Chapter 165 - "The Vampire Who Held A Bloody Sword?"

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The next morning, Ivory, Lycus, and Sigmund were walking on the main road from Greensteid Town. Suddenly, someone called them from behind.

It was Lucius, who was riding in his horse-drawn carriage, and he waved his hands as he peeked through the coach door opening. When the carriage stopped in front of the three, the blonde young man asked, "Where are you three going?"

"To Omegalion," Ivory said. "How about you?"

"I am also going there. Let me give you a ride."

Ivory opened the coach door and entered, sitting in front of Lucius. Sigmund sat beside his beloved, while Lycus sat on the vacant seat beside Lucius.

As soon as the door was closed, the carriage started moving.. 

"If you had informed me that you'd go out today, I would have asked for a carriage for you. What are you going to do in Omegalion?" he asked.

"Because of the shit that happened yesterday, my mind is all in a mess," Sigmund said, furrowing his brows. He crossed his arms, "I need to know what exactly that pesky principal saw in the castle in the past."

"I see. Then I'll drop you off there."

"Lucius, how about you, what will you do there?" Ivory asked her brother.

"I'll go to Omegalion Library to look for some archived scrolls," Lucius responded.

After that conversation, silence filled the whole carriage for the whole forty-five minutes of their trip. Each of them had their own personal problems to deal with, and all were thinking about how to get out of their current situations.

Lucius kept on thinking about his mother who ran away from home. Aside from being worried about her health and safety, he also wondered when she'll be back.

Ivory was anxious about the Servant Competition. She wanted to win for her foster family. But could she win against the best Masters and Servants of the academy? In addition to that, her ears had been itching since they were in Topazeon. She was worried that it might become a disadvantage if it would not be fully healed before the competition. 

Sigmund, on the other hand, was troubled about him and his Master's current situation as lovers. He loves Ivory very much, but his love for her alone would not.

And Lycus, a Werewolf Servant, still hid his identity from everyone except Ivory. Aside from that, he was conflicted, not knowing if he would tell his Master about her real father, His Eminence, and why the General wanted to take Ivory as his own daughter.

As soon as Ivory and her two Servants were dropped off in front of the principal's residence, Lucius' carriage left in a hurry. They were then given attention by a maid, who was wiping the windows of the townhouse. Seeing them, she immediately excused herself and entered the residence to inform Principal Arthurdane.

Seconds later, she guided them in, leading them towards a small meeting room. They sat on the wooden chairs surrounding the round, wooden table at the center. The interior of the room was almost the same as before; the walls were made of huge stones while the ceiling had planks of finished wood. A head of a deer was hung on the wall, and a huge peacock replica was placed under a wide painting of a scenic view of the mountains. But the previously red, large carpet was changed into light green, giving a refreshing feeling. 

Ivory and Sigmund remembered the first time they went to the principal's residence, asking for advice about his predicament being a different Servant than the others. And now, they returned to that same residence to ask about him again!

While the maid poured green tea in Ivory's cup, Principal Arthurdane went inside the room. He sat opposite Ivory and greeted them all with a bright smile.

"What a lovely morning to have this rare green tea," he mentioned about it being bought from the marketplace in Rubia Town in the Land of Rosaria. He then asked, "So, what can I do for you? If the three of you came here personally on a weekend, it must be something trivial."

"It's about me," Sigmund uttered.

"You seem to give a lot of problems to your Master," the principal joked, but Sigmund only narrowed his eyes on him. "Well, let's cut to the chase. What is it?"

"Tell me everything you saw during the tragedy at the Silverblade Castle."

Principal Arthurdane sighed as he recalled the unpleasant memories of his past as a Royal Knight. 

"I was assigned to the south gate of the castle at that time. That day, the war horns suddenly rang for a long time, which was an indication that there was a big attack…"

He mentioned that the south gate was breached by several armed men, who he recognized as some knights and Royal Knights.

"The south gate was the part of the castle with the fewest men, and we were outnumbered. I didn't want to die in that pathetic way, so while my companions were busy fighting until their death, I ran inside the palace to check the safety of the King."

The Principal creased his brows. He continued his story, saying that he only wanted to become a hero. But fear struck him when he saw several people, not only armed men, but also maids and butlers, were already lifeless in the hallway. 

"Blood was everywhere. I checked some of their wounds, and confirmed that they were killed by a sword."

Ivory and her two Servants listened quietly as the Principal narrated the bloody event.

He continued, "I continued walking in that hallway, until I caught you in the act. With your bloody sword, you sliced a knight's neck, and when he died, his Servant also disappeared…"

Sigmund widened his eyes, "What the hell? I will never do such a thing, especially to innocent people!"

"And when your eyes met mine, I immediately jumped onto the window beside me. My crow Beast Servant carried me away, knowing that I was too afraid to think anymore," Principal Arthurdane uttered.

"We expected that you would give us a lot of details, but I guess we're wrong," Sigmund voiced, obviously disappointed. He then realized something, "Wait, if you were a cowardly Royal Knight, how the heck did you manage to become a Principal of Qawiun Academy?"

"My grandmother was the previous principal."

"So your cowardly old self managed to become a Royal Knight because of connections?" the Vampire mocked him.

The Principal shrugged, "Even so, I am quite skilled. I won't win the Principal Application if I was such a weakling."

Ivory sighed. Feeling lost, she asked, "What should we do now? We only want to know the truth about the tragedy, but-"

"His Highness Prince Levian can answer you directly."

"That kid? What do you mean?" the Vampire Servant raised his brow.

"He's no longer a kid. He's become a fine, young man! He came with Sir Xenos last summer."

Lycus then said, "Where is he staying? Maybe we can go to His Highness today and ask directly."

"I'm afraid you can't meet him at this time. He has a problem with his Servant."

They asked what the problem was.

The principal replied, "His Servant was already summoned before he even used the summoning circle. Fortunately, he knew what she looked like, so he and Xenos went on a journey to find her. Once found, the Prince might become the most powerful Master in the Kingdom. I am very sure that his Servant is also a powerful one!"

"Please inform us once he returns. I have a lot of things to say to him," Ivory was thinking about gaining his favor by helping him reclaim his throne, then ask him to allow her and Sigmund to continue their relationship. She remembered the oath she took last time in her dream with Wolfram, which was helping Prince Levian to take back his throne. If she successfully did it, she would be hitting two birds with one stone!

Principal Arthurdane insisted that they have brunch at his residence, so he served a platter of sesame beef and cabbage stir fry. Each of them were given a bowl of butter spinach soup, as well as a plate of pan seared steak. The aroma of the food was so good that the Servants, who were not required to eat at all, couldn't help but taste them. Ivory, on the other hand, asked for more steak when she finished hers. She ate more steak than vegetable meals!

Full and satisfied, Ivory excused herself and thanked the Principal for the sumptuous meal. She and her two Servants walked towards Omegalion Library first to see if Lucius was still there.

The two-storey library was similar to a big shed, but the interiors had magnificent and exquisite style. Scrolls which were classified into different topics were stacked on wooden shelves. It had secluded desks and even a secret door behind a shelf leading to where the banned scrolls were found.

They walked around the first floor and saw Lucius on a corner, his eyes fixed on an old scroll on the table. Beside the scroll were several other scrolls which looked old as well. They then decided to sneak behind him to see what he was reading.

But they did not expect him to read an archived document. What's more, it was something banned!

Lucius was startled when a hand suddenly touched his shoulder. When he turned, he met Sigmund's glowing crimson-red irises.

"What the hell, rich boy," he narrowed his eyes on him, "Why are you reading about Werewolves?"