The Tyrant's Pet

Conan immediately apologized to Tilly, even though the latter didn't seem to care or even listened to their conversation. He used his energy, running his mouth while sitting beside Tilly, leaving Aries and Lilou alone.

Aries let out a weak chuckle, casting Lilou a look. "You're good."

"Living with people like him, I have to get creative in my arguments." Lilou shrugged, peeling her eyes away from Aries to Conan and Tilly. "His Highness isn't a terrible one. Matter of fact, with his personality, he got along with the family so easily."

"He might be shameless and speak so insensitively, but he's a good person." Aries rocked her head, smiling subtly. "Was your trip in here alright?"

"Well… thankfully, there was no major setback."

There was a moment of silence between the two women, watching Conan act as a clown in front of Tilly. This time, Tilly was staring at Conan with a dead expression.

"During my reign…" Aries's voice broke the prolonged silence between them, lowering her eyes. "... where have you gone?"

She faced Lilou ever so slowly. "I asked Fabian to search for you, but you people disappeared as if you didn't exist."

Lilou pressed her lips into a thin line, drawing a deep breath.

"We weren't gone for two years." Lilou shrugged. "Just two days."

"Two days?"

"Mhm." Lilou lowered her eyes, clenching her jaw briefly. "We were in the land of Spade for two days straight, settling personal matters. The land was covered by a powerful vampiric ability, so when the fight ended, it's already been two years."

Bitterness filled her eyes, looking back at Lilou. "You can imagine the dread I felt when I realized that the time inside that hell run differently outside. Because that meant my daughter, who was in another land, had been waiting for us for two years and not just two days."

Aries pressed her lips into a thin line, having a vague idea of this strange phenomenon. If she heard such a thing years ago, she would laugh about it. But after staying with Abel and discovering the things she didn't know truly existed, what Lilou claimed was believable.

"That is why Sam and I were grateful to you," Lilou continued as her eyes softened, offering Aries a warm smile. "Duke Isaiah already told us it was you who ordered him to protect Sunny. You and Abel… we might be a family by blood, but we're still strangers. Yet we're grateful that you accepted her and took great care of her."

She paused as the affection in her shimmering olive eyes was slowly replaced by solemness. Lilou reached for Aries's hand, fluttering her eyelashes ever so tenderly.

"A word of thanks isn't enough to express our gratitude. Therefore, whatever you and Abel plan, do not forget that we are willing to assist you." Lilou squeezed Aries's hand mildly. "It's not just you anymore, Aries. We are Abel's family… and yours. The blood that is running in my children was the same as the blood that is running in yours."

Aries stared at the woman whose eyes mirrored Aries. As Aries smiled, deep lines suddenly appeared between her brows.

"Huh?" Aries looked over her shoulder, and her irises dilated in surprise. She didn't notice it until now, but the strands of hair that were on her shoulder weren't green anymore, but white.

"What…?" she grabbed a portion of her hair that was tied on her back, only to see that the hair under her grip shared the same color as those of Tilly, Samael, Law, and even Sunny's!

"My hair… how?" she murmured, thinking of any memory only to realize her memories from the past week were blank.

"Think of it as a part of your transition." Aries was brought back from her daze by Lilou's voice, looking back at the latter. "There was a way to have that hair color for vampires. Pureblooded vampires' hair turned white or silver if they reached the peak of the blood chain. Meanwhile, the Grimsbanne Clan were born with natural white hairs and pale skin. It's their clan's signature characteristic."

Aries furrowed her brows, confused. "But Abel has…" she trailed off, recalling a memory in the past.

Back then, Abel told her that his dark hair wasn't his original hair color. Now that she thought about it, the roots of Marsella's hair were also lighter than her platinum locks.

"Sunny is a rare case, but that doesn't make her less of a Grimsbanne," Lilou added with a smile since Sunny had a hazel streak that suit her so well. "I think it was quite stylish."

"Does hair color have anything to do with anything?" Aries blurted out, making Lilou raise her brows. "I mean, you mentioned pureblooded vampires will have a lighter hair color once they reached this peak. I am not a pureblooded vampire, Lilou. Is this normal for a turned vampire as well?"

Lilou's lips parted but then pressed them on a thin line again. She stared at Aries in silence, letting out a shallow breath, and smiled subtly.

"No, it is not." She shook her head. "However, I am not in the position to explain the reason. But if you're going to listen to my lie, then I'd say it is because a Grimsbanne turned you into a vampire."

A lie…

Aries assessed Lilou's soft countenance and knew that the latter was lying. Even if Lilou didn't verbalize it, she knew she was lying.

"Sometimes, it's better to believe a lie even if you know it is a lie." Lilou peeled her eyes away from her, setting them on the men near the bonfire. "Especially with our current disposition. We might be relaxing right now, but I'm certain we are far from being safe. Securing our sanity is a must, knowing losing it is a guaranteed loss."

Aries kept her attention on Lilou's side profile before shifting her eyes to where the latter was staring. The second she did, Abel and Samael were walking in their direction while casually chatting.

"Will it matter in the future?" asked Aries under her breath.

"That answer…" Lilou's eyes softened, pushing herself up to welcome her husband, who was carrying Sunny in his arms. "... Abel is the only person who can answer that."