[The next day in the Crimson castle]
Cassandra, who had recently returned from the mission that was assigned to her, was also present at the family dinner. She was very happy to see her husband and child again after a long period of time. She was also delighted to see her sister Reina. Reina is, of course, Zeno's first wife, as she has three older children with him, while Cassandra has his youngest child, which is Carmilla.
"Husband, you and Reina have spent enough time with each other. It is only fair for me to have you all to myself" She said while touching his hand.
"My love, we have all eternity to spend time together. But if your wish is to be with me tonight, then consider it granted"
The crimson family was sitting at the table, having dinner in the upper section of the castle. "It's so good to see our family back together, I just wish my husband was here to enjoy this moment with us" said Anna.
"Grandmother, is there any word from grandfather?" Anna merely shook her head
"It is strange that father hasn't said anything. Should I go look for him, Mother?" Zeno asked.
"I will go with you father" Caden said, volunteering to go with his father.
"No, I need you here in case anything happens."
Zeno then looked at Anna "Mother, are we going to wake up first and second brothers?
Anna shook her head "They are not ready to awaken just yet. We first have to find out if your father is alive and well before we make any rash decisions."
"Good, I will leave tonight to find father" Zeno knew that his father often does as he pleases, but if his father has been killed for any reason, it would cause a huge blow to the Crimson family.
Markus did not want to think about the negative stuff. He knew that his father is safe. Markus looked up to his father, in his mind, his father is the strongest. "Let's stop and have some food. Tell the kids that they must come and have dinner". Markus was sitting at the end of the table with his huge muscles bulging out of his clothes.
Reina was nervous. She did want her husband to go to unknown territories. She wanted to go with him. However, Reina knew that her husband will not allow her to accompany him.
Emma, who was sitting next to her husband, held his hand. She then looked at Anna "Mother, why not send our son Richard or some of our fastest knights like Dante? I don't think sending brother Zeno is a good idea. What if something did happen to our Lord? Sending Zeno into the lion's den is a big mistake". Emma looked really concerned.
Markus felt her hands gripping him tightly "Then I suggest we send someone else mother"
Zeno did not say anything. Anna was pondering on what to do. She thought sending Zeno would be the best option as he is very good at stealth and gathering information missions. However, if what Emma said were to come to fruition, then the blame would be entirely on her bad decision.
"You have a point my dear daughter. Then we can ask Dante to take on this task. Maybe he can take a couple of vampires with him in case it is a trap. I will later have a talk with Dante.".
Anna then wrote on a piece of paper. "Guard"
One of the vampire knights entered the room "Where is knight Dante and what is he currently occupied with?"
The vampire knight that came into the room immediately bowed "My lady, knight Dante is currently off duty and is spending time with his wife and child"
"Give this to him" She then handed the vampire knight the piece of paper.
"Yes, my Lady"
The knight acknowledged, he took the piece of paper and exited the room.
Helen, who did not say anything the whole time decided to say something "Mother, what about John, what are we going to tell sister Angeline? What if the boy is dead?"
"We will maybe sit with a problem with the boy's father" Markus leaned back in his chair, settling in.
"No, I think Jiren would understand that this world is different. He is not an unreasonable man"
"We will handle that situation when it arises. For now, we will first find out if they are alive, and if not, we will then search for the perpetrators and erase them from Paruga".
"For now, we will assume that they are still alive and well. Then it is agreed that we will send Dante as a scout to find out if our assumptions are correct. If so. then we will continue as normal and if not, we will raise hell against whoever captured or killed them" Zeno said with a calm tone of voice. But anyone who observed him closely would see a wicked glimmer in his eyes.
Not long after, a knock could be heard on the door, and two children entered the room. "Carmilla, Thomas, come take a seat, dinner is almost ready"
"Yes, grandma". Both Carmilla and Thomas took their seat next to their parents.
"What were you two doing Milla?" Cassandra asked her daughter while having a lovely smile on her face.
"We were giving the horses food, mom" Carmilla said while looking at Thomas.
Markus looked at Thomas and noticed he did not say anything "Tommy, is everything alright"
"I am fine father"
"Good, good. How is your training going, son? Do you want to spar with your father"
Thomas started to get excited "When can we spar father?"
"Are you an idiot Tommy" Carmilla interjected
"What?"
"You already have a tough time beating me. How are you going to even put a scratch on uncle Markus?"
"What do you know? Father is a big guy; I can easily touch him"
Markus had a grin on his face "Oh really? so are you calling your old man a low poke"
"No, Father, you are not a slow poke, I think father's speed can be compared more to a slug" Thomas said while also grinning at his father.
"I agree, your father's movement is kind of slow, I can easily predict his movement" Zeno said while sitting crossed arms and eyes closed.
Markus looked at Zeno for a moment. He clenched his fist and started to chuckle lightly "It's truly funny. After today's dinner, I simply must put dear old brother to the test. Let's see if he can predict the trajectory of my fist as it becomes intimately acquainted with his face. And as for you Thomas, we will see if you can follow this slug's movements"
Helen then chimed in "Tommy, I heard that you learned the technique blood punch. Not even your brother could do a blood punch at your age" she had a lovely smile on her face.
Markus looked interested "Is it true, son?"
"I'm still practising the technique; I have not fully mastered it" Thomas shyly replied
"you liar" Carmilla interjected
"It's true"
"The why have you not used it against me when we were sparring the other day?"
"Why should I use my best technique against you?"
Carmilla pouted her lips "I also want to learn it now"
"It's not easy Carmilla, it involves a little manipulation of the blood, but its more effective when you learn how to use spirit force. But you will learn it as you get older. I don't think your body strong enough to handle it"
Zeno then looked at Thomas "You are on the right path of practising it now Thomas. So, when you master spirit force, your blood punch would be more powerful than the average vampire who learns it"
"Thank you, uncle Zeno, I will practise hard to become stronger" Thomas felt happy and proud.
Cassandra looked at her daughter who was a little jealous and unhappy. She softly whispered in her ears "Don't worry honey, mother will help you find your own technique so you won't fall behind".
Carmilla quickly turned her head to her mother "Really mom"
"Of course," Cassandra then kissed Carmilla on the forehead.
Carmilla then looked at Thomas and sticked out her tongue.
"Hmph" Thomas scoffs at Carmilla.
Markus felt proud inside "Then why don't you show your father your blood punch after dinner"
"Sure, my blood punch is quite powerful now."
Markus could not help himself from laughing out loud.
Anna was happy seeing her family having a good time at the dinner table. The room was later filled with hushed conversations. Further, their goblets were filled with red liquids, and there were also rare steaks with exotic fruits.
Markus, Anna, Zeno, who were seated near the windows, sensed something was amiss and their intuition was correct. A deafening explosion shattered the tranquillity. The windows shattered into more than a thousand shards, creating a huge hole in the wall that revealed the day sky. And through the chaos and billowing smoke a figure emerged with dark aura. The figure stepped through the broken window with an air of sinister confidence and an evil grin on his face.
Three vampire knights came through the door of the dining room. They immediately responded when they heard the loud explosion. A few seconds after they entered the room, another vampire knight came in with grave news "My Lady, we are currently under attack". The three-vampire knight drew their swords when they saw the intruder near the window. All three vampire knights were fearless and ready to attack the intruder, all they need is a word from their Lady.
Anna was shocked when she finally noticed who the mysterious figure is. Many thoughts went through her head when she saw the familiar vampire "Decker, what is the meaning of this?"
Decker, who wore black pants, black leather boots, and white long tucked-in long sleeve shirt. "Good day Lady Anna, I apologize for coming in so rudely. I am here to erase the Crimson family from Paruga".