“My Lord…”

“Speak.” Keith indifferently said after he sensed that Vlad was a little hesitant about something that he had on his mind.

They were currently seated inside the lounge of their suite, and Vlad had come here to thank him for helping them form an Alliance with the Esper Association and briefed him on the state of the Ancient Houses.

The Ancient Houses had sought his help, and he helped them. But of course, it was not for free. The price was their subjugation to him, which they proposed on their own accord.

Keith was not the one to miss on the opportunity, and since Vampires had always been under the veil of Darkness, it was not a surprise that they were comfortable bending their knees to him rather than the Mortal God who was nothing compared to him.

He also knew that these Ancient Houses had first approached Nyx, but she had turned them to him. After all, she would not bother associating with people who had no value to her.

“The Carmilla Princess…” Vlad started speaking, but all of a sudden, a suffocating pressure dawned on him, rooting him in his place, and sending chills up his spine.

Keith raised his eyes and looked at the man who now had his head lowered

“Ingrid belongs to me, Prince Damon. She is mine in every sense.” He told him lightly, but the centuries-old Vampire fearfully trembled under his gaze.

“Y-yes.. my Lord!” Damon managed to say before the pressure threatened to crush him.

It was as if Keith had read his mind and stopped him from saying the words he was about to say. And Damon could not help but feel fearful and yet grateful to him for not letting him say those words. He was a man who thrived in crisis, but never before in his life had he felt the bells of Death ring in his ears.

The Ancient Houses wanted to know if there was any possibility of having Ingrid married to one of their finest men. After all, she was a Pure-Blood Vampire, an existence that was revered not just in this world but also in other worlds. Their powers could simply not compare to hers, and the thought of having her legacy within their ranks was an alluring prospect that they could not help but entertain in their heads.

However, it was now clear that their desire would never come true.

“Tell your Council that Ingrid and Ingvild Carmilla are not to be laid hands on.” Keith suddenly said, much to Damon’s shock.

“But My Lord, Hades is using the younger Princess against the other Ancient Houses over the world…”

“You don’t have to worry about it. I will take care of the matter.” He indifferently said, and Damon felt a sense of relief wash all over him.

Their greatest worry was the little Princess who was in Hades’ hands. She could control the Vampires, and even the old dogs in the Ancient Houses were not immune to her powers. And her Powers were unlike the ones they had seen before in Pure-Blood Vampires.

Though he was sceptical since the Gods of the same Pantheon could not harm each other, he did not doubt Keith’s words. After all, it was the Lady of the Night who had guided them to him. She would have never even bothered to listen to them if she wanted, but since she did and provided them with a solution, they wholeheartedly believed in it.

“Yes, My Lord.” He said again, respectfully bowing his head, and then excused himself as he took his leave.

Keith knew that much of the reverence and trust these Ancient Houses were showing in him was because of Nyx, but it was not something that bothered him. He did not care about their thoughts. All he cared about was how useful they could be for him for the next few years.

He turned to look at his wife, who had a scroll in her hand that had the terms the Ancient Houses had proposed and agreed to.

“The Seven Ancient Houses proposed to gift you seven of their princesses as slaves.” She smiled when she read an interesting clause. “Why refuse?”

“I am not interested.”

“Because they are useless?”

“Yes.” He straightforwardly nodded his head.

“I wonder how much Rebecca would tease you about it if I told her that you refused seven beautiful maidens because you were not interested in them.”

“My dear Amelia, are you trying to tease me?” He playfully asked.

“I am just curious.” She shrugged, wearing a playful smile, and then both their smiles brightened as they stared into each other’s eyes.

“Are you?” He chuckled and then grabbed her hand as he pulled her behind him, leading her outside their room and the hotel they were staying at.

It was a fifteen-minute walk before they reached the starting point of their trek and the emerald-eyed girl curiously looked around the place that was undoubtedly one of the most beautiful parts of this world.

“Don’t stay so far away. Come.” Amelia smiled at Yingying, who was very careful about keeping her distance.

“Yes, my Lady.” His ever-so-obedient Shadow nodded her head after she exchanged a glance with him, and then the three of them started on the trek that Keith had planned.

A while later, they reached a point where the path branched into two different directions, and both Yingying and Amelia curiously looked at Keith when he lead them onto the one that had a sign of Private Property on it, asking the public to keep away.

“This place is the private property of the Ancient Family of Mir, who has resided here for the last 800 years,” Keith informed them. “And we are their guests.”

“The Mir of Pahalgam?” Amelia frowned as she recalled something she had learned years ago. “They are a Family specialising in Medicine and are one of the most respected in the world.”

“Yes, the very same.” Keith nodded to her.

“And they are very seclusive.”

“They are.” He nodded again and smiled at her. “If you are wondering whether I am here for something, then my dear Amelia, I want to tell you that I am only here for you.” He told her. “I happened to meet the head of Mir Family a few months ago, and I am allowed on their property anytime I want.”

“What does he owe you?”

“His life.” He truthfully said and watched a smile appear on her lips.

“I don’t think you did it because you only wanted permission to come to their land, my dear husband.”

“I did not.” He admitted. “There’s a very interesting person in the Mir Family, and the reason why I saved the old man was that she had begged me to do it. She is currently in Netheria, at the Imperial School of Medicine.”

“What’s her name?”

“Kashish.”

“Is she just as beautiful as her name?” She meaningfully smiled.

“She is.” He truthfully said.

“And when do you plan on introducing us?”

“I won’t be seeing her for another year. So, next year, when I join the Imperial Medical School, you can come with me to Griffin City.”

“Joining the Imperial Medical School? You have already graduated from the Royal Medical Academy. ” Amelia raised her brow at his words.

“I am not joining it as a student.”

“Is that so?” Amelia giggled as soon as she understood everything. “I am sure your dear wives would love to know that you will be teaching at a University to woo a beautiful girl.”

“Don’t tell them just yet. And I am not doing it just to woo her.”

“Okay.” She simply shrugged, much like he would usually do. And she had on more than one occasion been told by the girls that Keith had rubbed on her whenever she shrugged like this.

But it was not something she paid any heed to. Even if what they said was true, it was not anything she had to be mindful of.

She sweetly smiled when he grabbed her hand and locked their fingers together, lightly squeezing her. And then her attention returned to the beautiful nature and the wildlife they passed by.

An hour later, they finally reached their destination, and Amelia could not help but stare at the beautiful waterfall before her.

Even Yingying was taken aback by the serenity and the beauty of the place, and what was perfect about the place was that there was no one else there other than the three of them.

“Let’s catch some fish.”

“We did not bring the rods, Master.” Yingying reminded him but understood his intentions when he started walking down the stream towards the portion that was filled with boulders.

“But we have hands, don’t we?” He smiled at them, and both of them followed him into the water without any hesitation.

A subconscious smile crept on Amelia’s face when she entered the water and felt the cold yet comforting flow of the stream crash onto her skin.

“You will be cooking.” She told him.

“Yes, my Lady.” He chuckled and agreed to it, understanding that she had missed the taste of his hands even though he was not a brilliant chef.

To her, anything he would make for her would be delicious. And thankfully, he was not too bad at cooking.