The Fallen Vampire

Trekking through the sparsely populated forest grounds of Tayar was a a small band of around 2,000 soldiers in shining armor of silver and pantone blue.

At the head, they were led by a very handsome man who looked like he was pulled directly from the pages of a magazine from earth.

Duncan Stone was a former Ivy League drop out who had since come to Tayar over 100 years ago to be the hero of the great god of ice, Velreth.

He was a man of average height but above average looks, with long white hair that resembled freshly fallen snow.

He had a square jaw with unnatural icy blue eyes and a permanently weary expression.

Unlike most of the other eleven heroes, Duncan was one of only two who had no aptitude for cultivation, just arcane.

However, he was so talented in the field that neither he nor anyone else around him truly cared about his ineptitude due to his sheer genius.

In the time that he had been in Tayar, he had done excellent work in the field of Arcane study, and practically revolutionized the masses understanding of it.

He was the first person to reach five stars of understanding in under two hundred years of age; making a great many people see him as some sort of wiseman or guru.

The permenantly tired look on his face came from the long nights he spent replying to letters that asked questions about arcane theory or methods to revolutionize society through combinations of magic and stone.

Though he was not the most powerful of the heroes, he was certainly among the most influential.

Currently, it was he and his band who were heading to an isolated sect within Amusi mountain, hoping to see great gains as a result.

"Pick it up, guys! Since we're taking the long route around we have to be efficient about our speed!"

"YES, HERO!"

No matter how long he spent here, Duncan could never stop himself from chuckling wryly whenever he was addressed so formally by those around him.

As he silently wished for a little more sense of normalcy in his life, he suddenly heard a small cracking sound that he never would have mistaken.

Reaching inside of his robe, he gingerly pulled out the necklace dangling around his neck and inspected the jade that represented his sworn brother's life.

"Shin…no.."

There was a deep crack running through the center of the jade; signaling the end of his brother's life.

But more than that, there was a fleeting image from within the jade like that of a movie screen.

Inside, he saw the image of a woman with black hair and disgusting furry ears like that of a wolf.

A sinister light shone within her single eye, and her face was twisted up into a horrible smile.

Duncan came to a halt along the mountain trail and clutched the jade in his hand hard enough to break it.

Now that he had committed the face of the woman who killed his brother to memory, he would absolutely never let her go.

'Don't worry, Shin. I'll settle up all old accounts when we return from this raid… Just keep watching over me in the meantime.'

-

Taira slowly pulled his lips away from Keran's neck and looked at the state of her body.

Just like before, she was breathing heavily and her cheeks were flushed as her eyes gradually fought to regain clarity.

When she finally forced herself to focus, she found Taira staring at her with a strange despondent light in his red eyes.

"D-Did I… taste bad…?"

"…" As a response, Taira only shook his head.

"T-Then why are you looking at me like that? It's a bit worrisome, you know…?"

" I… remember you. I remember us."

It was as if all of the oxygen had been sucked out of the room at that moment as both Enyo and Keran stared at Taira as if he had just said something absurd like he enjoyed pineapple on pizza.

"You...You aren't joking, right?"

As a response, Taira moved his hands from Keran's hips to cup her face and pulled her in for their first kiss in over six hundred years.

It took her a moment to really remember this feeling and allow herself to lean into it.

The softness of his lips on hers, the one of a kind pleasant scent that was always flowing off his body like a damn about to burst.

The firm yet gentle way that he held her face; like she was the most treasured creation in all of existence and he was terrified to let her slip through his hands.

These were things that she had spent the better part of her entire life missing and longing to experience again.

And now that she was experiencing it once again, she almost didn't know how to fully accept it.

But just like riding a bike, one always gets the hang of these things sooner or later.

Her body eventually relaxed, and she let a single tear fall from her eyes as she returned his kiss with fervor.

Just like old times, it was a while before the two of them eventually let each other go.

Even though she was crying, Keran had the widest smile on her face that Taira had ever seen.

"I knew you wouldn't just forget me...! I will admit to losing a bit of hope from time to time though..."

"You have my sincerest apologies, my love. I promise not to make you worry like that ever again. No one else will ever make me forget you."

"...I'll hold you to that."

Just before Taira could kiss her once again to seal their new vow, he paused and let his eye wander towards the corner.

There, he found Enyo staring at them both with somewhat of a sheepish smile on her face.

She did not actually say anything, but Taira knew exactly what she was thinking without having to hear her say a word.

Holding out his hand, he surprised her by pulling her towards him with his telekinetic powers and she came sailing into his arms.

"Eep!"

"Don't tell me that you feared I would leave you behind now. Do I truly see like such an unworthy husband in your eyes?"

"N-No, of course not..."

While Enyo had always been supportive of Taira and Keran reconnecting, in the moment that it actually happened she was overwhelmed with a sense of worry.

Previously, Taira had cared nothing for other women and had eyes only for Keran, leaving the lovely poltergeist more than a bit worried that she might hoard all of his affection, especially after she had grown so accustomed to it.

But now, it appeared as though such a thought was unfounded.

Taira smiled before he finally made a decision.

He stuffed as many cultivation novels into his storage ring as he needed and grabbed two kinds of weapons off the wall before he lifted both girls into his arms.

"... H-Hey!"

"What are you doing?!"

Taira nonchalantly carried both girls out of the hidden bunker like they were as light as feathers.

"We're going home. I think I've hit my limit on waiting I think, so I'm going to shower all three of my wives with so much love that you will never question my feelings for you again."

While they were being carried, Enyo and Keran felt their eyes go wide as they glanced at each other.

Even without speaking, they knew exactly what each other were trying to say by their expressions.

Keran: 'His words just now scared and aroused me. What did you just get us into?'

Enyo: 'I-I don't know! I wasn't planning for this, I swear!'

Keran: 'If I die during sex, tell my mother that I loved her.'

Enyo: 'Deal.'