"Damn" Arthur couldn't help but curse to which he felt a slight pain in his arm as for the culprit he didn't even have to see to know it was Scarlet.
"Arthur, you are not allowed to use such foul language!" Scarlet reprimanded before letting go of her pinch.
Well anyway, Arthur felt his foul word choice was apt because the scenery in front of him was truly mesmerizing.
The City of Peace was beautiful with its architecture, but compared to the city in front of him they were leagues apart.
It felt like a disservice to even compare.
The city which took them days to arrive was finally in sight.
With its fifty feet high intricately designed walls.
Several patrolling soldiers could be seen on the walls and around the fortress-like structure.
Even with his Mana Sense, he couldn't see the end.
The only similarity this gigantic fortress held with the City of Peace is that as soon as it was their turn for inspection the soldiers gave them permission for entry.
Well, it made sense that a caravan with the Heartfilia Royal Crest would be allowed into the Heartfilia Royal City, right?
After entering through the giant gates the castle which he had been able to see from miles away became even clearer.
In all honesty, Arthur felt relieved knowing he wouldn't be going to the intimidating looking castle.
Despite its beautiful and majestic appearance.
The thought of a formal setting and the way he should act in the face of a king was unsettling.
Taking his eyes away from the castle and to the beautiful buildings around him Arthur knew the place he would be going would still make him uncomfortable.
How should he greet Scarlet's father and mother?
As Grand Duke and Grand Duchess?
Or uncle and aunt?
Should he bow or kneel?
Kneel with one leg or two?
Despite reading countless novels, fiction was still fiction.
While Arthur was lost in thought, Scarlet had noticed his nervousness misunderstanding it for nervousness due to how big the royal capital was.
After all, Arthur had lived on a mountain for most of his life and the City of Peace though quite large, they had only stayed there for a short while.
Arthur is not visiting the Royal Capital but staying indefinitely… heehee.
At that thought she could not help but blush as she looked at Arthur while ignoring the teasing gazes from her uncles and the confused look from Ezekiel.
Knowing it was his first time in Heartfilia Royal City, she explained, "The capital city is divided into two areas: the commoner's residential district and the noble's residential district. The area we are in currently is the commoner's district" Scarlet explained before she pointed to an elevated area, "As for the area over there, that is where the noble's district begins."
"So the commoner and noble district is distinguished by their elevation?" Arthur asked, feeling it was quite a 'noble' thing to do.
"Indeed!" Scarlet replied a bit embarrassedly. The layout of the royal city was not to her liking either.
"However, unlike the commoner district the noble families' statuses can be clearly differentiated by how close they live to the Royal Castle."
Arthur didn't know how to feel, it seems status was quite important in the Vampire Kingdom.
If this was how Vampire Kingdom was run then what about the king?
Would he be an ostentatious, arrogant, status driven man?
Would Arthur be looked down upon?
"Humph!" Scarlet puffed her cheeks before pinching Arthur's arm.
"Ouch, Scarlet! What was that for?"
"Because you were thinking of something bad about my kingdom."
"H-how did you know?"
"Humph!"
"I was just worried after seeing how status seems to be quite important." Arthur confessed hoping Scarlet would let go only for the light pinching to become harder…
"Humph, if anyone dares to be rude to my Arthur, this young miss will show them how the word death is written!" Scarlet said, sitting up from her seat and placing her hands on her hips showing the perfect young miss pose.
Silence…
Noticing the silence, Scarlet looked around and saw everyone was making weird faces directed toward her.
"Why is everyone so quiet?" Scarlet inquired.
[Hehe, 'my Arthur'~]
It took her a moment to understand Yuki's voice transmission, but when she did she immediately sat down as her entire face turned red, not daring to look at anyone, especially not toward Arthur.
She hoped they would arrive at her home quicker
For the remainder of the journey, everyone sat in silence, even Arthur, thickheaded as he may be, sat with a blush.
A few moments later the caravan finally came to a stop and the previously blushing Scarlet swung the door open bursting out leaving everyone behind.
Under the teasing gazes from Uncle Albert and Uncle Thomas, he too disembarked, soon spotting a joyous tearfilled family reunion.
After Scarlet disembarked and spotted her family she could not suppress her emotions as she ran and jumped into her mothers loving embrace, balling her eyes out not caring for the maids and soldiers who had come to welcome her home.
"My daughter" Lynn, despite crying not too long ago, could not stop tears from running down her face once she saw her daughter's grief filled tears.
Ern, seeing his daughter's grief filled tears, wished nothing more than to comfort her; however, he knew he had a more pressing matter.
After taking a deep breath to calm his emotions, Ern said, "All maids and soldiers, you are dismissed for today." After which he turned around, not taking another look at them and went to his daughter who at this point was being embraced by her three equally tearful women.
Arthur, hearing whom he presumed to be Scarlet's father dismissing everyone, didn't know what to do.
He could see all the soldiers that were previously in carriages departing.
The maids and soldiers from the Grand Ducal house were also leaving.
Though he wasn't a maid or a soldier he couldn't shamelessly stay.
With nowhere to go he decided to ask the triplets whom he became quite good friends with if he could be allowed to stay with them.
It was the only choice he had.
With that thought in mind he started walking towards the second carriage where the triplets and Leo were with a tied up Jeffrey.