Chapter 393: Lucky Day

"You know, princess, you’re really starting to get on my nerves." Snow’s grin turned cold. "You’re lucky we were told to keep the goods in one piece. So how about you do us both a favor, shut that pretty little mouth of yours, and behave? Hmm?"

Despite her face turning blue from the lack of air, Donna still managed to gather some saliva in her mouth and spit directly at his face.

Snow froze. For a moment, he simply stared at her, seemingly unable to believe what had just happened. The saliva had landed squarely on his forehead and was now slowly trickling down his face.

Then, the amusement in his eyes vanished, replaced by a murderous glare. His fingers tightened around her throat.

"You filthy little—!"

"That’s enough, Snow."

Snow immediately whipped his head towards his brother, his expression twisting with indignation.

"Did you not see what she just did!?"

"I said enough," Rain repeated coldly. "We’ve wasted enough time already. The Blood Guard should’ve detected the veil by now, and it won’t be long before they swarm this place. Unless you’d rather stay behind and explain yourself to them, we need to leave. Now."

Snow gritted his teeth, clearly reluctant to let the matter go, but eventually let out an irritated huff and nodded. He loosened his grip slightly, fixing Donna with a venomous glare.

"You’re a lucky little bitch, you know that? But don’t worry, princess. Once we’re done with you, you’ll have plenty of time to regret that little stunt."

Donna’s eyes trembled.

"M-my lady..."

A short distance away, Rena struggled to push herself off the ground, only to cough up a mouthful of blood and collapse back onto her knees.

"No...!"

She desperately stretched out a hand towards Donna as the two brothers turned to leave, her eyes filled with helplessness.

"I-I’m sorry... my lady... I couldn’t... I couldn’t protect you..."

However, just as the words left her mouth, something suddenly flashed past her.

Through her disorientation, Rena barely managed to catch a glimpse of the figure before a streak of green light tore through the night, heading straight for Snow.

"Breath Form: Flicker."

Rain reacted instantly, his figure disappearing before reappearing directly in front of his brother. A blade formed from vita materialized in his hand, which he immediately swung up to intercept the incoming attack.

Clash!

A deafening boom erupted as the two blades collided, sending a violent shockwave rippling through the surroundings and kicking up clouds of dust and debris. Sparks flew in every direction as the blades remained locked against each other, grinding violently as both sides struggled for the upper hand.

"So it’s you."

Rain’s eyes narrowed as he regarded the newcomer coldly. Snow, however, whose arm had been moments away from being severed, was far less composed.

"N-ninth vein!?"

Malakai stood beneath the silver moon, his flawless face illuminated by its pale glow, while his eyes shone with a deep crimson light.

Donna and Rena were equally stunned, their eyes widening in disbelief at his sudden appearance. However, before either could say anything, the two brothers exchanged a quick glance, a subtle gesture that did not escape Malakai’s notice.

The moment Snow made to move, Malakai acted.

His second staff snapped into his hand, instantly transforming into a gleaming scythe, which he hurled straight towards the arm holding Donna.

Rain’s eyes sharpened. Another vita blade materialized in his free hand, and he immediately swung it up to intercept the scythe. However, just as the two weapons were about to collide, Malakai’s eyes narrowed, and the scythe abruptly changed course, slipping past the blade entirely.

"What the—?"

For the first time, Rain’s composure cracked.

"Shit!"

With no other choice, Snow hastily released Donna and jerked his arm back, narrowly avoiding the whirling scythe.

"Tch. Fall back," Rain ordered, and both brothers immediately shot backward, putting some distance between themselves and Malakai. Now, they regarded him with cold, wary expressions.

Donna collapsed to the ground, coughing raggedly as she struggled to catch her breath. After a few moments, she finally managed to raise her head, fixing Malakai with a stunned look.

"M-Malakai...? W-what... what are you doing here?"

However, her surprise quickly turned to horror as she remembered the two men standing before him.

"No, wait! You have to get out of here! Those two are dangerous!"

Malakai’s cold gaze never left the brothers.

"Are you hurt?"

"What? No, forget about me! They’re after me, Malakai! If you stay here, they’ll hurt you too!"

"No."

"W-what?"

Malakai turned and gave her a reassuring nod, one that immediately froze whatever words she’d been about to say.

"I’m not leaving."

Before Donna could say anything else, Malakai casually waved his hand, and a layer of vita suddenly enveloped her body. She was gently lifted off the ground before being carried through the air and deposited beside Rena.

Every eye widened in shock.

"So my eyes weren’t playing tricks on me," Rain muttered, brows furrowing deeply. "You really can manipulate vita outside your body."

"..."

"Oi, oi, oi! Wait just a damn minute!" Snow exclaimed, staring at Malakai as though he’d just seen a ghost. "Didn’t the report say this brat’s only fourteen!? Since when did fourteen-year-olds start becoming blooms!?"

"He’s not a bloom."

"What do you mean he’s not!? Did you not just see that!? Only blooms can control vita outside their bodies!"

"I saw it, Snow. I’m not blind," Rain replied. "But he’s definitely not a bloom. If he were, we’d already be dead. The fact that I managed to withstand his attack proves that much. He’s at the synergy stage, and judging by his vita, I’d say he’s only at the early stage."

"What? Then how the hell did he...?"

"The report was accurate," Rain continued calmly. "The only thing we didn’t account for was that strange ability of his. For all we know, it could simply be some special property of his weapon. Either way, he’s not our biggest concern. The Red Eclipse is. But I can’t sense her presence anywhere nearby, so I doubt she’s here."

Snow stared at his brother for a moment before suddenly bursting into laughter.

"Hahahaha! So what you’re saying is, the brat’s alone, and he’s weak!? Oh, this just keeps getting better!" His grin widened excitedly. "Do you have any idea how many people have been losing sleep trying to figure out how this little bastard finally evolved? If we capture him and sell him to the highest bidder, we’ll be swimming in merits! Hell, we would definitely get promoted! Hahaha! I told you, didn’t I, brother? Today’s our lucky day!"