"Introduce yourself."
Qin Xuan sat on the sofa, smiling as he handed Vladimir a cup of tea.
Vladimir took it gently and began, a hint of bitterness in his voice, "My name is Vladimir, and I am from the Empire of the Setting Sun."
"I was the fifteenth generation of a vampire clan, with the strength of a vampire baron."
"You were?" Qin Xuan keenly picked up on the implication in his words.
Vladimir gave a wry smile and recounted his story to Qin Xuan.
It turned out Vladimir hailed from Cappadocia, the most brutal and extinct clan among the thirteen. Despite possessing noble blood, he was ostracized by his kin for his gentle and kind nature from a young age. When he was eight, his parents sought out the most respected prophet of the Brujah clan to cast a divination for him.
The prophet foretold that if Vladimir wished to survive, he must leave his clan and live in the Dragon Country. Otherwise, within three years, he would become a public enemy of the entire vampire lineage. Furthermore, upon reaching adulthood at two hundred years old, his blood would be drained, and he would be utterly annihilated.
Therefore, to protect Vladimir, his parents left the clan with him and settled in the Dragon Country. However, not long after, they mysteriously died there, leaving the young Vladimir and a vampire servant to rely on each other.
"How old are you now?" Wan Lingqiu asked curiously.
Vladimir calculated briefly and stated his age, "One hundred and ninety-nine years and eleven months."
"Ah!"
"Then you're about to reach the age of two hundred predicted by the prophet?"
"No wonder you were so desperate not to be captured by us."
"You were afraid of being repatriated by the Dragon Country."
Vladimir nodded. "I've been in the Dragon Country for over a hundred years."
"If I go back now, all that my father and mother did would be meaningless."
The four women understood after hearing Vladimir's words. However, Qin Xuan still found some inconsistencies. "According to what you said earlier, your kind of vampires can feed on stored blood from blood banks. If that's the case, why would you risk being captured and come out here? Especially at this critical juncture of your impending adulthood?"
"I didn't want to either..." Vladimir sighed deeply. "But ever since I celebrated my one hundred and ninety-ninth birthday, my thirst for blood began to surge uncontrollably. At first, I could resist it with the stored blood at home, but as time went by, the urge became more intense. Only by consuming fresh human blood could it be satisfied. That's why I..."
"But I swear, I really haven't done anything outrageous! I've been in the Dragon Country for over a hundred years, and I love the people here. Those I've fed on were merely a bit anemic and weak. With a couple of days of rest, they would recover. I'm telling the truth, please believe me!"
Perhaps sensing a glimmer of hope, Vladimir began to earnestly explain himself to them. The four women exchanged glances, a hint of hesitation in their hearts. However, they were merely subordinates. The final decision rested with Qin Xuan, the General.
Qin Xuan's mind was racing. He had a feeling that this matter was not as simple as it seemed. "It's not that I can't arrest you, but I need you to answer a few questions. Ask away!" Seeing Qin Xuan, who was leading them, speak, Vladimir's eyes lit up.
"First, about the prophet's prediction. Did he tell you or your parents what was so special about you that you would become a public enemy of the entire vampire lineage?"
Vladimir thought carefully and then shook his head slightly. "During the divination, the prophet communicated directly with my parents. I was just playing nearby. The details of the prophecy I remember were all told to me by my parents after we came to the Dragon Country."
"I see." Qin Xuan's brow furrowed slowly, and he asked his second question, "Within your clan, were there any others like you who were ostracized for being naturally kind?"
Vladimir pondered for a moment, then gently shook his head. "If I recall correctly, all my clansmen were extremely brutal. They would fight over a single word from another kinsman and torture their prey like toys. This is the nature of Cappadocia; even my parents were no exception."
"Understood." After hearing Vladimir's reply, Qin Xuan's brow furrowed even deeper than before. If there were others in Vladimir's clan similar to him, then Vladimir's existence could be attributed to personality differences among kin. But with no one else in the entire clan like him, and only him being this way, it couldn't be explained by simple personality differences. An anomaly often indicated something sinister.
"Third question. Who killed your parents?" After a moment of thought, Qin Xuan asked his third question.
Vladimir hesitated for a moment, then took a deep breath. "To be honest, I don't know. That night, my parents suddenly received a note. They told me with grave expressions to hide somewhere and promised they would return soon. But I fell asleep in the closet and never waited for them. The next morning, Buffy found me. It was also Buffy who found my parents' bodies outside... They were covered in wounds, and their blood had been completely drained. Judging by the fatal wounds, the attackers were likely vampires as well."
"Did you investigate afterwards?" Yuan Mengqi interjected suddenly.
Vladimir nodded. "I investigated all possible clues in the vicinity, but found nothing. Besides, back then, there were no surveillance cameras like there are now. My only sources of information were Buffy's account and the testimonies of other villagers."
"The Buffy you mentioned, is that the vampire servant left by your parents?" Qin Xuan raised an eyebrow. After Vladimir nodded, he continued, "Then the last two questions. When did this servant join your household? Was it before or after your birth? And why did he become your family's servant?"
Qin Xuan's questions momentarily caught Vladimir off guard. "If I remember correctly, Buffy was already..."
"I was embraced by the young master before he was born," an aged voice echoed from outside the bedroom window.
Qin Xuan and the others quickly turned their gaze towards the window. There, a white-haired old man in a black robe was hovering in the air outside. The eerie sensation sent shivers down their spines, especially considering they were on the tenth floor.