Operation Red Book

Ivy didn't know how she got down from the top floor of the castle.

There was chaos in front of my eyes, an uproar in my ears, and my head was in a mess, as if someone had dropped an atomic bomb in it.

Behind me was cool marble, and my sweaty dress stuck to the wall, leaving behind a bone-chilling chill.

Ivy's fingers left trembling scratches on her side, and there was some blood in the center of each scratch.

What should I do now? I have to do something, right?

Ivy didn't know that countless echoes were reverberating and circling in her mind.

Every echo is important, but none of them is clear.

"I'm on the fourth floor, the fourth floor of the castle..."

"Where is Joshua? I've met him before, right..."

"Did Lord Leon kiss me?"

"Where is this... Yes, this is the fourth floor..."

"Lord Leon, where is he..."

"This is not reality, this is a space of consciousness..."

"Just now, something knocked me away, white..."

"What happened? What happened?

"Lord Leon...he kissed me..."

"No, no...it's dangerous here..."

Her body trembled continuously and tears rolled down Ivy's pale cheeks like a thunderstorm.

Calm down...think about it...

What to do... act now...

fast……

Ivy held up her weak legs and pressed her right hand against the cold wall. She looked forward steadily and moved step by step towards the dark corridor.

The cold moonlight shone quietly behind her, and Ivy breathed a sigh of relief.

In the world of the vampire lord, the darkness that was once feared has become the only protective color.

Ivy smiled mockingly and stepped more firmly into the darkness.

The surroundings were very quiet, as peaceful as usual late at night, except for the roar coming from the ceiling...

The battle on the top floor of the castle was fierce. Grayish-white debris fell from overhead from time to time, hitting the soft dark red carpet silently.

Bare feet stepped on the gray and white residue on the carpet. As bricks and tiles collapsed, the memories lost in the panic came slowly with the breeze passing through the hall.

The red eyes filled with apology and bitterness were replaced by white mane in the blink of an eye.

The whole world was spinning. The whistling night wind lingered by my ears, drilling into my heart with its angry roar and resonating with my pounding heartbeat.

"It's okay, Ivy, it's okay..."

Joshua patted Ivy's back gently and pressed his forehead against the top of her head.

Egret-like wings extended from the unicorn's back, rising and falling along with the swirling air currents.

Ivy and Joshua rode on the broad horses, flying in the deep blue night sky.

"I went down to the fourth floor stairs and saw it running out from the darkness of the corridor..."

Joshua grasped the long mane behind the unicorn's neck with one hand and put Ivy's ear close to his lips with the other.

"I quickly explained the situation to it, and it knelt down and motioned for me to climb up..."

“Hiss…”

The unicorn snorted downwards and turned its furry head backwards, as if seeking a reward, or as if expressing its concern to the two of them...

Neither. It roared downwards twice again: "Look there! You idiot!"

A large gray-black bat leaped up from the top of the castle and flew straight towards the white horse shadow in the air.

Lord Leon turned into a bat. He flew at an extremely fast speed. His sharp claws flashed with cold light and he grabbed the air in front of him fiercely.

Feathers like snow fell from the sky, and an 11-inch blood scar appeared on the unicorn's right wing.

"Hiss-"

The unicorn roared to the sky, then its body tilted and tilted to the lower right.

"Unicorn! Sorry, I don't know your name...Can you delay him!" Joshua shouted.

"Hulu! Hulu!"

The unicorn chirped twice, turned a big circle in the air, raised its front hoof, and kicked the big bat that was chasing it, even faster than the bat.

The big bat obviously did not expect the unicorn's sudden attack. He had no time to brake and could only fold his wings to protect himself.

“Hiss—”

The power of the horse's hooves was extremely great. The moment the two creatures collided, the huge force squeezed the two creatures to the sides.

Lord Leon lost his balance and spun several times in the air, while the unicorn successfully spread its white wings and slowly descended toward the open-air castle roof.

"Cheer up, Ivy..."

Joshua helped the dazed Ivy into the small door, his voice urgent yet gentle.

He turned his head and saw that the black spot on the moon was getting bigger and bigger, and several bat-winged armored soldiers were flying towards them.

"Student Ivy, you need to go to the end of the corridor on the fourth floor. There must be a passage back there..."

The unicorn turned back and licked its injured wing, letting out a painful whine from its throat.

"Student Ivy, you must find it! Do you hear me? You must get out of here!"

Joshua didn't have time to wake up Ivy, who was staring blankly in the face. He kept an eye on his surroundings while escorting her down the spiral staircase covered with thorns.

"Hiss ah ah ah -"

The unicorn suddenly roared at the full moon in the sky, dug its hooves on the smooth floor, and flew out like a long-awaited arrow.

"Student Ivy, this is what the red book told me to bring with me..."

Joshua pried open Ivy's fingers and stuffed the iron rod hidden in his arms into Ivy's palm.

Ivy blinked blankly and leaned against the wall, breathing in disordered air.

"Rumble--"

"Hululu——"

A loud noise came from upstairs, and the cry of a unicorn echoed in the empty castle.

Joshua's heart sank. He turned around suddenly and saw a glowing white shadow accompanied by broken tiles rushing towards the crystal chandelier on the ceiling.

A figure in black armor with bat wings spread out walked out from the door with a big hole in it, and swung its sharp claws that flashed with cold light at the unicorn.

"unicorn!"

Without having time to pay attention to the dazed Ivy, Joshua ran up the spiral staircase.

He pulled out the lightsaber hidden in his pocket, which was a spare one that Hilda kept in her arsenal. The power was not as strong as the previous one, but it was enough.

"Let it go!"

Joshua slammed hard at the armored soldier, and the lightsaber emitted a bluish-purple electric current, like a bright blue star with a trailing tail.

After a violent tremor, the armored soldier fell from the top floor with his stiff body, crushing a bunch of blooming blue roses.

The unicorn fell on the crystal chandelier, gasping for breath, with bloodstains of all sizes all over its body. It still struggled to climb up from the shaking chandelier.

"Are you okay? Unicorn...I'm with you!"

Joshua picked up the lightsaber on the ground and reached out to grab the unicorn's white hair.

He wanted to pull the unicorn back from the crystal chandelier...

With arms that are so thin that only bones are left, it's really a dream...

The unicorn snorted twice in disdain, spread its graceful wings, and kicked its legs hard.

The crystal chandelier fell down with a loud bang, leaving a few muffled whooshing sounds between the floors, and then smashed the black grand piano in the middle of the hall.

Amidst the shattering noises, the unicorn bit Joshua's collar...

"Etc., etc……"

Without further words, the unicorn carried Joshua towards the big hole on the roof, stepped on the moonlight, and flew into the sky against the strong wind.

Ivy swallowed, trying to calm herself down and quicken her pace.

There were some faint orange-yellow lights ahead, shining all over the sky, as gorgeous as the starry sky.

Unfortunately, just as Ivy was about to walk through the long dark corridor, two elegant servants in armor slowly walked out from the shadows and slowly saluted Ivy who was running towards her.

"I'm only saying this once, I want to go in."

Ivy pretended to be calm as she clenched the iron bar in her hand, and beads of sweat wet her palms.

The servants remained silent. They stood in front of the door like two statues, their cold white bones visible through the gaps in their armor.

"Well, then there is no room for negotiation..."

Ivy took a deep breath and looked at the armor-headed servant with eyes full of determination and tenacity.

She loosened her grip, and the silver-black whip fell away, twisting wildly on the carpet like a black mamba.

Ivy used the tip of her thumb to gently rub the dragon pattern carved on the metal bar, and the confidence she felt naturally surged in her chest.

"Even if you were once my compatriots, I will not be lenient."

She pressed the button on the top of the handle, and silver-white lightning rushed down from the end, flowing all over the whip.