With enough lies to fill up a river, the beastfolk and I were finally free of Chartelia’s interrogation.

  She seemed torn, caught somewhere between pity for the slave-freed beastfolk and discomfort at learning that I, a supposed Vampire Lord (!!lie!!), was a King residing in the Great Velvet Forests, the primary source of timber, quests, foraged goods, and coin for this part of the Ashtara Kingdom.

  So, after promising us the Guild's full support in our “endeavors” with a promise of circling around on the King part of the discussions, and after she too began calling me "Your Grace", just like every other fucker around me, she excused herself the moment sweat began pouring from every orifice she possessed.

  Why, you may ask?

  Because during that lovely, suffocating interrogation, I discovered a neat little trick with Ephe’s help. A simple thing, really, nothing world-altering on its own or worth mentioning, but it got the point across. Sharp enough to deafen everyone who had seen it.

  And after using it, I made myself a promise: unless the situation demanded I carve my intentions into someone’s skull, I would not touch that trick again.

  “Mmmm!” Airina began yelling, a muffled sound aimed at her aunt’s retreating back. It seemed the poor woman had forgotten her own niece was still tied up in her vine magic, abandoning her the moment discomfort appeared.

  Fucking families…

  Later that afternoon, after freeing Airina with Denial and almost taking half the wall with it, and after a surprisingly open, even pleasant conversation with the usually silent Silvien about the Adventurer’s Guild and what they wanted to do with their futures, we were finally called to the meeting. None of us realized the newly arrived guest and their retinue would be attending as well.

  But one glance told me things were not going well. That is, unless you looked at Stevin’s face. The bastard was grinning from ear to ear, as if he had just won a war by himself.

  It made me wonder what the hell had happened, but I shoved the curiosity aside the moment the Duchess rose to begin the meeting in her husband’s stead. A husband who was apparently away, likely for the very reason his propaganda-loving son looked so goddamn joyful.

  “Sir Elio, Lady Enna, everyone, thank you for coming,” Duchess Alice said with a gentle smile. “Please take a seat, and let us begin.”

  We obeyed, doing our best to ignore the stares from the young woman near Stevin and the even more hostile gazes of those surrounding her.

  “Now,” said the Duchess once we sat down, “Lady Chartelia, has the Adventurer’s Guild completed their investigations?”

  At her question, Chartelia and her entire retinue of associates got to their feet just as she started explaining. “Yes, Arther Leonheart, Silvien Catmouth, and Melsa Dogtail were previously beginning adventurers as they claimed they were, only to get lost in the Great Velvet Forests and survive off the land for a while once they found out that Lady Melsa was with child. As for Lady Airina and… Sir Elio, they have been aids of the Guild for a long time. Their abilities are well-known throughout the higher ranks and highly desired assets of ours.”

  Well damn, it seems she was scared shitless to conjure such a potent lie… and the paperwork for it.

  “Oh my,” Alice said in surprise, eyes moving toward me just for the slightest of moments, “The Gods have truly favored my son.”

  “That they did, Duchess,” Chartelia nodded, before continuing, “The rewards for Lady Enna have been prepared and are ready to be given at any moment. The families of the deceased have been made aware, and payment has been sent out as agreed on the initial contract. As for aiding Lady Enna in Lord Stevin’s issue, further rewards are to be given to those who’ve aided at a later date.”

  “All’s well that ends well,” I nodded with a sigh of relief, “Thank you, Guild Master.”

  “No, sir, thank you,” Chartelia smiled wrily before sitting back down.

  “What a wonderful saying that was,” said the young woman to Stevin’s left, drawing the attention to her. An attention I didn’t want to give.

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  But knowing the fuckers behind her would take it as disrespect if I instead kept my mouth shut, I turned my head toward her, finally seeing who was speaking to me.

  The Princess was young, surely under eighteen by the looks of it, with a silvery dress, enough jewels on her neck and ears to buy up a castle, blonde hair, and gorgeous green eyes that reminded me of Julia’s.

  “Thank you,” I bowed my head gently, “It is but a saying of old.”

  “Wisdom of old is always welcome,” she replied, before her eyes went wide and she got to her feet with a grace far too pleasant to be considered believable. “But where are my manners? Forgive me. I am the Second Princess of the Ashtara Kingdom, Clara Ashtara, and from a few hours ago, Lord Stevin’s fiancée.”

  Hold your horses there, cowboy. What do you mean by fiancée?

  But by the sight of the widening grin on Stevin’s face alone as he shrugged nonchalantly, I knew that to be the truth. It seemed our plans were unmade by powers far beyond ours.

  “I-I see,” I stuttered, turning my eyes back to the Princess, “Could we… steal your fiancé for a bit later on after the meeting?”

  Clara nodded with a casual smile, “My fiancé’s saviors are my own saviors, so certainly, do what you will.”

  I couldn’t help but fake a smile at the off-putting pleasantries. They felt overly excessive. I much preferred to see Stevin get sucker-punched by Enna, taunt him about his elf crush, and see them start cursing each other like two drunk sailors than to hear the pleasantries this Princess was spewing, probably since birth.

  For a moment, I turned to the Duchess, trying to see her own opinion on the matter, but she didn’t seem at all displeased about it, only keeping a professional smile painted on her face, not allowing any other emotion to pass through the impenetrable barrier she had put on.

  Whether this meant she didn’t need my help any longer, or whether this was just a facade, I couldn’t tell, but the headache that took over my brain was devastating, making me involuntarily groan as I grabbed the side of my head.

  “Sir Elio?” the Duchess asked, seeing my newfound condition, “Are you alright?”

  [Warning.]

  [Charm Magic Detected.]

  [Charm Magic Nullified.]

  [Source: Unknown.]

  [Recommendation: Be Aware.]

  “I am fine, thank you,” I said as I opened my eyes, feeling the headache subside, trying to act like I didn’t just hear Ephe’s warning. “Just... tired.”

  “Was the bed not to your liking?” the Duchess frowned, clearly feigning worry.

  “On the contrary,” I shook my head, “I slept far too well that now my body wants some more.”

  Words that made most of the people present start laughing as if it wasn’t one of them that fucked with my head there for a second.

  ‘Ephe,’ I said in my head, ‘Try and find out who it was.’

  [Certainly.]

  Unfortunately, despite the surprising help from Ephe, she wasn’t able to find anything by the time the meeting ended, delayed once more by dinner, and planning to conclude everything by tomorrow morning.

  After a maid took us back to our separate building, we stood in the main resting area where the couches were and waited in silence, like kids waiting for the spice, for the new drama happening in Hollywood.

  And the moment Stevin opened the door of the mansion, making his way in, we all got to our feet, ready to throw a barrage of questions at him. Even little Arthur seemed keen on finding out the new level of fuckery involved in all this. He was a fine prospect for the future of this world.

  But the one that wasn’t was the bastard in front of our eyes.

  The same bastard who made everyone believe I was a vampire. The same bastard who was a bisexual warrior. The same bastard who allowed me to rot in a dungeon while he went and stared at his elf crush as if that wasn’t stalking. The same bastard who trembled like a scared dog the closer we got to his home. The same bastard WHO ATE DOGS. The same… wait.

  ‘Ephe,’ I spoke in my head, realizing something.

  [Yes?]

  ‘Did the Directive to stop Stevin’s assassination attempt fail because of the Princess’s arrival?’

  [No.]

  [Directive Still Active.]

  ‘Was the Directive given based on the Princess’s approach, or is she irrelevant to it all?’

  [...]

  ‘Ephe…’ I inhaled, ‘Is that woman a danger to Stevin’s life?’

  [...]

  “Here I am,” Stevin said with an awkward smile, slapping his thighs as he made his way in, interrupting my inner discussions. But not before I concluded the discussions myself.

  ‘Fuck you sideways, Ephe.’

  After being left on seen, I moved forward toward Stevin.

  “Was this engagement your decision, Stevin?”

  “No,” he shook his head casually.

  “And are you fine with it?” I asked next.

  Stevin blinked at me for a moment before nodding, “I am.”

  A great, simple answer from a simple man.

  What now?

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