The Vampire Prince's Toxic Consort (BL)

One week before the ball, King Cosmo suddenly ordered Dorian to visit another vampire realm, Rovania, an island country in east Eton and an ocean away from Eternia. The land was governed by three Oracles, and recently they just elected a new Oracle, and since King Cosmo couldn’t travel, the duty fell to Dorian.

“It’s another Devina’s idea.” Lucius crossed his arms peevishly, “she doesn’t want you to have any chance or excuse to talk to Lord Osman.”

Dorian seeped at the blood in his glass, “of course she doesn’t. And I’m sure Silvan will be present, and perhaps he will spend the whole night dancing with Emel, since she is of age now, and he hasn’t gotten a consort yet.”

“I will make sure that won’t happen. I will dance with her myself if it’s necessary.” Lucius firmly claimed, “I was told I can be quite charming with the ladies.”

Dorian smirked, “be careful. I don’t want you to take another lover.”

“What do you mean by ‘another’?! I have none! And for a thousand times, Buck is just a servant!”

“If you say so.”

“Be Careful, I may think you are jealous.“Lucius smiled playfully.

The ball was held in St. Agathon Hotel, one of the most luxurious institutions in Emberton. Almost half of Eternia’s notabilities were invited that night. Other similar-aged girls from slightly lower-rank noble families would also come out to this ball. All the young ladies dressed up in their finest gowns and jewelry, like a full garden of flowers in full bloom and competing with each other in a pageant of spring.

A black limo stopped before the red carpet, and a human slave dressed in a black suit that bodyguards usually wore got off the car first. He casually buttoned and straightened his jacket in a natural and elegant way, and carried a confident and composed demeanor different from most other slaves onsite. He went to the other side of the car and pulled the rare door open, and in a fanatic wave of camera flashes, Crown Prince Consort Julian Rosenfield made his appearance.

He was in an unobtrusive but still well-tailored black silk cloqué tuxedo, slightly different from his usual white clothing selection. Most of the other male guests also wore black that night so they wouldn’t steal the spotlight from the debutantes and set off the ladies’ colorful dresses.

Lucius flashed his well-practiced smile to the cameras and crowds and paused on the carpet occasionally to give the journalists a better chance to take his photo. Halfway in, he heard another wave of gasp and cameras clicking sound, and as he looked back, finding Silvan got out of his snazzy sports car and catching up to him.

“Here he comes,” Lucius grunted under his breath, but the smile on his face hadn’t faltered.

Silvan came directly at him with a captivating smile, “Good evening, Julian.”

“Good evening.” Julian returned a smile, “didn’t bring any companions?”

“Sadly, no.“Silvan smirked, “I was hoping to find one tonight.”

“I’m sure many young ladies are looking forward to having a dance with you.”

“Well, I can be a bit particular about my dancing partners.” Silvan flashed a wink at him, “How about you? It’s a shame that Dorian couldn’t come.”

“I’m perfectly fine with enjoying some good food and admiring some beauties by myself.”

The ballroom was filled with people, and upon their entrance, many came to chat with Silvan and Lucius. Several bodyguards and Florian were always close in case any vampire had too much to drink and tried to attack Lucius.

As one of the major guests, Lord Osman soon came to greet Lucius and Silvan. The general looked to be in his early thirties, though he was over three hundred years old. He held a dignified and austere deportment, quite distinct from most vampire noblemen Lucius had seen.

Suddenly, the light in the ballroom dimmed, except for one spotlight shone on the top of the winding stairs. And then the cynosure of the night showed up next to the banister. Emel Osman stood in a white lace dress, her braided rich black hair decorated with hundreds of tiny pearls, with two dangling wavy strands framing her diamond-shaped dainty face. People began clapping as she descended the stairs, and other girls from lower aristocratic ranks followed her.

“Emel is stunning tonight.“Silvan complimented earnestly.

Lord Osman smiled proudly at his daughter, and the joy and happiness in his eyes were exactly the same as Lucius’s parents when they witnessed Julian being ordained as the High Priest. Lucius couldn’t help but envy the closeness between the father and the daughter.

Emel came to her father’s side and was introduced to Lucius and Silvan. She curtsied to them, and if not for the two fangs showing when she smiled, Lucius couldn’t even imagine such a bashful ingenue was a blood-sucking vampire. He could imagine in older days, countless men would have fallen into her trap of innocence.

The music began to play, and it was the tradition for the debutantes to start the dancing. Lucius noticed that Silvan was about to say something, so he decided to beat him to it.

“May I have the honor of the first dance, my lady?” Lucius extended his hand to Emel gracefully.

Emel smiled coyly, “of course.”

Lucius’s dancing skill from many years of dissolute lifestyle finally found its usefulness. He knew how to guide and encourage his female partner to make some impressive spinning or even jumping moves, and since Emel had a very lissom stature, he could easily hold her and carry her weight, making her shine like a star. They soon earned cheers and clasps from the crowd, and Lord Osmen was pleased.

As more and more other couples joined the floor, their dancing became slower and more casual. Emel was excited about their previous dance, and she warmed up to Lucius quickly and gave him a sweet smile.

However, to Lucius’s surprise, she asked many questions about Dorian, like what he was like in person, what color he liked, what blood type he preferred, and what he did for fun when he was not performing his duties. Lucius answered as much as he knew and saw it fit but was also amused by how curious the girl was.

Eventually, their dance ended, and Silvan had the second dance. Lucius took a glass of champagne from a waiter when Lord Osman approached him.

“May I speak with you privately, your highness?”

Lucius was not foreseeing such development. He was hoping that he could catch Lord Osman alone sometime today, and now the opportunity presented itself.

He followed Osman into a lounge room adjacent to the ballroom, and before entering, he decided to leave all the bodyguards, as well as Florian, outside.

“Are you sure?” Florian asked quietly.

“I’m sure Lord Osman will not suddenly go mad and attack me. An apostle has at least this much self-control.” Lucius said jokingly.

Two slaves closed the door for them, and Lucius was alone with the general. He couldn’t predict what Osman wanted to talk to him about, but he had to seize the chance and try to persuade him to side with Dorian when the time came.

He took another drink from his glass, trying to organize his words, but Osman spoke first.

“I hope you will forgive my audacity, your highness. I am a military man and can be overly forthright.”

“No need to apologize. I’m tired of those circumlocutory court language as well.” Lucius smiled heartily, “what do you want to talk to me about?”

Osman sat straight on the couch, appearing slightly nervous, “As you see, my daughter is of age, and after my wife decided to go to sleep, she is my only immediate family left, and I want her to be happy.”

“By happy, do you mean you want to marry her to someone suitable?” Lucius tried to guess the meaning between Osman’s words, though he wasn’t sure why Lord Osman mentioned it to him, “does she have someone in mind?”

“She does. In fact, she has set her eyes on someone for a couple of years now.” Osman hesitated.

“But?” Lucius encouraged, almost getting impatient. He sincerely hoped the young lady was not having a crush on Silvan.

“But that someone is already married.”

“Oh...“Lucius chuckled dryly. At least he can rest assured it was not Silvan that Emel had eyes on, “but I heard for vampire marriage it’s not necessarily monogamy?”

“Yes, and she is willing to be a concubine. ”

An uneasy thought started to creep into Lucius’s mind, “And...why are you talking to me about it?”

Osman momentarily contemplated his choice of words, and decided to be candid and dropped the bomb on Lucius, “Emel is in love with the Crown Prince. She had been since she was introduced to him at an Eternia Day celebration two years ago.”

Lucius blinked several times, “excuse me?”

“I know this is highly unusual, and you may feel offended. But I propose this without malignant intention.” Osman continued as if the floodgate was opened, “Everyone knows Prince Dorian loves and respects your Highness very much. But as the future king, he will need an heir to secure his position. Osman family is one of the purest Morrigan bloodlines. Strength and power run in our blood. The combining of the Morrigan and Azreal bloodlines strengthens both houses. Meanwhile, I will do everything I can to ensure the Crown Prince, Your Highness, as well as my daughter’s welfare.″

It was a great deal. Accepting Emel as Dorian’s concubine and the Royal Army would be theirs. But Lucius felt like something stuck in his throat, making him angry.

Osman was threatening him.

“And if I refuse, will you betray your future king?” Lucius said coldly.

“That is not what I meant. I am and always will be loyal to the crown.” Osman replied scrupulously, unfazed by Lucius’s threatening inquisition.

Now it all made sense why Emel had so many questions about Dorian.

Lucius put down his glass and stood up. He managed to keep his composure and rejoined courteously, “I will consider your proposal carefully and discuss it with Dorian.”

The rest of the night, Lucius couldn’t focus and was operated on autopilot. He didn’t even have the heart to say no when Silvan asked him for a dance and barely registered what the younger prince said. Before midnight, he found an excuse and flet the ball.

“What did Osman say to you? You have been distracted since the talk.” Sitting on the seat facing him, Florian asked with a little frown, seemingly worried.

Lucius shook his head at first, but then, he scoffed as if it was something hilarious, “Lord Osman wants Dorian to take his daughter as a concubine.”

Florian studied Lucius’s expression, “Are you going to agree to it?”

“...”

“Sooner or later, he will need an heir to carry his blood.”

“I know. I just...didn’t expect it to happen so early.”

Florian was tacit for a while, and then he leaned in slightly, asking with a muffled, careful voice, “Are you in love with him?”

As if being poked at a painful spot, Lucius retorted exasperatedly, “Don’t be ridiculous!”

“You are, aren’t you.“Florian’s expression was unreadable in the flashing neon light.

“It’s none of your business,” Lucius said stubbornly.

Florian didn’t say anything more, but Lucius could practically see his thoughts from the way he looked at him, and it unnerved him gravely.

Would he be capable of carrying out the plan if he had lost his heart?

“It won’t change anything for us,” Lucius said solemnly eventually.