When Red Robin arrived at Mayfield's villa, all that was left was a trail of blood. As Red Robin pryed open the door and entered, he saw a long trail of blood dragged from the window to the door.
"Someone died, with a fatal wound to the chest. Judging by the amount of bleeding, there was no hope of resuscitation, and the body was dragged all the way out," he deduced.
Images flashed through Red Robin's mind as he ventured in, hypothesising, "Cain and Mary must have pursued someone here and killed them...but who could it be?"
When climbing the stairs to the second floor, Red Robin paused and said, "No, something's not right, their goal might not have been the outsider who came here. Or, to be precise, not only the outsider. They were also looking for the owner of this house!"
As Red Robin walked around the sitting room on the second floor, his expression grew more and more somber. He knelt halfway at the staircase entrance and picked up a whitish hair at the base of the handrail.
Closing his eyes and pondering for a moment, Red Robin uttered a name: "Master Andrew…"
Standing up and looking around, he said, "If my guess is correct, one of his apprentices betrayed him and baited the pursuers here. When Andrew left the Forgotten Bar, he said he was looking for Bruce Wayne."
Sighing softly, Red Robin's inner voice, Lilith, said, "It seems that Bruce has been taken by them. They most likely used a spell for mind manipulation to control the two."
"No, I'm afraid it's just one." Red Robin explained, "Their original target was probably Master Andrew. I read in a book recording the history of the magic world that Andrew participated in the first Bloodline War and even killed the head of the Bruh family. They have a blood feud."
"Although vampires occupy Westminster Abbey, they dare not storm the stronghold of the Great Mage Alliance directly. Andrew had a fallout with members of the Alliance, leaving him alone."
"Blood Queen Mary, who has been plotting for a long time, may have controlled Andrew's apprentice long ago. When she learned that Andrew was going solo to a mysterious location, she would naturally instruct the betrayer to keep reporting."
"And then, they learned from the betrayer that Andrew had approached Bruce Wayne. Thus, they would definitely speculate that Andrew wanted to use the power of the Wayne Family to revive the magic world, something the Blood Clan absolutely would not tolerate."
"Moreover, they must know that even though they are declaring war on the magic realm, they have already invaded Westminster Abbey. This is like slapping the face of the British Royal Family. There must be a battle between them and ordinary humans. Therefore, controlling Bruce Wayne becomes very necessary."
"However, what I can't quite understand is…" Looking around, Red Robin asked, "Why does it seem that Bruce did not resist at all?"
At this moment, the voice of Lilith in his head sighed lightly, "The magic of mental control from the Blood Clan originated from me. I am the mother of Incubus, and Cain learned the method of using nightmares to control others from my blood."
"No, Bruce would not be so easily controlled." Red Robin returned to looking for clues in the room.
"You don't know Cain. Actually, his status…" Lilith began.
"No, you don't understand Batman... Found it." Red Robin found a tiny camera on the side of a picture frame on the wall. He glanced around the room, and then ran downstairs.
Not long after, Red Robin traced the signal to the cellar door with a mini device. He checked the basement door lock, found it to be an eight-digit code, and then went back upstairs to start looking for clues.
The puzzle wasn't difficult and simply involved the sequence number of the initial letters of eight books on the study bookshelf. Red Robin soon found the password, and opened the door to see a complete surveillance system.
He turned on the monitor and began to search for videos from about ten minutes ago. Through a period of fast-forwarding, he indeed saw Cain's face.
When Cain mentioned turning Bruce into his descendant, Red Robin's forehead creased.
However, the expression on Bruce's face in the display was somewhat peculiar. He just raised his head slightly under Cain's strength holding his neck, staring at Cain's bloodshot eyes, and asked.
"Are you a vampire?"
"I am Cain, the ancestor of the Blood Clan. You should have seen my name in that nonsensical Bible." Cain did not seem to be in a hurry, but rather enjoyed conversing with Bruce.
Bruce slightly raised an eyebrow and feigned surprise. His gaze never left Cain's eyes, and Cain had never met a human being who dared to look into his eyes for such a long time.
Although Cain took human form, all the differences that set him apart from humans made him appear more terrifying, especially those blood-red eyes full of mysterious patterns. When people looked at him directly, it wasn't a fellow creature they saw, but a monster that saw them as prey.
"What do you want?" Bruce asked again. "My money, my identity, my social status?"
"Of course, but after I bestow you with honor, you will find these things insignificant," Cain spoke in a low voice. "The wealth of human society is fleeting. The collapse of a dynasty can take everything away. You will be forever removed from this mundane power game and walk toward greatness with me."
Bruce's pupils constricted. He stared intently into Cain's eyes and said, "I will…"
Swallowing, he took a deep breath, and then asked his question: "…Will I gain eternal life?"
"That is the least important thing I will grant you."
There was a slight tremor in Bruce's facial muscles. The Blood Queen Mary approached and said, "Boy, how could you discuss such vulgar things with our great master? Are you like those corrupt nobles from the Middle Ages, always looking for ways to pursue eternal life?"
"Nobody does not want to pursue eternal life." After a pause, Bruce shifted his gaze and looked at Mary, "Especially when I'm so rich. How could I not want to live forever?"
Mary sighed lightly, seeming to relax a bit. She moved to Cain's side, lowered her head, and said to him, "Master, I have seen many people like this, who desire to enjoy their wealth, status, and honor forever. Many of our pieces hidden among the human race are deceived by these things."
What Mary was actually trying to say was that she had laid traps not just in the magic realm but among the human race as well, hoping to use this opportunity to gain favor.
However, at the moment Bruce heard Mary's words and looked away, Cain felt a slight dissatisfaction.
When those tormented humans looked at him with fear in their eyes, Cain got pleasure torturing the descendants of Adam and Eve. However, when some of the brave ones would not submit even in death and looked at him with hatred, he felt offended. He thought these insignificant creatures didn't deserve to set eyes on him.
The first time Bruce looked at him, Cain's initial reaction was also dissatisfaction. He wanted to teach this ignorant boy a lesson. But when Bruce kept staring at him, Cain became curious.
Was he not afraid? How long could he hold out? If Cain strangled him a little, would there be fear in his eyes?
Just as Cain was considering this and trying to put his plan into action, Bruce turned his gaze away due to Mary.
Bruce looked away, but it wasn't because of the pain Cain had caused him, nor his fear of Cain. It was because a foolish woman had chosen that moment to interrupt him.
In an instant, Mary was thrown out violently, brutally hitting the wall. An invisible hand held her head and hit it on the floor. Mary let out a very sharp scream.
As Mary, lying on the ground, was about to beg for mercy, she saw Cain's cold, emotionless gaze. Fearful, she covered her mouth and shrank back into a corner.
Now, the room belonged to Cain and Bruce.
"Can you grant me eternal life?" Bruce asked.
Cain stared at Bruce's deep blue eyes. He saw an emotion there that he couldn't understand, which piqued his curiosity. So he asked, "Why do you want eternal life? Do you just want to enjoy your wealth and status?"
Bruce swallowed, seemingly embarrassed to speak. His eyes shifted slightly, as if he was trying to think of an excuse. He appeared as innocent as a boy who had come home late from a date and was trying to lie to his parents.
Cain, however, was not angry at this naive deception. He believed his aura was sufficient to be lenient towards an innocent and impulsive lamb. Therefore, he wouldn't lose his temper and ruin his dignity and composure.
"You better be honest, child. After the Initiation Ceremony is completed, you will reveal all your secrets to me. Do not let me find out that you lied to me."
A hint of hesitation and conflict appeared on Bruce's face, but after a while, he finally opened his mouth and said, "I believe I am different from them."
"Who are 'they'?"
"Other people... others humans I know." Bruce pursed his lips slightly, gently raising his eyelid a bit and said, "I believe I am a Worthy. I was born with a strong body, an intelligent brain, and almost infinite wealth, so I am different from those unfortunate ones."
Bruce's fingertips trembled a bit as he looked at Cain and continued, "But our differences are not enough. No matter how rich or high-ranking I am, I still have to walk towards death with those poor wretches. I hate this, I've hated it for many years."
"I have tried to get them to die early, but no matter how horrifying their deaths are, I can still hear them calling me before they die, telling me they are waiting for me in hell, and that we will eventually end up in the same place."
"Bruce... Bruce!!!" Master Andrew, who was leaning against the wall catching his breath, struggled to call out, shouting, "Don't be deceived by them! They're using mind magic to influence you!... Ugh!!!"
Mary waved her hand in that direction, and Master Andrew was thrown out again. This time he fell on the ground and stopped making noise.
"Is this what you really think?" Cain looked at Bruce and asked.
"I've never told anyone." Bruce broke into a mocking smile, saying, "Because this orderly society would see me as a villain. They call this 'wealth without benevolence.' But why should I get along well with people who are not the same kind as me?"
"Arrogance." Cain commented. Then he added admiringly, "One of the unsolvable original sins of the human race, but I quite like it."
"God doesn't love the world at all. He only enjoys being worshipped and favors piety, so he regards arrogance as one of the unsolvable original sins. This is because the ultimate result of arrogance is lack of piety."
"I also appreciate your honesty. But you better be honest all the time. Since you said that you don't consider other humans to be the same kind as you, go and kill them."
Cain turned to look at Master Andrew, who was lying against the wall, and said to Bruce, "Go and kill him. Offer him to me as a sacrifice, and I will grant you the honor of eternal life."
In the blink of an eye, Bruce turned to look at Master Andrew. Reflected in Andrew's pupils was Bruce's indifferent face, and his blue eyes, as cool as the arctic ice.
Red Robin's pupils dilated, completely stunned by this scene. He stood rigidly in place, like a statue turned to stone.
Did Bruce kill Andrew??!!
Did Batman murder someone???!!