So that is what the fracture above was doing. The Law of Justice was broken. A law of morality, a law of the universe, was shattered, and it needed repairing. By me.

  But why “could be repaired” instead of “will be”? What was Ephe not telling me? Was it even worth asking? No… she never said more than I needed to know at that time, so she wouldn’t tell me now. Which could only mean that she wanted me to focus on other Directives. More urgent ones.

  “How fucking pathetic you are,” I said, looking at the man before me. “And how much pity I feel for Stevin. Do you know how much praise he had for you, how decently he made you look in our eyes, and how strong he made you seem? How wrong the poor boy was. You are a sad man, Silius.”

  “Say what you will,” he chuckled. “I am a Duke before I am a father. And he must learn what it takes to be the same.”

  I sighed, opening my mouth to throw more modern man wisdom, morality, and ethics at him, but he raised his hand, and for a moment, I feared another spell I didn’t recognize.

  “I will overlook the events of this evening,” he continued instead. “I understand the pain my wife must be experiencing for her to call you. Believe me, I would not put my own son through this if I didn’t know what must follow. I wouldn't put myself and him through all this for nothing. He wants to change the House, bend it to his will. A will that is different from ours. And for that, sacrifices must be made. Sacrifices he is too afraid to make. That is why I will overlook this. But threaten me again, test the patience of my hospitality again, or act as you did tonight again… and you will see what makes me a Duke, good Sir.”

  And without another word, he turned and walked back inside the main mansion, leaving me alone to find my way back toward the separate wing.

  Truth be told, I was shitting bricks the entire conversation, despite my attempts at nonchalance. I am not the type of man who gets involved in shit like this. But knowing Relia was there in case things went sideways gave me just enough cockiness to try and help Stevin.

  Still, even that had its limits.

  As I’d told the Duchess, I would help Stevin, as we had planned before, but only if he asked me to. If he saw that there was nothing he could do in this place. If he didn’t say anything, then regardless of whatever dangers he was swimming in, once the Adventurer’s Guild mess was dealt with, we would be leaving. Until then, though, I had to prevent any attempts on his life as per the Directive’s orders.

  When I finally made my way back to the wing and lied to the panicked maid who had been searching for me, I headed straight to my room and crashed onto the bed like it was the only safe place in the estate. And honestly... maybe it was.

  “I don’t like him either,” Relia’s voice echoed as she slipped out of my clothes, returning to her normal form.

  “You know what I just realized?” I said, changing the subject as I tossed my coat onto the floor. “That I’m better off shutting the fuck up.”

  Relia chuckled charmingly, climbing into the bed beside me, insisting that it was silly of me to try reasoning with the man.

  “Well, I had to,” I argued. “Such an influential man, barely capable of understanding human emotions, and he dares to tell me that I’m the one who can’t.”

  “You know,” Relia murmured, “Eight centuries ago, when the last of the humans were being shunned or killed across Laskhar, I actually tried reasoning with their so-called ruler before it all went to shit. I tried telling him they’d be better off elsewhere, to see reason, to understand why things had to be that way. But instead of listening, instead of acknowledging the logic I offered…” She scoffed, remembering the event vividly. “He instead offered me a mouthful of spit. Right in my damn eyes.”

  “And… what happened after?” I asked, already knowing what could have occurred.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  She grinned at me, a look far too dangerous for my already weakened heart. “Besides learning when to stand silent or when not to listen to fools? It's worth mentioning that I got enough food for a while afterwards.”

  Good thing her mouth didn’t match her face, or the rest of her body that was currently glued to my side. It made resisting temptation easy. All I had to do was remember she was a psychopath. So after telling her that she could help herself to whatever meal she wanted after I fell asleep, I closed my eyes and finally let myself enjoy some truly comfortable rest.

  It was heavenly. My back felt whole again after days of sleeping on stone. I even woke up energized, motivated for the day ahead. It had been a long time since I’d felt anything like that, not since Julia passed at least. So after a quiet “good morning” to Ephe, and Relia’s shadow resting in my clothes, I headed to the bathroom and then joined the others downstairs.

  “Your Grace,” said Enna the moment I came down the stairs, “There is an issue.”

  “Issue?” I frowned, fearing I actually slept through something bad.

  “One of the associates of the Adventurer’s Guild came by earlier, saying that the meeting is delayed until the afternoon because of a highly important guest who arrived in the early morning.”

  “Do we know who?” I asked curiously.

  Enna nodded, but Airina answered in her stead, “The Princess is here.”

  And here I thought Stevin might have had an assassination attempt on him. Thank God it is just a princess. Wait… what princess?

  But before I could even comprehend the gravity of her words, a voice echoed from behind the door, changing the subject before I could find out.

  “Before anything else,” Chartelia, the elf Guild Master, spoke out, “I want to know how one, two, three, four, five, and a half people attached themselves to a real adventurer, and claimed they were the same. Not to mention why one of those five people is my own niece.”

  It was in an instant that we all turned our heads from the Guild Master to Airina, staring at her as she winked casually at us before she jumped off the couch, “How good to see you, Auntie.”

  “Spare me the asskissing your father is good at,” Chartelia sighed as she waved her hand, and vines filled with thorns immobilized the still-grinning, still-running Airina on the spot.

  “Auntie,” Airina cried out in utter shock as the woman walked past her, passing Enna, only to take a seat on the free couch before me and the beastfolk.

  “Now,” she muttered, waving another hand that covered Airina’s mouth with another vine, “Do tell me, Adventurers, why is it that none of your names appear in our records?”

  “Ma’am,” Enna muttered, trying to aid us.

  But Chartelia raised her hand, silencing her, “If you, priestess, want this to be left out of the reports that will be sent to the High Temples, if you want your license to remain intact, and the reward for the quest not be confiscated, best be silent.”

  Seeing Enna deflate faster than a balloon ever could, she sent me an apologetic look and dashed back to her room, sacrificing us for her own well-being. Damn traitor. But honestly, I would do the exact same.

  Now… for the new shit we stepped in.

  “Well,” I spoke, “Will a good lie be enough to convince you? Or the fact that your niece is with us?”

  “Depends,” she replied, leaning back on the couch, “Depends on who you all are, where all of you are from, and the reasoning behind it. I truly find it hard to believe you, good sir, are here to bring Lord Stevin back to his… loving family.”

  Well, ain’t that an easy task?

  I was born by the union of two far too young, far too stupid people, only to find myself in an orphanage the moment it dawned on me I existed.

  When I grew up, I went to school, did my homework, read books, and slept until I found myself an adult.

  In the last phase of my school life, I found the love of my life, married her, then watched her die before I got kidnapped by Gods and thrown here, into another world.

  Truth be told, I think none of them would believe me even if I said all that. Well, that or being burned alive on a fucking pyre, or… in the worst case scenario, as per my luck, somehow twisting it into more propaganda, pushing my already ruined image into something even crazier than it was now.

  But instead of saying some bullshit, I turned to the beastfolk who stood by my side, only to see them nod to me, giving me confirmation to tell the truth of their stories. As for the truth of mine, well, it worked once in the past; it can work a second time.

  So, with a sigh, I spoke again, “Best get yourself comfortable, Guild Master, it will take a while.”

  “What will exactly?” Chartelia asked, “The lie?”

  “No,” I smiled, cursing the Gods in my head at the same time for the damn lie I was about to utter either way, “The truth. The truth of how I am a Vampire… and a King.”

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