Chapter One Hundred and Thirty: The Death of White Night

My domain gradually faded away, and the figures of Duke Brujah and me once again appeared before everyone.

Star Whisper and White Night, meanwhile, looked utterly battered. Their bodies were covered in wounds of every size, and their breathing was labored as they faced three clan leaders of the Thirteen Clans. By this point, two of the thirteen clan leaders had been gravely wounded by White Night and were forced to withdraw from the battle. White Night and Star Whisper were also nearing the end of their strength, barely retaining any ability to fight.

“It seems we returned at just the right time.” I surveyed the devastated battlefield and spoke to everyone.

“Hmph!” The leader of Clan Brujah snorted at my words but said nothing.

“Your Highness Liliana!” The clan leaders of the Thirteen Clans cried out in astonishment when they saw the leader of Clan Brujah and me appear.

“What is it? Are you surprised that I managed to come out alive?” I asked the clan leaders with a smile.

“Stop.”

The leader of Clan Brujah spoke in a low voice.

“Why? Are you planning to spare this lowly fallen one and the man who has defiled the bloodline of the Dracula family?” one of the clan leaders asked in confusion.

“That is none of your concern,” I said calmly. “This is my affair, and I will deal with it myself. There is no need for you to meddle. Now, go back to wherever you came from. There is no place for you here.”

“Old Brujah, what is the meaning of this?” one of the clan leaders demanded of the leader of Clan Brujah.

The leader of Clan Brujah remained silent.

“It is very simple.” I smiled and answered in his place. “I possess enough power to threaten his life. Naturally, that includes all of you as well. He had no choice but to compromise. Or perhaps you have the courage to die here, simply to kill those two? I would be most interested to see your answer.”

Upon hearing this, the clan leaders of the Thirteen Clans first showed expressions of disbelief, then their faces changed one after another. The leader of Clan Brujah remained silent and offered no rebuttal, which amounted to an acknowledgment of my words. Among the thirteen clan leaders, he was the strongest. If I possessed the strength to threaten his life, then dealing with the others would naturally be no problem.

The clan leaders of the Thirteen Clans were all ancient monsters who had lived for several thousand years. They valued their lives above all else. None of them was willing to sacrifice himself for two lowly fallen ones.

“We understand.”

Several clan leaders who supported me were the first to voice their agreement. Since the matter was no longer feasible, and the leader of Clan Brujah was no longer insisting on continuing, they accepted my decision.

“Then what do you intend to do, Your Highness Liliana? Are you truly going to let this lowly fallen one and the man who has defiled the bloodline of the Dracula family go free?” Some of the clan leaders were still unwilling to let Star Whisper and White Night escape so easily, especially the two who had been wounded by White Night.

“That is my affair. You need not concern yourself with it.” I turned to the clan leader who had questioned me. “I will not let him off, but not now. I will settle the hatred between us myself. There is no need for you to interfere.”

“And what of the man who has defiled the bloodline of the Dracula family? What do you intend to do with him, Your Highness Liliana? Are you planning to shelter him?”

“And if I am?” I replied coldly. “If you are dissatisfied, then stake your life against mine and see who remains standing in the end. If you lack the courage, then stay where you are and behave!”

Faced with my uncompromising words, the clan leader who had challenged me fell silent in reluctant frustration.

“Your Highness Liliana.”

The leader of Clan Brujah suddenly stepped to my side.

“What is it?” His words drew my attention.

“I wish to know whether Your Highness remains immortal outside your domain.”

His voice was cold. Then, without mercy, his claws swept toward my heart from behind.

It happened too suddenly. I had never expected the leader of Clan Brujah, who had already compromised, to attack me without warning. There was no time to defend myself, nor even to gather the magic required for teleportation. All I could do was watch helplessly as his claws drew closer and closer.

“Your Highness Liliana!”

At the sight of his actions, not only Star Whisper and the others, but even the remaining clan leaders of the Thirteen Clans were stunned. No one had expected the leader of Clan Brujah to strike at me at such a moment.

“Liliana!”

Seeing what was happening, White Night let out an enraged roar. His figure vanished from where he stood.

The sound of flesh being torn and bones being shattered rang in everyone’s ears. Then every person present was frozen by the scene before them.

The claws of the leader of Clan Brujah had failed to pierce my heart. At the most critical moment, White Night had appeared before me and taken the blow in my place. The price was a gaping hole in his chest. In his haste to shield me, White Night had been unable to protect his vital organs. The claws of the leader of Clan Brujah had pierced straight through his heart.

“White Night!”

I held his body and cried out in panic. I could not understand why he had risked his life to save me, his enemy.

“Damn it!”

The leader of Clan Brujah vented his frustration, but did not attack again. He had lost the best opportunity to strike, and there would be no second chance.

While the clan leaders of the Thirteen Clans remained stunned, Ang and Xuelan broke free of those entangling them and appeared before me. They shielded me with their bodies, cutting me off from the leader of Clan Brujah. Four clan leaders who supported me also stood in front of me.

This time, the remaining clan leaders did not intervene. They simply stood to one side in neutrality. They, too, had never expected the leader of Clan Brujah to truly attempt to kill me. It was something they absolutely did not wish to see.

I could be sealed away or gravely wounded, but I absolutely could not be killed. Otherwise, His Highness the Prince would certainly sense it. His fury was something none of the clan leaders of the Thirteen Clans could endure. Indeed, the entire Thirteen Clans might be destroyed. For that reason, they did not dare interfere again.

“Lord Brujah, what exactly are you trying to do?”

Ang questioned the leader of Clan Brujah coldly. His actions had completely ignited Ang’s fury, and Ang had resolved to destroy him at any cost.

“It was merely the death of a lowly fallen one. What is there to become so agitated about?” the leader of Clan Brujah replied indifferently, as though the ambush he had just launched were beneath notice. “Her Highness Liliana was not injured, was she? Or are you saying that you intend to make me pay with my life for the sake of a lowly fallen one?”

As he spoke, the leader of Clan Brujah glanced at White Night in my arms, surrounded by the others’ protection.

“White Night, why? Why did you save me?”

I felt the life within his body gradually fading and asked in bewilderment.

“Save you? I never intended to save you, especially not at the cost of my life. Even now, all I can think about is how to kill you.” White Night’s voice was weak. “I simply did not want to see you die at the hands of anyone but me. That would have been a disgrace to me. I would never allow it!”

As he spoke, his consciousness began to fade.

Feeling the life within White Night slowly disappearing, I could not describe what stirred inside me.

“White Night, do not think I will be grateful to you. I feel nothing but hatred for you now.”

“I do not need your gratitude.” His voice grew softer and softer, until it was almost inaudible. “I spent my whole life pursuing power and authority. But in the end, I discovered that none of it was what I truly wanted. Why did I refuse to hesitate before bearing endless sins? Why did I oppose the entire world?”

White Night murmured the questions to himself.

“You cannot die, White Night!”

Seeing the emptiness in his eyes, I shouted furiously. “You can die only by my hand! How can you simply die like this? If you die, who will bear the brunt of my anger? White Night!”

At the sound of my roar, White Night smiled. Then, using what remained of his strength, he whispered beside my ear:

“Liliana… It seems that what I wanted most was still you. I wanted you to remember me forever. I wanted to be able, someday, to softly call your name… Lil… ia…”

His voice finally faded into nothingness and vanished completely from my ear.

After hearing White Night’s final words, I quietly knelt there and allowed his body to turn to ash, the remains falling over me.

“He was only a lowly fallen one. Surely he is not worth your grief and anger, Your Highness Liliana.”

The leader of Clan Brujah looked at me with disdain.

“Ah, yes. You are right. He is not worth grieving over, and I will not be angry for his sake.”

My voice reached the leader of Clan Brujah without a trace of emotion.

“Then we shall take our leave.” The leader of Clan Brujah turned to me. “Dawn is about to break. I imagine Your Highness Liliana would not wish to turn to ash beneath the sunlight, just like that lowly fallen one.”

“Yes. The sensation of being scorched by sunlight is truly unpleasant.”

My voice remained utterly flat.

“Then, members of the Thirteen Clans, let us go. Our task is complete. As for the man who has defiled the bloodline of the Dracula family, leave him to Her Highness Liliana.”

With that, the leader of Clan Brujah turned and prepared to leave.

“Ah.”

I sighed softly.

“I never imagined there could be someone as foolish as you in this world. White Night, you have made me hate you even more.”

I spoke as though to myself.

“But I will remember you forever. Even if I wanted to forget you, I would no longer be able to. Your wish has been fulfilled, hasn’t it? White Night, you may rest in peace.”