27th Night

After his visit to Kaien's office, the second he entered Laudicea, Sin went straight to the lowest level of the dungeon beneath the palace where his friend was being detained, without even visiting the Edelweiss Duchy first. His parents, the Duke and Duchess of the House of Edelweiss, were already used to him prioritizing the prince, thus it was no longer an issue for them if he only ever reported to his father once in a while. Besides, they knew it was his duty to stand behind Rouen being his closest aide and friend.

From far away, he could already feel a dangerous presence and, at the moment, Rouen could only be the source of that. It was so strong that fear crept up underneath his skin everytime he was assaulted with it. This used to be an abandoned level of the dungeon. It has been like this for two weeks now because of the prince. The sentinels always had their guards up, ready to fight for their lives if ever something went amiss, because they knew what Rouen could do. After all, some of them witnessed it for themselves. And if the Silver Blood vampires weren't doing rounds of watching over the prince with the rest of the sentinels, nobody would surely want to stay there with him willingly for the fear that they might lose their lives at his hands.

The smell of blood and ashes permeated the air in a way that was almost suffocating. Rouen grew thirsty by the second and they were left with no other choice but to take his prey right in front of him to avoid a more dangerous situation. How many has Rouen killed since then? How many had he killed today for the blood to be smelling this strong? Vampires and humans, he never differentiates his victims. As long as they have blood in their veins, they fall prey to him and because Rouen drank them dry to the point of no return, the corpses turned into ashes right in his arms. But his thirst and hunger are not even slightly quenched. In fact, he grew more hungry and thirsty.

Rouen is looking for someone. He was looking for a girl whose blood enchanted him the first time he smelled it and he craved it even more after the first taste. But while he was in that state, they couldn't afford to bring her right in front of him. In fact, they wanted to hide her from him even though Eona herself was looking for him like there was something in between them that was pulling them close to each other. She almost died at his hands the first time and she surely won't survive the second time Rouen gets a hold of her. How broken would he be if he hurt the girl while he was battling the monster inside of him? The first time made him hate himself. He blamed his blood to the point that he was quiet for a few days until he murdered a vampire who was supposed to only bring him his meal. Who knows what the second time might make him do?

The sound of large metal locks echoed as it moved to open the cell to grant Sin entry. And, the moment he stepped foot inside, a heavy winter storm greeted him. This room is called the cell of four seasons for a reason, and they use this room to torture people because, aside from the four seasons, a hallowed place covered in darkness without a sound appears once in a while. It is something that shows what the person inside fears the most.

Sin walked further away from the entrance while ignoring the harsh winds of the winter storm inside. Being inside the cell, one would think they were transported to a different place, away from the capital city of Aceldama. He heightened his senses as he leaped from one tree to another. Something felt wrong. The presence he felt a while ago should have been stronger here where Rouen was being held, but the place feels… empty. Sin rushed to the place he knew Rouen was being bound by chains imbued with magic, something the sentinels installed just recently because of the prince himself, but what he saw made his eyes grow wide. The snow-covered ground was stained with blood, the chains used to restrain Rouen were destroyed and a dying Silver Blood lay on the ground while Rouen was nowhere to be found.

"What happened?"

The Silver Blood looked at Sin, whose face had darkened because he knew they had a bigger problem at hand now that Rouen was gone. "T-the prince has e-escaped…"

"Then how come the sentinels outside didn't notice anything?"

"They're dead."

Sin frowned. "What? No, they certainly were not when I came in."

"An illusion… T-the prince w-was capable of creating s-such."

Sin was about to ask more but the Silver Blood had vomited blood. The hole in his chest looked like he had been stabbed by Rouen's own hand.

"Shit!"

With no time to spare, Sin slashed his wrist and let the Silver Blood drink his oozing blood out for him to heal. When he saw him capable enough to stand, he willed his wound to heal before they both went out of the cell. Sin was speechless at the sight that greeted them. The illusion went away and reality greeted him in an ugly way. How was Rouen capable of hiding his tracks this way? The sentinels he thought were alive a while ago were slaughtered in the most horrendous way. Blood splattered the ice-covered walls and the floor as ashes and uniforms littered the hallway. It looked like Rouen took his time and enjoyed himself.

Sin's forest green eyes glowed in the dark as they rushed out of the dungeons. They have an emergency.

"How long has it been since he escaped?"

"Way over an hour."

Sin couldn't help himself but curse under his breath. This was Rouen they were talking about. Within that span of time, there's a high possibility that he is already out of the astral gates and is in the world of the living.

"Mihai…" he called out to the knight commander whom he had gotten closer with during these past few days through telepathy.

"Sin?" Mihai's voice was heard in his mind as they rushed towards the palace. "It's so rare for you to contact me first. Did something happen?"

They needed to inform the king and queen of what had happened so they could formulate a plan about what to do next. Rouen roaming around while he was in that state, no one can tell what he was about to do. But Sin is certain of one thing. He is going to look for that girl, Eona, and he will kill everyone who will stand in his way, whether they be a natural or supernatural. So if they wanted to corner him, they'd have to get to the girl first. But are they going to be able to? No, they will. They have to.

"Assemble the sentinels. The prince has gone missing and the sentinels stationed to guard him are all dead."

"Including the Silver Blood?"

Sin looked at the vampire beside him. "He barely survived."

For a while, Mihai didn't say anything. "We needed to go to the council. But, what do you think will happen once the First Bloods learn that we underwent bond severance without their approval?"

Council. They are the First Blood vampires who support the reigning royals, all of whom are Dukes of the well-renowned Duchies of Aceldama. They are the oldest living vampires who have been turned by the Purebloods themselves. The council members will surely notice the difference in their blood if all Silvers who successfully passed the bond severance gather in one place. They are going to ask and it's surely going to cause havoc within them. Because not only was the vampire who casted the severance a Pureblood, he was the Monarch himself. He is someone whom they have believed all this time to be dead, someone who belongs to a vampire race which they thought had been eradicated during the First Blood War. And they, as vampires from the lower society, despised the Purebloods' existence like an instinct.

"That is the least of our concerns right now."

For a while, Mihai didn't say anything. All of them are aware that undergoing severance without the approval of the council first breaks more than one of their laws, but they couldn't have let the chance slip away from them. Who wouldn't want to sever a blood bond that puts shackles on them the second they open their eyes in this world? It was the kind of freedom even the First Bloods themselves have wanted for so long but couldn't have because they haven't met any vampire whose blood was higher than that of those Purebloods who turned them into the beings that they are now.

"Then see you at the vampire court after an hour."

Sin didn't waste any seconds and proceeded to look for Rouen's parents, while the Silver Blood who was with him went towards the direction of the sentinels' center of command to report what took place at the dungeon. Sin was known to be Rouen's close friend and asking for an audience with the prince's parents was never that hard for him to do, but when he told them about what Rouen did, he knew that they were in for another problem at hand.

It wasn't that long when the vampire court was opened. Tension filled the air as, one by one, the council members filled in their designated seats in the vampire court. Some stared at the three Silver Bloods who had never said a word since their arrival, but none of them asked why they had called for the council members at an unruly time. Their fathers never asked them what was happening because, right now, they are in court not as their household heads but as one of the council members of Aceldama.

"Do you think they'll notice that our blood is no longer chained?" Mihai asked his fellow Silvers through telepathy as they stood there in the corner waiting for the meeting to be called to order.

"None of them have asked us so far, so pray tell, they will not notice anything even after the meeting is done." It was Caius who answered. "We can't have them punishing us at this moment in time, while we don't even have any idea about the crown prince's whereabouts."

"The king and queen witnessed how the prince had lost control of himself before the soiree. But, for certain, they will surely dig out every detail that leads him to his present state."

"We could've just searched for him ourselves. Why do we still have to let the court know about what's happening?"

"The council will suspect us even more if the three of us visit the world of the living at once without any valid reason. Besides, I just received a report that the sentinels guarding the south astral gates were found dead. And it seems like we'll have a hard time opening the gates because the prince has somehow found a way to close them."

Both Sin and Caius looked at Mihai with widened eyes.

"You mean we won't be able to track him down immediately after the meeting?"

"That's why I've already contacted Kaien. While we are looking for a way to reopen the gates, they will track the prince for us and, if it comes down to it, restrain him."

"The hunters are going to kill him."

"Not if they don't want us to go after the naturals they have been protecting all this time."

The second the king and queen arrived, silence immediately enveloped the hall in a way where a single drop of a pin could be heard. When the sound of the gavel echoed in the court hall, the Silver Bloods went to their respective places as the three of them prepared themselves for the interrogation they were about to face, because if they wanted the council to approve the deployment of Silver Bloods in the world of the living, they had to be as truthful as possible, while leaving a few details here and there for the old ones to ponder upon.

"The meeting will now come to order."

What they did not expect was for the queen to ask a question that ruined everything for them.

"With the crown prince's awakening, though it might not have been complete, does it have something to do with the severance you four have undergone at dawn after the soiree?"

"Well, fuck!" Was all they could think of, while all of the council members aside from Cohen all looked at the queen in surprise.

Austria stared at the three Silver Blood vampires who looked like they had been caught doing something because they tried not to look back at her for the fear that their eyes might show exactly what was on their minds.

"Severance, your majesty?" It was Lyra, the head of the House of de Lorraine who asked. "No one in our society is capable of severing the bond we have with the ones who have sired our blood aside from those in higher society. And none of us has seen either a shadow of the Pureblood vampires after the First Blood War."

Murmurings of different opinions echoed in the court, but the Silver Bloods remained silent in their position and silence only ever came back when Duchess Venice of the House of Chasteler hammered the gavel thrice.

"Not even the witches knew how to sever our bond. So who has casted the severance if not one of the Pureblood whom we all thought have been gone all this time?"

"Why don't we ask the Silver Bloods? I am sure they can tell us who it was that severed their bond with the vampires who sired their blood?"

"If I may?" Cohen interrupted. "Are we not here at this unruly time of the day because of the present situation at hand involving the crown prince? Questioning the Silver Bloods about the severance should be re-scheduled at a later time because, let us face it, we needed their help in securing the crown prince back into the kingdom while lessening the possible casualties he may cause. And the more time we spend questioning these three about what has already happened, the more victims the crown prince might have already killed."

"Didn't you just want to hide something, Duke Cohen? After all, the manor where the severance happened was a property owned by the Lohengrin Duchy. You have a record of everyone, natural and supernaturals, who entered the premises of the manor the night of the soiree, haven't you? One of them could have been the one who severed these Silver Bloods' bond with the vampires who have sired their blood."

"I didn't see nor do I have any idea who cast the severance if that's what you wanted me to tell you, Duchess Amelia," Cohen retorted ever so calmly.

"Or aren't you just – "

Venice de Chasteler sighed in her seat as she hammered the gavel to settle down the heating argument between the Head of House Lohengrin and that of House La Ascania. Duchess Amelia has a point and so does Duke Cohen. Being First Blood vampires who have been bitten directly by Purebloods, they too wanted to know who it was that was able to sever the bond these Silver Bloods share with the Pureblood vampires who have sired their family's blood, because for sure, he too was capable of severing theirs. But, they have a more pressing matter to settle before the day ends and that is about the missing prince.

"The subject with regards to the bond severance which involves the Golden Blood, his royal highness, crown prince Rouen Einzbern, and three Silver Bloods, Lord Sin Edelweiss of Edelweiss Duchy, Lord Mihai Elfenbrehm of Elfenbrehm Duchy and Lord Caius Ahlefeldt of Ahlefeldt Duchy shall be duly noted and will undergo a formal proceeding at a later date when all involve is already present," Venice announced and everyone fell silent yet again before she continued. "Proceed with the subject at hand."

One by one, one after the other, Sin, Caius and Mihai underwent questioning about the recent events which involved the prince. They were forced to tell in complete detail what happened after the severance until the time Rouen had escaped from the cell of four seasons, and Mihai also reported about the recent deaths of several sentinels, including those who were guarding the astral gates.

"Should we consider that his royal highness, the crown prince, is already in the world of the living?"

"That is possible, your grace," Mihai answered Damon Rosenthal. "Especially now that his presence has completely disappeared from the kingdom."

"How many casualties have already been recorded?"

"Thirteen sentinels: all of whom were Blooded vampires who belong to the Gentry. Twenty-four prisoners sentenced to death from the world of the living and three New Bloods who used to work at the palace."

"But you mentioned that his royal highness was able to regain himself back for a few hours at the break of dawn after the severance, did you not, Lord Edelweiss? What could be the cause?"

Both Mihai and Caius subtly glanced at Sin's direction and they saw how he pondered whether he should lie or not, but Duke Sorian Aldestine beat him to it.

"If you don't want me to forcefully read your memories, don't even try to lie, Lord Edelweiss," he warned. "I'm sure, you of all people, know how painful it can be."

Sin bit the edge of his inner lip as he asked for Rouen and Eona's forgiveness. "We believe it was because of the natural, Eona Lorentz, your grace."

Duke Brenn Montaigne of the House of Montaigne frowned. "The human girl?"

"Yes."

"She is the same reason why his royal highness suddenly had us summoned and witnessed the demise of two Silver Bloods from the Houses of Elfenbrehm and Kleist, is she not?" It was Duke Grey from the House of Lanchester this time. He leaned forward just so he could extend his point that there was something about the girl that made Rouen do what he had not done before.

"Yes, your grace."

"Then is it safe for us to think that his royal highness went into the world of the living to look for the very same girl?"

"We are thinking of the same thing, your grace."

"Could the natural be his royal highness' beloved?"

"We have our suspicions, your grace," answered Mihai to the query of the head of the House of de Lorraine. "We all knew that the crown prince had always treated the natural differently from the rest. But, considering the recent events involving them both, we are certain that the prince is looking for the human girl solely because of the blood that runs through her veins. This time, we are afraid that he won't be able to stop until it is too late."

"Then shouldn't we secure the girl first if we want to keep her safe and get a hold of the prince at the same time?" For the first time, since the meeting had started, Duke Armand, Sin's father, voiced out. "Is it not easier that way since we now knew that his royal highness is looking for the girl?"

"Your grace if I may?" Caius cut in.

"Yes, Lord Ahlefeldt?"

"Should we not look for a way to open the gates first? Because it seemed to us that his royal highness, crown prince Rouen, had yet again developed another ability and that is the ability to close all gates at his will."

"If the prince is already in the world of the living, what about the girl's safety?" Duke Dietrich Eberstein, Delilah's father, asked, as he looked at Cohen Lohengrin. "Aren't the Lorentzs under the protection of your house?"

Cohen nodded to answer Dietrich' question. "But, something is preventing me from contacting my men in the world of the living, so I myself cannot move on my own to ensure the Lorentz' safety even if I wanted to."

"As a preemptive measure, we have already asked the assistance of the Vampire Hunters' Association through Kaien Cross. As long as we are being held back by the situation regarding the gates, they will take charge of protecting the girl in question as well as to restrain the prince if possible."

The queen's eyes glistened after what she heard from the Knight Commander. "With my son being in that state, the hunters are going to kill him!"

"Not with Kaien in the front row, your majesty. Let us put our faith in him the way we did in previous times."

***

In the world of the living…

"Miss Hansgrove, your research paper cannot be disclosed to the public even if it was in your class only."

Wisteria didn't know how long she had been having an argument with their folklore teacher because of his sudden decision to just hide their output away from everyone's eyesight because of its contents. Eona, who came with her, remained silent in one corner, because she too had a feeling that they should not let the public know of what they found out. Vampires have more secrets and most of them don't even know about them because of their existing laws.

"But why? Everyone of us in that class belongs to families who have been serving vampires for generations. It's not like they are one of those who have no knowledge about supernaturals."

"Miss Hansgrove, I appreciate the work you have done. In fact, you and Miss Lorentz here are among my students who will receive high academic remarks with regards to your output though – "

"Then why won't you allow us to tell the public about it?"

Their folklore teacher sighed as he leaned back in his seat. Other teachers who are presently in the faculty room are sometimes looking in their direction from time to time because it looks like Wisteria was ready to fight for her right as a researcher while their teacher tried to stop her from executing her right because of things written in their output paper which the public, even those who are aware of the vampires' existence are not allowed to know.

"Because the School's Chairman, Mr. Cross, has ordered me to tell you two that we are not going to publicize your work because it contains details regarding subjects which the vampire society considers taboo. Though it may not have been completely detailed, you have successfully gathered information about the First Blood War which no natural is supposed to know. You even included a part about the Monarch and Royal Bloods which only a few vampires in Aceldama know about, because of certain reasons – reasons that are laws itself in that kingdom. Certain things are better left uncovered from the dark, Miss Hansgrove."

"But the Chairman himself brought us to where the references we used were being kept," Wisteria still reasoned out. "He wouldn't have brought us there if he didn't want us to learn more about the things we wanted to know, would he?"

"Those references which are being kept in his private library are being kept there for a reason, Miss Hansgrove. The chairman wanted you to know about those things you two were curious about. It doesn't mean that he wanted the information to be shared with everyone else. What you see in his library aren't just books but records about vampires and other supernatural beings that can answer the questions: who, what, why, when and how? They are being kept privately for official purposes which are not supposed to be for public knowledge."

Wisteria pursed her lips because she felt like their effort to discover more about the things that kept them questioning the information they knew about vampires was rendered useless in a way that the process made them hope. The Chairman himself let them access the information that could answer most of their doubts and queries, so why was he stopping them now to let the public learn of what they found?

"The contents of your report have much more truth in them compared to the rest, thus the Chairman himself is going to be the one assessing it."

Without much of a choice, Wisteria accepted the reality of their situation. After a little more arrangement, she went in the direction of Eona, who stood far away from the sunlight that came through the glass walls of the faculty office and, after saying their apology and goodbyes, they both went outside of the faculty room with disappointed faces.

"Does that mean your friend Blaze is knowledgeable about things which are being kept hidden intentionally?"

"He's not my friend," she pointed out, because Wisteria seemed to have it embedded permanently in her mind that she and Blaze were close for some reason. "He just acted like we were close to begin with."

"You were. You are not just aware of that fact."

"Shut up."

Wisteria only laughed at her retort. It was a little while later when the sound of a soft bell echoed through the intercommunication system installed around the school before it was followed by a woman's voice, probably someone who works in the Cresian Hall as one of the people working in the school's administration. Every student, wherever they were at that moment, stopped what they were doing as if it had been their practice to do so.

"Calling the attention of all Day Class students. Due to the recent incidents occurring in the area, the chairman has decided that starting today, all classes should end at exactly four in the afternoon and all students are advised to go straight home after school. Extra-curricular activities are hereby temporarily cancelled until further notice."

After the sound of another soft bell which ended the announcement, murmurs could be heard almost all around them. Most of the students seemed to have been expecting the announcement as they discussed about the bodies of dead people which were found in the alleys and different places almost every night. Some were barely recognizable while the others were completely drained of blood. The students knew what was happening. Being sons and daughters of blood donors who work for vampires, they have gotten hold of the truth behind such events, unlike those outside of their school grounds. While the news say that the killings were done by some people who are suffering from serious mental illness or even some wild animals who have lost their way into the city, they knew the killings were being done by vampires who preyed on human beings to live.

"Are vampires still roaming the city grounds?" One student asked the one beside her.

"Well, they must still have. Dead bodies are being found almost every night in different places, aren't they? And the government obviously wanted to hide the real reason behind it because they did not want the public to know what was really going on."

"Is that why the Night Classes have been temporarily suspended? Were they obliged to participate in the hunt as well? After all, the existence of Lepers is prohibited even in their kingdom."

"And the hunters? What were they doing? Isn't it their job to hunt those who have broken the laws governing both naturals and supernaturals? Are they waiting for the balance to collapse before they take action?"

Different opinions, doubts and questions were being whispered around Eona and Wisteria. What has been happening recently is quite alarming and having the school take things into consideration must mean that the things happening outside their school grounds are quite serious.

"Have you heard anything from your family?"

Eona almost snorted at what her friend had asked her the second they entered their classroom. "Do you really think they'd tell me something about it?"

For a while, Wisteria remained silent before she shook her head. "Forget I even asked."

Before their class started, Eona felt her phone vibrate and when she turned it on, she saw that it was a message from her mother, who had obviously been bothered for a few days now because of something which Helena did not want her to know.

"A chauffeur will be picking you up this afternoon."

It didn't say what time. Her mother did not even ask her if it was fine. That one line says she doesn't have any choice. The school must have notified the parents and guardians of all of its students, too, with regards to the announcement just now.

It wasn't new to her that Helena was hiding something. But, after she allowed her to delve into the vampires' kingdom to meet the vampire her family had been serving for a long time and attend such a glamorous event of their kind, Eona did not expect that Helena would turn back to how she used to be. Eona did not think that she would revoke her decision to let her be a part of that world. But remembering what happened in Aceldama, where her life was not only put in danger once but twice during the short duration of her stay there, she could not blame her mother Helena. Eona was aware that her mother only wanted what was best for her and this time she thought that her previous decision, which was to raise her away from the world of supernatural beings, away from them, was the best thing.

But Eona could not let that happen. She needed to go back and she needed to see Eouen again – even after all those misfortunes that happened.