Chapter 552: The return of the Little Vampire and the Little Wolf
The morning sun fell softly over the Agares territory, painting the training yard with a golden glow. The metallic sound of swords and the echo of impacts against the ground sometimes dominated the place. But this morning, the scene was different.
In the center of the arena, Vergil and Katharina stood face to face. Neither wielded weapons—just fists and determination.
“Let’s see if you’ve learned anything in these months…” Vergil teased, rolling his shoulder as he gave a wry smile.
Katharina narrowed her eyes, her posture impeccable, as always. The heat emanating from her wasn’t just confidence. It was real, tangible, the air around her shimmering.
“If you’re going to test your strength, I hope you’re prepared to get burned.”
Vergil chuckled softly and lunged forward, the first punch ripping through the air like a blade. Katharina raised her arm, blocking, but the force sent him sliding back two steps. She didn’t flinch. She advanced, unleashing a spinning kick that nearly connected with his chin.
The impact of her movements echoed like muffled thunder, cracking small craters in the stone floor.
As they fought, Vergil couldn’t help but notice something. Their time in the Apocalypse Forest had left deep marks on all of them. Katharina, Ada, Roxanne… each had returned different.
Ada, in particular, seemed like a different person with her sword in hand. Vergil remembered well the last time he’d seen her train. Her cut was now not only swift, it was sure, precise, as if her own blood whispered the path of the blade. And her control of her crimson power had grown brutally: no longer an instinctive trick, but a natural extension of her body.
Roxanne, in turn, had become a veritable storm in woman form. Her control over the wind was already respectable, but now it was razor-sharp. Vergil remembered watching her split entire rocks with compressed blasts, shaping air currents like invisible blades. It was as if she had learned to weaponize the very atmosphere.
And Katharina… oh, Katharina.
Her fire had always been a trademark, but now… now it was something else. No longer an ordinary flame, not even just demonic. It was an ancient, living fire, pulsing with destructive energy. The heat of her aura was so intense that even Vergil felt his skin burn as she increased her intensity. This wasn’t just power. It was dominance.
Her punch passed close to his face, and Vergil had to twist to avoid being struck. The air burned, and a trail of embers danced in the space where her fist had passed.
“Hm.” Vergil laughed, raising his fist again. “It’s much stronger than when I entered that forest.”
Katharina didn’t smile. He just closed his eyes, the fire crackling across his skin like living tattoos.
“I didn’t waste any time.”
Vergil lunged forward once more, his fist meeting Katharina’s in an impact that reverberated like thunder across the stone courtyard. Sparks and embers exploded from the clash, and for a moment it seemed as if they were both ready to reduce the arena to ashes.
But before either of them could land the next blow, a firm voice echoed through the space:
“That’s enough.”
They both stopped. Vergil still held his fist raised, Katharina with the fire snaking around her arm, but the approaching presence made them relax.
Viviane, impeccable as always in her uniform, was walking along the side of the arena. Her hair shone in the sunlight, and her eyes held that typical blend of sweetness and authority that only she could wield so naturally.
“If you keep this up, you’ll end up destroying half the courtyard,” he said, crossing his arms. “And I don’t want to spend the whole week coordinating repairs again.”
Katharina huffed, extinguishing the flames that still crackled on her skin. “We were just training.”
“Training?” Viviane raised an eyebrow, with a slight smile. “If this is what you call training, I can only imagine what a real fight would be like.”
Vergil laughed, shaking his head. “I admit, it was getting fun.”
Viviane then took a few steps forward, until she was close enough to look him in the eye. Her tone changed, becoming more serious.
“You need to stop this now, Vergil. There’s something more important than sparring with Katharina.”
Vergil arched an eyebrow. “Important?”
Viviane nodded slowly, biting her lower lip lightly before dropping the bombshell:
“You should return to Earth.” She took a deep breath. “Someone wants to talk to you.” He’s at Sapphire’s mansion in Los Angeles.
The silence that followed was thick. Katharina crossed her arms, glancing sideways at her husband. Vergil, on the other hand, merely narrowed his eyes, letting the wind carry his heavy breathing.
“Someone… at the mansion in Los Angeles?” he repeated, almost as if savoring the words.
Viviane nodded. “Yes. Apparently, she’s appeared behind you more than twenty times in the last six months.”
Vergil smiled, that lopsided smile that always appeared when the prospect of chaos loomed.
“Hm. Then it seems I’ll have to stop by.”
A few hours later, the teleportation circle glowed on the floor of the Agares mansion in Los Angeles. The bluish light expanded until it engulfed the room, and then Vergil appeared in the middle of it, his demonic aura still throbbing slightly through his body.
He looked up.
On the sofa in the main living room, the contrast was almost comical. Kaguya and Alexa were sunk into the cushions, their eyes fixed on the television, watching some random cartoon. The sound of cartoonish voices and children’s songs filled the room, completely at odds with Vergil’s imposing presence.
For a moment, he just stood there, staring at the scene with that ironic half-smile that always appeared when the absurdity of everyday life caught him off guard.
“…Is this serious?” he muttered to himself.
Kaguya was the first to notice. Without taking her eyes off the screen, she nudged Alexa with her elbow.
“Look who’s here,” he said, his voice calm as if he’d just returned from a quick trip to the grocery store.
Alexa, wide-eyed, whipped around. “VERGIL!” she nearly screamed, jumping to her feet and running to him. “You’re finally back!”
She hugged him tightly, but Vergil merely raised an eyebrow, his gaze still fixed on the TV. The cartoon showed a bizarre rabbit dancing in circles.
“Is this what you guys do when I’m not here?” he asked, his tone far too serious for the situation.
Kaguya, still on the couch, let out an exaggerated sigh and grabbed some popcorn from the bucket in her lap. “You disappear for months and you think we’re just going to wait in silence? Between blood and chaos, sometimes all that’s left is… cartoons.”
“You don’t look bad, but you guys… you’ve gotten pretty strong, right?”
Vergil asked, looking at the two of them. Both the Vampire and the Werewolf were at least twice as strong as they were nine months ago when he entered that forest.
“Well, that doesn’t matter,” Vergil said, and looked at them. “What do you hear?”
“Well…” Alexa scratched her cheek… “We destroyed 25% of all Alucard’s Vampires… and killed a few Werewolves in the process.”
Vergil stopped, looked at them, considered if it was true, and let out a laugh so loud it shook the whole place.
“HAHAHAHA”