Chapter 5 CHAPTER 5

CHAPTER 5

Those were the last words she left me with before turning around and walking out of the diner. I stood there in silence, my eyes following her until she disappeared beyond the door.

Her reminder echoed in my mind.

The den of immortals...

Just the thought of it made my stomach flutter with anxiety. Everything still felt so surreal. Tomorrow, I'd be leaving behind the ordinary life I'd always known and stepping into a world that most people would never even believe existed.

After a few moments, I made my way upstairs to the second floor to organize my belongings.

Since I didn't own many things, packing didn't take long. Even so, I carefully folded each piece of clothing and neatly arranged everything inside my bag.

Of course, before leaving the diner for good, I made sure to say a proper goodbye to everyone. I thanked each member of the staff for welcoming me so warmly and for treating me like family during the time I'd worked there. But my farewell was especially emotional when it came to Madame Lily and Sofie.

I expressed my heartfelt gratitude to both of them, knowing I wouldn't have made it this far without their kindness and support.

Before I left, Madame Lily surprised me by placing five hundred dollars into my hand.

"This is for you," she said kindly.

I blinked in surprise and instinctively tried to refuse, but she insisted that I keep it. In the end, I accepted it.

When I finally arrived back at the manor house, my siblings were still at work.

I waited for night to fall.

Dinner was the only time of day when everyone in our family gathered around the dining table.

As we ate, I took a deep breath and slowly explained the job offer I had accepted.

I told them about the secluded mansion, the wealthy family who owned it, and how I was expected to leave early the next morning.

I also explained that, for the sake of the family's privacy, the exact location of the mansion wasn't disclosed to outsiders.

The moment I finished speaking, an uneasy silence settled over the table.

Dad was the first to break it.

"So, you're telling us that this wealthy family is so private that we aren't even allowed to know where the mansion is?" he asked, his voice calm but undeniably serious. His brows drew together as he looked at me. "If that's the case, how are we supposed to visit you?"

I offered him a small, reassuring smile.

"I'll be the one to come home instead," I answered respectfully. "If they give me permission to take time off, I'll visit all of you here."

Mom looked at me with worry written all over her face. She had barely touched her food since I started explaining everything.

"What if it's a scam, sweetheart?" she asked gently, unable to hide the concern in her voice. "Are you really sure about this?"

I looked at her, knowing she wasn't trying to discourage me.

"The salary they're offering is unusually high for someone who's only going to work as a servant," she continued, shaking her head slightly. "It just seems too good to be true. And what scares me even more is that we won't even know where you are."

"We don't have any other choice but to try," I said seriously, looking at each of them. "I'm the only one Madame Silvia chose for this opportunity, and I don't want to waste the chance that was given to me... especially if it could end up being offered to someone else. If I really get the salary they're promising, it would be a huge help for us. There's no harm in trying, right? Sometimes we have to take chances when an opportunity comes our way."

My eyes then moved toward my siblings, who were sitting on either side of me. They had been listening the entire time, their expressions filled with uncertainty and concern too.

"Rei," I called gently, turning to my sibling. "I'll leave it to you to take care of my withdrawal from the academy."

Rei slowly nodded in response, though I could see the hesitation in their eyes. The three of them remained silent afterward, their gazes drifting somewhere far away as they tried to process everything I had told them.

Seeing them like that made my heart ache.

"Don't worry about me," I reassured them, forcing a small smile. "I'll be careful. I'll call you as soon as I arrive there, so just keep an eye on our phone and wait for my call, okay?"

I looked at them one by one, hoping my words would bring them even a little comfort.

Although I was trying to sound confident, deep down, I knew that tomorrow would be the beginning of something completely unknown.

Then, I heard Dad release a deep sigh, and my attention immediately shifted back toward him.

"When our former employees come back here," I said softly. "Please tell them that I’ll gradually return the remaining balances they are owed."

After hearing my words, Mom and Dad looked away. The sadness and worry on their faces were impossible to hide.

I understood them.

Their expressions reflected exactly what any parent would feel in their situation. Their child was about to leave for a place no one in the family knew about, a place where they couldn't easily reach me, visit me, or even know if I was safe.

Seeing their concern made my heart ache.

I felt the same fear they did.

I was scared of what awaited me. I was nervous about entering a world completely unfamiliar to me. There were countless questions running through my mind, and a part of me wanted to cry and admit that I was afraid.

But I couldn't let myself break down in front of them.

If I showed them my doubts and allowed them to see how frightened I truly was, they might no longer let me go.

They might ask me to reconsider, and I couldn't blame them if they did.

That was why I forced myself to remain calm.

I kept my voice steady and my expression confident, showing them nothing but certainty in the decision I had made. Even though my heart was filled with anxiety, I chose to appear strong, not just for myself, but for them as well.

I wanted them to believe that I would be okay.

That dinner felt heavier than any meal we had ever shared.

Everyone was there, sitting together at the same table, but our hearts were already feeling the distance that tomorrow would bring.

Because tomorrow morning, I will be leaving.

And none of us knew when things would ever feel the same again.

Inside my room, the three of us siblings held each other in a long, tight embrace.

They helped me pack my things, carefully folding my clothes and placing my belongings.

That night, they chose to stay in my room and sleep beside me on my bed. It felt like the old days when we were younger, when being together was all that mattered.

But the hours passed too quickly.

Before we realized it, three o'clock in the morning had arrived.

We all woke up at the same time, surrounded by the darkness before dawn.

Mom immediately started preparing a lunch box for me. Watching her carefully pack my food made my heart tighten.

Once everything was ready and my things were packed, it was finally time for me to leave.

With Dad holding a flashlight to guide our way through the darkness, we walked together toward the gate of our manor. The faint light from the flashlight moved along the path ahead of us, but my steps felt heavier with every moment that passed.

Before I stepped beyond the gate, I stopped.

I hugged them tightly.

I embraced Dad first, then Mom, and finally my siblings. I held onto each of them for as long as I could, wanting to remember their warmth and the feeling of being surrounded by the people I loved most.

Then I heard it.

Mom was sobbing.

The sound of her crying immediately broke through the strength she had been trying to hold onto, and my siblings couldn't stop themselves from crying as well. Soon, all of them were wiping away their tears, their emotions finally showing after trying so hard to stay strong for me.

Seeing them like that made my heart feel as though it was being painfully torn apart.

I wanted to cry.

I wanted to hold onto them and tell them that I was scared too, that leaving them was much harder than I ever expected.

But even as tears threatened to fall, I held them back.

I couldn't cry in front of them.

Instead, I forced myself to smile and stayed strong, because I wanted them to believe that I would be okay.

"I'll call as soon as I arrive there.... so please don't worry about me. And I promise... I'll come back."

After saying those words, I tightened my grip around the handle of my suitcase and slowly dragged it behind me as I walked away from the massive iron gates of our family manor.

The flashlight Dad had given me before I left cast a narrow beam of light across the empty road, guiding me through the darkness. Its soft glow illuminated the rough pavement beneath my feet and the shadows stretching along my path.

I fought every urge to look back.

I knew the tears threatening to spill from my eyes would finally break free. Worse, I was afraid I'd lose the resolve to keep walking and run straight back into their arms.

So I kept my eyes fixed ahead, biting the inside of my cheek as I forced myself to continue.

After putting a considerable distance between myself and the manor, I finally reached the end of the long road that connected our estate to the main highway.

Above me, the sky was just beginning to brighten as dawn slowly chased away the darkness.

As I swept the beam of my flashlight across the road ahead, it suddenly caught the sleek silhouette of a black car parked silently at the very end of the street.

The vehicle sat there beneath the gradually brightening sky, its glossy exterior reflecting the first rays of morning light.

Without warning, the headlights burst to life.

I squeezed my eyes shut before narrowing them against the sudden glare. The brilliant beams sliced through the fading darkness, making it feel as though I would go blind if I looked directly at them. I quickly raised the hand holding my flashlight to shield my face, but I never stopped walking.

For some reason, I couldn't shake the feeling that this was the one who had come to pick me up.

The car itself was unlike anything I had ever seen.

Its sleek black exterior reflected the first hints of dawn, giving it an almost unreal appearance. Every detail of its design was refined and elegant, so different from the ordinary vehicles I had heard about. In fact, this was the first time I had ever laid eyes on a car like this.

In the human territories, only the wealthiest families could afford an automobile.

Most people still traveled by horse-drawn carriage, their horses pulling wooden coaches along the roads every day.

The closer I got, the more imposing it seemed.

My suitcase rumbled softly over the uneven road until I finally stopped beside the left side of the vehicle.

I hadn't even reached for the door handle when it suddenly unlocked with a soft click and slowly swung open on its own.

My throat tightened.

I swallowed hard as a man stepped out of the car.

He appeared to be in his fifties, his neatly combed hair streaked with hints of silver that complemented his mature features.

Dressed in an impeccably tailored black suit, he carried himself with the elegance of someone who had spent years serving a distinguished household.

The moment our eyes met, I could feel the weight of his presence.

He wasn't intimidating in an obvious way, nor did he need to raise his voice or wear a stern expression.

There was simply an air of authority and refinement surrounding him that demanded respect so I straightened my posture, my fingers tightening around the handle of my suitcase as I silently waited for him to speak.

Because of the bright headlights of the car, I was able to see his face clearly.

A sigh of relief escaped my lips.

He looked... human.

No trace of the monstrous appearance I had feared.

At least the person who came to fetch me wasn't a monster.

The realization eased a small portion of the fear weighing heavily on my heart.

The man gave a respectful bow of his head before introducing himself in a slow, formal voice.

"I am Lucan, one of the human attendants serving the Volgoth family. Whenever the family has business or transactions that require someone to leave the Bloodsuckers' Mountains, I am the one entrusted with carrying out those tasks. Today, however, I was sent here for a different reason."

His eyes remained fixed on mine.

"I have come to escort you safely to the Volgoth mansion."

My grip on the handle of my suitcase tightened even more.

"M-May I ask you something?" I said cautiously, forcing myself to remain respectful despite the nervousness creeping into my voice. "How many people... I mean... Vampire will I be serving once I arrive?"

"Since Don Blod is rarely at the estate, your primary responsibility will be to attend to his sons."

The words sent an unfamiliar chill through my body.

"T-Three... men?" I whispered.

Lucan gave a small, affirmative nod.

"Yes. They are Rave Volgoth, Drake Volgoth, and Vlad Volgoth, your masters."