“It’s finally done.” [Evelyn]

Kneeling on the floor, Evelyn said in a tired and somewhat excited tone of voice as she dropped the white chalk next to her. In the same dark and empty room that she did her experiments in, a magic circle was drawn. It was the culmination of her work. It was the gateway to lead her to what she desired.

“This is a bit late to say, but are you sure it will work?” [Daniel]

Standing next to her, Daniel spoke worriedly while staring at the circle. He had a good reason to be worried. This wasn’t going to be another experiment. Evelyn herself was going to get teleported to another world. If things went wrong, she might die.

“I have been working on this for nearly six hundred years. Lord Daniel, it will work.” [Evelyn]

However, Evelyn’s resolve was firm and she answered with confidence.

“Very well, but how will you find Ryner? If what you say is true, then there are many different worlds. Your father could be in any one of them.” [Daniel]

“There is no need to worry. I have some of his hair with me in this chest. My teleportation magic will use it to find him and take me to him.” [Ryner]

Evelyn grabbed a small, dark brown chest that was next to her and got up. She patted the dust off the skirt of her black dress and carefully opened the chest. Inside was a lock of black hair that was tied up and put on a piece of white cloth.

She slowly took it out, making sure not to damage it in any way, and held it with both hands. “You kept your father’s hair in a chest?” was what Daniel wanted to ask, but he wisely chose to keep quiet when he saw her delighted expression as she stared at it. Her cheeks were red and her eyes were a bit hazy.

“Can you really find him with his hair?” [Daniel]

“I believe so. According to Ryner himself, the body retains a link with the soul, no matter how weak it is. So, I can use this to find his soul.” [Evelyn]

Evelyn recalled the time she was little. Back then, Ryner used to tell her bedtime stories on her request. The ones made for children bored her and she wanted to hear something original. So, her foster father told her stories about a man that travelled through different worlds and experienced all kinds of things.

When his body was destroyed, his soul would simply migrate to another world. He was a being that existed for countless years and lived the life of many different creatures such as humans, therianthropes and vampires. He was an immortal being.

The stories were all exciting and they were so many things she could never imagine like airplanes and floating castles. The little vampire wondered where Ryner got his inspirations. At first, she thought that he made them up on the spot. But, as time passed and he kept telling her more stories, she noticed that in the sad parts of the man’s adventures, Ryner would show an equally sorrowful look for a moment.

During the happy times when the protagonist made friends, her father would become happy as well. When they died and the man was left all alone, he would look like he was about to cry. She was a clever child. She knew he wasn’t acting to make the adventures livelier. What she saw was his poker face slipping off for a second.

Also, whenever he went to battle and she clung to him with teary eyes, he would always tell her the same thing to relieve her fear.

“Don’t worry, kid. Even if I die, I won’t die. I’m freaking immortal.” [Ryner]

However, when he really did die and she learnt the truth, she started to remember the bedtime stories he told her. She remembered his personality, his actions, his achievements and his unorthodox knowledge that he sometimes showed. All of them defied common sense for a dhampir. He was a strange man.

With him dead and her heart in despair, she started to wonder: “What if those stories were about himself? What if he was an immortal being that came back to life in another world? What if he is out there, somewhere?”

Her wishful thinking made her connect the dots so that she would see a reality she wanted to see. Her father was alive in a different world. She could still meet him. So, completely believing in her own conclusion that was born out of a bit of reasoning and a lot of desperation, she threw herself in her research for centuries.

Her thoughts seemed insane, but Daniel didn’t stop her. That small hope was all that was holding her together. Moreover, a part of him also believed the same thing after thinking about his interactions with that man as well as their last conversation. Ryner was too unusual to have been born in this world.

“Centuries had gone by since his death. Does his hair really still retain a link with him?” [Daniel]

The old vampire with gray hair asked the blonde woman that was intently staring at the lock of black hair as if it was a great treasure.

“It will be alright, Lord Daniel. Although it has completely lost his scent and I admit I neglected it after his death. But, after you told me the truth, not once did I forget to take care of it. Also, to preserve it forever, I’ve made sure to never use it for myself. I am sure the link is still there.” [Evelyn]

Evelyn looked at Daniel and spoke with a serious expression, completely confident in her claim. However, instead of feeling relieved, the Minister of the Right was a bit taken aback. Using his wisdom once more, he decided to let it slide and not voice out his questions such as “Use it for what?”

“Well then, I shall be going.” [Evelyn]

Without any fear, Evelyn entered the magic circle. She stood in the middle and turned around to face the old vampire. She bowed her head and spoke with respect to her benefactor who let her meet Ryner.

“Thank you for everything you have done for me. I owe you a great deal.” [Evelyn]

“As expected, you won’t be calling him to us.” [Daniel]

“Correct, this world no longer has a place for him. In that case, I will go to him. Furthermore, during my research, I realized that I don’t belong here either.” [Evelyn]

She closed her eyes and smiled sweetly as she thought about his sleepy-looking, somewhat dumb, but kind expression. Her cheeks were dyed red and her face was just like that of a maiden in love.

“My place is by his side.” [Evelyn]

“… Is that so? Then, I have nothing more to say.” [Daniel]

Daniel had a small smile as he thought about how far this young lady had come. Most likely, no one could rival such a talented individual that had been groomed by Ryner since young. Losing her would be a huge loss to the kingdom.

As the Minister of the Right, he should try to keep her here and have her summon Ryner back to this world if he really was alive somewhere. He could then hide his identity and have him work for him once more. But, he couldn’t say anything when he saw such a pure and wonderful expression.

“(Despite being so talented, she isn’t conceited and can make such a face. Ryner, you’ve raised her well.)” [Daniel]

“On second thought, I do have something to say. When you see him again, make sure to hit him for stabbing me.” [Daniel]

The old vampire winked and said jokingly.

“Understood. I also plan on paying him back for leaving me… Even if I betray his trust, he needs to be punished.” [Evelyn]

Her love-struck maiden expression disappeared in an instant. A sinister smile appeared on her face, her eyes looked a bit crazy and a dark aura seemed to be emanating from her. Furthermore, for some reason, her cheeks were red and she was imagining something while panting slightly.

“(… Ryner, I think something went wrong when you raised her.)” [Daniel]

Snapping out of it, Evelyn bowed to Daniel once more and started chanting. The magic circle glowed blue and the light slowly intensified. Shining particles appeared from it and went to the lock of hair as if it were attracted to it. As a result, the hair also began to glow in her hands and started to dissipate in the air like sand. Then, the magic circle let out a flash of light that blinded the old vampire and covered the dark room in white light.

When Daniel opened his eyes again, Evelyn was gone. The magic circle turned into a black scorch mark on the floor. Right now, she could be travelling through worlds or she could be ripped to pieces. Either way, he won’t be seeing her again. However, he believed that she succeeded. He believed that Ryner was alive somewhere and she reunited with him.

“*Sigh* What a tiresome father-daughter pair. I can’t keep up at my age anymore.” [Daniel]

He looked up at the ceiling and thought back about that night. It was the night when he saw Ryner for the last time. He was in his office doing paperwork at his desk when that dhampir suddenly barged in. As always, he was wearing a red mantle over extravagant clothes that didn’t suit his personality. The symbol of his clan, a rose, was on his back and a sword hung on his waist.

“What’s the matter? Don’t you knock anymore?” [Daniel]

“We’ve got some trouble and I’m here to dutifully report it to you. I am, technically, your servant.” [Ryner]

“Then, it would be nice if you acted more like one… Well, what is it?” [Daniel]

After exchanging light greetings, Daniel looked at him with a serious expression. The man that was always laidback and possessed a lazy atmosphere actually looked a bit anxious. It was probably something quite serious.

“Long story short, the peace envoy of our neighboring kingdom just got slaughtered by the Minister of the Right’s men and it looks like I did it.” [Ryner]

“Wha-!” [Daniel]

He was right on the mark. Daniel was slack jawed and his eyes were wide opened because of the shocking report. A war between their kingdom and Ceithon might happen. No, it was definitely going to happen. He didn’t doubt Ryner’s words since he understood his personality to some degree.

Despite being lazy, he liked to fight, but he never started one for no reason. Furthermore, this was essentially picking a fight with an entire nation. He wouldn’t go that far just to have an exciting battle.

“The Minister of the Right?! Why?!” [Daniel]

“Before I killed him, one of his men said that Ceithon promised to make him king if they won the war. That guy did look at the throne with ambitious eyes quite a few times already.” [Ryner]

“Kh! That old coot! To think we’ll be betrayed by one of the highest ranking noble! And Ceithon! Are they actually willing to break the treaty?!” [Daniel]

Daniel got up from his chair and started pacing back and forth in the middle of the room with his hands behind his back. The situation was horrible. Their race was not invincible. Vampires were powerful, but they were few while dhampirs couldn’t fight during the day without worrying about being turned to ash. There would be great casualties during the war.

“The Treaty of the Five Nations stipulates that any kingdom that starts a fight will get ganged up on by the other four. So, to get a good reason to wage war without any intervention…” [Ryner]

“They sent a peace envoy and had them massacred in our lands…” [Daniel]

“Yeah and also… I think framing me was for revenge.” [Ryner]

Without any tension, Ryner scratched the back of his head and uttered words that Daniel couldn’t ignore.

“Revenge? Why?” [Daniel]

“I beat up the eldest prince a few decades ago when I visited their country. The sun sure was hot…” [Ryner]

“You what?!” [Daniel]

The old vampire couldn’t believe that he did something like that. He stopped pacing and looked at him with disbelief. Ryner was smart, but he had his dumb moments. However, he never thought that he would be this dumb.

“He was dead drunk, barged in during a wedding and used his authority to sleep with the bride!” [Ryner]

“So you beat him up for trying to steal some woman?!” [Daniel]

As if to refute his blame, Ryner raised his hand and spoke plainly with his sleepy-looking expression.

“No, I punched him because he bumped into me while he was dragging her away.” [Ryner]

“RYNER!” [Daniel]

“That was forty years ago! The guy should be sixty-seventy and suffering from Alzheimer!” [Ryner]

Ryner’s pathetic attempt to explain his actions didn’t appease Daniel at all. He ignored the strange word that this dhampir mentioned since he would sometimes say weird things and started pacing again.

“Why… Why would you do that?! You’re a noble! You’re one of the most prominent figures in our kingdom! Your actions reflect on all of us!” [Daniel]

“… Yeah, I’ve lived for so long, I forgot about it.” [Ryner]

“Long?! You’ve only lived for five hundred years!” [Daniel]

“No, I didn’t mean this life… Yeah, it’s just one life, so I wasn’t as careful as I should be… It’s been so long since I had a home to worry about. I didn’t think I would have this life when I chose to be a dhampir.” [Ryner]

He muttered the latter half to himself in a quiet voice. The old vampire’s anger receded a bit when he saw his trusted subordinate make such a sad face. It was the expression of someone contemplating his life, his failures.

His eyes were looking at something far, far away. It suddenly felt like countless years were catching up to Ryner at once and he seemed older than the grey-haired man in front of him.

“Ryner?” [Daniel]

“You’re right. It’s my fault. I should have acted more like a dhampir and less like me. I forgot what it was like to carry this sort of responsibility.” [Ryner]

When Daniel called out to him, Ryner answered with a serious expression. Seeing that, although he didn’t fully understand everything he said, Daniel sighed and calmed down.

“*Sigh* It’s fine if you understand, but now we need to worry about the problem at hand. If the royal family is angry about what happened to their prince, then you could apologize.” [Daniel]

“I doubt that’ll work. That prince is the king now and if he still remembered me drunk, then he probably won’t let go of his grudge with just an apology.” [Ryner]

“Then, what do you suggest we do?” [Daniel]

“… It’s actually good timing. Truth is, I’ve been planning on leaving for a while. I’ve stayed here too long. Consuming any more life force would be bad.” [Ryner]

“What was that?” [Daniel]

Daniel couldn’t hear clearly because he muttered in a low voice and asked him to speak up, but Ryner simply looked at him with a gentle expression and shook his head.

“I can’t fight this war. I have my own war to fight.” [Ryner]

“Huh? What are you talking abo-Ack!“ [Daniel]

Before Daniel could finish speaking, Ryner closed the distance between them and stabbed him in the stomach with his sword. Disbelief colored his face as he looked at the blade sticking out of him. A sharp pain attacked him and blood spilled out of the wound.

“Ugh… You-“ [Daniel]

Ryner hugged him with his free arm and softly spoke in his ear.

“The king of Ceithon wants me disgraced and dead to fix his honor and he’s willing to drag everyone in his revenge. I’m a valuable asset that the kingdom wants to keep. If I prove my innocence, a war will break out. He’ll reject any evidence we bring. There’s no avoiding it. So, if we want to avoid war, we need to give in. We need to make some concessions. We need a skilled negotiator… And we need a scapegoat.” [Ryner]

He pulled his sword out and supported Daniel as he fell on his knees with a hand clutching the wound. His eyes were opened wide and his mind was preoccupied with something else than pain when he heard Ryner’s words. He understood what he planned on doing.

“You can’t be seen as my ally anymore. It’s nothing personal, but I’m taking this chance to leave. It’s not the best goodbye, but it’ll have to do. I can’t stay forever.” [Ryner]

“*Cough* R-Ryner… You…” [Daniel]

He coughed up blood on the dhampir’s shirt and tried to speak, but he couldn’t say anything when he saw his face.

“Evelyn’s a sharp kid. She’ll figure out that something’s weird from the way you’re acting and that’s what I want. Please tell her the truth. I want her to know that I didn’t betray her, but tell her after that damn king is dead. I don’t want her to make the same mistake I did.” [Ryner]

He was crying. While gently smiling at him, Ryner was crying. That sleepy-looking man that never seemed perturbed by anything was crying.

“Tell her I’m leaving, but I’m not abandoning her. Tell her I’m sorry. Tell her… Tell her I love her and… I’m proud to be her father.” [Ryner]

Putting his bloodied sword on the ground, he supported Daniel’s head and back and gently laid him down on his back. The grey-haired man tried to grab him by the mantle with his hand, but Ryner nimbly moved away and picked up his sword. He stood up and looked at the old vampire with tears falling from his cheeks.

“I’m no patriot, but I will protect my country… Because it’s the home of those I care about.” [Ryner]

He got down on his knees and lowered his head to the floor. This shocked Daniel who had blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. He could feel it from the atmosphere around him. Ryner was earnestly prostrating before him even though he never respected the king or the other nobles.

“You’ve been good to me for years. I’m sorry I have to leave like this.” [Ryner]

He raised his face and looked at him in the eyes. His sleepy-looking expression returned, but his tears were still falling.

“Thanks for everything, Daniel.” [Ryner]

“W-wait! *Cough* Ryner!” [Daniel]

He thanked him one last time with a small, pure smile before getting up. He wiped away his tears with his sleeve and all emotions disappeared from his face. As he turned around and left the room, Daniel stretched his hand out to stop that idiot that was going to die after sullying his name, but he couldn’t reach him. He wouldn’t die from the wound, but he was still seriously injured, so he couldn’t stand up.

Soon after, he could hear a huge ruckus beyond the door and guards came rushing in his room. They panicked when they saw his state and proceeded to treat his injuries while asking him what happened.

As a noble that served the kingdom for thousands of years, he knew what he had to do. Even if his feelings were in turmoil, he knew the decision he had to make. Ryner already made all the necessary preparations. So, he uttered out those words as if spitting blood.

“Ryner attacked me… He betrayed the kingdom.” [Daniel]

Waking up from his flashback, Daniel looked around the room he was in. There was nothing there except for a scorch mark on the floor, a small chest and a piece of chalk. He put the chalk in the chest and looked at it for a while as he thought about the two most amazing people he ever met.

“Evelyn disposed of her research notes already, so it leaves only this. I will have to get rid of it later… Like father, like daughter, they leave me to clean up after them.” [Daniel]

Holding the chest in his hand, he left the room with a smile on his face.

“No, unlike the father, the daughter knows how to properly say goodbye.” [Daniel]

Once the door closed behind him, the room was completely empty. Only a scorch mark was left, proof that a young woman was on her way to meet the person dearest to her.

The next day, after showing Maya the Avalon and staying there until night, Ryner and Maya went to the ruin again once they had breakfast. Since the young prince, Carl, was mad because he didn’t get to play with Ryner for a while, he had to play chess with him for a bit before leaving. This included making some small talk with the princess, Lilian, and sparring with the first prince, Alex.

After leaving the castle, they stood out in the streets because Maya was a beastman and a slave, but no one approached them or caused them any trouble. Arriving at their destination, they slaughtered the Raptors and went to the secret passage.

Ryner then resumed his work on repairing the ship while Maya, who was given the Honeybees, was practicing in the training room to get used to the Artifact. After working up a sweat, the beastman went back to her master. Walking down the corridor with white, metallic walls, she arrived before a door. Standing in front of it, it slid to the side on its own and she walked in the room.

The place was filled with black cables hanging on the ceiling and screens built in the walls that were showing a bunch of weird symbols in a green background. Sitting at a desk in the middle, Ryner was rapidly typing at a keyboard as he intently watched the computer screen in front of him. The White Wing was leaning next to him. Noticing her presence, he stopped typing and stretched his arms above his head.

“Master, do you have some time now?” [Maya]

“Yeah, I just finished inputting the commands for the repair drones. What is it?” [Ryner]

“Those flying boxes? Anyway, I was wondering if you could spar with me. I’d like to get more experience with these Honeybees. Let’s go a few rounds~.” [Maya]

“Hmm, good idea. Alright then.” [Ryner]

He got off his chair and picked up the white sword. They walked down the corridor and headed for the training room.

“That sword is called White Wing, right?” [Maya]

“Yeah.” [Ryner]

“It sounds better than Honeybees. Why didn’t you give these a better name~?” [Maya]

May asked in an almost sulking tone as she raised her hands to show the gloves she was wearing.

“I didn’t give them their names. Their previous owners did.” [Ryner]

“The previous owners?” [Maya]

Ryner yawned and put a hand in front of his mouth before answering her while scratching his head. Maya tilted her head when she heard him as she wondered who he got these powerful Artifacts from.

“Yeah, it was their right as the wielders, though I’m the current wielder now.” [Ryner]

As they continued their casual chatter, a bright light suddenly enveloped them, forcing them to stop and cover their eyes. With their senses on high alert, the two got ready for any ambushes, but nothing happened. Then, they felt the presence of a third person that appeared in front of them out of the blue.

As the light subsided and they opened their eyes, they saw a woman with long blonde hair and red eyes standing before them. She was wearing a black, one-piece dress with a red rose on her chest. The thought that she was an enemy didn’t pass through Maya’s head. After all, this mysterious woman was crying as she clutched the skirt of her dress. There was no way an enemy could make such a tender expression.

Moreover, next to her, her master was dumbly standing there with his eyes wide opened. That was the first time she saw him make such a face. Right now, he was greatly shaken up and his lips parted to softly whisper a word in a trembling voice.

“Evie…” [Ryner]

The woman, Evelyn, trembled when she heard his voice call out to her and blushed instantly. Her very core shook when he called her with the nickname that only he was allowed to use. Despite looking younger, she knew that it was him.

She already had a plan in mind for when they met. She would kneel and apologize to him over and over again until he forgave her. Then, she would hit him for leaving her behind. Afterwards, they would make up, hug and laugh.

But, when she saw that her desperate research was correct, when she finally saw him again, her heart felt like it was set on fire. Her emotions were in chaos. She couldn’t hold back her tears or think straight. Her plan was thrown out the window and only one thought came to mind.

She wanted to embrace him.

“Ryner…” [Evelyn]

As tears spilled from her eyes, she threw herself at him.

“Ryneeeer!!! UWAAAAAAAAA!!!” [Evelyn]

With her arms around his neck, she cried loudly like a child that was finally reunited with her parent. With her face buried in his chest, she ascertained the warmth of the person dearest to her. She had finally found him. She didn’t want to let go ever again.

“*Sniff* uuuu, WAAAAAAAA!!! Hic, UWAAAAAA!!!” [Evelyn]

Both Ryner and Maya were dumbfounded, but soon, gradually catching up with the current situation, the former dhampir slowly and hesitantly put his arms around her back. This made her cry even more and she hugged him tighter.

Evelyn continued to cry in Ryner’s arms for what seemed like hours. With the man she loved embracing her, a dam had burst inside her and she was letting out all of the pain that had accumulated in her heart since he left her. Finally, after six hundred years, Evelyn was reunited with Ryner.

*Author* How's that? Was the scene touching enough, or did it need more crying?

By the way, though it's obvious, I'm not uploading a chapter every day or every two days. I'll try to make it every three or four days. I can guarantee one chapter per week, but not now since I've got some stuff to do. So, wait till next week for the next part.