The Baroness Misbehaves
Chapter 151: Something Unusual (2)

Chapter 151: Something Unusual (2)

Stepping out of the adjoining room that was connected to the main office that Cassian had walked in earlier, Alaric’s expression returned to the poised, unperturbed look as he shifted glances between the Duke and the rest of the noble councils that were seated in their respective seats, their silence conveying a sense of anticipation as they waited for His Majesty to say something.

"I’ll be stepping out for a few minutes, there is an urgent matter that needs my attention, and I must attend to it immediately. In the meantime, the servers will set the table while you all dine and wait. " He looked to his left. "Cassian, Duke Richard, I need you two to come with me." Came his firm orders before he turned and headed for the exit.

Cassian said nothing and quietly followed suit while his father joined, leaving the rest of the noble councils to murmur to themselves about what was happening. After stepping out of the office, Alaric refused his guards to follow him and instructed them to wait as he couldn’t trust those nobles in sheep’s clothing.

"Watch who comes in and out, I’ll be fine on my own." The guards could only nod as it was a strict order from their king. After settling that part with his guards, Alaric walked down the hallway with Cassian and his father following behind.

Meanwhile, both father and son had tons of questions they wanted to ask themselves as they silently followed behind, but neither of them was willing to drop their pride as they had made up the decision to ignore each other’s presence completely, barely looking in each other’s direction or offering a polite greeting.

"Incase you two are wondering," Alaric’s ascetic voice broke both father and son from their train of thoughts. "The situation is quite dire, and since no one has taken the missing people case as seriously as the both of you, you have earned my trust and that is why I made time to show you both something and help me come up with a decision that will save Carmarthen."

"Shouldn’t your trusted advisor be in charge of that, your majesty?" Cassian inquired thoughtfully, putting an effort to keep his gaze low, but Alaric shook his head in disagreement as he kept walking, his royal blue cape that emphasized his aristocracy, flowing elegantly behind him.

"This shouldn’t concern my trusted advisor, at least for now as it is something that needs both your opinions first." While he spoke, they approached a heavy wooden door that was guarded on either side by two palace guards, and Richard looked the least puzzled as he was already aware of this place, except he had never stepped into it due to the tight security that was being placed here.

King Alaric gave the guards a curt nod, and the guards immediately got the message. One of them reached for his pocket and brought out a key, which he used to unlock the door as a clicking sound was made, and both guards pushed the heavy door open until the entrance became apparent to their gazes.

What came into sight was a narrow staircase and the dimness of the place they were about to enter. Alaric was the first to go in, whilst Cassian and his father exchanged glances for the first time, silently communicating on who would go next, but when Alaric sensed their unmoved movement behind him, he turned to look at both of them, thus, leading Duke Richard to step in next as they both knew his Majesty hates having his time being wasted.

All three of them went down the staircase in silence, and the staircase led them to a damp, dark dungeon before they finally stopped in their tracks. Since Cassian rarely came here for Luncheon meetings, this part of the building was unfamiliar to him. He never knew a place like this could exist, but then it was military based.

The air in the dungeon was stale, and the flickering torches on the walls casted eerie shadows to the ground. It reeked of danger, and Cassian could feel a threatening presence lingering within the walls.

As they walked, Cassian could hear muffled groans and cries coming from behind the stone walls, making his sensitive ears twitch at the disturbing voices. He knew better than to ask questions; he trusted Alaric and knew he had his reasons for bringing him down here.

Finally, they reached a cell at the end of the hallway. The cell was small, and the only light came from a small barred window in the ceiling. Alaric gestured for Cassian to come closer.

"There," he said, pointing to a figure huddled in the corner of the cell.

Cassian approached cautiously, peering into the darkness. As his eyes adjusted, he gasped in horror after noticing what was locked in there. The figure in the cell was not human, but some kind of fiend that was visible to both human eyes. Its skin was mottled and scaly, Its eyes glinting in the dim light, and its long, finger claws were scratching against the stone floor, scarring the ground, but then it took the figure of a young man.

"How did you find this thing?" Cassian asked, his voice barely above a whisper. Richard, who was equally dumb-stricken by the sight inched closer to get a good look at it.

"It was posing as a human, trying to sneak across the borders of Carmarthen," Alaric explained. "I’ve been away for public events and social gatherings, there was a court meeting that I had to attend at the closest town northeast peltagrow, and on my way back, that’s when I ran into this thing posing as a human along our borders between Whitebrige city’s capital."

Alaric’s eyes turned cryptic, "he wasn’t like this, but when my men tried to get him out of the way, his body started mutating until he ended up looking like that, I ordered to have him locked up."

Cassian, who was listening, moved closer to the cell and crouched down to get a closer look at the fiend inside. It was completely different from the one he saw at William’s study, except for the colors and blackness of its eyes, it had the figure of a human. The creature in the cell seemed to radiate malevolence, and Cassian could feel its eyes on him, as though it were studying him as well.

"Record has it that he’s one of the victims who went missing. I’m guessing he must have escaped, but his condition is something I cannot understand. No one can go near it to do a proper examination as it wouldn’t hesitate to strike."

"What are you going to do with it?" Cassian asked, his eyes still fixed on the fiend who continued to study him while crawling closer.

"I haven’t decided yet," Alaric said, turning away from the cell. "It’s too dangerous to let loose, but I don’t want to kill it either. For now, it stays here, where it can do no harm. Now I’m wondering, you two have been in depth with this case, what have you found that can possibly relate to this young man’s condition?"

"I started from scratch." Richard began, taking a look at the fiend inside, but not daring to go near it like his son. "There are creatures roaming the street at night, and from what I’ve heard, they are referred to as the ’creatures of the night’."

"Creatures of the night?"

"Popularly known as Vampires, your Majesty." Richard explained. "I have a feeling that these creatures are responsible for turning them into these filthy things, but finding them has proved almost impossible as there’s a record that their speed is - in other word, otherworldly.

"How can we find one?" Alaric’s tone turned serious, "my ill Father keeps asking about the progress when there is no progress to give."

"She... she has awakened, you all are going to die!" The creature that had been quiet all this while suddenly moved forward to look in the unwavering eyes of Cassian, his hands clutching against the bars as his face came in close contact with Cassian, as though he was speaking directly to him and no one else.

"I will rip you in TWO!!"

"Cas, step away."

"It’s alright." Cassian assured his father and the King who was starting to sense the Fiends threat.

"Open the door for me." When he said this, a vile smile painted the face of the fiend that was trapped in the cell, and Alaric, who was stunned to hear Cassian’s request, refused.

"What are you going to do?"

Cassian smirked while unhooking his cuffs and pulling up his sleeves, "if it can speak, It has no other choice but to give us the answers we need. Open the door."