The First Vampire

The banquet hall of the White Dew Fortress was illuminated by hundreds of candles, making it as bright as daytime.

The hulking armored guards stood motionless around the hall holding long spears, while young, graceful maids delicately strode about, serving platters of delicious gourmet dishes on elongated tables.

The elegantly dressed Duchess was near the entrance of the banquet hall, greeting each banquet guest with a flawless smile.

Given the recent death of Duke St. Prowse, hosting such a lavish banquet at the White Dew Fortress may seem inappropriate, but who could argue with the Duchess’s insistence?

Moreover, she had a suitable excuse—for welcoming Prince Harrison and Princess Judy to the White Dew Fortress.

As for the incident of these two royal visitors’ tutor assassinating Duke St. Prowse, well, let’s just pretend it didn’t happen.

Of course, many of the astute guests were aware that the death of Duke St. Prowse was perhaps good news for the Duchess—

Now she would be the true lady of the White Dew Fortress and even the entire East Territory!

In the banquet hall, the elegant and skilled Duchess had already become the center of attention, with one Eastern noble after another coming forward to pledge their allegiance to her, subtly or otherwise.

The Duchess responded with grace and ease, but in the back of her mind, she was constantly keeping an eye on the entrance of the hall.

Seeing that the important figures she had been waiting for had not appeared, the Duchess extricated herself from the overly enthusiastic crowd and asked the butler:

“Where are the two Highnesses? And Count Angler, why hasn’t he arrived yet?”

“I’ll go check on them right away.”

Before the butler could take a few steps, Sir Warren, the captain of the White Dew Fortress’s guard team, strode over.

The Duchess, seeing Sir Warren’s solemn expression, furrowed her brows and hurriedly asked, “Sir Warren, what’s wrong?”

Sir Warren stepped beside the Duchess and reported quietly:

“My Lady, Count Angler has just been assassinated in his room!”

The Duchess gasped for breath, barely managing to maintain her composure. No sooner had she a chance to ask for details than she heard a voice next to her exclaim loudly:

“What? Count Angler has been assassinated?”

Sir Warren had intentionally kept his voice low, in theory, only the Duchess should have heard clearly. However, he didn’t expect Count Nicoll, who just happened to be passing by, to overhear and shout it out so loudly.

Now, the whole banquet seemed to hit the mute button, and suddenly fell silent.

The Duchess gave Count Nicoll a fierce look. She couldn’t tell whether he had let out the exclamation on purpose or by accident, and there was no time to question it now.

So, she immediately stepped up, and gave a few low orders to Sir Warren:

“First, kill all one hundred guards who followed Colin Angler into the city!

Second, lock down all the city gates, no one is to enter or leave!

Third, gather the army, be prepared, the Blood Knight Army… is likely to go berserk…”

Upon hearing the last sentence, Sir Warren couldn’t help but shiver as if foreseeing a terrifying scene, but he also knew the situation was urgent and there was no time for conjectures. So, he immediately nodded in agreement and strode away.

At this time, the guests in the banquet hall finally came to their senses, and the whole hall burst into uproar:

“Madame Duchess, has Count Angler really been murdered?”

“Madame Duchess, who assassinated Count Angler?”

“Madame Duchess, is White Dew City going to fall into war again?”

…

Question after question were thrown out like sharp arrows. But the Duchess simply smiled lightly, gestured for calm, and responded leisurely:

“Esteemed guests, I apologize for disturbing the soirée.

Please rest assured, regardless of any unexpected event, the St. Prowse Family has the means to handle it.

In the meanwhile, please enjoy your meal here while I investigate the details of the situation. I’ll come back later with a more thorough explanation.”

After speaking, the Duchess no longer responded to the inquiries of the guests and briskly walked out without any delay.

Once she stepped outside, the smile on the Duchess’s face vanished instantly, and the color of her expression turned from calm to anxious.

Count Angler was dead!

Although she would like nothing more than for the fearsome Northern Earl to die, he must not die in the White Dew Fortress!

Because once Count Angler dies here, regardless of how the St. Prowse family explains it, people across the entire Empire will believe that they assassinated Count Angler.

Not to mention that given the successful arrival of Emperor Reinhardt’s War Order at White Dew City, and Count Angler, a guest, being assassinated at White Dew City, the Royal Family would impose a harsh punishment on the St. Prowse family. The Duchess was also concerned about how the North Territory would react when they hear the news.

If the young Northern Duke insists on seeking revenge for his husband at all costs, then the Eastern Territory will face a terrible crisis.

And now, with the Orcs about to invade, the Royal Family and the Church may join forces to put pressure on the Eastern Territory in order to soothe the anger of the North Territory—

In that case, they must find someone of sufficient weight to be responsible for Count Angler’s death!

The Duchess despairingly realized that this person is most likely herself.

Even if she hadn’t planned the assassination of Count Angler, for the sake of the overall situation, she, the Archbishop of the Eastern Territory and the Duchess of St. Prowse, could indeed be heartlessly abandoned to placate the North Territory.

Upon this realization, the Duchess quickly recognized that this was a trap!

A carefully laid trap aimed at her!

The person who designed this trap clearly understands the current situation in the Eastern Territory. They found the fatal weakness of current order, and with just a gentle nudge, the stability that the Duchess had worked hard to maintain was on the brink of collapse.

A chill ran down the Duchess’s spine.

But she soon took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down.

The enemy had already made their move, and the Duchess knew that she had no choice but to respond.

Now, what she wants to understand the most is, who planned all of this behind the scenes?

And what will be the next move?

Lost in thought, the Duchess arrived at Colin’s room.

The surroundings of the room were densely surrounded by the guards of the St. Prowse family, even Prince Harrison and Princess Judy were stopped outside.

“Madame Duchess, why won’t you let us in? What happened to the teacher?”

“Your Highnesses, please forgive the rudeness of these guards. The situation inside is complex. Allow me to check first, and then I will explain everything to you.”

Before Prince Harrison and Princess Judy could respond, the Duchess had already walked into the room.

Then, she saw Colin collapsed in a pool of blood.

A torn chest, a missing heart, blood everywhere…

The Duchess didn’t need to examine closely to know that there was no hope left for him.