For a vampire who had lived for more than 2,000 years and had most of her experiences disappear with the passage of time, a visit back to the same place held a different meaning.
Looking at the vaguely familiar neighborhood, Hessiana’s memory gradually became clear. She seemingly returned to the days when she had just transformed into a “human” 2,000 years ago. It was probably the happiest time of her life. The Mythological Age had yet to end, and all kinds of otherworldlings could still live across the world freely. Her life was simple and happy. At that time, Vivian had not driven her away. Every day, Hessiana ran happily behind her “mother”. Although the days were difficult, there was really nothing to worry about. There was no need to worry about the hunting of demon hunters or fighting with other otherworldlings and other families. The only thing that concerned them was probably their daily three meals.
Though, getting three meals a day was a really big problem: even with great wealth, Vivian could hardly change it into food in time…
Hao Ren and the rest of them approached the stone wall, which bore Hessiana’s childhood memories. There were childlike drawings carved on the wall. There were a bunch of fat abstract rats, some crooked trees, and a big table full of fruits and cakes, which were badly drawn.
Lily looked at the drawings on the stone wall, and then at Hessiana. There was a subtle expression on her face as her eyes danced back and forth between the two. “Wow, you were so naive when you were a kid,” said Lily.
Hessiana turned her gaze away uneasily. She had an embarrassed look on her face. “Who hasn’t been a child? Isn’t it good to have a childhood?”
“But your drawings are strange,” Lily commented on Hessiana’s childhood drawings. “And you drew a bunch of rats…”
Hessiana blushed. “I… That’s a horse!”
Hao Ren slapped his forehead and said, “It’s a horse? I thought it was a rat too.”
The little bat glared at the two of them. “You two bastards! I don’t believe both of you could have drawn better than me when you were little!”
Hao Ren felt a strange amusement in his heart when he unexpectedly discovered that the little bat had such a childlike side. As they commented on Hessiana’s drawings from her early years, a slightly childish voice suddenly rang from behind. “Who are you?”
Hao Ren looked around and was stunned. In front of him stood little Hessiana, who looked half a size smaller than the current Hessiana.
The girl was wearing a rough white dress. She had no shoes on her feet, and her long flowing hair fell down her back. She looked just like Vivian and Hessiana, but more childlike. The little one held a twig in one hand and half a piece of cake in the other. She looked at the group, who was commenting on her “masterpiece”, with curiosity and a little wariness in her large eyes.
Almost in a flash, Hao Ren realized who the little girl before him was: a child version of Hessiana!
Lily had also guessed the girl’s origin, but her train of thought was obviously different from normal individuals. She poked Hessiana on the arm and asked in a low voice, “Hey, didn’t you say you were quite tall when you turned into a human? Why do you look so small?”
Hessiana had been in a stunned state upon seeing the child version of herself, but Lily’s voice woke her up. “Of course. Two thousand years have passed, and I’ve grown taller. That was my size when I just turned into a human (pointing at the smaller Hessiana not far away). It’s not small compared to a human child.”
Lily looked at the nearby little girl from top to bottom and had to admit that what Hessiana said made sense. The little girl, though a lot younger than Hessiana, looked like a thirteen or fourteen-year-old teenage girl.
Hao Ren did not know why “someone’s size upon turning into a human” was worth discussing. He just observed the little Hessiana with great interest. After he found that the alarmed look on little Hessiana’s face had become more and more obvious, he gently asked, “Is your name Hessiana?”
The little Hessiana nibbled on the cake and nodded. “Yes, who are you?”
“We’re Vivian’s friends,” Hasse answered. But even though he tried to soften his expression, his paralyzed face, which had been poisoned by blood, remained stiff. “We heard she moved here recently.”
“Mama’s not home,” Little Hessiana interrupted before Hasse could finish.
With that, she apparently ended the conversation there. She began to nibble on the little piece of cake and waved the twig back and forth as if urging the intruders to leave so that she could continue drawing on the wall.
Right then, Hessiana could not hold back anymore. She went up to her and asked, “Then… Where did Lady Vivian go?”
Little Hessiana’s attention had only been on Hao Ren and Hasse. The little girl’s expression suddenly froze when she saw Hessiana. She probably initially thought that she was gazing at Vivian, but soon, she realized that she was wrong and began to be a little cautious as well as curious. “Who are you?”
“My name is Hessi…” Hessiana almost blurted out her own name, but she stopped short at the last minute and gave herself a new name. “My name is Hathaway! I’m your sister!”
“Sister?” Little Hessiana frowned, seemingly puzzled by the sudden appearance of her sister. “Why do I have a sister? I don’t know you…”
“Of course you don’t know me, because you didn’t exist yet when I was born. You’re a little bat, aren’t you? Me too! Lady Vivian lost a bat before you, and that was me! Believe it or not, I have bat wings too. Look, look, do these wings look exactly like yours…”
Hessiana spread her wings as she spoke. The scene shocked a few people not far away, who were looking their way. She turned her head and glared at them.
It could not be long before new rumors about the god appearing in the neighborhood would spread.
Little Hessiana stared blankly at the big Hessiana as she spread her bat wings. Then, she nodded her tiny head in a daze. “It looks right…”
“So I’m your sister,” Hessiana concluded.
“It seems so.”
“Sister, are you here to find mother?”
“Yeah,” Hessiana answered. She looked at the little Hessiana and asked, “Where is she?”
“She went out and asked me to wait for her at home.” Little Hessiana looked up and handed adult Hessiana a small piece of the cake in her hand. “Sister, it’s delicious! Mama baked it!”
Hessiana took the cake, a little stunned. Her expression then slowly froze.
A moment later, she began to cry.
Hao Ren was trying to ask the little girl when Vivian would come back. But he turned around and saw Hessiana’s reaction. He was startled. “Hey, what’s wrong with you?!”
Holding the small piece of cake in her hand, Hessiana wiped her tears with her arms and explained, “Lady Vivian asked me to wait for her at home, but she never came back. I waited for so many years until the Visigoths invaded Rome… I thought she didn’t want me…”
Hao Ren, Lily, and Hasse looked at each other. They were somewhat bewildered by the sudden change. Hasse surely had no idea how to deal with it. After all, he was not acquainted with Hessiana in the slightest. Lily was always bickering with Hessiana, so she did not know how to comfort her either. In the end, Hao Ren went forward and caressed the little bat’s hair. “Well, it’s all right. She didn’t mean it. Didn’t she find you later?”
Hessiana pushed Hao Ren’s hand away. “Don’t treat me like a child. I know what happened. Lady Vivian often forgets things, and I was just unlucky… I’m all right. I just suddenly remembered when I saw this cake… When she went out, she made me a lot of cake and said she would return before I finished eating. I dared not eat the last piece. I kept it there until it turned to ashes…”
Hao Ren hesitated for a moment, then put his hand on Hessiana’s head again.
This time, Hessiana did not push his hand away.
For a vampire who had lived for more than 2,000 years and had most of her experiences disappear with the passage of time, a visit back to the same place held a different meaning.
Looking at the vaguely familiar neighborhood, Hessiana’s memory gradually became clear. She seemingly returned to the days when she had just transformed into a “human” 2,000 years ago. It was probably the happiest time of her life. The Mythological Age had yet to end, and all kinds of otherworldlings could still live across the world freely. Her life was simple and happy. At that time, Vivian had not driven her away. Every day, Hessiana ran happily behind her “mother”. Although the days were difficult, there was really nothing to worry about. There was no need to worry about the hunting of demon hunters or fighting with other otherworldlings and other families. The only thing that concerned them was probably their daily three meals.
Though, getting three meals a day was a really big problem: even with great wealth, Vivian could hardly change it into food in time…
Hao Ren and the rest of them approached the stone wall, which bore Hessiana’s childhood memories. There were childlike drawings carved on the wall. There were a bunch of fat abstract rats, some crooked trees, and a big table full of fruits and cakes, which were badly drawn.
Lily looked at the drawings on the stone wall, and then at Hessiana. There was a subtle expression on her face as her eyes danced back and forth between the two. “Wow, you were so naive when you were a kid,” said Lily.
Hessiana turned her gaze away uneasily. She had an embarrassed look on her face. “Who hasn’t been a child? Isn’t it good to have a childhood?”
“But your drawings are strange,” Lily commented on Hessiana’s childhood drawings. “And you drew a bunch of rats…”
Hessiana blushed. “I… That’s a horse!”
Hao Ren slapped his forehead and said, “It’s a horse? I thought it was a rat too.”
The little bat glared at the two of them. “You two bastards! I don’t believe both of you could have drawn better than me when you were little!”
Hao Ren felt a strange amusement in his heart when he unexpectedly discovered that the little bat had such a childlike side. As they commented on Hessiana’s drawings from her early years, a slightly childish voice suddenly rang from behind. “Who are you?”
Hao Ren looked around and was stunned. In front of him stood little Hessiana, who looked half a size smaller than the current Hessiana.
The girl was wearing a rough white dress. She had no shoes on her feet, and her long flowing hair fell down her back. She looked just like Vivian and Hessiana, but more childlike. The little one held a twig in one hand and half a piece of cake in the other. She looked at the group, who was commenting on her “masterpiece”, with curiosity and a little wariness in her large eyes.
Almost in a flash, Hao Ren realized who the little girl before him was: a child version of Hessiana!
Lily had also guessed the girl’s origin, but her train of thought was obviously different from normal individuals. She poked Hessiana on the arm and asked in a low voice, “Hey, didn’t you say you were quite tall when you turned into a human? Why do you look so small?”
Hessiana had been in a stunned state upon seeing the child version of herself, but Lily’s voice woke her up. “Of course. Two thousand years have passed, and I’ve grown taller. That was my size when I just turned into a human (pointing at the smaller Hessiana not far away). It’s not small compared to a human child.”
Lily looked at the nearby little girl from top to bottom and had to admit that what Hessiana said made sense. The little girl, though a lot younger than Hessiana, looked like a thirteen or fourteen-year-old teenage girl.
Hao Ren did not know why “someone’s size upon turning into a human” was worth discussing. He just observed the little Hessiana with great interest. After he found that the alarmed look on little Hessiana’s face had become more and more obvious, he gently asked, “Is your name Hessiana?”
The little Hessiana nibbled on the cake and nodded. “Yes, who are you?”
“We’re Vivian’s friends,” Hasse answered. But even though he tried to soften his expression, his paralyzed face, which had been poisoned by blood, remained stiff. “We heard she moved here recently.”
“Mama’s not home,” Little Hessiana interrupted before Hasse could finish.
With that, she apparently ended the conversation there. She began to nibble on the little piece of cake and waved the twig back and forth as if urging the intruders to leave so that she could continue drawing on the wall.
Right then, Hessiana could not hold back anymore. She went up to her and asked, “Then… Where did Lady Vivian go?”
Little Hessiana’s attention had only been on Hao Ren and Hasse. The little girl’s expression suddenly froze when she saw Hessiana. She probably initially thought that she was gazing at Vivian, but soon, she realized that she was wrong and began to be a little cautious as well as curious. “Who are you?”
“My name is Hessi…” Hessiana almost blurted out her own name, but she stopped short at the last minute and gave herself a new name. “My name is Hathaway! I’m your sister!”
“Sister?” Little Hessiana frowned, seemingly puzzled by the sudden appearance of her sister. “Why do I have a sister? I don’t know you…”
“Of course you don’t know me, because you didn’t exist yet when I was born. You’re a little bat, aren’t you? Me too! Lady Vivian lost a bat before you, and that was me! Believe it or not, I have bat wings too. Look, look, do these wings look exactly like yours…”
Hessiana spread her wings as she spoke. The scene shocked a few people not far away, who were looking their way. She turned her head and glared at them.
It could not be long before new rumors about the god appearing in the neighborhood would spread.
Little Hessiana stared blankly at the big Hessiana as she spread her bat wings. Then, she nodded her tiny head in a daze. “It looks right…”
“So I’m your sister,” Hessiana concluded.
“It seems so.”
“Sister, are you here to find mother?”
“Yeah,” Hessiana answered. She looked at the little Hessiana and asked, “Where is she?”
“She went out and asked me to wait for her at home.” Little Hessiana looked up and handed adult Hessiana a small piece of the cake in her hand. “Sister, it’s delicious! Mama baked it!”
Hessiana took the cake, a little stunned. Her expression then slowly froze.
A moment later, she began to cry.
Hao Ren was trying to ask the little girl when Vivian would come back. But he turned around and saw Hessiana’s reaction. He was startled. “Hey, what’s wrong with you?!”
Holding the small piece of cake in her hand, Hessiana wiped her tears with her arms and explained, “Lady Vivian asked me to wait for her at home, but she never came back. I waited for so many years until the Visigoths invaded Rome… I thought she didn’t want me…”
Hao Ren, Lily, and Hasse looked at each other. They were somewhat bewildered by the sudden change. Hasse surely had no idea how to deal with it. After all, he was not acquainted with Hessiana in the slightest. Lily was always bickering with Hessiana, so she did not know how to comfort her either. In the end, Hao Ren went forward and caressed the little bat’s hair. “Well, it’s all right. She didn’t mean it. Didn’t she find you later?”
Hessiana pushed Hao Ren’s hand away. “Don’t treat me like a child. I know what happened. Lady Vivian often forgets things, and I was just unlucky… I’m all right. I just suddenly remembered when I saw this cake… When she went out, she made me a lot of cake and said she would return before I finished eating. I dared not eat the last piece. I kept it there until it turned to ashes…”
Hao Ren hesitated for a moment, then put his hand on Hessiana’s head again.
This time, Hessiana did not push his hand away.
