Frostbound Heart, Bloodmoon Ballad

Chapter 7 – The Brother’s Betrayal

Silver fire swallowed the cave.

The roar of the waterfall vanished under the blast. Rocks shattered; steam exploded outward as Ye Junli hurled Qingxuan behind a fallen column.

“Stay down!” he barked.

“Where exactly?” Qingxuan coughed. “The room’s on fire!”

Luka crouched beside him, half-shifted, claws digging into the stone. “Oh my good boy, I hate your family reunions!”

Through the haze, the Regent stepped forward—tall, composed, his armor shining like liquid moonlight. His smile was perfect, terrifying.

“Still protecting fragile things, Brother?” he said. “How sentimental.”

Junli rose from the smoke, crimson eyes blazing. “You sold our kind to hunters.”

The Regent tilted his head. “I unified them. Someone had to clean up your mess.”

Qingxuan muttered, “Family therapy’s going well.”

Junli’s claws extended. “You turned our kingdom into a slaughterhouse.”

“I turned it into order,” the Regent replied. “You were chaos. A prince chasing myths. A vampire who fell in love with light.”

His gaze flicked to Qingxuan, voice dripping contempt. “How poetic. You always were drawn to what would destroy you.”

Qingxuan straightened, ignoring the tremor in his hands. “Funny—he said the same about you last night.”

Luka gasped. “Oh my good boy, he did not!”

The Regent’s smile faltered for the first time. “You have spirit, human. I’ll enjoy extinguishing it.”

He vanished.

A heartbeat later, Junli’s sword—born of blood—clashed against the Regent’s silver blade. The cavern shook. Sparks cascaded like stars.

Qingxuan barely saw them move: crimson and silver blurs colliding again and again, each impact a thunderclap.

Luka dragged him backward. “Oh my good boy, they’re going to bring the mountain down!”

“Then maybe stand outside?” Qingxuan suggested.

“No time!” Luka sniffed the air. “More hunters inbound. Smells like gun oil and self-righteousness.”

Junli was losing ground. Every silver strike seared his skin; the Regent fought like light incarnate. “You can’t win,” the Regent hissed. “You’re still half-broken from the bond.”

Junli’s answer was a snarl. “Then I’ll break twice as hard.”

Their blades locked. The Regent twisted—silver runes flared, and Junli screamed as power ripped through him. He fell to one knee.

“Junli!” Qingxuan shouted. He darted forward before Luka could stop him.

The Regent raised his sword for the killing blow—then froze when golden light burst from behind Junli.

Qingxuan’s mark blazed, burning through his shirt like a brand. The Sun-Heart flared again, wild and uncontrolled.

“Not again,” he muttered. “I’m running out of shirts.”

Light surged through the cavern, slamming the Regent backward. Silver armor cracked; smoke curled from his skin.

Junli turned, astonished. “You—”

“Don’t thank me yet,” Qingxuan gasped. “I think I just overdosed on radiance.”

The glow faded; he dropped to his knees, trembling. Steam rose from his hands where energy had burned through his veins.

Junli caught him before he collapsed completely. “i***t,” he whispered. “You’ll kill yourself.”

“Occupational hazard,” Qingxuan managed weakly. “Saving you is terrible for my health.”

Luka whooped. “Oh my good boy! Did you see that? He went full supernova!”

The Regent wiped blood from his mouth, eyes darkening. “So it’s true. The Sun-Heart exists. That means the prophecy will end with me.”

He raised both hands. The air behind him shimmered—and dozens of runic circles ignited. From each burst a spear of light, forming an orbit of death.

Junli shoved Qingxuan toward Luka. “Get him out.”

“No!” Qingxuan grabbed his arm. “You can’t fight that alone.”

Junli looked down at him, calm and terrible. “This time, I can.”

He stepped into the storm. Silver spears screamed toward him—and stopped inches away, caught in a crimson vortex.

Junli’s power exploded outward—blood transforming into blades that devoured light itself. The spears disintegrated. The Regent staggered back, eyes wide.

“What are you—?”

“The monster you made,” Junli said.

He struck. The cavern filled with red lightning, the waterfall splitting apart under the force.

Luka shielded Qingxuan, tail lashing wildly. “Oh my good boy, I can’t tell who’s winning, but it’s sexy as hell!”

When the blast faded, both brothers stood motionless. Then, slowly, the Regent laughed—low, chilling.

“Well done,” he said. “You’ve grown strong. Just like Father.”

Junli’s expression cracked. “Don’t—”

“You remember his screams?” the Regent whispered. “When you drank him dry?”

Silence fell heavy as stone. Even Luka froze.

Qingxuan’s eyes widened. “What—?”

Junli’s voice was a whisper. “He was dying. The curse was eating him—”

“But you finished the job,” the Regent said softly. “Tell your little healer what kind of monster you saved.”

Qingxuan felt something twist inside him—a cold knot of disbelief and dread. “Junli…?”

The vampire turned away, jaw tight, shadows crawling across his face. “It’s true.”

“Oh my good boy,” Luka whispered, “that’s…dark.”

The Regent smiled faintly. “Now you see, human. The Bloodmoon Prince kills everything he loves.”

Qingxuan rose shakily. “Maybe. But you’re not any better. You hunt everything that doesn’t kneel.”

The Regent’s eyes narrowed. “Defend him all you like. When his thirst rises, he’ll drain you first.”

“Funny,” Qingxuan said, “that’s exactly what people said about my patients before I cured them.”

He pulled a single golden needle from his sleeve. “Want to test my methods?”

Luka blinked. “Oh my good boy, he’s threatening royalty with acupuncture.”

Junli’s mouth twitched. “And it might work.”

The Regent’s smile vanished. “Enough talk.”

He slammed his hand into the ground. A rune circle ignited under their feet. The light swallowed everything.

When the glare cleared, the cavern was empty.

The waterfall crashed uninterrupted, as if nothing had ever existed there—except for a single blood-stained crown, floating on the water’s surface.