UCPA Chapter 55: A Solemn Little Challenge

Chapter 55: A Solemn Little Challenge

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: PlumSauce

 

On the day of departure, Coraci pulled a blackout blanket from his small carry-on and handed it to John. During takeoff and landing, the flight attendants required passengers to open the window shades, and sometimes the sunlight was painfully bright.

Whenever it was necessary, John draped the blanket over his entire body and buckled the seatbelt over it, looking like a corpse tied to the seat.

“He’s fine, just a little uncomfortable — personal habit,” Coraci explained to the flight attendants on John’s behalf.

John was genuinely uncomfortable. He had never flown before because he lacked legal status in the past. He didn’t get airsick like humans, but his ears still hurt during the plane’s ascent.

Even more uncomfortable was Carolyn. She longed to wrap herself up completely. In her eyes, the female flight attendants appeared as male lifeguards in women’s swimsuits, and the videos on the screens in front of her were jumbled, illogical clips. She had to rely on sleep to get through the dull stretches of the flight.

The long flight was grueling. Upon arriving in Bangkok, they met their contact right inside the airport.

The person sent by the Menkovár family was said to be “very conspicuous,” and it was true. From a distance, he immediately spotted Coraci and John. John, in turn, immediately recognized…his robe.

Among the crowd of travelers, the figure in a Middle Eastern woman’s black veil stood out. John thought of Danny — the Menkovár bloodkin they had encountered in Romania. He wasn’t sure if this was Danny; after all, he had never seen Danny’s face.

The man in black robes walked straight toward them and bowed slightly. “Respected allies, honored brother, on behalf of the Menkovár family, I welcome you. Master Arthur awaits at his residence.”

“Danny?” John thought the voice sounded familiar, and it was indeed male.

“It’s me. You still remember, wild one,” Danny said, the politeness in his tone fading immediately; the earlier formal greeting had probably been obligatory.

Danny was sensitive to sunlight, so he had to wear a special black robe during the day. For that reason, travelers kept glancing at him. Not only did he wear black veils and cover his entire face, but he left only a narrow slit for his eyes — drawing more attention than any vampire noble ever did in a movie.

While escorting them, Danny occasionally glanced at Carolyn. “Is this young lady the patient?”

“How could you tell?” Liz asked.

“She looked at me like she was staring at Bigfoot. Definitely under the influence of hallucinations.”

“No, in my eyes you’re an ancient Persian maiden, wearing barely any fabric and quite… alluring,” Carolyn said, tilting her head back and covering her eyes with one hand.

Once aboard the private plane, Danny began complaining about his partner. He and Paul had come here to investigate a case, only to encounter a senior Menkovár family member — Arthur — while in Thailand.

Arthur had “enthusiastically” invited him to Jibi Island, the very island they were now heading to. As an heir, Danny couldn’t refuse, so he brought Paul along. Not long after, Arthur received a call for help regarding an innocent human girl — Carolyn — and intended to host a tropical night soiree for the guests from the Association. Danny was tasked with escorting the guests, and again, he could not refuse.

“Why didn’t you let Paul come?” John asked, remembering that Mariana had seen Danny and Paul being overly affectionate in the hallway back in Romania, suggesting they were more than mere partners.

Danny fumed. “Paul? Ha! He absolutely refused to go to Jibi Island at first, but once there, he had the time of his life! I have to obey Master Arthur, but Paul doesn’t — he can just play on the island!”

“But traveling must be…inconvenient for you,” John said. Danny still had to wear his black robe during the day, while Paul was human.

“That’s exactly what I wanted to complain about,” Danny said. “He even went hunting…”

“Hunting? Isn’t this a vacation island?”

“We came to southern Thailand to hunt,” Danny explained. “It’s not just us. Local hunters and other Menkovár heirs are here too. We’re tracking a Fallen One. There’s no rush — as long as someone does it.”

“Fallen One?” John didn’t quite understand. Interestingly, even as a bloodkin, he couldn’t grasp it — but the three humans present all nodded in immediate comprehension.

Coraci asked, “Has a Fallen One appeared in the Menkovár family?”

Danny replied, “That was a long time ago. He’s appeared again recently, so we had to act. The family issued a hunt order that’s permanently valid. Honestly, southern Thailand is beyond our domain jurisdiction, so I wouldn’t normally bother with this. But since the hunters are after him, I had to follow along. Plus, Master Arthur and some of our family siblings are nearby, so…I had to at least appear proactive.”

As he spoke, he glanced at the confused John. “Wild one, you don’t understand? Why are you not as good as humans…”

Coraci whispered to John, “It’s in chapter thirty of the Pre-Era Wilderness Codex — the part about expelling criminals from the domain.”

John thought for a moment. “Uh…the ‘eternal hunt’?”

“Right. But after a new law was passed a century ago, this part became more lenient.”

Bloodkin families despised traitors. Anyone guilty of killing kin, betraying the clan, massacring reds (an archaic term for humans), or other serious crimes was labeled a Fallen One. They were stripped of family status and hunted. Under the old law, every family member was obligated to hunt Fallen Ones wherever they went, often alongside allied families. Over a hundred years ago, the domain bloodkin amended it: Fallen Ones must not approach the family territory, or they would be executed. That meant members no longer had to hunt every criminal daily. Most bloodkin now had their own lives and didn’t invest much energy in such pursuits.

There was only one exception: if a bloodkin encountered a Fallen One while outside, they were obligated to pursue, unless the criminal escaped and stayed away.

After recalling and understanding the rules, John concluded, “So if Mr. Arthur and you didn’t come to Thailand…you wouldn’t have to hunt him?”

“That’s right,” Danny said. “I also belong to the Hunter Society¹, and the hunters want to track him.”

“Sounds exciting…” Carolyn said with longing.

“You’re just here for treatment. Don’t worry about that,” Liz frowned, shooting her a warning glance.

Danny chuckled, “In that regard, Master Arthur is very easygoing… He doesn’t actively search for traitors. He’s just on the island, purely for play — no other purpose.”

About an hour later, they arrived at Jibi Island. A covered walkway connected the plane to the airport terminal, keeping them out of the sunlight. The airport was tiny; a few steps brought them outside.

A large carriage drawn by six horses awaited them, its body glossy as a black lacquered piano and inlaid with gold trim. The carriage looked classical and refined, but clashed with the tropical environment, where banana and coconut trees dominated. Even the driver wore floral shorts and a shirt with wave patterns on it.

The carriage had blackout curtains, leaving the interior pitch-dark. Only John and Danny could see clearly inside.

“I feel like I’m in a hearse…” Carolyn complained.

The driver took them to a small villa, and Danny guided them to their respective guest rooms. Aside from the workers at the small airport and logistics station, everyone else on the island was either one of Arthur’s attendants or friends.

Before leaving, Danny said, “I’m going to rest. Have your formalwear ready. A carriage will come pick you up near midnight.”

They were given two luxurious suites, with curtains drawn tightly — suitable for both humans and bloodkin. Most extravagantly, each suite had a large round bed.

“What does Arthur think our relationship is?” Liz asked, standing at the doorway with her suitcase.

“This place was originally a honeymoon destination,” Coraci said. “Maybe this is the only type of room they provide.”

“When do I finally get the tears!” Carolyn groaned, rolling on the bed.

Coraci had prepared both his and John’s formalwear: his was gray, John’s black. Perhaps because of poor folding, the long flight had left the clothes crushed and wrinkled in the suitcase.

After resting for a few hours, they began to get ready. Meeting a high-ranking domain bloodkin was a solemn matter, after all.

“Do you know how to tie a tie?” Coraci asked John.

John shook his head. “No. I’ve only used the zipper kind.”

“Then I’ll give it a try… Wu Jiu taught me before.”

Coraci tried first on his own neck. He managed to get the tie on, but it looked crooked and slightly flared outward. Thinking it might be easier on someone else, he moved to help John — but the result looked even worse.

John tried on his own; it looked even more ridiculous.

“How do you not know how to tie a tie?” Coraci sighed.

“I’ve never learned,” John admitted.

“I mean…you’re from that era. How have you never learned?”

“I didn’t need one back then.” John fumbled with the knot in his hand. He’d finally tied Coraci’s tie, but it was ugly — and now impossible to untie.

Coraci tilted his head, waiting. The more anxious John became, the tighter the knot seemed to get. A little force might undo it, but he feared ruining the tie.

John stared at the stubborn knot, but also couldn’t help looking at Coraci’s face and neck — the slightly raised chin, the subtle tremble of his Adam’s apple. Both men had just changed into dress shirts, their suit jackets tossed aside on the round bed. John’s struggle to untie the tie created an unexpectedly intimate scene. To make matters more awkward, a mirror on the other side of the bed reflected the entire scene.

“Wait, you’ve got my collar,” Coraci said, grabbing John’s fingers.

“Oh, I’ll try again…” John applied more force, but the knot wouldn’t budge. Instead, Coraci was pulled closer, their noses almost touching.

John laughed awkwardly, tried one more time, and the tie let out a sharp ripping sound — snapped. Not only that, since he’d accidentally grabbed the shirt collar, the top button was also pulled off. The two men slumped on the edge of the round bed, holding their foreheads.

“If only Wu Jiu and Hai Jiu were here…they always handled this before.”

“We still have Liz!” Coraci reminded him.

When they knocked on the neighboring room, they both took a deep breath. Liz’s black hair fell over her shoulders in freshly curled waves. She had removed her glasses and wore a deep-blue, off-shoulder cocktail dress, very different from her usual stiff image.

Carolyn had just changed into a red spaghetti-strap mini dress, and Liz was helping her with makeup. Seeing John and Coraci — whose faces Carolyn could now recognize as male — she threw her hands up in frustration.

“Can you imagine what I just went through? In my eyes…Liz is a man! She stripped off my clothes!”

“Don’t exaggerate. You think you’re a man too!” Liz called inside to Carolyn. She scanned the two men at the door: wrinkled pant legs, jackets creased at the waist, Coraci held a torn tie and a button, and John’s tie looked like a noose.

“You two…what on earth did you do to each other?” Liz asked, a mix of sympathy and disbelief on her face.

 

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