A Game Of Chess With A Vampire
Chapter 251: That Is Not What She Wants, Santino

"If perhaps there appears to be any mistake with the package, he may give us an immediate call." She whipped out the company business card.

Santino hesitantly received the card. He left, returning to the royal grounds and proceeding straight to the pavilion.

A bit away from Draven, he came to a stop. "May I approach you, young master?"

Draven glanced at him. "What is it?"

Santino took a step forward, advancing into the pavilion. He gave a respectful bow. "A package was delivered. It was said to be from the Rose Company. Have you made an—"

"Yes. Give it to me." Draven extended out his hand.

Santino gave the bag to him and took a step back.

"You may leave," Draven said, dismissing him.

Santino nodded. He turned around to leave, but as though having thought of something, he came to a stop.

"Young master, if you do not mind, I’d like to say something." His gloved hands rested behind his back.

Draven glanced at him with the edge of his eyes. He adjusted his glasses. "Go ahead."

Santino took a few seconds before speaking. "Aren’t you a bit too lonely yet again, young master?"

This question caused Draven to come to an abrupt halt. He blinked his eyes and gulped down the whole glass of blood. He stood up from the chair, turned around, and faced Santino.

"And what might you mean by such?"

Santino exhaled. "I have known you since you were a child, Young master. I took care of you. You were lonely even with your late wife, but—"

"Santino," Draven interrupted. "You might have known me since I was little, but that does not mean that you should cross your bound—"

"Young master." Santino stepped closer to him. "Just let me finish...for once."

Draven stared at him. He wanted to stop him, but he knew it would be futile at that moment. Whatever the old man was about to say, he knew he wouldn’t like it at all.

"You are a man who cannot lie, Young Master, so I will go ahead with my questions." Santino half smiled, taking a deep breath. "Did you like it when you were so lonely, always in your room alone, gazing at the ceiling or either out here, staring at the sky till you got bored of it?"

Draven’s eyes flickered. "Did I...like it?"

Santino nodded. "Yes. No one knew, and no one could see you then. Not even your workers could tell how alone you were, and only I could. But I cannot understand or fathom how you truly felt about it. Your emotions are hard to read, thus, it is why I am asking and would like you to be honest."

Draven responded, "I felt nothing."

"What?" Santino appeared confused.

Draven balled his hands into tight fists. "Santino, what made you think I felt anything about the way I was? I could not tell the difference between being alone and not being alone."

"I mean, how could I? That was how I’ve always been, and so it was normal to me."

"Then your statement back when your father asked you why you married was a lie? You said you felt lonely, and so did your quarter." Santino frowned.

"A lie..." Draven blinked his eyes. "I do not lie. I had no reason to. My quarter did indeed feel lonely. I once had a wife and a child, so I could tell how a once-occupied quarter felt after it was just me left in it."

Santino gazed into his eyes. "Then how about now?"

"Now?" Draven tilted his head.

Santino’s expression was serious. "Yes. You have a wife now, and I know you do not feel lonely any longer. You can differentiate now, so tell me. Would you ever want to be alone again?"

"No," Draven replied.

"Then why?" Santino questioned.

Draven crumpled his brows in perplexity. "Why what?"

Santino went ahead to explain.

"I know that your marriage with Lady Avelina was set for only three months, and you two have only less than three weeks left. I’d like to know why you two are fighting."

"Fighting?" Draven was genuinely confused. "We are not fighting. I would never fight with her. Don’t you think I would...kill her if we actually fought?"

Santino exhaled. "Not that kind of fighting, young master."

"You both have not exactly been speaking to each other lately, which is odd." He took a deep breath. "This life with her, I know that you enjoy it and you like it. She has brightened your life and even gotten you to start smiling and liking a lot of things you never used to. You have become familiar with having company and socializing quite a bit."

"You may not say, but it is a life, better than the lonely one you had before."

"You know, they said happy memories are the hardest to keep. You may not have much time left with her, but don’t you think you should make the most of it? Don’t you think you should be with her as much as possible before the time comes?"

"That is not what she wants, Santino," Draven replied. It could be sworn that his eyes sparked with deep sadness.

Santino shook his head. "I don’t think so."

"And what do you mean?" Draven raised his brow.

Santino took a moment to ponder whether to speak or not. Eventually, he made a quick decision. "I know you believe that no woman could ever love you genuinely as none truly ever had, but...have you ever pondered that perhaps Lady Avelina does?"

"She may be the only woman to actually ever truly love you in a way that no one has ever done and never will. Have you thought about the possibility that it is the reason why she has been acting differently...lately? I mean, you are both from different worlds, you realize that, right?"