Geeky

Crimson Belvedere.

The unique warm colors of dusk wiped across Ninia Street, fading gently with endless nostalgia.

In this fading, the spotless window becomes clear and transparent like a golden veil, showing the items placed on the silver or wooden shelves one by one.

The clerk in uniform walked out of the store and turned the buttons on the two black wrought iron crystal wall lamps beside the door. Inside the transparent lampshade, the golden jade-like wick gradually became brighter, emitting a faint light.

Human shop assistants are used to living with day and night upside down.

The lit wall lamp silently announces to passers-by that the store is open for business.

Night is coming and a new day begins.

The gentle waves of the Bolloré River sloshing—wow...wh...wh...

The shattered moon gleamed silver on the dark river.

The street lights are extremely far apart and the light is dim. It is not easy for human beings to see their feet clearly at night.Those who live here are the people favored by Ye.The river channel was neatly laid out by square rocks, and one might even suspect that the bottom of the water was also paved by these slightly bluish-yellow rocks.

Several men descended the stone steps and stepped into the boat that was moored to the shore.

These small boats usually have a fixed route in the water, and they take fixed stops, because there are many waterways in Feiseli, and it is easy to get lost, and some riverways are dug and built by nobles for their own use.

Subways, buses, wheeled cars...these are not allowed to be used in Scarlet Belvedere. Those things will only bring harmful noise and exhaust to the blood nobles and damage their quality of life.

Although Feiseli, as a city of blood, possesses high-tech that is not available in human cities, the products brought by these technologies are quietly integrated into this fresh air that still seems to be in the eighteenth century. To these ancient and ornate buildings full of stone carvings and domes...

A few gilt banknotes were placed in the hands of the boatman, and the men sat on leather-padded seats, one of whom stood in the cabin, gazing at the glowing water ahead.The boatman hung the lit rose-colored lamps on the stern, and the black boats with curved ends swayed gently in the slender and quiet river. The rose-colored lights of the horse lanterns on the water flickered like stars, and the boats were like ladies. Swimming forward with ease...

Sisera Manor.

Surrounded by golden tulips, the villa is intoxicated in the night wind, and the milk gray spire is dyed dark by the night.

Excluding the dome floor, the villa appears to have three floors.The golden apricot soft light from the windows is first lit from the highest floor, then the second floor, the first floor, descending in order...

The ready servants lined up in two teams and walked down the steps into the cellar.

Although it is a cellar, the decoration below is not as splendid as the rooms on the ground, but there is a more solemn and simple atmosphere.There is no exquisite shiny paint or luxurious gilding, the wall lamps on both sides of the heavy stone corridor are lit up one by one, blooming a rose-colored warm light on the pure white walls, and every rock has been polished to perfection. It is as smooth as a mirror, as if the craftsman used water to smooth it over and over again.

In order to absolutely avoid light and fire, the ancestors of the blood clan built underground palaces for themselves. To this day, the blood clan nobles still retain the habit of sleeping in the stone chamber of the cellar.

However, unlike the ancient cellars that were simple and low, where safety and concealment were the first priority, today's cellars are taller than before, and full of a minimalist elegance.The exquisite patterns carved on the door frame can only be seen clearly when they are very close.

Blood servants in black tuxedos walked through the vaulted corridor, each holding a silver basin, a silver plate, or a white porcelain vase with hairpins in their hands... The agarwood wooden door was plated with a layer of engraved The silver of the historical pattern of the blood clan, the door handle is polished with agate, and connected with gold.The gold base under the agate is connected to the golden ornamentation on the middle seam of the two doors, forming the shape of the little devil's fork symmetrical with the door seam as a whole.

Behind the door, in the center of the wide and cold emerald floor, there is a square lambswool carpet, only a circle of emerald about a foot wide is exposed at the edge, which is as thick as oil.There was nothing in the room, only a dark to shiny ebony coffin, which made the room even more empty.The false windows are covered by large sheets of velvet that can be pulled back to reveal a night view with wonderful perspective.

After the butler stood quietly with his head bowed two steps away from the coffin, the heavy coffin lid moved, slightly staggered, a thin and pale hand protruded from under the coffin lid, and the long, smooth nails were plated. A layer of silver makes this hand not look like a human hand, but a beautiful work of art.

"……what time is it?"

"It's exactly midnight, you shouldn't stay in bed, Lord Sisera."

"……water."

The slightly hoarse, but smooth bass like silk sounded again from inside the coffin.

"With all due respect, my lord, a decent noble will not enjoy food in a coffin."

"..."

The owner of the hand was silent for a while, followed by a loud "bang".The thick coffin board flew out, but the butler seemed to have moved to the side of the coffin in an instant, and supported the flying coffin lid with both hands, the expression on his face was still gentle enough to be pleasing to the eye, only a little ceremonial in his tone blame:

"Perhaps you should get out of bed more gracefully."

A pale face emerged from the coffin, and the cool-colored light hit his thin face, making his deep and three-dimensional features look ghostly and handsome.

Balan Sisera stepped out of the coffin, and walked out all the way while being served by the servants.

The silver elevator took him all the way to the third floor, and the dining room had a whole glass wall, allowing people to enjoy breakfast in the silver moonlight.The servant opened the black wooden chair inlaid with silver patterns for Balan Sisera, and Balan Sisera's cronies were already waiting at the dining table.

In the low-pressure wake-up atmosphere of Balaam, this breakfast ended in an aristocratic and elegant way.

"Balan," a woman with curly hair and a shawl said to Balan-Sisera, "you said that you would help me hold a banquet on 'Banquet Day'..."

Balaam handed back the handkerchief for wiping his mouth to the servant, and said, "Today is..."

The butler said from the side: "No. 29."

Balaam snapped his fingers: "Yes, the 29th. It's more than enough to be ready before the 'Banquet Day', Anna."

The "Feast Day" of the Crimson Bloodline is the last day of each month... Two days later it will be the "Feast Day", but the curly-haired female Bloodline Anna didn't say anything.

The butler handed the Mini holographic pie to Balan Sisera, which was like a gemstone ring, with a sugar cube-like creamy green mineral inlaid on the exquisite silver setting.

The steward said: "I have put all the 'hotels' worthy of consideration in today's 'Itinerary Reference'."

Balan Sisera stroked the face of the ring, and a holographic light screen the size of a book page was immediately projected in front of him.

The housekeeper asked, "Do you want to prepare a carriage for you?"

Balan Sisera's eyebrows twitched invisibly. He didn't turn his head, but just stretched out his finger, pointed to the balcony beside him, and said:

"Lightning S2017."

Baran Sisera browsed through the introductions of several hotels that the butler had prepared for him——Banquet Day, that is, one party holds a banquet to entertain blood friends.Although Balan Sisera was willing to pay to hold a banquet in Anna's name, he was unwilling to hold it in his own manor.The blood race has a strict hierarchy. Even if Balan Sisera is playful, rebellious, and associates with a blood race with an inappropriate identity, it doesn't mean that he will surrender his identity for the sake of the other party.

A silver-gray suspension sports car flew into the air, then landed slowly, and stopped by the terrace on the third floor of the villa.

Balan Sisera sat in the passenger seat, pulled the location on the ring light screen directly into the navigation light screen of the speeding car, asked a male blood named Louis to replace the driver, and then drove away with the other two companions.

Salman Hotel.

The dark red marble floor exudes a delicate and hazy halo in the bright lights.Dark red murals are distributed on the golden dome.The part where the dome connects to the wall has a circle of delicate golden decorations like lace.Twelve huge crystal chandeliers hanging down make the banquet hall shine like day.

The hotel manager in uniform was standing in the banquet hall holding a microphone, and a male waiter was standing beside him holding an antique telephone. The blue zircon inlaid on the landline shone slightly, projecting a blue hologram in front of the phone. The light screen, the light screen seems to be photographing the hall——

A circular performance platform rose slowly from the flat ground, and at the same time, a golden and copper-colored inverted horn descended from the sky.

"...only a small indoor band is needed, and every corner of the hall can be filled with notes," the hotel manager said into the phone microphone. "In the empty banquet hall, the music will become light and beautiful... the Blood Race's Hearing is sensitive, and our acoustic design takes that into consideration."

"If you need it - the wing of the banquet hall leads to the garden, and the hotel's vestibule can also be used as a venue at that time."

The male waiter turned around in a timely manner, and the holographic light screen in the "camera" state turned accordingly-the champagne-colored hall has a wall full of arched doors with a whole floor-to-ceiling window, and the wall is a foot thick.Through the long glass windows with golden frames, you can see the white magnolias in the side garden, as if shining white and clean like pearls in the night...

"……'She is beautiful."

From the microphone came a man's bass that was as mellow and sweet as honey.

That's incredible, the hotel manager thought.

Although the man's voice was deep, the melodic voice really reminded him of the moment when honey was poured from a crystal jar.

And he liked what he called the hotel... as if he had a lovely lady in front of him.

"I want to start grooming 'her' tomorrow morning, I'll send someone there, okay?"

"Of course, we will set aside three days for you, from the 30th to April 4st. If you have to extend it a little bit, it's okay."

"Thank you, the banquet will end before noon. If there is any additional need, can I use this number to discuss with you?"

"of course."

The hotel manager feels comfortable with such a well-informed guest, "I will send you a draft electronic agreement later, and you can pay in any of the methods provided according to your preferences. The total amount includes all services, and the total amount is 340 gold coins..."

Just when the matter was about to be finalized, a voice came from afar, interrupting the hotel manager's words:

"I give 400 gold coins."

The hotel manager turned around, and saw a few slender figures flashing at the main entrance of the lobby. These people had black hair, black eyes, and pale complexions. They were all dressed in beautiful clothes.The leader is a young man, wearing a retro white shirt that is popular this spring, with his coat draped over his shoulders, and one hand hanging by his side - a thin silver chain hangs from the palm, and the chain falls from the cuff, connecting one of the rings, and the other One hand was casually half-inserted in the trouser pocket.When he walks, his shoulders barely move, his coat seems to hang on a hanger, and he seems to flow on the spotless ground.

The pace of these people was not too fast, but it seemed that they walked through the wide hall in just a few seconds and came to the front of the hotel manager.After their soundless footsteps, the slightly hurried footsteps of the accompanying hotel attendants seemed particularly abrupt.

They are gorgeous, fine, and pale like all Kindred...

The hotel manager glanced reproachfully at the attendant who was leading the way, and the attendant returned a helpless look.

"This month's banquet day."

The leading youth glanced at the hotel manager, "I want to hold it here."

His appearance is still outstanding even in a blood clan full of handsome men and beautiful women... It seems that even the color of his skin and the curvature of his hair are impeccable.

However, the hotel manager did not dare to appreciate it more, and could not help showing embarrassment: Although Fei Seli has a "banquet day" every month, most of the nobles will hold it in their castles and manors, and they will book the hotel venue at this time. They are all blood clan upstarts - the so-called upstarts are blood clans that have money but no titles.This kind of vampires and some humans are the main source of business for the hotel - it is not uncommon for the vampires to hold "banquet days" at the hotel, but this is the first time that the vampires have scrambled for each other.

The hotel manager naturally didn't want to offend anyone.

"450 gold coins."

At this time, a faint voice came from the microphone.

The gentle tone is like the slow flow of honey.

The microphone was still leaning against the hotel manager's ear, he wasn't sure if those blood races heard it... obviously they did.

The leading young man silently stared at the microphone in the hotel manager's hand, as if thinking about something, his pale face became as beautiful and cold as a plaster cast, and then he put his fingers into the inner pocket of his coat.His movements seemed to be very slow, but it was hard to see clearly... A green light flashed, and something was bounced by him, and then he stretched out two white and thin fingers to the air, and caught a The green crystal coin engraved with the family crest, he stared at the manager and said:

"500 gold coins, pay now."

The crystal coin is a special currency that only blood nobles have, and even ordinary blood clans do not have the right to use it.Usually, according to the family's preferences, there are different varieties - white crystal coins, amethyst coins, etc. The patterns on them are the family coats of arms of the nobles, and each one is hand-carved by the engraver in the family.This can be used as a voucher to withdraw money in any family bank.

The hotel manager blinked quickly, knowing he had to handle this crisis properly.

He clenched the microphone, and his voice became extremely soft:

"Mr. Fan, our hotel has a branch on Louis Street..."

He thinks this is a good plan, 500 gold coins, the extra part than expected can be used as a discount amount to the person on the phone, so that one of them can grab the banquet hall, and the other one can save money for nothing. For the cost of one hundred gold coins, the hotel can also earn dozens of gold coins... He can turn this dilemma into a win-win situation.

However, before he could finish speaking, a resolute voice came from the other end of the phone:

"550 gold coins."

That voice was still soft and almost sweet... the flowing honey had solidified into a lump of honey at this moment.

A warm paste, a soft stubbornness.

...almost irresistible.

The hotel manager thought of his name for the "banquet hall" - "??"[1], as if he had a special affection for "she", which made him tenderly but persistently want to get "her".

...Anyone would feel that rejecting him is an uncomfortable thing.

The vampire youth frowned. He was accustomed to easily obtaining everything he wanted from the secular world. The situation in front of him was beyond his common sense, which made him look surprised and a little confused for a moment.

"the opposite……"

The young man of the blood race looked down at the microphone calmly, took out a leather cigarette case from his pocket with his fingers, and took out another cigarette to hold it in the corner of his lips. When he held the cigarette with his index finger and middle finger, the curly-haired woman beside him Set fire to him.The delicate silver chain slipped from his palm, and the silver-plated nails intertwined with the black-red cigarette butt. After exhaling the cigarette, he said in an uncertain tone, "You are fighting with me...for this place?"

"You're fighting me, sir. I've got to 'her'... why don't you change places?"

"..."

The young man of the blood race quietly listened to him finish speaking, then smoked quietly again, his gaze fell on the microphone.

The female vampire at the side wrung her hands unconsciously, and hesitated to speak.

The still silver chain in the blood youth's hand shook slightly, and his hand seemed to be moving out - his eyes were fixed on the microphone, and then he pressed a few puffs of cigarettes on the face of his companion beside him, and said:

"Very well, it's yours."

The sparks from the cigarette butts burned black scorching marks on the face of the blood man beside him. The other party showed a painful expression for a moment, but he was not dissatisfied in the slightest.

The hotel manager's face tightened, and he couldn't help feeling panicked.

Even though he's coordinated as best he can, as a human, he's likely to fall victim to a rivalry between the two Kindred.

——Because of the "Banquet Day" being held, it seemed that everyone present took "Mr. Fan" as the upstart blood clan by default.

At this time, the curly-haired woman grabbed the sleeve of the blood youth and shouted disapprovingly:

"Balam..."

He let go of the twisted cigarette and dropped it.The scorched scald marks on the blood man's face were particularly vivid on the pale skin, but they quickly disappeared under the powerful healing ability of the blood man...

The blood youth took one last look at the manager, and was about to turn around and leave. The manager bowed deeply, and the microphone fell to the side of his uniform trousers as he moved.

"Baran-Sisera?"

The voice came again from the hanging microphone.

Balaam stood still, but did not turn around, showing a trace of contempt in his expression:

"You know me?"

The hotel manager looked up blankly. He couldn't hear the voice in the microphone clearly, so he didn't know that Balaam was not talking to him, and he didn't know how to react for a while.

A soft smile sounded from the microphone:

"I will hold a banquet here on the night of the 31st, and you are welcome."

Balan's complexion suddenly became extremely gloomy, and he sneered and strode out.

"Who is he? How dare he talk to you like that?"

Balaam's partners hurried to keep up with him, said one of the blood race men.

Balan stared coldly and fiercely ahead, ignored him, and jumped into the driver's seat of the suspension sports car to start the engine.The car accelerated all of a sudden, rushed to the iron wall of the hotel in an instant, and flew into the sky with a nearly ninety-degree turn.

The small blood man who still kept his leg posture looked dull, and then stretched his hands to the sky:

"I... haven't gotten into the car yet..."

The hovering speeder galloped all the way, passing by the Feiseli River, an invisible blade of air flow split the wide river in half, and the river continuously threw huge waves to both sides.

Anna and Louis both saw that Balaam was not happy, so they didn't mention Grandy who was left behind.

When following Balan up the spiral staircase in the villa, Louis said to Balan:

"Why don't you pay more, 'Van'? I've never heard of that man, and he can't possibly match you, Balaam."

"Is it honorable to compete with an inferior person?"

Balaam put his hand on the armrest and walked up quickly.

Anna brushed her curly hair and complained, "But what's the point of us coming back now, I sent out the invitation..."

Balan suddenly turned around and threw the lantern ball in his hand, hitting the giant crystal chandelier in front of him. The crystal chandelier splashed like water, and the chandelier like a tassel ball fell from the ceiling more than six meters high. It fell in the hall and smashed to pieces.

"Balaam, please, don't be angry..."

Anna became panicked, looked at Baran Sisera pleadingly, and looked at Louis frequently.

Louis shook his head at her, then walked up to Balan and said:

"He knows you are Viscount Baran Sisera, but he still talks to you in the same tone as the hotel manager."

And among the blood clans, people who are one level apart will not invite each other to "feast".

Elders, dukes, marquises, earls, viscounts, barons, associate with each other only with persons of similar rank.

The Duke will only invite the elders and the Marquis, and the Marquis will only invite the family of the Duke and Earl.It is impolite for the baron to invite the earl in person, and it is also impolite for the marquis to directly invite the baron to join the "feast".

"Baram, he doesn't respect you."

"He dares to..."

Balaam's expression has long since lost the aristocratic elegance, but revealed a kind of irritable and self-willedness... He looked at a certain point in the void, his pale and thin face tightened, and he said harshly,

"I want him to pay the price."

A small villa with a light yellow theme is surrounded by low black iron fence walls.

It has a pointed roof with an attic, the balcony on the second floor protrudes slightly, and the fence is made of white ceramic columns.Surrounding the fence wall is a circle of trimmed bushes.

A pale yellow light shone through a latticed window.

This is a small room with a simple layout, one wall is a wooden bookshelf filled with books, a wooden chair with a soft leather cushion is placed in front of it, and various newspapers and magazines are spread on the rectangular curved desk.

"The Moon", "Crimson Morning", "Diary of Human Observation", etc.

Su Shi sat at the desk, carefully cutting a piece of report with scissors.

The light from the white desk lamp cast a hazy whiteness on his honey-colored face.The delicacy of the Central Plains people and the three-dimensionality of the Europ people - he has perfectly blended mixed-race facial features, short platinum-blond hair, shallow shadows cast by the brow bone on the eye sockets, natural smiling lips, vaguely Moist fine luster.

There is a pure maturity in his expression, a kind of elegant immaturity, a kind of childish earnestness...all these make his face present a kind of dreamy temperament.

"bump--"

The crisp sound of the ceramic cup hitting the chassis made him subconsciously stop his hands and raise his head.

The girl in maid outfit stammered a bit:

"Mr. Mino, the tea is cold, I'll change it..."

"Thank you."

He smiled slightly, and his lower eyelids narrowed upwards.Those pale eyes, which turned golden green under the light, flowed with a clear and joyful color...

She couldn't help laughing, and couldn't help saying:

"...Please rest early."

"Ok."

He responded with the kind words that all hosts would say.But when he bowed his head and continued to read the newspaper, he reached out to her and rubbed his eyes.

The maid went out with the old tea and gently closed the door.

Su Shi stuffed the clipped newspapers into the leather-bound photo album one by one.

He followed the silver bookmark ribbon and opened one of the pages. The newspaper clipping showed a luxurious carriage. The black body did not have much decoration, only the silver family crest was branded on one side.The black velvet curtain fluttered, but did not reveal the slightest light, as if it was a carriage of Hades, rushing towards the netherworld in the dark...

A slender hand read a few lines of small words under the photo:

"...Duke Xerxes' carriage is considered the top low-key luxury. Almost every banquet day, you can see it passing by like a gust of wind on Aphrodite Street, sweeping Goethe Square, Salimandra Hotels... are left behind one by one."

If the following opening scene will become the beginning of the novel "The Scarlet Night City".

He must write on the title page:

"I dedicate this to my old lover, Atossa."

[1] Pretending that Persian is a series of Vampire planetary languages, according to my observation with Google Translate, "he/she" is the same in Persian, but "it" is written as "???", so the third person of things and people Pronouns are different.Here it can be seen that the hotel manager automatically thinks that she is referring to a woman based on what the protagonist said.