On the brightly lit Nguy?n Hu? walking street, Erion’s group strolled leisurely through the lively crowd.

  Din glanced at his watch and said:

  – “It’s getting late. We should head back and rest. We still have to check on that group of apprentice witches later tonight.”

  Yin looked up at the skyscrapers glowing against the night sky:

  – “Mid-Autumn Festival is coming soon. Does anyone have plans?”

  Trúc Di?n’s eyes sparkled:

  – “That day, I’ll invite everyone to the Xà Clan’s headquarters in District 5. We’ll enjoy traditional Chinese dishes, then visit the lantern street on L??ng Nh? H?c. There will be lion dances and dragon dances too.”

  Hearing that, the girls immediately lit up with excitement. H?ng Nhung turned to Arian and exclaimed:

  – “That’s perfect! You have to buy me a lantern!”

  Trang tugged on Erion’s sleeve, her voice soft and playful:

  – “Me too! The lanterns in Ch? L?n are gorgeous. Buy me at least five designs, okay?”

  Lita practically jumped in place:

  – “I want one too!”

  The future husbands exchanged amused glances. Each of them had a girl who loved to cling and behave adorably — but only for them.

  Din chuckled, side-eyeing Yin and Chen:

  – “You two should hurry up and find someone too. You’ve been single for a few hundred years already. Isn’t it lonely?”

  The little demon kids covered their mouths, giggling:

  – “Even the Count has been lonely for almost a thousand years! He should hurry up and find a wife too!”

  The atmosphere grew light and joyful, warm like a Mid-Autumn Festival gathering.

  ---

  Meanwhile, at Mr. Tài’s villa, Mrs. Nga smiled warmly:

  – “I’ve arranged two rooms. Anh Ph??ng and Mary will share one, and as for Join…”

  Join smiled politely and continued:

  – “I can sleep on the sofa. Don’t worry about me.”

  Anh ?ào, still focused on her laptop, replied without looking up:

  – “Where do you plan to take them tomorrow?”

  Anh Ph??ng counted on his fingers:

  – “I was thinking of taking them to ??m Sen Park, then stopping by B?n Thành Market.”

  Mary lit up:

  – “Let’s go to B?n Thành Market first! We can visit ??m Sen afterward!”

  C?u D?ng yawned softly:

  – “You kids should sleep early. You have a long day tomorrow. We’ll head to bed first.”

  M? Linh’s eyes were already drooping:

  – “We also have to prepare for Anh Th?’s wedding tomorrow. We ladies are planning to go get áo dài tailored.”

  Mary’s eyes sparkled with interest:

  – “áo Dài? I’ve seen pictures online! It’s a symbol of Vietnamese women — graceful and elegant.”

  Join suddenly had an idea and slapped his thigh:

  – “I know exactly where we’re going tomorrow! We should buy fabric at B?n Thành Market and get our áo dài tailored!”

  Hi?u, scrolling on his phone, chimed in:

  – “áo Dài aren’t only for women. There are designs for men too. You should get one made, Join.”

  Join’s eyes widened with excitement:

  – “Then I definitely must! Hearing that makes me want one even more.”

  Luxury cars slowly rolled out of the five-star hotel’s underground parking, heading toward District 2 under the brilliant night lights of the city.

  Inside the Bentley, Erion glanced at Trang’s slightly tired face:

  – “You’re exhausted today, aren’t you? We just got back from the beach, and before you could rest, they dragged you out again.”

  Trang smiled softly, her eyes sleepy:

  – “I’m fine… I still have something to do later.”

  Erion winked, his voice warm:

  – “If you’re tired, just sleep. Let me handle everything else.”

  Inside the red Ferrari, Yin was still driving. Suddenly, a strange sensation washed over him. His eyes — those of a high-rank vampire — turned pitch black, dark as a bottomless abyss.

  Din glanced at the rearview mirror. His ocean-blue eyes glowed faintly, fangs extending as he smiled coldly:

  – “We’ve got some little pests following us.”

  Chen, sitting in the back seat, grinned with a twisted expression, exposing razor-sharp fangs:

  – “It’s those kids who claim they’re ‘science researchers.’”

  Inside the Maybach, Trúc Di?n’s eyes shifted to emerald green, his pupils stretching into reptilian slits:

  – “They’ve been tailing us since we left. Time to deal with them.”

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  Arian raised his hand slightly, signaling with magic. Everyone immediately understood the silent command.

  In the distance, six suspicious individuals sped along on three motorbikes, shadowing the convoy but keeping just enough distance to avoid being noticed.

  The red-haired one squinted:

  – “What if they spot us? I’m not fighting them — no way.”

  The girl with red highlights trembled:

  – “We should go back… If they catch us, we’re dead.”

  The buzz-cut boy with an earring shook his head:

  – “They’re all noble-class demons. I’m not messing with that.”

  But the purple-haired boy with layered hair smirked smugly:

  – “You’re all cowards. Running before anything even happens. Watch me.”

  Meanwhile, in Erion’s second Bentley, the little demon kids spoke lazily, but their soft voices carried a chilling laugh:

  – “Looks like we’re about to witness some spectacular magic… from our masters.”

  The empty road in District 2 lay under the faint yellow glow of scattered streetlights. On both sides, thick rows of trees arched overhead, their intertwined canopies creating a space that felt both quiet and unsettling.

  The three motorbikes continued tailing the luxury cars ahead, their taillights fading into the night. Suddenly, a dense fog rolled in out of nowhere, swallowing the entire stretch of road, leaving only blurred streaks of light in the distance.

  The red-haired boy looked up at the starry sky, suspicion in his voice:

  – “Weird… There’s no rain, so why is there so much fog? And this humidity — where is it coming from?”

  The girl with layered orange hair squinted, her eyes flickering with faint light:

  – “I… I can’t see anything! The fog is too thick!”

  Inside the Maybach, Lita focused intently. Her hands moved gracefully, silver-white vapor-like energy swirling around her, expanding into a thick illusion mist that blanketed the entire road.

  Inside the Porsche, Arian’s eyes glowed icy blue — cold and sharp like the northern wind. He tilted his head slightly, voice low and commanding:

  – “Let’s teach them what respect toward their elders actually means.”

  Instantly, the temperature plummeted. Wind howled violently, the trees on both sides whipping back and forth as leaves scattered in turmoil. The air grew so cold that even their breath turned to frost.

  The girl with red highlights began to tremble, her voice cracking with fear:

  – “It’s freezing… let’s go back. Something’s wrong.”

  The three motorbikes skidded to a stop. Just as they were about to turn around, the sight before them made their faces drain of color.

  The familiar road had transformed into an endless labyrinth — spiraling paths twisting into one another, the ground breaking apart into glowing ribbons that looped in impossible directions. On both sides, the trees bent and merged into towering black walls; each branch multiplied endlessly, forming countless dead ends and paths with no exit.

  Above them, the stars they had seen moments before shattered like glass, their fragments falling and merging into the maze, glittering like broken mirrors — each shard reflecting distorted images of the terrified intruders.

  Inside the Bentley, Erion’s eyes ignited in a radiant ruby-red glow. Beside him, Trang’s blood-red eyes shone fiercely — her left eye swirling with spatial sigils, her right with temporal glyphs, both rotating with deadly brilliance.

  She smiled softly, her voice light as the wind yet filled with overwhelming power:

  – “It has been a while since I last used my abilities… A little warm-up won’t hurt.”

  The sky suddenly shifted color. Black clouds surged in from all four directions, lightning cracked through the heavens, and the wind screamed like tormented spirits. Trang’s spatial labyrinth rotated slowly, while Erion lifted his hand and touched the air before him. Crimson-ruby energy burst outward, the demonic power of a royal-blooded devil flooding the space and shaking the ground in violent tremors.

  From inside the Maybach, Lita raised her hand. Swirls of turquoise magic spiraled around her body. She whispered an ancient incantation and, in an instant, a violent storm erupted. Razor-sharp winds tore across the road as rain poured down in sheets, each drop striking the pavement like needles.

  – “Let me show you what the wrath of a Satanic princess truly feels like.” Lita’s voice echoed through the thunder — soft, feminine, yet laced with the force of destruction.

  Beside her, Arian stepped out of the Porsche, his ice-blue eyes blazing. He lifted his hand, summoning a blast of frigid Northeastern wind that merged with Lita’s storm. The air thickened and froze; every breath from their enemies crystallized into white vapor.

  – “When storm and wind unite, all that remains is ice… and ash.” Arian murmured with a cold smile, his platinum-blond hair whipping wildly within the raging tempest.

  The three motorbikes were now immobile. The creatures atop them struggled to move, but their legs felt unbearably heavy, as though invisible chains were locked around their ankles, dragging them toward the ground.

  Inside the Ferrari, Yin tightened his grip on the T? Nham jade beads. His voice rang out deep and steady, like an ancient bell:

  – “Earth Realm — Seal.”

  Instantly, glowing green chains burst from the ground, coiling around the intruders’ legs. They clattered with a heavy metallic echo, as though binding not just bodies, but souls. Each time the monsters thrashed, the chains constricted even tighter, carving scorched marks into the earth.

  The red-haired boy tried to scream, but the wind and thunder swallowed his voice whole. Rain slammed into his face; his eyes burned; his entire body trembled from the bone-deep cold.

  The orange-haired girl collapsed, her lips turning purple. The purple-layered-hair boy stood frozen stiff, his hands shaking uncontrollably:

  – “No… they’re not ordinary demons… this power—this is royal class!”

  From afar, Erion stepped forward through the storm, his ruby-red eyes blazing with lethal brilliance. Trang stood silently beside him, her left eye rotating the flow of time, her right bending space — containing the storm entirely within her dimension so the real world remained untouched.

  – “This is the price for daring to tail us.” Erion’s voice echoed — deep, cold, and absolute.

  Lightning split the sky. For a brief instant, the entire road vanished beneath the fury of the storm — wind screaming, rain crashing, chains rattling like the judgment song of the underworld.

  The rain had finally eased, though the cold wind still howled in sharp, cutting gusts. The flooded road reflected the crimson-ruby glow radiating from Erion. His eyes continued to burn fiercely, illuminating the trembling faces of the creatures kneeling helplessly on the ground.

  – “What’s wrong? Scared now?” Erion’s deep voice carried a mocking curl. “Pathetic cowards like you think you qualify as detectives?”

  The monsters lifted their heads, pale and breathless. Gone was Erion’s disguised form. Towering spiral horns rose from his head as if stabbing through the fabric of space. His obsidian skin shimmered with demonic power, and atop his head rested a black diamond crown — radiating a sovereignty so overwhelming, even the heavens seemed to bow.

  Beside him, Trúc Di?n stepped forward — slow, deliberate, yet each step unleashed a pressure heavier than a mountain. A golden dragon-forged crown adorned with emerald jade glimmered above his head. From half his face down his neck, pearlescent white serpent scales shimmered, giving him an aura both chilling and holy.

  – “Speak. Who sent you?” His voice rang out — steady, regal. “Tell the truth, and we may spare you.”

  The red-haired boy darted frantic glances left and right, rain mixing with sweat streaming down his face. Trembling, he dropped his head and stammered:

  – “N-no one sent us, sir. We… we just saw you all — so noble, so royal-blooded — so we… followed out of admiration…”

  The moment he finished, Din, Yin, Chen, and the little demonlings stepped forward as one. The three vampires shed their disguises, revealing elongated fangs, corpse-white skin, and a suffocating chill leaking off their bodies.

  Din moved first, ocean-blue eyes flashing with a lethal glint:

  – “Lies.” His voice was ice. “Don’t try to fool us. In a few seconds, you’ll be nothing but dried corpses.”

  The purple-layered-hair boy panicked, pressing his palms together as he bowed so low his forehead hit the wet ground:

  – “Please! Spare us! It was the centipede spirit — Huy — he said you all offended him! We were only… only following to watch!”

  A cold gust swept past. Erion raised a brow, voice dipping lower—tinged with killing intent:

  – “Huy… the centipede spirit?” A dark chuckle escaped him. “So he’s grown tired of living?”

  He touched one of his spiral horns lightly, his voice sinking even deeper:

  – “Looks like I’ve been too lenient. The quieter I stay, the bolder you pests become.”

  The red-highlighted girl burst into tears, her voice shaking:

  – “P-please… spare us. We won’t cause trouble again…”

  Arian cast a brief glance at Erion, then at Trúc Di?n, his tone calm and steady:

  – “Let them go. They only followed, nothing more.”

  Trang nodded, her voice soft yet decisive:

  – “Royal Brother is right. But if there’s a next time… your fate will be far worse.”

  At once, everyone withdrew their magic. The winds ceased. The storm calmed. The sky gradually cleared. The road returned to its peaceful state — as though nothing had ever happened.

  The drenched creatures scrambled to their feet, shaking violently as they rushed to lift their motorbikes and flee into the dark.

  Lita walked up and gently tugged Trúc Di?n’s sleeve, smiling softly:

  – “Let’s go home.”

  H?ng Nhung nodded in agreement:

  – “We still have things to do.”

  The group left the rain-soaked street behind, the last trace of crimson-ruby light fading quietly into the night.