On the outer edge of the Country, hidden behind whispering forests and ghost-white peaks, lies a little-known village blanketed in eternal twilight—Misty Town.
Named after the silver fog that never lifted, the town was home to less than 20,000 people. And in a place so small, nothing stayed secret for long.
Well… almost nothing.
To tourists, Misty Town was a paradise for skiing and mountaineering, a winter escape whispered about in glossy travel blogs. But the locals—those born and bred beneath the fog—knew a truth no outsider ever suspected.
This was vampire territory.
Atop the highest hill, nestled like a dark jewel in a sea of white, stood the Vellaria Chateau—an ancient, otherworldly estate untouched by time. For over a millennium, the vampire coven had ruled this land, not with tyranny, but with an accord forged in blood and snow.
They protected the town—shielded it from avalanches, outsiders, and worse.
In return, the villagers offered something only they could provide: sustenance. Blood bags, animals… enough to keep the vampires from thirsting for human life.
Over time, the arrangement evolved. The vampires adapted. They dined on steak, sipped wine, laughed with humans, even fell in love. But despite centuries of coexistence…
Not one child had ever been born of vampire and human.
And for nearly three decades, the royals were silent. The most powerful bloodline—the purest of all—had vanished into their ancestral slumber.
Until now.
---
Twenty-Five Years Later…
The Vellaria Family had awakened.
Valus, the unshakable patriarch.
Merrine, the frost-veined matriarch.
And their twin children—Maika and Malko.
The rest of the family still lay in their sealed tombs, awaiting their destined hour. But this awakening... this one came too soon. Too sudden. And none of the elders spoke of why.
What the villagers didn't know… was that twenty-eight years ago, something happened within the Chateau. Something dark. Something forbidden.
Three years later, the entire ruling family vanished into hibernation. No war, no farewell. Just silence.
-------
> "Please save him... I beg you. Protect him with your life—please…"
Maika bolted upright.
Her breath caught in her throat, heart racing.
The dream again.
She stumbled out of bed, stepping barefoot onto the icy marble floor. The moonlight bathed her pale skin as she threw open the balcony doors, letting the freezing wind slap her awake.
> Why… Why do I keep seeing this?
A woman. Chased by wolves. Blood in her arms. A storm overhead. But her face—always blurred.
Maika pressed her fingers to her temples.
Something was wrong.
Something was waking up in her.
"Anne," she whispered, her voice hoarse.
Seconds later, her most loyal companion appeared with a steaming cup of crimson tea. Sweetened with pomegranate. Just the way Maika liked it.
"You had the dream again," Anne said softly, handing her the cup.
Maika nodded, sipping. "They're getting more vivid. I need to clear my mind... maybe get out of here. Find something to do in the city."
Anne chuckled. "Lord Malko will love that. You helping your Father run the family empire while he chases pretty faces across C Country."
That made Maika scoff. "Of course he's gone."
"Left with Sir Draco this morning," Anne added with a not-so-subtle blush.
Maika groaned. "Don't tell me you still have a crush on him?"
Anne laughed. "Still as icy as ever when his name comes up. You sure you're not the one in love?"
> Draco…
The name was a thorn Maika couldn't pull out. The palace's top Royal Guard, second only to her own bloodline in power. Perfect posture. Bladed eyes. Lips always curled into a smug smirk.
And he was hers.
By law.
They were betrothed. Just like Anne was to Malko.
A tradition Maika had never asked for, never agreed to… but could never escape.
At age 30, the bloodline would demand they marry. A political union. A breeding contract, nothing more. Their children would secure the Vellaria legacy, and their feelings?
Irrelevant.
"Not unless he's willing to break the engagement," Maika muttered.
Anne's arms wrapped around her gently. "I feel you," she whispered. "But you know… our fates were sealed the moment we were born."
Silence settled between them like a blanket of snow.
Two women. Trained for greatness. Destined for thrones.
But neither had chosen this life.
---
In vampire tradition, when a royal hibernates, their right hand sleeps beside them. Their souls connected. Their bond sacred.
That bond could only be broken by marriage.
Anne had hibernated alongside Maika for twenty-five years. And yet… Maika's dreams had started before the awakening.
A signal.
A warning.
The elders said a dream was always the first sign—that an ancient soul was stirring.
> But this didn't feel like someone else's dream.
> It felt like… a memory.
---
Far below the chateau, in the quiet heart of Misty Town, villagers whispered and watched the moon.
They knew something had changed.
The Vellarias had returned.
But something dark had returned with them.
Something forgotten.
And somewhere in the forest, buried beneath layers of time, a heartbeat pulsed beneath the snow.
Waiting