The Vampire King's Possession
Chapter 750. Blown Away

Chapter 750: 750. Blown Away

Louis stood in the middle of the field with Corbin and a few other vampires. The sun had just set, and they had all rushed out to check on the Paler to gather more evidence, as they had been unable to do that because of the rising sun.

They stared down in silence; the smell of ashes permeated the air, and a few floated around but not enough to be a bother, as there wasn’t much breeze tonight, which was also one of the reasons they couldn’t explain what they were looking at.

"Could it have all blown away?" someone asked.

"Maybe," another replied. "It was ashes, after all."

However, that explanation didn’t make sense considering what they were staring at. It was as if what they had seen the night before didn’t exist. There was nothing, not even ashes. Not a burnt mark on the ground, just nothing.

"It wasn’t just ashes," someone else interjected. "Some parts were still solid enough to avoid being blown off."

Louis raised his head from the ground and looked in the direction where the fire had started. They had been able to put it out, but not before some trees were burnt. Some had their branches burnt, some to the trunk of the tree, while some were almost at the roots.

"What do you think happened?" a vampire asked. The question was directed at Louis, but he didn’t reply.

"Have you been able to figure out how the fire started?"

"What did the Primus say?"

Questions rang out from each one of them, and Louis kept mum. He didn’t have any answers to what they were asking, and the worst part was they had asked all these questions the night before, and he had told them he knew nothing, and here they were again.

Louis looked to the ground; he was unsure if the disappearance of the burnt corpse was a good thing or not. If Jael wanted to pretend it didn’t happen, he could. They would just need time for the incident to fade, and the vampires would forget about it, but that wasn’t what Louis wanted. They had finally found a way to defeat Palers, and they couldn’t even use it.

Louis turned around and headed into the castle. He would have to tell Jael about his findings, but it was currently time for the first meal. He wondered if he should wait until after or, whenever he found the opportunity, he should mention it. There wasn’t exactly any secret; everyone in the castle knew the fire happened and that they had seen what could be only described as a burnt-up Paler.

They wasted no time in following Louis into the castle, and he led them to the dining hall. The hall was mostly filled up, but there was no sign of Jael and Mauve. Louis thought they had decided to miss the first meal. That would be best, or else they would have nothing but questions to deal with.

"Lady Marceline," Louis said with a smile as he dropped into his seat.

"Louis," she greeted back. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yes, thank you. Did you?"

Lady Marceline turned to look at her mate, Alaric, before she slowly nodded her head. "Yes," she whispered.

When she raised her head to look at Louis again, he could see the questions in them, but surprisingly, she held her tongue. He knew Lady Marceline was one of the vampires who couldn’t wait to see the end of Palers. Not only had she lost her family, but the only one left behind wanted nothing to do with her.

"That’s good," Louis said and looked towards the door.

"Do you think they will join us for the first meal?" she asked.

"We will see," was all Louis could say. He didn’t want to hold out hope, but the fact that he was still here and not headless in front of the castle was truly a good sign.

No sooner had he said those words than the door opened, and Jael walked into the dining hall with Mauve clinging to his arm. She was dressed in a flowery dress, and her hair was let down. She wore a sapphire necklace and a similar pair of earrings.

"Speak of the devil," Lady Marceline said, pulling Louis’s attention to her.

"What a perfect description," he snickered, and they both laughed together before getting to their feet, as did the rest of the vampires.

Jael’s gaze was stern as he walked to his seat with Mauve clinging to him. He pulled out the seat for her, and she sat down while mumbling her thanks to him. Jael’s eyes scanned the table as the servants started to serve the first meal. It was clear to anyone that they were all just waiting for the right moment to attack.

Jael thought they would at least wait until everyone was served, but that didn’t happen.

"Sire," Corbin called. This startled the servants, and they paused in their work but only for a moment.

"Yes," Jael drawled, clearly irritated.

"Are you aware of the incident, and perhaps could you offer us a proper explanation? All we have so far are nothing but questions, not a single answer."

"Do you mean the incident about the fire?" Jael asked, locking eyes with Corbin, who quickly looked away.

"Not the fire, Sire," someone interjected. Now that the field had been set, the rest of the vampires were getting braver.

"Yes, not the fire but what it burnt, Sire," another added.

Jael had to bite down a sarcastic remark. He couldn’t act as though he was completely unaware; that would be too suspicious. At the same time, he couldn’t acknowledge their worries, as that would only make them more persistent.

"We have enough reasons to believe it’s a Paler, Sire," Corbin said.

"Best not to jump to conclusions, Corbin," Jael said as he tore into his meal. "We can’t make any claims if a proper investigation isn’t done. I intend to check the ground myself. I’m sure everyone’s questions will be—"

"About that, Sire," Louis cut in.

Jael frowned and lifted his head to look at Louis. "What?" Jael asked darkly.

"There is no sign of the Paler," Louis announced.