Chapter 230

Chapter 230: Chapter 230

The Fiend was already at the door before Dulce could even speak, "Who is looking for a figh..." He trailed off in bright-eyed wonder when he saw Dulce glaring up at him.

Dulce didn’t have to call them individually for dinner, falling into ingrained habits without even realizing it.

Asael met his cold invitation to dinner with curious silence, the Shadow Demon seemed to have gone back to watching him with the same thoughtful vigilance he had when they first met.

Dulce wore only a waistcoat, the buttons on his sleeve and collar undone. With his hair down, he was like a flower in full bloom, his cold eyes promising danger.

He sat down at the head of the table, his jaw resting against his elbow as he waited for the servants to serve them.

It was difficult to completely ignore the intense gazes trained on him - yet to settle down and go through his reabsorbed memories - they were so familiar, yet not.

"I have no use for company," He finally broke the tense silence partway into the meal. "I am a Vampire so I have no soul either."

"You don’t even want your precious Hellhound?" Kath’tan was quick to ask, his eyes teeming with schadenfreude.

"I dislike pets." Dulce bit back frostily, his eyes drifting to Caedos instinctively.

The Hellhound said nothing, his expression composed as ever, but it was difficult to ignore his drooping ears which were pressed flat against his short hair.

Kath’tan looked Dulce over skeptically, "You spent several minutes directing your sheep on what to do while you were away." He revealed without tact, "And even longer searching for them when you returned-"

Dulce’s cold glare cut him off, the Vampire’s anger was strangely satisfying.

"They all knew you had no soul when they insisted on sticking around." Kath’tan grumbled, and it was difficult to tell if he was speaking for the others or simply too self-conscious to directly say how he felt.

"Then it’s decided." Dulce concluded, "I’ll be leaving at first light. You are all free to return to the Hells."

"The binding contract has always been sentiment," Asael spoke up, seeming generally unbothered by the threat of total separation. "I have no interest in leaving."

"Then let’s strike up a new contract," Dulce said without feeling, "Your services are for hire, are they not?"

Asael’s thoughtful gray eyes flipped to black, he said nothing as he waited to hear what Dulce had to say.

"You said it yourself that Shadow Assassins do not only kill," The Vampire went on, and for a moment, there was a flash of his heartless shell, his words serene and polite. "So name your price and your task will simply be to leave."

Asael picked up the silverware that he had unknowingly dropped, for a moment, he had thought that Dulce would ask him to kill the others. He didn’t know what it said about him that he had actually considered it.

His eyes were back to their thoughtful gray, starting to pick out flaws in this unknown version of Dulce. The Vampire could leave at anytime, or send them off with magic, yet instead, he was trying to convince them to leave.

"I’m not taking jobs at the moment," He said flippantly.

Dulce huffed out a breath in frustration, refocusing on his meal instead of making more futile attempts. He still intended to leave first thing the next morning, he would not concern himself with how the Demons chose to handle that.

The rest of dinner was mostly quiet, and while he was deep in thought, Dulce didn’t even notice that he placed a large cut of meat on Caedos’ plate.

He didn’t think that the High Coven would dare cross him again, perhaps he should have completely burned it to the ground in the past...

Caedos’ ears were instantly revived at the familiar gesture, as well as his lost appetite, wolfing down the meat that had been placed on his plate.

Dulce was the first to stop eating, he eyed the dessert tray with something akin to longing but took none for himself, rising to his feet with a detached expression.

Ruoxi sprawling on the dining table caught his attention, the Incubus’ plate was completely untouched. "You promised to feed me and now you plan to leave me hungry and go on a journey," He complained with a pout, sounding like a mistreated wife.

Dulce pinched the bridge of his nose, even the faintest of flushes on his skin was now visible. "I’ll buy you as many whores as you want." He gruffly offered.

Ruoxi shot to his feet with an exaggerated expression of betrayal. "You might as well let me starve," He threw out dramatically.

"There is no reason to be so difficult," Dulce found himself trying to placate the Demon.

Ruoxi’s tired eyes sparkled with mischief and hope, "So you’ll feed me instead?"

Dulce was tongue-tied, the summoning contract was broken but he had agreed on so many occasions to feed the Incubus, even when he wasn’t hungry.

"Dulce is accompanying me tonight," Caedos joined the conversation, and even through the Demon’s composed expression, it was easy to see that he was beyond pleased with himself.

Kath’tan scowled, "And who decided that?"

"Come along," Dulce said to the Hellhound, deciding to take the easy way out.

Given the option, he would rather have a Hound sleep by his feet than feed a starving Incubus.

His response silenced Kath’tan, the Fiend fuming all the while, to the extent of dragging the platter of uneaten desserts closer to himself.

Caedos went along without question, and if the Demon’s tail was out, it would be wagging hard enough to whip an already infuriated Kath’tan.

Dulce led the way to his study, more disquieted by his entanglement with the Demons than he was with the matter of the High Coven of the North. It was such a unique problem that he didn’t quite know how to handle it despite living for so long.

He could kill a man in a hundred different ways but a Hellhound solemnly asking to sleep by his feet stumped him.

And perhaps, if their relationship wasn’t so ambiguous, it wouldn’t be this strenuous to deal with.

Dulce was quiet the entire time, but he couldn’t completely tune out the hulking Demon trailing after him obediently. Caedos had always been quiet and well-behaved... mostly, but it was difficult not to find the Demon tolerable.

"I have letters to go through." He said coldly as he stopped in front of his study. "It may very well take all night."

Despite his indirect way of letting the Hellhound know that he would be better off sleeping comfortably in his own bed, Caedos simp waited expectantly.

Dulce opened the door a crack and then hesitated, glancing back at Caedos. "The ground is cold and hard. It’ll hardly make for a good night’s sleep." He tried again, his tone unconsciously softening.

Caedos was about to reassure the Vampire like he always did that he didn’t feel discomfort but he caught himself in time. "I’ll make do for your company."

Dulce turned away, his expression torn even as he pushed the door open fully and strode right in. "Do as you wish."

He went to his desk without pause, reminded of how he had avoided his own letters like the plague while he was without his heart. As much as he loathed his own kind, he would never be completely alienated from them much like he preferred to be.

Especially because they could never let him alone.

The letters were mostly mindless drivel, Vampires, mostly unacquainted with him seemed to have grown bolder in the absence of his memories. A large majority of the letters were selfish requests and outright demands.

He was about to rise to his feet and chuck them into the fireplace when he felt a weight on his legs. He glanced down, surprised but not startled at the sight of Caedos still in his human form.

The Demon had stood next to him silently while he perused his letters, so for a moment he had actually forgotten he was right next to him.

It was rather difficult, however, to ignore the massive Demon curled up on the ground next to his chair, with his head laid in his lap, his eyes peacefully closed.

"You said you would shift," Dulce reminded tightly, crumpling the letters in his hands to stop himself from touching the regal black ears which were within reach.

Caedos opened his eyes, little flames dancing in the depth of his pupils. "I’ll destroy your study."

Dulce looked around like he was trying to mentally picture the Hellhound in modest study. "Let’s leave then." He suggested instead, gathering up the stack of unread letters.

Caedos rose to his feet before asking questions, "To where?"

Dulce wore a stifled expression like he would rather not say his next words. "Your room."

As soon as his words fell, he was pulled into the Demon’s arms and whirled away out of the room, his gasp of surprise caught in his throat.

He didn’t pull away from Caedos’ arms even after they arrived, his vision spinning so much he had to close his eyes tight, unsteady on his feet.