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Chapter 225 – A Puppet Reborn
Chapter 225 – A Puppet Reborn
A Silent Decision
The moon hung high in the midnight sky, a pale, watchful eye peering down upon the aftermath of House Valefor’s fall.
The scent of blood still lingered in the air.
The great vampire house had been reduced to nothing but ashes and whispers, their lineage broken, their power crushed beneath the weight of Seraphis’ ambition.
Yet, there was one who remained.
The woman who had once ruled beside the fallen patriarch.
The woman Seraphis had twisted into a perfect puppet.
A useful tool.
A disposable pawn.
Or was she?
Seraphis stood alone in the dimly lit halls of her hidden estate, her fingers idly twirling a dagger between them.
Killing the woman had been the logical course.
And yet—
There was something amusing about keeping her alive.
Not as a person.
Not as an individual with thoughts, desires, regrets.
No.
She would strip away all that filth.
She would make her something new.
Something clean.
Something that belonged to her.
Seraphis smiled.
Tonight—
She would rewrite a soul.
The Sleeping Puppet
The bedroom was bathed in darkness.
Only the flickering candlelight from the hall seeped through the half-opened door, casting long, crawling shadows across the stone walls.
The woman lay still upon the silk sheets of her bed, her breathing even, her mind trapped in the quiet vulnerability of sleep.
Seraphis moved forward without a sound.
A predator in the night.
She reached the bedside, gazing down at the woman’s face.
Even in slumber, there were signs of conflict.
A slight furrow in the brow.
A twitch of the fingers.
The remnants of a past that weighed her down like chains.
Seraphis knelt beside the bed, her movements slow, deliberate.
She reached out, her fingers brushing against the woman’s forehead.
And then—
Magic pulsed.
A cold, creeping sensation slithered from Seraphis’ fingertips, sinking deep into the woman’s skull.
Memories unraveled.
The Erasure of Sin
The past unfolded before Seraphis like a tapestry.
She saw everything.
The choices the woman had made.
The deals.
The betrayals.
The moments she had turned a blind eye to suffering.
The times she had knowingly stood beside monsters, allowing atrocities to unfold.
Her sins were woven into her very essence, thick and dark like poison in her blood.
Seraphis smirked.
"Let’s get rid of all this filth, shall we?"
She tightened her grip on the woman’s forehead, her magic twisting, coiling, devouring.
Each memory was peeled away, layer by layer.
She erased the faces of those she had betrayed.
She stripped away the moments of weakness, the guilt that had once gnawed at her conscience.
The things she had ignored, tolerated, allowed—
Gone.
Bit by bit, the woman was being hollowed out, her mind reduced to a smooth, untouched canvas.
A rebirth.
Seraphis painted a new picture in its place.
She replaced the filth with loyalty.
With purpose.
With devotion to the only one who truly mattered—
Seraphis.
A New Dawn
The first rays of dawn slithered through the curtains, bathing the room in soft, golden light.
The woman stirred.
A breath hitched in her throat.
Her eyes fluttered open—
And for a brief moment, she was empty.
Then—
The first thoughts entered her reborn mind.
She felt… light.
As though a great burden had been lifted from her soul.
She sat up, blinking slowly, her gaze drifting to the figure standing near the window.
Seraphis.
The name resonated within her.
Not as a distant memory.
Not as something to fear.
But as something absolute.
She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and lowered herself onto the floor.
Then—
She knelt.
Her head bowed, her hands resting on her lap.
"Lady Seraphis…"
Her voice was soft.
Gentle.
"I feel reborn."
Seraphis turned to face her, a slow, knowing smile creeping across her lips.
"Good."
She stepped forward, reaching out to lift the woman’s chin.
She gazed into the eyes of her creation.
"Now—"
"Let’s see what you can do for me."