Help! My Moms Are Overpowered Tyrants, and I'm Stuck as Their Baby!-Chapter 171: Library Shenanigans

Velka's POV

The library at midnight was not a welcoming place. It felt like an aging aristocrat impressive, yet vaguely displeased by your presence. Shelves of books loomed high above me, their shadowy spines whispering judgmental words I could almost hear:

You're being absurd, Velka. You fled like a startled bat just because you touched her hand.

"I know," I muttered irritably under my breath, startling myself into embarrassed silence. Talking aloud was Aria's influence I blamed her entirely. The last thing I needed was to have adopted her habit of narrating inner crises to empty rooms.

With a frustrated huff, I moved deeper into the stacks, my steps muffled by plush carpets woven with intricate patterns. The air here was thick, heavy with centuries-old paper and ink, mixed with a faint, lingering scent of magic. It was comforting and oppressive at once, fitting for my current emotional state.

"You're a vampire," I told myself sternly, fingers trailing over the spines. "Vampires don't blush or panic. We brood artistically and wear velvet."

A rustling noise made me freeze, heart skittering.

I glanced sharply over my shoulder.

Aria stood blatantly in the open, pretending intense interest in a shelf labeled "Agricultural Spells: Turnip Edition." She hadn't even bothered to hide herself she simply stood there, humming innocently to herself, running a finger slowly over the spine of a book with exaggerated concentration.

I sighed heavily, rubbing my temples. "Aria, what are you doing?"

She turned, eyes wide with mock surprise. "Oh, Velka! What a delightful coincidence! I was just researching... vegetables."

"Vegetables."

"Yes. Turnips, specifically," she replied with earnestness far too bright to be genuine. "Did you know magical turnips can predict romantic compatibility?"

I stared flatly at her. "You're terrible at this."

She grinned shamelessly. "Actually, I'm fantastic. I just wanted to know why you're sneaking around the library at night, acting suspiciously vampire-ish. Is it a secret date? Forbidden love letters?"

"Do you have an off-switch?"

"Not that I'm aware of," she admitted cheerfully. "But please, carry on. I'll be right here, casually observing your totally normal and not-at-all-secretive activities."

"At least try not to breathe loudly," I muttered, turning away sharply.

"No promises!" she chirped, returning suspiciously to her turnip volume.

Shaking my head in resignation, I turned my attention back to my task. I'd come to the library to distract myself, true but also for answers. The memories, the visions, the strange appearance of my older self it had to mean something deeper. Something ancient.

Something perhaps hidden in the quiet recesses of Arcanum's extensive collection of ancient vampiric texts.

I found the section easily enough, hidden at the farthest corner beneath a stone archway engraved with old vampiric runes. They shimmered faintly at my approach, as though acknowledging a familiar presence.

I paused, feeling suddenly hesitant. My fingertips brushed the worn spines, trailing over faded titles. Then one caught my eye, wedged discreetly between two imposing volumes thin, bound in black leather, etched with silver thread that pulsed dimly with magic.

My fingers curled around the small volume. As I tugged, it resisted slightly, then slipped free with a whispery sigh. The cover bore no title, only a rune a sigil I recognized from childhood lessons long since buried in memory.

Tentatively, I tried to open it. free𝑤ebnovel.com

Nothing.

I frowned, trying again. The book remained stubbornly shut, almost mocking in its resistance.

A faint memory stirred a story whispered among my people about old grimoires bound by blood, magic demanding a sacrifice before sharing their secrets.

Of course. Why wouldn't an ancient, melodramatic vampire book demand a blood offering?

I groaned inwardly, glancing quickly around to ensure Aria wasn't watching. Fortunately, she seemed genuinely absorbed in her vegetable research. I reached into my sleeve, drawing the thin dagger hidden there. With a quick, precise motion, I pricked my fingertip, wincing slightly as a crimson drop welled up.

Holding my breath, I pressed my bleeding finger onto the rune.

Instantly, the silver threads ignited, burning brightly. The lock clicked open, pages rustling like dry leaves beneath an autumn moon.

"I hate being right," I whispered, turning cautiously to the first page. The script was delicate, flowing elegantly across the ancient paper, as though written by moonlight itself:

"Within shadows bound, beneath blood entwined, the cycle spins unbroken souls chained to fate. Beware the lignée double: child of throne and sealed lover, bound by ancient oath, woven through eternity. Only blood can awaken memory; only memory can break the curse."

I stared at the words, my pulse thudding painfully in my ears. The phrase echoed through my mind, spinning faster and faster child of throne and sealed lover.

My hand shook slightly as I turned another page. Illustrations appeared two figures seated side by side upon a throne, one crowned with silver flames, the other draped in shadow, their hands entwined. I recognized them immediately myself and Elyzara, older, powerful, ruling together.

My chest tightened painfully, breath hitching in sudden panic.

"Gods," I breathed softly, heart hammering. "It really was us."

A thousand questions clawed frantically at my mind. Had Elyzara seen this too? Did she suspect our connection was more than coincidence more than simple friendship?

Was this why my body reacted so strongly, irrationally drawn to her?

A memory fragmented, faint flickered behind my eyes. Elyzara smiling, eyes warm with affection, reaching for me. Her voice, gentle and teasing: "Always and forever, my love."

My vision blurred. Emotions flooded through me, intense and overwhelming. Love. Longing. Loss. All impossibly real.

I swallowed hard, closing the grimoire firmly. I needed answers, and I needed them from Elyzara herself. No more evasions, no more awkward silences. We had to talk seriously immediately.

"There you are!"

Aria's voice shattered my resolve like a well-aimed rock through glass. I spun around, clutching the book tightly.

She stood there, grinning broadly. "So, Velka… who's the lucky vampire?"

"Excuse me?"

"The romantic midnight research!" she declared dramatically, gesturing grandly around. "I'm sensing poetry, love letters, and secret trysts. Just tell me do you need help writing sonnets?"

"Aria," I groaned, shoving the grimoire back onto the shelf in embarrassment. "Stop it."

She gasped theatrically, clutching her heart. "Secrets? In my school library? It's more likely than you think."

"You have no idea what's going on," I snapped irritably.

"Oh, but I do," she grinned mischievously. "You're in love, you're conflicted, it's painfully obvious, and you probably just read something scandalous."

My face flushed crimson again, and she clapped her hands triumphantly.

"I knew it!" she crowed delightedly. "Was it Elyzara?"

"No comment," I replied firmly, pushing past her.

She danced beside me as I walked, eyes gleaming. "So it was Elyzara. Are you going to tell her? Declare your undying devotion beneath the moonlight? Serenade her window with poetic ballads?"

I sighed loudly. "I genuinely don't know why I put up with you."

"Because I'm adorable and deeply supportive of your secret romance?"

I couldn't help the reluctant smile that tugged at my lips. "You know you're impossible, right?"

"I prefer irresistibly persistent," she said, giving my arm a playful shove. "Seriously though, Velka. Whatever you're dealing with, you don't have to hide it."

"I don't even understand it myself," I admitted quietly, pausing to face her. "It's complicated."

She nodded sympathetically, her voice gentler now. "Love usually is. But I'm here if you need someone to rant at or to dramatically burst in at inconvenient moments."

"Thanks," I said softly, meaning it sincerely.

"Anytime," she replied warmly, linking her arm through mine. "Now, let's get back before Riven accuses us of having a secret vampire conspiracy."

I rolled my eyes, laughing softly. "That boy has issues."

"You have no idea," she chuckled, pulling me along.

Yet even as we left the library, the cryptic words burned in my memory. Child of throne and sealed lover. Our lives had been tangled across lifetimes, bound by forces we barely understood.

My heart quickened again, uncertainty mixing with determination. The truth felt impossibly close now, nearly within reach. But could I face it? Could I handle what it might mean for me, for Elyzara, for all of us?

One thing was certain: no matter how scared I was, no matter how confused or embarrassed, I needed answers.

And, like it or not, I needed Elyzara.

As we stepped out beneath the quiet stars, I steeled myself.

********

Velka lay awake that night, staring at the canopy of her bed as moonlight traced ghost-silver lines across her ceiling. She hadn't lit a candle she didn't want to see her own reflection in the glass across the room. Something in her chest still throbbed faintly from the weight of those pages, of those words: child of throne and sealed lover. She turned them over in her mind like a blade, sharp and unsettling.

She rolled onto her side and groaned into her pillow.

"I am ten years old," she muttered, muffled. "This is ridiculous."

And yet her fingers itched as if they still remembered holding Elyzara's hand. Her skin tingled faintly where their palms had pressed together during the ritual.

She pulled the blanket over her head.

It didn't help.

In the next bed over, Aria who had invited herself to "supervise"—snored softly, completely unbothered by ancient vampiric grimoires, soul-bound legacies, and inconvenient butterflies in one's stomach.

Velka groaned again.

She would talk to Elyzara. Soon. Probably. Maybe. Or she could become a bat and fly to another continent. That was still an option.