Castlevania: River of Rebirth

Part 1: Their First Meeting

London, England, 1843.
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It never failed, when Alucard dared to venture upon English soil, that a heavy rainfall would greet him.

Years, decades even, had passed since he last set foot in England. The Belmont Clan had found their footing in a country where vampires merely sought refuge to hide from the sun; so he had no reason to continue living there. Returning to his castle, he had convinced himself he would live in peaceful solitude once more.

Nevertheless, that did not stop him from using his transmission mirror when a letter came in from Richter Belmont requesting his presence.

Alucard navigated himself with ease through the crowds of London as the rain continued to fall, finding himself on a path he had taken many times before. And as the Belmont townhouse sat at the center of the city, it would be difficult to miss.

Within minutes, Alucard faced the Belmont townhouse, which had maintained its imposing facade even after all these years. He took shelter from the rain under the main entrance, shaking off his umbrella. But before he even had a chance to knock on the door, it was opened for him.

"His Lordship has been expecting you, Sir Alucard." He was greeted by a butler, who made way for him to enter. "You arrived just as fast as we anticipated."

"Yes, well I suppose that's one of the benefits of magic." Alucard removed his coat as the butler swooped in to take it off his hands. "Thank you."

"Of course, Sir. If you wouldn't mind waiting here, I will go alert his Lordship you are here."

"Very well." As the butler was dismissed, a familiar face popped into Alucard's head. One that was around thirty or so years younger, but just as confident when he opened the door to greet him.

That's right, his name is Oscar.

Alucard wandered around the Entrance Hall as he waited, taking in both new and familiar sights. Not much had changed in regard to the furniture, but new artwork graced the tables in the form of head busts, and the walls in the form of portraits.

In particular, his eyes were drawn to a large painting
at the head of the staircase. A much younger and healthier Richter and Annette Belmont were pictured with their two children, who could have been anywhere from sixteen to twenty at the time of the portrait's commission.

Children...

"Fuck!"

The sound of familiar expletive soon caught Alucard's interest. Following the voice through the hall under the staircases, Alucard made his way to a back entrance, entering the main garden. He hadn't even realized when his body led him there, but some things were easy to remember just as hard as they were to forget.

He came across a young woman practicing archery, and from the looks of her stance, she was no amateur.
Her attention was entirely focused on the targets in front of her, and as she released the arrows from the crossbow with learned ease, they each struck bullseye.

"Better..." She muttered under her breath. Pulling out a new arrow from her quiver, she readied it in the crossbow carefully.

Alucard never expected her to turn around.