Asuka blinked several times, trying to process what she had just heard. Kaido, sitting across from her, remained stiff, unsure where to look or how to get out of the situation.
"Twice… I can't believe…" Asuka muttered, incredulous. "Bakayaro…"
"A-Asu, she was just—" Kaido began, but was interrupted.
Lili crossed her arms in front of him, blocking any escape with a firm gaze.
"...kissing you. Nothing more, right?"
Asuka frowned and also crossed her arms, eyes fixed on Kaido.
"Ne, Kaido?"
Lili kept her gaze locked on him, unblinking, her voice low but cutting.
"Or did you like it?"
Kaido felt a cold sweat run down his spine. The two were clearly united against him. Desperate, he turned to Anne. She just sighed, feeling pity for the awkward situation.
"Calm down, girls. He's not to blame for Eliza's actions."
The two turned their faces in unison, pouting:
"Hmph!"
Kaido exhaled in relief, nodding to thank her for the rescue. Anne responded with a subtle smile, satisfied at having calmed the situation—at least for now.
Lili stepped closer to her mother, a bit uneasy.
"Maman… why is Eliza awake?"
Anne hesitated for a moment.
"I don't know, mon amour."
"You said she went to sleep four days ago…" Lili crossed her arms, glancing at Kaido for a moment. "She shouldn't be awake yet."
Anne hesitated for a moment, her brow wrinkled.
"I know. And I have no idea why. I was caught by surprise too."
Asuka shot Kaido an annoyed look, then turned to Lili.
"So… who is she, after all?"
Without waiting for an answer, she looked at Lili's mother, her tone far too serious for the almost absurd question:
"And— you stopped her with just an ear tug? That's insane. Are you really that strong, ma'am…?"
Lili covered her mouth, struggling to contain her laughter. Asuka's expression was too serious to sound like a joke.
Anne smiled gently, shaking her head.
"Oh, dear, just call me Anne. And I have no powers… I've never been a martial artist or anything like that. I'm just an ordinary person."
She paused briefly.
"If I have any power… maybe it's just the power of being a mother. And sometimes, that more than enough."
Megumi exhaled impressed.
"Woah… I wish I could be that confident… to handle a monster like that."
Lili, about to laugh again, widened her eyes, surprised by Megumi's choice of words.
"Monster?"
Megumi immediately paled, bringing both hands to her mouth.
"I-I didn't mean to say that. I'm sorry!"
But Lili leaned slightly forward, her lips curling into a silly smile.
"Non. Non… you're totally right."
Then, staring intently at Asuka, Lili let the words escape, her voice low and dripping with drama:
"She is… indeed… a v-a-m-p-i-r-e."
Megumi instinctively stepped back but clutched Kaido's arm, eyes so wide they nearly popped out.
"V-v-vampire?!" Her voice came out in a trembling thread, almost a whisper of pure fear.
Asuka's body tensed, every muscle ready, but her posture remained firm—retreat was simply not an option.
"Mendokusee!"[1] she muttered, clenching her fists. "All that's missing is an evil Rochefort."
Kaido, surprising everyone, let out a fascinated smile.
"Exactly! That's what I was thinking… a vampire… a real vampire. That's amazing!"
Asuka turned to him instantly, outraged.
"Boke! That's not funny!"
Lili took the opportunity to chuckle softly, crossing her arms with satisfaction. She remarked with dry irony:
"Toujours si dramatique, ma chère Asuka…"[2]
"V-vampires… don't exist!" Megumi raised her voice, still in shock.
Lili narrowed her eyes.
"Ah, Megumi… do you really want me to call Eliza?"
"B-but I… I d-don't…"
She tried to argue, but ran out of words, paralyzed by Lili's gaze and words. Gripped Kaido's arm as she trembled. He placed his hand over hers, trying to calm her.
"Calm down, Megumi. She's just teasing."
Lili didn't miss the chance to enjoy the situation, smiling as she saw the fear on her face. Anne also stepped closer, gently stroking Megumi's head.
"Don't mind her, dear. She loves to tease."
"Oh… now I'm the bad one?" Lili brought her hand to her chest, pretending to be offended.
Before the discussion could escalate again, the maître appeared at the top of the stairs and descended silently. He stopped at a respectful distance and bowed slightly.
"Madame, lunch is served."
"Merci, Desmond." Anne smiled, giving a brief glance to the group. "Let's go before someone loses their head."
Megumi pressed her hands together against her chest, looking around, clearly lost.
"Wait… lunch? But… I didn't see anyone in the kitchen!"
"Oh là là… quelle naïveté…[3]" Lili rolled her eyes. "That kitchen is just the smallest."
Also glancing around, Kaido was intrigued.
"Wait… so how many kitchens do you actually have?"
"Four, mon cher." Anne smiled calmly, as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "And the one you saw is the smallest… a modest 20 square meters."
"So… if that's the smallest, how big are the others?"
Lili puffed out her chest, clearly satisfied, and began to enumerate:
"Well… the other kitchens range between 25 and almost 50 square meters each. We have six main rooms, all with en-suite bathrooms, ten guest rooms, and twenty for the staff. Two main living rooms, plus three gathering rooms…"
She made a small gesture with her hand, as if still warming up.
"There's the music salon, an art atelier,la bibliothèque, about thirty square meters… and le bureau du papa, with his own library."
Megumi didn't even blink, unsure if she was even hearing correctly.
"As for the gardens… there are four. The main one at the entrance is simplement magnifique.
The rear one is a bit more modeste. To the east, we have the garden with the golf course… and to the west, le flower garden, w with a gazebo at its center—and, of course, une piscine just beside it.
Lili took a breath, clearly enjoying herself:
"Oh, two, actually. There's also la piscine intérieure… twelve bathrooms—"
"Ah, now I get it… no wonder you're so nuts," Asuka said, hands on hips, smirking at Lili.
"You probably get lost in this mansion every time you need the bathroom."
Anne brought her hand to her mouth, unable to contain a chuckle.
"Oh… well played." she admitted, genuinely amused.
"Ouch… that one hurt!" Kaido couldn't resist either.
Megumi simply gave a timid smile, clearly unsure how to react.
Lili kept her chin up, but her narrowed eyes betrayed her discomfort.
"Heh… Les Japonaises sont vraiment si bêtes…"[4]
The words didn't exactly sit well with her mother, Anne slightly annoyed by the remark.
Resting her elbow on her other arm and bringing her hand to her chin, she glared at her daughter with disapproval.
"Quoi ? Dois-je considérer cela comme une insulte ?"[5]
Caught off guard, Lili straightened immediately.
"Non, maman… bien sûr que non. (No, mom… of course not.)"
Anne sighed and scolded her in a gentle yet firm tone that left no room for argument.
"Tu ne devrais pas parler une langue qu'ils ne comprennent pas, c'est impoli."[6]
"Oui, maman."
However, at that moment, a playful look came over Asuka's face as she asked:
"Madame Anne… vous êtes vraiment japonaise?"[7]
Everyone fell silent at the impeccable French.
Lili's eyes went wide, stunned, struggling to process how Asuka had just upended the one place she'd always felt safe.
Kaido put his hand over his face to prevent himself from laughing.
Asuka… you didn't just do that?!
Anne took a few seconds before reacting. Then, she let out a soft, warm laugh and approching Asuka, clearly impressed.
"Oui, ma chère… je suis née au Japon."[8]
She tilted her head slightly with elegance before continuing:
"Mais mon père était hollandais et ma mère française."[9]
"Oh, so… Lili is even more complicated than I thought…" Kaido commented, crossing his arms, thoughtful.
"What do you mean by that, Kaido?" Lili asked immediately, angry.
Megumi, understanding not a single word of French, kept flicking her gaze between them.
"S-someone… someone can translate?" she asked anxious, clutching the strap of her bag.
Anne gave Megumi a gentle smile and rested a hand on her shoulder.
"I was born in Japan, but my father is Dutch and my mother is French."
Asuka ran a hand through her hair and lifted her chin, letting her eyes glint with triumph as she looked at her rival.
Taste of your own medicine, princess…
Lili clenched her fists, and looked away, hiding her embarrassment behind her pride.
Tss... you'll pay for this, Kazama.
Still laughing at Asuka's audacity, Anne made an inviting gesture with her hand.
"Let's go. Lunch is waiting."
- - -
In front of the large double doors of the dining room, two servants opened them in perfect sync. And everyone stopped.
Seated elegantly at the head of the table, with the dishes already served before her, was Eliza. Unlike her usual drowsy posture, she now seemed fully awake. Her half-lidded eyes conveyed satisfaction as she calmly sipped a glass of dark wine.
Anne's eyes widened, shocked.
"Eliza?!"
Even Lili was clearly surprised.
" Didn't you say you would sleep?"
Eliza delicately wiped her lips with a napkin, in no rush, and replied in a playful tone:
"Well… if there's a feast, how could I resist?"
Megumi took a half-step back, swallowing hard.
"I-is that… normal?"
She was on high alert, fully prepared, but cautious because she doesn't know what really happened before. Anne raised her hands, trying to cut the tension.
"Please have a seat, everyone."
Asuka took a step forward without removing her eyes from Eliza, and Kaido moved decisively toward the seat next to her. He was about to pull out the chair when he heard.
" Hem…Kaido," Lili called, her voice too sweet but authoritative. "You didn't forget anything, did you?"
He froze mid-motion. Scratching the back of his neck, clearly cornered, he ended up moving to the other side of the table, sitting next to Lili.
Asuka narrowed her eyes, unable to understand what Lili meant. Even more irritated that Kaido continues to give in without any resistance.
Megumi, hesitant, looked around for a safe option… and ended up choosing the remaining seat, near the end of the table. Only when she sat down did she realize that Eliza was the one next to her.
Megumi shrank slightly in the chair, like someone who had just sat too close to a predator.
Eliza, however, remained calm. She cut the meat with an elegant movements. She didn't speak, didn't smile… but from time to time, her deep red eyes lifted and drifted toward Kaido, fixing him for long seconds—as if measuring his pulse, his breath… every heartbeat.
Kaido shivered. He took a deep breath and murmured:
"Is it just me, or is she…"
Anne lightly clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention and breaking the unease forming at the table.
"Bon appétit."
[1] What a pain!
[2] Always so dramatic, my dear Asuka.
[3] so naive...
[4] Japanese girls are really that silly…
[5] What? Should I consider that an insult?
[6] You shouldn’t speak a language they don’t understand. It’s impolite.
[7] Madame Anne… are you really Japanese?
[8] Yes, my dear… I was born in Japan.
[9] But my father was Dutch and my mother French.