In the duke’s room...

“Mikael, bring me my father’s pocket watch from the drawer of the watches,” said the duke.

“Yes, my lord,” replied Mikael as he headed toward the drawer to fetch the watch.

“By the way, Mikael, you’re coming with me.”

“Of course, your grace. May I ask where we are going, my lord?” asked Mikael while attaching the pocket watch to the duke’s suit.

“You’ll see. I’ll explain the matter when we get in the carriage.”

“Understood, my lord,” replied Mikael while putting the coat on Lucius.

“You may go ahead of me and tell the coachman to prepare the carriage; I’ll be there in a minute.”

“Right away, my lord. Excuse me,” replied Mikael while bowing to Lucius.

As soon as Mikael left the room, the Duke approached the large painting of goddess Valeria (the goddess of magic and creation) hanging on top of his bed. He got on the bed and carefully lifted it, unveiling a concealed secret safe hidden behind the divine painting. Using magic, he touched the lock, and the safe opened automatically. As he turned the heavy safe door, a revelation awaited—an assortment of mana stones gleaming in hues of ancient power, lying alongside a pile of gold bars and small bags, each brimming with golden coins. Lucius reached his hand to grab one of the bags, then he took a black, uniquely looking mana stone and put it in his pocket. He locked the safe door and put back the painting before heading down to the carriage.

“Take this, Mikael,” said Lucius while handing the money bag to Mikael. “Keep it in your pocket; we’re going to need this,” he added while getting in the carriage.

Mikael took the money bag, put it inside his right pocket, and followed the duke into the carriage.

In the meantime, in the duchess’s room...

“Your grace, how are you doing? Is your head feeling better? Do you still have a headache?” said Lara while standing by the duchess’s bed.

“Ah, Lara, I feel like dying! How could he do this to me?! How dare he humiliate me in front of all my people like that?! Bringing a mistress into my house, a woman that we don’t even know who she is... Aghhh.” She held her head again with a frustrated and pained expression on her face.

“I can’t let this slide, Lara! I can’t let this happen to me. I endured all his crazy whims, his mood swings, and his violent attitude towards me all these years! I endured the loneliness and the way he neglected me and his kids, all for what? For him to cheat on me and steal my kid’s heritage from them?!!!! We have to get rid of this woman and the baby that she’s carrying at any cost. My kids are the only rightful heirs of the Ashbourne family!” She screamed in anger.

“Lara, try to find out who the duke appointed as personal servants for this woman and find out which one of them could become on our side and act as a spy for us. We need to find out EVERYTHING about her. Who is she? Where did she come from? Where and how did she meet Lucius... I want to know everything, EVERYTHING. If it takes hiring someone to dig around her, is it clear?”

“Yes, your grace, right away. Don’t you worry, my lady; I’ll do my best to eliminate this woman from your life. My loyalty lies with you, your grace; you’re the only master that I serve and will always serve in this house.”

“Wait before you leave. Where are Elias and Thorn? Did they hear about their father’s return?”

“No, your grace, I don’t think so. Lord Elias is taking his piano lessons right now with his tutor, and lord Thorn is playing with his nanny as usual in his room.”

“Oh, thank god... Great then, you may leave now.”

“As you wish, your grace,” replied the head maid.

Lara left the duchess’s room with a determined face. ‘I have to get rid of this mistress that Lord Lucius brought, no matter what, and as soon as possible. I must protect my lady, Lord Elias, and Lord Thorn,’ she thought to herself.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

Back to the carriage carrying duke Lucius and Mikael...

“Mikael, you know how greatly I put my trust in you. You’re my butler; you were by my side since I was 6 years old. You’re the only person who knows me most, and this is the reason why I’m bringing you with me right now. Listen carefully. What I’m about to tell you is extremely important and must be kept a secret; we’re now on our way to go meet Sir Vesper Obsidian,” Lucius said with a serious face while looking intently at Mikael.

“Vesper Obsidian!? THE Vesper Obsidian? The dark mage?!!” Mikael blurted with great shock in his voice.

“Yes,” replied Duke Lucius with an unfazed face.

“But why, my lord?! How do you even know where he is? No one knows anything about him since King Aurelius exiled him from our kingdom 18 years ago! He simply vanished into thin air.”

“Well, I can’t tell you how, but fortunately, I’m one of the few people who know his current whereabouts. As for why I’m seeking him, it’s simply because I’m in dire need of his help.”

“You need his help? Excuse my rude behavior, my lord; I know it’s none of my business to ask you this, but I can’t help but wonder why would you exactly need a dark mage’s help?”

“Kalista...” Lucius said as he paused for a second. “I need him to help me control Kalista.”

“Control her?” Mikael replied with an astonished face.

“Yes, Mikael. I need, no, I HAVE to mind control Kalista. I need to continue brainwashing her until she has my baby. I’m currently controlling her mind using a special trancing spell on her right now using this stone,” he said as he pulled out a silver necklace with a uniquely shaped ruby stone attached to it from underneath his shirt.

“This stone here isn’t a regular ruby; it’s a ruby created from the flames of the ancient dragon ‘Infernothrax.’”

“You mean THE pyrogeist shard? Is this a pyrogeist shard?!” Mikael gasped.

“Exactly,” replied Lucius with a grin on his face.

“But where did you get it, my lord? It’s an extinct stone?” asked Mikael curiously.

“Well, it’s a secret heirloom that’s been passed down for generations through the heads of the Ashbournes. So when I took over the title of Duke Ashbourne, this stone was given to me automatically.”

“But, my lord, I’m curious about something. Why do you need to control Lady Kalista? Is she...”

The carriage suddenly stopped.

“Your grace, we arrived at our destination,” the coachman said, interrupting the conversation.

“Let’s get out of the carriage for now, and we’ll continue our conversation on our way back home,” said Lucius as he got up to descend from the carriage.

“Certainly, my lord,” replied Mikael while following him out of the carriage.

As they got out of the carriage, Mikael was surprised by what he saw—an old cabinet in the middle of the woods, a thick mist surrounding them from everywhere as they stood in front of the house that they could barely see. 'Wait a second,' said Mikael to himself.

“My lord! Isn’t this the forbidden forest of the mist!” yelled Mikael in shock.

“Indeed it is, Mikael Ha ha ha,” replied the duke while bursting into laughter.

“Are you afraid? Why are you so shocked?” added Lucius.

“But, my Lord, this is an extremely dangerous forest! I didn’t know we were coming in here; I didn’t even pay much attention to our destination since I was focused on our conversation. My lord, this is too dangerous! This forest is filled with shadow walkers and shapeshifters!!” replied Mikael with a horrified face.

“Mikael, calm down; there’s no need to be afraid with me around. This is kind of insulting; did you forget that I used to be the commander of the royal army and one of the most powerful members of the Ashbourne family?”

“Yes, my lord, but still...”

“Enough, stop this nonsense at once; I didn’t bring you here to be such a nuisance!” Lucius shouted in anger

“I’m sorry, my lord...”

“Whatever, we don’t have time for this; let’s head to the house to meet Sir Vesper,” replied the duke as he headed toward the main entrance with Mikael following him from behind.

Lucius started to knock on the door in a strange way: “Knock..Knock Knock..Knock,” a knock, two knocks, then a single knock.

They stood in front of the door for a minute, then suddenly, a man opened the door.

“Well, hello Duke Lucius; it’s been so long since we met,” a dark-skinned, handsome man with silver hair and silver eyes said to the duke with an amused face.

“Indeed, Vesper, it’s been so long since we’ve seen each other, my friend,” replied Lucius with a smile on his face.

'WHAT!!! This is Vesper?! How does he look so young when he’s supposed to be in his sixties?!!!!’ said Mikael to himself as he was overwhelmed with great shock. 'What the hell is happening here?'