"Haahh... Hahh..."
Harumi's mother sighed in exhaustion after experiencing that, but a second later, she was completely fine, her mind the same as before.
"I apologize for acting like that, it is unbefitting of my authority and strength," she said. "I know it must've been pathetic... But I assure you that if I were to confront that man, it wouldn't be the same."
Clementine tried to save some face, but Harumi and her friends couldn't blame her for feeling that way, Noah was a monster, and they knew by just looking at him!
"At the very least, he seemed committed to his work," she said. "And above all, he didn't chase you nor tracked you when you stepped out, even though you were the most vulnerable in that moment. It seems he has no intentions to target you, with his power even if you were together, it wouldn't really matter."
"So at the very least he's not hostile... for now," sighed Harumi. "What do we do now, mother?"
"We will deploy our forces and watch him from afar carefully," said Clementine. "Direct confrontation would only lead to the destruction of whichever area it begins. We must approach this carefully... I know it sounds pathetic coming from me, but it cannot be helped. I've never been a reckless woman myself, I like to do things carefully, I've always been more of a planning type, if anything. Despite my strength and despite the nature of my peers..." "I see..." nodded Frank. "Thank you for offering your help, Miss Clementine."
"Miss?!" Clementine gasped. "You call me Lady, or your Majesty is also fine."
"Mom!" Harumi complained.
"It was a joke," Clementine said with a dead serious face, she was not good at joking. "Ahem, anyways. The meeting was brief, I suppose. But there's also something else you wanted to tell me, right?"
"Noah's son and daughter are in the class too," said Matsuo. "Eleanora and Dante... They didn't seem as threatening as his father, we didn't even realized they were his children though. They are either good at concealing their power, or much weaker... but I wouldn't be so sure."
"So three so far..." said Clementine. "Any more of them?"
"They mentioned that their mother would also be a teacher, for Math classes," said Frank. "But we didn't see her today..."
"So the entire family entered that one school in specific?! But why would they do this... what is the point of..." Clementine squinted her eyes. "The only special thing about that school is you... So despite not holding hostility, they're only there for you."
"Us?!" Frank wondered. "But why?"
"Well, for starting, Frank's Power is very special, isn't it?" asked Clementine. "A power that goes beyond anything ever seen before, according to reports. Perhaps they're pursuing such power."
"Uuh..." Frank felt slightly annoyed by that.
"But if they wanted us so badly, wouldn't they had started by befriending us?" Matsuo wondered. "Yet they only glanced at us if anything."
"It might as well be that they want you for something but don't want a direct approach nor an aggressive one," said Clementine. "It's intriguing, but with theory alone, we can't get anywhere... For now, I'll tell my organization to protect you. Harumi is simply not enough." "To protect us?" Frank asked. "But we are strong already, we don't really need..." "They will be only there when you need them," the Vampiress said. "Don't worry about the details, Frank. Your family as well, will be protected from this moment."
"Thanks..." Frank had nothing else to say but thanking her. "I really appreciate all the help so far, Lady Clementine. I only recently became your daughter's friend, so I didn't expect..." "Hmm~! I am merely doing this because you're the holden child of the Monks," giggled Clementine. "Well, my daughter's friends are also the friends of this family. And at the same time, I would like to invest a bit on your growth as well, Frank. You're a very special young man. Your future is bright, but you're still vulnerable while growing. So you require more protection, if possible."
"I just hope they don't interfere when we go hunting or to do missions..." said Matsuo. "Ah, worry not, they won't," said Clementine. "Anyways, how is the clan doing, Matsuo?" "We're doing fine, thank you for asking, Lady Clementine," Matsuo said, nodding. "I've already notified my clan about these things, so we might go there to report things about Noah as well in more detail."
"Excellent, tell that grumpy old woman that I say hi," giggled Clementine.
"G-Grumpy old woman?" Matsuo asked. "Uuh, w-who are you referring to, if I may ask?" "Who else than the woman that is even older than me, surprisingly," sighed Clementine. "She loves acting younger, but as a Demigoddess, she simply has no lifespan, that woman... Haha." "Y-You mean the Great Ancestor?!" Matsuo almost had a heart attack.
"Kaguyahime was her name, right? Yes her," nodded Clementine. "Anyways, I wish you could stay longer here, there's lots of activities to do in here. Many special rooms where you can practice things. We got an Alchemy Laboratory, a Soul Refining Cauldron, a Body Strengthening Torture Chamber, and more! They could make you stronger very quickly if you spent some weeks there."
"T-Torture Chamber?" Frank asked, feeling afraid. "What do they do there?"
"What else? My family members will torture your body while using special magic and rituals to strengthen your body the more damage and torture it takes! Vampires oftentimes partake into these all the time to become stronger and gain tougher bodies." Said Clementine. "I am sure you'll get used to the pain in no time."
"I pass... Thank you," Frank muttered.
"Mom, why would a normal human ever agree to that?" Harumi sighed. "Not even I am interested on being tortured to get stronger, no thank you!"
"Ah, they're just the ruthless customs of Vampires, dear, please don't be so mean with your mother," sighed Clementine. "Anyways, I suppose that's that. You're free to go. Oh right, I guess you should take this, Frank."
Clementine quickly gave Frank a small emblem shaped as a red and black shield with a bat in
the middle.
"This is...?"
"Its an Honorary Family Member Emblem, by just having it, other Vampires will know you're
an ally," said Clementine.
"Oh wow, this is incredible... Thank you."