River Lanterns

To be precise, it was a princess carry.

Wow...

Molly almost wanted to let out an exclamation. She felt that being lifted in a princess carry should come with a bit of admiration; otherwise, something seemed to be missing. Although she had been carried in a similar fashion before on the airship, the situation then was urgent, so she didn't think much of it.

However, right now, Adele had other options but still chose to lift her in a princess carry.

Thinking back, when they used to sneak out to play as children, Adele would usually carry her under her arm. Back then, Adele was still small, and so was she, so being tucked under her arm wasn't exactly a pleasant experience, and her feet would drag on the ground. Molly had to keep her feet raised to avoid having her shoes scuffed.

Only she could manage that; an ordinary human child wouldn't have been able to hold that position for long.

At that time, Molly seriously considered revealing her true strength, thinking she might as well carry Adele instead. They even had a discussion about why Molly couldn't be carried on Adele's back. Adele, as a child, was particularly stubborn and insisted that her father's teaching—"Vampires are noble"—was correct. How could Molly cling to her back?

But after spending more time with Molly, Adele's views softened, and she started thinking that carrying a weaker person wasn't such a big deal. However, they ended up sneaking out less often, so Molly didn't get carried much.

Now, it seemed Adele had completely overcome any reservations, which was why she could calmly carry Molly in a princess carry.

However, this scene was still a bit too much for the younger sister, who couldn't help but widen her eyes and ask her sister, "Adele, how can you carry her? She's a lowly human—you'll be contaminated!"

"Huh?" Adele responded, puzzled. "But I'm a strong vampire, and she's weak. As a strong vampire, I won't be contaminated by the weak." Adele first explained with her unique logic, then provided a more common-sense reason for her younger sister, "Besides, you just said that Molly walks too slowly, and by the time we reach the foot of the mountain, it'll be daylight. For a human, walking on a mountain path is difficult, and no matter how much you urge her, she won't be able to go faster. Carrying her to speed up is the best solution, isn't it?"

Listening to Adele's long explanation, Molly, who was nestled in her arms, noticed that the younger sister seemed to be reconsidering, finding Adele's reasoning quite logical. Molly couldn't help but suggest, "Well... if it's too much trouble, you could just carry me on your back."

Before Adele could refuse, the younger sister already crossed her arms and objected, "No way! Do you want to climb onto Adele's head?"

—Oh, so as long as I don't climb onto her head, it's fine.

In the end, Adele continued to carry Molly in a princess carry, and the three of them quickly made their way down the mountain. Along the way, they passed the human maids who had started down the mountain before Molly. While Molly, with her exceptional eyesight, could see everything clearly from Adele's arms, the human maids only felt a gust of wind pass by.

At first, the younger sister could keep up with Adele's pace, but after a while, she grew tired and breathless, asking her sister to slow down. Adele, seeing how weak her sister was, simply picked her up and placed her in Molly's arms.

As the two exchanged awkward glances, Adele quickly descended the mountain.

Molly couldn't help but think that the younger sister wasn't as strong as Adele. When Adele was younger, she could carry Molly all the way down the mountain, but now Adele had to carry both of them. The younger sister, though, wasn't content to stay in Molly's arms, likely because she thought Molly, as a lowly human, wasn't worth interacting with too much.

But one word from her sister—"Stay still"—made the younger sister obediently comply, not daring to move.

In just a short while, they reached the village at the foot of the mountain. Adele set Molly down, and before Molly could set down the younger sister, she jumped out of her arms. The younger sister was eager to follow Adele into the market, but as soon as they entered the village, she was spotted by the low-level vampire maids of the Black family.

They exclaimed, "Oh my, Second Miss, how did you get here all by yourself?"

"What? I'm not alone..." The younger sister turned around, only to find that her sister and the human maid were nowhere to be seen. She was quickly surrounded by the low-level vampire maids, who soon found the maid responsible for her.

The maids gathered around the younger sister, disapprovingly saying, "Second Miss, you shouldn't have come here alone. Earlier, when we asked if you wanted to come play, you firmly refused."

The younger sister was pampered even more than Adele, as she was not seen as independent. She needed several maids just to do her hair, whereas Adele didn't even have a personal maid, making the younger sister seem like a child in need of protection to all the vampires.

But the way Adele had ditched her sister was pretty shameless, Molly thought.

Adele pulled up her hood, hiding her silver hair, and wore a scented sachet to mask her scent. As someone older than her sister by twelve years and a frequent sneak, Adele knew exactly how to avoid the maids' attention.

"The Second Miss will cry," Molly remarked.

"She won't. Her maids will comfort her," Adele replied matter-of-factly, taking Molly's hand. "Come on, I don't want to spend the festival taking care of a kid. Let the maids handle her; they'll be more than happy to serve her." With that, Adele led Molly away, heading toward the market.

Because it was the Blessing Festival, the vampires were in high spirits and wouldn't trouble the humans, so many humans had set up stalls to sell their goods. Some sold skewers, others sold handicrafts, and some sold fruits. Since someone else was footing the bill, Molly had no qualms about buying things and did so freely.

It's worth mentioning that Molly even spotted someone from the outpost at one of the stalls. Molly had instructed the human army to lay low during the festival, yet they couldn't resist setting up stalls to gather information. But regardless, it was half her business, so Molly made sure to visit with Adele and bought quite a few things.

However... the outpost member's grilling skills left much to be desired, and Molly couldn't help but think of the "undercover cops setting up stalls to catch criminals but being recognized by everyone" videos she had seen in her past life. The outpost member gave off a similar vibe. Sighing, Molly couldn't resist asking, "How long have you been in this business?"

"I've been doing this for years."

Have undercover cops started training in this world? Even the lines are the same. Out of pity for this "experienced" vendor, Molly bought many skewers. Adele paid, thinking Molly must really like them, seeing her carry the skewers with her.

To prevent any misunderstanding, Molly said, "I only bought them because his stall had no customers, and it seemed pitiful."

Adele nodded, convinced that Molly was indeed a kind-hearted person. They continued walking, buying more little things along the way. At the next outpost member's stall, Molly bought two river lanterns. The vendor was a woman, and Molly felt she had stolen her idea.

If Molly hadn't mentioned before, "River lanterns carry your thoughts to your departed loved ones," would this woman have thought to make them? But human creativity is indeed remarkable—just from a verbal description, they had created what Molly had imagined. While purchasing, the vendor even explained the purpose of the lanterns to Molly.

Adele, intrigued, wanted one as well, so they bought two. This time, they didn't buy more because, unlike the skewer stall, this vendor's business was thriving.

While Molly struggled through the unappetizing skewers, Adele led her to the riverbank outside the village, upstream from the village's main area. They found a spot on the riverbank to sit on a rock while Molly slowly nibbled on the skewers.

She couldn't eat them quickly—they were too awful.

Adele, on the other hand, enjoyed the breeze against her face as she watched the village downstream, where lights still flickered and the bonfire in the village center blazed. The faint sounds of celebration could still be heard. After Molly finished eating, Adele took out the river lanterns. She lit the wicks in the center as the vendor had instructed.

She didn't even need flint; as a noble, she possessed many magical abilities, and fire magic was one of them. Flames danced on her fingertips as she lit the wicks. Once both lanterns were lit, she handed one to Molly.

"Do these really do what the vendor said, carrying thoughts to departed loved ones?" Adele asked, puzzled. As an immortal, she found it hard to understand what it meant to lose a loved one. Her parents were alive, and even her grandparents might still be active in the Council of Elders.

At just eighteen, she couldn't comprehend the pain of parting.

Molly took the river lantern and stepped down from the rock. She carefully placed the lantern in the water. Typically, river lanterns easily capsize and extinguish after only a short distance. But Molly positioned hers perfectly, ensuring it would float far.

Molly broke Adele's illusion: "Whether it actually reaches the other side, no one knows. It's more about comforting oneself than truly sending thoughts to someone else. This river lantern speaks more of your own feelings than anything else."

Adele didn't quite understand, but she knelt down and dipped her cool hand into the river, placing her lantern on the water. She gently released it, and the lantern wobbled before following the current downstream. How far it would travel, no one could say, but watching it drift away, Adele felt a fleeting sense of melancholy.

"Don't you think they're beautiful?" Molly asked, standing in front of Adele. Adele, still kneeling by the river, turned to look at her. A gentle breeze lifted Molly's hair slightly, and her gaze toward the water was indescribably tender. Adele looked back at the lanterns; they were already drifting further away.

The warm yellow light reflected on the river's surface, twinkling like stars in the night sky.

"Yes, they're beautiful."

Meanwhile, the younger sister: Waaah! Adele lied to me!