Undead Beast Master: Living Solely for My Desires

After so long, it felt… weird.

Zack was finally back in his home, the mansion that was meant to be his.

But he hadn't earned it easily. While he might have killed his uncle, the rest of the family was still a threat.

Zack wasn't sure if he could face them—one by one, or all together—but it seemed he didn't have to worry about that.

"You look nervous," Grace pointed out as she threw a glance at him.

He smiled politely, "No, I am fine," he replied.

Both of them were waiting for somebody, so they sat on the sofa, and Zack, taking the chance, started thinking about the past few days.

The fight against his uncle's family had been easier once Grace joined in. But she wasn't the only one—Roran and Lily had helped as well.

They had quickly managed to get rid of the leftover family, making Zack the head of the White Fang Clan.

It had all happened so fast, in just a day or two, that Zack was still struggling to process the fact that he didn't need to worry about them anymore.

Of course, killing all of them was a big deal, and Elysia had come to learn of what they were doing, but in the end, she decided not to do anything. It seemed that she had no problem with it.

At the time, Zack had been grateful to Zaroth for introducing him to her. Without that, none of this would have been possible.

'Zaroth…' Thinking about the man, Zack couldn't help but feel worried. After the destruction of the castle, Zaroth hadn't shown himself to them even once.

They, of course, knew the reason—Althea had been killed, not by anybody, but by the Solara, no less, the princess of their enemy.

They knew how much Zaroth talked about the Queen and how clearly he loved her, so her loss must have scarred him greatly.

Zack had hoped Zaroth would just be depressed for a few days or weeks, but eventually, he'd come out of his apartment and start hanging out with them again.

They would head to the bar, as usual, drinking themselves senseless to forget all their problems until the next day.

But Zack had a feeling that it wouldn't be that easy.

'I just hope that he isn't doing anything stupid…' he thought to himself.

His train of thought was interrupted as a man knocked on the door.

Stepping inside was Sebastian, the butler of the head of the clan. The man was no longer serving Alexander but Zack instead.

Even if they didn't start off on the best start, Zack had faith in the man's abilities, so he didn't fire him.

Bowing to his new leader, Sebastian spoke, "Elysia has come, alongside Roran and Lily."

"Let them enter." Zack spoke, and Sebastian nodded as he went to open the door for them.

Now they were going to discuss how to utilize the troops of the White Fang. Zack didn't have much experience in military strategy, so he was going to learn from Elysia herself.

And Lily was coming as she was, technically, now the sole heir of the Clan Morvain. Thanks to Shifter, she had been able to alter the memories of those who knew this fact, but now, with the emperor dead, there was no need to keep this fact hidden.

And Roran was here because he was her one and only knight.

Zack chuckled as he thought about them. They were hiding something, after all. Of course, didn't blame them.

'Now that I think about it, I can ask Elysia if she knows what Zaroth is doing.' He noted that he would ask her later.

Shortly after, the door opened, and Elysia walked in, Lily not too far behind, and Roran next to her.

"Nice to meet you," Lily threw a friendly smile to Grace.

"Likewise," Grace returned the gesture.

Roran silently nodded at Zack, and he returned the gesture.

Soon after, the five of them were looking over the large map that Elysia had spread over the table.

After the Draconian Empire Council had come to decide on how to use the troops, Elysia had come to explain to them why they were being dispersed in such a way.

She was teaching them personally, hoping to prepare them to lead their clans in the future.

Zack had a considerable force, so it was important that he learned how to manage his people effectively.

Lily's clan had been scattered long ago, but Elysia hoped she would eventually restore its former glory.

"I see," Zack spoke as he rubbed his chin.

From time to time, they asked why they had chosen to protect one town over another.

Elysia, being a teacher and all, didn't have a problem explaining. "This one is too far from any kind of natural water sources, as such, it is not that valuable and will just cost us too much to maintain it."

She pointed to another town on the map. "But this one has access to a large deposit of metal, which will be invaluable when we start crafting more weapons for the soldiers."

Her explanation was quick but well thought out, and the people present didn't have a hard time understanding it.

"This is pretty much how we have divided the forces and why," Elysia had finished her explanation.

"Wait." Zack spoke as he pointed at one city that seemed to be of great importance.

"Why didn't you mention this one? Shouldn't it be our number one priority?"

He was pointing directly at Drakmire Bastion.

Elysia raised an eyebrow. 'Has Zaroth not even told his closest friends that he's going there? He must be much more devastated than I originally thought.'

Before Elysia could speak, however, Sebastian walked in the room again.

"Apologies for interrupting, my lord," he spoke with a bow. "But there is a person who wishes to enter and speak to Elysia. She said her name was Midnight."

'Midnight, huh? Now that I think about it, after the attack on the castle, I haven't seen her in quite some time,' Zack thought.

"Sure, tell her to enter."

Sebastian nodded and quickly left the room.

Lily and Roran exchanged a concerned look, and Zack immediately realized his mistake.

Grace was in the room! And they had yet to tell her that Zaroth's girlfriend was a vampire!

It was too late, however, as she entered the room.

All of them held their breath for a moment. They had seen Midnight before, but now she looked… different.

She was taller—now about the same height as Elysia. Her eyes seemed sharper, more dangerous, and her hair had grown longer.

Not to mention that the aura she was giving off at the moment was almost as terrifying as Elysia's, if not equal.

'What the hell happened to her? Did she evolve or something?!' Zack, Roran, and Lily had the same thought.

Grace, meanwhile, was looking at the woman, confused. Why was everyone so silent? Sure, Midnight felt powerful, but was that reason enough to cause such a fuss?

While Elysia studied Midnight calmly, her expression unreadable.

Before anybody could speak, a friendly smile appeared on Midnight's face as she clapped her two hands together.

"Hey, long time no see! By the way, does anyone happen to know where Zaroth is right now?"