I don't know if it's been a few minutes or a few hours as both Lucile and I have yet to move. The sound of quiet breathing reaches my ears and, looking down, I can see that Lucile has fallen asleep in my arms. This is the life I've wanted for so long. A home with family and friends I can put my faith in. A body that won't give out just because I missed one of my prescriptions or decided to walk around longer than I was capable of. Someone I can hold in my arms, knowing that they will never betray me, who sees me as something more than a useless waste of oxygen.
[Kai] "Lucile. I promise, I'll protect you."
The sleeping girl shifts her body around, placing herself in a much more comfortable position that consists of her curling up into a ball and resting her head on my chest.
[???] "That's quite the promise. Make sure to keep it, won't you?"
A cold shiver runs down my spine when I hear the familiar voice of Lucile's father, the former Demon King, Verren. Slowly looking up at the man, I can see a faint aura around him.
[Verren] "I've received word that Dreyus will arrive in a few hours. It's time to begin."
About time. Though he's a little earlier than expected. He must have rushed here in an attempt to look good. I don't think he needs to worry about that though, he would look rather pleasant with his head on a pike after all and that's a difficult look to pull off for anyone. Dismissing the beautiful image from my mind, I gently pick up Lucile in my arms and carry her towards the exit.
[Kai] "I'll get her to bed. Do you mind if I meet you in the ballroom?"
[Verren] "No. slight change to the plan. I need you out of the castle when they arrive."
[Kai] "What?"
I stood there, dumbfounded, at the demand coming from Verren. Leave? How could he possibly expect me to leave after everything he's told me, after everything I've promised.
[Kai] "Can you explain?"
There's an uncomfortable silence that fills the air around us. The only motion being that of the rising and lowering stomach and chest of the girl in my arms as she remains blissfully unaware of the situation happening whilst she sleeps.
[Verren] "We've recently uncovered some...dangerous information. As we can no longer be sure of what we're facing, I felt it would be best for you to make your appearance at a later point. Once more details have been uncovered."
This isn't what I was expecting, I'll give him that. In my mind, I thought he was betraying both myself and his daughter. Perhaps I've grown paranoid since dying once. My gaze shifts from the powerful figure before me as my mind attempts to find the correct path through this mess.
[Kai] "What information did you come across, exactly?"
[Verren] "You will be brought up to speed by one of the hunters waiting for you."
[Kai] "You can't just tell me now?"
[Verren] "No."
His suddenly stern voice startles me for a moment, prompting me to take a step back out of pure instinct. Letting out a heavy sigh, he continues speaking.
[Verren] "Until this situation has been dealt with, we must assume no place is safe from prying eyes and ears."
[Kai] "Fine. I'll get Lucile to bed and head out immediately."
The towering father nods in agreement. Making my way to the door, a manage to hear a quiet, solemn "thank you" that seems to betray his currently cold visage. He's stressed, anxious, angry and a whole plethora of other emotions a leader should never carry into battle. A father, however, in this situation, is guaranteed to have at least a few fleeting moments of despair when their daughter is being forced into an unwanted marriage.
[Kai] "No problem."
With that said, I leave the room and use my foot to lightly slam the door behind me. I figure he should have some time alone with his thoughts and a few barrels of alcoholic blood. Whether he takes a drink is up to him but from what I can see, he could certainly use one, or a dozen.
On the way to Lucile's room, I got a few strange looks ranging from confused to solemn smiles. I ignored most of them and continued, unabated, though I am making sure not to move too much incase I wake sleeping beauty. Placing her in her bed and pulling the covers over her, I can't bring myself to smile. I'll go and see what this hunter has in store for me before I take out all of my pent up aggression on that bastard Dreyus.
[???] "You've arrived."
[Kai] "You had all that time to come up with something and that's what you go with?"
Out in the forest, I've come face to face with the cloaked male from before. His black cloak hid him from view within the shadows until he opened his piercing, crimson eyes and walked out into the light. After checking the surroundings with a quick scan, I lower my hood and reveal my own face, waiting for him to respond. For a moment, all I hear is a low, bestial growl before the afternoon breeze blows his hood away from his face, revealing the man's chiselled features and black sideburns connecting to a short chin-strap beard.
[Kai] "Well, aren't you the pretty one."
My sarcasm fails to escape the hunter as an instant passes before I find myself with the feeling of three prongs of cold steel piercing my stomach. Looking down to where the wound is, I can see my assailant is wielding a gauntlet with claw-like daggers attached at the knuckles. Without a second thought, I open my storage and draw one of my blades, resulting in the hunter's arm being separated from his torso, left to hang from it's current place in my stomach. He backs away quickly, with no sign of pain on his face and no sound, other than a slight snarl, escaping his lips.
[???] "Alright, I think you've both had your fun. Can we please move on to the more important matters at hand?"
A feminine voice calls out, prompting both of us to shift our gaze towards the branches of a nearby tree. There, sitting with an unamused, almost bored look on her face, is the second hunter from the labyrinth basement. Her raven-black hair has been cut short, making her look somewhat boyish if not for her rather elegant facial features although her cold gaze would make approaching her impossible under normal circumstances.
[Male] "Fine. Hey, you."
The gruff hunter directs his attention back to me, pointing his remaining hand at my torso.
[Male] "Give me my arm back."
[Kai] "Say please."
[Male] "What?"
[Kai] "Did I stutter?"
This guy is too easy to rile up. A few words and he already looks ready to blow. A small smirk forms on my face before being wiped off when the female hunter appears to teleport in front of me, pulling the bladed arm from my stomach and tossing it at her companion.
[Female] "Don't make me repeat myself and let's get down to business."
I watch as my wounds heal, the Male hunter places his arm back where it should be and it begins to stitch itself back together, though nowhere near as fast as mine did back when I faced Lors. I suppose it would be prudent of me to keep the Regeneration speed of these hunters in mind.
[Kai] "I was told you had information for me."
The two now turn their gaze toward me.
[Female] "Our spy recently discovered what could be the reason for Dreyus' newfound courage."
I'll be the first to admit, this peaked my interest, though I was hoping for some kind of exploitable weakness.
[Female] "His servant, Juren, has been dealing with a human mage. From what we've been able to find, this man seems to be a chaos knight. A servant of Ouroboros, one of the dark kings."
As she speaks, a low chuckle resounds in my head. And I had almost managed to forget that thing was there. There's something with that information that doesn't add up though.
[Kai] "Why Juren? Why contact the servant instead of the Royal?"
[Female] "It would appear that Juren and the mage are already quite well acquainted."
[Kai] "I think I understand. So Dreyus is just a figurehead. Even Juren is being used by the sound of it. The one behind this crap is this Ouroboros guy."
[Female] "That is how it would seem. Though that doesn't mean we should underestimate those two. You will still be facing a Royal and an unknown."
[Kai] "I know."
I can't help but think that she's talking down to me, mentioning things that should go without needing to be said.
[Kai] "Now is that all? I should get back to the castle now."
Taking the ensuing silence as a yes, I turn to leave, only to be greeted by a small hand on my shoulder that I can only assume belongs to the female hunter.
[Kai] "What?"
[Female] "Don't be rash. They know about you. They will do everything in their power to make sure you don't interrupt the proceedings."
I can feel a smile creep into my face as a plethora of interesting thoughts race through my mind.
[Kai] "Good."
[Female] "And one more thing."
[Kai] "Hm?"
I turn around, only to be met by a dagger to face. I fail to hold in a shout of pain as the steel digs into my eye-socket, carving a path through my cranium. I try to back away but find myself caught in the clutches of the larger hunter. Unable to free myself with my arms held tight, I finally remember the ability that separates me from the rest.
[Kai] "
I feel my body begin to heat up at an almost instantaneous rate before flames are expelled in a sphere around me. The ground beneath me is charred while the female hunter managed to escape with only a few burns on her hands that quickly begin to heal. The male hunter on the hand, has had most of the front half of his body burned to a crisp. I quickly remove the dagger from my eye as it begins to heal.
[Kai] "
With my Regeneration sped up, I regain full eyesight in time to see the female hunter charging at me once more, this time with a pair of simple daggers. I barely have time to react as her cold eyes draw closer.
[Kai] "
As I speak, I channel as much of my golden aura through my left fist as I can before sending it skyward, slamming a powerful uppercut into the woman's chin as her daggers fail to pierce my cloak. A loud cracking sound echoes as she's lifted off the ground. I attempt to follow up by drawing an enchanted halberd from my storage, only to spot, out of the corner of my eye, the charging figure of the healed, animalistic hunter.
[Kai] "
Swinging the long weapon in a horizontal arc, a current of light blue electricity seizes my attacker, shocking him and prompting a collection of gargles to escape his mouth. This time I manage to follow up, spinning the halberd for a moment before tossing it like a spear, impaling the hunter as both he and the weapon are sent towards a tree where the halberd traps the hunter. The constant electrical shocks appear to be keeping him out of the fight for now so I turn my attention back to the woman. Expecting a surprise attack, I manage to duck the oncoming blow, redirecting the wayward blade with one arm while slamming another aura-laced punch to the side of her ribs. Placing myself diagonally behind the huntress, I use both hands to draw a large broadsword from my storage and swing, attempting to cleave through her lower torso but only managing to slice through half as she leaps away.
I stand as I've been taught and prepare to continue the fight when I notice something strange. The female hunter's eyes, while still cold and now angered, have a faint purple glow to them. Something that shouldn't be possible unless through the use of magic. I suppose I will have to be on guard for that.
The two of us stare at each other for what seems like an eternity, shifting our weight and preparing to counter anything the other might attempt. A glint appears in the hunter's eye as she vanishes from sight, leaving me panicked, though not long enough to be struck by her slash from the side. I manage to bring my sword up to defend against the blow. The attacks keep coming and I'm forced onto the defensive, constantly using my large sword as a shield.
[Kai] "
A feeling, like a sudden pain, jolts my attention behind me and I swing with all my might. The huntress appears within the arc of the swing with a shocked expression on her face as my blade cleaves through her torso, separating her lower body from everything else. The two halves hit the ground with a satisfactory thud as she lets out a cry of pain. I suppose no matter how well conditioned you are to pain, getting cut in half is still going to hurt like a bitch. Not willing to take any chances, I raise my sword above my head and stab down upon her ruby heart before raising my foot and slamming it down on her head. The two ways I've found to kill a vampire. While effective, I have to admit that it's rather messy.
A growling sound shifts my attention to the male hunter I impaled against a tree. He seems to be trying to free himself if his screams of rage and agony are anything to go by. Too bad. He pulls the halberd from his chest and lets out a roar which is quickly silenced when the top of his head, along with the upper half of the tree behind him, comes tumbling down next to his body. I guess he was hungry. He was actually able to fit that thick blade in his mouth. It's unfortunate for him that it went straight through. Doing to him what I did to his friend and removing any weaponry from their bodies, I quickly turn to make my way back to the castle. I want to know what's really going on. If Juren and his Mage friend are behind this, I'll kill them. If Dreyus puts a single finger on Lucile, I'll castrate him before killing him. If Verren knew about the hunters...I suppose I'll find out soon.
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[A/N] "It's been a while, huh? Well, I'm back and you can expect this story to be back on the weekly schedule. I had plenty of time to tweak my plans for the story.