Enrico looked around, observing the several vampires who were beginning to appear through the streets. The situation had become much more complicated than he expected, and any wrong move could cause them to be discovered. Without wasting time, he approached Angela and whispered:
"Angela, hold Yumeha and follow me."
Angela immediately realized the seriousness of the situation and did exactly as he asked.
While she held Yumeha, Enrico placed Rina and Aoi over his shoulders and began silently moving away together with the other two.
Since the vampires still could not see them, they needed to take advantage of every second of that advantage to leave the city without making any noise. Besides, as long as they remained close to the necklaces that hid their scent, they could not be found that way either.
"Did the scent disappear?"
"Looks like someone doesn't want to share."
"Would you?"
"Not if I were dead."
Vampires were extremely powerful beings, but they possessed a rather particular limitation: they could only use a single magic and the branches derived from it.
In their case, that magic was blood, although its use could take extremely different forms depending on the vampire. Throughout history, some of them had reached the Ninth Circle, becoming beings capable of rivaling the most powerful inhabitants of the world, and in the current era they possessed two Ninth Circle vampires.
The only way for them to reach the Tenth Circle would be to break the curse attached to their necks.
This also raised an important question. If there were two Ninth Circle vampires, why weren't they part of the list of the seven known Level 9 beings on the continent? There were two main reasons.
The first was that vampires lived in a different dimension and, therefore, were not officially part of the continent. The second was that, because they lived isolated from that world, the other races had no direct contact with them. Despite this, they were considered enemies, although they were seen as a lesser threat than the Nartheis and demons.
"This is the first time I've seen vampires... And they're all so pale..."
After finally managing to leave the city, they arrived at a secluded road, where there were fewer buildings and no apparent presence of vampires. Rina and Aoi had also noticed the situation and kept their hands over their mouths to avoid making any noise.
Enrico finally put the two of them down, and their expressions seemed to become a little disappointed.
"If you wanted to, you could have held us for longer."
"Well..."
"Enrico, why did you come to a city full of bloodsuckers?"
Angela's words interrupted the conversation.
She had a disapproving expression, clearly worried about Enrico's decision to enter such a dangerous place. Having Angela there made everything much more complicated. If only Rina and Aoi had come, he could have told Aoi about having returned from the "future" and perhaps managed to continue with that excuse without major problems. Angela, however, was another matter.
"Miss Angela, what I'm going to tell you is something very important. So, I would ask you to keep it a secret."
"That depends. Especially because I don't intend to leave Miss Virelle unaware."
'Shit. I could make up several excuses, but the future one is the only one that can really work with her.'
Enrico then began telling his version of the story. Yumeha and Rina helped him, confirming some of the events and mentioning how he had helped their territory and even healed Rina's father.
Aoi, on the other hand, seemed increasingly enchanted as she listened to everything.
"Dear, you're incredible."
While she seemed enchanted, Angela had a serious expression.
"I don't know if this is true. And even if it is, what if a demon placed these memories of the future inside you and is manipulating your actions?"
Angela was not asking that question without reason. Similar situations had already happened several times in the past.
Some people claimed to have received memories of the future, only for it to later be discovered that demons had manipulated their minds and created false memories to make them believe they could predict events.
That was precisely why Enrico avoided using that excuse frequently. In Tsuyokuni, however, it had been a good opportunity to establish a situation in which his words could be proven.
"I don't think you're a demon, but one could have been the one who put these memories in your head."
Enrico sighed, managing to remain calm and explain better.
"I thought about that at first too. But the feelings I had were real. I really went through the end of the world."
The three girls behind him remained with worried expressions. Angela remained silent for a long time, analyzing everything she had just heard. Finally, she took a deep breath before responding.
"If this is true, I will have to apologize. But we can't keep this a secret, at least not from the king. So, when we return, we will analyze part of your memories."
An even bigger problem had arisen, and that left Enrico tense for a few moments. Even so, he took a deep breath and nodded, trying not to show how much that possibility worried him.
If someone gained access to his memories, all his plans and objectives could be discovered. He needed to find a solution quickly.
"How do we get out of here?"
"I need to make another magical paper. It will take a few days."
It was a lie. Enrico only needed to buy time to think. While walking, he began silently consulting the system, trying to discover whether there was some way to prevent his memories from being accessed.
[I can do something. I can block their access to your memories, but that would make them suspicious. And that's not all. If the one analyzing your memories is that Tenth Circle being, he could break that blockage. And knowing how curious he is, you can be sure that he will be the one to do it as soon as he finds out.]
It was the first time Enrico noticed the system actually tense about a situation. And judging by the tone of its response, it seemed that he was not the only one worried.
Angela noticed Enrico's slightly tense expression and tried to reassure him.
"Young master, you can stay calm. The only ones who will know about this will be Virelle and the king, who will have the final decision on what to do. So, you can be certain that it will be something fair to you."
"Thank you... I was nervous thinking about what they might see from my life."
Angela had a very calm expression, but a small smile appeared on her face.
"What is it? Some embarrassing things you're trying to hide? Don't worry. Only the important parts will be seen."
Everything would depend on what the king decided, but Enrico already knew that the situation could be both good and bad for him. If his words were taken seriously, he could gain the support of extremely powerful people. However, he would also come under the attention of those same individuals.
The main problem continued to be his memories. He needed to prevent the truly important parts from being discovered. Enrico slowly clenched his fist while thinking of a solution.
'I will have to use a pact for this.'
To guarantee his safety, he would have to give up some way of becoming stronger. That would certainly be a loss, but perhaps it was a necessary price to ensure that his secrets remained protected.
'System, I want you to analyze this pact...'
While Enrico seemed to regain his composure, Angela continued watching their surroundings, making sure that no vampire was following them. The three girls also remained tense. If Enrico had seemed relatively safe before, now everything depended on the decision of the king of Sanos. Because of that, they moved closer to him when they noticed that there was something different about his expression.
"Master, what do we do? We can trust our father, since he keeps secrets very well, but..."
"This is very bad. Does Miss Angela know what could happen?"
"She knows, but she's making the best decision possible..."
Enrico looked at Angela's back, realizing that even she seemed a little tense. He perfectly understood the reason. In her view, this could represent the end of the world they were trying to prevent, so her decision was not simple.
She had to choose between hiding extremely important information or allowing someone with enough authority to analyze it and decide what to do.
"I can't blame her. After all, this is the right decision from her point of view."
"But..."
"Don't worry. I'll try to convince them not to tell anyone besides those I ask them to."
The three girls quickly raised their heads upon hearing that. Enrico was smiling as always, with that confidence that made all of them calm down even when the situation seemed to be completely out of control.
This was perhaps one of the most problematic moments he had faced since he began changing the future, but he did not intend to remain trapped by the previous plan. If his paths were altered, he would simply have to adapt.
And, as he walked, a new idea began to take shape in his mind.
'I'm coming up with a new plan... Maybe it's even better than the previous one.'
[It's incredible how you can change your expression to this confidence after all that...]
The system seemed relieved and, at the same time, curious to discover what Enrico would do next. However, it was not the only one interested. Somewhere beyond that world, the constellations also seemed to be watching with curiosity as the new path beginning to take shape before him.