Lycoris rolled around on her bed in her loungewear, grumbling and sighing.
It’d been a few hours since her haphazard “heights endurance training,” after which she’d left again to take care of her actual training session that evening… Sadly Athena never wanted to spar with her, for whatever reason. She’d even already taken care of her bath and evening hygiene, during which she half expected her mother to surprise her by erupting from the bathwater like a lamprey-mouthed Piscin ready to pounce.
Naturally, though perhaps not regrettably, there was no such ambush.
“Your Highness! You can’t roll around like that, you’ll mess up your hair!”
“I’m bored though!” She sat back up, her loose bun of hair sagging slightly. “How much longer is Mother going to be busy?”
“I’m afraid I don’t know. Are you… certain you wish to keep waiting? After all, Her Majesty did say—”
Interrupting Athena, the door to Lycoris’ room swung open. The maid froze in terror, but Lycoris happily bounded off her bed and rushed over to embrace her mother before even confirming who it was.
Not that it really could have been anyone else.
“Oh! Goodness, were you waiting for us, little flower?”
“Ah, um… I just… I merely thought it was only sensible to wait for you before opening my gifts.”
Remembering herself, Lycoris pulled back and cleared her throat.
Lilianna looked uncharacteristically flustered.
“Is… that so? We apologize for being busy for so much of your birthday. All the more so for making you wait.”
“No, it’s okay! I made the decision to wait on my own; though, I didn’t think you’d be gone so long. Did something happen?”
Lycoris gently grasped her mother’s hand and led her into the room, where she sat down in one of the spare chairs set along the wall beside her desk.
Perhaps it was simply because Lilianna felt guilty over not being as present as she would have liked for her daughter’s birthday, but Lycoris felt as though there was something weighing on her mother.
The thought alone was enough to make her slightly anxious. Her mother would never normally show such a… frail display, after all.
Athena headed to the door at the same time, smiling with the same nervousness as ever when both mother and daughter were present.
“I’ll go and fetch the ca—cooling off present. Ahaha… be right back!! Not that my presence is required for any of this! In fact, pay me no mind! Forget I said anything1”
“Hm? Yes, of course.”
Even the Exaltare’s response to Athena’s anxious babbling seemed somewhat sluggish.
She must have realized how she was behaving, as she forced the frown off her face and smiled instead as she watched Lycoris sit down at her desk.
The girl briefly glanced at the present in front of her, before shaking her head and turning to look up at her mother instead.
“Is… something wrong, Mama?” She almost couldn’t believe the words coming out of her mouth.
“Hm? Oh, some troubling information came to light in our last meeting. Don’t worry dear, there's nothing that you need to…”
She trailed off, staring directly at her daughter. Her frown gradually returned.
Lycoris squirmed uncomfortably, unable to recall a time that her mother had given her such a look. Perhaps when she’d found out that Lycoris had been starving herself, or when she’d snuck out of the palace. Though, Lilianna had seem more upset than concerned after the latter.
Lycoris reached for the wrapped rectangular present, hugging it against herself.
“Was it… bad for me to not open my gift?”
“What—no, no dear. We apologize.”
Lilianna paused, looking… torn about something.
After a moment of awkward silence between the two of them, she finally asked the question that’d been hanging on the tip of her tongue.
“Lycoris, you don’t have to speak if it’s uncomfortable, but we… need to learn all we can of the humans you journeyed with. It is a matter of national security.”
The young vampire tilted her head. “National security…? Does it have to do with your meeting…?”
Lycoris was stunned into near silence. It was the first time her mother had taken the initiative on bringing up the girl’s life before becoming her daughter.
How strange that the first day she didn’t dedicate her morning to thinking of them was when her mother asked.
Why now? Plus, there’s… only one left. And she was the one who betrayed us to the vampires in the first place! …Did she double cross them or something? Wait, could it be that she wasn’t working alongside Mama in the first place? But…
“It does, yes. Like we said, if it’s difficult for you, then—”
“No.”
Lycoris spoke louder than she intended, squeezing the box against her as her hands tightly clenched. Her tone darkened, loose bangs drifting in front of her eyes as she muttered like a girl possessed.
“Tatyana is a horrible, awful traitor who deserves a brutal, cruel end. She sold us out. She’s the reason Elham died; the reason why Mizar had to… sacrifice himself.” She clutched the locket, a cruel gleam in her eyes as she looked up. “Where is she?”
“…We aren’t sure. What of the others? Is this… ‘Elham’ someone good with subterfuge, by chance? Is there a chance that he might still be alive, and working together—”
“None. He died in my arms.”
Lilianna looked momentarily taken aback, before barreling past the awkward air. “Then, is there anyone else that your party encountered? Someone who might be willing to help this Tatyana. For that matter, what can you tell us about her?”
“She called herself a Witch. She knows a lot about magic. And she sold us out to the vampires. The moment we set foot in Ljosdeyja, an entire division of soldiers ambushed us. We were able to deal with them all, thanks to Elham’s divine magic and Mizar’s… well, he probably could have carved his way through an entire army on his own. Anyways, that was when Elham suffered a fatal blow protecting me. Even though he was the one who knew how to use healing magic…”
“I see, then she was the Wizard, Elham was the Priest, and Mizar obviously the Hero.”
“Err… yes, but… you’re making them sound like characters out of a storybook.”
“Legends are carved into the grooves of history for a reason, Lycoris. As time passes, events repeat, and like a canyon, the same trodden paths eventually form a pattern that we learn from, lest we permit them to continue ad infinitum. To ignore that history and its patterns would be negligence of the highest order… To put it simply, Heroes are dangerous.”
“…Dangerous…”
It felt like a wedge placed over her relationship to Mizar.
Conflicting feelings welled up inside of Lycoris. There was nothing dangerous about him. Aside from how recklessly he took his own body's well-being at least, though Lycoris had nobody to blame but herself for instilling such an unhealthy work ethic into the boy at a young age.
And naturally, Lilianna was no more dangerous herself. Well, perhaps she was in a literal sense, but she was a thoughtful and considerate ruler, who possessed a loving heart.
Lycoris wished she could sit the two of them down together, explain that Lilianna wasn't the monster they thought she was. That if anything, she was the one holding the real monsters at bay.
Perhaps… they could have simply talked it out, and come to terms?
It was a naive thought, but Lycoris didn’t want to give up either side.
But, she didn't feel comfortable telling her mother the same of Mizar. Maybe she was simply afraid her mother might impart some blasphemous knowledge, or otherwise drive down that wedge.
Dangerous…
“To you as well, Lycoris. We would sooner wipe out the entire continent than ever let a hero threaten our precious little flower. But… back to our original topic, you didn’t mention any other individuals you encountered. Was there any who seemed particularly roguish? And, we don’t suppose you recall any identifying symbols on the vampires who ambushed your group.”
“Umm… I don’t recall any particular heraldry… And most of the people we encountered were isolationist. It’s not like we’d associate with a bunch of monsters that’d try to stomp us out like the Plainstriders or Piscin…” Lycoris fidgeted nervously. “Do you… trust me, Mama?”
“Hm? Of course. Why would we ever have reason to doubt you, dear?”
“I mean, I was part of that group too… What if I was secretly a plant to disrupt the Empire from the inside? What if I’m that other person you’re looking for!?”
“Are you?”
“No.”
“Then there’s no reason to worry about it.”
Lycoris stared dumbfounded at her mother.
It was like the concept that she could have any motive other than one that suited the Aphtangloa was a complete impossibility…
“…Plus, you made it perfectly clear that you would tear that Tatyana woman to shreds yourself if you ever got the chance. That degree of hatred is difficult to fake. Not that we would ever wish for our precious daughter to be weighed down by such unpleasant emotions.”
“I… see… …”
She fell silent, her arms loosening as she watched the somewhat squished present flop into her lap.
Another thought, pointless as it was, came to Lycoris’ mind as the strange awkwardness in the air only grew heavier.
I wonder… what role did I serve in the group? Why did Mizar even bring me? Why did he trust me with something so important?
It was a question she had buried beneath her etiquette lessons and gradual acclimation to her new life, but one that had never gone away.
She wondered if her mom would have any answers, but… it felt somehow wrong to ask about a person that the woman didn’t see her as.
If anything, she’d probably just say ‘Why, you’re the Long-Lost Princess, brought home after your forty-year sojourn’ or something ridiculous like that…
Lycoris chuckled to herself at the thought, shaking her head to dispel the gloomy mood hanging over her.
“Sorry, can we change topics now? I don’t really know anything else… I guess I could go down the list of every single person we met, but I don’t know who would be willing to work with Tatyana. She kept a lot to herself.”
“Right, of course dear. We’re sorry for interrupting our time together with work-related matters. You’ve already been more than enough of a help. Besides, it’s your birthday! We may be celebrating tomorrow as well, but today is the most special day of the three.”
Lilianna reached forward to lightly tousle Lycoris’ bundled up hair and give her ear a ticklish pinch, coercing the girl into wriggling about in her seat.
Before she could get any more carried away, the door opened again and Athena marched back in… Except the present in her hands had already been opened, revealing the small cylindrical cake resting inside. It was pure white and decorated with bright red frosted spider lilies and lettering, spelling out “Happy Birthday, Little Flower” on it. It looked… surprisingly reserved, compared to the literal golden foil used to tie the sapphire-colored box up.
But that made sense, probably. It wasn’t like gold was particularly edible, and wouldn’t make for a good decoration on food… Though Lycoris could recall some nobles swearing by “enriching” their meals with the stuff regardless.
It carried a lovely, sweet scent, and radiated a slight chill, a bead of condensation slipping down one smoothed side of it.
Lycoris looked at it in awe as Athena set it in front of her on her desk.
“One birthday cake for Her Highness Lycoris, ordered as per Her Majesty’s specifications! The kitchen staff were all more than overjoyed to bake it. Hehe, they even asked if they could see a picture of the Princess’ reaction. …Naturally, I told them not to get big-headed about it.”
Athena beamed proudly, exchanging a surreptitious glance with Lilianna.
The Exaltare nodded in response, clearing her throat to draw Lycoris’ attention.
“There is… one thing we have to tell you ahead of time, Lycoris. Because we went through the kitchen staff, they naturally used… Quality ingredients. Meaning, human blood. We ordered it to be made for you this morning before work without thinking about the details.”
“…”
“But it’s your birthday today! It’s supposed to be a day of celebration! You deserve to savor tasty food, enjoy good company and nice gifts, and maybe do something a little reckle—er… I mean uh… Oh, yes! Her Majesty believes that Your Highness should cease torturing yourself. It pains her heart every time she sees you gag—”
“Athena.”
“Eep! M-M-M-Muh-My most s-s-sincere apo… apolo—”
“Athena.”
Lycoris barely processed what the two of them were saying as she stared at the cake, a slight wave of dizziness shaking the back of her mind. The scarlet flowers blooming on it suddenly took on quite a sinister tone.
But it was a present for her.
She had already completely botched last night’s gift. And she’d just finished having a rather heavy conversation already.
This was supposed to be when things turned around.
She didn’t want to ruin another gift.
But it was…
A person. Someone had literally bled for this cake.
But they were already gone. Throwing the cake out wouldn’t change anything at this point.
It would simply be spitting her mother’s kindness toward her.
It would be a waste. It could only bring more misery.
“I-I-I think you could indulge in… at least a slice… I’m sure that human would allow you that much!”
Mizar would?
Lycoris’ head spun as she stared at her namesake decorated atop the cake. It was almost taunting her, as if saying she’d already murdered the ingredients for this dessert.
It wasn’t even like it was the first time she’d consumed human blood.
Lycoris bit her lip. Confusion and guilt battled inside her heart. She couldn’t even tell why she felt so bad. Was it because of the concept of a life lost? Was it her worries over what the Goddess would think? Or did she really just so badly want to avoid seeing that sad look of disappointment on her mother’s face again?
Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.
Would he really… be fine with this? If I explained everything to him, told him how much I’ve struggled… would he say this is fine? Did he ever indulge in anything on his own birthdays…?
It wasn’t as though they had the luxury of celebrating such things on their journey, outside of an evening of cheering and maybe some extra salted rations… and bitter tea from Elham.
And if the Goddess really did forsake vampires for the sin of drinking blood, then Lycoris would probably already be…
“This was clearly a mistake. Our apologies dear, we should have foreseen this. Athena, take it away. Do not push our daughter any further, or else.”
“H-Hhhhiiieeee! Y-Yes Your Majesty!”
Athena reached in front of Lycoris—
“Wait.”
Both the adults stopped, looking down at Lycoris as she clenched her hands tight enough to draw blood.
“Lycoris, there’s no need to force yourself,” her mother spoke softly.
“It… It would be disrespectful to the dead… to let it go to waste. And…”
The little vampire looked at her mom, wiping away the budding tears from her eyes.
“…It’s a gift from Mama. So it’s… s-special. I’m sure it’ll taste good, too,” she added in a quiet mumble. “Can you fetch some tableware, Athena?”
“At once, Your Highness!”
“Wait. Before that,” Lilianna held up her hand, “we still have to sing.”
“…Sing?”
Lycoris looked between the two of them as a knowing smile spread across Athena’s face. The two of them inhaled in sync.
Then, they began to cheerily sing a somewhat somber melody.
“May the sun stay far away
From our grand and hallowed halls,
Let this be a blessed day
By Ancestors and family,
For today is a special one
Belonging only to you,
Happy birthday, dearest Lycoris,
May you live to see many more.”
Lycoris fidgeted, feeling a ticklish sense of embarrassment at being the center of the ceremony. Her cheeks flushed a dark purple as shy warmth suffused her.
It went without saying, but she’d never been subjected to anything quite like it before; the closest was when she’d received accolades for her service in battle, or when she was discharged…
After they finished singing—and clapping, on Athena’s part… until Lilianna glowered at her—the maid shuffled over to the cabinet to fetch some silverware, while Lycoris stared at her birthday cake.
She’d be lying if she said her heart was fully committed, even if she had already made up her mind.
“With how much you’ve been putting that poor present through the wringer, perhaps we should have gifted you a stuffed animal instead. Would you like to open that gift now, dear?”
“Oh, right.”
Lycoris looked down at the small, mildly abused giftbox and unwrapped it, revealing a smooth and oddly plasticky feeling box beneath. The front of it had a translucent window, through which she saw—
“Ohhh! …Here I expected it to be a piece of jewelry. Even though I’d never seen you use one before… I didn’t think that you actually never owned one,” Athena called out from the corner of the room, peering back with a stack of plates in her hands.
“Silence, maid. You’ve been far too loquacious today… Lycoris, you need to grip the reins on your servant tighter.”
—a cell phone. It had a sleek silver back, reminding her of her hair and wings. The metal felt cool in her hands, the smoothness of it making her cradle it gently, afraid that it might slip between her fingers and fall.
After spending several minutes fumbling with the packaging and wrappings clinging to it, Lycoris poked its glass screen, only for nothing to appear or light up.
Odd, isn’t that supposed to bring the display up? Uh oh…
“Mmh…”
“…You have to power it on first, dear. Hold down the button on the side there.”
When Lycoris did as instructed, the screen brightly lit up, and then settled on a picture of herself in the dress she’d worn last night… being held up under the arms and hugged by Lilianna as she had a delighted smile on her face.
She remembered that moment, it’d been when she first tried on the outfit a few weeks prior… And there had been only one other person in their presence at that time.
Lycoris’ eyes briefly darted to the maid, then back to her mother, who gave her a gentle smile.
“Though, mouthy as she’s being, perhaps her photography talents have earned your maid a modicum of preening.”
“When did— How did— I…” Lycoris stammered, her earlier embarrassment returning in droves.
“Your mother asked me to take photos of the dress fitting, and of all the ones I took, she decided to set that one as your background.”
Lycoris looked down at it again, pursing her lips tightly.
The picture did show the side of her mom that she preferred… the happy and kind woman, rather than the harsh ruler. As she stared, it quickly became covered in text as her phone started buzzing rapidly, several messages suddenly scrolling down her screen.
“Wh-What!?”
“Ah, that is merely the leftover first time user settings. We already handled most of the setup for you. If you have any questions, we shall gladly assist.”
“More importantly,” Athena marched back over, setting down the stack of plates and silveware with a light clatter. “It’s cake time~!”
＊ ＊ ＊
Late that night, after having devoured the lion’s share… or perhaps sovereign’s share… of cake, Lycoris laid on her bed and stared up at her brand new phone. It was a strange thing, holding such a powerful magic artifact in her hands, knowing it belonged to her. The only ones she’d ever heard of in Human culture were relics recovered by adventurers and either proven safe to use by the Church, or stowed in a deep dark vault that none knew the location of. And naturally, those were extremely few and far between.
Her mother had assured her that it was enchanted to resist mundane forces, so it wouldn’t break if she dropped it… but Lilianna did caution her not to squeeze it too tightly, as there was little that an Aphtangloa couldn’t crush, apparently.
Athena had asked if she had any particular design she wanted for a “phone case” as well. Apparently it was some sort of protective shell, which left Lycoris confused as to the point of the protective enchantment if they required a secondary shield as well.
In addition to a refresher course on personal security and privacy—stuff like not answering messages or calls from strangers, and not giving away information while browsing apps—Lilianna helped Lycoris navigate her phone a little, taught her how to bring up the messaging app, showed her what the contacts list looked like—and went through the list of contacts she’d already added, including herself, Athena, and the guard captain’s office.
Athena had also made her take a picture of her birthday cake, to “upload to show it off,” before realizing that it’d mean making a social media account for Lycoris, which was something neither she nor Lilianna wanted to tackle just yet.
It did make sense, it wouldn’t be wise for her to reveal anything publicly she wasn’t supposed to, though she was admittedly rather nervous trying to do anything on her phone without Lilianna present. Moreso because of how nervous she was that she might break something, rather than do something she wasn’t supposed to.
Well, I won’t get anywhere just by staring at it. The best way to learn is through practice, after all! But Mama’s retired to her room for the night and Athena would probably get upset at me for being up this late. I wish she’d stop treating me like a child…
She thumbed through to her contacts list, her mind wandering.
It’d be nice if I could just call up Fawaris… Though the King never even let her carry a communication sigil around for emergencies. I bet he’d flip his lid if he ever heard about something like a phone… setting aside the fact there’s probably no chance the Church would let them exist.
Lycoris sighed, thinking about that particular wrinkle once more.
I wonder how they even decide what technology is good or bad. Maybe they ask the Goddess somehow? But, surely She would realize how beneficial these ‘phones’ can be for ordinary civilians… Oh!
Immediately, a certain pair of women came to mind. Lycoris sat upright and made a new entry, adding in Sera’s name and then…
“What did she say again? Uhmm…”
…Calmly closed her eyes, flopping her head back onto her plush pillow. With but a single thought, the moment from six months prior came back in full crystalline clarity, right down to the scent of the rodents crowding around them as Seraphine crouched down in front of Lycoris.
“Five, eight, two, seven, three, three, six… nine.”
After saving the number to her phone, Lycoris pushed the button next to it, though instead of bringing up the messages app, the screen changed and she heard a ringing sound.
The ringing stopped quickly however, as the sudden sound of a familiar voice came through the phone, loud enough to startle Lycoris into dropping her phone… right onto her own face.
‘Helloooo~? Seraphine Ethlow here. May I ask who’s calling?’
“Blaarfgh! Owie…”
‘Hmm…? Wait a minute, I’d recognize that whimper anywhere! Is that you, Lycoris?’
Her voice didn’t sound as crisp as Lycoris remembered, but it was definitely Seraphine.
Lycoris scooped the phone back up, rubbing her nose as she sat upright.
“Yeah. Um, I know we just talked last night, but… I was given a phone for my birthday, so I thought I’d make good on that promise…”
‘Ohhh… wait. But you had a phone when we bumped into you, didn’t you?’
“O-Oh, right. That was… Mom’s.”
‘Ahh of course, of course… WHAT!? I… Um. When I was part of the military there was a ton of red tape even on my stuff.’
“I… got into trouble for that, yes.”
Lycoris tugged her sheets against her side and curled up against them like a blanket, masking her embarrassment from the empty room.
‘Ahahaha… I suppose The Exaltare wouldn’t exactly put her own daughter in prison or execute her. Come to think of it, how should I refer to you, Princess? …Royal Princess? Exalted Princess?’
“Just, Lycoris is fine. Or Lyco even! Even being called ‘Princess’ is a little… Mmh, well it's complicated, to say the least.”
‘Ehhh? No way! You’re the Heir-Significate! By birth! Honestly I’m kind of in disbelief that I’m even having a chat over the phone with you! There’s no way that I can just… Call you Lycoris. Like in public, to other people. Honestly, it’s kind of a miracle that nobody realized you invited us… other than our landlord, at least.’
“Well… I’ll ask Mom if there’s some other formal title to use, but everyone has just been using ‘Princess’ or ‘Heir-Significate’ so far…”
‘Okie~ Message me whenever you do. Oh! Speaking of, am I allowed to like, add you as a contact? Haahhh, I’m kinda having a hard time calming down right now, haha!’
“Mm, I know what you mean. Fawaris had that effect on me any time she inv— ah.”
‘Fawaris? Who’s that?’
“Nevermind! I mean, just… Uh, just put Aster in for your contact list, I guess? It’s my middle name s-so… Ah, no stuttering or mumbling. Calm down, back straight…”
Lycoris reflexively chastised herself and straightened her posture. Not for slipping and naming someone that no vampire should ever know the name of, but because her mother had so heavily drilled her the past half year that her “Princess Training” became an innate reflex. She didn’t force Lycoris to speak with the same archaic royal we’s and thou’s that she used, but there had been multiple lengthy sessions dedicated to public speaking alone.
Considering how nerve-wracking her debut had been, Lycoris was infinitely grateful that she had as much practice as she did, even if she didn’t think she did as good of a job as she should have.
Sera, in her infinite grace, seemed to ignore the aside entirely. ‘Hmm… I suppose that’s less obvious than “Lycoris,” but it’s nowhere near as cute, either! But, if Her Highness says so, I’ll obey as a dutiful citizen!’
“Ahaha… At least you’re not tripping over yourself like Athena does.”
A part of her wished that she could remember her previous name. It would’ve been a much more clever means of masking her identity, but… perhaps it was better to distance herself from that…
‘Athena? Where have I heard that name before…’
“I guess if you already know who I am it's okay to say; she’s Athena Ochros, my personal maid.”
‘You have a member of the Seven as a personal maid!? I… don’t even know where to begin with that!’
There was something oddly amusing about the exasperation in Seraphine’s voice.
Considering how overly servile Athena acted at every turn, Lycoris didn’t even really think of her as a blood member of the Seven, but… she was certainly well educated, and behaved with as much decorum as a noblewoman would when pressured to.
“Honestly, I forgot until you mentioned it just now. Nobles and royalty are still just people at the end of the day.”
Even if they’re vampires.
‘Haha, leave it to the most powerful little girl on Earth to come up with a line like that.’
“I am not a little— Mmngh!! How’s Emma doing?”
‘She actually got called in for work a little earlier today, even though it’s High Moonsend. Apparently there was a major incident and they needed all available nurses; they even teleported her out! I can give you her number, though?’
“Sure, though maybe I should wait to call her until she’s done handling the emergency. I wonder what happened…”
How strange, Lycoris thought. It was (mostly) a perfectly ordinary conversation, the likes she’d hear in any tavern or bakery. But just having a simple little conversation made her heart flutter with excitement as she fiddled with her sheets.
Sure, Seraphine was a commoner and an adult and Lycoris was the heir to the empire and… well, her relative age was a complicated matter, but she couldn’t remember ever feeling so happy to just… talk about nothing.
“Is this what having a friend is like?” she blurted out.
‘Huh? What do you… Aww, don’t tell me you’ve never actually… actually that isn’t all that surprising. Your Splendiferous Highnessness probably hasn’t had much chance to speak to people candidly like this before now, have you?’
“Please stop adding embellishments to my title… You’re starting to sound like Athena.”
‘Hehe, given my relative position, that’s more a compliment than anything. I’m sure Princess Lycoris will make all sorts of friends in the future. You have a magnetic personality after all!’
“I-I do?”
Nobody had ever given her such an off-the-cuff compliment before.
Her mom and Athena had called her cute, and the crowd had called her charming, but…
‘You light up whatever room you’re in! And I’m not just saying that because you’re the Crown Princess. Emma couldn’t stop talking about you after we met… though admittedly some of that was because of all the interrogation we went through…’
“Ahahahah… sorry for causing you so much trouble.”
‘Nonono, it’s fine~! We’re both safe and sound, no harm no foul.’
“Mm… By the way, you said you’re ex-military, right?”
‘Yes’m!’
Lycoris was curious how vampires trained their soldiers, and if they ever properly knighted any of them. After all, it seemed like the Seven had a fairly major chokehold on the land and its people, it was hard to imagine them divvying things out to vassals… though, the Idra were apparently the largest for a reason. And it was harder still to imagine such large swaths of land being ruled by such a small governing body.
It was a topic she could have easily brought up with her mother, but she wanted to get a more grounded perspective.
The conversation continued long into the night, as the little princess learned of many strange differences between Vampire and Human society, and more surprisingly, how many similarities there really were between the commoners of both.