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Chapter 30: The Werewolf?

"Ah?" Lumiya, with a second ice spear magically conjured in her hand, was ready to launch it like a javelin. Sky's words, however, brought her to a sudden halt. She turned her fuzzy head, her expression one of utter confusion.

The first ice spear had struck empty air with a resounding crash, targeting Liliana Nocturne, the guest who was supposed to check in tonight. Clearly startled by Sky's words, Liliana couldn't evade the icy missile from Lumiya in time.

Like a plane struck by anti-aircraft fire, Liliana's flight became erratic before she crashed heavily onto the roof of the castle's adjoining building, leaving a sizable hole.

Lumiya and Sky exchanged a silent, long look. Suddenly, Lumiya exclaimed, "Oh no, the room she just demolished... that's the one I rented!"

Upon reaching the crash site, they were greeted by a room still clouded in freshly stirred dust, with debris and tiles raining down. The interior was a complete mess: the bed and desk reduced to mere splinters, and technological gadgets including a laptop and live-streaming equipment lay in ruins. Lumiya's massive suitcases had suffered the same fate, their contents scattered amidst the chaos.

Sky was taken aback to see the floor littered with various Chinese snacks.

"Oh my goodness!" Lumiya cried out in despair. "My beef jerky! My squid strips! My spicy strips!" She darted into her room, desperately searching through the wreckage for her snacks.

In the center of the room, amidst a pile of rubble, there was a stir. It was like a scene from a zombie movie – a pale arm emerging from the debris, clothed in what remained of a high-quality women's suit sleeve.

The arm's owner, Lady Liliana, groaned as she sat up among the wreckage. Her bat wings were now gone, and her neatly tailored suit was a ragged, blood-stained mess. A gaping wound in her abdomen oozed blood slowly.

Noticing Sky's gaze, Liliana attempted a graceful smile despite her plight.

"Hello, we've spoken over the phone, haven't we? You must be the landlord. I'm here to check in," she said, trying to maintain her composure.

After a brief pause, Sky pointed to Liliana's bleeding wound, suggesting, "Maybe we should tend to that first..."

Assessing her disheveled appearance, Liliana dropped the facade of elegance, her face contorting in pain. "It's so painful... and cold." The wound was chillingly frosted over, which oddly slowed the bleeding.

The frost seemed to be spreading slowly, increasing its frozen grip.

Liliana traced blood runes in the air with her finger. She murmured an incantation in an unfamiliar language, "Shadows of crimson, light of the abyss, take my blood, dispel the ominous." Despite the strangeness of the language, Sky understood its meaning instinctively, pondering it as a system feature for players to comprehend languages in different worlds. He had instantly understood the Chinese on Lumiya's snack packages as well.

As Sky was internally reveling in this new understanding, the blood runes converged into a dark red glow and infused into Liliana's wound. Remarkably, the terrifying wound began to close before their eyes, and the surrounding frost and cold gradually receded.

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Within minutes, Liliana got up from the ground. First, she dusted off her tattered clothes with a habitual elegance, then shook her long black hair, dislodging a cloud of dust. Her expression briefly froze, and seeing her clothes now resembling tattered rags, she laughed resignedly, "Well, I guess there's no salvaging the first impression I've made on you."

She approached Sky, extending her hand gracefully, "Hello, Mr. Landlord. Let me reintroduce myself. I'm Liliana Nocturne, but please, call me Liliana. I'm here to check in. I apologize for the late disturbance and the mess I've made." She chuckled, her laughter melodious and light.

Sky, looking at her torn attire and then at his own fur-covered clothes, laughed as well, "Hi, I'm Sky Rebel, but just Sky will do. I think my first impression isn't much better either."

Their laughter filled the room, a brief respite, until it was interrupted by a deep, angry growl from Lumiya.

"Ugh..." Lumiya, with a threatening, angry growl, held a pile of broken, stained Chinese snacks, glaring at Liliana. Her eyes slowly reddened with rage as she spoke, "Do you have any idea how hard it is to find these snacks here? I brought them all the way from China. You wretched wild bat demon, I'm ready for a showdown!"

Saying this, Lumiya stepped forward, her hostility towards Liliana palpable and fierce.

Lilianna let out a cold snort, standing unflinchingly against the approaching Lumiya: "You werewolves, all muscles and no brains. Have your wits really regressed over the centuries? What, do you mistake me for some bat demon? Can't you see I'm a dignified member of the Blood Clan?"

Sky quickly intervened: "Let's all just take a moment. I think there's a bit of a misunderstanding here."

Lumiya, displaying the snack soiled in her paw to Sky, declared through gritted teeth: "There's no misunderstanding at all!"

Sky, facing Lumiya's blazing anger, pondered for a moment and then suggested: "How about I prepare a genuine Chinese feast for you tomorrow at noon?"

Lumiya's expression shifted from shock to delight: "Really?"

Sky nodded: "Absolutely. Four dishes and a soup. Sounds good?"

Lumiya nodded eagerly.

Seeing his tactic was effective, Sky's lips curled into a slight smile. He then turned serious and said to Lumiya: "The misunderstanding I'm referring to isn't about the meal. Didn't you catch something off in how Lilianna addressed you?"

Blinking in confusion, Lumiya

paused, then it dawned on her. She turned to Lilianan: "You called me a werewolf?!"

"Are you not?" Lilianna replied coolly.

"No, I'm a dog demon," Lumiya countered.

"Dog demons, rooted in the East, should display Eastern features when transformed. Have you ever looked in the mirror to see any resemblance?" Lilianna asked with a mocking tone.

Lumiya stood frozen, speechless.

"Moreover, as a 6000-year veteran of the Blood Clan, I can tell you, your aura is unmistakably werewolf. We've been adversaries with werewolves for millennia. I'd never mistake your scent," Lilianna added, hitting Lumiya with the hard truth.

Lumiya, her world view shaken, finally managed a trembling voice: "So, you're not a bat demon?"

"I am of the Blood Clan," Lilianna declared confidently.

"So, like the vampires in movies?" Lumiya sought confirmation again.

"I am of the Blood Clan!" Lilianna reiterated firmly.

Turning to Sky with tear-filled eyes, Lumiya asked in a choked voice: "Landlord... am I really a werewolf?"

Sky, meeting Lumiya's expectant gaze, hesitated briefly: "Such scholarly matters among your kind are beyond me. Perhaps we should seek an expert's opinion?"

At the mention of an expert, Sky couldn't help but glance at Lilianna, her posture and demeanor screaming expertise, given her claim of 6000 years in the Blood Clan.

Lumiya, grasping the implications, tears streamed down her cheeks as she squatted down, sobbing.

Sky felt a moment of helplessness, not knowing how to comfort this werewolf girl whose identity had been turned upside down.

Lilianna, with a gentle sigh, knelt beside Lumiya, adopting a comforting tone: "It's puzzling why a werewolf girl like you is so confused. Tell me everything, and let's sort this out together."

Sky, sensing the need for a change of scenery, suggested: "This isn't the place for such discussions. This room is no longer suitable. Lumiya, let's pack up what's still usable and find a new spot. I'll make a late-night snack for both of you."

Lumiya, perking up at the mention of food, finally lifted her head.