There were actually a lot more people than Lukas expected. Some were Vampire children running around the table and being little pesky and rambunctious kids.
He saw some tired older adults who definitely were their parents and then there were some teenager ones who practically had their faces buried in their food or looked tired.
The Carmilla House was a huge family and yet at the center of it all was Heloise Carmilla who sipped from her teacup with a relaxed smile on her face.
"Ah, he's finally here. We can all start dining now." Heloise said.
"Oh, sorry." Lukas blinked and realized that most, if not everyone didn't pick up their utensils and were actually waiting for him.
"Saved you a seat!" Stacy called out.
Lukas didn't expect this kind of etiquette from a Vampire household, but quickly made his way to sit down in between Chaerin and Stacy's side.
Somehow, it was the only seat remaining, and while the thought of being stuck in the middle of the two seemed almost odd… he chose to focus on other things.
At first, Lukas believed that Vampires only needed blood to survive and while that was perhaps true, there were actually a lot of food variants available in this world that worked by infusing blood into them.
Although, it was probably still more or less a luxury.
Lukas didn't know why he focused on it as he picked up his spoon and glanced at Chaerin's direction. There was a smile on her face when she looked at him, but Lukas caught her offguarded look a second ago and she seemed to have been looking hard down at the table.
"You okay?" Lukas whispered.
"I…" Chaerin tried to keep the smile on her face. "I'm just worried about my family. Last night was… well a thing."
Even before the two of them reached the Carmilla House, they had their own little troubles with Chaerin's relatives and of course it wasn't easy to repress or put it away. Unlike Lukas, Chaerin was actually sensitive but tried to hide it.
Or at least tried to hide it before.
"Thank you for telling me." Lukas reached out and squeezed her hand from underneath the table. "We can probably try and visit them one more time you know? How does that sound?"
"Yeah. I was planning on doing that actually later..." Chaerin's gaze flickered towards the Overlord momentarily. Almost as if she was unsure if they would be allowed to do so.
So it wasn't only Lukas who had been preoccupied with that thought.
It was at this point that Lukas realized that Theodore was giving him pointed looks from across the table, but with a well-trained smile on his face.
"Why aren't any of you eating yet. Is the food not to your liking?" Heloise asked. "We can request something else if you'd like."
"Thank you. But ah, it's just that we have a few things on our mind as well." Theodore said and addressed the Overlord respectfully.
"Is it about last night?" Heloise raised a brow, a crooked smile on her face. "It's certainly a remarkable occasion, but not something we can't put behind. We've resolved that already, haven't we?"
Lukas glanced at Stacy and Alexei, and though he already knew what their reactions had been like last night… it still made him sigh inwardly.
"I… we're quite grateful for the faith and trust that you have in us." Stacy said, awkwardly. There was a redness to her cheek as she blushed and then looked down.
"Sounds really challenging to do. But since you've given us a chance, I don't see why my sister and I can't give it a try." Alexei responded.
"The reason why the two are here is to assist us on a mission to the Blood Wilderness." Theodore said. "I know that they've agreed to give a chance to becoming a proper noble house again, but they've also made a promise—"
"What exactly do young folks like you need to do in the Blood Wilderness?" Heloise Carmilla raised a brow.
"That's… actually a private concern." Lukas found himself saying. He already told himself that maybe the Carmillas weren't so bad, but he couldn't help but find himself still on guard. "However, it's important and we need to go as soon as we can."
"If it's really private, then I suppose there's not much that can be done about it… but ah, if you were willing to reveal it, then I'm sure that we can at least help you out in this department." Heloise said, then turned to Theodore. "What do you say?"
"We're looking for something that can help cure my cousin." Theodore sighed and massaged his head. "There's this plant called the Blood Gourd, and it's something that can be used to help her wake up again."
"My… why didn't you say so in the first place?" Heloise said and blinked. "I am sure that if it's something that can be obtained in the Blood Wilderness, then we can try to make contact with the others to get it for us."
"Wait. Really?" Stacy raised her head in surprise.
"Does that mean that we don't actually have to go risk our lives and travel?" Alexei blinked and then elbowed Theodore. "We should have gone for this in the first place."
Heloise Carmilla chuckled. "If it means that the two of you can stay here and find your rightful place in the Vampire society, I don't see why all of you need to go any further."
"Is… is that really enough of a reason to help us?" Theodore frowned.
"I'm not sure if that young Weisse Overlord could do it, but an Overlord of a city should be much more dependable. Even if your cousin isn't from here, she's a Vampire and we're all supposed to help each other. Especially when you're from an elevated position, it is what we call noblesse oblige."
Lukas knew that those words sounded good, and for a moment, even he found himself wavering. If it meant that they could get the Blood Gourd… wasn't that good? Chaerin could also stay and check on her family?
"How long will it take?" Lukas asked.
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