Centuries later.

"You want to marry Cordelia? What does it have to do with me?"

The two demonic beings sat inside the rose garden. Under the gazebo, the two enjoyed their evening drink, basking under the sunlight— something one only found in the Human World or at the border between the two realms, they met once again. The one who asked the question was Aku, the Last Founder. His Clan had perished with Endzeit, and apart from him and Cordelia, his cousin, and a half breed, no other Founder could be found walking the surface of the Demon World.

Although he wished to go to Banmaden and see if there was a survivor, Aku knew that the probability of awakening Endzeit was too big, he wouldn't risk the last members of his race for mere curiosity.

Karlheinz took a calm sip of his tea. He was in no hurry to convince the Founder in front of him. The question was more of courtesy than anything anyway. After all, Karlheinz was stronger than Aku, wiser, and also older. What's more, he stood at the top of the Vampire Clan that counted hundreds of members if one only counted the "Pure Blood." No matter how one looked at it, Karlheinz had nothing but Aku's lineage to envy.

"Well, as her only living maternal parent, I thought that it would be good to have you know," the Vampire King nonchalantly explained. "Of course, I plan to make her my First Wife. She is, after all, Burai's daughter and the Last Female Founder— even if only half of her blood is," he told him, a light smile dancing on his lips.

Aku lifted his golden eyes to meet Karlheinz's similarly colored irises. He didn't show his irritation or discomfort when the Vampire mentioned his fallen Clan. After all, Aku too, was aware that his power wasn't comparable to Karlheinz or to what it used to be. He had no political leverage, and as someone who previously specialized in diplomatics, he knew how much of a disadvantage that was.

He brought the ceramic cup to his lips, eyes half-lidded as he pondered the Vampire's words. "Even if you tell me this, I made it so that Cordelia wasn't aware of her lineage. The only one in the known is Burai. Every other person, I wiped them off the surface of the Demon World," he stated, voice veiled with disinterest.

His statement elicited a laugh from the now strongest Demon Lord. "Even so, don't you think her having children will make your bloodline last?" the question visibly struck a sore spot. Despite his usual composure, Aku narrowed his brows and licked his upper lip in a show of irritation. Karlheinz was a manipulative man. The action didn't escape his eyes, and his smile deepened. "Or do you perhaps want her to bear your children?" he articulated.

Aku's lips that previously stretched in an unreadable flat line tugged down. To have her bear his children? He already experienced some random whore carrying his children. He didn't want to live it a second time. The woman of his life was Krone. No one else would do. If he couldn't have Krone, then he was better off not keeping a woman.

Karlheinz smirked, already knowing the way of the younger Demon's mind. "I'll invite you to my wedding. You can stand as a friend of mine," he told him as he put the teacup down. "After all, not many people remember your face. With a bit of cosmetic magic, no one will see a thing," he mused with a sly grin.

Aku didn't bother to refute his words. It was true that he practically lived as a hermit these past centuries, favoring the Human World over the Demon World.

"I will wait for your invitation," is what he settled on saying.

Karlheinz chuckled. "No need to," he said, his hand went to look for something in his coat's inner breast pocket. Soon, he pulled a satin envelope and presented it to the Founder. "There you go, your invitation," the man said with a smile.

Aku glanced at the envelope, as a show of courtesy, he picked it up himself. Cleanly tearing it open, he pulled the card out of it. His eyes swept over the cursive letters, and he stuffed it back in the creamy white envelope. As if waiting for this moment, Kagamine, his aide, emerged from his shadow to relieve him of the object.

Karlheinz's eyes minutely trailed on the tall butler's figure. "I see you still have your mother's dog around," he acknowledged with a smile that wasn't one. "Either way, since we are on the matter of marriage, how about you help me look through this list of prospective brides?" he proposed, receiving a large stack of paper from a summon who came out from nowhere.

Aku masked his distaste. Although he had no respect for Cordelia or any woman apart from his Mother, he found the idea of looking for many brides at once revulsing. He extended his hand. "Show me."

Karlheinz grinned. "I knew you would understand," he flattered before handing him half of the paper stack. "I already went over it once. This is about a tenth of what I had at first," he said with some dismay.

Aku didn't even bother to react to Karlheinz's narcissistic words. Merely flipping through the pages, he recognized a few names as they belonged to the strongest Demon of each Great Demon Clan. Seeing as Karlheinz decided to tie the knot with Cordelia, a Vibora princess, Aku set every other Vibora file aside.

He pondered over the Adler and Wolves Clan before discarding the Wolves Clan. After all, the Wolves Clan and Vampire Clan were on the worst terms. They couldn't see eye to eye. He didn't have to ponder over Lesser Clans as Karlheinz already took them out of the list.

"Are you looking to strengthen your position or do you want to form some other ties?" Aku asked, feeling oddly motivated as he looked through the paper. It had been some time since he last dealt with something remotely related to politics.

He didn't know if Karleheinz had sought him out because of his expertise, or if it was out of pure boredom, but Aku decided to give this task his all. Work was something he missed, his days were long, and there was only so much that could be done in the Human World as it was.

"With the Vibora Clan on my side, I don't think I'll have to worry about the Adler or Wolves raising a fuss," Karlheinz answered. "But strengthening my position in the Clan shouldn't be bad," he admitted with a nod. As if to highlight his point, he began to take out every Vibora, Adler, and Wolves profile from his stack.

Aku nodded. He proceeded to set the Adler and Wolves forms aside and focused on the remaining Vampire forms. If Karlheinz's goal was to secure his spot even more, then only the strongest family would do. If he wanted the family to remain loyal, then the last descendant would be good. With these thoughts, he first took out every Vampire noble that didn't classify as High Noble. With this, only five files remained. He then looked through their genealogy.

His eyes zeroed on the name Christian.

Beatrix Christian.

He flicked his gaze to the side to take in her picture more carefully. The woman exuded the air of a noble. Her blond hair seemed almost ginger under the lighting and was kept in a tight bun. Two strands of hair framed her round face, making her visage seem even smaller than it was, and bangs that were parted to the left covered her forehead. She had a pair of beautiful gem-like blue eyes. They were a deep dark blue, the kind that made Aku shiver in anticipation. The more he looked, the more he liked them.

Finally, after reigning his urge to pluck them out, he reviewed her whole form again. Once satisfied, he knocked over the table to get the Vampire's attention. Karlheinz, with a light frown on his face, seriously gazed at one of his forms before he lifted his gaze to look at Aku.

"Did you find someone?" he rhetorically asked as he grabbed the form from the Founder. "Christian's daughter?" he mused in a whisper with a raised eyebrow. His golden eyes skimmed the first few lines, a concise resume before he handed Aku the file he previously held. "While I read this one over, tell me what you think of her," he told him without lifting his eyes.

Aku received the form with some dissatisfaction. He internally sighed as brought his attention to it.

Shiraishi

He raised an eyebrow at the name. It wasn't a famed house, nor did they hold much political power or influence over the Vampire Clan. They were a nameless Vampire family that happened to be part of the High Nobles. The number of families like this one wasn't scarce, and they were part of the first ones Aku eliminated when he reviewed the paper stack.

He flicked his gaze to Karlheinz with a complicated look, finding his choice strange but nevertheless looked back at the form. Maybe it was the woman's looks that fitted his taste? He first looked at her portrait.

The woman was a beauty alright. She had long white hair that cascaded along her form, making her petite body seem all the more frail and weak. She was the type of woman that awakened a man's desire to protect. Aku didn't know that Karlheinz liked this type of woman. The woman didn't bother to tie her hair, but unlike some would think, it didn't look messy. She had a pair of palish pink eyes, it was quite similar to Morganite and Pink Tourmaline, Aku liked them a lot.

Feeling mildly convinced by the woman's looks, he began to read her file with more attention.

Christa Shiraishi

His eyes minutely widened in recognition. So this was the beauty lauded by the Vampire Clan as "White Rose," he acknowledged with some more appreciation. With renewed interest, he began to read over her file.

Aku didn't bother to have Karlheinz or any of his Familiars or servants escort him out of the manor. He knew his way out already, he even had an aisle specifically built for him if he wanted to stay here. On his way out, he mused over Karlheinz's wedding. He wondered if he would marry all three at once, or if he would wait a few years between each— Now that seemed impossible. He doubted Karlheinz would even take the time to cultivate feelings with his brides to be.

Shaking his head in mild defeat, Aku let an intrigued smile creep up his face. Although he disliked Karlheinz, he admitted that the Vampire was a great source of entertainment. His schemes and experiments never failed to entertain him. It probably was the reason why Aku tolerated him the most out of all the Demon Lords who sought him out.

"Lord Aku," the voice pulled Aku out of his absentminded musings.

The Founder turned to face another Vampire. The Vampire, whose height was comparable to Karlheinz's, had dark greenish hair and a hairstyle similar to the Vampire King. He had a pair of blood-red eyes and a weak temperament. At least, if you looked at Karlheinz, Richter's temperament failed to compare.

Richter was the "Prince" of the Vampire Clan. Because his older brother was the King, Richter received the treatment befitting of royalty. Yet, when Aku looked at him he saw no trace of regalness. Maybe because he grew up in his brother's shadow, Richter was much meeker and respectful toward Aku who was a Founder.

In fact, Aku quite liked this guy. Not because he respected him— of course, not. Only, because Richter grew up like a caged animal under his brother's meticulous care, Aku couldn't wait for the day Richter would try to go against Karlheinz in a frontal manner.

Although weaker than Karlheinz, Richter was far from dumb. Aku was sure that with some time, after gaining some cards in the dark, and with the right opportunity, the male would strike. Aku didn't know how yet, but the mere thought of it made him excited.

He gave the Vampire an amiable smile, lightly humming as he spoke. "Richter," he acknowledged. "I didn't see you when I was in the garden, did you just return?" he casually inquired, not caring for the answer as it was mere pleasantries.

Richter nodded. "Yes, I was out for the day. I hope my brother didn't inconvenience you too much, My Lord," he apologized. Okay, Aku admitted that he like the way Richter always flattered him. "If I may, why did he ask for you?"

Aku smiled, although he knew Richter was trying to gain intel on his brother, Aku didn't see anything wrong in satiating his curiosity. After all, Richter always made him in a good mood, and news of Karlheinz's marriage wouldn't stay hidden for long.

"We were overlooking the list of Karlheinz's prospective brides," the way Richter's hand twitched at the mention of brides didn't go past the Founder's attention. He licked his upper lip. "In the end, we settled on three."

"Three?"

Aku nodded, he resumed his walk toward the exit, glancing at Richter to indicate that he could follow. "Yes, three women. The first one is Cordelia from the Vibora Clan," he introduced, loving the calculative glint in Richter's eyes. "She will be Karlheinz's First Wife."

When he heard the word First Wife, Richter's eyes narrowed. She would make the perfect target, he thought.

"The Second Wife's seat will go the Beatrix, from the Christian family. As for the Third Wife, that would be you Vampires' "White Rose," Christa Shiraishi."

Richter mentally went over the name again, he committed them to his mind before mentally nodding. "I see, then will My Lord attend the wedding?"

Aku merely hummed, he saw the gate get closer and stopped. "Probably," he answered before giving the taller male a curt nod. "Then, until next time."

And with those words, Aku was gone.