Family Is the True Wealth (Please Invest!)

The top floor of the massive villa standing in the night was ablaze, sparks drifting up into the night sky on the evening breeze.

Salomon stood in the flagstone-paved garden, looking up at the burning manor. Behind him were black bushes with twisted, grotesque branches. Even the flames could not illuminate the deepest darkness within them.

The Negative Energy sustaining Barnabas and Victoria had long begun to erode the land within the manor. Collins Manor was slightly colder than other places for precisely this reason.

Living people who stayed here would be slowly eroded by the Negative Energy, becoming old and sickly. Though Willie had always been a drunkard, the low temperature had made him able to drink even more.

Salomon watched the drunken Willie throw open the front door and stumble anxiously out of the hall. After discovering the fire, the old servant had called the police. Salomon could clearly hear his conversation with the fire department.

Yet he did not step out of the shadows to stop him. Instead, he remained hidden where no one could spot him, staring at the manor's top floor and waiting for the vampires to appear.

But such a disturbance could not be concealed from many people. Though the area around Collins Manor was all private property, the rapidly spreading blaze and the firelight staining the sky red caught the attention of many townspeople.

Salomon did not have to wait long before he saw a sedan rush into the garden. Before it had even come to a stop, the living members of the Collins family leaped out, their faces full of worry.

The moment they saw the old servant Willie, they hurriedly grabbed him and demanded to know what had happened.

In fact, Elizabeth had sensed that something was wrong when Victoria, who had been walking and chatting with them, suddenly turned into a bat and flew toward the manor. She felt that what she had feared most had finally happened.

The most decisive woman in the Collins family immediately told Caroline to drive them back to Collins Manor, but before they could even pass through the gates, they saw the flames soaring into the sky.

Drunken old Willie could barely explain anything. No matter how Caroline slapped his head or how Elizabeth questioned him, Willie only said that while he was feeling woozy, he heard several noises. Before he could investigate, thick smoke had spread through the corridor. By the time he ran outside to check, he discovered the fire.

"It was that wizard!" Caroline said furiously. A low growl rumbled in her throat as she sniffed, trying to catch a scent.

Elizabeth's face was cold and unreadable, but her back was perfectly straight, as though the shrewd and capable head of the Collins family from thirty-one years ago had returned.

Back then, after Angelique came to them, Elizabeth had considered whether the Collins family might one day face such a situation again. So she had made every preparation within her power.

Elizabeth handed a key to David, who stood nearby. "Child, follow Willie to the armory and get some guns."

"But those things are useless against a wizard." Thick fur slowly grew across Caroline's face. Her athletic legs became more powerful, their joints warped into something like the hind legs of a canine, and she grew noticeably taller.

At the same time, her upper and lower jaws gradually lengthened, her teeth sharpened, and her once pretty nose swelled into something hideous. Her voice became low and hoarse, threaded with threatening growls as she spoke.

But the living members of the Collins family were not surprised by Caroline's transformation. They were accustomed to it. Caroline was a werewolf—Angelique Bouchard had extended her hatred for Barnabas to the Collins family. Not only did she want to humiliate them in business, she also wanted to corrupt their bloodline. So Angelique had ordered a werewolf to bite Caroline when she was young.

The secret was not revealed until thirty-one years ago, when Angelique and Barnabas had fought at Collins Manor.

"The wizard must still be inside," Caroline said. "Now let's go in and kill him!"

"Wait until David brings the guns." Elizabeth did not rashly charge into the villa to attack the wizard who might still be inside. "With guns, at least we can be of some help.

"Trust Barnabas and Victoria. They are not so easily dealt with. At the very least, we must let that wizard know that the Collins family is not to be trifled with."

A swarm of bats shattered the glass windows on the manor's top floor, and broken glass rained down onto the flagstones. Elizabeth and Caroline both looked up.

After circling near the burning roof for a while, the bats suddenly dove toward a dark corner of the garden.

"He's over there!" Caroline shouted as she lunged in that direction.

David and Willie happened to return at that moment. Elizabeth took the shotgun from David's hands and expertly loaded it with shells. It was an old gun, a Winchester M1917 Trench Gun, but old did not mean ineffective. This type of gun was not discontinued until 1945 and had previously been supplied to the military; even now, it was still used by SWAT. After chambering the shotgun, Elizabeth helped David load ammunition into his M1911 pistol.

"You need to learn how to fight." As she loaded the ammunition, Elizabeth said to David, "I am already old, and you are the only normal person left in the Collins family. Caroline is a werewolf, which is why she has never married.

"The family still needs you to carry it on. Be brave, David. Whether we survive today or not, you must fight. Remember, David, remember—family is the true wealth."

Salomon clenched his fist and used the Ring of the Ragador to block the swarm of bats rushing at him. His arm felt an impact like crashing waves.

Unhurriedly, he extended a finger, and ghostly blades swept around him, cutting several bats in half. But that could not stop the others. When the bats swooped down from the night sky once more, he spread his palm, and deafening thunder suddenly erupted. Even Elizabeth and David, thirty meters away, heard it.

Lightning appeared out of thin air around him and struck every bat. They fell from the sky amid the stench of scorched fur and shrill squeals.

Then Caroline charged across the flagstones. Salomon blocked the werewolf's sharp claws with his shield, then stepped forward and drove a punch into her abdomen, sending the whimpering werewolf flying back into the garden.

The next instant, countless sparks suddenly burst across the shield before him. A mass of tiny steel pellets carrying tremendous momentum slammed into the Ring of the Ragador, knocking Salomon onto the grass.

Before he could retreat behind the shield again, another gunshot rang out, and several scattered pellets pierced his calf.

The searing pain instantly overwhelmed Salomon's mind. He could no longer maintain the spell in his hand. The Ring of the Ragador flickered a few times before going out. His leg felt impossibly heavy, as though it were being scorched by flames, while blood kept pouring from the torn flesh.

But compared to the pain of putting on the ring, it was hardly worth mentioning.

Salomon took a deep breath and forcibly steadied himself. Rolling over, covered in bits of grass, he struggled up from the blood-soaked lawn. White light glowed in his hand as he quietly pressed it against his calf. (Pact Magic: Heavenly Sect Master, 1st level, Heal Wounds)

Elizabeth raised the shotgun, worked the action, and strode over. She aimed the barrel at Salomon, who was kneeling on the grass.

Victoria appeared behind Elizabeth with a swarm of bats. She glared hatefully at Salomon and said, "You're dead. No one can save you!"

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I want an ice-cold cola! Anyone want to guess how he'll turn this around?