Love demands immediate action

The dimly lit corridor flickered with the soft glow of candlelight as night fell upon Thornflower Castle. With the ancient fortress now illuminated, the faint reflections of firelight danced in each other's eyes. For some reason, Luo Wei couldn't shake the feeling that the beautiful woman before him was staring a little too intently—almost unnervingly so.

"No need to be so formal with me," she said with a smile. "Since you're the one Evelyn has chosen, that makes us family. And among family, there’s no need for such distinctions. We Abrahams aren’t as rigid as those human nobles."

Luo Wei nodded with a polite smile. His guess had been correct—this elegant woman holding the little girl’s hand was none other than the current Duchess, the matriarch of the Abraham family, and Evelyn’s stepmother.

After exchanging greetings, the Duchess warmly stepped forward and took Evelyn’s hand.

"Victor’s always talking about you, you know. He’s been waiting so long for your return. Just wait here a moment—I’ll go fetch him for you."

She then muttered under her breath with mild irritation, "Honestly, what could that man possibly be so busy with? His own daughter finally comes home, and he can’t even be bothered to greet her properly. What could be more important than this?"

Evelyn shook her head. "There’s no need, Aunt Shirley. Annie told me Father is meeting with important guests. It’s best not to disturb him."

"Oh, you’ve always been so considerate," the Duchess sighed, reluctantly giving up.

Her gaze then drifted back to Luo Wei, curiosity gleaming in her eyes. "Annie told me about you, and I must say, I was quite surprised. I’ve always wondered what kind of partner our proud little princess Evelyn would choose. And now that I’ve seen you..."

The Duchess leaned in closer, her scrutiny growing bolder.

A delicate fragrance wafted toward Luo Wei. This woman, Evelyn’s so-called "mother," was nothing like he’d imagined—in fact, she was almost too enthusiastic.

The Duchess studied him approvingly before nodding. "Mmm... Very nice indeed. You’ve got excellent taste, Evelyn. No wonder you turned down all those other suitors we introduced you to before."

She then took Luo Wei’s hand with the familiarity of a doting elder. "So, how old are you, dear? How did you two meet? And how do you usually get along?"

Evelyn’s frown deepened as she watched the Duchess cling to Luo Wei’s hand.

"Oh, and one more thing," the Duchess added casually, as if it were an afterthought. "Tell me a bit about your family. I hear they existed even before the City of Cain, secluded for... what was it, three thousand two hundred years?"

Luo Wei’s lips twitched. Three thousand two hundred? With such precise numbers? How had the rumors gotten this ridiculous?

"That’s what you really wanted to ask, isn’t it?" Evelyn said dryly, finally understanding the greedy glint in Shirley’s eyes. She must have mistaken Luo Wei for some reclusive vampire aristocrat from an ancient bloodline.

"Of course not, haha!" The Duchess covered her mouth with a laugh. "I just wanted to vet him properly for you, Evelyn. Oh, but—!"

She suddenly lowered her voice and whispered to Luo Wei, "Do you have any brothers? Unmarried ones?"

Luo Wei shook his head. "I’m afraid not, Your Grace."

The Duchess’s expression dimmed slightly with disappointment.

Evelyn glanced at her stepmother’s daughter, Emily, and sighed. "Emily’s still so young, and you’re already worrying about this? Honestly..."

Luo Wei followed her gaze. According to Evelyn, her stepmother and the Duke had two children after their marriage—a son and a daughter. This little girl, Emily, was their youngest.

At the moment, Emily was whispering animatedly to Helena, occasionally glancing their way and giggling. It seemed the two girls had hit it off surprisingly well.

But before Luo Wei could dwell on it, the Duchess’s advances grew even more brazen—she actually reached out and gave his arm a playful squeeze.

"Oh my! Quite sturdy, aren’t you? Evelyn, you’re a lucky woman~"

"Duchess..." Luo Wei eyed her warily, subtly leaning back to put some distance between them.

"Still so shy? No need to be so distant with your mother-in-law! Come here, let me have another look~"

Evelyn irritably pushed her hand away, her expression growing more exasperated by the second. "Aunt Shirley... He’s the partner I chose for myself, not a potential replacement for when you’re widowed..."

The Duchess burst into laughter, her shoulders shaking with mirth.

"Oh, what nonsense! You really have a way with words, don’t you? As if I’d ever steal your boyfriend! Is that really how you see your dear Aunt Shirley?"

Evelyn gave her a long, skeptical look—clearly, she didn’t trust her one bit.

Then, as if shielding Luo Wei from a thief, she pulled him behind her, blocking the Duchess’s eager gaze.

"Oh-ho, someone’s getting jealous~" The Duchess watched their intertwined hands and the meaningful glances they exchanged, sighing wistfully. "Ah, youth... How wonderful it is..."

A shadow of melancholy crossed her face as she murmured, "Back when I was still in my prime, that man used to dote on me so much. But now that I’ve aged, he barely even looks at me. Always busy with who-knows-what—sometimes we don’t speak for weeks..."

Evelyn found herself nodding in bitter agreement. "That’s just how he is. Always chasing the next shiny thing. If he weren’t like that, my mother wouldn’t have left in despair and returned to the City of Cain!"

She then turned and shot Luo Wei a warning glare. "Hmph! Men are all the same—always wanting something new. If you ever turn out like that, just wait and see how I’ll punish you!"

Luo Wei blinked innocently. Wait, how did this turn into my problem?

"I’d never do that to you," he assured Evelyn. "Your father is your father, and I’m me. I don’t have a wandering eye."

"Really?" Evelyn narrowed her eyes.

"Of course," Luo Wei replied with a tender smile.

"Wait—no!" Evelyn suddenly frowned, realization dawning.

She leaned in close, whispering into his ear, "I forgot! Compared to your past lovers, I’m the ‘new’ one! No, no—you have to prefer the new over the old!"

Luo Wei couldn’t help but laugh. One moment she was scolding him for potentially being fickle, the next she was demanding he be fickle. He gave her hand an affectionate squeeze. "Relax. You’ll always be my dearest, most beloved Evelyn."

Evelyn’s lips curled into a satisfied smirk, her mood inexplicably lifting.

"Fine, I’ll believe you... for now. But don’t you dare lie to me, or I will make you regret it."

Luo Wei met her gaze with unwavering sincerity. "Teacher, I’d never lie to you. But feel free to punish me anyway."

"Hmm?" Evelyn froze for a moment, then her cheeks gradually flushed red. She gave Luo Wei an indignant smack. "What are you thinking? What kind of punishment do you think I meant?"

Luo Wei looked at her with a straight face. "Isn’t punishment the same as reward in our household?"

Punishment = Reward = A certain indoor activity that strengthens bonds.

Evelyn’s face turned crimson. "You... stop talking nonsense! And there are outsiders watching..."

"Is Mother an outsider too?"

"......"

The Duchess silently observed the couple’s playful banter, feeling like she’d been force-fed a mouthful of dog food.

She let out a melancholic sigh, her expression growing even more resentful...

While Luo Wei and the others were "happily chatting," on the other side, Emily was holding Helena’s hand, whispering about something.

Emily had hardly ever seen children her age at home, leaving her with no one to play with. Now that she’d finally met Helena, a slightly older girl, there was no way she’d let her go so easily.

"Helena, how old are you?"

Helena glanced at her. "No need to ask—I’m definitely younger than you."

"Eh?" Emily blinked in surprise. "But you look like you’re almost an adult! How could you be younger than me?"

Helena pursed her lips, thinking, Who would compare ages with a vampire? Instead, she countered, "Then how old are you?"

"Me?" Emily did a quick calculation. "Hmm... I’m 95 this year."

Helena stared at her speechlessly. "You’re almost six times my age!"

"Really?" Emily’s eyes widened further. "Wait, you’re not a vampire?"

Helena nodded.

Emily immediately glanced at Luo Wei, then back at Helena. "But your brother is one! So... so you’re not his real sister?"

Helena knew Luo Wei was attending the birthday banquet as a vampire, so she didn’t correct the assumption. She just nodded again.

"Ohhh..." Emily murmured in understanding.

Suddenly, as if realizing something, she shot another look at Luo Wei, then turned back to Helena—only to notice how often Helena kept stealing glances at her brother.

"Ooooh~ So that’s how it is!" She narrowed her eyes mischievously, feeling like she’d uncovered a huge secret.

"No wonder you’ve been staring at Luo Wei this whole time, like you’re afraid he’ll vanish if you look away! And you got so mad when Mother approached him earlier—you were jealous, weren’t you?"

Helena bit her lip, her face tinged with unease. "N-no! I was just... worried about him, that’s all..."

Emily blinked, then leaned in with a playful grin.

"Helena... do you like Luo Wei?!"

Helena’s face instantly burned red. She hurriedly checked if Luo Wei was paying attention to them and sighed in relief when she saw he wasn’t.

Annoyed, she glared at Emily. "What are you even saying? He’s my brother! Don’t say things like that—it’s really weird..."

"What’s the big deal?" Emily shrugged. "I like Monica too, and I’d be super upset if she got married..."

"Huh?" Helena short-circuited for a second, not following.

Emily sighed dramatically, as if speaking to Helena—or maybe just to herself.

"If you love someone, you have to act fast. If you hesitate, they’ll always just see you as a little sister and never understand your feelings..."

"Act fast?" Helena couldn’t help but ask, curiosity piqued. "How?"

When she noticed Emily’s teasing gaze, she immediately shook her head. "D-don’t misunderstand! I’m just asking how you would do it! It’s not like I’m thinking about him or anything!"

Emily gave her a knowing look. "Sure, sure~ Hahaha!"

Putting on a serious face, like a little adult, she declared, "The answer is—take the initiative!"

"Take the initiative?" Helena frowned. "But I already tried that... and failed."

"Wait, what?!" Emily’s eyes sparkled with gossip. "Tell me, tell me! What did you do?"

"I..." Helena’s gaze drifted back to Luo Wei.

"I locked him up! I was this close to succeeding, but... he escaped in the end."

Emily’s jaw dropped.

"What?!"