Chapter 251: B - A life built on lies
“V-Veronica… what the hell is the meaning of this…?” I murmur weakly.
The woman pulls back her hood.
“Excellent work, Axy. I see you followed my advice in the end.”
“T-This… this is a dream, right? I have to be dreaming. There’s no other explanation…”
“Oh no, this is reality, my beloved Axy. I’ve waited so long for this moment… and now you’re finally ready to learn the truth.”
“The truth…?”
I collapse to my knees, my mind completely shattered.
Veronica crouches down beside me, pulls me into a warm, affectionate embrace, and begins gently stroking my head as she speaks to me in a soft voice.
“I’m your mother, Axy. Your real mother.”
Just a few simple words, yet they’re enough to throw me into a state of absolute shock — especially considering everything that’s happened between us up until last night.
And yet…
“N-No… t-that can’t be true,” I stammer. “You… you adopted me. I remember it perfectly… you can’t be my biological mother…”
“One doesn’t exclude the other. After you were born, I decided the safest choice was for you to spend your childhood within those protected walls, somewhere safe and far away from forces and beings that don’t belong to this world. I did it only to protect you, my sweet Axy.”
“Y-Yeah… I guess that makes sense…” I murmur in a faint, almost emotionless voice.
It’s obvious I probably haven’t truly processed what she’s revealing to me yet.
And I’m afraid this is only the tip of the iceberg…
“As for the rest… well, you already know what happened. Once you turned ten and your vampire powers began to awaken, you were finally ready to be introduced to this world, one step at a time. You met orcs, tieflings, succubi, incubi. And most importantly, you learned just how real a threat the Monster Slayers are to people like us.”
“Speaking of Monster Slayers… damn it, Archwitch Veronica, are you going to let me go or not? These chains are starting to squeeze a little too tight!” Kimberly grumbles.
“Oh, you’re right. I completely forgot about you,” Veronica replies with an absentminded smile.
Then, with a snap of her fingers, the chains dissolve into black smoke, and Kimberly casually gets back to her feet, stretching her back.
“And thank goodness this was supposed to be an act! That idiot ogre Green nearly broke my damn back!!” Kimberly continues, yelling furiously at Frank.
W-What the hell is going on now…?!
Why did Kimberly call my mother Archwitch? And why did Veronica release her? And the way Kimberly just spoke to Frank, like they’re already familiar with each other…
Wait.
An act? What act?
Don’t tell me…?
“You’re such an asshole, Axel. You were really willing to let me die just to save your own skin after the night of sex we had, huh?”
“K-Kimberly… can you at least tell me what the hell is going on?!”
“Oh, Axel… Veronica is right. Unless someone spells everything out for you, you really don’t get it. Remember when I told you Frank has numerous contacts inside HESPARC? How do you think I knew that?”
“I-I can’t believe you were working with him from the very beginning… It doesn’t make any sense…”
“And yet, that’s exactly how it is. Funny how life works, huh? Frank spent almost two years trying to persuade you nicely to join us, but it was obvious that you needed a more convincing reason. And that’s where I came in.
“You’ve always been pretty good at staying under HESPARC’s radar, so what you needed was a Monster Slayer to show you exactly what you were risking without someone like Frank watching your back. Someone who would stalk you day and night, keep you from roaming around the outskirts, and push you into accepting Frank’s help.
“I’d say I did a pretty good job, wouldn’t you?”
As Kimberly speaks, Veronica keeps holding me tightly and stroking me, as if she’s trying to soothe a madness that’s about to erupt.
And how could I not lose my mind?
In the span of just a few minutes, everything I thought I knew about my life has been completely turned upside down.
My entire existence has been meticulously orchestrated by Frank, down to the smallest detail.
All of it just to push me toward him.
And the worst part is that, in hindsight, it all makes perfect fucking sense.
“Why did you do it…? Why put on this whole act that’s been going on for almost eight years? Just to make me join you? All this fucking mess for that…? It’s insane…”
“The blood of the most powerful vampire bloodline of all flows through your veins — House Volkom,” Frank replies. “That’s why Archwitch Veronica believes you have the potential to become strong enough to serve her properly. But your current strength isn’t even remotely close to what your mother expects from you. That’s why she asked me to take you under my wing and teach you everything I know. In exchange for your services, of course.”
“Veronica wants to make me stronger… but for what?”
“I suppose that’s something you should ask her directly.”
I turn my gaze toward my mother. My reddened, tear-filled eyes meet hers.
“We’ll talk about that later, Axy. Besides, there are still plenty of other things you need to know, but for now, I want to give you some time to process everything we’ve told you so far.”
My gaze, now filled with anger and resentment, shifts back to Frank.
“And now that you’ve told me all this… you still think I’m going to join you?”
“Oh, Axel… look around you. The woman who raised you and whom you love more than anyone else in the world, Kimberly, Melania… everyone who’s part of your life is also part of mine. And now that all the truths have come to light, turning your back on me would be the same as turning your back on them.”
Veronica’s soft lips brush against my ear.
“You always refused him because you were afraid he’d hurt the people you love, didn’t you, my beloved Axy? I could see it in the anger and concern in your eyes when you saw Frank and me sitting at the same table. But now that you know everything, there’s nothing left for you to fear. Frank won’t hurt anyone you care about. It’s time to close this Chapter of your life and begin a new one. One where you’re no longer just Axel Lustsilk, the vampire… but Axel Volkom, destined to become the greatest vampire of them all.”
As she says those words, she holds me even tighter and helps me back onto my still weak and trembling legs.
Frank steps closer until he’s standing face-to-face with me. Philip and Joe approach as well, making their way through the dozens upon dozens of sacrificial victims of this entire charade.
Frank, Kimberly, Veronica, Joe, and Philip now stand all around me.
Finally, Frank smiles and gives me a friendly pat on the shoulder.
“Welcome aboard, Axel Lustsilk. Or perhaps, from now on, I should call you by your true name… Axel Volkom.”