A few kids on the street recognized Kilian as the Joker, eyeing him as he walked down the street in hooded clothes, to cover most of the mask he was wearing.
The cane was his trademark now, and even if the mask was not visible, the kids would quickly point him out in a crowd from the cane alone.
He stood by the entrance to one of the alleyways, and soon a kid walked up to him, putting out his small hands like he was begging Kilian for money as he might have with any other person walking the streets.
Kilian placed a piece of paper in the small hands together with 5 silver coins.
No words were spoken and Kilian left after making sure the kid had disappeared down the dark alleyway.
He breathed in deeply and rubbed his forehead.
Was this even a good idea.?
The paper he had given them was a small drawing he had created as well as the description of the assassin who had once owned the mask Kilian was now wearing.
Back then in his old room at the Heathgrave mansion, the assassin had let him go, respecting the Valen family in the North, and now he needed someone with the stealth skills he had witnessed that night.
Many people were walking the streets, though luckily no one paid much attention to him, he was not wearing fancy clothes nor worn-out ones either, just simple enough to not catch any glimpses from scammers or merchants keeping an eye on the poor.
"Did you hear?"
The words were a woman's, not too far from where Kilian was walking.
"They say The Lady saved our knights."
Kilian's cheeks flushed, pulling the hood down further trying to ignore the gossip.
Girly squealing followed and Kilian didn't take his mask off until he arrived at the Valen residence.
The butler of the place had been kind to Kilian ever since he had arrived, and the elder grey-haired man was now standing at the entranceway as if he had been there the whole time, waiting to greet the young Lord Kilian.
The treatment he received in the Valen residence was vastly different from what he was used to at the Heathgrave mansion, and he already felt tired thinking about the evening to come.
At least this time, they could not openly scorn him in front of his grandfather.
"Young duke!"
Jasper was running down the wide stairs from the second floor, huffing heavily as he reached Kilian.
Kilian smiled and stood still, waiting for the man to regain his composure.
"The King.. The King has sent his payment".
A white letter decorated with golden thread was waving in Jasper's hand, with it a small package neatly wrapped in golden paper.
'So fancy.'
Kilian received the small package that was barely bigger than his palm, then decided to open the letter that came with it, knowing Jasper kept standing there, pretending not to be curious.
However, the man's eyes kept looking at the package and Jasper was nervously changing the weight on his feet, not leaving.
The letter was written with horrible scribbles much like his own, and Kilian could only guess, this was the King's own handwriting and not some secretary that would normally be hired for these types of tasks.
' To Lord Kilian Valen.
This is the payment for the metal feathers.
The price has been carefully calculated based on the current need for the items received.'
Kilian could only guess, that the news of magic not having any effect on the creatures, had only increased the price of the metal, which was several times more durable than the current steel swords the knights used.
The letter continued.
'If the young Lord could provide more of this metal to the nation's knights, then the crown would be grateful.'
It was then signed and Kilian looked curiously at the small package.
It sounded like he had gotten something great, but he could not tell how something this small could showcase a 'grateful gift from a king'.
Several eyes were on him, both Jasper and the Butler were present, though the butler was trying to correct and smooth out Kilian's outfit, taking a very long time to do so.
Kilian smiled, knowing he would be just as curious, and quickly ripped the golden paper, revealing a small velvet blue box.
The fabric was luxurious and had intricate details with woven gold.
'That King really likes to show off his wealth.'
Kilian smirked at the thought. If he was favored by the king, then no one could easily touch him.
The box opened smoothly revealing a small set of earrings, which only confused Kilian.
'Why did he give me this?'
His forehead wrinkled when studying the small pair of jewelry, they did not look expensive.
They were simple studs with yellow pearls, embedded onto a simple silver base, smaller than the tip of his pinky.
Disappointed in the gift, that was completely useless to him, he sighed and gave Jasper a small nod, seeing a just as big of a disappointed expression on the man as well.
The butler had after the reveal, simply kept his face expressionless, only showcasing his skill of not having an opinion on his employee's business.
"How is the production coming along Jasper?"
Kilian tried to change the topic, referring to the business he had had Jasper attend to since they had arrived at the residence in the capital.
Jasper's face lit up
"They are mostly done, sir."
The words made Kilian smile, looking forward to the money he would soon be making.
Since they had arrived, the many metal feathers that they had gathered on the trip to the capital had been processed into weapons at a nearby smithy.
Now when even the king had accepted the worth of the metal, and the noble families were to join the war either themselves or their heirs, the sales should become significant.
"Great, keep it up."
Kilian then left the men, heading for the outside training area of the Valen knights.
Dante was training with a group of knights, and the swift movements and strong presence were no less than the other experienced fighters there.
Each swing of Dante's blade was deliberate and Kilian could see the force behind the thrusts extending from his body.
They were sparring, and Dante was winning.
'He must have trained a lot.'
Kilian was curious how he himself would fare against a trained knight.
His body was still weak, but the power he had been training seemed only limited to his imagination, and he was wondering how it would actually work in real combat.
The time it took him to concentrate on one command and have it executed was too slow for a 1 on 1 combat experience but if it was successful, then the fight might turn in his favor.
He watched the red-head move towards his location, it had not taken long before Dante had noticed Kilian's presence and ended the spar in a swift swing of his sword, sending the other party to his knees.
"Kilian… I mean Young Master."
Kilian's eyebrow went up, noticing how Dante had forgotten the title at first.
'He is becoming bolder.' He smiled at Dante ignoring the slip-up. He really didn't care if Dante used titles or not.
"You shouldn't be here."
Dante continued, even moving forward to grab Kilian's arm, starting to almost drag him away from the area.
Kilian saw the eyes of the other knights were turned his way, and he felt embarrassed at how he was letting his knight dictate where he could or could not be. This was his house too now.
Dante led Kilian back into the residence, heading for Kilian's personal quarters.
"The knights… they can't concentrate when you visit."
Dante remembered several conversations he had overheard between the knights. The fight he had just had with one of them, had been the outcome of him interfering and telling them off.
He didn't like how they were looking at Kilian lately, many were admiring the young Duke, but one of the knights had taken the conversation too far, insinuating other things the man wanted to do to the beautiful blonde that had joined the house.
His insides were still fuming, he had taught the knight a lesson, but Kilian had showed up, making it look like they were fighting for him.
The whole situation irritated him.
How dared they look at his master like that. Though he knew, the thoughts he had had lately were no better.
Kilian was trying to keep up with Dante's pacing, and the only reason he had not complained so far, was because he had noticed Dante was in a foul mood.
He would let it go this time. Dante had always been there for him, only with his best interest in mind.
The vision of the wounded Dante that he had left in the forest was still haunting him.
They reached Kilian's room and Dante removed his hand from Kilian's arm but instead turned around pushing Kilian up against the now-closed door behind them.
"You don't know the effect you have on others, don't just blindly trust everyone in this place."
The words were spat out in anger, blaming Kilian.
"Step away Dante."
The words were low but cold.
Dante had been controlled by his feelings and taken it too far this time, even for Kilian to just ignore it.
The redhead didn't budge, but Kilian could not see Dante's expression as the man lowered his head, the red hair obscuring the view.
"I…just… you don't know."
Dante was struggling with his words, and Kilian could tell there were things that weren't being said.
Still, he would not be treated this way, especially not by someone he trusted.
"Move.."
The word was clear, and Kilian put force behind it, using the power he could feel to push Dante away, just like he had done Lucien once, though back then he had not known it had been this power that had done so.
Now he could control the power better and he managed to push Dante aside without too much force and stepped away from the door.
"I'm sorry.."
The words were desperate now and Kilian felt Dante's body hug him from behind, feeling how fingers were spreading over his throat gently, moving up to take hold of Kilian's chin.
The body against him felt hot, and Dante's muscular arm was holding him in place.
He couldn't move, and he couldn't use his power this way, he had to have direct eye contact with whatever he wanted to interact with.
"I just can't stand how they look at you."
The voice sounded apologetic like Dante desperately wanted Kilian to understand him.
Kilian's mind was racing now.
'Is this the innocent puppy-like Dante he thought would never cross the line.'
"Are you … Jealous?"
Kilian's words filled the room, and Dante stayed still, not replying.
The strong fingers pressed at his chin put more strength into the hold, pushing Kilian's head backward.
"Yeah."
Warm soft lips pressed down on his, the stretched throat making Kilian's mouth open slightly for Dante to explore it with his tongue.