SPELLBOUND

The moment Evie felt her bodice loosen up, a soft knock echoed behind the door, causing them both to freeze up and suddenly become motionless.

"Your Highness, everyone's been gathered and are waiting for you now." The voice on the other side of the door called out and Gavriel groaned under his breath.

Evie on the other hand was quick to turn around and had her back facing him. She gathered her long silvery locks to her front and looked back expectantly at him, arching a perfectly formed brow. "Please tie them up again so we can finally go. And make sure they're tied properly." she said as she glanced at the ribbons he had just untied not even a couple minutes ago. Gavriel let out another groan followed by a frustrated sigh before eventually doing what his wife had ordered him to do.

Evie bit her lips in order to hold back her smile. She was glad someone interrupted them just in time because she could not rely on herself to stop him. Though embarrassing, she had to admit to herself that her self-control with him was practically nil. Heaving a sigh, Evie then faced him and grabbed his hand before dragging him out of the room. She knew he was reluctant from the way he dragged his steps – and deep down, so was she – but there were more pressing things that await his decisions. Their fun time will have to wait until important matters were settled and the problems cleared off first.

When they arrived, the discussion had already started and seemed to be going on in full swing. 

"What are we going to do with the emperor?" Duke Henry asked Gavriel as soon as the prince took his seat. "I believe this is now the time to execute him. Before his son returns to retrieve him."

Gavriel observed the Duke, looking astonishingly cool and calm. "Did you forget that Caius is still alive? If we kill him, Caius will be crowned emperor immediately since he's the crown prince." Gavriel explained as a matter of fact. The rules of vampire monarchy had been unchanging ever since time immemorial. The emperor would only be replaced once he dies. Once the emperor dies, the crown prince would automatically be crowned an emperor even without conducting the official ceremonies or coronation. So, in order for Gavriel to take back his throne, Lorcan and the crown prince both needed to be killed.

"I am aware of that Your Highness. However, if we kill Lorcan now, we will have one obstacle less to deal with. That would only leave us with the crown prince to deal with next."

"We understand where you're coming from, Your Grace," Zolan was the one who responded this time. "We are certain that the crown prince and the guardian would return here in a few days after they realize that Prince Gavriel is not in the forbidden lands anymore. However, If Caius discovers that the emperor is dead, I am certain he would not return to Dacria anymore. It would be more likely that he would return to the imperial palace as the new emperor. Once that happens, it would be harder for us to end him. This is the easiest and fastest route to take down both of the fake royals. We must not let any one of them return to the capital."

"H-how about we just end him and spread the word that he's still alive?" Duke Henry insisted on his idea, looking anxious. "There is no way for Caius to find out as long as no one here betrays us!"

"Calm down, Your Grace." Zolan placated the duke.

"I cannot. I do trust your judgements and plans, especially His Highness' ability but… I cannot help but worry that something will go wrong right at the critical moment and the emperor end up escaping. We cannot give him even a small chance!"

"Duke." Gavriel's voice echoed through the crowd, firm and commanding, causing everyone to fall quiet. His calm and observant eyes gleamed as he fixed his gaze on the duke. "Tell me, could it be that there is something suspicious you noticed here in Dacria in the past two days that I am gone? And that's why you are like this?"

Duke Henry looked surprised at what the prince said but eventually, he wearily slumped back into his chair and pressed his fingers into his temples. "Yes, my wife and I noticed something strange. It was as though there is something invisible roaming around in the castle. My wife even had accidentally heard it herself that the emperor was talking to someone even he could not see. I don't know what it was, but I have the strange feeling that something unknown and invisible is helping them."

Gavriel's men looked at each other. "Actually, Leon has reported on the same issue, Your Highness." Zolan informed Gavriel. "He told me that something strange happened during their escape. He said that the soldiers were already prepared to stop them as if they already knew that they were coming before Leon and the princess could even leave the castle. Leon is confident that there was not enough time for the soldiers to prepare so far in advance. His conclusion is that it seems as though someone teleported from the castle to the walls to prompt the soldiers immediately."

"I agree with Leon's claim Your Highness. The events happened too fast." The duke added. "I was watching through the windows during the chase. The soldiers were far behind Leon."

Hearing those words, Elias who had been quite quiet all this time remembered that period before the war happened. When he had to check to the hallways outside the princess' room because he felt as though someone was there.

"Uhm… Your Highness…" the butler finally spoke. "I don't know if this is related but I have noticed something similar since before that war started. I always felt as if there were someone just outside the princess' door but whenever I check, I see no one." He reported and Gavriel's forehead creased hard into a frown.

"It seems this needs to be investigated immediately. And the one who could give us an answer would be the emperor or the soldiers who received the orders from the castle." Zolan said as he looked at Gavriel.