"Axel, there is no need to get yourself worked up over this issue. We all used to think that the venom is not real until we started noticing the strange deaths." The king's voice echoed and Axel's head whipped around to look at him.
"Is that so, father? And since when did you all know about these deaths?" Axel's eyes stayed glued on the king, but the man never spoke as they engaged in a staring contest. Instead, Dorian answered the question.
"Over a year ago, Your Highness. There have been more than eighty so far and they all died in the same manner." Axel heard Dorian speak and he narrowed his eyes which were still fixed on the king. Alita had killed more than eighty vampires? Well, he wouldn't be surprised after witnessing it with his own eyes.
"Why am I just getting to know about this now?" He asked. They all noticed this over a year ago and decided to involve him now? How convenient.
"Your Highness, please we are here to deliberate on this issue as adults. Let's keep all sentiments aside and face the reason why we are here. This meeting would have been held three days ago, but we had to postpone it because of you. Can you at least kindly let us finish this in peace?" Martin's voice boomed, forcing Axel to tear his gaze off the king. His eyes moved back to Dorian as if he didn't know who had just spoken.
"Do we now have rats in the Castle?" Axel asked as his eyes moved to see the confusion and slight shock that had registered on the faces of the men. "Because I think I just heard a rat squeak."
Martin's face twisted in anger as he glared at Axel. "Are you by any chance referring to me as a rat, Your Highness?" He snapped as the anger boiled in his veins.
"Axel let out a long audible sigh. "Father, rats don't belong in the castle. They should be in the sewer. Sack the cleaners if they can't do their jobs properly." He advised, nonchalantly as if he was really talking about rats and not a royal adviser.
"Enough, both of you." The king growled before Martin could lash out as he was already trembling in anger. "Axel, I summoned you here because if there is anyone who can track down the venom, it's you. Since you spend most of your time in Greenlight city.
"Do you know what it looks like?" Axel asked the king who shook his head in response.
"Unfortunately, we don't." The king answered and Axel almost laughed out. Bunch of hypocritical and deceitful liars.
"So how am I supposed to track it down or find it if I don't even know what it looks like?" His voice rang out.
"We are still finding information about it, your Highness. Once we get any, we will let you know. But for now, just be on the lookout for anything or anyone suspicious." Dorian answered.
"Anyone? You think the venom is a person?" Axel raised one perfectly carved eyebrow as he asked.
"It's just a theory. We are not sure –"
"Listen here all of you. If you called me here only to give me half information and expect me to run with it like your errand dog, then we can as well end the meeting right now. You can go ahead and do whatever you want without involving me while I go back to my business. I don't have time to waste on irrelevant matters." Though Axel's voice was low and intentionally slow, it had the exact effect he expected on the men. What do they take him for?
After a long moment of silence, the king finally spoke. "We will be sending some men with you when you return to Greenlight city. They will assist you in the search."
"I don't want anybody around me apart from Asher and my men. If you want to send anyone to Greenlight city, please do. But if I see them around me, I'll kill every one of them." Axel's cold and deliberately lowered voice boomed in the room. He fixed his gaze on the king before he continued. " Now, if there's nothing else to discuss, I have other important matters to attend to."
"This meeting is adjourned. You may all leave." The king finally spoke after a long time of glaring at his son. The boy's attitude is growing worse by the day and he doesn't even know how to handle him anymore.
Axel and Asher were the first to leave the throne room. The instant they stepped out of the door, the other two men followed them. However, another set of footsteps ran after him until the owners successfully came before his view, making him halt his steps.
Axel lazily raised his brows at the fuming Martin in front of him He looks swollen with anger that it seemed as if he would burst any moment.
"The fact that you are the crown prince does not give you the right to disrespect or insult me, dear cousin. I am also a member of this family and I am the older one here so you should stop treating me like a mere peasant." Martin huffed as he glared ferociously at Axel.
"You don't want to be treated as a peasant, yet you talk like one." Axel replied tauntingly. He had tried his best to ignore this overfed pest for a long time, but it seems desperately needed someone to squash him.
"Watch your mouth, Axel. You think You are the almighty right? You think you can do anything and get away with it right? One day, I will watch you fall from this your high horse." Martin barked furiously.
"If that is what you are waiting for then I can assure you that you will wait forever because even if he willingly steps down from this horse, you will never smell the opportunity to climb it." Asher berated.