Chapter 586: I like being transparent.
The vampiric escort reorganized itself with a silent efficiency that made it clear Violet did not command ordinary soldiers. Two knights took the front of the road, four others positioned themselves at the sides of the carriage, and the rest formed a rearguard wide enough to prevent approaches without turning the whole thing into a hostile march. There was balance in the formation. Respect, protection, and caution in the exact measure. Amelia noticed it first, observing through the window with calculated attention, and Kael noticed it soon after, though he was far too busy trying to ignore Sylphie cataloging the commander’s appearance.
Violet walked beside the carriage door for a few moments before mounting a black creature with red eyes, similar to a horse, but with something predatory in the way it moved. The animal made no sound when stepping on the road, and that made the entire march strangely elegant. Kael sat back inside the carriage, but left the curtain open. Sylphie remained pressed to his arm, Irelia watched the road ahead, and Amelia kept the map on her lap, though now she paid more attention to the vampires’ positions than to the path.
"She is competent," Amelia said after a few minutes.
Kael looked at her.
"Violet?"
"Yes. The formation is defensive, but not suffocating. She wants to show respect without making it seem like she is escorting prisoners."
Irelia looked through the window.
"She also placed the younger soldiers in the rear."
Sylphie followed her gaze.
"Why?"
"To keep any of them from becoming nervous near Kael and doing something stupid," Irelia answered. "The ones close to the carriage are older, more disciplined."
Kael released a sigh.
"I really did leave a bad impression last time."
Amelia turned her face toward him.
"You killed several patrols along the way."
"They tried to kill me first."
"I did not say it was unjustified. I said it left an impression."
Sylphie tightened her hold on his arm a little.
"This time will not be the same."
Kael looked at her, and for an instant his expression softened.
"I hope not."
The road descended through a long valley, surrounded by trees with black trunks and reddish crowns. As they advanced, small villages began to appear in the distance, almost hidden between hills and low mists. The houses were made of dark stone, with slanted roofs and narrow windows lit by ruby light. Vampires watched the escort’s passage from afar, some behind gates, others on balconies, others standing in the streets with unreadable expressions.
News traveled faster than the carriage.
Kael realized this when a group of residents knelt before the road even before the escort approached. There was no worship there, not like in the Kingdom of Witches. There was fear, respect, and a clear awareness that he was a figure none of them could insult at that moment. This kind of reverence bothered him in a different way. Witch knights calling him Celestial Sun were embarrassing. Vampires kneeling out of fear of what he could do were simply tiring.
Sylphie noticed the change on his face.
"You do not like it."
"No."
"Because they are afraid?"
"Because perhaps they have reason to be."
Irelia remained quiet.
Amelia observed Kael for a few seconds before speaking.
"Fear can also prevent foolishness while diplomacy is still fragile."
"It can," he answered. "But it does not rebuild trust."
The sentence remained inside the carriage for a few moments. Outside, Violet raised one hand and made a short gesture. The escort slowed as they approached a narrow bridge over a dark river. The water flowed slowly, almost without reflections, as if even light had difficulty touching its surface.
Kael opened the window a little more.
"Commander Violet."
The vampire turned her face immediately, keeping her mount moving.
"Your Majesty."
"Did everyone receive orders to kneel, or was that spontaneous?"
Violet did not seem surprised by the question.
"Both."
"Explain."
"Queen Liza ordered any troop or local authority to show formal respect to the King of Witches. Not out of submission, but to prevent hostile interpretations. However, many would kneel even without an order."
Kael narrowed his eyes.
"Out of fear?"
"Out of memory."
The answer silenced the carriage.
Violet continued in a firm voice, without trying to soften too much.
"The last time you entered our territory, Your Majesty encountered patrols contaminated by illegitimate orders and soldiers fed by radical propaganda. Few survived direct encounters. The accounts spread. Some exaggerated, others far too accurate."
Sylphie looked sideways at Kael.
"Accounts?"
Violet heard and answered without hesitation.
"They say the King of Witches crossed the border like a scarlet storm, leaving only ice, silence, and broken soldiers in his path."
Kael closed his eyes.
"Wonderful."
Sylphie murmured:
"Scarlet storm."
"Do not start."
Irelia looked outside, clearly trying not to laugh.
Amelia, more diplomatic, merely commented:
"It is a better title than Celestial Sun in vampiric territory."
Kael pointed at her without opening his eyes.
"You too, no."
Violet seemed to notice the dynamic, but had the good sense not to smile. Even so, her red eyes shone with very discreet amusement.
"I should add that the Queen formally forbade any soldier from provoking, testing, or challenging Your Majesty."
Kael opened his eyes.
"She needed to forbid that?"
"Yes."
"That is concerning."
"Ancient vampires are proud. Young vampires are stupid. The combination of the two usually produces corpses."
Amelia raised her eyebrows slightly.
"You speak quite frankly for a royal commander."
"It was Her Majesty Liza’s order."
Kael looked at her.
"To be frank?"
"With you, yes. The Queen believes excessive circumlocution would be interpreted as manipulation."
"She is right."
Violet nodded.
"That is what I imagined."
The carriage crossed the bridge, and the landscape began to change. The scattered villages were left behind, replaced by a wider road lined with ancient statues of vampiric kings and queens. Some were intact. Others bore recent marks of removal or destruction, as if symbols connected to previous rulers had been torn away in haste. Irelia observed that attentively.
"She is erasing Vlad’s faction."
Violet heard through the open window.
"Not completely. Erasing everything would be admitting fear. The Queen is removing symbols of personal obedience and preserving symbols of State."
Amelia nodded slowly.
"A restoration, not a public revenge."
"For now," Violet said.
Kael looked at her again.
"For now?"
Violet took a second before answering, but did not evade.
"Queen Liza is not merciful with betrayal. But she knows that executing everyone who obeyed Vlad would create an empty kingdom. The line between punishment and reconstruction is still being drawn."
Sylphie grew serious.
"And the children?"
A heavy silence fell.
Even the black horses seemed to slow for an instant.
Violet kept her eyes ahead, but her expression hardened.
"Forty-seven confirmed deaths among children tied to the zones protected by the treaty. Twelve more missing. Others may have been hidden by families who fear retaliation or political shame."
The temperature inside the carriage seemed to drop.
Kael said nothing.
He merely looked out the window, but the hand resting on the seat closed slowly. Sylphie felt his mana become cold, deep, and silent. It was not an explosion. It was worse. It was anger compressing until it became something useful. She placed her hand over his, intertwining their fingers firmly.
Violet continued, lower.
"The Queen ordered official mourning. She also ordered the names to be preserved in public records, not hidden in military archives. That displeased many clans."
"Because it exposes their guilt," Irelia said.
"Yes."
Amelia looked at Kael.
"That is a good political decision."
"And moral," Sylphie added.
Kael finally spoke.
"Those two things do not always meet."
Violet turned her face toward him.
"In this case, Her Majesty wants them to."
Kael held her gaze for a few seconds.
"Then perhaps this meeting has some use."
"She hopes so."
The road continued for almost another hour. The escort crossed checkpoints, small bridges, and stone tunnels lit by red crystals. At all of them, vampire soldiers offered reverence as soon as they recognized the carriage and the royal standard Violet carried. Some looked at Kael with caution. Others with curiosity. Few showed open hatred, and those were quickly silenced by the presence of the Royal Commander.
The vampiric capital appeared in the distance like a black crown embedded between mountains.
Tall, slender towers cut through the mist, joined by suspended bridges and curved walls. The palace stood at the highest point, rising over dark cliffs, with red windows glowing like watchful eyes. Around it, the city descended in layers, full of pointed roofs, shadowed squares, closed gardens, and channels of dark water reflecting the ruby lights of eternal night.
Sylphie leaned against the window, impressed despite everything.
"It is beautiful."
Kael looked at the city.
"It is."
Irelia observed the architecture with an evaluative gaze.
"It is also defensible."
Amelia nodded.
"And full of perfect places for ambushes."
Sylphie looked at the two of them.
"You can ruin any landscape."
"They are right," Kael said.
"You too."
"I praised it first."
"For two seconds."
He smiled faintly.
The carriage entered the capital under heavy escort. The streets were clean, but far too silent. People watched from windows, balconies, and side alleys. Some vampire children held onto the clothes of adults, looking at the carriage with curious red eyes. Kael noticed that, and the image of the dead children returned with enough force to make him look away.
Sylphie saw it.
But instead of speaking, she merely rested her shoulder against his.
The escort did not head to the main palace. Instead, it climbed a side avenue to a large isolated pavilion in the upper gardens of the city, surrounded by ornate railings and black rosebushes. The place was elegant, protected, and separate enough to be considered neutral ground within the capital. Vampiric and witch banners fluttered side by side at the entrance, indicating that the formality had been carefully prepared.
Violet dismounted before the carriage came to a complete stop.
When the door was opened, Kael stepped down first. Sylphie came to his side, followed by Irelia and Amelia. The Royal Commander approached and placed a hand over her chest in salute.
"We have arrived at the Pavilion of Black Blood. Queen Liza chose this place for the meeting because it is outside the palace, but still under enough protection to prevent external interference."
Kael looked around.
"And internal?"
Violet did not hesitate.
"That is why I am here."
Irelia seemed to like the answer.
Amelia too.
Sylphie, however, moved closer to Kael and murmured:
"Another point for the pretty purple-haired one."
Kael looked at her slowly.
"Are you going to do this all day?"
"Probably."
"Just so I know."
"I like being transparent."
Violet pretended not to hear, which demonstrated admirable discipline.
The doors of the pavilion opened before Kael could answer. From inside, soft red light spilled over the stone steps. Vampiric servants lined up at the sides, bowing in silence. At the far end, beyond an ornate corridor, two female figures waited beside a long table.
One of them was Liza.
The other was Elizabeth.
Kael felt Sylphie, Irelia, and Amelia go still at the same time.
He did not need to look to know what all three were thinking.
Even so, Sylphie murmured softly beside him:
"Ah. I understand."
Kael released an almost imperceptible sigh.
"Do not start."
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