Chapter 26

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The campsite consisted of multiple tents with a roaring fire, lit up by Alucard and Adam as they all sat around it, comforted by the warm fire while snowflakes danced in the air around them and above their heads. A sign of nature's beauty in this harsh environment, especially when it's nighttime. With the starry sky as their companion and watching the dark world around them with mesmerizing grace, almost as if the stars have descended to be with them in this mystical night.

While Adam found the view to be spectacular, he couldn't help but feel his heart ache from the silence in this place, allowing their thoughts to drift off as everyone held a can of soup, including various mixes of vegetables and meat needed to be eaten during times of hunger, and a warm bottle of water to fill their stomachs up while giving them some energy in this calm blizzard.

The young mistress didn't have a can to begin with; her stomach growled from seeing her companions eating, knowing that she is unable to eat normal food like a living person does, relying on blood to sustain herself while only drinking water occasionally. It's been a while since she last drank blood, and it is definitely going to be awkward if she has to drink directly from another person again, especially if it's the person she looked up to.

Her eyes moved up from her downcast head, watching Adam feed his daughter with a spoon in hand, making sure that she didn't choke on her food by herself as the young girl ate like a baby would. With this sight in front of her, the young mistress mentally questioned if something had happened to her.

From the mere sight of these two, she felt jealous towards his daughter, wishing she had a father like him to care for and love her too, but her parents are all gone now, and perhaps this is the only circle of people she can consider to be her family. All of them were willing to sacrifice their lives just to protect one another from harm, despite how painful and miserable it can be sometimes, yet everyone still had hope for a better tomorrow.

However, Alucard is more curious about Lilim's nature and the reason for her lack of intellectual thinking, considering she herself had lived for so long while never encountering anyone like her before.

What is more odd about how that girl happened to be like this in the first place is that it is just not possible for humans to mutate into stupid individuals, isn't it? This is too ridiculous to be possible unless something bad happens to them.

And this makes her ever more curious, but at the same time, she doesn't want to upset him if she asks about it, even though she is deeply interested in his past for some reason. Watching him in silence while hiding her feelings from showing up on her face, she waited patiently for the right moment to speak up and had Adam choose what he wanted to do next.

But before she could, her mouth immediately refused to, knowing how wrong or rude it is to ask someone about their past when they don't wish to share it with others. Asking too many questions is something she has learned over the years can cause a range of interactions that completely vary from person to person and the topic itself, which is why she always left out to avoid asking more unnecessary things.

Therefore, she kept her mouth shut as she observed Adam from afar, taking notice of the longing expression on his face, most likely remembering something painful in his life, and if it was a reminiscence of her own past, then she couldn't help but feel sorry for this man despite being human; he is very much like her.

Both of them had been hurt and traumatized by the things that they had to endure in their lives, wanting to erase those memories of theirs to bring peace and serenity in their hearts once more, but alas, with how cruel life can be, it was only a matter of time before either of us fell apart again, forced to live with the trauma that lingers in their own hearts.

Thankfully, her annoying pixie appeared to save the day after flying out of an empty can, drenched with soup, as the smell of food managed to sneak up on the vampire's nose, taunting her hunger for blood to kick in again. That hunger came to an end when she saw her bloated belly. Garnet's cheeks were flushed with red as she opened her mouth, spilling soup from her lips.

"Wow! This is the best soup I've ever had!" Garnet loudly proclaimed while flying up in the air, satisfied from her meal as she spun in place, smiling gleefully. While the vampire found her reaction humorous and annoying as usual, Adam didn't share the same sentiment as he observed her closely with incredulity, not understanding how this fae is capable of flying with a full stomach.

Watching her friend, Lilim clenched her fists before placing them on her mouth, chuckling loudly from the reaction she had to this hilarious display from the pixie, resulting in her father closing his eyes with a smile after seeing this, expressing the same joy he feels from seeing his daughter enjoy herself in this funny scenario.

He is glad to know his daughter is having a good time after escaping a near-death situation, thus making him even happier than before. During these special moments, they all should cherish the time they have with one another because the next day could be their last, and they might never see each other again.

Adam and Eve can never be too sure what tomorrow will bring for them, but with a little faith and determination, they will manage to survive this unending winter together as long as they are together. Friends are like the best remedy to heal someone's heart and soul, even for those who have been through enough hardships to make them forget about their own selves. They have to keep going forward in spite of the torment, knowing that there is still light at the end of the tunnel.

"Hey mistress," Garnet lazily flies onto his daughter's head before sitting on it, crossing her arms with a stern look on her face, "why haven't you eaten your food yet?" She pointed at her mistress with an annoyed look as the father became irritated at seeing her like this. "Adam and Lilim are already done, he added with a bored sigh before smirking in confidence.

It didn't take long for Alucard to understand what her servant meant when she said Adam and Lilim were done eating. Staring daggers at the pixie for having forgotten something important, she quickly responded by scolding her best friend, "Have you forgotten, stupid?!" Whipping her head to glare angrily, "I survive by drinking blood," she stated the obvious, causing her servant to comically laugh it off while nervously scratching the back of her own head.

"Eheheh..." Oops, did she do that? Shes so dead now! She has forgotten the important thing to bring: her young mistress blood packs, and that is really bad if she did, because without then, how will her friend survive in the wilderness? In panic, Garnet quickly opened her mouth and said, "I'll go back and find them!" The slightly obese pixie answered, prepared to teleport herself back to the castle and search for the packs, but she was stopped by a wave of Alucard's hand.

"No," the young mistress ordered sternly, "I'll do it myself." She stood up, leaving everyone surprised, before turning and walking further into the woods, ready to look for wild animals or fresh corpses to drain the blood out of it. However, before she could leave the campsite, Adam stood up to stop her from doing so.

"Wait," Adam casually approached her from behind, making her spin in motion. "I'll come with you." A concerned expression was apparent on his visible face; he was worried for her safety and did not want to lose another important friend of his. "There are dangerous creatures out there, and I don't want you to get hurt." His words were honest and compassionate, meaning no harm from his actions, but she remained silent from his statement.

She felt swayed by his caring nature in order to protect her, but deep down, as an ancient vampire that had lived for so long and was capable of defending herself, "Thank you for your concern," she thanked him with a genuine smile, "but I can take care of myself." Nodding with a stoic expression, Adam couldn't help but feel bad for wanting to go with her, knowing she doesn't want him to get involved in this dangerous mission.

It is not stupid that this girl is capable of fighting against foes that punch way above his own weight, but its still not right to allow a loved one to take a risk for their own good. "Alucard," Adam called out, trying to convince her once more, "please let me come with you." Looking into her eyes, he expressed his honest desire to help her, "as your friend," finished by showing his trust and friendship towards her.

Her watery eyes widen up at the mention of being called a friend, feeling like her whole world is shaking at that very moment. "You...consider me as your friend?" She asked with the most expression she had shown to him, even more so than his daughter. The mere thought of having someone call her as their friend made her feel very special and unique, and she felt blessed by the call.

"Ahh, well..." Nervousness could be seen on his face when he realized what he said, not knowing whether to consider her a comrade or friend, but either way, both are fine. "Yeah, I suppose you are." A huge smile graced his lips. He looked into her eyes once more before nodding in confirmation. "What about you? What do you see me as?" He asked, curious about her answer.

Her cheeks redden from the question, and the girl's heart raced like never before, finding it hard to respond to what he said as she couldn't find the right words to say, making her awkward and embarrassed of herself. "Umm," she tried to think of an appropriate response, "Well, to be honest, I..."

What is it? Why can't she find the right words to say? What should she do?

Sweating visibly, Alucard is mentally panicking about what to say next as Adam patiently waits for her answer, smiling at her with patience and understanding in his eyes, causing her to blush even more. Lilim and Garnet watched the scene in front of them with intrigue, curious about what the vampire would say next, while the pixie had a playful grin on her face, understanding the situation before her eyes.

Feeling her nervousness act up inside her heart, Alucard found herself becoming incredibly excited about wanting to say it, but she didn't know what to say because she doesn't know what to do in such circumstances, like, "I..." As she was prepared to confess her real feelings, her servant interrupted her with a mirthful tone.

"Ohhh! My mistress is in love!" She jokingly teased with a laugh, watching her young mistress blush even more than before, now even more embarrassed of what she was going to say and hiding her face behind her own hands, expressing how much she regretted her mistake in not having Garnet stay quiet.

"Love?" Adam questioned with curious eyes, wondering what she meant by that as he tilted his head: "In what way again?" He asked, not understanding what she was trying to say. Seeing the pixie roll her eyes while clicking her tongue, she found it hard to believe that he didn't get the memo, causing the pixie to mumble under her breath.

"Dude, seriously?" Garnet couldn't believe he was this dense, mentally facepalming herself from how oblivious he is, watching him confusedly.

"Uhh, well," the vampire girl felt hesitant to tell him about her feelings, making the atmosphere more weird than it already is, unable to find the right words to say before sighing and finding a solution to resolve this awkward situation.

Hearing this, Alucard manically raised her hands and swung them around in mid-air, denying what the pixie had just said, "n-no!" Trying to regain her composure, she said, "It's nothing like that, I swear!" Looking away from him with a beet red face, unable to face him directly while also hiding her face with her hand, she couldn't look him in the eyes.

Feeling this was getting nowhere, Adam finally decided to answer on her behalf, being considerate of her dilemma and not wanting to see her suffer from such a predicament: "You could have called me a friend, you know?" Chuckling hardheartedly, "but even then," he continued as she looked back at him with watery eyes and a reddened face, "you don't have to force yourself to say it," trying to calm her down before she felt awkward about it, "because I begin to see you as another daughter of mine."

"D-daughter?!" Both the vampire and pixie almost spit out their mouths in shock with their mouths gaped wide open from this shocking statement as his daughter looked more confused than ever, causing the young mistress to be unsure of what to say next as she couldn't believe what he had just said to her.

"Yes, daughter," Adam repeated himself with a serious but considerate expression, "is there something wrong about this?" Asking with a questioning tone, unsure of why they are so shocked by his answer.

Then the young mistress closed her eyes before looking directly at him, beaming a large smile that spoke of her happiness at hearing something like this. "I also consider you like my father too," she confessed with an unwavering gaze. Lilim and Garnet froze in place at this shocking statement, both unable to believe what they were hearing.

"Father, huh?" Adam laughed it off with a smile, "I consider all my loved ones a family of mine," as he stared up at the night sky with a conflicted expression, wondering whether it was a good idea to start bonding people despite knowing it would cause him more pain if he started to lose them one by one.

But in the end, having circle of friends is nice change of pace in this life of his.

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