[Comprehensive] The Great Devil

In 1803, a grand ball was held in a country house in New Orleans.

This is a dinner party that the manor owner, who is famous for his hospitality and especially loves to match those men and women who have not yet talked about marriage, will invite everyone to attend every Friday.Since the villa is located in the French-speaking area of ​​the old city, the flashy luxury and romantic style of the French still remain in every inch of the building here. Looking from the distant lawn of the manor, the villa has beautiful lines, intricate and magnificent structures.In the hall, a large number of columns, domes and sculptures are used in a classical style, and many fine decorations are added to the exterior. The brilliance and magnificence of the shining marble reflects the illusory interlacing of light and shadow when the visitors' footsteps move and shift.

The gentle and elegant minuet resounded throughout the night of the manor.

Among the brilliant flames, one of the middle-aged men, who was well-proportioned and well-mannered but declined many invitations to dance, caught a glimpse of an unusual figure among the well-dressed ladies.

Although half of the bright hall was separated by shadows flickering, he could only see half of his side face covered by a lace top hat, but the smooth and delicate lines like a painting with a silver-tip pen still captured his mind instantly.He couldn't help walking through the crowd, nodding with a polite smile to greet the ladies around him, and then followed the figure to a quieter corner of the ball.

Covered by thick purple velvet curtains, most people can't pay attention to the gazes and scrutiny from here.But he never shifted his eyes, so he easily spotted the graceful figure standing in the shadows.

In this corner that still admires the style of the French court, the choice of complicated and gorgeous costumes is still the mainstream of the ball.The women who come here will rack their brains to dress themselves as the most beautiful people in the city with the idea of ​​sustenance for life, and recently the twisted belt decorated with pearls and the ostrich feather feather fan with gemstone handle are very popular, which have more status The ladies will show off with velvet and leather handbags embellished with embroidery and pearls.Ribbon lace and pearls are common accessories.

But the woman he saw was different.

Very unique attire, a black velvet robe, it can be seen that it is of high quality and extremely loose and soft, making people feel like they are moving.Oversized pleats, slender waists and puffed trains, each detailed with seams, curled linings and endless intricate detailing.The shirred ribbon is almost all over the skirt, and the elbow is a circle of fluffy ribbons. The thin and shiny fabric and the lavish lotus leaf trim have a rose-like charm.She was wearing long velvet gloves, and an elegant slanted lace hat reservedly blocked half of her side face, only the sculptural jaw line and the bright red lips that seemed to be smiling at any time could be vaguely seen.

Before he got married, Jonathan McCauley had seen almost all the pretty women in the city, budding ones, still charming ones, and jeweled ones.And after his wife died, he was heartbroken and rarely had more contact with other women. He thought that he would never meet a woman as beautiful and intelligent as his wife in the rest of his life. He will definitely not be tempted again... Until tonight, with just a side face, Jonathan McCauley couldn't help feeling the long-lost heartbeat speed up.

Based on his experience in dealing with women in the previous half of his life, he was sure that with the top hat off, that woman would be more shocking than everyone in this villa.

He couldn't help being restless, followed the woman's footsteps to the corner, and then stopped.

He saw that the other party turned his head slightly, as if he was looking at him, and he seemed to be looking at the noisy and happy crowd further away.He vaguely saw that the bright red lips seemed to be raised a little bit, his fingers were numb all of a sudden, the ever-increasing heartbeat and hot blood in his chest made him gradually feel suffocated.

She turned her face to the side, so he saw that on such a night when everyone wanted to expose their well-dressed faces to the dazzling candlelight, this woman actually put on a mask trimmed with black feathers!

He stopped immediately.Then he heard a hoarse voice that seemed to be smoking opium with a mysterious smile, with a very unique lazy tone——

"A rich and handsome bachelor who lives alone, stalking a girl who is alone without a man...First Mr. Macaulay, let me guess, will your next sentence be 'Nice to meet you' or 'I It was love at first sight'?"

He froze for a moment, first he was amazed at how appetizing the voice was, and then he became more and more happy, and couldn't help but take another step forward in excitement, wanting to see the face under the shadow clearly, "——you know me?"

The woman in the black dress seemed to be smiling, and she could vaguely see a pair of violet eyes looking at him, the color of night, as beautiful as the rich and deep sky.

"I don't know you, sir," she seemed to be leaning against the curtain, and replied lazily, narrowing her eyes slightly, her tone like a satiated cat, "but my brother is very familiar with everyone here...he has always been like this."

"Your brother?" Jonathan looked at her without blinking.

The lady wearing a mask glanced towards the center of the ball, and settled on the most handsome, most elegant, and most popular blond man in the crowd, the smile on the corner of her bright red mouth deepened.

"Lester de Leoncourt," she introduced, with a strong sense of humor, "prom-killer, that never-be-hated and missed romantic resentment in girls—"

Jonathan glanced at it, and had to admit that he was indeed a very handsome and excellent man, like a natural luminous body, his face was radiant in the crowd, he was the kind of cynical and coquettish young girls love, as gorgeous as a star A vivid pigeon blood ruby.

He noticed this impossibly handsome new visitor from the very beginning, but he didn't expect that the other party had such a blood relationship with this lady.

Jonathan complimented politely, "A very strong player, for all the lads who came to the banquet tonight." After a pause, "Fortunately, I don't have to compete with such an excellent person."

There were hidden words in his words, and of course Sera couldn't fail to hear them.She echoed the other party in a vague way, "Indeed, during the days when we traveled away from home, I have witnessed the birth of countless tragedies that cannot be loved. Those poor souls, may they never die again in the next life." Meet people like us."

All Jonathan's attention was on "Leaving Home" and "Travel", ignoring the last meaningful "We".He couldn't help but took another step forward, tried his best to suppress the eagerness to move in his heart, and asked gracefully, "Travel?"

"I think you can also see that my brother's 'romantic' nature is rooted in France," Sera said slowly, looking at the lively dance in the distance, "he can't stand the old-fashioned atmosphere at home, He ran away from home many times and was caught, but the last time he succeeded and took me away together... It's a pity that I was still young and couldn't resist his decision. Until now, I have been looking for my own Home."

Jonathan's heart moved, and an excellent idea suddenly popped into his mind.But in order not to make the other party think that he was frivolous and unreliable, he suppressed his excitement and continued as calmly as possible, "Sorry, ma'am, I'm sorry to hear this-but if you want a little help..."

"Oh no, Mr. McCauley," Sera refused him lightly, "a mature gentleman like you must have noticed that anyone who wants to take in our brothers and sisters will have countless troubles, not to mention You have a deep affection for your dead wife, and I don't think it is suitable for a single lady or a single man to visit your house."

Jonathan was silent for a moment.

"I love my wife, I admit it," he said, sounding a little downcast, "but before tonight, I thought I'd always loved him, and I've always been in love with him...but I won't deny that I'm watching I had a special feeling the first time I saw you, and I swear, I never felt that way about anyone else—God I didn't even see your face, I knew it better than you and your brother There will be many gossips once the character arrives, but I don't care about it, really. When my wife was alive, she always told me that people should live more for themselves. I'm not a very loyal person, but before that person came, I always thought I could keep going—"

He raised his head, looked directly into Sera's eyes, and lowered his voice.

"What's more, isn't that the purpose of you and your brother coming to this ball? Ma'am, since your brother knows everyone here, I think he should also know that in this hall, there will be no more I had a better choice, didn't I?"

Sierra smiled slightly.Jonathan's heart trembled suddenly.

"'Is there room for some thorns?—they asked the rosebush,'" Selah said, and then paused, "—hope there is still room for trouble in your villa."

Jonathan was taken aback, and immediately smiled excitedly, "Thousands—ma'am," he said, as a slave owner and owner of several plantations, he was indeed one of the wealthiest single men in the hall One, "...so now, can you tell me your name?"

thorns?Rose?Is her name Rose? ——What a beautiful name.

"Sera." She replied, and under the mask, a black rose-like mysterious smile bloomed.

"I hope that your villa is really as big as you said."

——After all, the bigger the body, the more it can accommodate enough corpses.

……

At night, when Lester woke up from a deep sleep, walked out of the exquisite and gorgeous bedroom, and came to the dining room, he found that his "sister" and the owner of the house had already started a pleasant chat.

His good hearing allowed him to know at once what they were talking about, and it was nothing more than a polite compliment about the beauty and history of the house.To his ears it was nothing more than dull platitudes.Do not praise the beauty of the furniture or the goodness of the food at the gatherings of the upper classes, because it is so.But since it was their first night staying in the "new home", he would not take the initiative to refute the face of the "sister".

——As for the relationship between brother and sister, they have found the most suitable identities for each other since they walked together for more than a year.

The same exquisite and gorgeous beauty, elegant manners, nocturnal disposition inherited from the family, similar cold-blooded, shrewd, arrogant, and nocturnal animal-like mystery.What's more, the relationship between siblings rather than lovers can bring more convenience to their journey.

Lester taught her many survival rules and skills about vampires along the way, and she learned them all very satisfactorily.He always proudly called her his most proud creation, the most perfect companion, the most suitable partner.He found in her a sense of identity that Louis did not have before. The thing that made him most obsessed with Louis was the noble compassion of gold and the remaining humanity.But with Sierra, he always finds secrets and discovers surprises.

How, for example, had she, as a low-born slave, acquired the refined manners she seemed born with?As a mixed race, she had never been to France, but it took only a few days for her to become familiar with French under his instruction.She is obviously still very young, less than 20 years old, and he has lived for a hundred years, and he has never seen clearly the secret in her eyes.She is like a mysterious book with no end in sight, attracting countless people to read it, but only a few people can understand the hidden answers in it.

She had certainly been very good this year, intelligent and obedient.A no-nonsense heir.She is the fastest person Leicester has ever seen to adapt to the life and identity of a vampire. The most valuable thing is that she doesn't seem to have the slightest guilt about killing.This is the most rare thing, except for innocent and ignorant children, human emotions always have two sides, and it is not uncommon for people like her to take death for granted.

Along the way, Lester has never tried to conceal his identity deliberately, and he has never added mouse blood to his recipes like Louis did.He only drank human blood, especially the blood of young women, and would definitely drink the sweet blood of several women every day.The reason why the two have never revealed their identities and caused them to be tracked is due to her dark talent, illusion.

She can make everyone who doubts their true identity fall into the delusional dream she has woven, ascertaining an illusory fact, and that fact does not contain the crucial word "vampire".

Jonathan McCauley was not the first to invite them to stay.Of course, it won't be the last.

But he is one of the most sincere.

He has a lot of respect for Sierra.Even after he has seen Serra's true face and strengthened his love, he still appears to be very polite.He accommodated the strange habits of the two brothers and sisters, and accompanied them to dinner-though Lester and Serra ended up eating nothing.He is also a very mature and sensible man who knows how to have fun and when to stop, and is very good at chatting and pleasing others.He and Leicester are two very different popular types.

At the dinner table, Lester was waving the goblet in his hand boredly, while talking about the few beautiful ladies he met last night that "suited his heart".He talks about the other party as if he knows everything about him, and he speaks perfectly about his name, family background and personality.For a newcomer who has only been here for a few days, Jonathan was indeed surprised, and Sera was used to it.This is one of Leicester's rules of survival, know everything about where you're going, and start with the noblest ladies first - of course, this is Leicester's taste, she never agrees with it .

As a handsome and bohemian vampire, Lester always has countless invitations to go, including tonight.When he finished the meal with Serra Jonathan, he said goodbye to the banquet with full etiquette.And this just happened to be what Jonathan wanted - he invited Sera to the theater to watch a recently famous play.Just the two of them.He didn't want to take Lester's shiny light bulb with him.

It is said that the troupe caused a strong response after its exhibition in the Paris theater, and performed a round of performances around the world, and recently came to New Orleans to perform.This opportunity is rare, Jonathan wanted to win the favor of the beauty, of course he was very generous to buy the best ticket seat in the front row and invited Sierra to watch it.The life of vampires is very boring, not to mention that they can only move freely for half of the day, and it just so happens that the troupe's performance time is also late at night, so she readily agreed to the invitation.

She seemed to have guessed what Jonathan was thinking.She didn't tell Lester what they were going to do tonight.After getting dressed, Sierra and Jonathan boarded the carriage to the theater.

After taking a seat in the theater, after seeing the strange and unusual theater arrangement and the weird and gloomy atmosphere of the opening, Sera realized that this is a black humorous tragedy.It's about vampires, girls, warriors and death.

The tone of the narration is dramatically exaggerated.The plot is simple, but scary enough for those who come to watch it with a novelty mind.Its props are indeed fascinating for this era.It's a pity that the more Sera looked behind, the less his mind was on the drama about it.

Her eyes on the stage gradually became strange.

It is a face of a tragic actor with perfect length, the white skin is tight on the delicate white bones, and the final stage of the shapeless bones is miraculously clear.

She doesn't get many chances to watch dramas.But she knew that there was a place where the extraordinary could find peace, where the ugliness could be beautiful, where the abnormal was not shunned but appreciated, and that place was the theater.

She watched the group of people exaggeratedly playing tragicomedy roles, and at the end, she actually smiled slightly.

It's a good performance.

This is actually a group of real vampires, playing the role of vampires in public and in front of human beings in a high-profile way, but no one in the audience can see it—except for the same kind.

Jonathan sat aside and observed Sera's expression from time to time.It was found that when she watched such a horrific drama, she didn't scream and scream like other ladies or simply fainted exaggeratedly, but sat on the chair very calmly and calmly, even with an unknown smile at the corner of her mouth.He immediately breathed a sigh of relief, feeling more and more that she was different from those women.

When the performance was over and the actors took their curtain call, Jonathan and Sera stood up and applauded together, and then walked out of the theater while discussing the plot.

— that's all Jonathan sees.

But the fact is, Sierra did not leave with him.Instead, wait until everyone has left, and there is no one left except her.She sat alone under the stage alone, only a beam of white light on the stage illuminated one corner.

Soon, someone appeared under the white light.

Serra looked up and looked over.

He is a very handsome male vampire who seems to have French romance in his bones.

He stood under the light curtain like an actor at the beginning of the scene, bowed slightly to the woman in the audience elegantly and gracefully, showing a reserved and mature smile, and his deep magnetic voice contained a pleasant French accent——

"I'm Armand. For you, charming lady, we'd like to put on another show like no other - would you do me the favor to watch with me?"

He reached out to Serra.The curvature of the eyes and the corners of the lips are bewitching.

Sera stood up slowly.She smiled slightly, and nodded slightly to the handsome vampire on the stage.

"I couldn't be happier, sir."

The author has something to say: Armand is really tasteful... When Hong Kong Zhen watched the movie, I thought he was much more mature and handsome than Louis.