The delight in the King's eyes was evident. Lanver saw this and realized that Amadeus was a great king who wanted nothing but the best for his people. It was a shame the human world lacked great leaders like him. But then again, life was not fair. It has never been.
"But I have no idea how to do it," Lanver said.
"As soon as we can awaken your mage blood, then your training will not be that hard for you since you were a trained fighter who had been through a lot."
"Awaken my mage blood?" Lanver was confused. He didn't know if he could ever be accustomed to the terms used in this world.
"Yes. Right now we can only feel your presence as a human. Princess Anna must have sealed it to hide you. However, your blood as a mage must be so strong that it could resist Princess Anna's spell, that's why there were times, as you've noticed, when something weird were happening to you."
"Why would you know what was happening to me back there?"
"Let's just say we have the means to see what is happening in the human world. When we realized we needed you, we looked into your past to confirm if you were really Lord Vincentius' son."
Lanver was sure it wouldn't be easy but since he had decided to involve himself in their chaotic matters, then might as well do something worth his time. He would do what he could to resolve the problem while he was here. As for how he could achieve it, he was sure the King had plans for it.
"To awaken your mage blood, you have to undergo a ritual held by a priestess, which is set to take place this month's full moon, three days from now," Lucius said.
"This ritual… this won't harm me in any way, right?"
"Why, are you scared?" Emery mocked.
Lanver subtly glared at her. "Certainly not, Your Highness," he emphasized how he addressed her remembering how she corrected him the first time they met.
"I just want to make sure you are not trying to get me killed and dishonor our agreement."
Emery's brow rose. "That is still the same."
"I am not a coward," Lanver hissed.
Emery smirked when she recalled how he called him a coward.
Amadeus cleared his throat. "Lanver, as what I have told you, I am a man of my word. So rest assured no one in this kingdom will dare harm you."
"Fine. I will hold you accountable then if anything happens."
"Whatever you please," Amadeus replied with a polite smile.
The door of the hall opened and a servant whispered something to Stuart. Stuart silently went near the table to relay the message to his masters.
"Pardon me for interrupting such an important meeting, Your Majesty, but Prince Vaughn had an unexpected visit and is asking for Her Highness."
"Vaughn?" Weston smirked, looking at Emery. "Didn't you say you already dumped him?"
Lanver nodded to himself. A suitor, huh? He wanted to smirk. He couldn't believe that a man was blind enough to not see that he was barking at the wrong tree. There was no way to deny the princess had a rare beauty, but a sane man would know she wasn't just a beauty. She had a beast within her. He bet she will only enslave his husband.
"I liked Vaughn, though. He always gives me the best blood cherries. You should marry him, Emery," Eloise said.
"I disagree. Vaughn is too arrogant. Besides, Emery only wants virgin men—"
"Mind your words, Weston. Eloise is with us," Amadeus interrupted.
Virgin men… Lanver echoed in his mind in disbelief, remembering the first question she asked him. His dislike for this particular princess had only grown deeper. As if he needed to like her anyway. He would just stay for the time being so why was there a need to like anyone?
"Tell him that His Majesty is not pleased with his presence and is requesting for him to leave," Emery told Stuart.
"Issuing a command on His Majesty's account without his permission is a crime punishable by death, do you know that?" Lucius said in his usual monotone but the ghost of smile in his lips let Lanver knew that although he was telling the truth, he only said it to tease his sister.
Stuart on the other hand didn't know if he would take the princess' command seriously. It was something that concerned His Majesty so he couldn't decide.
"Why don't we ask His Majesty if he would hold me accountable for such a crime?" Emery leaned over the table and spoke with her voice as sweet as she looked. "Will you, Your Majesty?"
She was such a scam, Lanver thought. How could she sound so sweet when she was anything but that? He could only wonder how many men fell for her sweet pretentious acts only to know they fell for an angelic devil at the end.
Amadeus chuckled heartily. "How could I be that heartless?"
"What a luck you have, Emy. I never knew the feeling of being pampered by His Majesty," Weston teased.
"I do not think there is a need to when you have already received so much pampering from your women," Amadeus retorted. Then he turned to the waiting Stuart standing by his side.
"Prepare the dining hall. As much as I want to do as my sister pleases, I cannot offend a royal suitor. Relay my message to Prince Vaughn. He shall join us in our banquet. We will celebrate the arrival of Lord Vincentius' son."
Lanver had no choice but to join them. Though, he was surprised when he saw different dishes on the long table as if it was a feast made for humans. Emery, who took the seat across from him, must have noticed the curiosity in his eyes when she raised her eyebrows.
"What? Are you thinking we vampires only drink blood?"
Lanver didn't say anything because he really thought so. All the reading and movie materials in the human world portray vampires as monsters who could only feed on blood. How could he think of something else when he was raised as a human?
Eloise who was sitting beside him explained, "Blood is what we consume as a primary food, but we can eat anything like humans."
"Oh," Lanver nodded. Vampires were not as horrible as he thought.
"I hope you enjoy the feast, Lanver. I have asked to make a specific drink for you and rest assured not even a drop of blood is mixed with the dishes," Amadeus said as if he knew his doubts.
"Still, I advise you to be careful as you might end up choking in your seat." Emery smiled at him. The kind of smile that would send shivers down anyone's spine.
"How hospitable you are, Your Highness."
Why did she seem to hate him so much? Lanver couldn't help but ask himself. His dislike toward her was reasonable given how she treated him on their first encounter but as for hers, he couldn't understand. It was her who offended him but why was she making him feel as though it was the other way around? This woman must have a serious attitude problem.
"Your Majesty," spoke an unfamiliar voice.
Lanver turned his head to see who it was. The man bowed his head in respect to the King before he went to the seat next to Emery. Lanver's eyes squinted. The man must be the "Prince Vaughn'' they were talking about earlier. At one glance you would know he was a prince with his clothing. The man also had that air in him that screamed arrogance.
"It's a pleasure to have a glimpse of your beauty again, Princess Emery." Prince Vaughn was about to reach for Emery's hand, must be to kiss her knuckles as a gesture, but Emery took the wineglass and sipped on it as if she didn't see his hand coming.
There was an odd sound, like a suppressed chuckle. Lanver noticed Weston was trying to not laugh as he was receiving a warning look from the King.
"The past week most days you were here for hours, Prince Vaughn. I suppose that was enough 'glimpse' of me," Emery said that made Lanver almost wince. For a man's ego, that must have hurt.
But Prince Vaughn was quite persistent in his conquest on taming the princess.
"Nothing will ever be enough, Princess. I would always look forward to our every encounter. Is there even a sane man who would get tired of seeing you?"