C15 Leaving the Village Part 2

"Dad, stop it! Don't shoot him!"

"Look, he's dangerous. He hurt one of my employees, and just before you came, he almost bit our waiter. I can't let that happen. I have to kill this monster."

"Please don't do that. I'm begging you, Father." Clara knelt before her father, her arms wrapped tightly around his waist. "Father, please. He's still your grandson."

For a moment, Harry was stunned, though he would not admit it, but the fact that the creature was born of his daughter made him realize the truth of Clara's words.

"If you don't want Father to shoot him, tell him to shut up and let them tie him up."

Clara nodded, realizing it was better for Cliff to be tied up than shot in front of her. Clara stood up again and looked at Cliff, who was still angry because he still hadn't stopped putting himself in a position to protect himself from his father's employees who were still surrounding him.

"Cliff, stop! Don't fight them. This is Mom. Listen to what I have to say."

Cliff heard his mother's words. In the depths of his heart, he felt disappointed to listen to his mother's words. His mother wasn't trying to help him; instead, she was telling him to stop protecting himself from those who wanted to hurt him.

"Cliff, don't hurt them again. Obey them. They won't hurt you. Trust Mom."

Cliff looked sharply at his mother. Of course, he didn't want to obey his mother's words because he knew at first glance that if he attended, those strangers would hurt him. That's what Cliff thought.

"Honey, don't you believe me? I love you very much, Cliff. I won't let them hurt you. Trust me."

Clara's tears couldn't stop flowing. Even her body trembled with sadness. Cliff felt his heart squeeze. It hurt to see his fragile-looking mother. He admitted that he loved his mother very much, too. That's why he finally decided to trust his mother. He lowered his defensive stance. His two hands which had been ready to pounce on anyone who tried to approach him, now fell. He pursed his lips to hide the sharp fangs that could frighten anyone who saw them.

The change in Cliff's demeanor was, of course, taken advantage of by Harry's associates. They grabbed Cliff and tied him up with rope. They tied him so tightly that he couldn't break free. Cliff put up no resistance while his body was tied up. He had only one thing on his mind. He did not care if he was hurt by these strangers as long as it made his mother's tears stop flowing.

"Clara, come with me. I have a lot to ask you." Harry said gruffly and stepped away from the kitchen.

Clara looked at her son bitterly, bound and surrounded by her father's servants. Finally, she left the kitchen, realizing that there was no choice but to obey her father's words at a time like this.

Harry sat proudly in his study and waited for Clara to arrive. It didn't take long for his only daughter to show her nose finally.

"What is it, Father? What did you want to ask me?" Clara asked in a hoarse voice from crying too much.

"Sit down," Harry ordered, and Clara obeyed immediately. Now they sat facing each other, with only a table between them.

"That thing, is it your son?"

Clara nodded and agreed that the creature her father was talking about was her son.

"He is not human. How could you give birth to such a monster? I don't want to hear any more lies. Tell me everything!"

Her father's voice was deafening. Clara rolled her eyes, looking worried and doubtful at the same time. But in this situation, she realized it would be bad for her and Cliff if she lied to her father. Clara exhaled tiredly before finally opening her mouth to tell her father the truth.

She told him about when she had gone to the forbidden forest searching for a magical herb to cure her grandmother's illness. She told him that the one who had contaminated her was one of the creatures living in the forest. Clara tells Harry the whole truth without hiding anything. She finally admits that she and her mother have been deliberately keeping secrets about Cliff all this time.

While listening to Clara's story, Harry could only stare with both eyes wide open. He hadn't expected to be lied to and deceived by his wife and daughter. Angry? Of course, he was furious. Disappointed? Of course, his heart was filled with great disappointment in his wife and daughter. He didn't think that his wife and daughter would do such a reckless thing. They were hiding a monster that could endanger humanity without his knowledge. He shuddered in horror at the thought that he had been living with this monster for the past 12 years, even though he had never met it, and today was their first meeting.

"So what kind of creature is he?" Harry asked, feeling curious after Clara had not mentioned what her son was.

"H-He... he's a vampire."

Harry gasped until he unconsciously stood up from his seat. "You mean he's a blood-sucking monster!" he shouted, to which Clara nodded. "How have you been feeding it all this time? Its only food is blood, right?"

Again Clara just nodded. "We fed it animal blood from your farm, Father. I asked one of your employees to set aside blood from the animals slaughtered on the farm daily."

Harry sat limply in his chair, he hadn't expected to have been deceived by his wife and daughter all this time. He didn't know anything, he didn't even realize that his wife and daughter kept such a big secret from him.

"You and your mother have disappointed me. You have been deceiving me all this time. You've caused me a lot of losses. Without my knowing, my house became the monster's home. And my farm became the monster's food source. I can't accept that and I can't forgive you both for your mistakes.

Clara was stunned to hear this. She realized the mistake she had made in hiding this from her father. But she never expected her father to react like this.

Clara got up from her seat, walked over to her father and knelt before him. "Forgive us, Father. We had to do it," she pleaded softly, tears in her eyes.

"Don't call me father anymore, I don't want a daughter like you. You've embarrassed me, tarnished the family name, deceived me, caused me much harm, and I'm most displeased that you gave birth to such a horrible monster."

"Father, none of this was my wish. I also never expected to give birth to a vampire."

Even though what she said was true, Harry wasn't the least bit touched or sympathetic by Clara's words. Everything that happened in her life was certainly not what Clara wanted.

"I'm going to kill that monster."

Harry stood up and grabbed the rifle he had placed on the table. He started to walk out of the study but was stopped by Clara, who held his leg.

"Father, please don't do this. Don't kill your grandson."

"Don't call him my grandson. I'm not ready to accept him as my grandson. He's a dangerous monster who can easily kill people. Before the villagers find out about the monster's existence, I will kill him with my own hands," he said with anger audible in his tone.

"No, Father, please. Please have mercy on him. He doesn't know he's a vampire, either. Please don't kill him, Father. If I'm even a little bit in your heart, please don't kill him. Do this for me, Father."

For some reason, hearing Clara's words brought back memories of the past. Memories of his wife giving birth to Clara and how happy he was. Memories of laughing together, of spending sunny days with his wife and daughter. He remembered how much he loved his daughter. If only all this misfortune hadn't happened to her, their lives would be filled with happiness now.

"Father, please don't kill him. Just kill me because I've done a lot of wrong to you. I have also disappointed you a lot. Just kill me, but not my son. I'm begging you, Father."

Harry clenched his fists tightly, his heart like a sharp object, slashed at his daughter's plea. As angry as he was with Clara, there was no way he could kill the daughter he once loved so much.

"Go, take him as far away from this village as possible. That's all you can do to save him."

Clara was stunned. Again she hadn't expected her father to say that. "Away from this village? But where would we go, Father?"

"Anywhere, as long as it's away from this village. And from now on, don't ever call me Father again. Just pretend your father is dead."

Harry took another step, stomping his foot so that Clara's hand holding him released itself. Harry left Clara alone in the study.

Now Clara's face looked confused. She couldn't stop thinking about where to take her son. There wasn't a single place she could live apart from this village.