Chapter 149

Chapter 149: Chapter 149

Asael studied Dulce, there were times he couldn’t read the Vampire. "I do," He accepted, watching Dulce walk a short distance away to the open space underneath a pear tree.

The uncertainty that was Dulce’s past was something he couldn’t keep avoiding if he got further entangled with the Vampire. It was something he would eventually have to uncover regardless of the risks.

Dulce easily had a makeshift fireplace ready, starting a fire right under the tree to roast the bird. He briefly went to the cottage with the bird and returned with it cleaned.

Asael waited patiently for him to bustle around, leaning against a nearby tree as he watched Dulce meticulously roast the spiced bird, its savory, greasy scent getting blown through the trunks of the trees around.

"Where did you learn to cook?" He asked curiously. Dulce was wealthy, he had no need to prepare his own meals, yet the Vampire was adept at it.

Dulce’s gaze grew distant, a hand against his chest. "I really like food," He said in a simple manner. "I can’t remember, I have always known how to."

Asael was unconvinced, granted, he barely attempted to cook for himself but the few times he did, the meal had been more edible uncooked. Right then, he got a strange itch to know about Dulce’s past, the life the Vampire lived before he was turned.

Together, they split a roasted fowl in the flower fields, Asael lowering himself to the grass to join the Vampire.

Dulce’s lips were smeared with grease, some of it getting on his already messy hair. Sitting by the dying embers of the fireplace, nibbling on the bony wing of the bird, Asael could almost catch a glimpse of a younger Dulce.

"Do you remember when you were a child?" He blurted out, the question unlike him.

Dulce gave the question serious thought like he did everything that involved his summoned Demons. "I don’t ." He said decisively after a pause, yet there was no regret on his face.

Asael didn’t push, what he knew about the Vampire pointed to his past being dark and harrowing, perhaps forgetting was to shield Dulce from it.

Wiping his hands on a napkin, Dulce looked around greedily, like he hoped for another wild fowl to fly right into his arms.

"Do you want more?" Asael asked immediately.

"I don’t think there’s any more, wild fowls aren’t common in these woods." Dulce said, leaning against the tree they were under.

Asael glanced into the cover of trees, if there was even a single wild fowl in the woods, he would find it. "I’ll return," He said shortly to Dulce, fading into a black mist.

Dulce sat up, now more accustomed to Asael’s abilities. He left briefly for a moment, but it was to have what they needed brought out. He then sat and waited for Asael’s return, daydreaming of roasted fowl.

The Shadow Demon soon made an appearance, returning along with not a single bird in sight.

Dulce looked him over, disappointment spilling into his silver blue eyes. "You couldn’t find any?"

Asael glanced down at the tree they had been sitting beneath, it now sported picnic blankets, clear water in a wooden tub, knives, and spices. "I did." He said, an amused light in his eyes.

Dulce looked up at the large ball of wild fowl, floating forward from behind Asael. They were completely encased in the shadows, their squawking muted.

"Where did you find this many birds?" Dulce asked, in shock.

Asael glanced at the bundled creatures, as if he was just realizing the sheer quantity he had captured. "Take as many as you want." He said generously.

"Are there even any birds left in the forest?" Dulce wondered as he approached the ball of birds, eyeing the stretched-out ball of shadows like he wanted to touch it.

Asael ignored his question, "Reach in and take what you need."

Dulce was too eager to reach in that he didn’t reiterate his question, taking out two fowls. Mistakenly crushing them was no longer a worry as they were destined for the spit regardless.

"If Caedos were here, I’m almost certain he could eat all the birds you caught." Dulce said lightly.

Asael lowered himself to the blanket, leaving the fowls still trapped. "Do you want me to find out information about him?" He offered although it felt like dropping a dagger on his foot, unable to ignore the distant look in Dulce’s eyes when he spoke of the Hellhound.

Dulce had already gotten around to spicing the birds, "Not at all," He turned down with vigor. "That would be no help in getting accustomed to his absence."

Asael split his shadows, separating a smaller ball that held only four wild fowls, right before sending the rest back to the forest. "You’re convinced he won’t return?"

"It would be best if he didn’t, wouldn’t it?" Dulce said without sounding like he believed his own words. He would be heartbroken if he had to let go of his precious companion a second time.

Right now, they hadn’t spent much time together yet, he wouldn’t live the rest of his days plagued by happy memories he would never get to live again.

Asael didn’t say anything further, the Vampire was the one with true immortality, no matter what they said, they would leave him eventually.

The heavy conversation was quickly replaced by the light, oily scent of roasting wild fowl. It was late afternoon now, the red-hued sun breaking through the cover of the clouds.

"Do you think Ruoxi would want some of this?" Dulce mused.

Asael’s gaze cooled, "He can go hunt for his own meal."

They sat in the flower fields until the sun went down, roasting and nibbling on wild flowers, all of Dulce’s plans to recover his lost farm completely squashed.

"There is a stream somewhere in the woods," Dulce said with a contented smile when servants had to bring a fresh change of water for them. "And a distributary feeds a small pond in the fields. Next time we should prepare the fire next to water."

Asael glanced down at his greasy hands, completely relaxed. "Alright."