It was the second day of the birthday celebration.In the morning, I had to practically drag him out of bed and handed him over to Paul before heading to the party. I still held onto the hope of leaving early, though it seemed unlikely. I couldn't help but envy Paul a bit - he didn't have to attend even though he was the grandson, while I, as the godson, had to, and for a whole seven days at that.The main guests of the day were the elders, both the patriarch and second elder. Alcohol flowed freely, and the revelry seemed to surpass that of the previous day. Neil called at some point, but not as frequently as the day before, and I didn't answer any of his calls. By the time I remembered to call him back, he didn't pick up - he was probably having a blast. I decided not to pursue it further; he could enjoy himself without me, and we could catch up later in the evening.Today I ended up even more intoxicated than yesterday. When I returned, Neil was still awake, sitting on the edge of t
Over the next two days, the fifth and sixth days of the celebration, I returned home early both times. I had intended to make it up to him, but the same issue resurfaced. However, this time it seemed more serious. He wasn't just timid or fearful; I sensed he was on the verge of breaking down, perhaps even disappointed in me.On the first day, I sat down, intending to have a serious conversation with him. I also wanted to tell him about Harry's persistent calls from the previous day. But he started crying, saying he wanted to go home. Before I could even try to soothe him or suggest we leave together in a few days, he said something that immediately angered me.“Ryan, if you don't want to go back, can I go back alone?”"What are you saying?""I'm begging you, let me go back, okay? I won't cause you any trouble. I'll go by myself and figure things out.""Neil! As I've told you before, I have only one request, and that's for you not to leave me. We need to stay together. You promised me
I slept until nearly noon, perhaps because I had been working too hard and felt exhausted. I suspected the person in my arms was still asleep. Turning him over, I prepared to give him a kiss on the forehead. As my hand touched his cheek, I felt as though I had grasped a hot water bottle."Neil, Neil, wake up!"I shook him for a while, but there was no response; he seemed to have lost consciousness. I quickly asked Ethan to call a doctor to check on Neil. I was uneasy about letting anyone else touch Neil and kept a close eye on the doctor's every move. Fortunately, they were professional and didn't get scared off by my vigilance.After the doctor's examination, he explained Neil's physical condition and carefully advised on what to pay attention to. Essentially, the main thing was to take a few days to rest and avoid exertion; absolute rest was necessary."The doctor said it's nothing serious, just that perhaps last night was too overexerted.""Mm.""Darling, I'm sorry, I was too rough
After applying the medicine and helping him into his basic underwear, I covered him with a blanket and then stepped out. Let it be like this, just wait for three days, just three days, and after that, we won't need to worry anymore. I'll wait until that midnight of the third day, not even to delay one more minute, then I'll hold him and leave this place forever.With Neil's phone in hand, I returned to the bar. Judging by how clean it was, I knew Ethan had already arranged for someone to clean up. I poured myself a whiskey and unlocked Neil's phone to check. Unfortunately, I stumbled upon something I didn't want to see. There were fifteen missed calls and unread messages from a new number."Neil, it's Harry. Are you okay?""Are you alright?""Are you too busy to read my messages?"These were all messages from three days ago, the night he had nightmares. He hadn't checked his messages all day, he must have been really exhausted that day. I continued scrolling down..."Neil, I'll be hon
I regained my composure, though it was less of composure and more of speechlessness, powerlessness, and hopelessness. Kneeling beside Neil, who appeared devoid of any color, I found myself devoid of any coherent thoughts, only the desire to fill every moment and every second with him. As I observed the bloodless figure before me, an unconscious question slipped from my lips."How could someone suddenly start bleeding without cause?""Perhaps it's due to internal injuries," Ethan responded naturally, unaware of my murmurs."Internal injuries?" The words stirred something within me. "Neil mentioned being attacked, injured, but I couldn't see any wounds. I even accused him of fabricating it.""Wounds that couldn’t be seen?""Yes, even the vampire claimed Neil was injured.""Master, may I examine Mr. Neil?" Ethan's request triggered a realization. "I've heard of a magic that conceals surface truths, masking external injuries while internal ones persist. Without prompt treatment, these int
In one hand, I held Neil's diary, and in the other, Ethan's USB drive, handed to me personally. As I delved into the diary, I discovered Neil too had fallen for me at first sight, but his self-doubt clouded his feelings. Many times, his thoughts and emotions mirrored mine, only he was more naïve, yet all this was before my transformation. I never noticed my own change, let alone its downward spiral. Initially, to win Neil over, I resorted to deceit and manipulation; once together, driven by my possessiveness, I controlled and punished him. Returning to the castle, I felt I had veered further off course, and the damning truth lay on the next page of the diary: the second day at the castle. No one admonished me, not even Neil, and it was only after his passing that I found my faults within his diary.Turning to the last seventh page of Neil's diary:"On the second day at the castle, I anticipated it to be a splendid one, with breakfast followed by a leisurely stroll. But then I saw him,
I continued to flip through Neil's diary: the last, sixth page."This morning, my alarm went off, but I was too tired to get up. My eyes wouldn't open, and my muscles felt heavy. I couldn't wake up, and the noise woke Ryan. He was a bit grumpy from being disturbed.I realized Ryan couldn't see my wounds either, because when he grabbed my wrist to wake me up, his fingernails dug into my wound, causing me a sharp pain. Why can't they see my injuries?I got into Paul's car. He looked angry, and I didn't dare to look at him. I secretly called Ryan, but Ryan didn't pick up. I tried calling again, but he still didn't answer. He must be busy.We arrived at a waterfall area, where I saw Rainey and the others, along with the people from yesterday. Paul dragged me to the center of the crowd and punched me in the stomach, making me collapse in pain. He then placed his leg on my chest, and my back hurt from being pressed against the rocks.I heard Rainey and the others ask Paul if he was crazy. P
I took out Neil's phone, retrieved the blocked contacts, and found Harry's number. Using my own phone, I called him. This was the second time I had reached out to him. The first time was to keep him away from Neil, fearing he might hurt him. Now, the second time, I had hurt Neil myself and needed his help."Hello.""It's Ryan.""What happened to Neil?""Neil is dead. I caused his death.""Ryan Lucas!""I know you hate me. I'll pay the price, don't worry about that.""What do you want?""I need your help. I need you to get rid of three werewolves. Are you up for it?""Are they the ones who killed Neil?""Yes.""Okay.""First, find someone capable of protecting you all the way to Lucas Castle. Once you're at the castle, I'll protect you. This isn't just confidence—it's a promise on my life.""Then why didn't you protect Neil with your life back then?"I couldn't answer that question. I wanted to tell him that I realized my confidence was misplaced only now, but what use was that now? My