Lionel grabbed hold of the hand, his body moving fast as he stood up from his sleeping position. His eyes landed on the intruder, his gaze taking over him.
Seeing who it was, he was disappointed for a while, his mouth letting out a soft hiss before his eyes lit up again.
He had thought there was no one for him in the mansion, no one stationed to be his guide, but the man before him proved otherwise.
"Your Highness, are you okay?" the man said, his voice highlighting the concern.
"Who are you?" Rather than answer his question, Lionel threw it back to him, which was rather bothersome.
"Huh?" the figure sounded, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.
"Are you sure you are okay, Your Highness?" the man stated, his eyes taking over Lionel as he looked at him from head to toe.
"Don't I look okay? Do I look stupid? Is that what you're saying?" Lionel said, feigning annoyance.
As the man sensed the anger in Lionel's tone, his knees buckled, and he bowed before Lionel, one of his legs bent as he placed his elbow on it. "I dare not, Your Highness. I was just worried…"
He paused as he raised his head up, looking at Lionel properly. "I was just surprised that you don't know who I am."
'You'd be surprised by all I don't know,' Lionel thought in his mind.
He looked at the man properly, taking in his attire, composure, and appearance. 'He looks like a warrior; by chance, could he be my guard?'
His hand on his chin, he went deep in thought, adding, 'And if he's truly my guard, then he must know a lot about me. I need to take advantage of this opportunity to ask him questions about me… but how?'
"Your Highness, are you sure you're alright?" the man said again, but this time quite carefully, as it showed in his tone and expression. "You appear lost in your thoughts."
"Yes, I am. I said I don't know you, so care to tell me who you are? I might've suffered a little insomnia from my disappearance."
"Sorry, Your Highness!" the man said, his voice a little bit loud as he bent down on his knees, his head bowed before Lionel.
"For what?" Lionel was surprised by the sudden change in tone and actions.
"I was not there to save or assist you while you were gone. I didn't even know that you were kidnapped and could be dying."
"You didn't know?" Lionel said. "I was gone for almost three weeks, and you didn't think that I might be in danger?"
"Yes…" the man said, his voice trailing off in confusion as he studied Lionel's actions, which seemed odd to him.
"Why?"
"Because…" the man started but stopped, his eyes looking around the room before settling back on Lionel. "Because you told me about your escape plan, so I thought you had taken to it. Had I known that you were kidnapped, I would've come to save you earlier, but it's nice that you are safe."
"I planned to escape the palace?" Lionel asked.
'It shouldn't be something that surprises me that much, but why does it? It was obvious that the prince wouldn't be okay with the way he was treated here, but why run away? Wouldn't it be better if he gets stronger and takes revenge?' he brooded, his hand on his chin, before his eyes lit up. 'Oh right… he can't cultivate under their watch.'
"Your Highness, talking about an escape plan, before your attempted assassination, you had me prepare and put in order an escape plan you have."
"Another escape plan?" Lionel's eyebrows furrowed.
"Ah… yes, Your Highness. For the last few months, you've been planning how to leave the kingdom so as to get stronger and get your revenge on the king."
"Oh…" Lionel mouthed before adding, "Can I see the plan, or rather, can you tell me?"
"Of course, I can. I did the findings for you. You can see it," he said, and then, placing his hand on a ring worn on his finger, a part like a map appeared on his palm, and the man showed it to Lionel.
Lionel took the paper, his eyes not leaving the man as he asked, "You haven't told me who you are. I said I have like a slight—"
Lionel continued, but the man cut in almost quickly as he heard the first sentence, "Sorry, Your Highness. My name is Karvin. I'm your guard."
'Guessed right,' he muttered as he looked through the paper.
The paper was a map highlighting the areas of the Vampire kingdom: the various cities, regions, planes, and neighboring continents. And especially, the way to get to the portal connecting the different realms of the world, and most importantly, the Human Kingdom.
"I wish to go to the Human Kingdom through the portal?" Lionel asked.
"Yes, Your Highness," Karvin said. "Previously, we discussed ways you could leave the kingdom without getting noticed by the king. Lately, I've also been teaching you some sword skills to fight in the portal, and you've also been reading some ancient books from the royal library so as to be able to successfully leave the portal with an option of mental fortitude. That way, you'll use the portal as a medium to escape."
"Okay… sounds like a good plan. So, how will the way to use the portal arrive? The prince—" Lionel started but stopped, a cough leaving his mouth as he corrected himself. "I mean, I certainly can't leave the palace without a reason."
"Yes, Your Highness, that was in accordance with our plan. That's where the king comes in."
"As how?" Lionel said, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.
"As one of the royal princes of the kingdom, the king wishes to use you in signing a treaty with the Elfien tribe. The Elfien kingdom is known for their thriving land in agriculture and other materials used to make artifacts, build great buildings, and weave clothes. So the king wishes to sign a trade treaty with them, and that can only be made possible by giving them something of ours and then also receiving something in return."
"Is that like a marriage? Like the king chooses for me to marry perhaps their princess?" Lionel asked as he was also using his brain while listening to the story.
"Yes," Karvin nodded.
"And how does that make me leave the kingdom? Isn't the princess going to leave her tribe and come to live with me in the palace?"
"No, Your Highness," Karvin said, shaking his head in disagreement. "You are to go to the Elfien tribe to live with the princess and be treated like a hostage prince. That is going to be bad for you, as a hostage prince, you'll be treated badly."
"So, how does marriage relate to me leaving the palace?" Lionel asked.
"Initially, the prince doesn't plan to leave the palace so soon because he hasn't practiced or learned the sword skills that much, but with the current emergence, he needs to leave. The Elfien kingdom's only princess is known to awaken her affinity to Soul weaving at a later age than others and since then, she had gone crazy with hee practices which requires her to use live entities as test subjects. That way, giving you to the Elfien kingdom for the princess to marry is like a very wonderful gift to the kingdom. It makes the Elfien princess a powerful tool in aiding her cultivation, as your regenerative ability will make it easier for her to test her powers on you without waiting so long for you to heal or changing test aids regularly."
"Oh… I finally understand. Leaving the Vampire kingdom to go to the Elfien kingdom is like the worst sort of fate to ask for, as I'll be used as a test aid."
"Yes, exactly," Karvin said, nodding his head.
"So, when I'm to leave the palace to go to the Elfien tribe, I'll use that medium to escape on the way there, and from there, I'll use the laid-out map and go toward the portal, then pass through the portal after fighting all obstacles and then reach the Human Kingdom, right?"
"That's right…" Karvin nodded his head.
"Well, that sounds like a stupid plan."