi-ya… Do you want to build a snowman?”

The girl just found herself slapping her own face. “I am crazy. If my father sees this then he will surely laugh at me or worse be proud of me…”

Even though she said something embarrassing, she still waited for Seulgi’s reply but she just disappointed herself because there was none. Irene pouted.

“What if I just destroy her door?” She asked herself because technically, she can do it. She’s just letting Seulgi think that she can feel safe from her fangs whenever she’s in her room.

“No, Irene… You can’t be selfish now. I know you want to see her and spend time with her but something really upsets her now and you have to let her be. Right, Irene! You are a thoughtful and understanding wife. If your partner needs space then just give her space.”

Irene nodded to herself, looking really proud of herself. She decided to leave but when she’s just on her second step away from Seulgi’s room, she immediately turned back and violently knocked on Seulgi’s door.

“Seulgi-ya!!!” She shouted. “I am sorry! I know you need some time but you can’t just ignore me like this! I am currently the most beautiful face in Korea (self-proclaimed). You can’t just ignore me and have me spend my day-off all alone like this while I am eagerly wanting to be with you! Open this d*mned door or I will—”

The door suddenly opened and Irene froze on where she was standing when she saw Seulgi just in her bathrobe, her hair still wet from the shower.

“Sorry, Rusty…” Seulgi said while drying her hair with a towel. “I have been in the tub since earlier. I didn’t know that you were knocking…”

“A-Ah!” Irene immediately blushed when her playful eyes landed on Seulgi's collarbone. “I-Is that so? S-Sorry! I’ll leave you then to get dressed. Make sure to come down to eat lunch with me. I ordered some jjimdak.”

Flustered, Irene was about to go downstairs when she felt Seulgi’s hand on her arm, stopping her to go any further. The vampire felt her heart panicking.

“Joohyun-ah” Seulgi called in a raspy tone. “Would you… help me dry my hair?”

THE red burgundy-haired girl finally finished drying Seulgi's hair. She didn't know how many times she had to gulp whenever she had a glimpse of the girl's nape. She really wanted to turn the dryer into a cool wind and turn it to her face to somehow cool her down but Seulgi will surely think that she's out of her mind.

After the noise from the dryer disappeared, Irene thought that it was the right time to break the silence.

"There you go." She said while looking at Seulgi through the mirror. The other girl seemed like she was having her thoughts somewhere else that she jerked a bit when Irene suddenly spoke.

"T-Thank you..." Seulgi answered in a frail voice.

Irene let out a sigh before pulling out an empty chair. She then made Seulgi look at her but the other girl kept her gaze low.

"I understand that you are having a hard time now..." Irene started, her chest heavy due to the suspicion that Seulgi doesn't find her dependable enough. She wants to let her out but she doesn't want to turn out to be the needy one. "If being alone will help you then I will leave you be. I'll just go and visit my father then."

Irene stood up and walked towards the door without saying anything more. She has a lot of questions to throw to her dad anyway so if Seulgi won't open up to her then she better start interviewing her father about the marking. But, when she was about to open the door, she smelled the wonderful scent of Seulgi's shampoo by her shoulder. Feeling the tight hug of the girl from her back, Irene gasped.

"S-Seulgi-ya..."

“Sorry…” The other girl said under her breath. “I just… feel so lost now… I feel like I have undergone another test and got another proclamation. I feel more lost than the time I was proclaimed as a zero.”

Irene reached for Seulgi’s hands that were by her belly. She made her feel that she understands the situation and that she is there to listen.

“Jaewook told me that I am not really a zero… For all my life I lived believing I was a disgrace. I even wished I was not born at all. Then all of sudden, I was able to do astral projection and appeared right in front of them…”

“Y-You did astral projection?” Irene stammered.

“Eung.” Seulgi nodded as she tightened her hug to Irene, burying her face to the other girl’s shoulder even more. “Turns out the whole Shaman Council was afraid of what I could do, so, even before I learned about my abilities. They threw me outside and treated me as one of the zeros.”

“But why…? I don’t understand…” Curiosity stained with pity for her wife is evident to Irene’s tone. “Is your ability really that bad that they had to outcast you? Your brother has a lot of powerful abilities but they treated him as a hero!”

Seulgi pressed her lips together to form a faint smile. “I only have two abilities, Joohyun-ah… Negating and copying.”

“W-What?” As much as Irene wanted to focus on what Seulgi is saying, the other girl’s scent is so distracting plus her warm hug is making her weak. So, believing that she can focus more on Seulgi, she decided to free herself from the hug and turn to Seulgi but then she got even more dizzy after realising that the other girl was still in her bathrobe.

Seulgi kept on holding her hand. “It seems like I can copy other’s abilities but they have to be somewhere near me. The reason why I was able to do astral projection was because General Son came too close to me.”

‘That explains it!’ Irene thought. So, the very reason why even the Shaman King has to be of a certain distance from Seulgi is because she is able to copy their abilities.

“Also, it turns out that I can cancel abilities as well. It explains now why I was able to get away from Jaewook when I was a child even though he has disabled my body motions.”

“Cancelling?” Irene repeated. “Then it’s probably the reason why the Manshin wasn’t able to see your future… You probably cancelled her abilities when we went there.”

Seulgi gave out a sigh. “I was thinking about it too. I was trying to rewind the happenings in my life and see what instances might I have used my power without knowing it. I am not aware of it at all. Right now, I believe it is emotion-driven and that scares me…”

The Shaman Princess lowered her head and Irene felt the need to cup her face. Seulgi just held the Vampire Princess’ hands that were on her face. “I am scared that I don’t really know about myself now. I don’t know how to use my powers. I don’t know how to control it. With this I can’t really go anywhere close to Jaewook in fear that I might cancel his powers in times that he needs it.”

“I’ve been thinking about this all night. There’s a reason why the elders are afraid of what I can do… What if this ability took control of me instead? I don’t want to be the havoc that they were all thinking of. I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

“You’ll be fine, Seulgi.” Irene gave light taps on her cheeks. “You’re a very good person. If ever something happens to you then I will be the one to knock sense to you.”

“Thank you…” Seulgi closed her eyes. Pain is still evident on her face. “I was just wondering… If I managed to hone my ability I could’ve helped my brother. There might be a chance that he is still alive now. He could’ve—”

“I could’ve been married to him.”

Seulgi’s eyes shut open with that statement from Irene. The vampire took her hands back.

“If Euigeon-oppa is still alive then I could’ve been given into marriage to him.” Irene said in a cold tone. “Don’t get me wrong, Seulgi. It’s not like I wanted your brother to die. I just don’t want you to blame yourself for his death. You literally didn’t have anything to do with it!”

“J-Joo—”

“Everything that happened is part of our fate.” And there goes the romantic nature of her very blood. “I never wanted Euigeon-oppa to die… I just want you to stop talking as if you don’t like being with me now…”

Seulgi had to blink quickly. Is Irene really talking like this now?

“I know your family comes first but you also have to face the reality that we can’t turn back the time now. Stop talking with the ‘what if I had’ rather start thinking of how you will face the present.”

“Joohyun…”

“I understand that you are a victim here. Okay, now you have spent the whole night lamenting about your past, today keep your head held high and start walking in accordance with your identity!” Irene hit her at the back to fix her posture. Seulgi felt like she was