"Stop yelling, my ears already hurt," said Lucien, plugging his ears with his fingers.
The girl stepped closer, and as she emerged from the shadows, Lucien saw a young, beautiful girl wearing a long orange dress adorned with trailing flowers. Her black hair reached her waist. Her eyes were gray-black, reflecting the darkness of the night.
"What did you do? You killed my grandmother! You're a murderer!" the girl shouted, tears in her eyes.
Lucien let out a heavy sigh and then replied:
"Listen, it's a long story, but I'll tell you straight. Yes, I killed her. She wasn't human anymore."
Lily was about to say something, but a sudden wave of energy caught Lucien's attention. Turning his head, he saw the old woman's body starting to swell.
"D*mn, that means she cast a seal too,„ flashed through his mind.
Lucien immediately rushed forward, grabbed the girl, and created a barrier of flames around them.
A moment. A flash. An explosion.
Most of the house was blown apart. In an instant, the ceiling and walls came crashing down.
"We need to get out of here," Lucien said quietly, looking into Lily's eyes.
He lifted her into his arms and sprinted forward, bursting through a window. They landed in the garden.
As Lucien ran with Lily in his arms, a thought crossed her mind:
"He has such beautiful and unusual eyes… I've never seen anything like them.„
Sitting down on the short grass, Lucien stood up and said:
"Well, congratulations — you don't have a home anymore. You're homeless."
She just looked at him, saying nothing in response.
"Alright, I'm leaving. Maybe we'll meet again. Adios," Lucien waved his hand, turned sharply, and ran off toward his home.
[Sarah's Memory]
Two months earlier.
"Hey, Sarah, I hope you're still carrying out your mission. Otherwise, my master will destroy us all," said a tall, thin man in a gray suit. His blue eyes gleamed beneath a gray top hat, and his small mustache curled upward.
"Yes, Mister Virgil, everything as you ordered," Sarah replied.
Standing up from her chair, she walked along a wall decorated with animal pelts. Suddenly stopping, Sarah said:
"Mister Virgil, you shouldn't look out the window. You know what they say: those who enjoy staring into the night will soon be visited by the Spirit of Darkness to claim their soul."
Virgil turned his head, crossed one leg over the other, and replied immediately:
"My soul was taken long ago. It doesn't belong to me anymore. Ha-ha-ha-ha!"
"You're quite right," Sarah chuckled loudly.
A few weeks later.
"No way! How did he die? Virgil himself… That's a joke, he couldn't have just died like that,„ Sarah thought in panic.
She ran around the house hysterically, throwing things in all directions.
[Moments Before Sarah's Death]
"Why is it so hot?.. I can't feel my body… Ah, it hurts!.. I don't want to die!.. Forgive me, Lord… Ah! It burns… it burns so much… AAAAH!„ — those were the last thoughts in her mind before she sank into an endless lake of eternal flame.
The next morning, Lucien was sleeping peacefully in his bed when a loud, harsh knock on the door woke him up.
"D*mn it, who visits this early," he muttered, heading for the door.
He suddenly stopped in front of it.
"Could be… not human. But demons rarely act during the day,„ he thought.
His right hand reached for the handle, while his left ignited with fire. He slowly opened the door — and saw Lily standing there.
"Hello. You saved me yesterday, thank you. Also… I have nowhere to live. Can I stay with you?" she asked with a sweet smile.
Lucien's eyes ran from head to toe — then he slammed the door shut.
"Not a chance!"
"Please! I have nowhere to go, no money, my parents are dead… and besides, you killed my grandmother! Open up, or I'll go to the police!" the girl shouted, continuing to knock insistently.
Lucien exhaled deeply.
"Fine, come in… I don't need any more problems."
Lily stepped inside, a satisfied smile appearing on her face.
"We never properly met. My name's Lily. And you are?"
"Lucien," he replied reluctantly, extending his hand.
Lily immediately reached out in return. A brief awkward moment followed as their eyes met.
"Id*ot, give me your jacket," Lucien muttered, pushing her hand aside.
"Oh, sorry," she said quickly.
Her cheeks flushed red, her gaze dropped to the floor. But her mind was in chaos — thoughts scattering one after another.
"He's not like other men… Why did I even try to shake hands? And why did I forget to take off my jacket…„
Despite the flustered thoughts, she took off her jacket and handed it to Lucien. He hung it over the back of a chair, where his clothes were neatly folded.
Straightening up, he walked toward the kitchen.
"Just so you know, there are a lot of strange things in my house. Don't be surprised," Lucien said, disappearing behind the kitchen door.
"What are you standing there for? Come in," he added, peeking through the doorway.
Lily slowly followed, glancing into every corner of the house but noticing nothing particularly strange.
Entering the kitchen, she saw a huge purple-red refrigerator with white fangs sticking out like handles.
"W-what… is that…?" she stammered, her face pale with shock.
"Nothing special. It's basically a container where you store food so it doesn't spoil. In short — a refrigerator," Lucien replied.
Then he took a small metal kettle filled with water, placed it on the stove, and lit the flame with the tip of his finger.
Turning around, Lucien saw Lily trying to open the refrigerator.
"Hey, hey, what are you doing? You won't be able to open it. Only people with special power can," said Lucien.
Lily touched one of the fangs — the refrigerator immediately swung open.
"It worked. Hehe," she giggled.
Lucien's eyebrows shot up.
"You've got to be kidding me… Great, just great. A woman shows up and the house immediately falls for her."
Lucien sat at the table, turning toward Lily.
"So, what do you want to hear? And how did you even find my house?"
Lily sat beside him and replied:
"I have a lot of questions. Where do I start… What is that power? Why did you kill my grandmother? Who was she really? And who are you actually?.."
"Stop! Stop! Stop! Too many questions, my head's gonna explode," Lucien interrupted, pressing his hands to his head.
"You asked how I found your house? I followed you, but couldn't catch up. I wandered around this district all night until I found a lovely candle stall in the morning. And there, a charming girl named Ellie told me where you live. That's all," said Lily.
"I see. I guess it's my turn to answer your questions," said Lucien, lifting his head.
The girl closed her eyes and nodded with a small smile.
"Well, your grandmother was a demon. Or rather, she agreed to become one. There are many like her. To fight them, people with special powers began to appear — and those people were gathered into an organization called White Siren," Lucien said.
"And one more thing…"
Thank you for reading the chapter. I'll be glad for every comment and will gladly answer your questions. You can learn more on the Discord server. I'm really looking forward to seeing each of you there.