Soon, I was lounging comfortably on a warm leather seat inside the armored transport the Valkyries provided for us, enjoying the ride as it carried us to Gardenia. Unlike the school carrier, this vehicle more closely resembled a floating white limousine that hovered just above the forest canopy, allowing us to shoot straight for the city without being harassed by any hostile creatures. Hovering also felt far smoother than traveling on the forest's uneven terrain.

Beside me, Rachel was on her knees, staring excitedly through the back window at the scenery that we sped over. I think it was the first time she’d ever been inside a mechanized vehicle, much less a flying one. I found myself enjoying her reaction. It made me wonder what other novelties I could introduce her to, which in turn made me anticipate our arrival in the city.

In front of me, Alvidia and Cross sat in silence. Cross held a device resembling a smartphone which she stared at and kept tapping and swiping this way and that, thoroughly engrossed in whatever she was reading. But Alvidia was staring at me, wearing an expression of mixed curiosity and suspicion. It felt like her gaze was going to bore a hole in my flesh, such was its intensity.

“Did you want to ask me something?” I finally asked since ignoring her seemed to do no good. She paused for a bit after hearing my question before leaning towards me to reply.

“Yes,” she said. “Would you tell me who it was that taught you to wield a sword?”

“No one,” I answered. “It’s just something I’ve dabbled with over the years.”

“Nonsense,” Alvidia said dismissively. “Your technique is too refined to be self-taught.”

“I assure you, I had no master,” I said. “It was just a hobby I picked up to pass the time.”

“If you don’t want to tell me who your teacher was, that’s fine,” Alvidia said with a frown. “But you don’t have to be deceptive. It’s obvious that you received extensive training under someone skillful.”

“Not really,” I said. “There are only so many ways you can thrust and slash with a sword. Given enough time and attention, you’ll eventually discover them all. After that, it’s all about refining your technique and cutting out any extraneous movements. Anyone can figure it out if they work at it long enough. Even someone as untalented as me.”

“You make it sound so simple,” Alvidia said. “The sword is a weapon I’ve striven to master since I was a child. Your explanation makes no sense.”

I shrugged in response and turned my head away. She could think whatever she liked; I’d been perfectly honest with her. I possessed little natural skill for swordplay. In fact, I was once so lacking at it that I was more of a danger to myself with a blade than any enemy I sought to use it against. It had taken me fifty years of continuous practice to gain an average level of competence with it. Becoming a master had taken me over a century.

It was embarrassing, but true. No one is equally gifted at all things. Some of us have to work harder than others. I simply had the time it took to gradually improve. Persistence at training can make a master of anyone if they keep grinding away at it.

I suppose I could have sped the process up if I sought out a proper instructor, but I enjoyed learning on my own. For me, swordplay was a hobby, not a necessity.

I did enjoy having Spiteful around, though. Possessing a nice piece of well-crafted cursed steel with which to strike down my hapless foes did wonders for my sense of self-confidence.

“Teach me what you know,” Alvidia said suddenly.

“Why should I? You just called me a liar,” I replied.

“Then prove me wrong,” she said. “I’m a very willing student. House Brask has defended the regent’s throne for four generations. There’s considerable honor to be gained by becoming my instructor.”

“I’m unconcerned with matters of honor,” I informed her. “Taking a new disciple doesn’t interest me.”

“I can pay you,” she insisted.

“How much?” I asked immediately.

“Name your price,” she said confidently.

“I might ask a lot from you,” I said with a wolfish grin.

“That’s fine. I might enjoy paying it,” she said coyly.

“Then dine with me tonight,” I said heedlessly. “Afterwards let’s see how we feel after waking in the morning.”

Instead of being charmed by my forthrightness, Alvidia decided to slap me as hard as she could. I probably deserved it. When my vision cleared, I saw Cross and Rachel both laughing scornfully at me, while Alvidia sat stiffly with her arms crossed.

“Sorry, I think I misread the atmosphere,” I said as I tenderly touched my newly reddened cheek. “I thought you were giving out a signal to proceed.”

“Even if I do find you mildly intriguing, that’s no reason to behave boorishly,” Alvidia said coldly. “You have a lot of nerve.”

“Was I too forward?” I asked. “I was too forward, wasn’t I?”

“Far too forward,” she confirmed. “I already told you; excessive self-confidence can be offensive.”

“In my defense, I simply assumed that we were both mature enough to skip the preamble,” I explained. “Two appealing individuals like us with a shared interest in cutting people and objects with swords shouldn’t have to beat around the bush when it comes to expressing a physical interest in each other.”

“Women like to be wooed,” Alvidia replied. “Even warriors.”

“As well as slapping people who upset them,” I grimaced.

“Yes. That too,” she agreed.

“So noted,” I said. “Lesson learned.”

“I take my swordsmanship seriously, Evans,” Alvidia continued haughtily. “It’s not just my career, it’s my very way of life. I asked for your guidance earnestly. Why do so many men seize on a professional consultation as an opportunity for a tryst? It’s so fucking aggravating.”

“They do that at book conventions too,” Cross said disapprovingly.

“What’s a book convention?” Rachel wondered.

“You’re gorgeous, I got excited,” I said regretfully. “Do I still have a chance?”

“Of course you do. I also find you attractive,” Alvidia said without embarrassment. “But just because I find it pleasurable to look upon you doesn’t mean I’m willing to leverage my dignity for a favor. Thinking like that is prehistoric and offensive.”

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

“In that case, take heart, Alvidia Brask,” I said. “Know that all men, with the exception of myself, are single-minded scum who are unworthy of your attention.”

“Where are you going with this?” she asked.

“Yeah, where are you going with this?” asked Rachel.

“Let me finish,” I said. “As the only member of my entire gender who’s capable of learning from his past mistakes, I just want to assure you that you can do no wrong in forgiving me for any accidental missteps I make along the way of our burgeoning relationship because I’m worth it. Isn’t that right, Rachel?”

“He’s a complete liar and you’ll probably need to control him with violence,” Rachel said cheerfully while scratching Schultz’ belly.

“Thank you for the advice,” said Alvidia with a pleased smile.

“Any time!”

“Your treachery will be dealt with later,” I swore to Rachel.

“Don’t be upset, I’m just playing the long game!” she insisted.

“You know, I could change for the better, eventually,” I said to Alvidia. “All it takes is a little bit of time.”

“Try harder,” the women all said simultaneously with pitiless gazes.

“I just said it takes a little time,” I whined.

Alvidia snorted. Cross rolled her eyes. Rachel gave me an extremely disappointed look before turning her attention back to the window.

Even Schultz gave me a bit of side-eye and moved slightly away from me as if to avoid contracting secondhand embarrassment.

Whatever. I’m a vampire. I’m used to being alone in a group.

No one appreciates me as much as they should.

_

In the middle of Gardenia, surrounded by distracting layers of opulence and beauty that seemed to lessen the appearance of danger like gold dust sprinkled in the center of a spider’s web, was the palace of the regent.

The city itself, with its high steel and concrete walls beneath its shimmering anti-monster dome was a sharp contrast to the comparatively insignificant Narrows which had been our home for so long, offering those who dwelled within absolute security from the terrors of the outside world. And here, from the regent’s seat, was where the power this place collected was concentrated and directed.

After we landed at the palace, I took a moment to give the place an appreciative onceover. It certainly appeared to be a well-constructed home. It paled in comparison to the castle I’d reigned from in my previous life, but it certainly would have made for a nice summer house.

I wondered what the local neighborhood was like.

“This way, sir,” said a brusque guard who placed a hand on my shoulder to guide me to where the group was waiting.

The impatient expressions worn by my companions nearly made me flinch. Cross tapped the watch she wore impatiently, and even Rachel looked annoyed. What was their deal? I'd only been taking a look at the exterior of the place. Did they think I was behaving like some rube from the middle of nowhere, awed by the splendor of the city? If so, what an obnoxious assumption to make!

“We’re going inside now,” Alvidia said. “Please keep in mind that important visitors from across the country will be here conducting business with the regent. Keep to your best manners and try not to do anything that would embarrass me. You’re here on my recommendation after all.”

With that, she walked into the palace and gestured for us to follow.

What was that about? Had my earlier behavior really been so out of hand? I'd been doing some lighthearted flirting! She didn’t expect me to behave like that in such an important social setting, did she?

I hate it when others expected the worst of me. Too bad it was impossible for these newer generations to appreciate just how evolved I am as a person. For goodness’s sake, I'm a nobleman from the dark ages! If any of these scolds had experienced a childhood like mine, they’d be thoroughly impressed with how forward thinking I'd become despite my upbringing. When I was a lad, human women of noble birth were treated like expensive furniture. The very notion of them bearing arms and serving as bodyguards would have elicited scandalized laughter from their peers. But look at me! Making no commentary on the subject and accepting them for what they were in this volatile new age.

And what's more, look at how polite I am! I mean, I know you shouldn't expect to be rewarded for doing the bare minimum, and not being needlessly rude was certainly the bare minimum, but again, I was from the dark ages! We were very unpleasant people back then! We also didn't bath regularly either and there was also a lot of casual racism going around. It was a difficult era to live through. But I persevered and came out the other side as a much kinder person.

That little apocalypse I participated in was coerced by the way. It shouldn't count against my character.

With all that I've done for others, is it unreasonable to want to be treated kindly? Aren't I a person that that others should like having around?

It still stung that Jamie had been playing me. That she hadn't cared for me at all.

Oof. Her manipulation and Alvidia’s hot and cold personality weren’t doing any wonders for my current level of self-confidence. I shouldn’t let myself dwell on this. I shouldn't, but I did so anyway.

I wish I could blame my darkening mood on an aspect of vampiric life that makes our species touchy about being mischaracterized, but this was all on me. It was just my rotten personality taking effect. I couldn't even fob this off on Kyler Evan's body. This was just who I was.

Embarrassing but true.

Bah, what good did it do to obsess over this? When would I learn to stop fixating on such silly mortal trivialities? Why did I always dwell on such things? Have I become the sort of weak person that always needed to be liked?

Oh, who was I kidding? That was exactly the sort of weak person I’d become.

I just wanted to be admired for the splendid fellow that I was!

If only I could use [Mesmerize] to force Brask and Cross to become more appreciative of me. But there was no point in doing it since it wouldn’t affect Rachel’s memory.

I’d still look like an insecure control freak obsessed with maintaining his image.

Could I…simply order Rachel not to remember it, as her master? Would that work? No, of course it wouldn’t. A creator’s bond with his progeny was a powerful thing, but it couldn’t be abused to that extent. But wouldn’t it be convenient if it could?

As I continued to slouch and ruminate sullenly over how unfair life could be, a beautiful girl came running down the hall toward me and threw herself into my arms.

“Whoa,” said a surprised Rachel as she observed the newcomer embrace me tightly and bury her face in my chest. “Is this a friend of yours I haven’t met yet?”

“That would be news to me,” I said, equally as confused as she was. I lowered my face toward the girl and gently said, “Miss? May I ask why you’re doing this?”

“Thank you,” murmured the girl tearfully. “Thank you so much...”

“Alvidia, can you explain?” I asked as I turned to her. I could feel the genuine gratitude of the girl I held, her sincere appreciation of whatever it was she believed I’d done for her…and it was making me feel extremely uncomfortable.

I’m not good at being genuinely liked. I don’t understand how to process it in a healthy manner. I thought I’d made some personal progress earlier with the time I’d spent with Jamie, but that had turned out to be a manipulated farce.

I suppose my bond with Rachel had a strong emotional undercurrent to it, but it wasn’t something I liked thinking too much about. She was my progeny, it was different. Even my wives, although the love I felt for them was true, the ties that bound us to each other were primarily a twisted knot of desire and hate. A frayed cord in desperate need of a Macedonian sword.

But this…a vulnerable person rushing to me and in her weakness conveying her gratitude; her sincere happiness at the sight of me…

…it was too real. I can’t---

I can’t handle things like that.

Sunlight, holiness, and genuine faith. Guess what else you can add onto that list of painful things I always desperately tried to avoid?

Sincerity.

I’m sure that sounded insane, but it’s the pitiful truth. As a monster, I found the notion of anyone being happy to see me absolutely bewildering. You’re supposed to run from a vampire, not crush me with a delighted hug while peppering me with gratitude.

What was wrong with this child?

“Do you really not recall?” Alvidia said with a surprisingly warm smile as she stepped close to the girl and gently patted her back. “She’s the reason why you were invited here to begin with. Your good deed in rescuing her from a terrible fate has earned the sincere appreciation of the regent himself. After all, she’s his precious granddaughter.”

“Granddaughter?” I asked. “Rescued? What do you…”

And that was when it hit me.

I did know this girl. She’d been there, on that night that Cassie and Pankratz had first attacked me. She’d been the sole survivor of a vicious bandit attack that had seen all friends and traveling companions violated and butchered.

This was the girl I’d rescued back then. I’d been bringing her back to the Narrows when Rachel had suddenly transformed. Honestly, aside from that one detail, it hadn’t been a particularly memorable night for me; but it seemed it had been quite memorable for this poor damsel.

“Hey! Why are you getting the credit for everything?” asked Rachel. “I was the one who did all the work!”

Oh, right. Rachel had been the one to do the actual rescuing I’d simply carried the girl back. Not that anyone would have ever believed a sentient spear (which Rach had been at the time), would have been capable of such a heroic deed.

Heh, sorry Rach.

“How embarrassing,” I said with a smile of my own as I gazed upon the girl. “I wondered for some time what had become of you. I’m so glad to see that you’re safe.”

“Only due to your bravery and skill,” the maiden sighed while Alvidia and Cross looked on approvingly.

“Well, I do have those in abundance,” I said with a nod.

“Hey!” said Rachel indignantly.