A Game Of Chess With A Vampire
Chapter 96: I Don’t Like You

Chapter 96: I Don’t Like You

Avelina shook her head. "N-no. It was a woman, Draven. She was singing to the melody that you were playing. I heard her clearly. It was—"

"My mother?" Draven drew his head back. "That’s...not possible."

It was only in his head. No one, no one else apart from him, should have been able to hear that voice.

"Draven, I am not lying. I am...not." Avelina could tell that he did not believe her.

Draven gazed at her and abruptly glanced at the door.

Could he have possibly done something without knowing? How did his father even know that he was playing? What brought him there? These questions left him confused. Could it be that while he thought only he was hearing his mother’s voice, the others were too?

He quickly lifted Avelina into his arms and stood up to his feet. He walked over to the bed and laid her down.

"I am sorry." Draven apologized. "I don’t know what happened," he said to her.

Avelina didn’t know either, so she simply smiled at him. "I’m sorry about your bow. Your father broke it..."

"It’s fine. I will get another one. He hates it when I play." Draven shrugged.

Avelina blinked her lashes. "Is it also the reason why you stopped playing?"

Draven stared at her for a few moments before shaking his head. "No. I don’t care about him."

"Do you feel okay now?" he inquired.

Avelina exhaled as she nodded at him.

Draven slightly beamed at her and lifted his eyes when he heard a sudden knock on the door.

"Young master." Santino’s audible voice sounded. "His Majesty calls for you in the meeting room," he reported.

Draven furrowed his brows and glanced at Avelina, who also looked at him at the same time.

"Is something wrong?" Avelina asked. It was morning, and they should all have been asleep as usual. Why was Old Master Lenort suddenly calling him?

Draven shook his head. "I am not sure."

He stood up from the bed to leave, but Avelina grabbed his hand, stopping him.

"Let me come with you," she said.

Draven looked at her. "No. You should stay back and rest up." He snatched his hand and exited the room while wearing his glasses.

He wrapped his hair into a quick bun and began to stroll towards the meeting room with his hands shoved into the pocket of his sweatpants.

Upon his arrival, the two royal guards standing at the double door pushed the door open for him.

Draven’s expression was back to normal as he entered the room. The door shut behind him.

He lifted his eyes, and his gaze fell on everyone who was already settled in their respective seats. Every stare shifted towards him.

Draven did not care even one bit. He simply strolled over and took his seat beside Lumian.

He folded his arms and crossed his legs. Lumian, who sat beside him, scoffed inwardly and averted his spiteful gaze.

Old Master Lenort cleared his throat.

"I’d like to apologize for waking everyone from their sleep, but we have an important guest today."

Then he glanced at his personal guard, who stood beside him. "Bring him in."

The middle-aged guard with a slender stature, dark tousled hair, and brown eyes left the meeting room. He returned a few minutes later and entered the room with none other than Bennet Pons beside him.

Draven diverted his eyes to the man. Surprisingly, he ended up meeting Bennet Pon’s gaze to the point that it was as though Mr. Bennet Pon’s focus was on him.

Draven frowned. This man, he recalls. Not just by his fame, but because he knows that he has met him somewhere before. The memory was a bit blurry, as it had been ages ago, but he was sure that he had stood face-to-face with this man. The feeling of familiarity was too strong.

Bennet Pons smirked at him, causing Draven to arch his brow at him.

Old Master Lenort cleared his throat and proceeded to introduce Mr. Bennet.

"As you all may already know, this is Mr. Bennet Pons, a prominent investigator. I hope to deal with the bombing issue as soon as possible, so...I have hired him to take the job and find out who the culprit is. This little meeting is just to introduce him to you guys."

"It’s a pleasure to meet you all," Mr. Bennet said with a full smile on his face. He averted his gaze to Draven, and under the heavy watch of everyone, he strolled over to stand in front of Draven.

He smiled and offered a handshake. "It has been a while, your highness."

Draven lazily looked at his hand and raised his eyes to stare at his face.

"I don’t like you," he abruptly said.

This left Mr. Bennet speechless.

Everyone’s jaw fell—that had been the least of their expectations.

Old Master Lenort flickered his eyes. It was unbelievable to comprehend why he had made such a blunt remark.

"That was very blunt of you, your highness," Mr. Bennet said with an awkward smile on his face.

Draven did not bother to respond. He simply stood up from his seat and began to walk away.

"You are a very interesting person, your highness," Mr. Bennet, who had straightened up, commented.

This made Draven come to a halt. He slightly turned his head and gave him a glance.

Valentine, who was gazing at the both of them, smirked, very much entertained. He watched as Draven left and looked at Mr. Bennet Pons to notice the sparks of excitement whirling in his eyes. This man most definitely sees what he sees in Draven.

For this reason, Valentine couldn’t help but smile.

....

The door of the room closed behind Draven.

He walked towards the mini-table beside the bed and grabbed his phone to make a phone call.

Avelina, who was a bit confused, was staring at him. "Draven, is everything okay?"

Draven looked at her and nodded.

"Mhm. Mr. Bennet has been hired."

"The private investigator?" Avelina asked.