My Vampire Harem Will Dominate Everything - Chapter 267

Chapter 267: I Was Your Only Hope
Yuri pulled into the alley, parking her hover car away from watching eyes. The street lights illuminating the abandoned streets flickered before going out, plunging the whole place into darkness. Only a sliver of the moon was out on this night, casting long shadows against the brick walls.

Yuri stepped out of her car, her eyes immediately locking on the massive clock tower standing above her like the guardian of the city’s airspace.

The cold night air brushed against her face, but she barely noticed. Her mind was focused on the meeting she was here for. This was Solomon she was meeting, after all.

Teleporting directly there would have been easier, but she couldn’t risk it. Who knew what Solomon had in store for her? Maybe an ambush? He was volatile, greedy and unpredictable, and she had no illusions about the outcome of this meeting.

She wouldn’t be giving him what he wanted, and no one could tell how he’d react.

Yuri made her way toward the entrance of the tower, alert and watchful. As she entered, she immediately deployed her Aura, the invisible wave of vitality sweeping through the building, searching for any hidden presences. She stood there for a moment, waiting for a response.

Nothing.

The tower was empty, as she expected. But as a vampire, she knew better than to assume she was safe. Solomon could have planned something she hadn’t foreseen. She kept her guard up.

Her heels clicked softly against the stone floor as she began her ascent, climbing the long spiral staircase that wound its way up to the clock chamber.

The ticking of the massive gears overhead echoed through the hollow space, a steady, mechanical rhythm that matched her footsteps. She moved past them, ignoring the grinding gears as they turned, and instead made her way toward the adjacent window. She leaned against the ledge, her eyes drifting over the city sprawled below.

Her mind wandered as she waited. It seemed as if she had enemies closing in on her from every side, both within her own ranks and from the surrounding territories.

All she wanted was a safe haven. A place she could call her own, where she wasn’t constantly forced to fend off rivals or answer to a higher authority.

Being a City Lord was too much work. Too many demands, too much responsibility. It wasn’t what she wanted. Itachi’s laid-back style of leadership suited her just fine, and she preferred working under his command rather than dealing with the headaches of ruling herself.

She sighed, shaking her head slowly as she pushed those thoughts away. It wouldn’t do her any good at this point in time.

Her attention snapped back to the present as she saw a black hover car pull up and park just outside the tower. From her vantage point, she watched as Solomon stepped out, adjusting his suit and glancing upward. Their eyes met through the window, and he gave her a small smile before straightening his jacket and making his way toward the tower entrance.

Yuri could hear the sound of his footsteps echoing from the clock chamber as he climbed the stairs, his approach slow and deliberate. She remained by the window, her eyes still fixed on the city as Solomon finally entered the clock chamber.

“Yuri,” Solomon greeted her with a wide smile, his voice smooth and confident. “We finally meet again. I hope you’ve made the right choice.”

Yuri turned to face him, keeping her expression blank. “I know I’ve made the correct choice.” She said evenly.

Solomon’s grin widened, his eyes shining with anticipation. “Perfect,” he said, rubbing his hands together. No one could mistake the satisfaction in his tone with anything else. “When is the handover?”

“There would be no handover. I’m rejecting your offer.”

The words hung in the air, heavy and final.

“Accepting your offer would just be setting myself up for future failure, Solomon. My county would implode.”

Solomon’s expression froze, his grin disappearing, slowly replaced by confusion. For a moment, he stood in stunned silence, as if unable to process her words.

Yuri stood her ground, watching him calmly, her stance firm. There was no hesitation in her decision.

Slowly, the confusion melted away, replaced by something darker.

Solomon’s lips twitched, and then, suddenly, he burst into laughter. At first, it was soft, almost genuine, but as the seconds passed, it grew louder, harsher, filled with something far more dangerous.

The sound of his laughter echoed off the stone walls, reverberating through the building. A few birds took flight from the clock face in fright.

Yuri remained silent, watching Solomon carefully, waiting for the moment when the laughter would shift.

And then it did. Even as Solomon continued to laugh, she could hear it. The anger hiding under the surface. His laughter had turned sharp, bitter, and when it finally tapered off, the look in his eyes was nothing short of furious.

“Implode?” Solomon’s voice was quiet. His vitality rose an inch off his skin, charging the air as he took a step forward, his red irises glowing faintly in the dark of the night. “Implode?” he repeated, this time louder, his voice echoing through the chamber.

Yuri didn’t flinch as he raised his voice, but her eyes narrowed slightly.

Solomon’s fury erupted like a volcano. “Your county is already imploding from the inside!” he shouted, his eyes blazing with his rage. “You think rejecting my offer will save you? You think you can control what’s happening? You’re delusional!”

Yuri’s eyes widened slightly in shock, though she kept her expression controlled. If Solomon knew something about an attack from within her ranks… how had she not seen it?

The gears in her mind began turning, trying to make sense of what she’d heard, but Solomon wasn’t finished.

He took a deep breath, calming himself, but his rage was still visible in every line of his body as he glared at her. “I offered you a way out, Yuri. A way to solidify your power. But now that you’ve rejected me…”

He paused, taking a step closer, his eyes cold. “I won’t hold back anymore. I’ll bring you down from that lofty throne of yours and make you realize… I was your only hope.”

Yuri didn’t move as he turned on his heel and stormed out of the chamber, his footsteps heavy as he descended the stairs. She waited, watching through the window as he reached his car and drove off into the night. The tension in the air remained long after he had disappeared from sight.

She exhaled slowly, turning her eyes back to the city below. Solomon’s words echoed in her mind. Her county was imploding from within. If that was true, it meant that the coming days would be even more bloody.

But even with that knowledge, she knew one thing for sure. She had made the right decision. Giving Ezra to Solomon would have been a mistake that would’ve destroyed her in the long run. She needed to rely on herself, her own strength, not the hollow promises of a man like Solomon.

A storm was coming. All that was left was to weather it.