Chapter 92: Parade of the Dead: Chili Tacos and Churros…
There was still one day left until Easter, the Day of the Dead. Although the festive atmosphere was already strong, a great sense of unease still enveloped the entire capital. Purple irises and golden marigolds bloomed quietly in every corner. Ye Wan went to the market to buy things. Everyone was talking about the "bloody accidents" that had happened in the past two days. Ye Wan clearly felt the people's dissatisfaction with the vampires, especially Dracula.
Ye Wan bought a large bucket of pig blood at the pork stall, and the stall owner was very surprised. Ye Wan didn't dare to say that there were a bunch of hungry vampires at home, so he just carried the basket and hurried home.
Fiona was holding a copy of "Traces of Magical Creatures from Other Worlds" and left it there. Next to it were the medical reports on the two victims that Youan had obtained from the sheriff. "These do look like traces left by vampires, but it's clear that all the vampires in the city are under my control."
"And those rose petals? To be honest, we vampires don't like these short-lived plants. Only that ostentatious fellow Dracula has a garden full of roses."
Yuan continued to read the report. He noticed that there were rough lace fibers found all over the victim's body. Those laces definitely did not belong to the exquisite noble ladies.
He flipped through the book again, and the image stopped at a large magical creature wearing tattered black robes. "It looks a bit like the magical creatures we encountered outside the orphanage last time."
It reads: A black magic monster that feeds on the essence of life and always wears a crude, old black lace robe.
"It's really unimaginable if these things pop up from strange places on the Day of the Dead," Ye Wan sighed.
"I'm going to notify the guards now. They must catch these creatures hiding in the dark." Youan put on his clothes and walked out.
Ye Wan decided to stay. Eating grilled sausages was a tradition during the Day of the Dead. She prepared some fresh ground pork, sprinkled it with black pepper, sage leaves, a pinch of freshly ground nutmeg and hot sauce.
Ye Wan also likes to add mashed garlic to make the flavor more intense. He puts the sausages on the grill and the fat sizzles, dripping down continuously. After a certain amount of time, the crispy casing filled with meat will burst open a small hole, and the rich aroma of meat will spread.
Fiona watched eagerly from the side: "Can you make another serving of sauerkraut and blood sausage? We all want to eat it."
A bunch of vampires in black veils at the back nodded in agreement: "Yes, we've eaten it for decades, it's so delicious."
So today's main menu was forced to be sauerkraut stewed with blood sausage. The weather happened to be getting colder, so Ye Wan chopped the sauerkraut into small pieces and threw it into the pork bone soup pot to let the sauerkraut expand. She had just made the blood sausage, which was not easy to make. She had to wrap the dark red blood filling into the sausage casing, then cut it into sections and slide it into the pot.
Emma doesn't like this thing because she thinks it has a fishy smell, but Fiona says that this is the smell she likes, so Ye Wan had to cook a new sauerkraut and bone soup for Emma without the blood sausage.
The sauerkraut was crispy and tender, and the blood sausage was fresh and smooth. The vampires enjoyed the meal very much. Ye Wan thought the scene looked a bit absurd and funny.
At this moment, Rose rushed in: "Oh no, a lot of bounty hunters have run to Twilight Manor!"
Ye Wan was still scooping blood sausage into Fiona's bowl. Hearing this, he asked in surprise, "Where are you going and what are you doing?"
"I heard that Catherine in the infirmary is not doing well. Her father has offered a reward of 5,000 gold coins for Dracula's life."
"Didn't you say it wasn't necessarily him who did it?"
"On the surface, it seems he did it," Emma said impartially.
When Ye Wan and You An arrived at Twilight Villa, it was already surrounded by many bounty hunters. They threw stones at the door of the villa, but Dracula's barrier was too strong and the stones were bounced away.
Dracula stood at the highest point of the villa. Even from a distance, Ye Wan could still see the tremendous rage emanating from him.
Ophelia stopped him and comforted him: "Don't be like this, Dracula, let's leave here, just as..."
She was interrupted before she could finish. The person who interrupted her was a paladin who came on horseback and began to disperse the bounty hunters. "We analyzed the energy field at the crime scene and found that the residual magic was not a sign of a vampire. This matter needs to be discussed further!"
The bounty hunter who was expelled by the sheriff left the scene angrily. He dismounted from his horse and saluted Youan. "Your Highness, although the bounty hunters have been expelled and there is indeed evidence that other dark creatures were present at the time, it does not mean that Dracula has no connection with this case."
Youan nodded: "I know this, but we can't anger Dracula right now and intensify the conflict between the two sides."
Ye Wan looked at him secretly, and he quickly noticed: "Why are you looking at me?"
She whispered, "I didn't expect you to be so majestic." Youan flicked her head with his finger with a sullen look.
This was their first close encounter with Dracula. His black cloak hung down on both sides of the sofa. He crossed his legs elegantly, his pale fingers resting on his knees, tapping them with his fingertips.
"Don't look at me with that fearful look, little human girl. I'm not a man-eating basilisk." He said self-deprecatingly.
Ophelia was overjoyed. She had always thought that Dracula was a very aloof person, but now he was willing to let her friend in. So she hurriedly prepared tea and cake.
Dracula snapped his fingers, and the black tea powder in the teapot flew out and fell into the arms of the teapot. The gas ignited itself, boiling a pot of hot water, which then poured into the teapot.
Then the teacups and cakes flew over by themselves and circled around Ye Wan, Youan and Rose.
Ye Wan hadn't eaten much for lunch, so he happily took the cake and started eating it. It was a red velvet cream cake with pecan chopped in the middle. The cream was whipped like fluffy clouds, sweet to the right degree and with a milky aroma.
Youan also took a cup of tea, he was thirsty after rushing all the way here, but Rose had a sullen face. She refused to drink tea or eat cake, so she was chased and hit on the head with the plate of cake:
"Can you take those things away?" She yelled at Dracula in frustration. The latter made a soft "tsk" sound, and those things flew back onto the coffee table.
"Don't tease the youngster like this." Ophelia said seriously. She waved her hand to let Dracula make some space. The latter moved aside obediently, and then Ophelia sat down gracefully.
Ye Wan originally thought that the story between these two should be "a domineering president and his caring and kind wife", but now it seems more like "a boss and her caring vampire male model". For example, now, Dracula is diligently pouring black tea for Ophelia.
Like the Empress Dowager and the chief steward beside her.
Ye Wan was shocked by his own imagination and couldn't help laughing.
Youan kicked her from below, and then asked: "I think you should have heard about the events that happened in the capital..."
"I didn't do that." Dracula took a sip of his tea elegantly and nodded. "Obviously, you're sitting here because you must have noticed someone is framing me."
Rose interjected, "About Ophelia..."
"Regarding Ophelia..." Dracula's red eyes looked over: "I have my own ideas."
Ophelia gave a strange smile: "Yes, I think Dracula and I will live a happy life forever."
Ye Wan didn't understand what "eternal happy life" meant, but the sun was about to set, so they had no choice but to get up and say goodbye:
"Tomorrow is Easter of the Dead. Will you come to the capital? It will be very beautiful there." Ye Wan invited.
"Of course, of course." Ophelia said enthusiastically: "Dracula is going to decorate my tomb well, and we will go there to dance, and you are invited to join us."
Although she had been in the other world for a long time, Ye Wan still couldn't get used to the idea of "decorating one's own grave and dancing next to it". She stood up silently and followed You An and the others.
"I didn't expect Dracula to have this kind of personality." Ye Wan said. She bought a cup of Aladdin's Lamp Latte on the train back to the royal capital. This time she was lucky enough to win the buy one get one free offer, so she bought another cup for Youan.
"I don't know what the Night's Watch can find out."
You An frowned as he took a sip of coffee. Ye Wan looked at him and said, "Don't frown. It's just this. You can't drink freshly ground coffee on the train. Don't be picky."
"I think Dracula is lying," he said.
Ye Wan: “?”
"About eternal happiness," Euan said. "It sounds weird, and I think he must be very anxious now because Ophelia's body is about to collapse."
Ye Wan became uneasy after hearing what he said.
"We'll find out on Easter Sunday," said Euan.
The next day was Easter Sunday. According to the book, this was the night when the boundary between the living and the dead was the most blurred. The capital was dotted with warm pumpkin lanterns, bright marigolds and irises.
Those flowers are woven into huge garlands and hung under the eaves and on lampposts. The golden petals cover the road to form a "Golden Road". The air is filled with unique frankincense, which is said to be able to guide the dead back home. Every household prepares various candies, dead bread, etc., looking forward to the return of the souls of their loved ones.
Emma came to the tavern early in the morning, carrying a box of cosmetics. She also wanted to give Ye Wan a gorgeous and exquisite skull makeup. First, she painted her face snow-white, then used brown oil paint to outline the eye sockets and nose bones, and finally painted golden flowers on the cheeks and decorated the area under the eyes with sequins.
Ye Wan looked in the mirror. She no longer looked like herself, but more like a bright flamingo.
The Parade of the Dead starts from Cinderella Square, and this year the lead group is still the Soul of the Dead Dance Troupe led by Mr. Hans.
The air was filled with the aroma of all kinds of food. The stalls on both sides of the market sold hot corn flour tamales, spicy meat-filled tacos sprinkled with chili, and churros, which were similar to fried dough sticks drizzled with chocolate sauce and sprinkled with cinnamon. They were crispy and the chocolate sauce was rich. Pancake loved it and ate it until his mouth was full of chocolate sauce.
Ye Wan took out a handkerchief and wiped it: "Eat slowly."
"Squeak." Muffin obediently sat in her palm and let her wipe her mouth. Youan bought a few Tejuinos (a kind of corn beer).
I heard that it is a beer fermented with coarse sugar and gray corn flour. It has a unique sour taste and bubbles. When it is sold at the market, it is added with lemon juice and lime sorbet. It tastes good when chilled.
Pancake stretched out his little paw to drink again, but Ye Wan sternly refused: "No, you've eaten too many sweets today."
Pancake drooped his little head, and a cheerful voice rang out: "It's a rare holiday, don't make things difficult for the little guinea pig, haha."
They looked up and saw Old Hans wearing a kind outfit and carrying a guitar. He had put on purple makeup on his face today, which made him look even cooler:
"Stop hanging around, our parade of the dead has begun!"
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