Chapter 287: The Fall of Sinclair's Territory(1)

Inside the massive mansion of Ravian Sinclair, the Marquess of the Sinclair family, a tense… or rather, a horrifying sight was unfolding.

Ravian Sinclair’s eyes briefly shifted to the side.

All he could see was blood… covering the floors of his mansion, spreading across the once-pristine halls in enormous pools. Everywhere he looked, there were bodies scattered across the ground, one after another.

His guards, his maids… anyone who had dared to enter his room had been turned into lifeless, mangled corpses.

And outside the mansion… the same horrifying sight extended throughout his entire domain.

Civilians… servants… anyone who belonged to the Sinclair territory, regardless of their status or position, had been turned into pools of blood. The surrounding houses had been torn apart, their walls reduced to rubble as though some unimaginable force had swept through the entire area.

And the reason behind all this horror stood directly before his eyes.

“D-D-Duchess…”

Ravian’s trembling voice barely escaped his lips.

His body twitched as the wounds covering him slowly began to heal. His torn arms and legs gradually regenerated as his body tried to restore them.

But despite his powerful regeneration, he couldn’t bring himself to stand—not while that woman was standing before him.

‘Why… why is this happening…?’

The thought echoed through his mind, but he couldn’t find an answer.

…

Just a few minutes earlier…

“Lady Valentina… to what pleasure do I owe this visit?”

Ravien gave a respectful bow towards the woman standing before him.

Valentina Scarlett… the Duchess of the Scarlett family.

She had arrived at his mansion in the middle of the night—or, more accurately, while he was sleeping, considering that it was always night in Bloodveil.

He hadn’t even bothered changing out of his nightrobe.

The moment he had heard of her arrival, he had hurried out to meet her, afraid of making the Duchess wait for even a single second, afraid of doing anything that might offend her.

“Old man… where is your wife right now?”

Ravian’s lips twitched.

Old man?

He wanted nothing more than to scream at her, saying that she was the one older than him… but unfortunately, he valued having his head attached to his shoulders.

So, suppressing his irritation, he simply answered her question.

“Grace…? I don’t know. She’s been away for a few days,” he answered politely.

He wasn’t really concerned about his wife’s absence, either. Grace occasionally left the territory for extended periods, and considering they were vampires, being apart for several months wasn’t exactly unusual.

Though her son had also gone out with her.

“Hm… so that bitch is there too…”

Valentina crossed her arms, bringing one hand to her chin as she muttered to herself.

“Duchess… is there something you need my wife—”

“Marquess… do you know anything about my sister’s absence?”

Ravian blinked.

“Lady Seren…?”

He hesitated before continuing.

“Unfortunately, I don’t know anything about that. Is it somehow related to my wife…?”

Valentina’s lips curved into a faint smile.

“He’s telling the truth… isn’t he, Yukari…?”

“…”

Valentina glanced at her shadow, and seeing the stillness in it… her smile widened.

He was telling the truth.

Ravian, despite being a Marquess, had no idea what his wife was doing behind his back.

She slowly looked back at him, and the instant the man looked at her face, his body instinctively took a step back.

A flicker of nervousness appeared in his eyes as he felt an unfamiliar pressure beginning to gather around her.

“Old man… your wife and your son’s ideas have really pissed me off…”

Valentina’s voice grew colder.

“Especially capturing my sister… and then even going after my daughter.”

Her golden eyes shifted to crimson, and in the next instant—

An overwhelming pressure descended upon him, sending his entire body slamming onto the floor.

The ground beneath him fractured as his face pressed against the floor.

His eyes widened in horror, unable to understand what was happening.

Why was she suddenly attacking him?

Had he done something?

Had his wife done something?!

“D-Duchess… what are—”

“Silence… or you’ll also be dying along with your entire territory.”

Ravian’s breath caught in his throat.

“Wha—”

Before he could finish his words, the doors to the hall suddenly burst open.

Several guards rushed inside, their expressions changing the moment they saw their Marquess lying face-down on the floor.

Their gazes shifted towards the Duchess, recognising her immediately.

For a brief moment, some of them instinctively considered attacking her to protect their lord.

But the moment they noticed the crimson aura radiating from Valentina’s body, their expressions changed completely, their legs trembling violently.

Their instincts screamed at them to run.

But before any of them could even take another step—

Thud!

Thud!

Thud!

One after another, everyone inside the mansion was forced to their knees…, their bodies trembling violently beneath the overwhelming pressure.

But it didn’t just stop there.

Beyond the mansion, across the streets… then throughout the entire Sinclair domain.

Everyone felt it.

All of them were suddenly forced to their knees, their bodies unable to withstand the terrifying pressure descending upon them.

“W-What is this p-pressure…?”

“I-Is it the Marquess…?”

“N-No… t-t-this feels like—”

Before they could even complete their words, a strange feeling settled over them, and slowly, almost instinctively, many of them raised their heads. The moment they looked at the sky…

Their eyes widened in horror.

Weapons… countless weapons floated above them.

Blades… daggers, swords, spears… axes… every kind of weapon imaginable had appeared in the sky, suspended high above the Sinclair domain.

For a moment, some of them could hardly believe what they were seeing.

Such a sight wouldn’t have been shocking enough on its own… if… if there weren’t millions of them in the sky.

An endless sea of transparent, red-coloured weapons covered the sky, stretching as far as the eye could see. Their sharp edges glimmered ominously beneath the crimson light, each one radiating with an intensity that made the air itself feel suffocating.

They weren’t actual weapons… but something created entirely from killing intent—a killing intent so dense and terrifying that it had taken physical form, manifesting over the territory.

The weaker individuals couldn’t even endure its presence.

Some collapsed unconscious on the spot, their minds overwhelmed by the sheer terror radiating from the sky. Others trembled violently, their faces turning deathly pale as they struggled to remain conscious.

And among them, there were a few who understood exactly what they were witnessing, and seeing that, they quickly—

Nothing.

There was nothing they could do.

“Fall.”