Jovan’s speed was so fast that an ordinary human would have only seen an afterimage at best; however it was different for Atlas. Even though he didn’t have the complete strength that Castiel could wield, he could still have some passive abilities of Castiel.

No matter how fast Jovan moved, Atlas could clearly see his movement. It was as if time was moving slowly for him.

Atlas waited for Jovan to get close to him. Only after Jovan was within one meter range of him Atlas moved. He took one step to the left before he swung his left leg towards Jovan.

His kick landed straight on the waist of Jovan, sending him flying towards the wall. Jovan felt as if quite a lot of his bones were broken. With a hand on the right side of his stomach, Jovan stood up. There was a look of disbelief in his eyes. Just what was this?

Not only was he surprised at the strength of Atlas but also by his speed. That speed wasn’t ordinary. It was even faster than his speed for some reason. Just… who was this guy? Where did his strength come from?

“W-who are you? You can’t be a Witch! I’m sure you aren’t a werewolf either! What are you?!” he exclaimed hysterically.

Atlas didn’t answer the question directly. His lips curved as he smiled. His smile was enough to give Jovan his answers. Through that smile of Atlas, Jovan was able to see the sharp fangs of Atlas.

Those fangs, coupled with that speed and strength, he received his answer, but he still didn’t want to believe it! It went all against his knowledge! How was this possible?

“How could it be? How could there be a Vampire with green eyes?! How?!” He yelled like crazy.

“If you don’t know about other Lineage of Vampires except yours, then you’re too naive, Young Man. Call Severis. Maybe he would know. Tell him Lord Alazar from the Alazar Clan is here to meet him.”

“Lord Alazar? Alazar Clan? I never heard of this clan? Are there truly Vampire Lineages that don’t have red eyes?” Jovan asked, stunned.

“As I said, call your master. I’m here to meet him, not to teach you about this world. If he’s not too stupid, he might know,” Atlas lazily stated.

“I-i… Alright. Please follow me.”

Even though Jovan didn’t know much about who Atlas was or about other Lineages, he didn’t want to make a mistake in this situation. If Atlas was really comparable to Lord Severis, then fighting him was like courting death. He didn’t want to be the one to do it. He decided to leave it to Lord Severis.

He escorted Atlas back to the main hall through the hallway that Atlas had walked the last time he was with his sister when she was alive. It was as if everything had come to a full circle.

He was back at this place, but he wasn’t the same now. Now he wasn’t that weak kid who was at the mercy of others! He was a strong Vampire who could hold his own against the Vampires!

As Atlas reached the hall, Jovan opened the beautiful door with a full moon carved in the middle. As the doors opened, the hall was revealed to Atlas. This was an important hall for many, but for Atlas, this was no less than his personal hell!

All the chairs from the previous meeting were still there; however, no one was there at this time.

Jovan gestured for Atlas to go inside. “Please wait inside. I’ll call Lord Severis and others.”

“Be fast. I don’t like to wait,” Atlas confidently stated as he took his first step inside the hall. “I want to talk to your master in the presence of the entire Severis Clan. Tell your master that.”

Atlas entered the hall. The door closed behind him as Jovan ran to inform Lord Severis.

Atlas stood right beside the door, unable to take a step forward as all the memories of last night flooded his head now that he was alone. It was as if his mind was replaying what happened last night. He could still see the droplets of blood on the floor, some of which belonged to his sister. They weren’t cleaned yet.

“This is where it all happened,” he told Lilith, taking a deep breath. After taking a few steps, he ended up in the same place where he stood last night, unable to move.

He stood in the same position in which he had begged Carlisle to forgive his sister. His fist was clenched so tightly that his nails penetrated his palm, making him bleed.

He couldn’t help but remember the feeling of not being able to move. The helplessness, the weakness, the fear, and the pain, he could feel everything that he felt last night. His hands started shaking slowly as a tear droplet left his eyes.

“If I had this strength last night… Things could’ve been different. I could’ve saved her! I could’ve moved, at least! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

Atlas kept saying sorry as he dropped to his knees, gazing at the empty spot where his sister had died. He still couldn’t let the helplessness of compulsion out of his memories.

“Calm down. It wasn’t your fault. It’s not easy to be in your situation. There was nothing you could do. Breaking a compulsion isn’t as easy as Carlisle told you,” Seeing Atlas broken, Lilith also remembered something which made her lose her calm as well.

She placed her hand on the head of Atlas and patted him gently. “Don’t blame yourself. It doesn’t only take a strong will. It also takes you to be mentally strong, which wasn’t easy in a situation where your sister’s life was on the line. If I were a human in your place, I would’ve failed too. Carlisle just played with you.”

“Try to get over it. You can’t change the past,” she continued. “Think about the future. Now that you are already here, you need to be strong to face the challenges ahead… For yourself… And for your sister. Do you think she would be happy to watch you cry? Get up. You aren’t allowed to be this weak, at least not when you’re in the body of my Master!”

Atlas wiped his tears using his hands and stood up. He took a deep breath. “I know. I can’t be weak! If I’m weak, how can I achieve my goals! I will make this life a living hell for Carlisle and Severis… Only then I’ll rest in peace.”

With calm yet somewhat shaky steps, he walked to the chairs in the distance. He sat on the same chair on which Carlisle was seated when he murdered his sister. “I promise everyone will pay… everyone who had a hand in my sister’s death! Even if it takes me an eternity, I’ll do it!”

Lilith silently observed Atlas. She couldn’t help but feel like Atlas could really do it. In some ways, he was similar to Lord Castiel.

Creak~

With a creaking noise, the door opened. Atlas turned to the door, watching a tall figure enter the room. He wasn’t alone though. After him, there were tens of Vampires. All the Vampires wore a black cloak over their bodies which covered the top half of their faces.

Only Lord Severis had his face visible. His cloak was also slightly different from the other Cloaks as it had an insignia of the Severis family, which was bigger than the insignias on the cloaks of others.

In total, there were fifty Vampires inside the room, which was almost all of them, as far as Atlas knew. Since he had been cleaning the rooms for four years, he knew how many Vampires lived in this Palace.

It was the first time someone from a different Lineage of Vampires had come here. None of the Severis Clan members wanted to miss him. Lord Severis also allowed them to come.

“Green eyes…” Severis muttered, noticing Atlas’ beautiful green eyes. “So it was true.”

For a moment, he even wondered if Atlas was indeed a Vampire, but he decided to trust Jovan’s words instead of testing on his own. In any case, he was half sure that Atlas was telling the truth.

“I’ve heard a lot about the existence of other Lineages, but it’s the first time I’ve seen one,” Lord Severis calmly stated. “I’m Lord Severis, and this is my palace. How may I address you?”

“Your Palace, my foot!” Lilith snorted. “I’ve never seen a shameless person. He’s calling my master’s palace his own.”

She was so furious at the shamelessness of Severis that she would have attacked him if she could. However, no one could even hear her.

Atlas was the only person sitting in the entire room, surrounded by the Vampires of Severis Clan from all sides, with everyone looking at him. He was in the den of the Vampires, sitting in the middle. If there was any dangerous place in the entire castle for him, it was where Atlas currently was.