The north wall of Valdris had a decent view.

Not spectacular — the northern sector was forest and dirt road as far as the eye could see. But it was quiet at that hour of the morning, and quiet was what Kai needed before processing out loud what had happened the day before.

The guard on duty at that point of the wall looked at him when he sat down beside him.

He said nothing.

Neither did Kai.

Thirty seconds passed.

"If you’re here," the guard finally said, with the careful tone of someone choosing their words, "and something is coming toward the city..."

"Nothing is coming toward the city."

"No, but if something were coming—"

"Manageable."

The guard processed this.

He decided the view toward the horizon was interesting and devoted himself to looking at it.

---

Kai looked at the horizon too.

"I can’t believe," he said, to the air, with the tone of someone continuing a conversation that started a while ago, "the situation I got myself into in a single day."

---

[GarcíaFTW: KAI ON THE WALL TALKING TO CHAT]

[NocheEterna99: "in a single day." KAI. IT’S BEEN SEVERAL DAYS ALREADY.]

[StreamerHunter: the guard decided it was better not to know]

[DragonicLegacy: flashback incoming]

[Jac_Moore: Kai giving an executive summary of his own life to chat]

[Mist_Of_Death: the guard has more endurance than me]

[RagingMutant: ε=ε=ε=ε=┌(; ̄◇ ̄)┘ situation ε=ε=ε=ε=┌(; ̄◇ ̄)┘]

[Pedro_Sierra: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) tell us Kai ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]

---

The previous day — Valdris Guild:

"What the hell? And why me?"

Lira looked at him from the floor with the patience of someone who has had five days to construct this argument and has it completely solid.

"Because it’s your fault."

"I broke a window."

"And thanks to that window," Lira said, with a completely flat voice, "I can no longer return to the vampire kingdom. I’ll become the laughingstock of everyone." A pause.

"Besides, in the kingdom there’s a blood source the ancient vampires created to avoid the nuisance of peace pacts with the other kingdoms. Without that source..."

Her red eyes met Kai’s.

"I’ll have to feed on someone. Or on this entire town."

Kai looked at her.

"And you won’t be able to stop me," Lira added. "I’m too strong."

"I know that."

"Then you know it’s your responsibility to find a solution."

Kai was silent for a moment.

"What do you want me to do?"

"You’ll take responsibility for me," Lira said. "You’ll provide for me."

---

[GarcíaFTW: "YOU’LL PROVIDE FOR ME"]

[StreamerHunter: wait. "take responsibility" sounds like—]

[DragonicLegacy: KAI AND LIRA—]

[Jac_Moore: LIKE A HUSBAND—]

[Mist_Of_Death: Wow THAT’S THE BEST CONCLUSION SHE CAME TO IN FIVE DAYS?]

[RagingMutant: ε=ε=ε=ε=( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)ε=ε=ε=ε= TAKE RESPONSIBILITY ε=ε=ε=ε=( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)ε=ε=ε=ε=]

[Pedro_Sierra: ε=ε=ε=ε=( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)ε=ε=ε=ε=]

Kai read the chat.

"No. Don’t even think about it." He said it looking straight ahead. "I already have Serah."

---

[GarcíaFTW: HAHAHAHA]

[NocheEterna99: HE DENIED IT BEFORE THEY FINISHED THINKING IT]

[StreamerHunter: "I already have Serah" But that’s not a problem... Go for the harem route Kai is the way]

[DragonicLegacy: Us: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Yes / Kai: no]

---

"It’s your duty," Lira said. "You caused this. You must be responsible for your actions."

Something moved behind Kai.

Serah, who had been watching from the entrance of the hole in the floor, walked until she was between Kai and Lira.

Not facing Lira.

Facing Kai.

She grabbed him by the nape of the neck with one hand — the movement of a wolf marking territory that in another context would be dangerous and in this one was deliberately domestic — and pulled him against her chest.

The silver markings blazed at maximum intensity.

She turned toward Lira without releasing Kai.

"Kai is my mate," she said, with a completely flat voice. "I will not let a kingdomless vampire break what we have. Kai’s children will be only mine." A calculated pause.

"And if you try to steal the father of my future offspring from me, you’ll see what’s left of your dignity after I’m done with you."

Lira looked at her.

Serah’s ears — which at moments of activated primordial instinct appeared without her fully deciding — were visible.

Lira blinked.

"I don’t want to be the mate of..." she looked at Kai, who was still against Serah’s chest with a neutral expression.

"Of that." A pause.

"The only thing I want is his blood. It’s the best I’ve tasted in hundreds of years."

"No," Kai said.

Lira looked at him.

"I don’t want to be bitten. I’d become a vampire and it would make me stronger without needing to train, and I don’t want that."

Lira opened her mouth.

Closed it.

"Drinking your blood does not turn you into a vampire," she said, with the tone of someone explaining something basic.

"The only way to create a vampire is through reproduction between pureblood vampires."

Her eyes moved toward Serah briefly.

"No one would stoop so low as to reproduce with an inferior being of another race."

Serah processed that for a second.

"Then," she said, "you’re interested in a being of another race. A superior one."

Lira looked at her.

"I didn’t say that."

"You implied it."

"I didn’t—"

"You implied it."

Lira’s cheeks took on a shade that wasn’t the red of her eyes.

"I didn’t imply it," she said, with less conviction than usual.

Kai sighed.

---

[GarcíaFTW: SERAH PULLED HIM AGAINST HER CHEST IN FRONT OF LIRA]

[NocheEterna99: "Kai’s children will be only mine" — SERAH MARKED TERRITORY WITH WORDS]

[StreamerHunter: Lira blushed. LIRA. BLUSHED.]

[DragonicLegacy: "no one would stoop so low as to reproduce with another inferior race" and then Serah made her imply that she would HAHAHA]

[Jac_Moore: Lira lost the argument and we all saw it]

[Mist_Of_Death: Kai against Serah’s chest looking at the ceiling with a face like "not my problem"]

[RagingMutant: ε=ε=ε=ε=( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)ε=ε=ε=ε= LIRA WANTS THIS WE ALL KNOW IT ε=ε=ε=ε=( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)ε=ε=ε=ε=]

[Pedro_Sierra: ε=ε=ε=ε=( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)ε=ε=ε=ε=]

---

Kai pulled away from Serah’s chest.

"Hey," he said to Lira.

Lira looked at him — with the expression of someone recovering composure at aggressive speed.

"You mentioned something yesterday. About energy. Qi." Kai looked directly at her.

"You said it’s what you noticed in me. What made you adapt your defense."

"Yes."

"Can you teach me to control it better?"

Lira processed the question.

"Vampires have better internal energy flow than any other creature," she said, for a moment recovering her familiar tone.

"I could teach you to channel Qi consciously instead of instinctively." A pause.

"It would be considerably more efficient than learning it alone through hits."

"Deal," Kai said. "You teach me, I let you drink."

"Occasionally."

"Occasionally."

Serah placed herself between the two of them.

"You won’t do that," she told Kai. "Because I’ll finish her off before she gets close."

"I know." Kai looked at her. "But I need someone else to train with. Someone who can take it."

"I can take it."

"Yes." Kai paused. "But I don’t like hurting you."

Serah looked at him.

"I’m stronger than her."

"I already know that."

"I can take all your hits."

"I already know that."

"Last night—"

"Serah."

Serah closed her mouth.

Kai laughed. Awkward. Briefly.

He turned toward Lira.

"Deal."

Lira nodded her head.

"Deal."

---

[GarcíaFTW: DEAL. LIRA JOINS THE GROUP.]

[NocheEterna99: "last night—" / "Serah." — KAI CUT HER OFF. WE ALL KNOW WHERE THAT WAS GOING.]

[StreamerHunter: Serah almost said it ON STREAM. KAI STOPPED HER.]

[DragonicLegacy: HAHAHAHAHAHA]

[Jac_Moore: we all know, but even so we’re going to think about it the rest of the day]

[Mist_Of_Death: "I don’t like hurting you" — Kai chose Lira as a sparring partner to avoid hurting Serah. THAT’S LOVE.]

[RagingMutant: Serah processing that Kai doesn’t want to hurt her is the most tender thing that’s happened]

[Pedro_Sierra: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) "last night" ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) Serah almost ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)]

---