"How may I serve Your Majesty, Erzsébet Camille von Karnstein?" she said.
"My idiotic daughter," Erzsébet began, her voice dripping with venom.
"I only allowed you to keep stalking that boy, but I never permitted you to BREAK! THE CEASEFIRE PACT!"
She was angry, and it was justified.
The pact that kept every supernatural faction in a fragile peace was now broken by her own daughter.
If it had been a random, no-name vampire, "The Hunter" would have taken care of it as he maintains order in the Land of the Night.
But it was her own daughter, a princess of the Carmilla Faction.
No matter how she sugarcoated it, it was a breach of the pact that demanded absolute non-aggression, especially against humans.
"My idiotic daughter, did you forget that to make a human join a different supernatural faction, there is a legal procedure?" Erzsébet said tiredly, looking at her daughter with a helpless annoyance.
If only Eleanor had waited, she could have handled that part, but her daughter had to ditch it all and sneakily do the ritual right before a damned full moon when she least expected it.
"I can't possibly believe the words of a woman who failed her first love!" Eleanor shouted in retort, making Erzsébet nearly puke blood from the insult.
Yes, this beautiful vampire milf was apparently a failure in love.
"I believe I already told you I never loved anyone," Erzsébet said, trying to save face.
"You can't fool me! I know how many times you've wept in front of your mirror about—"
Before Eleanor could reveal any more, the entire room twisted into a forest of thorny vines and roses.
"I TOLD YOU NOT TO MENTION THAT!"
Erzsébet screamed and wrapped Eleanor around and with thorny vines her voice muffled.
Eleanor's face paled at she looked at her mother's expression.
.
.
.
That's why
Don't expect to have the upper hand, even if you know a dark secret about your parents.
Because Ultimately they are always above you
...
"Hmmm… ah~ What happened?" Alicia muttered, waking up with a dizzy feeling and her legs wobbly.
She looked around the room, slowly beginning to remember.
"Ah, I remember... me and that man."
Her face turned a deep crimson as the events of the last half hour came flooding back.
'So, I'm married. And to someone that can actually survive the curse of witches!
Ah, what should I do? I never expected to get married,' she thought, rubbing her cheeks.
A deep, embarrassed blush spread across her face.
Suddenly, she remembered the last moment of consciousness and felt a jolt of panic.
'Wait, there was that weird phenomenon! Where is my husband?' She got to her feet and searched the room, her worry growing as she found nothing.
Finally, she decided to use her magic to search the area.
She found his mana, but it felt somewhat different—less like a human's and more like a witch's.
Curious and worried, she got up and followed the trace of his mana, walking towards where he was.
...
I had finished my tenth book on mana and different energies and learned something crucial.
Mana, though universally present, could only be used by humans.
Other races couldn't use it because they had their own power systems that didn't require mana.
Mana reacted differently to each race, so they couldn't simply copy how humans used it.
And witches?
They were actually a sub-category of humans, born with a special constitution that set them apart.
That's why they could use magic with mana—they were human.
But their unique constitution allowed them to feel every kind of energy, even if they could only use mana.
"That's interesting," I mused
"So witches are special because they can feel every kind of energy but can only use mana and their constitution makes them absorb mana from every living being at the slightest touch."
I read a few more lines, but a soft sound of light footsteps made me turn around.
I saw my third wife, Alicia, standing there.
She was wearing only an oversized sweater that revealed her deep cleavage.
Her breasts were massive, even more so than Liliana's and Eleanor's.
'I wonder If that size is more 9000'
Well jokes aside they were indeed quite satisfying to look at.
"How long are you going to ogle at my chest, pervert?" she said with a pout, shielding her breasts with her arms.
I grimaced at the action
'Woman that's a crime to hide your tits from your hubby'
I had the urge to call Marriage Police
"Hey, I already watched and played with them bare-skinned," I teased, a smirk on my face. "Why can't I do the same when they are clothed?"
She turned her gaze away, still pouting.
I chuckled.
Maybe forced marriage wasn't so bad after all. I smiled at the thought.
"What are you reading?" she asked, getting closer.
"Books about magic," I said.
"After all, you turned me into a warlock of some sorts. Now I can see mana and different kinds of energy."
She paused, looking at me, completely shocked.
"So you really became one of us? But how?"
I shrugged. "I'm more clueless about this world than you are, honey," I said.
She blushed at the endearing term and pinched my arm.
"Don't tease me," she whispered like a mosquito.
'Huh? When did I tease you, woman?' I thought to myself, confused.
But I had a more important question.
"Alicia, can you tell me everything about what happened during the ritual? I need to know everything in detail."
.....
The air in the throne room was thick with tension.
A previously high and mighty vampire princess was now on her knees, her head bowed in submission as her mother, the Vampire Queen, gazed down at her with a satisfied expression.
The satisfaction, however, was lost the moment Eleanor finished explaining the whole story.
"So you mean not only did you mess up the ritual, but you also dragged other supernatural factions into it as well? Ahhhh! I can't believe you are my daughter by blood!"
Erzsébet said, massaging her head with a pained expression.
The weight of her daughter's incompetence was almost too much to bear.
But soon, an idea struck her.
A devious, political solution.
"Eleanor," she called, her voice now dangerously calm.
Her daughter answered immediately, "Yes, dear mother!"
Erzsébet tapped a long, manicured finger on the armrest of her obsidian throne and asked carefully,
"I am right to assume that they were also responsible for the mishap which caused them to get married to that boy?"
Upon hearing Erzsébet's words, Eleanor gnashed her teeth in frustration
At the painful reminder that her husband was not entirely hers.
But she still nodded, as it was the truth.
"Wonderful, then. I can just negotiate with them and arrange a collective solution," Erzsébet smiled at the wonderful idea.
"Maybe something like, 'you all fell in love with him together and impulsively married him together.'" The thought of a diplomatic victory seemed to ease her pain.
"It could even help strengthen the pact—a marriage between races."
The more Eleanor heard, the more she felt her heart screaming.
"Bu-but Valerian is mine! He belongs to me," she uttered with difficulty, the thought of cooperating and sharing almost breaking her heart.
She couldn't do that.
No way in hell.
Non, non.
Erzsébet's cold gaze met her daughter's.
"I don't care about your feelings.
Actually, it's your fault to begin with.
Now, deal with it yourself."
With that, Erzsébet disappeared into the darkness, leaving Eleanor alone, biting her lips in frustration.
'Valerian... how could I just give him up?'
Her eyes were filled with tears at the thought of having to share him.
It felt like a betrayal of her ten years of loving him.
'No, I can't let that happen,' she thought, a dark plan forming in her mind.
A plan that could cost her everything.
'But if it's for Valerian, I'm prepared to lose everything. Everything.'
With that thought, she left the room, a new, cold resolve hardening her expression.
....
The Author's Hub (Part 2)
The studio lights came up, bathing the small set in a warm glow.
Valentina sat in her velvet chair, a small, knowing smile on her face as she looked directly into the camera.
"Welcome back, everyone, to Author's Hub," she began, her voice smooth and composed.
"I am your host, Valentina."
She opened her notepad.
"A few updates this time. Eleanor is entering what I can only describe as a difficult phase." She tilted her head slightly. "Whether she acts on it — and what form that takes — I'm not yet certain. Some things aren't communicated in advance."
A pause. Something flickered behind her eyes, brief and unreadable.
"What I can say is that the path forward requires balance. The harem needs to find its footing — not the chaos you might see in other stories." A faint, dry smile. "I've been assured of that much, at least."
She turned a page.
"Now — regarding the mentor vote. Merlin appears to be the leading choice." She set the notepad down and looked directly into the camera.
"What I can tell you is that the choice of mentor isn't just about training. Each path opens a different door. Different worlds. Different people Valerian will encounter."
She listed them clearly:
Choosing Merlin leads into the Arthurian route — Avalon, and the possibility of meeting Morgan, Lady Vivian, or King Arthur.
Choosing Cu Chulainn could lead toward the Land of Shadows and The legendary Teacher Scathach's tutelage — earlier than it might otherwise happen.
Choosing Solomon opens the path to the Ars Goetia — seventy-two pillars, all of them legendary Demonic sprits.
Choosing Abe no Seimei unlocks the Japan route early, and the possibility of a Yokai encounter.
"So," Valentina said, folding her hands in her lap with a serene expression. "The choice is yours, readers."
She gave a small wave.
"Let's meet again at the next show."
With the stakes now clear — which path will Valerian take?