Chapter 65: Evil Bai
“Again? Another change?” Bai ran a hand through her hair, noticing the black strands were now streaked with crimson.
She quickly removed her glasses and looked in the mirror.
Her pupils, once a solid black, were now a startling crimson.
But then, as if the transformation had run out of steam, her hair didn’t turn completely red, only acquiring a few crimson streaks, and her eyes, now a mixture of black and red, looked even more unsettling.
“…I think I look more demonic than an actual demon,” Bai said, looking at her reflection. Her new appearance was… evil. She quickly put her glasses back on.
“What’s going on?” she asked Isabelle.
“I don’t know…” Isabelle shook her head, just as confused.
“Have I become a hybrid?” Bai looked at her black and red hair, sighing. “And I had just gotten my disguise right… maybe I can just say I dyed it?”
Red hair wasn’t unheard of in the Empire, though it was usually a much paler shade.
But black and red… it was strange, though not entirely unattractive.
“The old Bai was prettier,” Ara pouted, studying Bai intently.
She was referring to the silver-haired Bai.
“If I could go back to the way I was before, none of this would be a problem…” Bai sighed, referring to her human self.
Her bloodline seemed to change at random, and she had no control over it. The only way to actively trigger a transformation was far too dangerous.
“A hybrid of demonic bloodlines usually results in the stronger bloodline suppressing the weaker one, with the dominant traits manifesting,” Isabelle explained. “But your current state is strange. You’re almost perfectly split between Vampire and Shadow Demon…”
It wasn’t just her appearance, but also her aura, her power.
“But I’ve never even met a Vampire, besides touching that dagger and… drinking my own blood…” Bai sighed. Her body was becoming increasingly strange. Perhaps Isabelle’s theory about her being the Abyssal Lord’s daughter wasn’t so far-fetched after all.
“However, Princess Bai, you should be able to activate the image on the dagger now,” Isabelle said, holding it out to her.
Bai nodded, taking the dagger. Black and red Demonic Runes spread across her face, a sweet, alluring scent filling the air.
“The Vampire bloodline is dominant…” Isabelle wasn’t surprised. Vampires were one of the most powerful races in the Abyss, their bloodline superior to most others.
What surprised her was that Bai still retained so much of her Shadow Demon traits.
Bai channeled her new power into the dagger.
After a moment, the dagger, as if sated, disconnected from her, a faint red light emanating from it, something trying to break free.
“It’s working,” Isabelle whispered, and Bai quickly put the dagger down, stepping back.
The red light intensified, and a small, crimson figure emerged, the cold, arrogant Queen Shaya, her gaze disdainful.
“My name is—” The image flickered, then vanished.
“What’s wrong?” Bai asked, tapping the dagger. “Not enough energy?”
“No, that’s not it…” Isabelle’s voice was tense.
“Bai, I think she’s looking at you,” Ara said.
Bai looked up, and her eyes met the image’s.
Shaya’s gaze was fixed on her, her usual indifference replaced by a flicker of… something.
Even as an illusion, Bai felt an immense pressure.
“Interesting… a strange bloodline,” Shaya said, examining Bai, then her gaze shifted to Isabelle. “Isabelle? You’re here too? And you’ve become a coward?”
She knew about Isabelle’s split personality, but she was surprised to see the timid version in the capital.
The human capital shouldn’t have been dangerous enough to trigger such a drastic change.
Isabelle looked away, refusing to speak.
Shaya’s gaze swept over Ara, then returned to Bai. “Whose child are you? To possess both Vampire and Shadow Demon bloodlines, and so perfectly compatible… no, wait. How did you get this dagger?”
She suddenly realized. She had sent this dagger to the Crown Guard, and had just received confirmation of its arrival.
Yet, a short while later, she had sensed it being reactivated, which was why she had projected a part of her consciousness into it, only to find this… unbelievable scene.
“I’m no one’s child, Queen Shaya,” Bai said, standing up and saluting formally. “Bai, Commander of the Dister Front, of the North Empire.”
It was a hollow title, given to her by Leticia to allow her to participate in the Sugg investigation, but it was her only official identity in the Empire.
“A member of my race, a Vampire, serving the human Empire?” Shaya’s voice turned cold, her eyes narrowing. “Siding with ants?”
“…Could I just say I’m not a Vampire?” Bai’s expression twitched. Stop assigning her a race!
First an Ice Demon, then a Shadow Demon, now a Vampire. What next?
“Oh? You identify more with your Shadow Demon bloodline?” Shaya sneered, looking at Isabelle. “Isabelle, did you… fornicate with one of my kind and produce this… thing?”
