That night, none of Everstar City's four main gates were closed.
"An order from the King! Make way! Make way!" More than a dozen knights rode out through the city gates at the same time, carrying the Nine-Pointed Star Flag and the Cross Double Star Flag. Their expressions were solemn.
"Are these all the messengers?" At the North City Gate, the City Guard captain watched the messengers leave with a grave expression.
"Not all of them." The City Guard officer who had hurried over shook his head. "There are three other gates."
Carrying orders from Revival Palace, the messengers hurried toward the residences of the influential figures—so thought the City Guard officer who knew the inside story.
And that was not all. There were also more Messenger Crows, dispatched to nobles farther away.
"Something major has happened." The City Guard officer, nearing fifty, patted the captain's shoulder and spoke softly.
Hopefully, it wasn't another Year of Blood.
Tales had firmly declined Gilbert and Lady Jinnie's offer to accompany him. ("Sorry, Mr. Gilbert, Lady Jinnie, but this is a Covenant between her and me. I have to face it alone—I promise I'll tell you what was discussed." Tales had shaken his head resolutely.) He walked silently beside Yordel.
For the first few minutes, neither of them said a word.
Only after turning around a corner and leaving the nearest guard isolated behind the wall did Tales stop and look at the Masked Guard.
Yordel stopped as well.
"We need to talk," Tales said, hesitating as he drew a deep breath. Then he added, "In private."
Yordel walked in front of him and silently crouched down.
"As you wish." The masked secret guard spoke as he gently placed a hand on Tales's shoulder.
The next moment, Tales felt a strange ripple spread out. Everything around him and Yordel turned a bizarre white.
As if they had entered another world.
"The Shadow Realm." Yordel gave a brief explanation.
Tales nodded, but his expression remained solemn. The strange, pure-white surroundings failed to attract his attention—he had more important matters to deal with.
Silence fell between them.
"Yordel." Tales struggled to organize his thoughts before forcing himself to speak.
"How much do you know... about what happened between the Air Elementalist and me?"
As usual, Yordel said nothing. He merely lowered his head slightly and looked at the black-haired, gray-eyed boy.
"When Morat wanted to go to the study with me for a private talk, you deliberately stopped him." Tales slowly closed his eyes, patiently sorting through everything that had happened before and after. His voice was heavy. "You knew that the study on the third floor had special soundproofing that would block the Blood Race's hearing and voice transmission. That was why you insisted that we stay on the second floor to talk, so that you could seek Serena's help and, under Morat's watchful eyes, deliver an extremely important warning..."
"To help me get past Morat's shrewd interrogation and conceal..." Tales paused. Slowly, he opened his eyes and looked at the purple mask. In the end, he spoke firmly. "...conceal my true identity."
"Is that right?"
Tales stared intently at the royal family's secret guard.
The mask remained motionless, facing him.
After another long, awkward silence, Yordel's gaze lowered slightly. Only then did his low, hoarse voice emerge from behind the dark-purple mask.
"I'm... not like Gilbert..."
"...I'm not good with words."
Under Tales's complicated gaze, the Masked Guard spoke heavily.
"After what happened on Red Quarter Street, I didn't know how to begin, either."
Tales stared at him. "But you knew from the beginning."
Yordel's mask moved slightly.
"Yes." His hoarse voice came from behind the mask.
"That night..."
"I was there the entire time." Yordel's voice was filled with heaviness. "I heard what the Magic User said."
"I also noticed your... unusualness, the strange reaction you had when facing the Magic User, the vase that shattered for no reason in the corridor, and the explosion beneath Weed Manor..."
"So I knew that you were..."
Tales drew a deep breath. "Then my father..."
Yordel shook his head.
His voice sounded as if it came from another world as it rang in Tales's ears. "Only I know, young sir. Only I know..."
The Masked Guard said nothing more.
Tales froze.
He stared blankly at this strange man who had always protected him, yet always hidden his face beneath a mysterious mask.
That was right. Yordel had always known.
Yet he had kept Tales's secret.
"Why?" The boy heard his own voice tremble slightly, filled with incredulous astonishment. "You knew I was one of those..."
Tales paused for a second.
He remembered the basement in the darkness, and Ashida's face flickering in the firelight.
At that moment, his tongue felt as heavy as a thousand tons.
But Tales still clenched his teeth, took a deep breath, and painfully forced out the name. "Calamity."
"You knew how taboo those Calamities were—so why did you still..."
Yordel slowly clasped both of his shoulders, interrupting Tales's thoughts.
"Child," he rasped.
"I've seen... many things. More than you can imagine."
"This country and your family," he said softly, "have been destined to become entangled with those Calamities since the day they were born."
"That was true more than six hundred years ago."
"That was true twelve years ago."
Tales's heart trembled.
Twelve years ago?
The Brilliant Star family entangled with Calamity?
"It is still true now."
"I've seen those Calamities more than once."
"I have a feeling."
"What is truly terrifying and fearsome is not those Calamities."
"It is ourselves."
"It is what we ordinary people will become for the sake of those so-called Calamities, how far we will fall, how rotten we will become, and what boundaries we will sacrifice."
Yordel paused, as if considering what to say next.
"I know you may be a 'Calamity.'" The usually silent Masked Guard had said more to Tales than ever before.
His voice became hesitant. "But I know that many people in this country have already become uglier and more terrifying than those Calamities."
"They have already brought about calamity without even realizing it."
Tales frowned uneasily.
"Morat, for example?"
"He is only one of them. The Black Prophet ceased to be a Prophet long ago. Only darkness remains."
Yordel raised his head. The dark lenses reflected the surrounding pallid whiteness, with Tales's isolated figure appearing within them, thin and bleak.
"By comparison."
"Mr. Tales, I would rather believe in you."
Yordel seemed not to have spoken so much in a long time. Yet his clumsy attempts to search for the right words, and the sincerity behind them, left Tales with mixed emotions.
At that moment, the boy did not know what expression or state of mind he should use to face this secret guard.
"But why me?" Tales took three deep breaths before speaking again. "Just because Brilliant Star blood flows through my veins?"
Yordel slowly shook his head.
"I'm not Gilbert. Nor do I believe in something as meaningless as bloodlines."
"I believe in the seven-year-old boy who did everything he could to protect his companions in a desperate situation. I believe he is different from those ugly people."
"I'm also willing to believe that you, a Brilliant Star born from humble origins, will become... a king unlike any other in this rotten kingdom."
A king unlike any other?
Tales instinctively spoke. "Like Crown Prince Midir, my uncle?"
Yordel was silent for several seconds.
"No." The Masked Guard spoke, his voice low and sorrowful.
His hoarse voice was firm. "You will be better than him."
"I know you have something he does not."
Tales trembled slightly, and his breathing quickened.
He looked at Yordel's expressionless mask and remained speechless for a long time.
After a while—
"Thank you."
After finally calming himself, Tales could only say those two words.
Usually quick-witted and eloquent, he was truly at a loss for words now.
The Masked Guard, kneeling on one knee, gave a heavy and forceful nod.
Yordel spoke hoarsely once more.
This time, his words were even more sincere.
"Yordel Gato."
"At your service."
Tales drew a deep breath.
For quite some time, he said nothing.
"There's one more thing." He heard himself ask with difficulty, "If you were there the entire night..."
"From when did you... start being there?"
Yordel's hand sank slightly.
Tales's breathing grew faint and uneven as he spoke slowly.
"You saw... saw Quade in the Ruined House..." Tales clenched his teeth and forced the question out in a trembling voice. "...didn't you?"
The Masked Guard gently released him.
He said nothing.
Nothing at all.
At that moment, Tales felt that Yordel's mask, and the pair of lenses set into it, were unbearably cold.
His heart suddenly chilled.
"You didn't stop him." Tales murmured, remembering the bloodshed that night.
"Even after he entered our house... you still didn't stop him..."
Tales asked in a trembling voice:
"Why?"
"The Prince could have been among those beggars, couldn't he?"
"And besides... those children..."
Tales had actually guessed the answer long ago.
But he had not dared to be certain.
He had to ask.
Yordel slowly stood up and interrupted him.
"It's time to go."
Yordel spoke indifferently.
"They'll become suspicious."
At that moment, the Masked Guard was like a machine without any emotions.
He reminded Tales of Ashida's smile.
It held no warmth.
Although Serena's room was not as far away as Lady Jinnie's "one hundred meters," it was not as close as he had imagined, either.
The Blood Race's guest rooms had been set up in the spacious storage cellar beneath Mindis Hall, far from sunlight, crowds, and Tales.
"Good evening, Mr. Tales." The pale-faced Blood Race, the Old Butler Chris Corleone, who knew not how many years he had lived, bowed slightly at the "door" and gave Yordel a deathly smile.
"Welcome back, Mr. Mask—when you suddenly appeared just now, you gave us quite a fright."
Yordel did not reply.
Chris did not take offense. He turned to Tales and nodded lightly. "Her Highness is waiting for your visit."
Tales, his mood anxious and complicated, raised his head and glanced at Yordel.
The latter's mask gave an almost imperceptible nod. He moved to the other side of the doorway and stood there with Chris like two gatekeepers.
Tales also nodded slightly. After taking a deep breath, he pushed open the door and walked toward Serena Corleone, who had been waiting inside.
His recent savior.
And the next problem after Morat.
"Ah, my long-awaited ally."
The little girl with red eyes had a profound expression. Against her black dress, she lifted her skirt and curtsied to him.
"It seems that, with my help..." Lisping, Serena emphasized the word "help" and continued with an unsettling smile, "you've already gotten rid of your trouble."
"Then it's time to discuss our payment and reward, isn't it?"
(Occasionally, Chapter 33 gets censored, so I'm posting it here as a backup.)
Blood Donation: One Bag Saves a Life
Serena had already been waiting in her so-called "room."
Aside from two Eternal Lamps, the place was pitch-black—Tales suspected those lamps had also been lit for his sake.
Rolana and Istrone were nowhere to be seen.
Behind the red-eyed little girl was still that absurdly large Black Coffin. If Tales had not personally witnessed how the Blood Race fiddled with a mechanism and folded the coffin back down to the size of a normal one, he would have suspected that the Blood Race possessed some so-called "magic user" to transport it.
But now, looking at the Black Coffin, Tales frowned.
"What's wrong?" Serena asked curiously.
"Nothing." Tales spoke indifferently, his expression returning to normal as he swallowed the words, Why did you put a toilet in the middle of the room?
"I came to thank my ally for her support, Seren—may I call you that?"
Serena raised her eyebrows almost imperceptibly and pursed her chubby little cheeks.
Just support, merely an ally's duty, not help that requires repayment?
What a sly, pedantic little boy.
Serena thought in displeasure.
"It was only a few cryptic messages—and please keep calling me Lady Serena—and I also happened to learn a few of your dirty little secrets." Serena tilted her head and revealed a cute little-girl smile. "As Suye would say... 'Why not?'"
"Isn't that right, especially when I'm your dear ally with an ambiguous relationship with a Magic User?"
Silence fell between them for a moment.
Of course. The Old Witch— Tales thought. She wouldn't let an opportunity like this pass.
"No, your help was very important to me. I'm truly grateful." Tales smiled shyly, his gaze sincere, as though he were a grateful little boy.
"Otherwise, in front of the Black Prophet, I might have confessed everything—the civil war within the Corleone Clan and the truth behind your refuge in the Star Kingdom. After all, that was the Black Prophet. Who knew what terrifying things he might do after learning those secrets?"
"I wouldn't want anything bad to happen to my ally—I hope you feel the same way, Seren."
Serena's gaze instantly turned cold.
"You really refuse to take even the slightest loss, don't you, my ally?" she said with a deliberate smile, revealing two tiny fangs. "And don't call me Seren."
That trick doesn't scare me anymore. Tales looked at Serena, who appeared to be only five or six years old, and found her crooked smile amusing.
"I thought allies were supposed to trust one another, not threaten each other back and forth." Tales' smile grew brighter as he took a step forward. "Our interests are aligned, dear Serena."
"Since our interests are aligned—please call me Lady Serena—then show more sincerity. For example, I and my subordinates need more blood. Fresh blood." Serena's red pupils focused as she took a step forward as well and looked at Tales.
Of course. A dog can't change its spots—cough, cough.
"Fresh blood from the living is a little difficult. But I came here to fulfill our Covenant." Tales drew a deep breath, stepped forward, and met those red eyes directly, doing his best to drive the image of the Mummy from his mind. He smiled. "To bind our mutual interests even more tightly—Seren."
Seren? What an impudent Short-Lived Species. Serena thought, slightly annoyed. Once I reclaim the throne from that bastard...
She looked at Tales' relaxed smile.
"Hmph. So, are you saying..." Serena gave a light chuckle, her little mouth curving upward. "That you've finally decided to propose to me?"
Uh...
Tales felt his entire worldview tremble.
With an expression as though he had eaten something foul, he helplessly looked at the smugly smiling four-hundred-year-old Old Witch.
You win.
Tales sighed. Under Serena's brightening gaze, he rolled up the sleeve of his left arm and extended his exposed wrist in front of the red-eyed little girl.
"My blood. This is the Covenant we agreed upon." He spoke indifferently.
Serena's expression shifted, then turned into a smile. "I believe in your sincerity now, dear ally."
I thought he would keep shirking his obligations forever.
The Archduchess closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, the curve of her lips growing wider.
This boy isn't so annoying after all.
"Remember, one-eighth of a pint, Seren." Tales' gaze was solemn, and his breathing quickened. "No more."
"But no less, either." Serena opened her eyes. Ignoring his choice of address, she gave an eerie smile. "I'll control the amount of blood."
An intoxicated, feverish excitement appeared on the little girl's face.
Only now, with his heart pounding uneasily, did Tales truly feel that the person standing before him was a four- or five-hundred-year-old female member of the Blood Race.
"The amount of blood?"
Could you use a different term?
Tales looked at Serena, who had transformed into a gourmet, and swallowed with difficulty.
The shadow of the "Mummy" from earlier refused to fade.
"Hey, could you make your eyes a little gentler..."
"That expression is kind of scary. It's making my skin crawl..."
"Ah—give me some warning, big sis! Don't just sink those bloody jaws into me!"
"Ah! That hurts!"
Tales' frantic voice came from inside the room.
Yordel's mask trembled, and he was about to move when the Blood Race's Old Butler blocked his way.
"This is their Covenant," Chris said coldly, staring fearlessly at the Masked Guard opposite him.
Before the fangs of the Blood Race, humans were always at a disadvantage.
Even if that youngling—that child—was the designated heir to the Western Continent's second-most powerful nation.
But as the feeding continued...
Something seemed... not quite right?
Tales' voice came from inside the Black Coffin again.
Chris' expression grew increasingly ugly.
"Good. Keep up that rhythm."
"Stay rational. Don't cross the line."
"Serena, good girl. For the sake of my health, slow down a little..."
Chris' face began to turn from white to livid.
Damn Short-Lived Species.
Is that boy doing this on purpose?
He glared viciously at Yordel.
Yordel's hand, raised in midair, paused.
Chris twitched as he watched Yordel turn both hands outward and make a helpless gesture.
"Yes," the Masked Guard said hoarsely and helplessly. "This is their Covenant."
Yordel calmly returned to the doorway and clasped his hands behind his back again.
Before Chris could explode and charge into the room, Serena finally drank her fill. Satisfied, she released the tense Tales and licked her bright-red lips.
"Thank you for the hospitality," the red-eyed little girl said sweetly.
"You're welcome." Tales' face was ashen. Sitting on the floor with an annoyed expression, he rubbed the two small holes on his wrist and opened and closed his mouth.
"Donate one bag of blood, save one life."
He felt that she had secretly drunk far too much.
"Don't worry. That child is tougher than we imagined." Gilbert walked down into the first-floor hall and looked at Jinnie, who was staring blankly into space.
Just then, the sound of a horse galloping came from outside Mindis Hall.
Gilbert's expression changed. It was a messenger on horseback.
"It looks like it'll be a troublesome night." Jinnie came back to herself, her expression complicated as she watched the messenger respectfully present a Wax-Sealed Scroll bearing the Nine-Pointed Star Seal.
Gilbert broke the wax seal and opened the scroll. The more he read, the darker his expression became.
"Something major has happened." Gilbert set down the scroll and knitted his brows deeply. "His Majesty has urgently summoned us to the palace."
"Of course. You are, after all, his most trusted Attendant Officer and Former Foreign Minister." Jinnie sighed, unconcerned, and turned toward the stairs. "As for me, forget it. I'd rather stay here and watch over that child."
"No."
Gilbert turned toward Jinnie, his expression more solemn than ever.
Facing Jinnie, he lifted the upper edge of the scroll and gave it a light shake.
At the bottom of the paper, the signature of Kessel the Radiant Star and the Nine-Pointed Star Seal were revealed.
"His Majesty has urgently summoned all of us. We are to proceed to Revival Palace immediately."
"That includes the child."
Whether you believe it or not, I really did post two chapters today. — Wu Jian, looking utterly serious
P.S. I heard today is Qixi Festival. How many people are spending it alone, like Wu Jian?