Once the girl has left, Sincir falls back over the bed and sighs. Somehow, he kept her from finding his dagger...

  Now, wasn’t that a much better way to pass the time than staring at the ceiling while forcing himself to remain awake?

  And besides, what Eleanor doesn’t know, can’t hurt him...

  Sincir is still grinning to himself and staring at ceiling while absently spinning his dagger when a knock against his door stirs him from his thoughts.

  Swiftly hiding his weapon, he heads for the door and opens it, leaning against its frame, then stares up at the masked boy on the other side.

  “...You could’ve enjoyed the party for a while before coming, you know?”

  The faint noise of music drifts down the corridor, coming from the lobby below. Collin is dressed in bck, his clear gray eyes gleaming coldly from behind his also dark crow mask... The effect is impressive on the already handsome vampire, though it is somewhat ruined by his slight blush, and obvious discomfort.

  “I thought it’d prudent to sneak out before more guests arrived...” Collin murmurs, “...Do I wish to ask why the room smells even worse than the tavern below?”

  Stepping aside and gesturing for him to enter, Sincir chuckles. “I could you give a rundown, if you want.”

  Collin sighs. “I think I’ll pass.”

  Closing the door after the vampire, who walks in and leans against the wall before taking one of his signature pocket books from his party suit, Sincir returns to lying over the bed while pying with his dagger.

  “You’re nervous,” he points out, “You’re always reading one these little books whenever you’re trying to hide it.”

  “Your ck of concern is what worries me... Have the preparations been completed?”

  “Sure; The room is soundproofed, and I’ve thought of a way to make our friend wish to become your sve. What about your end?”

  “Gracelyn is downstairs doing her thing... If she fucks this up, I’ll finally have an excuse to murder her.”

  Sincir snorts. “Did you tell her that?”

  “Yes.”

  “You need to rex a little... You should've said you’d spank her in front of the others if she failed... That way, tonight would’ve been a win-win, and you wouldn’t feel as nervous.”

  Collin groans. “Can we not...?”

  “Sorry, sex is more or less all I think about... Speaking of which, did you see Adrienne when you walked in? Fuck, she is something, isn’t she? Can you believe she didn’t tell me the barmaids would be working naked tonight?”

  Collin groans again. “Sincir...”

  Pausing his dagger py, Sincir smiles at him. “Oh, you dropped the mister!”

  He sighs. “Fine, I’ll at least try to rex a little. Will you stop teasing me now?”

  Sincir chuckles. “By the way, I need you and Gracelyn to immediately remove any jewelry he might be carrying once we lock him in here... Break his fingers if you have to, but the faster you do it, the better.”

  Collin nods. “She knows what to do. What happens if we fail?”

  “Kill him, jump through the window, head downtown and kill the rest of his family, too. Then, in the confusion, we take our people and skip kingdoms.”

  Collin freezes. “...Are you serious?”

  “Second option is to kill anyone who might’ve seen us tonight, so yeah, I’m serious... Unless you have a better pn to handle an angered duke with the kingdom of Krador as his backing.”

  Collin curses, his irises glowing slightly redder. “I should’ve tore her head off.”

  “Well, it won’t be too te to find Victoria tonight if we do end up failing... But don’t worry, it won’t get to that. I’ll convince him to see the error of his ways.”

  “How?”

  “With my irresistible charm...?”

  Collin growls.

  “You told me you’d rex, remember?”

  Making a visible effort to calm himself, Collin takes a deep breath. “I’m sorry. The idea of having a servant has me on edge... But you’re right in that being nervous won’t help matters at this point.”

  “Do you remember how the duke’s first wife died?”

  “Of course... It was during Leon’s birth. Why?”

  Sincir smiles. “It’s important to understand your target when trying to convince them of something; Don’t worry, so long as everything else works out, I’ll persuade Leon.”

  Collin sighs. “I certainly hope so...”

  Time slides by slowly, with the party below growing increasingly louder. Sincir somewhat regrets having missed out on the fun downstairs... He bets he could’ve convinced at least some of the girls to take their panties off by now, and not necessarily just the barmaids.

  Now that he thinks on it, he still hasn’t gone to a single actual party since having become a human... For the thousandth time, he wonders how Sunna and the others are doing without him.

  Surely, the Domain hasn’t colpsed by now... But what would he do if it already has...? He’d never forgive himself for having abandoned them.

  Damn it, Collin’s pessimism must’ve rubbed off on him. They are fine, he is sure of it. A hundred or so years will have passed, and it’ll be same as before when they finally reunite... No, it’ll be much better, he is sure of it.

  He’ll...

  “I hear someone coming up the stairs,” Collin suddenly says, straightening himself and putting away his book, “They’re a pair.”

  Sincir perks up, sitting, though he stays at the bed’s edge, rather than rising. “They could be someone else... But we should assume otherwise.”

  Casting a quick wind spell, Sincir puts out the room’s ntern, drowning it in darkness. In tactical agreement, neither him nor Collin say anything else, and Sincir’s soft breathing becomes the only sound still present during the following moments of expectant waiting...

  Once the door’s handle begins to move, loudly in the silence, Sincir holds his breath; Almost immediately, the door opens, reveling the silhouette of a kissing blond couple in the light of the corridor. The man has his back to the dark room, and it is easily pushed inside by the woman, their kiss never breaking as it happens...

  “W-wait, we need to find the ntern-” the man tries to say, as suddenly, the woman kicks the door closed at her back, drowning the room in darkness once more.

  The man screams, but his voice almost immediately cut short by something.

  A few more moments of muffled grunts and struggling ter, Sincir decides that the vampires must have things under control, and casts a fire spell to light the room’s ntern once more.

  Collin has the blond man underneath him on an arm lock, one knee over his back and one hand over his mouth, easily maintaining him in pce in spite of his struggles. Meanwhile, Gracelyn grins like a satisfied cat as she watches the two of them and spins a golden neck-chain around her finger.

  “Don’t let him go just yet,” Sincir tells Collin.

  Gracelyn throws him him a look as he rises and heads for the door.

  “Is that gold chain the only thing you found on him?” he asks her.

  “There were also two rings,” she says, opening her right hand to show them both on top of her palm, “But I didn’t feel anything else on him.”

  “Good job... Do you have the room’s key with you?”

  “I do, but... There is a problem.”

  Sincir sighs; There always is.

  “What?”

  “Leon’s friends are supposed to come up to have their way with me ter.”

  Sincir curses. “Do they know what room we’re in?”

  Gracelyn nods.

  Thinking fast, Sincir considers his options for a moment, then turns toward Collin.

  “You’ll have to go down and tell Adrienne to keep them busy. I don’t care if she has to climb on top of their table naked to do it, or blow all of them at once... Tell her Gracelyn will do whatever she wants as compensation ter.”

  “What?!” Gracelyn excims, “No, I-!”.

  “It was your job to bring him here,” Collin says, his voice cold as he stares daggers at the vampire from behind his crow mask, “And now, as usual, Adrienne has to clean after your mess... Just give me a reason, Gracelyn.”

  Gracelyn steps back, raising her palms. “You’re right, I didn’t take into account how fucked up our young master down there truly is. Forget Adrienne, I’ll go down myself and entertain them-”

  “You can’t,” Sincir interrupts, “They just saw you come up with him; What will they think, if you suddenly show up by yourself? I’m sorry for her, but Adrienne will have to handle this. Collin, turn him in my direction for a moment, will you?”

  As Collin does so, Sincir kicks Leon’s stomach hard enough to have him bend over himself; Or at least try to, before Collin pulls his head into position.

  “Okay, you can let him go now. We’ll leave the door unlocked for you, but knock before entering, so we can cover his mouth, okay?”

  Collin nods; Half a breath of air ter, the door is closing behind him, and he is gone from the room.

  Now freed, poor Leon tries his best to scream through his ck of air, to no avail, looking like a fish out of the water...

  “...What now?” Gracelyn asks, her voice and expression clearly stormy over what happened.

  “Give me the key and the jewelry, then undress him... You can do as much by yourself without him being able to escape, yes?”

  Gracelyn smiles. “Can I hurt him? For all the groping from this piece of shit I had to put through, tonight?”

  Sincir sighs. “You can grope his cock if you want, but don’t crush it; Now get to work. If I were you, I wouldn’t give Collin any more reasons.”

  “Victoria’s friends... Are you...?” Leon murmurs from the ground breathlessly, ughing as he does so, “You... You’ll regret this...”

  Sincir ignores him in virtue of inspecting the pieces of jewelry Gracelyn hands him. He expected at least one of them to be magical... But he is surprised to find that all three of them contain runes drawn across their surface.

  “Lords... Must be nice to have been born a rich kid,” Sincir murmurs.

  Meanwhile, Gracelyn punches Leon’s stomach once more as she begins to remove his clothes and throw them aside, seeming to be enjoying every moment of his effortless struggles.

  Sincir merely watches, sitting at the bed’s edge and pcing the jewelry at his feet as Gracelyn has her fun by bullying Leon and groping his cock... He didn’t think she’d actually do it, but what do you know?

  During their first meeting, Collin said she was the youngest of them and thought herself invincible... Sincir can see it. The vampire is clearly drunk on her own strength.

  “You...! Take your hands off me! Help! Kidnappers! Murderers!”

  Sincir rolls his eyes; Mercifully, he doesn’t have to tell Gracelyn to shut him up before she sps him across the face.

  “Nobody will hear you, rich boy, so spare yourself the trouble,” she murmurs, fangs extended and eyes having grow red over the vision of Leon’s bleeding lip, “I don’t think I’m allowed to bite you, but they might change their mind, if you continue misbehaving... And I’d love a taste.”

  “That’s enough, Gracelyn; Let him go. If he tries to run, break one of his legs, but do it in a way where the bone won’t pierce his skin... We don’t need him bleeding out before we’re done with him.”

  Looking disappointed, Gracelyn steps back from Leon, smiling at him as she grabs his clothes and heads toward the wall, leaning against it.

  Once more freed, Leon finally rises, shifting his green eyes between the two of them as he does so...

  Leon’s height is average, and his frame is on the skinnier side of things, while his blond hair is somewhat long for a man, but still cut above his ears... He is handsome in a way some may call him pretty; In woman clothes, Sincir might’ve not been to tell his sex.

  Furthermore, even naked, dishevelled and pale, his demeanor is that of noble, reminding Sincir of No.

  “...No more threats?” he asks once a couple moments of silence have gone by, with Leon simply staring at them, “Won’t you tell us about all the things daddy will do once he finds out about this...? About all the countermeasures you have in pce for Victoria, if you were to disappear all of a sudden?”

  Leon licks his bloodied lip, then spits on the ground. “I don’t mind pain, but I also don’t quite enjoy it... If being silent will keep that bitch away from my cock, then so be it.”

  Sincir sighs. Things would’ve been much easier if he was a pushover... But since Leon is the one who outwitted Victoria, he expected at least this much. Still, it’d most likely be hard to break him with physical torture alone, at least in a single night.

  “...What? Are you just going to stare at me?”

  “Ah, the blessing of ignorance...” Sincir murmurs, and then, louder, “I’ve met many monsters during my lifetime, Leon. Some would argue I was one of them, for a part of it... And I’d be forced to agree with them. Tell me, where do you think monsters come from?”

  “You’re not a vampire, or a servant,” Leon murmurs, seeming to have just now realized as much.

  Sincir smiles. “The answer is that some of them are born, while others are created... Looking at you, I can tell you weren’t born a monster, Leon. And that... That means you should be very, very afraid of what’s about to happen.”

  Leon swallows, his composed facade breaking for a brief moment before he tightens his jaw and gres at him. “I don’t care who or what you are... Your little act cannot scare me. Whatever you want, it doesn’t involve killing me, or you would’ve already done so. I just have to hold until somebody finds us, and you’ll run with your tail between your legs.”

  Sincir cocks his head. “You’re right in that we’re on a time frame, but we also have no reason to allow you to live if we fail to achieve our objective.”

  Leon pales.

  “I can smell your fear, rich boy,” Gracelyn murmurs, taking a deep breath as she does so, “Don’t worry, we’ll start soon enough...”

  Not that she knows what they are about to do either, but Sincir isn’t going to point that out, of course...

  Collin chooses this moment to knock on their door; Or, at least, Sincir hopes Collin is the one who is knocking, or they’ll have a problem on their hands.

  “Gracelyn-”

  Before Sincir can finish his sentence, she is already on top of Leon, knocking him down like a kid bullying someone smaller and weaker.

  He sighs. “Just make sure he can’t scream.”

  Rising, he heads for the door and opens it slightly, taking a peek outside; Seeing an impatient looking Collin standing in the corridor, he opens it some more, allowing the vampire inside before quickly closing it again, and locking it this once.

  “Did it work?” Sincir asks.

  “She wasn’t happy, but she agreed to it. I believe her words were: I should’ve known better than to expect something of her.”

  Gracelyn grimaces. “That little ungrateful...!”

  “We’ll have a long talk tomorrow, Gracelyn,” Collin says, his voice barely more than a growl, “Where Adrienne will tell me in details exactly how you’ve been treating her... And for the sake of your well-being, you better hope she has only good things to say.”

  The female vampire pales.

  “Now, now; We should leave our domestic problems for once we’re done with our guest,” Sincir interjects, “Gracelyn, you can release him now.”

  She does so, her expression dark as she returns to her corner.

  Sincir sighs. “I’m sorry you had to see this, Leon.”

  “What... What do you want from me?”

  Beginning to circle the pale young man, who is still on his knees, Sincir smiles. “As you’ve guessed, we’re Victoria’s acquaintances... And you, you’ve been a very, very naughty boy tely, haven’t you?”

  “She had it coming... She tried to make me her pything.”

  Sincir chuckles. “Maybe. Did all the women you’ve raped also had it coming?”

  Having to strain his neck in order to keep up with him, Leon frowns. “Some of them did... But I won’t pretend I’m a saint. If it’s justice you’re after...”

  Sincir clicks his tongue. “Oh, I’m far from a defender of the weak; Don’t worry, I’m not here to judge your sins, plentiful as they may be...”

  Stopping behind Leon’s kneeling form, Sincir leans down and grabs his hair, forcing his head back while whispering into his ear, “It must’ve been hard to grow up without mom... I myself was abandoned by mine, but I can’t imagine what it must be like to live knowing you were the very cause of your mother’s death.”

  Leon tenses his body, gritting his teeth while gring at him... He doesn’t attempt to free himself.

  “I heard you have two older brothers... They must not like you very much, as the one who killed their mother.”

  Leon swallows, and Sincir can tell his guess is spot on.

  “And daddy... Daddy must hate you most of all... Say, Leon... Is there a single person who has ever loved you?”

  Leon smiles coldly. “Love is the lie peasants tell themselves, so they can bear another day of their boring existence.”

  Gracelyn snorts. “So, that’s a no.”

  Sincir ignores her, maintaining his gaze locked against Leon’s. “This doesn’t need to be painful, Leon... Swear your loyalty to me, and you’ll live this room in one piece.”

  Leon spits in his face.

  Pulling away, Sincir nonchantly wipes himself, then sighs. “The hard way it is, then. You see, Leon, the mind is an interesting pce. It contains our greatest fears, as well as our most cherished dreams... I hope you know I take little pleasure in this.”

  Pointing his hand at the kneeling young noble, Sincir casts a mind spell, invading his mind.

  ...The boy stands near the door to his his father’s office quietly, hoping he won’t be noticed.

  The old man’s screams cause him to flinch, but he doesn’t dare to make a sound; Not when he knows he’ll become the target of his father’s anger the moment he is spotted.

  It matters not that he wasn’t to bme for what happened; Only that he was present when it did... By now, he understands as much. His father needs an excuse, nothing else.

  Still, as much as he tries to make himself smaller and smaller, the inevitable moment comes when his father turns in his direction, hand clenching around his walking cane, and with fire in his eyes.

  The boy tries to run, but he doesn’t get far before one of the maids grabs him.

  She apologizes, and absently, the boy notices her hands are shaking heavily.

  He doesn’t care; The only thought in his mind is to get away before his father catches up...

  Sincir blinks, the memory leaving him as he once more finds himself focusing on the figure of Leon on the ground, now panting and wide-eyed.

  “What... What did you do to me...?”

  Sincir smiles. “Sorry, and just as things were about to become interesting... I’ll try to keep us in for longer this time.”

  ...The vision makes the boy sick.

  He feels a hole is about to open under his feet, but yet he stands... Because crying now would only give them the satisfaction they were looking for.

  “What? No reaction?” his brother asks, “And we even went through the trouble of removing its skin, after killing it...”

  “It was just an animal,” the boy finds himself saying, “Why would I care? You can do whatever you want with it.”

  “Really? Then I guess we’ll just throw it away... What a waste of time.”

  The boy watches them throw the dog’s carcass aside, his hand clenching over the pommel of his sword.

  But no... Not now, not yet.

  One day...

  “Stop!” Leon screams, breaking Sincir’s hold over his mind once more as he clenches his head and screams, “Whatever you’re doing, stop it at once!”

  Leon has a strong will, he has to admit it. But unfortunately, it won’t help him for long.

  Staring at the young noble man now crawling away from him with an expression of terror, Sincir clicks his tongue. “Oh, Leon... I apologize for saying nobody ever loved you. That dog must’ve adored you... And yet, you couldn’t even be bothered to cry for it. Let’s take a look at some of your happy memories with it, shall we?”

  “N-!”

  Once more, Sincir dives through Leon’s mind, the young noble’s memories pying before his senses as a myriad of colors and sounds nearly indistinguishable from each other... But the boy’s own feelings highlight what he is looking for; The memory of hunting through the forest with his beloved companion at his side. The sounds of nature around them, away from the scornful eyes of his family...

  ...The dog barks once, snarling, and the boy nocks an arrow, smiling.

  Their prey was persistent this time; They must be at least a couple of hours away from the family’s countryside manor by now.

  Oh, he’ll be scolded, and perhaps even punished when he finally returns, but these few hours of respite are well worth it...

  There!

  Noticing something among the bushes, the boy aims and shoots in a single breath; His prey’s cry of pain is brief, but rewarding.

  He doesn’t care for the meat, of course; However, the obvious joy in his companion’s eyes as it barks and runs circles around their catch is more than enough to justify the hunt...

  Leon screams, wordlessly.

  “You know, I always wondered what makes humans so arbitrarily empathetic to some species of animals, but not to others... No matter. I liked that memory! I think we should revisit it a couple of times, before we go back to the one where you found your brothers over your dog’s corpse again... We can look for something new to py with ter. Let me know if you ever become bored of the dog, okay?”