The castle was vast and desolate. Lin Luo couldn't sense any living beings within its walls except himself. The gloomy atmosphere made it seem like an abandoned ruin, so much so that if not for the lack of creeping vines on the stone masonry, he might have mistaken it for a medieval heritage site.

After wandering through several corridors, Lin Luo gradually calmed down. Though Reia's whereabouts remained unknown, her status shown in the Book of Contracts appeared normal. She might be with Black Knight and the others. For now, there was no immediate danger - panicking would only waste precious time.

No matter what state Reia was currently in, he couldn't change it directly. Better to focus on more practical matters instead.

Putting aside his unease for the moment, Lin Luo carefully explored the castle's interior. But this structure proved bafflingly massive. After an hour of wandering through maze-like passageways, he still couldn't locate the main hall.

The situation was deeply unsettling and maddening. Lately everything had been tied to these strange anomalies - first the shared space, now this castle... It was high time to return home before some misfortune claimed his life outside the safety of known territory.

At that moment, a series of metallic clinking sounds pierced the silence. They reminded Lin Luo of something dragging chains along stone floors.

Someone!

Lin Luo froze at the sudden sound. As it originated from the right-side passage, he immediately dashed toward its source while keeping his movements as silent as possible, unsure if whatever awaited him was dangerous or not.

After several minutes of careful navigation through a long corridor and around a bend, Lin Luo finally emerged into view... and stopped dead in his tracks. A few meters ahead walked a young woman with golden curls tied back by a ribbon. Her blue-and-white gown flowed elegantly as she moved, the V-neck design revealing half her alabaster back.

Though he couldn't see her face clearly, Lin Luo could immediately sense this wasn't some random beauty - it was a genuine goddess of elegance. And something about her presence felt disturbingly familiar...

"Strange... This girl walks like royalty... Wait a second! Royalty?!"

The words triggered a sudden realization. When thinking of golden-haired princesses with regal bearing in the lunar world, only one name surfaced from Lin Luo's memory - the true bloodline princess of the Lunar Kingdom, the White Vampire Countess opposite Black Knight - Arquetra von Brunestud.

"This can't be... Could it actually be her?"

Lin Luo's eyes widened as he recalled crucial details. The story was tied to Yuris, the original ancestor. After Yuris' defeat left the other vampires vulnerable, they sought to create a weapon out of the strongest bloodline - the two royal princesses.

The Black Knight had already rebelled against this by fleeing with her loyal knights and companions. But the White Vampire Countess... Arquetra was still young when the vampires placed her in eternal slumber, training her mindlessly until she could become a perfect weapon.

After awakening to destroy the Black Knight, the White Vampire Countess lost control due to bloodlust and slaughtered everything in the thousand-year castle. Overcome with guilt, she sealed herself within the magical construct she had created - a prison that only released her when the reincarnated Roa resurfaced...

So seeing this golden-haired girl bound by iron chains was enough to make Lin Luo question reality itself.

The White Vampire Countess stood before him now, moving like a sleepwalker. Her chains dragged noisily across stone as she wandered through corridors toward an open garden filled with white flowers. She simply knelt among the blossoms and lay down motionless - as if choosing this spot for rest?

Lin Luo found himself captivated by her serene face when it finally came into view... It was definitely Arquetra.

Her golden eyes stared blankly at nothing, yet a pure innocence lingered in their depths. The low-cut gown revealed a breathtaking silhouette that made Lin Luo instantly regret his decision to remain here. He muttered purification mantras under his breath, trying desperately to shift focus from the dangerously alluring scene before him.

Now he needed to find an exit strategy. Given Arquetra's presence confirmed this was indeed the thousand-year castle...

But his thoughts were interrupted as the girl suddenly stirred. She opened her eyes - and Lin Luo froze in horror when they revealed golden irises instead of their usual crimson.

The White Vampire Countess only displayed those golden eyes during battle or when bloodlust overtook her senses... So why now?

Before he could react, the chains binding Arquetra's limbs lifted unnaturally into the air. With terrifying speed, they shot toward Lin Luo like whips of death.

White mist suddenly materialized around him, deflecting the first wave of attacks as Lin Luo backed away desperately. "Wait! I'm not-!"

But the White Vampire Countess showed no sign of hearing reason at all. She attacked with inhuman precision and cold efficiency, her strikes cutting through air like blades made of pure light.

Every attack exceeded his reaction capabilities entirely. For every block he managed to raise using rule-based mist barriers, Lin Luo knew he'd already died twenty times over without them.

The tension was suffocating. This was easily the most dangerous fight since arriving in this world - even more so than witnessing peak vampire battles firsthand before.

Yet something felt... off.

The White Vampire Countess wasn't acting like she normally would during berserk episodes. She showed no real emotional reaction at all - her movements lacked any trace of malice or anger, just pure mechanical precision.

And then Lin Luo finally noticed the worst part...

Her eyes weren't truly seeing anything. There was an empty void where consciousness should have been. It wasn't just bloodlust controlling her this time... She had no self-awareness at all!

This realization made things even worse than he'd feared. With a mindless killing machine bearing down on him, words would achieve nothing.

As his stamina began to wane under relentless pressure, Lin Luo knew he was reaching the limit of endurance. His rule-based defenses were faltering...

Then, as if sensing something - or simply completing whatever purpose had driven her actions, Arquetra suddenly stopped mid-strike. Her golden eyes flickered... and changed back to their usual crimson.

Lin Luo exhaled shakily before the situation could be fully understood.

It seemed rather confusing to be in this garden, Aelqueat's face was full of bewilderment as she rubbed her eyes hard. Her gaze swept around the surroundings before landing on Lin Luo standing nearby.

"What are you doing here? Who are you?" The girl tilted her head quizzically, eyes brimming with curiosity.

Typical childlike innocence indeed.

Lin Luo thought to himself as he noticed the girl awakening next to him showed no suspicion at all. Instead of being wary she displayed pure childlike wonder - far too naive for his comfort.

"I'm Lin Luo. And you?" Considering this was fortunate, he quickly introduced himself and asked in return. Though aware of the girl's identity, right now he had little interest playing prophet.

"My name is Aelqueat," the girl with childish mentality answered honestly before continuing with her inquiry, "But you still haven't told me why you're here?"

"Didn't something happen earlier?" Being tormented so badly by this girl that nearly cost him his life, and now she acts like it never happened at all. It made Lin Luo slightly depressed.

"Earlier?" Aelqueat tilted her head in confusion,"What happened before?"

"Never mind..." Seeing her expression, Lin Luo decided not to mention it any further. Better consider himself unlucky."So I'll just come out with it - I accidentally entered this place. Can you help me get out?"

While meeting Aelqueat was pleasant, he still had important matters to attend to. He couldn't afford time delays and if that girl reverted to her previous state again he'd be in serious trouble.

"I..." Just as she uttered a single syllable, an abrupt pause followed. Simultaneously Aelqueat's body trembled violently while her eyes flickered between gold and red.

Again? Lin Luo's expression changed instantly, his body instinctively stepping back just in time. Why was the bloodlust coming on so quickly this time?

"Quick! Get away...I can't hold it much longer..." Aelqueat now seemed pained, half-knelt down clutching her body tightly while struggling to raise her head toward Lin Luo.

"Aelqueat..." Lin Luo furrowed his brows. The current Aelqueat wasn't the killing machine she was earlier - just a naive and kind girl with childlike intelligence. The sight made him feel inexplicably protective.

"Ah! Get away...please get away!" The beautiful face of the girl twisted in agony, clearly showing her immense suffering.

This shouldn't be happening Lin Luo found himself unable to understand. In the original story, Aelqueat could suppress her bloodlust perfectly before being separated by the Shiki. Why was it so difficult now? Could it possibly have something to do with drinking his blood?

No.

Lin Luo quickly dismissed this possibility. Before she drank his blood, she hadn't even realized when her own bloodlust would erupt into that killing machine state. Now though she could struggle to suppress it - which implied the situation must be worse than previously expected. Yet after drinking his blood she reverted from a killing machine back to normal, perhaps...his blood could actually suppress bloodlust?

"Drink my blood," Thinking this through, Lin Luo didn't hesitate at all but instead moved closer and extended his hand toward her.

"No! No way, I don't want to drink blood!" Aelqueat vehemently shook her head, showing strong resistance.

"But aren't you in pain right now?" Lin Luo expressed concern regardless. No matter what he couldn't stand by while a girl suffered this much before him - and besides, leaving the thousand-year castle required her power at any rate.

"No! I won't do it, no!" Aelqueat vigorously shook her head even though enduring such immense pain. Yet she still didn't give in to temptation, determined not to succumb completely.

"My blood is a bit different. It might suppress your bloodlust." Lin Luo explained his thoughts.

"Liar! That's impossible..." Though Aelqueat's intelligence was childlike on this matter there remained no trust at all toward him.

"If you don't believe me then look at your hands," Lin Luo lifted her hand and pointed to the wound on his shoulder, "While you were sleeping earlier, bloodlust forced a transformation into an unconscious killing machine. But after drinking my blood it reverted to consciousness again. If you still don't believe me check your mouth - is there no trace of blood?"

"How could that be?" Though Aelqueat looked unconvinced at first she couldn't help but touch her lips with trembling hands, immediately noticing the crimson stain on her fingers.

"This..." Aelqueat wore a look of shock and unease. So she had drunk blood already - which meant...but more astonishing was how despite tasting blood there remained no sense of corruption. Did that mean his blood truly could suppress bloodlust?

"Now do you believe me? Though I can't be certain, but since you've already drunk some before why not try it again?" Lin Luo continued persuading.

"But..." Aelqueat hesitated though her resistance wasn't as strong now. The possibility of transforming into an unconscious killing machine existed - especially given previous experiences waking up elsewhere with a devastated scene and no memory of the events.

"Make up your mind quickly, give it a try. If my blood actually helps you won't that be great?" Lin Luo spoke like some perverted uncle coaxing his way to a little girl...

"But then..." The girl hesitated further. If this worked as expected it would certainly merit trying, yet doing so would transform the person before her into a chimera - an outcome equally unacceptable.

"Relax, my constitution is different from normal humans. Even if you drink my blood I won't become a chimera."

"R-really?" Given past experiences with deception Aelqueat remained resistant to drinking blood entirely. Yet something about this boy's sincere tone filled with genuine concern made her want to believe anyway.

"Really, I swear," Lin Luo spoke earnestly. Eventually under his persistent coaxing Aelqueat finally decided to try it out, lowering her head toward Lin Luo's neck while showing fangs before hesitating...grinding...grinding...

Lin Luo couldn't help but furrow his brows - not from annoyance at the girl's hesitation but because of the intense impulse he was suppressing himself. After all, with someone this close proximity...

Though Aelqueat had childlike intelligence, her body was distinctly adult-shaped and due to lingering social knowledge from chasing Roa in her past she could at least maintain basic awareness about personal space. But since it wasn't actual experience for her now it remained difficult to grasp.

As a result the current Alice was essentially leaning fully against Lin Luo's body. Her hesitant movements caused him to clearly feel the softness of her chest pressing against him, his temperature rising rapidly while taking in both the warm scent and hot breath wafting toward him from this girl...Lin Luo felt like his willpower would shatter any second - his HP plummeted by 500 points per second.

"Please, my princess, could you hurry up?" Lin Luo couldn't help but cry out. He feared that if it continued much longer Aelqueat wouldn't drink his blood at all yet he himself might end up bleeding her instead.

"Oh...oh..." The girl responded blankly before finally mustering enough courage to sink those two fangs into Lin Luo's neck.

What a pair of sisters indeed, even the biting spot was identical...

Lin Luo felt Aelqueat drinking from exactly where Altrude had bitten him previously - making an internal remark about it.

"Umm..." Originally Aelqueat remained quite anxious and prepared to stop if things went wrong. But when blood rushed into her throat she suddenly widened her eyes in surprise as the intense impulse within her began diminishing.

It wasn't that satisfaction from drinking blood reduced it, but rather a natural calming sensation. At least she could now confirm this wasn't corruption - there would be no transformation into some mindless chimera.

Instinctively Aelqueat began drinking heartily...

Lin Luo once again felt like he was soaring off into the clouds. This pair of sisters truly were bloodthirsty death machines - initially so resistant yet now drank with more vigor than Altrude herself.

I must owe them both lives in past incarnations... Eventually amidst these thoughts Lin Luo lost consciousness once again from being drained dry.

...Some time later, Lin Luo slowly opened his eyes to find himself no longer in the garden but lying on a bed. It was an opulent bed - exactly like those often seen in fairy tales for princesses.

"You're awake," Hearing the voice, Lin Luo turned around and saw Aelqueat sitting by the bedside looking at him with concern.

"Hmm, how long have I been asleep?"

"I don't know." Aelqueat shook her head. After all there were no timekeeping devices in this thousand-year castle - nor did someone with eternal life really care about such things.

"Ah well," Seeing that Lin Luo wasn't going to press further he simply gave up.

"How do you feel? Any discomfort?"

"Nope," Lin Luo shook his head, not only feeling fine but actually more energetic. So much for being a self-punishing masochist."And what about you? Has the bloodlust been suppressed?"

"Yes, it's improved significantly. Even when I was conscious before I could suppress it somewhat - yet that lingering impulse would always flicker inside me. Now there's no sensation at all. Thank you," Aelqueat looked genuinely happy discussing this.

So it seems...my blood does have unexpected effects on vampires indeed. But wait, why did Altrude gain power while Aelqueat had her impulses suppressed? Another mystery to add to the pile...

Though thinking about such things Lin Luo quickly dismissed them as unimportant.

"By the way..." Suddenly he noticed Aelqueat displaying an awkward expression and hesitating to say something.

"What is it?" Lin Luo asked instinctively.

"Actually...um, actually..." As she spoke Aelqueat suddenly retrieved a large bottle from the floor. Inside was...

"While drinking your blood I noticed you seemed endless so in case of emergencies I specifically saved some just in case future episodes could be suppressed."

Are you kidding me?

Looking at that two-liter sized blood bottle Lin Luo nearly vomited. This innocent vampire didn't even know when to stop - she took leftovers home!

Lin Luo couldn't help but roll his eyes while Aelqueat looked somewhat embarrassed and playfully poked her tongue out.

Not long after, Lin Luo stood with Aelqueat at the door of some room within the castle.

"Are you leaving?" As this was asked there was definite disappointment in Aelqueat's expression.

"Yes, because important things await me outside," Lin Luo nodded before seemingly offering an invitation."Aren't you interested in going out and exploring?"

"I don't want to go out."

"Why? Are you atoning for your past?" Lin Luo frowned.

The girl said nothing but her silence was itself confirmation.

"That's not your fault. You have no need to punish yourself like this by locking yourself away in an imaginary world for centuries on end. Don't you ever feel lonely here?" Lin Luo spoke seriously, truly unwilling to see such a pure and innocent girl spend eternity locked within the thousand-year castle enduring endless solitude and guilt.

"Even so I still won't go out," The girl stated firmly.

"But..."

"Don't say anything more!" Before Lin Luo could finish his sentence he was suddenly forcefully pushed by the girl. Though not with unbearable strength, Lin Luo instantly found himself flying backward.

"Aelqueat you..." Lin Luo gasped as he realized he couldn't even stop moving despite using rule-based abilities.

Aelqueat tilted her head and smiled with both warmth and melancholy toward him as she continued drifting away."Thank you. Though it was only a few short days, though we didn't exchange many words, being together made me very happy because before that I had always been alone...If by chance you enter again someday I would welcome you warmly but personally I won't go out, so...goodbye."

With those words the girl gave him a gentle wave.

"Aelqueat..."

Lin Luo could still see her angelic smile filled with innocence yet now he couldn't reach it anymore. A door slammed shut between them completely sealing away all access as countless iron chains locked around its frame. When that door finally vanished from sight Lin Luo found himself sucked into a vortex, instinctively closing his eyes as consciousness faded.

When Lin Luo opened his eyes once more he found himself standing at the foot of a forest mountain range, glancing around revealed no traces of the thousand-year castle.

P.S.: Finally completed this lengthy chapter. Please vote and subscribe.

P.S.: The moon world side story has concluded completely. Now it's time to return to Fuyuki City where we've all been eagerly awaiting the Seven Deadly Sins event. Oh...on our way back home there will be some cleanup work regarding a certain despicable person. Can you guess who that person is? V