Since Esmeria and Elizabeth had left the mansion, Hugo had grown even bolder in his investigation. As soon as he confirmed that there were no traps or traces of surveillance left by the vampiress, he threw himself headlong into his work with an intensity bordering on obsession.

For María, this was no surprise. Deep down, she always knew that Hugo wouldn’t miss the opportunity to take advantage of their absence. However, what really worried her was the wizard’s state of mind.

Hugo had never been a particularly patient or friendly person, but with each passing day his mood worsened alarmingly. His brow was constantly furrowed, his tone sharper than usual, and worst of all, every time Aria pointed out an error in his work, his expression turned into that of a man on the brink of despair.

María wasn’t an expert in magic, nor did she have any interest in Hugo’s complicated studies, yet even she could tell that things were not going well. She couldn’t help but compare him to her father—the look of frustration, of being cornered, was the same one he wore when things at home went awry.

And yet, with only two days left until Esmeria and Elizabeth returned, Hugo did something completely unexpected.

"Haven't you come to the research room today? I'm going to be in my room alone."

María blinked, surprised.

"Huh?"

Even Aria, who had until now remained indifferent to everything, lifted her gaze from her book with a slight expression of interest.

"Aren't we going to train?" the girl asked, tilting her head.

Hugo shook his head, his tone dry and final.

"No. Do whatever you want today."

Having said that, he turned on his heel and disappeared down the hallway without offering any further explanation.

María stood there, mouth agape, unable to believe what she had just heard.

If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"That's... weird," she murmured to herself.

María expected Hugo to make the most of the days free from Esmeria’s watchful presence. But now, out of the blue, he decided to take an entire day off.

"Why?"

While she wracked her brain trying to find an answer, Aria simply shrugged.

"If there's nothing to do, then I'll head to the library."

And with that, Aria left calmly, as if nothing were amiss.

María sighed, rubbing her forehead.

"Sometimes I wonder how he can be so indifferent about everything..."

No matter how hard María tried to carry on with her day as usual, Hugo's attitude kept running through her mind. Something just wasn’t right.

So instead of continuing with her usual tasks, she ended up leaning out of one of the mansion’s windows, watching the entrance with a pensive look. The scenery was peaceful—nothing seemed out of place.

But then, a white carriage rolled past the main gate and made its way along the path until it stopped in front of the main entrance.

María blinked.

"Who the heck...?"

She leaned a little closer to the window, squinting to get a better view. A few seconds later, the carriage door opened and out stepped a woman dressed in a white tunic adorned with golden embroidery.

María’s eyes widened in surprise.

"A priestess?!"

Now she was truly confused. What was someone like that doing at the mansion?

Intrigued, she watched closely as the woman was greeted by Hugo, who exchanged a few words with her before leading her inside. From that distance, she couldn’t hear what they were saying, but one curious detail caught her attention: the priestess looked young.

Quite young.

María raised an eyebrow as she continued watching Hugo escort her to his room.

"Well, well, so the old man does have his preferences..." she murmured to herself, crossing her arms.

She had never imagined Hugo being interested in someone so young. She’d always seen him as a grumpy old man who lived only for his research, but now… well, this was getting interesting for María.

When both disappeared into Hugo’s room, María couldn’t help but feel a twinge of curiosity.

"This smells fishy..."

María had nothing better to do, and her intrigue was eating her up inside. So, with all the nonchalance in the world, she headed toward the hallway where the wizard’s room was and began "tidying up" a few things around there.

Of course, in reality she wasn’t cleaning anything. She was just pretending to be busy while keeping an ear out for what was happening inside.

Minutes passed.

And passed.

And passed…

But the priestess didn’t come out.

And no screams were heard either.

María furrowed her brow.

"What the heck are they doing in there?"

She looked toward the door suspiciously. She knew Hugo wasn’t the type to get sidetracked by romantic matters, so... what was really going on in there?

Was the priestess perhaps performing some kind of ritual? Or maybe she was helping Hugo with something important?

María bit her lower lip, torn between continuing to wait or doing something about it.