Ocelio took a step back, disengaging from her embrace.

She did not cling to him and instead sat on her bed, stroking her long curly brown hair.

[You told me you were responsible for dealing with the items found in the wilderness.]

She nodded, a complex expression appeared on her face. A short moment later her face turned into a calm countenance.

[That’s right. I can recognise and deal with most items found in the outer layer. Why, did you find something while you were there?]

He took the pouch out of his pocket, he dropped a few of the pellets he had taken from the Silverpine Forest on his palm.

She came closer to examine the items, putting them under her nose and scratching its surface with her red nail.

She lifted her head to glance at Ocelio, a smirk etched on her face.

She took all the pellets and placed them back in the pouch, putting them in his pocket.

[What did you think those things were?]

She did not seem to realise how seductive she was at that moment. From the moment she had begun to examine the pellets, Ocelio had been staring at her in a daze.

The soft brown light entering the room outlined her figure and made her tanned skin shine under his eyes. She only wore a loose night robe that hung to one of her shoulders, revealing her cleavage and bare shoulders. Her soft-looking skin seemed to exude something sensual, attracting one’s attention.

Her wrists and long fingers stood by the side of her body, the night robe outlined her waist and only covered half of her thighs.

Both of them stood surrounded by a dim light, but in Ocelio’s eyes, he could see every detail on her body.

He gulped his saliva in a slow, long motion. He appeared to be struggling to keep his eyes on her face, his blood had started to boil, a tingling sensation made itself known from his spine, making all his muscles constrict.

She appeared amused by his reaction, a blush had spread to her cheeks when she felt his hot breath travel to her face and noticed the hungry look in his eyes.

All of a sudden, Ocelio took a large step forward and hugged her in a forceful embrace.

She appeared to be in pain from the strength he used to grasp her body but she remained silent, a strange determination surged on her face.

Her heavy breaths leaked from her mouth, tickling Ocelio’s ears.

The last sign of restraint he had on his face disappeared, he sank his head into her neck, his hair covering his face.

Her body trembled under his influence, she lifted her head, staring at the ceiling; rough breaths along with groans leaked from her lips.

She did not seem to realise what was happening, the groans changed into moans as her eyes became covered in a veil of pleasure, her pink tongue squirmed in her mouth with a trail of saliva flowing down to her neck.

Ocelio appeared immersed on sucking on her skin, the hot blood filled his mouth without leaking a single drop. He held their bodies close to each other, at the moment when her body seemed to weaken and turn soft in his embrace, a drop of saliva touched his lips.

All of a sudden, he took his canines out of her throat as if realising what he was doing.

He licked his lips with surprise written on his face. He took a step back, examining the woman in his arms. Her face was pale, a mask of ecstasy was plastered on her face, her dilated eyes were wide open, allowing him to see all the dust like impurities swimming in them.

She did not appear conscious, her mouth remained half-open, drool escaping from her lips.

Staring at her lips, he gave her a long kiss.

He then placed her body on the bed in a gentle manner. He remained standing, staring at her vulnerable appearance in silence.

When he lowered his head, his hair covered his bright red eyes.

Inside his personal container, his bloodsea was surging with waves that disappeared into the distance.

Ocelio stood above the bloodsea in a daze, listening to the sound of the agitated waves below.

After closing the door, he did not return to his room but chose to head to the third floor.

Standing in front of the French window, he stared at the night view of the city with an emotionless expression.

A heavy sigh escaped his lips as he opened the window and jumped outside.

He appeared confident of himself today, he did not use jump on the roofs but used the three steps technique to find a quiet place to practice his vampire techniques.

When it was halfway through the night, he returned to his apartment, lying down on his bed and staring at the ceiling.

He did not manage to find sleep until an hour later.

[I am not sure sir, let me send someone to inquire for you.]

Eucliedes, the receptionist appeared troubled by Ocelio’s request, yet he promised to have the information ready by the time he was done with his breakfast.

The cafeteria of the Warrior Association was empty, the Bloodrainists appeared to be still sleeping at this early hour of the day. Ocelio sat on a table wearing dark blue trousers and a dark grey knitted turtleneck cardigan, clothes he bought in the city.

He had a light meal: a drink with a cup of small brown grains; the grains were to be added to the milk to give it a unique flavour, whether sweet, sour or fruity. He inhaled the scent coming from the liquid, his face relaxed under the sweet fragrance similar to chocolate from his previous world.

He took a few bites of a biscuit with a soft bread texture, along with two brown fruits that had the same shape and taste as apples.

After returning to the reception hall of the first building Eucliedes informed him that the exposition art would take place at noon.

[Thank you, do you happen to know anything about magical plants and strange items?]

A humble smile was drawn on his face, he nodded his head in affirmative.

[Sir, like I told you, I have a friend that require a constant supply of herbs and other natural resources found in the wilderness. I do not want to brag but I do know some things.]

Ocelio did not wait for him to finish, he took a few pellets from his pocket and placed them on the counter.

[What can you tell me about this?]

[Hmm, if I’m not mistaken, this must be the droppings from a magical beast. There is no smell and it’s hard, if you allow me to crush it, I would be more certan of my evaluation.]

Receiving Ocelio’s agreement, Eucliedes used all his strength on the small pebble in his hand. However, it did not change one iota.

He took a cup from his desk, ready to smash it on the pellet, however, Ocelio’s voice stopped his action.

[Give me.]

Ocelio pinned the pellet between his thump and index, crushing it to dust the next moment. Most of it fell to the floor with some powder sticking to his fingers.

[Yes, I’m sure of it. It must be the excrement from a magical beast. I’m not competent enough to figure which beast it belonged to, but I know for a fact that sir Sosilus and dame Korrito are skilled in this field, if you leave some of these droppings with me, I’ll make sure to inquire of them.]

[It’s okay, forget it.]

He cleaned his fingers with a tissue that was handed to him by the receptionist and was about to leave when he appeared to remember something.

[What about the mission I’ve completed?]

[Yes, a city official came to announce the completion of the mission yesterday afternoon. In normal times it’s the administrator who handles the reward distribution but he’s not in his office today.]

Eucliedes went to search on his desk among the piles of parchments.

[Oh, does he not come to work? That means you’re the only one working here?]

He turned around to answer, he seemed troubled by something.

[No, of course, there are the maintenance workers who work from noon to the middle of the afternoon and the kitchen staff who always remain nearby to cater to the needs of our guests. The administrator used to always remain within the confine of the Association during the week, however, he has been getting older. Please do not blame him, life has been hard for him.]

[What do you mean?]

[Well, I shouldn’t be speaking of this but seeing we’re guilty of not treating sir with proper due, I’ll share a piece of information with you.]

He looked around with a suspicious face, when he made sure no one was listening, he opened his mouth.

[Sir Sillibus has experienced a horrible disaster a few weeks ago. He wasn’t the same since. His son, I pray for his soul, has died in a carriage accident. He and his friends have been using the tunnel outside the city entrance to race with their carriages and during one of these races, the young Sillibus, aged only of 19 died crushed under his carriage as it came apart.]

Ocelio creased his eyebrows. The tunnels he had taken to leave the city weren’t large enough for more than two carriages to travel at the same time.

[Sir Sillibus was never the same since. He still has other children but losing his eldest son at his age…a calamity. No word can describe what he has gone through.]

After finding the parchments, Eucliedes searched in a drawer, taking out a small pouch from within.

[Congratulation to sir for completing your first request in our Association branch. I look forward to having you use our services again. The owner of the request signified that the mission was completed with excellence, so per the contract, sir will receive 1 silver coin. Please sign here.]

The parchment recording his request had a few new lines of writing indicating that the mission was completed with perfection.

A signature and a name was below: Militades Fabilitas

Seeing nothing wrong, he wrote his name and left the building.

A few minutes after he left, Eucliedes took the parchment from the drawer in which he has stored it.

He examined Ocelio’s signature for a second, a radiant smile formed on his face.

[Ocelio Enigma. What a grand name, I wonder which renowned dynasty sir come from.]

***

Far from the city, in the sky above the Silverpine Forest, a being made its descent to the centre of the forest. His wings pushed against the air, sending shockwaves in the surroundings.

When he landed, he was no bigger than a human head, however, his size did not seem relative to his strength.

At his arrival, all the creatures that roamed nearby collapsed on the floor, kneeling.

[Mother asked of me the impossible. How can my feathers grow as strong as Father…]

He glanced at the creatures pressured by his aura. Among them, a gigantic mouse that towered above the others, with a silver head nearing the tallest branches of the forest stared back at him.

The mouse round eyes showed a curiosity that did not hide the slight admiration he felt toward the winged beast.

[I’ll play in your territory for a while, don’t come bothering me.]

[Yes.]

The exchange between these magical beasts came to an end with the winged beast trotting to the deepest area of the forest.