The Vampire King's Possession
Chapter 778. Even

Chapter 778: 778. Even

Mauve smiled and lifted herself carefully. Her stomach was much bigger now, and she couldn’t just stand up as easily as she once would. Malcolm, watching her struggle, stood up from his seat.

"Never mind," he said with a chuckle. "I’ll just come sit next to you."

He dropped into the chair beside her, and Mauve narrowed her eyes at the fact that he was clearly mocking her.

"If you had been just a little patient, I would have come to you," Mauve replied, but there was no anger in her voice.

"Yeah," Malcolm said absentmindedly.

Mauve wasn’t sure what he was thinking about, but she didn’t want him to feel bad for her. "How is the King?" she asked, changing the subject. She didn’t care what happened to her father, and she was a little glad he was sick; otherwise, Malcolm wouldn’t have as much authority as he currently did.

"Sick," he replied. "Very sick."

"What’s wrong?" she asked.

"The physicians don’t know. They’ve tried everything, but he only gets sicker."

"Magic could heal him," Mauve blurted. It wasn’t that she wanted him to get better, but she hoped it was something that could buy Malcolm’s favor.

"I don’t think magic could cure him."

Mauve jerked her head in her brother’s direction. Her eyes widened in horror as she realized the King was indeed that sick. "What’s wrong?" she asked. King Evan Grey was still her father, even though she didn’t want to have anything to do with him.

"I wish we knew. Every day, we try a new herb, and he only gets sicker. The illness seems to be eating away at his body. He says the most bizarre things, trying to get out of bed even though he can’t walk. I didn’t want to tell you the details because I didn’t want to bother you, and this isn’t widespread yet. We’re trying to keep it under wraps as much as we can. No reason for the people to panic."

Mauve couldn’t believe her ears. It hadn’t been that long since she last saw the King, and yet he had been reduced to this state. She also realized why Malcolm was exceedingly busy. The King literally couldn’t do anything.

"What about the Queen? How is she coping with the incident?"

"Mother is fine. She’ll be fine," Malcolm simply said.

Mauve nodded. She couldn’t bring herself to ask about the last member of the family, and she was glad when Malcolm didn’t mention it.

"Is the pregnancy hard?" he asked. "I don’t know the sort of questions to ask."

Mauve laughed. "Not at all. It’s gotten much better. Well, except for the part where I have to be careful about how I move."

"I’m getting married," Malcolm suddenly said.

"That’s great news," Mauve said, clapping her hands together. "When?" she asked.

"A date hasn’t been fixed yet, but if Mother has anything to say about it, it’ll be sooner rather than later."

Mauve nodded. "Congratulations." Mauve’s smile widened, genuinely happy for her brother despite the complicated emotions swirling within her. "Who’s the lucky bride?" she asked, her tone light and teasing, though she couldn’t help but feel a pang of sadness that she hadn’t been there to witness this part of her brother’s life.

Malcolm hesitated for a moment, his expression shifting slightly. "No one you know," he said finally. "It’s... more of a political arrangement than anything else. Mother and the council thought it would strengthen our ties with the other nobles."

Mauve’s smile faltered for a moment, but she quickly recovered. She knew how these things worked—marriages among nobility were rarely about love, especially in times of uncertainty. Still, she couldn’t help but feel a twinge of disappointment for her brother. "I wish you the best."

Malcolm shrugged, his tone nonchalant, but Mauve could see the tension in his shoulders. "It’s no different from what you had to do," he said simply. "And if you could do it, so can I. I’ve made my peace with it."

Mauve wanted to speak more on the matter, but Malcolm cut her off. "I should get some rest," he replied.

Mauve nodded. "I’m sure you aren’t used to staying awake at night."

"I don’t know how you do it," he said with a smile.

"You get used to it," she replied.

"I know it’s definitely not as easy as you say it is."

"It is," Mauve insisted with a smile.

"Yeah, right," Malcolm said, standing to his feet.

Mauve stretched out her hand, and he gently helped her to her feet. "Thank you," she said and walked beside him as they headed for the door.

"Traveling only at night is quite troublesome. I can’t promise I’ll make this trip again," Malcolm said with a sad look in his eyes as he glanced at his sister.

Mauve nodded. "I understand, and I know I’ll miss your wedding, not because I have to travel at night."

"I missed yours. I’d say we’re even."

Mauve laughed. "Yes, we are."

"Yep, and I wouldn’t even dare to ask you to move around in such a state," he said, glancing at her stomach. Mauve smiled at him.

They got to the door, and it immediately flung open with Jael waiting right outside. He moved right to her side and placed an arm around her waist. "Are you okay?"

"Of course," Mauve said with a laugh.

"Goodnight," Malcolm said to no one in particular before he headed toward the direction of his room.

"Good night, Malcolm," Mauve replied. Her brother wasn’t alone. He had brought a few guards with him, and right now, a few of them walked him to his room.

The conclusion wasn’t as good as she wanted, but it was certainly better than nothing, and she knew she could count on her brother. If he said he would consider it, she knew she could trust him to keep his word.

"How did it go?" Jael asked when Malcolm was out of earshot.

Mauve nodded and smiled. "Pretty good. I’d say I have high hopes."

Jael didn’t look convinced, but he simply nodded and started to lead her toward the dining area. "It’s almost time for the second meal. We should get you fed."