Alex

In the Audra family's villa in Backlund's West Borough.

Emlyn was tucked away in an armchair in the corner, watching the other Sanguine raise their glasses to one another in utter boredom as he thought of his newly acquired doll.

I wonder if Lilia is bored at home by herself... Hmm, probably not. Anna and Lucy are there to keep her company...

Emlyn idly swirled his glass. The bright red liquid inside was not red wine, but blood. He brought it to his lips and took a small sip, its sweet flavor temporarily soothing his restlessness.

So bored... I really want to...

Emlyn's gaze drifted unconsciously toward the inner room. The Sanguine were a race whose numbers fell far short of humanity's, and only a fraction of them lived in Backlund. They all knew one another, and Emlyn's reputation as a recluse was common knowledge among them. Even his recent, surprisingly impressive performance had done nothing to change that.

Gatherings like this were not uncommon among the Sanguine, but most did not specifically invite Emlyn-they simply did not go out of their way to invite him. In fact, Emlyn still knew when these gatherings took place, and if he wanted to attend, he could walk right in.

Today's gathering happened to be one of the few to which he had been invited. The host, Cosmi Odora, had invited the vast majority of the Sanguine, and nearly everyone who was free had accepted. This was because Baron Cosmi had stated in his invitation that one of their kin, who had settled in Feynapotter City, the capital of the Feynapotter Kingdom, had returned to Backlund. This was, in fact, a welcoming ceremony prepared for him.

As a member of a reasonably united race, Emlyn had no choice but to attend for the