The underground chamber was cold enough to numb the bones.
Abyss sat quietly to one side.
Before him stood a young-looking vampire, head lowered.Youming's eyes widened slightly, his expression dark as storm clouds.
"You're saying," he asked slowly,"that vampires attacked civilians last night… even nobles?"
"And more than one attacker?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
The young vampire bowed deeper.
"The Senate has confirmed six incidents so far. Two targeted noble families. Fourteen dead. The exact number is still unclear… more victims may yet be discovered."
Silence filled the chamber.
Youming slowly closed his star-like eyes.
"The three from Western Europe," he asked,"any movement?"
"None."
"They remained here the entire night. According to Senate surveillance records, they had no opportunity to commit the attacks."
Youming tapped lightly against the armrest.
"They never left… What does the Senate want?"
"They demand," the messenger hesitated briefly,"that Your Highness surrender the offending vampires."
A faint smile appeared on Youming's lips.
"Very well. You may leave."
"Yes, Your Highness."
The young vampire withdrew quietly, shutting the heavy door behind him.
Abyss let out a cold chuckle.
"So… they have companions."
"As expected," Youming replied calmly."I simply didn't think they would move this quickly."
Anyone capable of launching multiple coordinated attacks across Athens without exposure—
could not be some uncontrollable low-generation stray vampire.
Not here.
Not under the gaze of giants.
Not beneath the authority of vampire kings.
Either the attacker had lost their sanity—
or possessed backing powerful enough to ignore consequences.
All vampires in this world ultimately answered to the Seven Vampire Kings.
Which meant only one possibility.
"Dusk," Abyss muttered.
Who else would dare stir chaos in Athens?
None of the other kings would come here merely to cause trouble.
And Adam?
Impossible.
He shouldn't even be in Athens.
And even if he were—
openly hunting civilians would be suicide.
"We never should have sent that invitation," Abyss said.
Youming laughed softly.
"Even without it, he would have come."
"You informed him about Adam yourself. Once we began searching openly, secrecy became meaningless."
"He has eyes everywhere."
A pause.
"He may have known Adam awakened long before you did," Youming added calmly."He simply chose not to inform us."
Abyss frowned.
"So what now? The Senate won't let this go."
"The Senate is irrelevant."
Youming opened one eye slowly.
"This isn't the first time I've refused their demands."
"Even if the culprit were mine—what could they truly do?"
A faint killing intent surfaced in his voice.
"Dusk wants chaos. And this will not end here."
"If they choose shadows…"
"Then we answer with blood."
Tonight, patrol teams would be deployed.
The moment those attackers surfaced again—
they would be eliminated as rogue vampires.
No negotiation.
No investigation.
Execution.
Youming turned toward Abyss.
"You'll lend me some of your people."
It wasn't a request.
It was an invitation into shared responsibility.
Or shared hostility.
Dusk was notoriously protective of his followers. Killing them meant unavoidable enmity.
Youming wasn't afraid—
but neither was he interested in bearing that hatred alone.
Abyss understood instantly.
After a brief hesitation, he nodded.
The conference hadn't even begun—
and Athens was already descending into disorder.
Perhaps choosing Athens as the meeting site had been a mistake from the start.
Meanwhile—
At the Athena Library.
A commander clad in ornate Greek armor stepped out from the grand entrance, escorted by eight spear-bearing guards.
His voice thundered across the plaza.
"Entry begins now—!"
The waiting nobles stirred immediately, moving toward the massive gates.
Adam sprang to his feet and joined the flow.
The entrance stood at the center of the structure—
six meters tall, ten meters wide.
Passing between colossal pillars and smooth stone steps, Adam finally entered the Athena Library.
And stopped.
The interior contrasted sharply with the building's austere exterior.
Magnificent.
Marble flooring gleamed beneath a vaulted dome rising over fifteen meters high. Murals covered every inch of the ceiling, while an enormous crystal chandelier radiated dazzling light across the hall.
Beneath it lay a massive mosaic map—
the complete layout of the library.
Colored stones formed symbols, pathways, and classifications.
The nobles barely glanced at it.
Clearly, they were regular visitors.
They dispersed immediately—some entering side corridors, others ascending spiral staircases lining the hall.
Adam remained where he stood, studying the map carefully.
"History… Geography… Literature… Society… Astronomy… Strategy…"
He frowned.
"Where would vampire secret arts fall?"
Martial studies?
Restricted archives?
Or…
His gaze stopped.
Third Floor.
Mythical Races Collection.
"That must be it."
He ascended the spiral staircase.
The third floor corridor stretched endlessly ahead, carpeted and silent.
Guards stood every few steps.
Doors lined both sides of the passage like sealed vaults.
Finally, Adam located the correct chamber.
Inside—
rows upon rows of towering bookshelves rose nearly five meters high.
Each aisle contained ladders.
Each section—
guarded.
Adam blinked.
"…This is excessive."
Now he understood why the library closed at night.
Leaving it open would require twice the manpower.
With security like this, hiding inside until dark was nearly impossible.
He dragged a ladder forward and began searching.
Soon, he located the vampire classification section.
Then—
the subsection on vampire secret arts.
The collection far surpassed anything Withered Wood had provided.
Development histories.
Theoretical foundations.
Structural analysis of bloodline techniques.
Incomplete—
but astonishingly comprehensive.
Most vampires would never bother reading such material.
Theory meant nothing to them.
Creating or improving secret arts was the privilege of high-ranking bloodlines.
Ordinary vampires lacked both authority and opportunity.
Yet Adam soon realized something troubling.
There were no actual secret techniques.
None.
No usable spells.
No completed arts.
Only theory.
Only history.
Was he expected to rebuild an entire vampire system from scratch?
That would take centuries.
Maybe millennia.
And yet—
the library clearly lacked nothing else.
Even obscure internal theoretical texts existed here.
There were books on blood flavor refinement—
culinary manuals for vampires.
This place collected everything.
Useful or not.
Which meant only one conclusion.
The true secret arts…
were hidden.
Adam glanced around.
At the end of the aisle, a guard watched him without blinking.
In fact—
he had no choice.
Adam was the only visitor in the entire chamber.
Six guards.
One reader.
Adam exhaled slowly.
Looks like…
he would still need the night.