Chapter 89: Chapter 89

Alvaro sighed. He was too lazy to leave the palace, especially since the festival hadn’t started yet. What was there to see except people busy putting up decorations? The palace was just as busy with preparations.

"Why do you need to go all the way to the capital just to see people putting up street lights?" Alvaro grumbled. He was known for being a mood killer. But this time, the guards seemed determined to drag him out, ignoring his protests.

"Aren’t you tired of always being inside the palace? Let’s go out for once, enjoy the scenery, enjoy the fresh air," said one of them.

Alvaro still couldn’t find any enthusiasm for the "fun" idea. He stared at the four guards, who were now wearing regular clothes.

He knew three of them well: Frans, Jeremy, and Isla. They were guards under Captain Visen and had often shared days off with him. In the past, Alvaro had been willing to spend time with them, drinking, walking around town, or just playing board games in his room. But now, he felt too old for that. Just thinking about it made him tired.

"Are you a new guard?" Alvaro asked the unfamiliar face. He glanced at the man a few times but didn’t recognize him. The guard looked very young, probably the same age as Alvaro’s younger brother.

Jeremy answered, "Yes, he’s Jin. He joined at the same time as Amos."

Jin nodded shyly toward Alvaro. Who in the palace didn’t know Alvaro, the knight recognized as the second-best swordsman in the kingdom and the Crown Prince’s personal knight?

Alvaro only gave a small nod, staring lazily at the road ahead. His mind wandered. But maybe, if he walked around, he could forget the trivial things bothering him.

The journey to the capital didn’t take long on horseback. The atmosphere along the way was already festive, with rows of decorative lights shining brightly. Everyone knew that festivals were a competition between villages, showing off who had the best decorations and who had more money to create something spectacular.

When they reached the city center, the noise grew louder. They headed to a quiet spot to leave their horses and continued on foot.

They walked along the edges of the shops. People were working together to hang decorations in the streets. Laughter and shouts filled the air.

Alvaro looked around at the colorful lanterns hanging above their heads, swaying gently in the night breeze. Long pieces of cloth with victory motifs were displayed along the walls, fluttering like colorful waves.

At the corner of the street, oil lamps lined up, casting light onto the faces of people preparing their stalls. Most shops were still closed, leaving only the sounds of hammers and scraping wood from workers setting up tents.

Alvaro took a deep breath. The air was filled with the sweet scent of candy and the smoky aroma of charcoal from a candy shop, the one everyone called the Always-Open Candy Shop. For a candy shop, being open 24 hours was unusual, but all the townspeople knew it.

Alvaro only joined the conversation occasionally. The others were too loud, always talking about something.

"Where are you guys going?" Alvaro asked. They had already passed people setting up decorations, but they didn’t stop.

"Let’s just keep walking," said Isla.

They resumed their conversation and laughter. Alvaro occasionally shook his head at their silly talk but mostly stayed silent, until boredom crept in.

Now, around them were only empty streets and a few rundown buildings without lighting. It was strangely quiet. Even the four of them weren’t talking much anymore.

"Where are we going?" Alvaro asked, uneasy.

"Let’s just keep going down this street," Jeremy said.

"We should go back," Alvaro said, stopping. He didn’t have his sword, and it would be trouble if they ran into bandits.

But Isla pulled his arm. "Come on, let’s see what’s at the end of the street."

"What do you want to see? It’s just an empty street!" Alvaro replied.

"Oh, come on!" Frans tried to mediate. "If we don’t find anything, we’ll go back."

Alvaro snorted but stayed quiet and followed behind them.

After turning into several equally deserted alleys, they began to hear music and voices. Alvaro frowned.

The further they walked, the stronger the smell of alcohol became.

Alvaro looked down at the dirty, wet street littered with trash. He clicked his tongue when his shoe sank into a muddy hole.

Instead of stopping, the four kept walking. Alvaro glanced around. Several men passed by: some babbling nonsense, some with blank stares, and one man even collapsed on the muddy side of the road.

Alvaro didn’t like what he saw. "Can we go back?!" he shouted.

But the four of them cheered excitedly.

Looking ahead, Alvaro saw a large building decorated with bright lights. Several men stood in front, holding bottles and talking loudly.

Beautiful women in revealing clothes smiled and served drinks to the men.

Alvaro narrowed his eyes. A purple-red flag hung in front of the building, the kind usually seen at brothels.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Alvaro snapped. Surely, they weren’t headed there.

But Isla pulled him again. "Come on, we’ve never been inside. Let’s see what’s going on."

Alvaro refused. "No. I’m not interested—"

"You just need to go in for a moment," Frans said flatly, tightening his grip on Alvaro’s arm and forcing him forward.

Alvaro knew this wouldn’t end well. He didn’t place. Their presence drew attention, but a woman soon approached them.

She was in her forties, still beautiful, wearing a thin silk dress in red and gold. Her smile was thin, but her eyes were sharp and intimidating.

Alvaro didn’t know what they said to her, but she pointed inside, behind a red curtain.

Isla pulled Alvaro in, past the thick curtain, revealing a grand house with many colorful rooms.

Alvaro looked around warily. Before he realized it, his body was shoved into an open room.

"Shit!" he cursed as he landed on the soft red carpet.

He spun around, eyes widening as Jeremy closed the door. He lunged for the handle, but he was too far away.

The door slammed shut with a loud bang.

"HEY! OPEN THE DOOR! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Alvaro shouted, pounding on it.

The door was thick and soundproof. His hands hurt, but it wouldn’t budge.

"DAMN IT! JUST YOU WAIT!" he yelled angrily.

With fists clenched and heart pounding, he turned around, only to see a beautiful girl on the bed, wearing a thin nightgown and smiling sweetly.

Alvaro took a deep breath and looked away. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb you."

The girl’s voice was soft and seductive. "Please, come here, sir."

She looked him over, fascinated by his appearance. It wasn’t often that a handsome, well-built man came into their brothel, especially one who had already paid in advance.

Alvaro still didn’t look at her, staying near the door.

"Can you put your clothes on?" he asked, clearly uncomfortable being alone with a nearly naked woman.

The girl glanced at her clothes. Had she heard him wrong? Maybe he wanted her to take them off.

When Alvaro looked back, she was actually removing the rest of her clothing. Panic hit him instantly. He banged on the door with all his strength.

"OPEN THE DOOR! DAMN IT!!" he shouted, not caring that his hands were red.

The girl sat down nervously. The man she was supposed to serve was acting strange. She didn’t have much experience and felt anxious.

"Sir, please sit. I’ll make you some tea. You must be tired from working all day."

"Hah! No. Thank you! Can you put your clothes back on?! Don’t you have any self-respect, wearing that in front of a man?!" Alvaro scolded, still trying to open the door.

The girl stayed silent.

Alvaro was exhausted. His anger peaked. He swore he would make them regret this.

He was about to try the door again when it suddenly slammed into him, knocking him into the wall.

"Shit!" he cursed. The door panel came loose and pinned him. His chest tightened, and his hands stung from the scrape.

He was about to push it off when he saw a towering figure beside the bed.

Alvaro’s eyes widened.

What shocked him even more was seeing Vlad choking the girl, lifting her naked body into the air.

The girl struggled, kicking and gasping for breath.

"Damn!" Alvaro cursed, shoving the door off and scrambling to his feet.

"LORD VLAD! STOP!" he shouted, rushing toward them. He didn’t care about her state—only that she might die.

"NO! LORD VLAD! STOP!" Alvaro grabbed Vlad’s iron-like hands.

Vlad smiled faintly but didn’t let go.

"I haven’t seen you in a few days, and you’re already looking for this cheap whore?" Vlad said softly.

"It’s not like that! You don’t know what happened! Let her go!" Alvaro yelled.

Vlad’s grip tightened. The girl groaned in pain.

"You want her to live so badly?" Vlad chuckled.

"She didn’t do anything! Let her go!" Alvaro shouted.

The noise drew several people to the room, their faces shocked. The source of this content ɪs novelFirｅ.net

Vlad noticed and smiled slightly, looking back at Alvaro.

"If you want to leave here and keep this girl alive, kneel down and tell me you even miss me," Vlad said.

Alvaro glared. "You’re crazy?!"

"I’m crazy enough to kill her, Sweety."

Alvaro clenched his fists, regretting ever thinking about the vampire.

He is so fucking bastard!

The girl was weakening.

He glared at Vlad. "Bastard," he hissed.

But he dropped to his knees, eyes still full of anger.

"Lord Vlad, please let her go. You know I’m... I’m so... so miss... you," Alvaro said, almost choking on his own words. He couldn’t believe he was saying them.

Vlad chuckled softly and released the girl.

"You must pay for your betrayal."