Chapter 68: Rumours.
Thank you so much @Hearts_Solace for the gift.
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The laughter of two troublesome girls lingered in the air long after they had disappeared down the road.
For several moments, neither Xandros nor Adrian moved.
The village had slowly begun returning to life around them. Doors opened. Merchants cautiously stepped outside. Villagers emerged from hiding places, speaking in relieved voices now that the rogue vampires had been dealt with.
Yet neither young man paid much attention.
Their eyes remained fixed on the road where Saline and Lilian had vanished.
Eventually Adrian released a quiet sigh.
"They’re gone."he breathed out.
Xandros folded his arms across his chest.
"I now that."
"Of course ... because you watched them leave."Adrian said rolling his eyes at him.
"So did you."
Adrian immediately looked away.
"That isn’t the point."
"Then what is?"
"The point is that we should probably report the rogue attack before Lord Morvane decides we’re dead."
Xandros snorted.
"He wouldn’t care."
Adrian laughed despite himself.
That was unfortunately true.
The Lord of the Vampires was not known for excessive concern.
Or moderate concern.
Or concern at all.
The old monster cared about exactly three things.
His territory.
His power.
And himself.
Everything else occupied distant positions on the list.
"That’s unfair."
Adrian adjusted the sword hanging at his waist.
"You know he occasionally pretends to care."
Xandros barked out a laugh.
"Pretends being the important word."
"True."
"He’ll probably ask why we took so long."
"And?"
"And I’ll tell him the truth."
Adrian immediately looked concerned.
"You absolutely should not do that."
"Why not?"
"Because you’ll tell him you got distracted arguing with strangers."
"That is what happened."
"Exactly."
Xandros grinned.
The expression transformed his sharp features.
For a brief moment he looked much younger than he actually was.
Adrian shook his head.
"I don’t understand how you’ve survived this long."
"Skill." Xandros bragged at his friend.
"Luck." Adrian argued back.
"Mostly skill."
"Almost entirely luck."
Xandros considered it.
Then nodded.
"Fair."
The two began walking.
The road curved away from the village and disappeared into the forest.
Sunlight filtered through branches overhead.
The air grew cooler with every passing minute.
Silence settled between them comfortably.
Not awkward.
Not forced.
The kind of silence that only existed between people who had known each other for years.
Eventually Adrian spoke.
"You seem better."
Xandros glanced sideways.
"Better?"
"You know what I mean."
For a moment neither mentioned the illness directly.
Neither needed to.
Several months earlier, Adrian had nearly died.
The memory still lingered.
Long nights.
Endless treatments.
Weeks spent confined indoors while healers debated whether he would recover.
Xandros had remained beside him through all of it.
Something neither man discussed openly.
"You’re still alive."
Xandros shrugged.
"Barely."
Adrian smiled.
"You were unbearable."
"I was dying."
"You complained the entire time."
"I was dying once again."
"You complained about the soup."
"The soup deserved it....what kind of soup doesn’t stay on the spoon." He said not wanting to abuse the cook.
Adrian laughed.
A genuine laugh.
The sound echoed through the trees.
Xandros found himself smiling in return.
It felt good hearing that laugh again.
There had been a time when he wasn’t certain he ever would.
"Anyway."
Xandros shoved his hands into his pockets.
"You look healthy now."
"I am."
"It’s good."
The simple word carried more weight than either acknowledged.
Adrian understood it anyway.
The smile on his face softened.
"Thank you."
Xandros immediately looked uncomfortable.
"Don’t make it weird."
"Too late."
"Stop."
"No."
"Adrian."
The white-haired vampire laughed harder.
For a few minutes, the forest filled with nothing but their voices.
Then the atmosphere shifted.
Almost imperceptibly.
The sunlight faded.
The air cooled further.
The forest grew unnaturally quiet.
Ahead of them stood what appeared to be an empty clearing.
Nothing unusual.
Nothing remarkable.
At least to human eyes.
Xandros and Adrian continued forward without hesitation.
The moment they stepped into the clearing, the world rippled.
Like water disturbed by a stone.
An invisible barrier shimmered into existence.
Ancient magic spread outward in silver waves.
The illusion shattered.
The hidden domain revealed itself.
A massive black city appeared where moments earlier there had been nothing.
Dark towers pierced the sky.
Stone bridges connected elegant structures.
Crimson lanterns glowed throughout the streets.
The architecture was beautiful.
And unsettling.
Everything possessed an unnatural perfection.
The hidden capital of the vampires.
Their true home.
Adrian exhaled slowly.
"Still impressive."
"You say that every time."
"Because it is."
The city stretched endlessly before them.
Vampires moved through the streets.
Merchants, Soldiers, nobles, commoners.
An entire civilization hidden from human eyes.
Neither slowed as they crossed the city.
The citizens recognized them immediately.
Several offered respectful nods.
Others quickly stepped aside.
Xandros ignored most of them while Adrian at least acknowledged a few greetings.
Eventually a sprawling estate appeared at the center of the city.
The residence of Lord Morvane.
Calling it a mansion felt inadequate.
The structure resembled a palace.
Dark stone walls rose several stories high.
Massive windows reflected crimson sunlight.
Elegant gardens surrounded the property.
Beautiful.
Cold.
Intimidating.
Exactly like its owner.
The guards stationed outside immediately straightened.
"Lord Xandros."
"Lord Adrian."
One guard bowed deeply.
"The Lord is inside."
"Wonderful."
Xandros sighed dramatically.
"I was worried he’d escaped." He replied sarcastically.
The guard wisely pretended not to hear that.
They entered anyway.
Inside, servants moved efficiently through polished hallways.
Everything gleamed.
Everything looked expensive.
Everything felt uncomfortable.
Xandros disliked the estate.
Adrian tolerated it.
Neither enjoyed visiting.
They eventually reached the reception chamber outside Morvane’s private office.
A woman sat behind an elegant desk.
Dark hair.
Sharp eyes.
Perfect posture.
The Lord’s personal assistant.
Gloria.
Unfortunately.
She looked up.
Then immediately frowned.
"No."
Xandros stopped.
"What?"
"No."
"We haven’t asked anything yet."
"I know."
"Then how do you know the answer?"
"Experience."
Adrian looked amused.
Selene ignored him.
"What do you want?"
"We need to report."
"The Lord is busy."
Xandros stared.
"Busy doing what?"
"I don’t know."
"You work for him."
"I don’t ask questions."
"That’s probably wise."
Gloria nodded.
"It is."
Adrian sighed.
"How long?"
"No idea." Gloria replied as she shrugged her shoulders.
"Hours?"
"Possibly."
"Days?"
"Also possible."
Xandros dropped into a nearby chair.
"This is torture."
Gloria looked pleased.
Several minutes passed.
Then the doors opened.
Another vampire entered.
The atmosphere immediately changed.
Xandros groaned.
Adrian closed his eyes.
Silas smirked.
Tall and lean, the red-haired vampire carried himself with enough arrogance to make royalty uncomfortable.
His crimson coat hung perfectly over broad shoulders.
Amber eyes gleamed with amusement.
Particularly when they landed on Xandros.
"Well."
Silas smiled.
"This is unfortunate."
Xandros smiled back.
The expression looked dangerous.
"I was thinking the same thing."
Adrian rubbed his temple.
Already exhausted.
Silas approached.
"I didn’t expect to see you here."
"You should have."
"Why?"
"Bad things happen whenever you’re nearby."
Silas laughed.
"You wound me."
"Good."
The tension between them was immediate.
Obvious.
Ancient.
Neither attempted hiding it.
Adrian had once asked why they disliked each other.
Neither could provide a proper answer.
At some point, mutual irritation had simply become tradition.
Silas glanced toward Gloria.
"Is the Lord available?"
Before she could answer, the office doors opened.
A servant hurried outside.
"Lord Morvane will see Lord Silas immediately."
The room fell silent.
Xandros slowly turned.
"So let me understand."
Gloria immediately looked elsewhere.
"We’ve been waiting."
"Yes."
"And he sees him first?"
"Apparently."
Silas looked delighted.
"Rank has its privileges."
"You have the same rank."
"Then personality must be the issue."
Adrian laughed.
Xandros looked offended.
The servant gestured toward the office.
"Please enter."
All three vampires moved simultaneously.
The doorway was large.
Unfortunately, not large enough.
Shoulders collided.
Elbows bumped.
For one glorious second, everyone became stuck.
Then suddenly Xandros and Adrian stepped aside.
At exactly the same moment.
Silas, who had been leaning forward, lost his balance entirely.
"Wha..."
He stumbled.
Straight through the doorway.
Directly onto one knee.
In front of Lord Morvane.
The office fell silent.
Xandros and Adrian looked innocent.
Neither succeeded.
Silas slowly stood.
Murder filled his eyes.
The two simply smiled.
Lord Morvane watched the scene with complete indifference.
The ancient vampire sat behind a massive desk carved from black stone.
Age touched his features lightly.
Silver streaked his dark hair.
Sharp lines framed his face.
His crimson eyes seemed capable of seeing through people entirely.
Power radiated from him naturally.
Effortlessly.
The room itself felt smaller because he occupied it.
"Are you finished?"
His voice was calm.
Quiet.
Dangerous.
Everyone immediately straightened.
"Yes, my Lord."
"Good."
Morvane gestured lazily.
"Speak."
Xandros stepped forward first.
His expression became professional.
All traces of humor vanished.
"We encountered rogue vampires near a human settlement."
Morvane nodded once.
Xandros continued.
"There were eight."
"They had already attacked several villagers."
"Adrian and I eliminated them."
Morvane listened silently.
No reaction.
No surprise.
No concern.
Exactly as expected.
When Xandros finished, the older vampire simply nodded.
"Handled."
"Yes."
"Good."
That was it.
Years of service reduced to one word.
Handled.
Xandros resisted rolling his eyes.
Beside him, Adrian looked equally unsurprised.
Morvane’s attention shifted.
"Silas."
The silver-haired vampire stepped forward immediately.
Unlike Xandros, he bowed first.
Deeply.
Respectfully.
"My Lord."
"Report." The elder vampire waved his hands for him to begin.
Silas straightened.
"There is another matter."
Morvane looked mildly bored.
"Then speak."
Silas smiled.
The expression made Xandros uneasy instantly.
"There is a rumor spreading through the border settlements."
Morvane’s gaze remained distant.
Uninterested.
"A rumor?"
"Yes, my Lord."
The older vampire leaned back.
Clearly expecting nonsense.
Silas continued anyway.
"A girl has appeared."
Nothing happened.
Morvane remained expressionless.
Xandros felt himself relax slightly.
Then Silas delivered the next sentence.
The smile never leaving his face.
"They say she resembles the girl we have spent years searching for."
Everything changed.
The room froze.
Morvane sat forward.
For the first time since they entered, genuine interest appeared in his crimson eyes.
Beside Xandros, Adrian stiffened.
And Xandros slowly clenched his fist.
The smile disappeared from his face entirely.
Because he suddenly understood exactly where this conversation was heading.
And he didn’t like it one bit.
