Chapter 507: Snake And Vampire Strong!

The Holyfield Estate loomed before them, grand and shimmering in the afternoon sun.

Massive iron gates opened slowly as the convoy rolled in, revealing sweeping gardens, white statues, and a sparkling fountain at the center courtyard.

The carriages halted, and servants hurried out to welcome them.

First, the children were gently guided away by attendants to the guest house who had already prepared baths, warm food, and soft beds for them—arrangements all made by Lucius in advance.

At the main house, Cassius dismounted first, helping Nala down from the horse.

But she stood still, staring up at the massive mansion before her.

"Oh my god, Cassius." She said in wonder. "Why is this house so big?!"

"It’s not that big." Cassius chuckled.

"Not that big?" Nala turned, pointing furiously at the towering structure. "You’re kidding me, right? Are you sure this isn’t the king’s palace or something?"

"Nope." Cassius grinned. "The king’s palace is actually much bigger. This one’s quite humble in comparison."

"Nobles are amazing!" Nala’s eyes sparkled like a child’s. "I mean, I hate them because they steal everyone’s taxes to build stuff like this...but still!"

She spun in a little circle, laughing.

"To think this is my house now! I can’t believe it!"

Julie and Aisha both laughed at her enthusiasm.

But just as Nala was twirling happily, she froze.

Standing a few meters away, near the fountain, was a tall woman in dark robes. Her long white hair shimmered in the light, her tanned skin and her crimson eyes glowed faintly beneath the shadow of her hood.

Fangs peeked through her slightly parted lips.

Nala’s body stiffened instantly. She slithered backward and clung to Cassius’s arm, trembling.

"C-Cassius!" She hissed. "Cassius, look! There’s a vampire! Right there!"

"Nala...of course there’s a vampire." Cassius blinked, clearly unimpressed. "That’s Carmela."

"Carmela?! Carmela who?!" She said as if she never even heard of that name before.

"The very same who’s been traveling with us this whole time...Did you not meet her even once?"

"No, not at all." Nala frantically shook her head. "I literally went into every carriage and I still didn’t see her."

"That’s probably because she didn’t want to be seen, since Carmela doesn’t like attention." Cassius shrugged. "And when she wants to stay hidden, with her capabilities she stays hidden."

Nala blinked at Carmela, who stared back with a cold, unreadable expression.

But then, realization of who she was dawned on her face and then, unexpectedly, she smiled.

Cassius saw that mischievous gleam in her eyes and groaned inwardly. "Oh no..."

But it was too late.

Nala slithered right up to Carmela, stopping just in front of her.

"So." She said brightly. "You must be another one of Cassius’s new lovers, right?"

Carmela’s eyes narrowed slightly. "...What?"

"It’s okay!" Nala nodded eagerly. "You don’t have to be shy. I know how it goes. He picks you up on one of his crazy adventures, you fall in love with him, and bam!—you join the family."

Julie, Aisha, and Skadi all turned at once, their expressions caught between laughter and horror.

But Nala wasn’t done. She leaned closer to Carmela, who looked ready to either bite her or flee, and said with a whisper,

"But don’t worry. We newcomers have to stick together. Those three over there..." She pointed at the others "...already have seniority. But you and I, we’re fresh meat. They’re going to try and boss us around."

"So..." Nala continued cheerfully, holding out her hand. "We need to stand united! Snake and vampire—stronger together! What do you say?"

She beamed at Carmela, her hand outstretched in what was supposed to be a ’handshake of eternal sisterhood.’

Even though Nala’s enthusiasm could melt the coldest heart, Carmela was having none of it right now. She simply couldn’t.

Because after spending the entire journey observing them all, Cassius and his so-called family, she had come to a painful, horrifying realization.

They were all insane.

Every. Single. One.

Her first example: Julie.

Carmela had initially thought that the captain of the Holy Guard—one of the strongest warriors on the continent would be composed, stoic, and dignified.

She was wrong.

Julie might have been powerful, but she was also ridiculously clumsy.

Carmela had lost count of how many times during the trip Julie had tripped over her own feet, dropped her sword, or accidentally hit herself in the face with her shield while trying to show off a new maneuver.

She still remembered one night vividly—Julie had walked into a tent pole, knocked it loose, and caused the entire tent to collapse on top of herself, Aisha, and half the dinner.

Carmela had stared, blank-faced, while Julie flailed around shouting,

"I’m fine! I’m fine! Nobody saw that!"

She had seen it. Everyone had seen it.

Then came Aisha.

Carmela had expected someone of Aisha’s intellect—a grand strategist, a woman known for her calm and rational mind, to be the collected one.

Oh, how wrong she had been.

Aisha was collected...until Skadi opened her mouth.

Then all hell broke loose.

Those two would start bickering over everything.

From who got to sit closer to Cassius, to who had the better hair, to who had the best tail—and it always ended the same way: rolling around in the dirt, screaming insults like a pair of rabid cats and dogs.

Carmela had watched one of their fights with utter disbelief as Aisha, of all people, tried to pin Skadi to the ground while yelling,

"Admit it! You’re a spoiled mutt!"

"Never! I’m Master’s favorite!" Skadi had snarled back.

By the time Cassius separated them, both were covered in dust, grass, and bruised pride.

Carmela had rubbed her temple, muttering under her breath.

"These are the people protecting the continent. It’s doomed."

Then there was Skadi herself.

Carmela had quickly learned that the fluffy-haired wolf girl was...how should she put it...

Dumb as a brick.

An adorable, enthusiastic, loyal brick—but still, a brick.

Half of her sentences made no sense. She once spent fifteen minutes chasing her own tail because she said it was ’mocking her.’

And the worst part? Skadi had developed the habit of randomly offering Carmela her own blood.

"Do you want some?" She’d say, baring her neck with a proud grin. "I’ve got plenty!"

When Carmela ignored her, Skadi would look deeply offended, stomp her foot, and storm off muttering.

"Hmph! Ungrateful vampire. I was trying to be nice."

It was...exhausting.

Carmela prided herself on being calm, reserved, and emotionally distant. But being around this group was pushing her to her absolute limit.

And now there was this...snake girl.

Nala, who had decided within seconds of meeting her that they should form a ’newcomer alliance’ to stand against Cassius’s ’old members.’

Carmela blinked again, slowly. Her eyes flickered down to the outstretched hand and back to Nala’s face.

She didn’t say a word. She just...turned around.

"Huh?" Nala said, blinking as Carmela began walking away. "Wait—hey! Where are you going?!"

Carmela didn’t even glance back. Her cloak swirled behind her as she said coolly to Cassius.

"I’ll go check on the children. Someone has to make sure they’re alright."

Without another word, she walked away toward the carriages, her expression unreadable.

And yet, despite her irritation, there was an odd sense of comfort that tugged at her chest.

For all their eccentricities, none of them were pretending to be something they weren’t.

They laughed, fought, argued, and loved openly.

There were no masks. No deceit.

It was a mess—a pure, infuriating mess.

But somehow...it felt safe.

Still, she wasn’t about to shake hands with a hyper snake girl. Not today.

As Carmela vanished into the courtyard shadows, Nala was left standing awkwardly in the middle of the path, staring after her with wide, panicked eyes.

Then she immediately slithered up to Cassius, clutching his arm like a child.

"Cassius! What am I going to do?" She cried, her tail coiling nervously around his leg. "She rejected me! I thought we were allies, but now I have to face your whole family alone!"

"Nala, it’s not that serious." Cassius sighed.

"Yes, it is!" She wailed. "They’ll bully me! They’ll tease me! They’ll pull on my tail, I know it! They’ll tie it in a knot or hang things from it, I can feel it!"

Cassius chuckled softly, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder as they began walking toward the grand double doors of the mansion.

"There’s no need to worry about that." He said. "There’s no chance in hell anyone in my family will treat you that way."

"Are you sure?" She looked up at him doubtfully.

"Absolutely. In fact..." He said with a playful glint in his eye. "...it’ll be the opposite. They’ll spoil you so much you’ll end up begging me to make them stop."

"Spoil me?" She repeated skeptically.

"Trust me." Cassius said, smirking. "Each one of them is unique and eccentric in their own way. You’ll fit right in."

Despite her nerves, Nala couldn’t help but smile faintly. If it was him saying it, she believed it.

Julie, Aisha, and Skadi joined them as they approached the massive doors, their chatter light and cheerful.

Then Cassius reached for the grand brass handles and pushed the doors open—

BANG!

A sudden explosion of color erupted right in their faces.

Bright paper and glitter showered down, popping sounds echoed through the hall, and a chorus of voices erupted from inside the estate:

"WELCOME HOME!!!"