My Horny Stepmom Turns Me into Her Vampire Slave-Chapter 39: Mia’s devastating new ability

Clang! Clang!

Mia brings her scythe down on Isabelle, but she parries it with ease. Then another, and another, but Isabelle’s defense is flawless. A moment later Chris joins in, unleashing a flurry of katana strikes.

They fight side by side, alternating their strikes. Then they switch tactics and attack at the same time — Mia from the front, Chris from behind.

Over more than four exhausting hours of combat, their coordination keeps improving. But even their teamwork isn’t enough.

Chris moves back beside Mia, and they resume attacking from the front, giving her no breathing room as they search for an opening they can’t find.

Suddenly, Chris and Mia split apart. He dashes right, she left, letting an energy sphere from Zaira pass between them.

Their plan was to keep Isabelle busy and block her view, then hit her with a surprise ranged attack.

But even that doesn’t work — Isabelle cuts through the spell with a single slash.

The two young vampires attack from the sides — Chris from one flank, Mia from the other. But a burst of Isabelle’s energy sweeps them away, sending them tumbling across the sand.

The three of them are exhausted, while Isabelle has barely broken a sweat — and only because of the oppressive tropical heat.

Chris and Mia exchange a quick nod.

They’re about to attack again when...

"Stop!" Isabelle exclaims.

"W-Why? There’s still plenty of time before sunset!" Mia complains.

"I know, but I’m getting bored just standing here watching you, so I’ll change the rules a bit. I’ll be allowed to hit you — but only to counter one of your attacks, and only in close combat."

"B-But that’s not fair!" Chris grumbles. "It’s already practically impossible like this — now you can counterattack too. We don’t stand a chance!"

Isabelle shrugs.

"My training, my rules. And anyway, Princess Mia, are you going to use your full power before sunset or not? Come on, entertain me a bit."

Since it completely drains her, Mia had planned to use the Tear of Azkarith as a last resort. But after hours of useless attempts, it’s clear there’s no point in waiting any longer.

The pendant begins to glow, and pink flames swirl around her.

That same sadistic, malicious expression that once terrified Chris now spreads across Mia’s face.

"You made a mistake letting me use this power. Tonight, you’ll be the one going home in pieces, Isabelle!"

Mia darts toward her at a speed far beyond before, leaving a scorched trail behind. The heat she gives off is so intense it melts the sand beneath her feet, turning it to glass.

Mia brings down a devastating scythe strike. Isabelle meets it with an equally powerful sword slash.

The impact is overwhelming.

The shockwave sweeps everything away within dozens of meters around them — palm trees, sand, even Chris and Zaira.

The heat around Mia is so intense that Isabelle has to compress Sanguis energy around herself to withstand it, forming a protective shell.

When their weapons clash again, the impact is even more destructive than before, triggering a violent quake that shakes half the island.

The flames around Mia are no longer thin, flickering tongues. She’s now completely engulfed in a blazing pink aura.

"You’re truly incredible, Mia. That heat you’re giving off... it’s the Incandescent Mantle, and you unlocked it in just four days of intense training! Damn... it’s a real shame we’re going back to New York tomorrow — I’m sure that with a full month, you would have become incredibly strong!"

The Incandescent Mantle Isabelle refers to is one of the abilities granted by the Tear of Azkarith. It lets the user coat their body in a blazing aura of extreme heat. Right now, Mia’s temperature is around one thousand degrees.

"Instead of praising me, worry about defending yourself from this!"

Mia unleashes another slash, but it’s blocked again. The force of the clash shatters both weapons. Now unarmed, the fight turns into a flurry of punches and blocks.

Mia throws a punch straight at her face, but Isabelle catches it between her fingers and counters with a stomp to the stomach, sending her flying.

A jet of blood bursts from Mia’s mouth, and when she gets back up, the Incandescent Mantle is gone — she no longer has the energy to maintain it. And yet, the flames around her still remain.

That means she’s still drawing on the power of her artifact — and Chris is stunned.

When I saw her use that power against those four primordial vampires, she was completely drained after just a few seconds. Now she’s been using it for over a minute and still looks fine... Mia is incredible!

"Come on, princess, why don’t you use your ace in the hole?" Isabelle taunts her.

"If I did, I’d kill you. And that wouldn’t be appropriate."

"You think? If it were that easy to send me to the Realm of the Dead, I’d have died a long time ago. Come on, use your Destruction Dragon Eyes."

"Fine. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Your loss."

The vortex of flames intensifies, and Mia’s eyes turn pink, her pupils shifting into golden reptilian slits.

"M-Mia, don’t do it!" Chris shouts, but it’s too late.

Mia has already activated her deadly eye ability — anything she looks at bursts into flames from within and is reduced to ash.

Isabelle places a hand on her stomach and makes a slight grimace. More than pain, it’s the expression of someone who ate too much and now has acid reflux.

Then she exhales a thin trail of smoke from her lips.

Nothing else.

No fire. No charred flesh, no screams of pain. Nothing at all.

The flames around Mia vanish completely. Her eyes return to normal, and the stone in her pendant stops glowing.

She collapses to her knees, unconscious.

"H-How is that possible...?" Chris stammers. "M-Maybe... Mia didn’t have enough energy left to use them?"

"No. I simply suppressed the flames that ignited inside me with my Sanguis. That’s all. Think of it this way — I built a shell around the fire to keep it from spreading."

"Is it really possible to do things like that with Sanguis energy...?"

"There’s so much you can do that you can’t even imagine. But don’t rush — I’ll teach you everything, step by step. For now, your priority is learning how to awaken your Innatus. Zaira, take Mia inside. Chris, get ready. Now it’s your turn."