The Clock Ticked Again [II]

Little Mara fainted, all the servants panicked, the Leader was brutally killed, and the next leader was unconscious.

Not knowing what to do, the servants were going to make a call for help to the Council of Elders, but at that moment they saw the body of the deceased Leader rise by itself to the height of the ceiling, as if wanting to cross it.

At that moment Mara who was unconscious abruptly opened her eyes, but the look she gave and the aura that exuded from her little body were not at all those of a little girl. And the color of her eyes was different, crimson red with a golden pupil.

The servants turned pale and when little Mara looked around; the servants felt the suppressing air; a slight glance from her intimidated them, dumbfounded by such a discovery, some servants wanted to express their anger, but when they saw her frown, they lowered their heads.

A female voice echoed in the room. "What happened from the moment the former leader rose, must not be divulged, absolutely to anyone, swear an oath to the Flame."

Stunned, the servants did not know who was speaking but felt the sternness in the voice, not having the guts to raise their heads to look for the owner of the voice.

Impatiently the voice told them "NOW!"

The moment she said that they raised their heads, but their gaze was on the ceiling of the room they said in unison, "We swear to say absolutely nothing to anyone of what happens in the room after discovering the body of Leader Lana."

Said with conviction 6 of the 9 maids that were in the mansion, the other three did not say the oath completely, but the moment they finished, a fiery red flame covered their bodies calcining them in ten seconds, but those 10 seconds were the longest and painful of those three.

Angry the voice says, "This is the end to those who make use of the oath to the Flame for their own purposes. Being part of the Vampire Clan, it is your obligation to protect the Leader, to await the birth of the Supreme Leader; but you want to make use of the situation to create chaos with your peers? The Vampire clan has declined and is considerably low grade among supernatural beings. The Council of Elders must protect Mara, not use her..."

Trembling with fear the servants did not know what to say or what to do. One brave one, the Housekeeper who was closest to Leader Lana and had loved Mara as her own granddaughter, steeled herself, though always with her head bowed, and asked, "How can we protect Leader Mara, My Lady?"

"Hmm" with interest the voice explained in a good way to the Housekeeper, "Mara has a mark on her soul, if the Council of Elders tries to use her, the Mark will know and burn them alive, and their suffering will be worse than that of the three maids. The Mark only recognizes as loyal servants those who give the oath to the Flame or to Mara directly, this will give them a symbol to each one, this symbol will represent the future of the Clan, but Mara is weak at the moment, and the Mark is asleep..."

When they heard the voice give the explanation, they had shivers down their spines, but with what he said at the end they were going to breathe a sigh of relief, but when they heard the next words from the voice, they turned pale.

"But there is a guardian who has already awakened, who will take it upon himself to do so on behalf of the Mark." The voice discovered several hidden intentions when it said that Mara was weak and only gave a sneer. So, mockery was apparent in the voice.

"You, Housekeeper, what is your name?" Asked the intimidating voice.

"Ursula, My Lady." With respect and humility, the Housekeeper replied.

"Hmm." The voice sounded pleased with her, and continued, "You will be in charge of giving extra punishment, I want you to repeat the following oath, but change the 'She' with 'I' but wait for me to tell you when to repeat."

"Yes, My lady." Answered the Housekeeper Ursula with conviction.

"By the Power conferred by the Flame of Power, like Supreme, I give authority to Ursula so that she may exercise punishment on behalf of the well-known Leader Mara, whose true name shall be kept secret."

After that, a flame emitting intense heat appeared above Ursula's head, but no one noticed it, they only felt it. For no one dared to glance at what was happening, for fear of being killed on the spot.

"Ursula, extract a drop of blood from your heart and throw it to the floor."

And Ursula didn't hesitate to do it.

After she did it the female voice continues talking, "Now repeat after me, Ursula."

"Yes, My Lady."

"She, as a servant of the Vampire Clan."

"I, as a servant of the Vampire Clan,"

"She swears the Oath to the Flame,"

"I swear the Oath to the Flame,"

"That she will henceforth have the power to punish those who wish to harm or manipulate the Leader known as Mara,"

"That I will henceforth have the power to punish those who wish to harm or manipulate the Leader known as Mara,"…

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The oath was very specific, from what level of punishment to impose, to what was the most powerful punishment. But not only with the authority to give punishment, Ursula also received some special abilities, the ability to know who is lying, to be able to read the negative thoughts towards Mara or towards the Leader Position.

But that will not be all she will receive, because she will receive better abilities that will allow her to protect her Leader, Mara.

Those greedy Elders, who want to put someone who is a puppet have coveted the Leader Position, so they can have the genuine power behind the Clan.

As she finished giving the oath, the voice turned to the other maidservants, "As for you, be aware that when Leader Mara awakens, you must take a light oath not to betray her, you must know that the one who will be with the Leader all the time is Ursula and her Guardian."

Speaking of Guardian no one knows who he is, but the voice makes him sound powerful and intimidating.

As she finished saying everything she wanted to say, the small body of Mara who was standing in the middle of the room raised her right arm and said some inaudible words, only her lips could be seen moving rapidly, and then the previous Leader's body turned into golden magic particles, which were absorbed into Mara's body.

It was a beautiful sight, but none of the maidservants had raised their heads to be delighted in the beautiful image, except for Ursula, who in due time, after the oath, realized that the one who spoke was Mara herself, her voice was not at all that of a child, neither the look in her eyes.