My Wives are Beautiful Demons-Chapter 287: Friendship aside, business is business.

[Hours Earlier…]

Vergil had indeed gone alone.

But Sapphire was not one to leave things to chance. She was practical, methodical—her self-control sharp as a well-honed blade. Nothing she did was impulsive... everything was calculation, purpose, and efficiency. Well, that's what she told herself—let's not judge.

While many believed she would sit on some throne awaiting reports or watching from afar, she was right there. Standing atop a snowy hill beneath the morning sun, her crimson trench coat billowing behind her like a war banner. Hands tucked into her pockets, eyes half-lidded in pure, refined boredom.

Before her, the view was almost poetic: Alucard's mansion—or rather, fortress—was in full-blown war.

"So... in the end, just as I expected," she muttered, her voice low, almost disappointed, laced with an elegant irony.

Explosions echoed from within the gothic structure, which now resembled a mausoleum imploding from the inside out. The sky above the castle trembled with magical lightning, and screams rippled through the landscape—wails, desperate commands, the dull thuds of heads being ripped off, and who knows what else—vampires doing what they always did best.

Sapphire sighed.

"It was obvious this would happen," she murmured, her sharp gaze narrowing. Her eyes settled on the fortress's main building—the old library, now the epicenter of a monstrous battle that made the very walls tremble with each impact.

Roofs collapsed. Windows shattered into flame. And within that chaos… it was a massacre.

Vampires against vampires. novelbuddy.cσ๓

Brothers killing brothers. Masters devouring apprentices. Bloodlines betraying centuries of honor for a fleeting chance at survival. A full-blown mutiny, fueled by hunger, frustration… and above all, fear.

And, of course, a generous dose of rebellion and revolution.

Sapphire watched it all like someone sitting through a bad stage play.

"The problem with being Dracula's son and trying to be the opposite…" she said, pulling one hand from her pocket and pointing lazily at the destruction, "...is that deep down, it just means you want to be weak."

A tower crumbled, bringing down dozens of vampires battling atop it. Their bodies were impaled on the debris, though not all died instantly. Some still crawled, even as they burned, trying to rip each other's hearts out with their teeth.

Sapphire didn't blink.

"Dracula was a man ahead of his time. Visionary. Mad, maybe. But purposeful," she said, like a professor lecturing an empty classroom, just voicing thoughts to the wind. "He was sealed away for wanting too much power. But too much power was never the issue. The issue… is not knowing what to do with it."

She lowered her gaze briefly, observing a small scene near the castle's edge: a lesser vampire in the garb of Alucard's personal guard, being disemboweled by two elder nobles. Once they finished, one attacker smiled—only for the other to decapitate him in turn. Not even traitors shared loyalty.

"Alucard, on the other hand…" she sighed, exasperated, "...is nothing more than a clown with power and no control. A spoiled brat trying to preach morals to monsters. And the result? He created monsters far worse."

A blast of dark mana erupted from the top of the fortress, leveling part of the castle. The sky turned crimson for a moment, like a bloodstained veil draping the world. Then—silence. But only for a heartbeat.

More screams followed.

Sapphire pulled her other hand from her pocket and crossed her arms, expression unchanged.

"He could have been a king. A new pillar for the next era," she murmured, like watching a porcelain statue shatter on the floor. "But he chose to be a martyr too soon. That's what happens when a predator tries to dress like a human."

Her gaze remained fixed on the ruined castle, but a lazy, almost amused smile tugged at her lips.

"You've been standing there for a while, haven't you?" she said, her voice low and dripping with sweet venom. "How about you stop hiding and just say what you want?"

The air around her crackled like fractured glass, and a black portal tore through the space with the muffled sound of thunder. Black feathers floated down gently, spiraling slowly until they touched the ground, while a figure emerged from the darkness with calm, confident steps.

"Hahaha... nice to know you still remember my aura," said Azazel, that signature grin of his carrying the weight of a thousand hidden intentions.

The black wings dissolved behind him as he adjusted the collar of his dark jacket and slid his hands into his pockets, like he was just out for a stroll. The wind tugged lightly at his hair, and his eyes mirrored the inferno consuming the fortress—as if thoroughly entertained by the chaos.

"I'm surprised to see you here, Azazel," Sapphire raised an eyebrow, her ironic smile unchanging. "Don't tell me you knew this would happen?"

They looked young—no older than a pair of rebellious college students craving chaos—but the gravity of their presence said otherwise. They were old. As old as the Genesis War itself. Creatures molded in eras when time still bled.

"Oh, don't be so cruel," Azazel replied playfully, though his sharp eyes never stopped scanning the scene. "Let's just say I follow the scent of the inevitable. And this place… reeks of tragedy."

He glanced toward the dying fortress. Another tower collapsed in flames on the horizon, taking dozens of vampires with it. One tried to fly away—only to be betrayed midair by its own progeny, torn to pieces before hitting the ground.

"Times are changing," Azazel said, voice shifting into something more serious.

"Came to watch the fall of your old friend?" Sapphire asked, her gaze still fixed on the carnage. "I remember seeing you two together, back when Sepphirothy and I were tearing through Los Angeles. Alucard seemed... more alive then."

Azazel smiled wistfully and shrugged.

"Well, after that Spectre guy tried to rip my head off, I got... curious," his tone dropped, heavy with restrained anger. "Figured Alucard might've made someone else's list too."

"So, you're just an observer now?" Sapphire uncrossed her arms and crossed her legs like a living statue. The ground beneath her steadied, as if even the earth itself refused to tremble in her presence.

"Friendship, sure... but business is business, darling." Azazel's smile twisted slightly, a mischievous gleam flickering in his golden eyes. "And you? You're a long way from home."

"Excalibur Fragment," Sapphire answered coldly, not looking away from the destruction ahead.

Azazel raised an eyebrow.

"Oh... interesting. Though honestly, I think that's the least of our concerns right now. We've got bigger problems than some... magical trinkets."

"Magical trinkets, huh..." Sapphire muttered, her piercing gaze digging deeper into the ravaged scenery.

"Don't tell me you're not the least bit curious?" Azazel went on, chuckling softly. "A Holy Sword turning into a divine artifact... and capable of transforming other weapons into divine artifacts? Viviane never had power like that. Not on her own. Arthur must've done something before he died. Or better yet... before he killed that dragon."

The suggestion hung in the air like black smoke—tainted and tempting.

Sapphire's eyes narrowed, the tension in her stance rising.

"Giving away information for free...? That's not like you, Azazel."

"Maybe not." He shrugged with calculated disdain. "But I'm lending a bit of help to Vergil. He saved me the trouble of wiping out all those traitorous Fallen Angels. Clean work. Fast. He's earned some goodwill."

Azazel turned partially toward her, eyes narrowing as he studied her face.

"By the way... where is he now?"

Sapphire didn't answer. Instead, she returned her gaze to the ruins of Alucard's estate. A column from the castle's northern wing collapsed, swallowed by flames, and the screams inside had become echoes of a massacre in progress.

"We can assume this is the beginning of a new Vampire Kingdom, right?"

"Probably," Azazel replied, utterly uninterested. "Though I doubt it'll last."

"Then I suppose it's fine if I take that girl."

Sapphire smiled. One of those smiles—dangerous, almost lazy, yet brimming with lethal intent.

Azazel followed her gaze.

Down below, amid the chaos, Kaguya dragged herself through the rubble. Her leg was bleeding, and a vampire stalked her with blood-hungry red eyes.

"FUCK!! YOU DAMN TRAITOR!" she roared, snarling like a beast. Twisting her body, she kicked the vampire with brutal force, knocking him off balance for a second.

He lunged again—but she threw herself at him and crushed his head with blood-slick fists, a burst of fury and desperation.

Panting, she dropped to her knees amidst the wreckage, her body trembling, eyes brimming with hatred.

"FUCK YOU!! I'LL KILL YOU, ALUCARD!!"

The scream tore through the crimson sky like a blade. Its echo spread across the burning castle walls like a challenge.

Sapphire watched her with a serene expression, as if she were simply choosing a new necklace.

"She has energy. Instinct. Trauma," she said softly.

Azazel laughed.

"You always had a weird taste in recruits."

"I like broken things," she replied, turning slightly. "They're easier to mold."

"Interesting…" Azazel murmured, eyes still fixed on Kaguya—until something flickered at the edge of his vision.

He turned his head.

Sapphire was gone.

Spinning toward the battlefield, he caught sight of her—a streak of red slicing through the chaos like a living blade. Her coat billowed behind her like a war banner, her feet gliding over the debris with impossible grace. In seconds, she stood before Kaguya, who was still struggling to breathe, kneeling in blood and dust.

"Why... are you here?!" Kaguya rasped, her voice broken.

"We warned you that siding with Alucard would get you fucked. You didn't listen." Sapphire's voice was calm, almost soothing. "Now... silence. You've screamed enough for today."

And before the girl could react, a swift, clean strike hit her in the side of the neck. A precise blow—quick and efficient. Kaguya collapsed, her body going limp like a broken doll.

Sapphire caught her effortlessly, slinging her over her shoulder as if she were nothing more than a sack of potatoes. She cast a glance toward Azazel in the distance, who crossed his arms with a resigned sigh.

"Same old style," he muttered with a crooked smile. "Blunt, cold, and doesn't ask for permission."

But then, Sapphire paused.

Her eyes narrowed. The air shivered.

A pulse of energy rippled through the region like an invisible shockwave—deep, abyssal pressure that coiled around the soul. Cold as death. Familiar.

Sapphire closed her eyes for a heartbeat. Then opened them, revealing a sharp golden gleam.

"Amon…" she whispered the name with a mix of surprise and thinly veiled excitement.

Without wasting another moment, she bent her knees, feeling the air condense around her. A second later, she launched herself into the sky like a crimson missile, tearing through the clouds in a sharp arc of momentum and purpose.

"Oh... you're near Vergil..." she said aloud, a grin creeping across her face."Perfect."