Ryo was lazily sprawled on his bed as he contemplated things that recently happened. It was shocking news that a phantom was able to invade this household. Also, the nanny had been serving their family before Rei was even born so it was only natural that no one would suspect her of harming Rei.
Since vampires were generally unaffected by small beings such as Phantoms, no one would've guessed that a phantom would be able to control a vampire. Ryo was thinking that the phantom started to control Rei when he was recovering from the ceremony.
It was that time that Rei started alienating him and his attitude towards him got worse as time passed by. It was really pitiful that something like that happened to Rei.
Ryo got up from his bed as he held the items for sorcery, finally made up his mind to hand over the items to his father as soon as possible. The more the tools lingered by his side, the longer this matter would be dragged on. He has to go back to his slack life.
When Ryo finally arrived by Damien's office door, he knocked first and went in. Damien was buried in work but still gave his time to Ryo. He suddenly felt a little bit warm on his chest.
"Oto-san… "
"Yes, do you—"
Damien abruptly stood up as he quickly approached Ryo. When Ryo entered the room, he suddenly felt a wicked energy that usually emanates from curses.
He quickly scanned Ryo all over his body to check if his son was cursed. Ryo was puzzled by this sudden inspection.
"Oto-san, what—"
"Did you get in contact with someone suspicious lately?" Damien asked as he gently placed his hands on Ryo's shoulders.
Ryo was startled by his father's keen senses that it rendered him speechless. The fact that his father was a vampire slipped from his mind. After a few seconds passed, he snapped out of his daze and handed over the tools to his father.
"I-I found this in Sylvia-san's room when I w-was playing around. " Ryo said and looked down on his feet.
Damien immediately took the items that his son gave him. He examined the tools and confirmed that the wicked energy he felt came from this item. His eyebrows furrowed as he contemplated something.
"Did you see anything else in that room?" Damien asked as he urged his son to look directly in his eyes.
'What the heck did he really believe in me just like that?'
Ryo looked up and immediately dispelled his initial thoughts. When his eyes met his father's, he saw that it turned completely black. That was a sign that his father was using his ability to judge whether he was telling the truth or not.
Vampires acquire additional abilities when they reach adulthood but not everyone is guaranteed to gain one. His father was one of the few people who were lucky enough to gain an additional ability.
Damien's ability was that he can tell whether someone is telling the truth or not based on the aura they emanate. He can see auras whenever he uses his power. No matter how strong a creature was, they will never be able to hide nor change their aura.
Recalling this information, Ryo gulped as he started sweating from nervousness. He couldn't possibly lie when his father was using his ability on him. It would be useless and he'll just get suspected all the more if he was caught lying.
'Should I just tell him the truth or…'
Ryo was still deciding what to do when he suddenly heard Zilthai's voice.
'My liege, you don't have to worry about anything. You can claim what I did as your own and tell it to your father since I'm residing in your soul.'
Ryo reflexively looked around to find where Zilthai was speaking from when he realized that it was communicating with him in his head using telekinesis.
'Are you sure that we won't get caught?'
'Yes, my liege.'
Ryo gulped as he decided to do what Zilthai suggested for him to do.
"I also overheard th-that Sylvia-san is controlling onii-chan! Oto-san please save onii-chan! Sylvia-san seems to be bullying onii-chan. Also, I don't understand but Sylvia-san said that she'd be able to complete everything when she completed the last step on the next full moon." Ryo sobbed as he buried his head in his father's arms.
He could only fake cry to hide the extreme nervousness he was feeling. It was really nerve racking to lie on a vampire that could see through lies. Damien was surprised by what Ryo said and when he saw that his son was sobbing, he immediately hugged the kid to comfort him.
His fists clenched as he confirmed that his son was telling the truth. Maybe because Ryo was still too young, he still hadn't realized the gravity of the situation.
'He doesn't have to know. I'll protect him.'
Damien thought as he rubbed the boy's back to soothe him. When he felt that the boy finally ceased from sobbing, he gave him a warm smile as Ryo looked at him.
"Don't worry, I will definitely save your brother, okay? Now be a good boy and stay away from Rei and Sylvia as much as possible. At least for now." Damien said as he ruffled his son's hair.
"Okay." Ryo nodded innocently as he blinked his tears away and left the room.
The warm smile on Damien's face immediately vanished as his expression got colder. It was cold enough to freeze the entire room. He glanced at the items on his hand once again as he called for his subordinates hiding in the shadows.
"Drake, gather the men. We have some purging to do. "
…
Ryo finally heaved a sigh of relief as he jumped on his bed. A satisfied smile bloomed on his face as he celebrated his freedom.
"You're really a great help, Zilthai." Ryo said with a joyful expression.
"This humble servant is more than happy to be of service to you, my liege." Zilthai said with reverence in its voice as usual.
"You flatterer. Anyway, observe my father's movements for now then inform me when they would purge her." Ryo said, smirking like an idiot.
"Yes, my liege." Zilthai said as it retreated back into the shadows.
Ryo faced the ceiling, still with that idiotic smirk on his face.
Now that father knows what's happening now, of course I won't miss the opportunity to watch how the show would unfold.
Ryo cackled as he imagined certain flashy scenarios on how his father would handle the mess.
A few days have passed peacefully as if Ryo and Damien's conversation didn't happen. Ryo knows that his father was preparing quietly so as to not alert the enemy.
According to Zillthai, his father also contacted a high priest, probably to exorcise the phantom that was residing in Sylvia's body. In that way, Sylvia's hold on Rei would be purified.
Zilthai also reported to him that Sylvia was moving just as usual and was carrying out the preparations at night without knowing that her identity was already exposed.
...
The night was quiet and the moon was high up in the sky, illuminating the darkness of the night. A woman was lighting up the candles in an abandoned ruin, the moonlight shining on the altar eerily.
On the altar was a body of a young man who had his eyes closed, his pale countenance made him look lifeless as a corpse. Beneath him was a star-like symbol surrounded with countless runes.
The woman stood beside the altar holding a book for dark arts. She was smiling so happily, apparently elated by something. She caressed the boy's face gently, her eyes were filled with madness and euphoria.
She withdrew her hands and opened the book she was holding. She held her hands up in the sky, as if offering something to the moon and started chanting words that couldn't be understood by human intelligence.
As she continued chanting, the array beneath the young man started glowing gradually. Her chanting gradually get louder as the array glowed brighter. Her eyes were filled with so much euphoria that she started grinning maniacally.
Right at the peak of her chanting, she was suddenly blown away by a massive force. She was so immersed in chanting that she didn't notice the ambush. When she landed on the ground, her body rolled over before slamming on a tree.
Her limbs were in an awkward position. She spat out mouthfuls of blood not just from internal injury but also from the backlash of getting interrupted at the peak of her chanting.
The man who caused this, picked up the book that the woman dropped and gave it to the holy priest. The woman saw that the high priest casted a spell that purified the book, burning it into ashes. The high priest also casted a spell on the young man on the altar.
Damien walked towards the broken woman coldly. His fangs were protruding from his mouth, his purple eyes were glowing in the night, making him look more intimidating.
"How dare you befoul my family with your filthy existence."