'I had to.' The artifact spirit suddenly said.

'Shut the fuck up!' Scarlett cursed at the artifact spirit.

She lost all semblance of her usual self, as she felt really angry.

In fact, aside from when her lover died, and the event that happened a few years back, Scarlett had never felt so angry.

Old bro also didn't refute her as he would normally do.

"Aunty...help! I can't breathe."

Her anger died down as fast as it came when she felt Arlo's labored breathing. He was in so much anguish that he found it difficult to breathe. Scarlett could see that what he just learned hit him so hard. She sent her spiritual energy into Arlo's mind and immediately after; he fell asleep.

Arlo's recently awakened divine sense didn't even get the chance to defend against her invasion.

And while old bro could have resisted her, he didn't.

Deep within Arlo's consciousness sea...

An image of Scarlett gradually formed.

As the vampire primogenitor, if she said she was number two in the quality, quantity, and usage of spiritual energy, no one else would claim to be number one.

Standing before her was an old man with a long white beard.

The aura he gave felt divine but Scarlett didn't care about that, and not even a second after she appeared, she threw out a question as she glared at him:

"Why?"

Old sighed.

He smiled wryly as he looked at Scarlett, "You know I saw him grow from the very moment he came to this world. Do you think I wish to hurt someone I consider my own?"

Scarlett's brow furrowed but the anger within her eyes lessened.

"You still haven't answered my question."

"I had to."

Scarlett eyes glowed, and it seemed she would attack at any moment.

"It is all that foolish brat's fault!"

With the frown on her face deepening, Scarlett questioned:

"And who is that?"

" I am talking about Arthur." Old bro sighed in exasperation.

Gritting her teeth, Scarlett spoke:

"What did that boy do this time?"

Instead of answering, Old Bro asked his own question, "Do you remember the agreement I made with you guys a few years ago?"

"Yes!" Scarlett grimaced as thinking about it brought unwanted memories, "What about it?"

Old bro sighed once again, "It will be better to show you."

Waving his hand, just like he did for Arlo, he summoned a screen before Scarlett but this time the screen displayed Arlo's memories from a bit more than two weeks ago.

Specifically, from the last night he had with his parents till when he arrived in this world.

Seeing Arthur's laid-out plan and his terrible acting skills, the corner of Scarlett's mouth twitched, and soon after the corner of her eyes followed.

'What type of stupid plan was this? Even a fool could figure out that something was amiss.'

Looking at Arthur and Rita's current selves, a conflicted glint flashed in Scarlett's eyes.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

She regretted the decision she made that time in her anger.

Old bro dismissed the screen with another wave of his hand.

"I don't need to tell you how special Arlo is. It didn't take him long to figure out that what happened was a farce."

The frown returned on Scarlett's face, "So you decided to tell him what happened?"

"Only a small portion."Old bro corrected before he continued, "Enough to motivate him."

"What exactly did you show him?"

"I showed him Arthur's first clash with Dean and..."

Stopping for a moment he continued, "A part of the outcome of the last great war."

"But still, you shouldn't have..."

"He was a born a god. He is not like us Scarlett." Old bro's expression became forceful.

Taking a deep breath, Scarlett relented, "I understand."

Sensing movement outside, Scarlett didn't hesitate to leave Arlo's consciousness, but not before leaving one sentence behind.

"Don't forget our agreement."

Scarlett opened her eyes in time to see two kids run into the cave.

"Grandma!"

"Grandmother!"

Arianne and a boy who appeared to be around fifteen appeared in Scarlett's vision.

A warm smile lit Scarlett's angry face when she saw the kid's anxious looks.

"Grandma, are you alright?" Arianne's face was pale as she drew closer to Scarlett.

The young boy on the other hand visibly relaxed when he saw Scarlett was okay before his eyes shifted to Arlo in her embrace.

A look of interest appeared on his face.

This was the boy his Grandma used her authority to protect a few weeks back.

"I'm fine, dear," Scarlett patted Arianne's head, "I just lost myself there for a second."

Arianne face visibly relaxed before her eyes shifted toward Arlo.

Her face suddenly returned to the previous white shade before an anxious shriek escaped her lips:

"Arlo!"

Arianne held onto Arlo's hand as she tried to shake him awake, but Scarlett soon stopped her.

The boy's eyes widened as he became dumbfounded.

Was this still his usual cold and aloof sister?

The one that doesn't allow anyone but her family and her one only friend to touch her?

"Don't worry, he is fine." Scarlett tried to soothe her granddaughter with a complicated look on her face.

"But why does he look in pain?"

"This..." Scarlett didn't know what to say.

Looking at Arlo's pale face, she sighed before looking at her granddaughter.

"His entire world just collapsed. Arianne, you are the only one that can be there for him."

A confused look appeared on Arianne's face, as no matter how she tried to look mature since her encounter with Arlo, she was still a little girl at heart.

Still, she got the crux of the matter.

"Of course I will take care of him, he is my friend."

"Oh! To think my cute little sister has fallen for someone at such a young age." The young boy suddenly interjected.

Hearing her big brother's words, Arianne's face suddenly flushed red, "You-you stop speaking rubbish."

The boy straightened his face before refuting, "But aren't you holding hands?"

Upon being called out, Arianne removed her hand from Arlo's.

Looking at the smug look on her brother, she pounced as she tried to bite him, "I hate you!"

The boy dodged masterfully, causing Arianne to chase him around the cave.

Looking at the little kid's mischief, Scarlett shook her head.

'Arlo, you can pull through this!'

.....

Three hours later, Arlo woke up.

Throughout this time, Scarlett had not left his side. The kids also kept her company.

What surprised Scarlett was that after Arlo woke up, he didn't react differently.

He returned to his previous self.

No, he appeared even more calm, while his gaze now seemed more calculating.

Scarlett was worried but she couldn't do anything about it. She just decided to watch things unfold, hoping that Arlo's sudden change wouldn't affect him.

Arianne introduced Arlo to her big brother.

His name was Stefan.

Just like his father, he had short snow-white hair with several black streaks.

This showed that his bloodline wasn't as pure as his sister's.

Still, the relationship between the two siblings couldn't be any closer.

Arlo and Stefan hit it right off.

Stefan was interested in Arlo, so he tried his very best to befriend him.

And while Arlo's reply always came short, after he found out he was Arianne's big brother, he loosened up to him.

Scarlett brought the three to the palace before leaving.

She still had things to attend to and people to address so she made her way to the previous meeting room.

Stefan decided to follow her to report the result of his team mission, which Scarlett accepted readily.

That left Arlo and Arianne alone together.

The little princess decided to bring Arlo around the castle but not before bringing him to meet someone.

Entering the dining hall, Arlo saw a kid eating alone on a long dining table.

Meat and other delicacies were presented before him, while a maid waited at his side.

The vampire maid occasionally flashed him a look of contempt, as she watched him wolf the food down with no manners.

Sensing movement, Joe raised his head and upon seeing Arlo and Arianne, he jumped down the chair and ran toward them.

"Senior brother!" he screamed as tears filled his eyes.

The corner of Arlo's mouth twitched.

'What happened to me being your junior brother?'

Joe reached him and gave him a bear hug.

While Joe was indeed shameless, Arlo admitted he was happy to see him.

Joe drew away from him before looking at Arianne.

"Sister-in-law..."

Arlo's eyes widened, while Arianne's face flushed red.

She glared at Joe, "Didn't you promise not to call me that again?"

"Hehe. I forgot..." Joe rubbed the back of his head as he smiled sheepishly before he continued, "...sister-in-law."

"Ah!" Arianne screamed from frustration before pouncing at him, but the latter had already used Arlo as his shield.

"Aren't you a man?"

"Sister-in-law isn't too sharp. I'm still ten."

"Do you want to die?"

"If you behave like that, my brother won't accept you."

Looking at the two, Arlo smiled.

'Seems they have become closer.'