The Duke's Passion

Alphonse, the second son of the late king. It was said that in terms of skills, strength, and intelligence, Alphonse had excelled among the La Crox brothers, — surpassing even the then-crown prince, Dyrroth. He was a perfect candidate as the heir to the throne with his innate talent. 

However, there was only one thing that Alphonse lack, empathy. Although the members of the royal family grew up in a strict and deadly environment, a ruler still had the responsibility and carried the weight of the crown; one of them was to protect the lives of his subjects and this entire kingdom.

Although Alphonse and Sam's existence were an obvious threat in this kingdom, there was a fine difference between them. Sam was capable of bringing hell into this kingdom if so, he pleased, but he never had that intention. Alphonse, however, wanted nothing but this kingdom's downfall.

"Alphonse?" Stefan repeated, leaning in. "What makes you think the dead is involved in this?"

The dead? I bit my lower lip as I already heard about that, along with the brief biography of Alphonse last night. Sam kept speaking strangely formal, after all. So, I had asked him last night. However, Sam never said Alphonse was already dead.

"That is why I said I'm not sure, Stefan." Sam let out a deep exhale as he shrugged. "Alistair is not here, after all. Why don't you visit the north to appreciate its freezing climate? Or just summon him here?"

Again, silence, as if Sam just pressed a nerve. I had no idea what they were talking about, honestly. But what's certain for me was, the situation about the undead was more grave than I thought it was.

"Your Majesty, is Alistair not responding to your summon anymore?" Sam inquired and everything I could remember was the smothering silence until the meeting had ended without reaching a solid conclusion.

"Rufus will take you back." Sam leaned to my side. "I will have to have a private audience with His Majesty." He only needed to roll his eyes to show how reluctant he was to be with Stefan. However, that was to be expected.

"Join me for… lunch?" I said, confused about how I would address lunch because of the time difference. Sam just raised his brows and nodded before we both parted our ways. 

I stared at Sam's back, who was talking away with Stefan, worried. "My lady." I jolted when Rufus' voice suddenly came to my side and I faced him. "Are you alright, your grace? You seem a little antsy," he asked.

That was because he was always taking me by surprise! I huffed and cleared my throat. I should keep my mind clear, as things were getting serious. My days of going back to Grimsbanne seemed a little farfetched at the moment with the current matters at hand.

"Don't worry about it," I said, and gave him a subtle smile. "I'm just a little overwhelmed and still in the process of taking everything in, but I'll be alright." 

I stared at him for a while before he sighed and nodded in understanding. He said, "Alright, then."

"You're not being yourself, Sir Knight," I teased with a chuckle. "You'll be showing be the training grounds, correct?" 

Rufus cleared his throat with his hand before his lips, summoning winter to take over him. "Yes, Your Grace. Since you're officially a part of this case, I have to show you around and brief you about our work."

"Lead the way, then."

**

Rufus and I headed to the training grounds to show me around. Unlike the Avolire Palace, which had been peaceful especially during this time of the night, the main palace was rather… busy. Rufus showed me around, reminding me of which wing I should refrain from going to and the safe zones. 

After going from different offices, with Rufus introducing me to certain individuals, we finally reached the training grounds. As expected, the training grounds weren't empty with knights' training and sparring.

"I didn't know vampires require training," I whispered as we stood from a distance, watching two knights sparring in the middle while others watched and cheered. 

"An experienced human on the battlefield can defeat a vampire, your grace." I turned to Rufus when he answered, and then he added, "Vampires are born with extraordinary strength, but that didn't mean they were invincible."

I pursed my lips and fixed my eyes on the knights. "I always thought it's impossible for a human to overrun or overpower a vampire." My eyes softened as I recalled my mentality before. "But the more I spend time with Sam and the people around him, it only makes me realize how little I know in this world."

The corner of my lips curled into a subtle smile. Never in my life I had imagined myself standing here right now, watching the knights train and become a part of something important for the country. I was just a peasant who couldn't even dream, as I was busy just by surviving on a daily basis. Part of me felt this fear crawl up my spine, but it couldn't overwhelm the content in my heart.

"But that's just how it is, is it not, your grace?"

I faced Rufus and tilted my head to the side. "Huh?"

"No matter how long you live or try to figure the truth behind life, it will always make you feel how little we know about this world," he explained, and cast me a side glance. "Although I don't think it is a valid reason to just give up."

Rufus said those words with a straight face, but I couldn't help but think he was trying to comfort me. Did he think I was sad because of my remarks? I let out a chuckle, thinking he had misunderstood but I didn't want to point it out.

Instead, I decided to divert the subject and returned my gaze towards the knight. "By the way, Sir Knight, are you comfortable with your stay here?"

"I'm always with His Grace's side, but my brief stay in here is alright."

"I see." I nodded, biting my tongue. I wanted to ask him if he received prejudices from the knights as they were vampires and he was a human. Wait. I furrowed my brows as I turned to face him squarely once again.

"Sir knight, how did you become a knight if you're human?"

Rufus arched his brow as he gazed at me. He was staring at me with a poker face, but I could absolutely guess his dismay at my question. Did I really sound that stupid?

"Your grace, not all knights are vampires," he answered and my mouth fell open. I already guessed that, but all the knights I had encountered so far were vampires. "Although the majority of the palace officers and knights are vampires, humans can also…" he trailed off as we both turned our attention to the voice, who suddenly chimed in.

"Exceptional, Sir Knight," Silvia smirked as she glanced at me. "Exceptional and talented humans who can par vampire's strength are always welcome to serve the monarch."

"Sivi!" I exclaimed, excited to see her. However, before I could rush to her, my brows furrowed while darting my eyes between Rufus and Sivi. 

'What is this?' I wondered, as the air between them was a little odd.