"It is a danger, we cannot release it."
"A danger that saved our children and Day-sama!"
"I don't trust him."
"Is there someone you trust completely?"
"My son, whom he allowed to be tortured in the basement of his home."
From the back of the isolation room that served for prisoners whose information was desired, Orthon listened intently to the discussion between Minndt's father and his fellow combatants. He had dared to leave the room during his heat but it had been for a good cause, the gunshots had taken him out of his rut for a moment and he had managed to open the door. When his eyes rested on Day on the ground with Foud and Lou nearby, he hadn't thought about it. His mind clouded by its heat had recognized the sign of the Order on the armbands of these intruders. He didn't know why but when he saw the rifle of one of the ground guards, he found himself in his hands and he fired. Several times. On members of his kind.
"Bring him out."
"S... Sure?"
"Sure, get him out."
Orthon straightened up on the floor and grabbed his sweat-soaked coat, watching worriedly as the door opened. If they had decided to end what was left of his existence, he would only have a few minutes left. Incapable of thoughts due to the terror that overwhelmed him, the vampire did not look away from the guard who was advancing towards him. The spiked metal baton he held firmly in his hand was enough to knock him back against the wall.
"Get up," the guard commanded, stopping a few paces away from him.
The vampire made no protest and stood up on his trembling legs, the difference in height not helping to calm the storm of emotions inside him. A gesture was enough to make him understand that he had to follow him, which he did without saying a word before stopping under the doorframe. The deep, authoritative voice that had spoken was indeed that of the Lord. The duke couldn't restrain his tremors as those black eyes with red irises were fixed on him, his piercing gaze studying his face intently.
"So it was you who saved my son's life?" asked the Lord rhetorically, clutching his hand on the palm of his sword."Duke Orthon Monty, I haven't heard that last name in a while."
"We are keeping a low profile these days, Lord," the noble vampire explained while looking at the other gods."I will die?"
"Are you not already dead, at least in part?"
"Finish me off then."
"No... There is one question, several even, that nags me about you."
"Yes?"
"Do you know where your uncles are?"
The question baffled the nobleman, who was silent for a moment, hesitating.
"No, I don't know where they are," he said, at last, clutching his curled coat in his hands.
"Really?"
"I don't know where they went. They said they would come back but even today I am waiting for them."
"What about your younger uncle's companion?"
"I don't know where he is. I found myself alone with my brother overnight in 1910."
The answer was grimacing gods who encircled but they remained silent, everyone watching in turn before the Lord spoke again.
"You will be on parole. You will be able to walk freely but never alone and at the slightest gap your dismembered body will feed the pigs," the owner clarified grimly as he took a step towards him.
"Y… Yes."
"You will join the snoopers."
"The snoopers?"
"Those who took you to the closed room."
"They didn't take me there."
"What do you mean?"
"I got in. I forced the lock and closed the door behind me to escape the guards. They must have checked that the door was still closed because it only opened for a while. . Then they came back but they weren't comfortable, it could be seen and heard."
"Did you force the lock?"
"Yes."
"He dares to answer yes so spontaneously," Nyx's father remarked.
"Or so he's crazy."
"I don't understand why they lied. I didn't ask them anything."
"He's crazy, master."
"I'm not! I'm setting the record straight, they haven't done anything wrong!"
"Shall I take the rest of his life?"
The Lord cocked his head to the side and a demonic smirk let his non-human teeth appear. The fangs thicker and longer than his made the Duke's eyes widen, and he stepped back without noticing.
"No, that would be less fun," the vampire terror finally replied before biting the tip of his long, split tongue."Look at him shaking, he looks like a little puppy abandoned in the forest. Don't be terrified duke, we are going to hang out a lot now."
"What if I go home instead?"
"Oh, but you can't, Duke."
"Why?"
"Because you will be killed. Better to keep you here, you can still be useful as Day says. How irritating this kid when he wants to, who does he get that from?"
"Maybe from you?" muttered the Duke.
"Did the little canine say something?"
"No nothing at all!"
"Fine, I prefer."
"What am I going to do here?"
"Do you want us to take care of you perhaps?"
"I would like to eat something, is it possible?"
"If you stay in the card room with those who seem to like to lie to protect you. It's guarded, you can't go wrong normally…"
"Okay."
The Lord moved slightly and left a small passage for the Duke to leave the circle before giving him a small hand gesture. The vampire complied and hurried away without even noticing the mocking smiles of the gods behind him. Once he passed the bend in the hallway, he started running towards the guards who brandished their swords, ready to attack him but they changed their minds when the vampire stopped in front of them.
"I would like to come back please, Lord Dest told me to come here when I told him I wanted to eat," explained the nobleman with a weak smile.
"Here?" wondered the two guards in a common voice.
"Yes, this is the card room, isn't it?"
"What? No, this is Minndt-sama's room."
"The card room is on the other side, you should have turned left and not right."
"Is it possible to go see him?"
"Minndt-sama? No. No alpha can go and see him and last I heard you are an alpha."
"Barely out of his rut anyway."
"Even to say hello?"
"Do you want to say hello to him after letting him be tortured in your home?"
"I did not know!"
"Not our problem. No alpha is allowed into his room."
Faced with contemptuous looks from the two guards, Orthon preferred to give up and retraced his steps to take the right direction. At the crossroads, he looked in the direction of the isolation room where he met the Lord's sardonic smile and the mocking looks of his protectors.
"You've managed to lose yourself it seems!"He scoffed viciously.
"That is a vast monastery!"
"Poor little vampire, he need help?"
"No thanks, I'll find my way on my own!"
The mocking laughter coming from the protectors of the Lord made Ortho's cheeks rosy, and he hastened to resume his journey. In the card room, cries of an argument could be heard. But the spoken language left the vampire confused as he looked at the two guards.
"What is that language? I had never heard it before," he asked with a certain curiosity.
"It's the language of the gods."
"What are they saying?"
"We don't speak the language of the gods."
"Seen the tone used, it is preferable not to interfere. What exactly do you want?"
"Lord Dest told me to come here when I told him I was hungry. I took the wrong hallway once so I hope this is the card room here."
"It's here."
"May I come in?"
"Are you sure you want to come in now?"
"Nyx-sama is getting angry."
"It's dangerous to oppose him when he's angry."
"I'm not around that anymore, I assure you..."
"As you will, we will have waned you."
One of the two guards turned to the door and opened it, plunging the room into absolute silence before beckoning him in. The vampire thanked them with a small nod of the head. and barely had time to cross the threshold of the door when she closed behind him. What a relief it was when he saw Day lying on the floor! Lou was not far from him and Foud, from the back of the room with Nyx ready to hit him.
"Duke Monty," the younger greeted, turning to him."How are you?"
"That should be mine to ask you! I was so scared..."
"Fear makes you do awesome things then," Dark Nyx smirked mischievously as he poured himself yet another cup of tea.
"You mean...?"
"Open it up. fire on them like that, I twisted myself with laughter! This little "bitch" came out as punctuation, memorable! Worthy of me, you are entertaining me!"
"It's not just you who think I amusing..."
"Um?"
"When I came out, Lord Dest was there with his protectors. I told them that you hadn't done anything and that I had forced the lock."
"Ouch. Now you don't amuse me at all."
"They asked me about my family too before they let me go."
"What questions?"
"They asked me if I knew where my uncles and my younger uncle's companion were."
The mood of the room drastically changed the god of deception and mischief lowered the tea, thoughtfully stirring the sugar in the bottom of his cup. Day stood up painfully and held his head for a few moments before getting up. A few uncertain steps were necessary for him to regain his balance and be able to sit down at the table.
"Sit down, you must be hungry," he invited her, grabbing the cup held out by Moain.
"Thanks…"
"These cakes are special, you can eat them."
"What's special about them?"
"There's blood inside," Nyx replied as he joined them at the table. "You need it, you seem exhausted."
"I wasn't expecting my heat."
"By the way, did it go well?"
"As for someone who slept on the soil and was left alone."
"So it didn't go well. Well, in any case now you will be better! We will take you to the hot springs, it will be good for you."
"That is kind."
The vampire devoured several cakes under the amused gaze of the gods before blushing when he noticed the looks on him, only increasing their size. fun. So much food and tea at his fingertips for his high betrayal of the Order, it bothered him for a moment before hunger silenced his thoughts. He had to feed himself if he did not want to die and reunite with his family. But deep inside, the fear persisted of reminding him that the Order had members everywhere and that he was nowhere safe. Not even in the monastery where Lord Dest lived and seemed to have decided to make him. the target of his bullying.