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After cheerfully explaining how Cheap's daughter could use magic more freely, despite Serena's furious glare, Dracula strolled over to where the werewolf Fenrir Greyback hung from a lamppost.
"Mr. Greyback, mind telling me who gave you these Inferi?" Dracula asked with a laugh.
It wasn't clear if it was because he was upside down or still in partial werewolf form, but Fenrir's eyes were bloodshot and unfocused as he stared at the flickering flames beyond the city wall.
"Impossible… A creature like you existing among vampires…" he muttered. "Even the Dark Lord isn't this strong…"
"The Dark Lord?" Dracula's eyes narrowed, honing in on that key phrase. "So Voldemort is the one who made these Inferi?"
He paused and shook his head. "That's strange. I destroyed the core of his soul just a few months ago. By all logic, he should still be floating around like a lost spirit…"
"You defeated the Dark Lord?!" Fenrir's eyes suddenly widened in shock.
"Is that so unbelievable?" Dracula tilted his head, genuinely puzzled. "He was just a little spirit without a body or style. Did you really think he was hard to beat?"
Fenrir's mouth twitched into a grotesque grin on his wolfish face.
"Master Vampire, if you intend to lead the dark forces and take over the magical world, I'll pledge myself to you!" he said obsequiously. "Werewolves and vampires are both creatures of the dark. There's no need for us to be enemies, right?"
"You sure change your loyalty quickly." Dracula sneered, unimpressed by Fenrir's fickle nature. He casually took a blood-flavored lollipop from his pocket. "But why would I want to rule the magical world? I can barely be bothered managing a castle. Ruling the whole world sounds exhausting."
Just as he was about to pop the lollipop into his mouth, Serena swiped it and shoved it into her own.
"You say ruling a castle is too much, but you've already been exposed!" she huffed, licking the candy. "You just want to be the boss!"
Dracula shrugged in defeat and pulled out another lollipop for himself.
"Talking to you is too tiring. I'll just check myself." His eyes flashed as light shimmered across them.
Fenrir's disordered memories unraveled before Dracula's mind.
He saw a cave full of werewolves where a wizard with twisted features and blood-red eyes brought in a horde of Inferi—Voldemort. Not only did he seem unharmed, he had a complete body.
"That's not right," Dracula muttered.
He examined Voldemort's form more closely.
Although the flesh seemed real enough, there was something unnatural about it—like it didn't truly belong in the world, like it had been constructed.
A magical reconstruction using a skeleton as the base?
"Interesting." Dracula smirked.
He casually knocked Fenrir out with a Stunning Spell, then turned to Serena.
"Lock this mutt up. As Voldemort's follower, he might be useful later."
"You've clashed with the British Dark Lord too?" Serena asked, still savoring the candy. "He came to recruit us over ten years ago. Our neighboring werewolves accepted his offer easily. That caused some friction between us."
Dracula noticed her toss the lollipop stick off the wall and instinctively reached out:
"Fly (io)."
He caught the discarded stick midair, summoned a small flame, and incinerated it.
"Turning into a conservationist?" Serena raised an eyebrow. "And wasn't this whole thing about environmentalism just a Muggle trend twenty years ago? Weren't you still asleep back then?"
"Ahem… It's not like that," Dracula coughed. "I just had a sudden worry—what if an old lady bursts in and lectures us about littering on the wall?"
Serena looked at him like he'd lost his mind.
"Let's drop it," Dracula said awkwardly, changing the subject. "Do we have a vampire here named Tesla?"
"There is," Serena nodded. "But he only became a vampire about fifty years ago and came to the castle in the late 20th century. You were still asleep then, so I doubt it's the same Tesla you're thinking of."
"No, it's him," Dracula insisted. "Where is he?"
"Fighting with the others down by the wall—the one in the suit." Serena pointed him out. "How do you know him?"
"I don't, really. A wizard I knew once did," Dracula said cryptically. "Call them back. If we push those werewolves too far, someone on our side could get hurt."
Serena agreed.
She turned a bat into her palm, set it alight, and sent it soaring into the sky—
Soon, a dazzling white spark lit the night, forming the shape of demonic wings overhead.
"Not bad! You're learning fast!" Dracula praised, impressed by Serena's quick grasp of the magic he'd just taught.
"Of course," Serena said proudly, her eyes glittering. "I have to learn that flame spell you used on the Inferi—it was beautiful!"
Dracula smiled and leaned lazily against the jagged city wall.
He gazed up at the stars and the smoldering battlefield below, waiting for Tesla to arrive.
Moments later, several winged figures soared through the sky. Nine elder vampires landed atop the city wall and knelt respectfully before Dracula and Serena.
"We greet Lord Dracula!"
"We greet Lord Alcatel!"
Their voices quivered with excitement—they hadn't seen Dracula in over a century.
"Well done tonight, everyone. Go rest," Dracula said with a few dismissive words, before turning to the unfamiliar face. "You're the new one, right?"
The vampire in the suit hesitated, then looked up at Dracula.
He didn't have the typical vampire menace—instead, he looked gentle and well-mannered, with neatly styled hair and a groomed goatee.
"Yes, my lord," he said nervously, lowering his head again. "I became a vampire 48 years ago and found my way to Castle Dracula three years later, seeking refuge under Lady Alcatel."
Dracula waved the others away.
"You can all go. I want a word with the new guy."
The others saluted and departed into the night, wings unfurling behind them.
Now only Dracula, Serena, and Tesla remained.
Dracula eyed the anxious vampire.
He only had Lockhart's memories, not Robert's, and only remembered Tesla through Lockhart's conversations. He wasn't sure if this particular vampire was the same friend Robert had mentioned.
"Relax—we're just chatting." Dracula gave a soft smile. "Have you made any friends since becoming a vampire?"
Tesla rose, clutching the edges of his coat and staring at the ground.
"Every vampire here is my friend!" he said carefully.
"That's not what I meant." Dracula turned away, resting on the wall. "Have you made any friends outside of the vampire world?"
Tesla visibly froze.
Then, after a pause, he replied, "My lord, I rarely leave the castle. I haven't had the chance."
Dracula's brow creased.
Could he really not be the right Tesla? If there was another vampire by that name, it would be an odd coincidence.
He asked one last time, hesitant: "So… you really don't know a former Auror named Robert?"
Tesla's shoulders stiffened—and then he suddenly dropped to his knees.
"Lord Dracula, I haven't broken any castle rules about human contact. I never told Robert anything secret about Dracula's Castle," he cried. "If punishment is due, let it fall on me alone—don't blame anyone else!"
---
Dracula stood deep in thought.
He was now sure that Tesla was the vampire friend of Robert's he'd been seeking, yet Tesla's strange behavior left him slightly puzzled.
Since when did Castle Dracula have any sort of vampire regulations?
He glanced at Serena, clearly confused.
Serena, noticing his expression, lifted her chin proudly.
"I told you not to come back for a hundred years. Doesn't it make sense you don't understand how things have changed in the castle now?" she said.
Then, hands clasped behind her back, she walked up to him with a satisfied smile.
"Back when you were in charge, the vampires in the castle had no clue what the rules were, nor did they understand what proper behavior looked like for a refined vampire," Serena said with delight.
"So I took the liberty, during my time managing the castle, to design a detailed set of regulations and an official code of conduct for everyone. Any vampire who breaks the rules gets punished. Harshly."
"With all of that in place, managing the castle became much easier. Plus, our reputation outside improved drastically!"
Her head held high and a smug grin on her face, Serena clearly expected praise.
Dracula gave her a thumbs up and said, "That's just like you."
Her smile grew even brighter.
"But is it really so hard to manage the castle? Did you really need to write all these rules?" Dracula asked, pulling back his thumb, confused. "Back when I was running things, I never needed any of that. Anyone who disobeyed me got beaten into obedience."
"You get what I mean, Serena—what I say is law."
A sinister grin tugged at his lips.
Serena's triumphant look faded immediately.
"I'm not like you... able to fight every vampire singlehandedly," she muttered with a pout.
Meanwhile, Tesla stood silently off to the side, watching the ridiculous squabble between father and daughter.
He was thoroughly disillusioned. The powerful, dignified, and righteous image he had formed of Lord Dracula had completely shattered. What remained was a man who didn't seem particularly dependable.
"So, he violated the regulations you created?" Dracula asked, turning the conversation back toward Tesla, who immediately perked up.
Serena raised an eyebrow at Tesla. "What exactly did you do to make even this hands-off elder take notice? You must be quite impressive."
Tesla hesitated before replying, "Three years ago, as relations with the werewolves started to improve, you assigned me a mission to investigate the werewolf groups in Serbia."
Serena nodded. "I remember. You came back injured but completed the mission. Did something else happen?"
"Yes," Tesla admitted, a bit sheepishly. "I was gravely wounded—couldn't fly at all. I was only able to return because I encountered a kind wizard. He had a flying wooden boat, and we traveled up the Danube together from Serbia to Romania."
"We spent over a week on that boat... and during that time, I revealed to him that I'm a vampire. By the end of the trip, he even figured out that my clan was based in Romania…"
Tesla dropped to one knee, guilt weighing heavily on him. "I broke many rules by revealing so much to a stranger."
"Then why didn't you erase his memory?" Serena asked. "You could've also regained your strength by taking just a little of his blood, flown back yourself, and avoided all this."
"Lady Alcatel," Tesla replied, "the vampire code clearly prohibits drinking the blood of innocent humans without cause. That's something only the lowest vampires do when they lose control of themselves. I don't want to betray who I am."
Dracula's eyes showed approval at Tesla's words. He then turned to Serena with a faint, amused smile.
Serena looked slightly embarrassed and avoided his gaze.
"But still," she said, "why didn't you wipe his memory?"
"I'm sorry, Lady Alcatel," Tesla said softly. "Robert has spent his whole life in battle. He's a lonely old man now, and I might be his only remaining friend. I couldn't leave him with no one at all."
"But—" Serena began to object, but Dracula interrupted.
"It's fine. I can confirm the wizard Robert poses no threat," he said, his voice tinged with nostalgia. "And he no longer remembers anything about Tesla."
"What?!" Tesla looked up, shocked. "Lord Dracula, Robert is harmless—just a simple old man tending his fields!"
"Relax," Dracula said, lifting a hand to calm him. "I didn't erase his memories."
"If you want to see him for yourself, come with me."
Tesla nodded silently.
In the next instant, the two of them vanished in a shadowy flash under the light of a dark moon.
Watching them disappear, Serena stomped her foot in frustration.
Then, as if something had occurred to her, she pulled a small notebook from her pocket. The title—"Code of Conduct for Highly Qualified Vampires"—was scribbled across the cover.
Holding out her slender finger, she conjured a drop of blood.
Flipping to the last page, she used her blood to write a new line in shaky script:
*"Emergency Clause: In life-threatening situations, vampires may drink a small amount of human blood to ensure their survival."*