Chapter 116 How It All Began (3)
Jin and Irina's relationship started with a wholesome interaction, one that gave Irina her first sense of love and belonging. The attention and company that Jin provided were something the young girl sought dearly and eventually got addicted to.
Time and time again, Irina would leave her post in the villa to sneak out and meet the young boy she'd just met. In just a mere week of meeting Jin, Irina had completely ignored the other girls she was meant to be socialising with, drawing some confusion among the girls.
Ysabelle, in particular, who was still hung up on completing her duty as a Blackburn daughter, was the most concerned about Irina's constant absence.
"Irina is gone again?" Ysabelle looked at the other two girls in the living room and cautiously asked.
Over the past week, the three girls had started to socialise in the absence of Irina. While they weren't complete friends yet, they managed to get a few sentences across to each other. Ysabelle and Lilith especially.
Lilith was a rather haughty child and would much prefer to study her books than socialise with the other three girls, but she knew the importance of maintaining a good relationship with the other three Guardian Houses. Particularly since she was the chosen heir and would likely need their assistance in the distant future.
Meanwhile, Ysabelle was just happy to converse with someone in the group, given that they started on a sour note.
"She's been leaving the house quite frequently," Lilith replied with a bored expression. "Just leave her be; we can't force someone to like us. If Irina wants to be a loner, so be it."
Lilith was a pragmatist. If Irina didn't like them, then there was nothing that they could do to change that. It was best to let nature take its course; perhaps Irina would slowly open herself up to them. But naturally, Lilith wasn't someone who would go out of her way to make that change happen.
"But still! It's dangerous to go outside all alone! She's only eight years old!"
"Aren't you only nine as well?"
"That's why I'm worried about her!"
Lilith rolled her eyes, her interest in the subject quickly waning.
"If you're that worried, why don't you ask Rosalyn? She's up every morning; I'm sure she saw Irina leave the house."
"T-That…"
Ysabelle froze for a moment, and her eyes wandered to the green-haired girl seated on the balcony. Caught in a daze, the young Rosalyn was staring into nothingness with her face void of any emotion.
While Ysabelle and Lilith were on talking terms, neither of them had become closer to Rosalyn. They could communicate just fine, and every time they talked, they could exchange a few sentences, but… Rosalyn's lack of emotions really unnerved the two girls.
It felt like they were talking to an Artificial Intelligence bot that was programmed to reply with the same few words every time. Also, it didn't help that Rosalyn loved to spend hours at a time staring into the greenery and would never once join the communal sessions to socialise.
Even the outgoing Ysabelle couldn't help but feel weirded out by her new acquaintance's behaviour.
But alas, Rosalyn was the only one who knew where Irina went, so…
"R-Rosalyn… Do you mind if I sit down?"
Ysabelle stammered as she flimsily made her way to the balcony. Like a mechanical robot, Rosalyn twisted her neck slowly to observe her new partner, and after a delicate few seconds, she replied:
"... Irina's location?"
"A-Ah, so you've heard me, right?" Ysabelle clapped her hands while trying her best to control the twitching in her eyes. "Do you know where she went?"
"... Coming back."
"Coming back?"
"... Yes."
"O-Okay…"
Over the past week, Ysabelle had learnt of Rosalyn's unique quirks. She wouldn't speak more than a few words in a sentence; at most, she'll reply in three to four sentences. Oddly enough, her words were always sufficient to convey the information she wished to convey, making it possible for her to communicate with the rest.
"Thank you, I'll let Lilith know."
Ysabelle hurriedly left the girl alone, who had quickly forgotten about her existence and returned to her favourite pastime of watching trees. Not knowing what to say, the black-haired girl hurriedly ran back to her bored friend, who was busy reading a research paper she'd brought from home.
"So? What did she say?"
"Irina is returning home, apparently."
"This early? She would normally stay till nightfall."
"That's what Rosalyn said…"
"Hmmm, did she tell you how she knew that?"
"H-Huh? Wouldn't Irina have told her that?"
"Do you think that unfriendly girl would tell us anything about her life?"
Lilith scoffed as she recalled how that Everwinter brat treated them the first day they'd gathered together. Given how she reacted, Lilith seriously doubted that Irina would tell them anything about where she was going, even if it meant endangering her own life.
"Yet, Rosalyn could figure it out… How intriguing…" Lilith's vale eyes sparkled with a scientist's curiosity as she eyed down the green-haired girl. "Do you remember if she introduced her Vampire Aspect?"
"No… I don't think she did."
"Yeah, Irina ran out of the villa before she could say anything." Lilith continued to observe the young girl, the gears in her mind moving rapidly.
"The Shadowgarden House is shrouded in much secrecy, and their Vampire Aspects aren't always common knowledge. The fact that Rosalyn keeps spacing out and how she seldom sleeps… And the fact that she seems to know everything… Just what could her powers be?"
"Are you that interested?"
"Yeah, it's mysterious, don't you think? Also, for some reason, the girl doesn't really look like a Vampire."
"H-Huh? What do you mean?"
"Vampires are fair-skinned and tend to have beautiful features. But Rosalyn's features are far more animated. Her large eyes and perfectly symmetrical face… And her almost impeccable appearance with not a single speck of deformity… It feels completely unreal. Factory-made even."
"You can't mean that! Do you think that the Shadowgarden House genetically modified her?! T-That's…!"
Ysabelle was right to be shocked. Even at her young age, she'd heard horror stories about people genetically modifying Vampires, from scientists attempting to cross a Vampire with a Werewolf to even creating hybrid species that could potentially transcend the Vampire race.
And almost every single time… The end product would end up in a horrific state. This was why altering the genetic state was heavily shunned and even outlawed by the Ten Guardian Houses.
"Don't get so worked up; I'm just speculating. For all I know, Rosalyn was really born to be that beautiful."
"O-Okay…"
Although Lilith waved the girl off, a seed of doubt had been planted in both their young minds. If Rosalyn was genetically modified, her queer actions would start making a lot of sense. And when Rosalyn suddenly stood up from her chair, the two girls immediately jerked up and quickly looked away.
"D-Do you think she heard us?"
"I-I don't know!"
Even Lilith was flustered by Rosalyn's sudden action. The two of them scurried to the side, worried that the girl might bemoan or scold them, but Rosalyn's soft, feminine voice didn't come up. Rather, the girl briskly walked past them and, with shuffling feet, hurried towards the main door.
That unexpected move caught Ysabelle and Lilith off guard. Ever since they'd met Rosalyn, she wasn't one to show any form of emotions and yet, for the first time… It seemed like a sense of excitement was within the young girl's movements.
It was like watching an unmoving painting move its eyes for the first time. That startled the two young, innocent girls, and a sense of intrigue erupted from the depths of their minds.
Unsurprisingly, the pair got caught up with the flow and followed the green-haired girl down to the entrance of their villa. They wished to understand what had caused Rosalyn's sudden change of behaviour.
And to their utter surprise…
"Brother… Why do we have to come here?"
"Irina, didn't you say that you wished to have friends? You have the perfect opportunity to make some right now! You shouldn't squander it just because you're a little shy."
"I-I'm not shy! I just don't know how to behave around them!"
"Haha, let me teach you then!"
Entering the main hall, Ysabelle and Lilith were treated to the sight of a flustered Irina holding onto an unfamiliar boy's arm. Rosalyn had already made her way down the stairs as she observed the young boy as if he were a piece of art.
On the other hand, the other two girls were completely gobsmacked by Irina's bold actions. Unable to hold back her frustration, Lilith rushed forward and grabbed the young girl by the arm, prying her far away from the foreign boy.
"Irina! Y-You actually brought someone here?! A human, no less!"
"H-He's not some random person! He's my brother!"
"Brother?! You mean your brother is a human?!"
Given how Vampires reproduce, it was near impossible for a human and a Vampire to be blood-related. Lilith's mind even started to wonder if the Everwinter House had produced a miraculous method to turn Vampires into humans once more.
"N-No, I mean… He became my brother just last week."
"Y-You! You actually brought a non-related human here?! Are you trying to kill us?! What if he figures out that we're Vampires and sends members of the Holy Church to hunt us down?!"
"Brother won't do that!!!" Irina fiercely retorted with her loudest voice. "I trust him! Besides, he already knows that I'm a Vampire!"
"W-What?!"
At this point, the two of them had been shouting so loud that the entire villa could hear them. Jin, who had been left alone by the door, could only smile wryly as all four of the girls landed their eyes on him. However, those piercing gazes did nothing to affect Jin's composure. Waving his hand, the boy introduced himself:
"Hi there, my name is Jin Valter. I've recently become Irina's older brother. Nice to meet you!"
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
Silence hung over the room. None of the four girls breathed a single word as they watched the boy's radiant smile bloom happily, blissfully unaware of the acrimony within the massive hall. It was as if nothing in the world could faze him, and even if the sky came crashing down, the boy would still retain his smile.
"Are you not afraid of us? We're Vampires, you know."
"What's there to be afraid of? All I see are four cute girls!!!" Jin scratched the back of his head and laughed heartily. "I've always heard that Vampires are more beautiful than humans, and I guess those words are true! I've never seen such pretty girls in my life!"
"Y-You…"
Lilith didn't know whether to laugh or cry at Jin's animated response. Ysabelle bobbed her head back for this was the first time she'd seen a human boy up close, and Rosalyn retained her expressionless face.
Only Irina had the state of mind to give Jin a retort.
"B-Brother! Why are you calling other girls cute?!"
"Hmmm? I'm just stating the facts, though. You wouldn't call a dog a cat, right? You girls are all so cute, like the porcelain dolls on television!"
"Y-You…"
At this point, even Irina wasn't able to give any reply.
Jin and the four girls stared at each other for two minutes before Lilith finally made the first move.
"Excuse me, but Lilith here has made a mistake. You're not allowed to be here, so would you please leave?"
"Hmmm? Ah, is that 'The Theoretical Maximum' by Professor James Dudley?"
Before Jin could answer Lilith's declaration, his eyes locked in on the book she was carrying in her hands. He pointed at the paper with sparkly eyes, drawing a great surprise from the young girl.
"W-What? You know of this book?"
"Yes! I've just finished reading it! What a coincidence!" Jin beamed from ear to ear as he finally found a like-minded soul when it came to magic research. "While Professor Dudley's take on the limits of magic is intriguing, I feel like he lacks the imagination on the endless possibilities that magic can take."
"What do you mean?"
"All of his magic theories are limited to human scale and the limits of what magicians can do. But in truth, our magic is just a grain of sand in the vast scale of the universe! In his book, he theorised that the maximum magic can go is a destructive planetary event. But I believe that magic is why the universe was born in the first place!"
"Interesting…"
Lilith scratched her lower jaw as she started to revise the knowledge she'd just gained. To tell the truth, she didn't even consider that possibility while reading through the paper. And yet, Jin had easily given her an alternative that far surpasses her expectations.
"Hehe, it's rare to see someone my age interested in magical research. What's your name?"
"... Lilith Moonreaver."
"Haha, hi! I'm Jin Valter; nice to meet you!"
Little did Lilith know that this one sentence uttered by Jin… Would change her life forever.
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