Chapter 23: Chapter 23 ~ New Trouble Arises

"So, Layne, Who is this young lady?" my elder sister asked.

"Maria Alucardia, the leader of the vampires here, at least on the surface."

"And under the surface?"

"A figurehead, a pawn, a sacrificial lamb. Ripe for the taking."

"Alright, I understand. So, Maria was it? What are you here for, really?" she asked.

Maria, fidgeting under the stern gaze of the knight captain, finally mustered her courage to say, "I want some help in managing the vampires, the ones who lived under the tenets of the Lifeblood."

"Lifeblood?" my elder sister asked, since it was quite an ancient term.

Before Maria could explain its meanings, I interjected, "An ancient following of morality. Its followers worship the Lifeblood, blood that was willingly given to vampires who are the beacons of hope and order in a community."

Nodding in understanding, yet without saying anything; my elder sister gestured to me with her eyes, asking my thoughts on this case.

Hence, I added, "I believe they're a great addition to Rivellon. And since they've retained their morality and faith, even under the coercion and suggestion of their Council of Elders, they're tried and true."

Deep in her thoughts, the knight captain spoke slowly, "Miss Maria, before we could accept your request, we need to first discuss it amongst ourselves, please excuse us."

Led by my elder sister, we walked deep into the Sewerhall, where the control room for the whole labyrinth was located. A little bit puzzled as to why we were brought here, the dots immediately connected when a moving image of Maria could be seen, projected to a smooth marble wall, by a mana crystal hanging from the ceiling.

"You want to test her," the detective stated.

"We need to know where her allegiance stood. To her beliefs and morality, or to her higher-ups," the knight captain ascertained.

"Is it worth the risk of letting them know the existence of the Sewerhall?"

"In any case, I am not the one who brought her in," she shrugged.

Their small banter lulled as we observed the subject of this test, who was quietly sipping her tea, even though her curiosity about the place she was in could be seen clearly through the screen. She looked around her, and with great fortitude, she stopped herself from moving around. In some moments we could see her dazedly looking at the great pillars, while in others she was fixedly staring at the lights on the ceiling above. The test continued for a while, around fifteen to twenty minutes, until my elder sister decided she was harmless.

Arriving back in the main room, my elder sister came forward, saying to Maria, "We've discussed your request, and came to the conclusion that we'll accept it under certain conditions."

"What are the conditions?" she asked warily.

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"First, to document all existing vampires within the confines of Rivellon. Those inside the census will be considered your subjects, and it's up to you what to do with them, as long as the laws of Rivellon were not broken."

Weighing her choices, Maria thought for a bit, before replying, "Alright, I can accept that."

"Second, the individual named Maria Alucardia will work as an assistant for the Carters, for the matter of Rumania and its Council of Elders. She will still be her own person, and the Carters will try their best to cater to her needs. This relationship will continue until there are no more vampires censured within Rivellon."

"I accept that too."

"The third, and last condition, this agreement will also be signed at a later date using a magic contract, with Ashur Bhan, the ringmaster of Cirque du Ciel, as both witness and neutral party."

"I, Maria Alucardia, fully accept this contract, as long as its written form was the same as what was offered the first time," Maria acquiesced, immediately signing the hastily written contract.

"I, Sarah Carter, as one of the heirs of the Carter Duchy, finalized and legalized this contract as an urgent one, and it shall be active immediately until the Duke himself declared that it was not."

The knight captain immediately added, "Since we're in a difficult situation right now, I need you to contact those who worship the Lifeblood and lead them into hiding, at least from the followers of the Council, lest they got led astray."

The petite lady nodded, before running outside to finally lead her kin, a figurehead no more. Silence fell in the Sewerhall as the tense situation resolved itself. However, before we could breathe freely, the knight captain spoke of another urgency, one the detective had gleaned.

"Theo managed to decipher a correspondence addressed to someone in the Char-Harbour. They're preparing for a demonstration, a riot on the day of the Harvest Festival."

"Terrorists from who-knows-where, vampires from the Dairy Lodge, and now protesters from the Char-Harbour? Who are we dealing with, exactly?" I asked exasperatedly.

"The Bastians, the Duchy up north, neighbouring Rumania," the detective informed.

"For the Bastians and Rumania to shake hands. I worry for the Capital," I lamented.

"Because of this unprecedented situation, we might have to divide this already small team. I truly want to lessen your burdens, Layne. However, the only one who could pacify those protesters is you, and you alone," my elder sister said.

"It's okay elder sister-in-law, I'll go with him! I might not look it, but I could protect the both of us," Ciel replied.

With that, our course of action was decided. The Char-Harbour, home to roughnecks and dockworkers. Its rusted port was never repaired as all of the funding went towards the construction of Great Docks. Once a very busy site, it was now empty, with nary a ship moored to its wharf. Still, tourists come and go there, taking in the sights of the now abandoned harbour; giving rise to peddlers and food vendors; making it, on the surface, a tourist spot.

With only a few days left until the celebration, our task to pacify the protesters truly seemed insurmountable. Our enemy managed to bribe some gangs there, and if left alone, they will certainly disturb the public order of the Harvest Festival. Still, I believed. When the Verse-Creating Saint and the Dragonheart teamed up, nothing is impossible.

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