It was hard for Lisa to focus on the road. The traffic from all of the solar eclipse viewers wasn’t helping her, either. Multiple times, she almost didn’t break in time.

“Please God, PLEASE let my father be okay…” the dismayed hunter huffed as she glanced at her phone. There were two hours left until she reached the hospital.

The horrific traffic ended up extending Lisa’s drive nearly an hour and half more than what it was supposed to be.

Rushing past every visitor who walked through the halls of the beige colored hospital, Lisa eventually stopped at a desk in the emergency care department. The poor receptionist sighed as she immediately knew this particular woman was going to be a problem.

“Yes? What do you need?” she asked, trying to put on her best customer service face.

“Is a man by the name of Julius Belmont admitted here!?” Lisa asked, unknowingly slamming the palms of her hands on the receptionist’s desk. Said receptionist looked behind the frustrated Belmont.

“Uh…”

Motioning behind her, Lisa could see most of the fully packed waiting room staring at her. Some were even giving her some pretty disgusted looks as they had been waiting hours to get in. Others were simply wondering what could have possibly been so urgent.

“I-I’m sorry…” Lisa replied quietly. “Is Julius Belmont here?”

“Let me look…”

The receptionist sarcastically looked through their catalog for a mere five seconds and then stopped. It looked like she didn’t even look at all. Lisa could tell because it was very obvious that she just wanted her gone.

“I’m very sorry, but I don’t see anyone with the name ‘Julie Belmont.’”

“No, no, his name is Julius. He’s my father.”

“I don’t think that really matters…” the receptionist hissed under her teeth. This was so annoying.

Seeing the ensuing frustration from both the quack receptionist and Lisa, a nearby doctor walked by to assess the situation.

“Is everything alright here, Mara?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” she lied. “It’s just this woman keeps wanting to see someone who’s not here. Julius, she said their name was?”

The doctor also looked confused. But instead of turning Lisa away, he decided to ask Lisa for some clarification.

“If I may ask, what does he look like?”

“He is a tall, muscular middle-aged man. He has hazel eyes and long, slightly reddish-brown hair. He may have also come in weaning a vibrant red bandana, brown trench coat, and had weapons for hunting on him.”

“Wait, when you say “hunting,” do you mean…vampire? Because someone actually did come in with a bottle of holy water and bible on them. And he just so happened to have red-brown hair and emerald eyes. Could he be who you’re looking for?”

“Yes! Will you let me see him!? It’s an emergency!”

A nearby nurse gently told Lisa to shush, but in a more polite manner. Not only did she want the other visitors to not be disturbed any more than they already were, she wanted to try and keep Lisa calm.

“Well, I would, but…he’s in pretty back shape. He’s all patched up and resting now, but…”

“But he’s what!?”

The doctor sighed. There was no getting out of this one.

“I’m afraid he has lost his memories. I was the doctor who saw him, and he can’t seem to remember anything, not even how he ended up here. It makes sense since he took a very hard blow to the head.”

Lisa went pale, almost completely white. There was one other time when Julius lost his memories, and that was during his own personal fight with Count Dracula. He didn’t regain them back until after Lisa's mother was killed by a demon. From there, her training began, and Julius never seemed to be the same.

If Julius had lost his memories again, then there was absolutely no way he would be able to help Lisa defeat Dracula. It’s hard to say if he even remembers how to fight. He knew some fighting techniques before he recovered, but they weren’t nearly the level that they are now and had been during the war.

Lisa’s white face was really throwing the doctor and the receptionist off. It was like she had seen a ghost.

“Perhaps you should come back another time, Miss. You don’t look too well yourself. “

“N-No! I can’t leave because it took me five hours to drive here! No one else is around to check on him. I’ll only be a minute, and then I’ll let you be. Please!”

The doctor sighed once again. He looked at the receptionist, who merely shrugged and then flipped Lisa off behind her desk. He noticed it and his face grimaced.

“I will let you go see him, but only for a couple of minutes. We’re really busy today, and we can’t make these exceptions all the time.”

“Oh, thank you! Thank you so much!”

As the doctor led her back to the room Julius stayed in, a few of the people waiting to be taken in sighed angrily. She felt bad that she was getting special treatment, but she also knew that this situation indirectly involved Count Dracula. That was important enough to her to warrant special treatment.

“He’s in here.” The doctor started quietly. “Try to be calm and don’t say anything that might distress him. Like I said, he has amnesia. I will be back in a couple of minutes. When I do, I’m afraid you will have to leave.”

“Thank you doctor. And thank you for giving me special permission.”

And so, Lisa quietly and slowly trekked inside.

Julius was sitting upward on the gatch bed inside. His hair was down and there were bandages looped around his forehead and more all over his chest, which were partly bloody. He looked very tired, like he hadn’t slept in a week.

“Who are you?” he asked in his alert voice. That was actually a very normal response for him, at least. “I assume you’re not a doctor or nurse judging by your clothes. Do I know you?”

A small, hopeful smile formed on Lisa’s face. Perhaps there was still hope that he remembered her and his Belmont legacy.

“I’m Lisa. Lisa Elisabetha Belmont. I’m your daughter. Do you recognize me at all?”

Julius merely raised a brow. Not only did he not recognize her, it seemed like he didn’t believe her as well. She didn’t have many of his features. Most of them were inherited by her mother and other recessive genes.

“You don’t, do you…?” Lisa assumed as her head sunk. “Do you have your phone? You might have some pictures of me.”

“I don’t have my phone, whatever that is, stranger. I didn’t know I even had one in the first place.

“Oh…”

Personal belongings were taken from Julius because not only were they giving him migraines, they were making him anxious. Obviously his weapons, like his whip, were taken as well. It's hard to say what the hospital will even do with such dangerous items.

“Well? Do you have something to say to me? Or did you just come here to check on me if your claims of being my daughter are true?”

Lisa’s original intentions started fluttering back to her. Now was her chance, even with the current circumstances. But how was she going to lay down all of this information without overwhelming her father?

“He’s back. His castle is back and so is he, but he’s incapacitated right now.”

Julius looked utterly shocked. For a second, Lisa was hopeful that he knew who she was talking about.

“I beg your pardon?!? Who’s back?” he exclaims as Lisa looks on with hope. “And how exactly does this pertain to me?”

Lisa’s head immediately slumped. He really doesn’t remember anything…

Suddenly, Julius starts to groan very loudly. He clutches his head in tremendous pain. All of this was probably straining his brain.

“Ugh, it hurts! You’re making it HURT!” he yells in painful frustration. “Everything hurts! My back, my head, my legs…!”

“Do you need any help, Dad–”

“No! Don’t call me that! You don’t even look like me! It didn’t start hurting until you came in here! Just, leave, will you!?”

“But–”

“I said out of here! GET OUT!! WE ARE NOT RELATED!!!”

“What is going on in here!?” the same doctor from before asked as he opened the door with a bottle of pain killers in his hand. Julius pointed at Lisa as he held his head with his other hand.

“Who is this!? Why did you let them in here!?”

The doctor was silent. What exactly could you say in this situation anyway? Repeat what was originally said? No, he needed to get rid of the problem. Julius’s health was his main priority.

“Ma’am, I’m afraid I am going to have to ask you to leave…” he finally explained, bracing himself for retaliation from Lisa.

But instead of retaliation, Lisa was merely quiet as her head fell even further than before. The only thing in her sight was the hard wood floor as a small tear splattered onto it.

“…Yes, Sir…”

The doctor admitted to himself that he wasn’t quite expecting that reaction after all the trouble Lisa made to see Julius in the first place. His own face drooped as he was frustrated that he couldn’t do more for his patient and his family.

“I’m really sorry, Miss. I never should have let you see him. That was not professional of me.”

“It’s alright. I merely wanted to confirm some important things. I guess I will have to take care of everything going on myself…”

As the doctor saw Lisa off, the receptionist leaned over to him.

“Finally, that annoying bitch is gone. How much trouble did she cause?”

The doctor gave her a disgusted look.

“Mara, if you hate people so much, then why haven’t you turned in your two weeks yet? I’m getting real sick of your attitude,” he replies as he walks away to tend to more patients. Mara gave him the bird behind his back in return.

As Lisa dragged herself out of the emergency department’s waiting room, the same visitors from before were giving her smug looks.

“Aww, did little miss princess bitch not get the special treatment that she wanted?” an older man loudly expressed as others around the room chuckled. A nearby security officer angrily told them to knock it off in response.

“It’s okay, Lisa. These people have been waiting here much longer than you. They are grumpy, that’s all. Humans already have it hard enough as it is…” the downtrodden hunter thought to herself as she walked out the doors.

Now there was nothing left to do but head home. It was getting late. Two hours into the drive, Lisa picked up a lackluster dinner as she stopped for gas.

In the end, she barely ate any of it. Everything that had happened today made her lose most, if not all of her appetite.

After that, she tried calling Paul, who didn’t answer the phone. Obviously that old man went to bed early like he always does.

Now there was simply nothing but the view of the road on this dark, terrible night. It made Lisa feel like she was cursed. Cursed to carry on the Belmont legacy alone.

But all of the Belmonts more or less served their purpose alone… Except Trevor and her own father.

Lisa shook her head. She needed to get her mind away from all of this, at least until she got home. She needed to focus on getting more sustenance into her body as well.

The sound of clucking chickens greeted a tired Lisa as she parked her car on the grass near the house. They had not been fed since this morning. Of course they were hungry.

“I know, I know, girls! I’m sorry!” she stammered as she poured the chicken feed into their respective feeders.

The chickens reminded Lisa of humanity. If the chickens depended on her for their survival then, so did the rest of humanity.

There was nothing but ringing silence as Lisa plopped herself down onto one of the couches in the living room. She was now alone with both but her own thoughts.

It was not healthy.

Cycling through the possible things she could do to vanquish Dracula, Lisa eventually felt very nauseous. She couldn’t hold in what little dinner she had any longer.

After throwing up a little bit, Lisa decided that it was best to lay down for a while. Since Julius is out of commission, it's all up to her to vanquish Dracula this time. But she wasn’t a fool. She would need to come up with a plan if she were to have any shot at defeating him.

Would Dracula fall for the same trick twice? Siding with the Hakuba clan to seal him once again? Lisa didn’t think so. While arrogant, the Count is way too smart for that.

Lisa would need to come up with an entirely new plan. But that’s the problem. While Lisa has no issues defending herself, strategizing for battle was not something that she really knew about. Julius didn’t feel the need to teach her any of that since no one was adamant that Dracula would return.

It frustrated the young Belmont. She’s read about how her ancestor, Trevor, took it upon himself to become a leader. And other Belmonts like Simon were strong enough to not even need backup. So what specialty did she have?

Lisa tried not to dwell on it. She’ll just have to do what she can.

Maybe she could inform the Belnades and Hakuba clan on what’s going on and ask them for a new plan? But wouldn’t they expect her to be their leader? Julius was the one who led the resistance during the last war. He was a natural leader, just like everyone Belmont should be.

Eventually, it all became too much. Lisa pulled out any remaining weapons that she had on her body and threw them onto the floor. She didn’t care if she stepped on them and injured herself. Julius wasn’t around to scold her for doing that anyway.

A couple of tears ran down Lisa’s cheeks, and she soon fell asleep.

She didn’t want to have to deal with this. Any of this. Julius losing his memory was already a lot to deal with. She wanted to be strong, but since all of this was happening at once, she was beginning to doubt her abilities.

Oh, why didn’t she take her father more seriously when training? Why did she have to go see that solar eclipse? Why couldn’t she do more for everyone!? Wasn’t she supposed to be a Belmont!?

The void of darkness that filled Lisa's vision was soon replaced with an ornate marble surface. It didn’t feel cold or warm. And behind her was a chandelier hanging…on the ground?

Everything was upside down.

Said chandelier was still pointing upward like gravity was still affecting it. There were paintings and they were also hanging upside down. Same with the curtains. Lisa could see a lit fireplace on the ceiling as well.

“Ah, I see you have finally come to,” a low, gruff voice beckons softly. “Now, what are you doing all the way up there, my dear?”

Lisa shutters a bit but her heart also flutters at the same time. Who had such a handsome and calming voice?

Her head slowly trails, eventually settling on a man sitting at the very end of a dining room table. Which was also on the ceiling, she might add.

The first thing Lisa noticed was how tall he was. The chair that he was sitting on was much larger than the others. He had his leg neatly crossed over the other and his arm lazily rested on the arm rest. His other hand held a wine glass, which was only half full.

Lisa blushed. This mysterious man looked so refined and handsome, despite the fact that he was on the ceiling. It helped that his fancy attire matched the room’s interior design.

“W-Who are you!? Answer me!” Lisa commanded as she swiftly got herself up. It was in her nature to go into defensive mode when meeting someone in a dangerous (or strange) setting.

The man chuckled as he took a small sip of whatever he was drinking.

“An obvious answer, is it not? Why don’t you answer my question first? How have you gotten yourself stuck to the ceiling? Last I checked, humans were not capable of feats.”

It wasn’t obvious who he was right away, but what was definitely obvious was that he was teasing her. Flirting, even. His soft voice and apparent interest in Lisa left her face beet red. Is this what it's like to be flirted with?

“I’m afraid that I still don’t know who you are. I don’t recognize you while you’re on the…ahem…floor,” the troubled lady explained.

“Ah. My apologies. I suppose I should greet you properly, shouldn’t I?”

So the tall man flipped himself over and onto the ceiling, wine glass still in hand. Lisa still had nothing to note about this mysterious person except for three particular features.

He had long, white, wavy hair, a mustache, and a beard, all neatly groomed.

Wait a minute. He was also wearing a cape. A cape with an all too familiar design that is often associated with gothic fashion. And upon further inspection, Lisa recognized his clothing as well. The clothing that often accompanies a man of noble birth.

It looked exactly the same as the clothes Dracula wore earlier today. The only difference was their cleanliness. It was obvious that they had been properly taken care of.

The tall man kneels on one knee and holds out his hand, doing a very formal bow. Despite his kneeling, he was still taller than Lisa.

“I am Dracula Vlad Tepes. However, I trust that you already knew that, my dear lovely Lisa,” he speaks in a soft, forgiving voice.

Lisa’s immediate response was to grab her sword, which she usually keeps on her waist. However, it was not there. In fact, she didn’t seem to have any weapons on her, including her whip. She frantically searched through any and every crevice in her clothing, but to no avail.

Dracula inched himself closer. He planned on putting his hand on her shoulder to reassure her, but soon caught himself. It wouldn’t be a good idea to do that, and he knew it. Just his presence alone has Lisa completely riled up, even if this was all just a dream.

Soon Lisa looked back at her archenemy and started to back away. Then she tripped over backwards on her own feet. Dracula attempted to catch her with his magical powers but nothing happened.

“Curses… It seems that blasted whip has more of a hold on me than I thought. I’m completely powerless here…” he muttered to himself, his fangs growing into a small snarl.

He was able to manipulate himself on a small scale and insert himself in people’s dreams, but he can’t directly manipulate other people and their dreams. It also seems like Dracula couldn’t use any of his hellfire abilities either. The most he could do is make himself float and change his center of gravity for now.

As she regained her footing, Lisa could see the small snarl on Dracula’s face. His pupils were slits and he was absentmindedly looking directly at her.

What would Julius do in the situation? What would ANY Belmont do? As Dracula readjusts his hair and dusts off his dress pants, Lisa cycles through anything she could remember from her training.

A small memory flickers inside her mind from when she was a preteen. She and Julius were standing in the middle of an old abandoned amusement park that was about an hour drive from the Belmont estate.

“How am I supposed to fight without a weapon!?” Lisa yells at her father in a typical teenage fashion. Julius is slowly approaching her from across a plaza where visitors would usually eat. His whip was in his hand and he was in a fighting stance.

“We’ve been over this, Lisa” he informs. “You have to find or make a weapon for yourself. Don’t you remember when I couldn’t get into the shed that one night and fought off that medium sized demon with a mere broom and farming hoe?

Frantically, Lisa searches around and bolts to an old iron pipe behind one of the catering buildings. As she grabbed it, Julius knocked it out of her hands with his whip.

He was serious. This was serious training.

Now he was standing right beside her. Lisa could only fall to her knees in defeat. Oh how pathetic she felt that she lost so quickly.

Julius noticed this and went into father mode. Perhaps his daughter wasn’t ready for this lesson just yet. So instead, he kneeled beside her.

“I know what you’re thinking, Lisa. You still have one option left. Despite what others may say, it is completely okay to run. Run until you have a better strategy or a new weapon. Remember, a battle is not truly lost until you’re dead. Keep on fighting for me, Kiddo.”

A small tender smile left Julius’s lips as he put his hand on Lisa’s shoulder. He desperately wanted to let her know that he was not disappointed in her.

Lisa shyly smiled back and nodded.

“Good. How about I give you a head start this time? Go run somewhere and try to find some makeshift weapons, and I’ll try to find you.”

“Okay.”

So running was really the only option she had left. But this was so much different than playing a game of “hide and hunt” with her father. She was right in front of Dracula, who could easily use his powers on her.

Or so she thought, anyway.

So run she did. Lisa manages to vault through the open door closest to her, only to be stopped in her tracks by an endless pit of storm clouds. Everything was upside down after all.

“LISA!!!”

Dracula managed to grab her wrist in time before she slipped. She desperately tried to break free, even if it meant falling, but the vampire’s grip was too strong.

He carefully pulls the panicked woman back inside, not willing to let her go because of his own anxiety.

Dracula’s hands were holding Lisa firmly in place by her arms. His hair was a mess again and his teeth were long and sharp. But he didn’t look angry. He actually looked worried. Lisa was at least able to detect that much during her increased heart rate.

“I am NOT losing you a third time, even if all of this is a mere dream!” Dracula shouted as his hands gripped his suitor's shoulders.

The two parties could only stare at each other for what seemed like forever. Once they both calmed down, Dracula noticed that he was touching Lisa. He pulled away.

“M-My apologies… I did not mean to yell.” Was all he could muster as he cleared his throat and put his dignified all powerful vampire mask back on. The way his cape flicked back hid the temporary blush on his face.

Those words did not register with Lisa. She was too caught up in the fact that Dracula said this was all a dream. And the fact that he saved her.

When she thought about it, of course it made sense that she was having a nightmare about Dracula. He’s the only being that’s been on her mind ever since Castlevania’s return.

If this was all a dream…then that meant this Dracula posed no real threat to her. But she also knew that some vampires had the ability to manipulate people’s dreams. Whether Dracula could do that in his current imprisoned state was up for debate, though.

For Lisa, she was unsure. But for Dracula, he had just enough power to project himself into her dreams. Lisa didn’t know this, obviously, and Dracula was reluctant to tell her the truth for various reasons.

After a long, deep breath, Lisa had finally fully calmed down. Now there was only one thing on her mind.

“Why did you save me?” she asked her sworn enemy coldly.

Dracula opens his mouth to say something but refuses to elaborate. His head only sinks and he swaddles himself in his cape.

“If I told you, I highly doubt that you would believe me.” Was all he could say as the corner of his lips curled up into a tiny grin. His facial expression suggested embarrassment as covered his chest with his cape.

Lisa raised her brow. She was hoping the villain would be forward with his explanation, but it seems even that was too much to ask for.

In the midst of this conversation, Lisa studied Dracula’s features. The way he looked so elegant and fine was a major contrast to how she met him for the first time. The way his hair was neatly combed back for a formal look but still let its length sway in the breeze. His facial hair was carefully trimmed instead of being in its horrendously overgrown state. And his clothes had no tears, creases, bloodstains, and almost seemed to glisten under the room’s candlelight. Especially the intricate embroidery that lined every red spot of his coat.

Why did he look so…beautiful…?

Lisa’s cheeks begin to turn red as her mind floods with complex thoughts, both wholesome and lewd. At least her expression didn’t change.

But that didn’t keep Dracula from noticing and chuckling in response. It reminded him of the adorable faces she would make when he teased her in her past life.

Her response was to cover her face. Again, was this technically flirting? Lisa didn’t know.

No one really ever showed any interest in her except for maybe Hugh Baldwin. Even then, she wasn’t so sure if his feelings were genuine or if he was just trying to be nice.

She was always the oddball in society, despite wanting to be friendly and help others.

Dracula kneeled, hoping to keep his long lost love calm. He reached out his hand once again.

“Please do not be shy in my presence, my dear Lisa. I am not going to hurt you,” he reassured.

“How do you know my name?”

Dracula puts a finger up to his mouth, letting loose his signature smug smirk.

“Like I said before, I doubt you would believe me if I told you. I don’t want to shock you either, so it will have to be a secret for now.”

Lisa only raises her brow again.

No more words were spoken. Dracula held out his hand one more time. Lisa was hesitant, but she finally took it. The only reason why was because she knew this was a dream now. The prospect somewhat reassured her, and she also wanted to satisfy her childish curiosity.

The dark lord brought it up to his lips and gently kissed it. This was how he always greeted his Beloved. Lisa flinched briefly, both out of fear and because his mustache was prickly and making her ticklish.

Once he was done, his face lifted up to show his golden eyes, gently glowing in the room’s candlelight. His pupils were round and cute. He gently rubbed the back of Lisa’s hand with his own unoccupied one. The Dark Lord looked...happy.

“You have no idea how happy I am to see you again,” he painfully yet gently cooed.

And then Lisa woke up, much to Dracula’s dismay. The confused Belmont rubbed her eyes, still puffy from the emotional turmoil from before and during her dream.

“Again…?” She muttered to herself.

She stared at the ceiling for a couple of seconds and then shook her head as she let out a big sigh, rubbed her eyes, and got up.

What time was it?

The old fashioned clock on her night stand shows it to be a little past five in the morning. It was still dark out, which was typical for October.

Feeling the need for more sleep, Lisa lays back down and closes her eyes again. But her anxiety is keeping her from falling back asleep. So she sat back up and rubbed the cold sweat off her forehead.

Anxiety aside, why did Lisa dream of a nice Dracula? Wasn’t he supposed to be downright evil? Could that dream even be considered a nightmare?

“Ugh! I guess I won’t get any sleep until Dracula is well and truly gone…” Lisa muttered loudly as she got out of bed. As she was doing this, barely dodged one of the daggers that she left on the floor. Feeling refreshed enough, she picked up all of her discarded weapons and set them on her bed. The sheets needed to be washed anyway, so blood and dirt was not of any issue at the moment.

For some reason, Lisa had mostly calmed down by this point.

Maybe it was her strange dream? Maybe it was…Dracula himself? His entire demeanor during that dream was rather calming instead of frightening, after all.

No, there’s no way that was possible…

Her anxiety was still there, but now she simply wanted her duty done and do God’s will. So it was time to get to work. First, she will revisit Dracula’s castle and work out some strategies. Then she will call Paul and go from there.

It was now or never. Plus, as Lisa thought about it, the idea of dying in the name of peace sounded easier to swallow than having all of humanity go extinct.

At this moment, the clothes Lisa wore did not matter. She threw on a pair of dirty jeans with padded armor in various spots and a polo which was one size too big for her. Underneath the polo hid a vest that repelled dark magic and sharp physical attacks.

While Lisa was still worried that Dracula could break out from his chain prison at any moment, she still took the time to make breakfast and feed the chickens. There was no way she would be able to keep up on an empty stomach, after all.

And with all of her house chores done, the little Belmont set off, hoping that she wouldn’t fall asleep on the drive there.