"Yeah," I mumbled, my mouth full of food. I swallowed and nodded. "The vampires were pretty strong, but fortunately Headmistress Taylor showed up, killed most of them and drove them out of the school. She wanted to hunt them down, but…as you know, most of the students needed medical help."

"Ah…I see. Of course. Teresa Taylor was always one to prioritize her students over everything else. Still, as expected of the legendary White Witch. I see she's as formidable as ever. She hasn't gotten any weaker despite her age."

"Yeah, if anything, she has gotten much stronger. I'm sure she'll rescue all the missing students the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan abducted."

"It'll be good if that happens," Mrs. Nan Gong agreed, twiddling her fingers anxiously. "I really hope both Zhao Yan and Ji Yan are safe."

Hah! Ji Yan was a traitor and she didn't deserved to be rescued at all. In fact, the moment Teresa Taylor found her, she would most likely execute her on the spot for betraying the school to the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan. And rightly so. The b.i.t.c.h sacrificed so many of her schoolmates and teachers just to preserve her pathetic life.

I didn't say that out loud, of course. Instead, I snuck a peek around the table Yue Jian nodded at her mother's words, clasping her hands. I noticed she hadn't touched the food much. It was clear that she didn't have any appet.i.te at all. Probably too worried about the fate of her missing sisters. She put on a strained smile when I glanced in her direction, probably grateful that I had brought some news. Any information was better than nothing.

Feeling bad for taking advantage of their hospitality (and eating all the food that Yue Jian didn't touch), I offered to help out with the dishes after we finished our meal. Mrs. Nan Gong protested, but I insisted and won out, particularly because it seemed that Yue Jian was out of it and almost dropped a fragile plate.

"Thank you. I really appreciate it."

I could tell that Yue Jian's mother wasn't referring only to me was.h.i.+ng the dishes. She was also expressing her grat.i.tude to me for bringing the news of Zhao Yan and a.s.suaging their worries. I nodded as I splashed the plates with water and scrubbed them with a dishsponge.

"I hope Headmistress Taylor, the military and the mercenaries rescue Zhao Yan and the others."

"Yes…"

After rinsing the plates and freeing them from bubbly dishwas.h.i.+ng detergent, I placed them on a metal tray at the side of the sink to allow them to drip dry. Toweling my hands with a cloth that Yue Jian's mother offered, I proceeded to the living room, where Nan Gong Jiao Shou and Yue Jian resumed watching the news for any update concerning Zhao Yan and Ji Yan.

There was nothing. At least not yet.

"Have a seat."

Nan Gong Jiao Shou nodded to me and gestured toward an open s.p.a.ce on the sofa. I was about to sit down when a wailing noise pierced the air. A red light attached to the ceiling flashed brightly, streams of crimson was.h.i.+ng the interior of the house. Nan Gong Jiao Shou immediately leaped to his feet.

"Someone has tripped the security alarm?"

Wow…that was some pretty advanced security system that you had installed in the house…who the h.e.l.l installed a red, wailing siren? Clearly Nan Gong Jiao Shou and his family were no ordinary people. I might be mistaken, but I was pretty sure that even rich people didn't have flas.h.i.+ng lights. Sophisticated burglar alarms, yeah, but a red siren?

Nan Gong Jiao Shou strode over the window, which was now closed, and glanced outside. I followed suit and spotted a huge group of hooded figures cl.u.s.tering outside in the courtyard.

"There are a lot of people approaching the house." Nan Gong Jiao Shou swallowed and then turned to his wife and daughter. "We have to leave immediately."

"Yes!"

The two of them nodded. Evidently it wasn't wise to stick around when you had a bunch of suspicious-looking dudes in hoods showin up at the front of your residence in large numbers. I felt a premonition in the form of a chill trickling down my spine.

This mana…these guys were from the Crimson Blood Demonic Night Clan, or at least practiced similar blood magic!

The Nan Gong family didn't notice or recognized the aura of blood magic. Under Nan Gong Jiao Shou's directions, Yue Jian and her mother didn't hesitate, already departing through the front door. Nan Gong Jiao Shou grabbed his coat and car keys. Meanwhile, I bowed gratefully to him.

"Thank you for not telling them to pack their luggage before leaving."

Nan Gong Jiao Shou stared at me, baffled. "Why would I do that? Those intruders are right on our doorstep. We don't have time to pack any luggage."

"EXACTLY!" I shouted, startling him.

"Uh…?"

"Sorry. Never mind."

It was my fault for a.s.suming that Nan Gong Jiao Shou was a badly written manhua character who would be killed off so that the female main characters could do the whole tragic orphans trope later in the story.

"As long as you don't do something nonsensical that can be construed as an excuse for showing how the heroine grabs the MacGuffins before running."

"What are MacGuffins? Why would Yue Jian grab burgers before escaping?"

"No, no. MacGuffins. A kind of plot device that exists in the form of an object to move the plot forward even though there's no logic to it, just so the story can go on. Anyway, let's not waste time arguing. They're closing in on us."

Nan Gong Jiao Shou nodded as he glanced outside the window, noting how close the trespa.s.sers were to the house.

"You should follow us too. Those b.a.s.t.a.r.ds out there definitely won't let you off even if you're not part of our family."

"No, I'm going to stay here and buy you time to escape. Don't worry, I will be able to hold them off for fifteen minutes at least…"

"No!" Nan Gong Jiao Shou snapped. "They have probably brought their veterans with them! Hurry up and don't waste time arguing! Just trust me! You definitely will not be able to fight against the adult vampires! There is no way they wouldn't bring their elders to capture my family."

I was about to protest, but I hesitated. Something about the way Nan Gong Jiao Shou worded his statement felt off. It was as if he knew these intruders were here because they were targeting his family, and he was even familiar with the way they operated.

Does his family have some sort of relations.h.i.+p with the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan? Nah, that can't be. Fan Le Lao didn't even recognize Zhao Yan.

However, Xu Wu Cheng had approached Ji Yan specifically and tried to extricate information from her. Maybe…

Well, there was no time to think about such matters. I quickly followed Nan Gong Jiao Shou and his family to their car in the garage. As his wife slid into the pa.s.senger seat, Yue Jian and I took our places at the back. Nan Gong Jiao Shou slid his key into the ignition and twisted it, coaxing the engine to life.

The garage door opened, revealing a bunch of vampires waiting for us. Snarling, they reached out, their b.l.o.o.d.y mana coalescing around them as they unleashed their spells.

"d.a.m.n b.a.s.t.a.r.ds!" Nan Gong Jiao Shou cursed. His wife frowned.

"Language, dear."

"Now isn't the time for that!" The professor snapped before he floored the accelerator. "Hang on, everyone. Make sure you have your seatbelts on! I'm going to charge past them!"

The car roared as it burst out of the garage, knocking down the lunging vampires and running over some of them. Most of them were thrown into the air from the impact, toppling over like bowling pins while a few of them were left with broken bones and unnaturally twisted joints after the car ran over them, pools of blood spreading under their sprawled bodies.

"Awesome! You turned them all into roadkill!" I cheered and punched my fist into the air. Even as the car lurched forward, my seatbelt pinned me back to my seat. Seatbelts really saved lives. On the other hand, I knew the vampires wouldn't die from this. Their unnatural regenerative abilities would kick in soon if they hadn't already. Peering through the rear window, I saw that several of them were already standing up, their twisted limbs spinning back and their bones popping into place after they cast their healing spells.

Beside me, Yue Jian trembled uncontrollably, her hands pale and clasped tightly in her lap. Glancing at his daughter from the rear view mirror, Nan Gong Jiao Shou offered some a.s.surance.

"It's all right now, Yue Jian. Don't be scared."

"Yes!"

"Who are those awful people?" Mrs. Nan Gong demanded, her voice shaky. Nan Gong Jiao Shou's shoulders slumped and he shook his head.

"They're the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan," I offered helpfully. "The same group of vampires who attacked Saint Teresa academy yesterday."

"Why are they after us?"

This time, I didn't know the answer, so I fell silent.

"They must be after the Nan Gong clan's secret magic," Nan Gong Jiao Shou replied with a troubled expression. His wife glanced at him blankly and he continued to explain. "I had Zhao Yan and Yue Jian inherit the Nan Gong clan's secret magic, which consists of purifying magic not dissimilar to the holy magic that Teresa Taylor wields. In essence, they have the potential to be Paladins. This makes them exceedingly dangerous to vampires who practice blood magic such as the Crimson Blood Demonic Night clan. By consuming the blood of a mage of the Nan Gong family who has learned these holy spells, they will be able to significantly boost their magic and grow more rapidly."

"b.l.o.o.d.y bloodsuckers," I muttered under my breath. Nan Gong Jiao Shou didn't seem to have heard me. He stared at the road, his knuckles whitening as he gripped the steering wheel tightly.

"We'll reach the city in thirty minutes," he told us in a tense voice. "We'll head to Saint Teresa Academy straight. We should be safe under Headmistress Taylor's protection."

"Uh, is Headmistress Taylor even in the academy?" I asked. "She closed it down, remember?"

"Oh, you're right." Nan Gong Jiao Shou tried to suppress his annoyance at himself. "Thanks for reminding me. Fortunately, I know her address. We'll head for her home. Even if we enter Flandor City, the Federation will mobilize the military and escort us the moment they see the vampires pursing us. I bet Teresa Taylor will show up herself when she hears about this."

I didn't object to that. There was no way these vampires would want to face Teresa Taylor's wrath, especially after she roasted their king and the top echelons of their clan just yesterday. The military showing up was the icing on the cake, and they would buy us enough time for the White Witch to make her grand appearance.

However, as he turned around a bend, a group of hooded figures suddenly came to view. Standing in the middle of the road like idiots, they waited for Nan Gong Jiao Shou's car to knock them down. Seeing them, Yue Jian raised her hand and pointed.

"Dad, in front…!"

"I see them!"

Nan Gong Jiao Shou gunned the accelerator and the car shot forward mercilessly, seeking to trample any idiotic vampire stupid enough to stand in its way. However, one blood mage was sharp enough to jump to the side when the car hurtled toward his group and knocked over his comrades. Snarling, he lashed out with a maninfused hand, using Blood Claws to smash through the reinforced window and reach for a screaming Yue Jian.

"Aaah!"

The vampire seized Yue Jian's arm and attempted to drag her out through the broken window.

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