Chapter 99

Chapter 99: Chapter 99

"You’re incredibly stubborn, Dulce," He blurted out, the words slurring. "Do you know that?"

Dulce was startled by this outburst, sitting up straighter. He had been lost in thought of ways to undo the summons sooner, he had even considered sending out letters when they returned to Earth.

"Stubborn?" He repeated, surprised. "I wouldn’t say I’ve ever been called that."

Kath’tan stared at the Vampire, ale jug in hand. The dim red sky only highlighted the color on his skin, his bottom lip glistening from wine.

He was supposed to reiterate that he had admitted to wanting to keep the Vampire company for a while longer only to be given a rebuttal, instead he reached across the marble bench to gently grasp his jaw, closing the distance.

There was no caution in those pale blue eyes, just open curiosity. It barreled past what was left of his defenses, lowering his head to taste the tangy wine from those soft red lips.

Kath’tan pulled away far too quickly but he needed to check in with the Vampire, a sudden kiss was rather rude.

Dulce’s expression remained unchanged, those striking features still held open curiosity. He wiped his lips gently, looking to Kath’tan. "Was there something on my lips?"

Kath’tan paused, a chuckle spilling out of him. "Foolish Vampire."

Realization clicked behind Dulce’s eyes, he lowered his gaze to the grassy field underneath them. "You don’t have to stay because of that," He said solemnly.

Kath’tan’s smile grew wider, "And here I thought you wanted company."

Dulce turned to look at him, "Yes, but not love." He said plainly.

Kath’tan didn’t lose his smile, "And who said I did?" He asked gently, taking another sip with his gaze on the sky.

He had no interest in love, no Fiend wanted an abomination with tainted blood. And in Fiend culture, love was merely a suggestion. His seven siblings had mostly different mothers so the term bastard was only used because his mother was from a different faction, nothing else.

Even if she had simply been a commoner from the Wrath faction, he would have been treated the same as the rest of the Grand Duke’s children.

Now that he no longer concerned himself with the circumstances around his birth, there was no harm in dabbling in romance. And it wasn’t found in an unlikely place, he was a mixed-blood, his options were limited to other Demon species, and even much broader.

Dulce relaxed at that, he couldn’t remember if he had tried but he knew he was incapable of love. He wouldn’t inadvertently tie Kath’tan to him while knowing that...

"You don’t have to settle for me because we’re bound," Dulce murmured, lifting his legs to rest them on the edge of the bench, his red cloak wrapped around his slender arms. "I’ll stay in the Hells with you as long as you wish."

Kath’tan was unsurprised by the Vampire’s suggestions, if anything he expected more of a rebuttal... but then again, this was the same Vampire feeding an Incubus without any thought. "And Ruoxi? What about your Hellhound?"

The questions were asked lightly, but his purple eyes were fixed on Dulce, watching every minute reaction. "Would you stay in the Hells with me and forget them?"

It was a rhetorical question, he already knew Dulce’s answer, and even if the Vampire felt too guilty to say it outright, Ruoxi and Caedos wouldn’t stand for it. They would come seeking Dulce out in a matter of weeks,

"It will only be until I can undo the summons," Dulce trailed off, frowning. There was only one of him, but Ruoxi needed to eat and he couldn’t leave his precious Hellhound alone for so long.

"You can’t do that by yourself," Kath’tan kept taking apart his plans. "And the Hells is no place to find information."

"Do you want to stay?" Dulce asked seriously, leaning in Kath’tan’s direction in his intensity. It was evident from those clear blue eyes that he intended to sacrifice whatever was needed to make it happen.

Kath’tan found himself unable to hold the Vampire’s gaze, he had convinced them both that he equally wasn’t searching for love. But what did it mean when he wanted to be selfish and demand that Dulce stay with just him in the Hells, although he had nothing to offer the Vampire?

"Ask me again after I see my mother," He skillfully avoided giving an answer, his gaze dropping down to the Vampire’s lips for all his stormy thoughts.

-+-

"Not chasing your new toy again, Tarraz?" Zazrel asked his first son who drifted to his side after a while of participating in the celebrations.

"He had no use." Tarraz said coldly, "Have you heard of the name Montesserat, father?"

Zazrel thought over it, it did sound vaguely familiar. "Where did you hear that from?"

"That was the name of the mage," He revealed easily.

"Montesserat... Montesserat..." Zazrel murmured, putting in effort to recall the memory. "There was a powerful family of mages long before the Age of Magic who went by that name, there were rumors that they had even been acknowledged by Holy Demons."

Tarraz listened intently, "Do you know if they all died out?"

"Who knows if they ever lived," Zazrel chuckled, his mood improving by the hour after the blot on his bloodline deserted the banquet, "They may very well be a myth."

Tarraz’s cold eyes held skepticism, he always defaulted to believing his father without question but he was hesitant about letting such a chance pass him by. "But if they did exist once, perhaps this mage will have knowledge about it."

Zazrel looked at his son with pride, he didn’t stop Tarraz although it was a wild goose chase. It was unlikely that this unknown human mage even knew of the Montesserats, what with the negligible years humans lived.

And even if he did know of them, there was no chance he was related to that powerful family of mages who had Demons quaking at the mere mention of their name.