Chapter 22 I Didn’t Expect You Were Also Quite the Actor
Chapter 22: I Didn’t Expect You Were Also Quite the Actor
“Is that the Prince? He seems quite suitable for the Queen.”
Vivian blushed and lowered her head, quickening her pace, afraid of dying from the idle gossip of her people.
In the council hall, Duke Winston was still working overtime. Hearing footsteps at the door, he knew he could finally finish work.
“Vivian, you… oh, who’s this?”
“This is Prince Baili. His injuries have recovered enough that he can finally come out to meet people.”
Winston extended his hand. “Pleased to meet you, Prince Baili. I look forward to your guidance in the future.”
Baili stood still for a moment until a mental poke from Vivian prompted him to slowly extend his hand and grasp Winston’s cold hand.
“Hmm? Prince Baili must also be skilled with the sword. The calluses on your palm suggest you’ve been wielding a blade for many years?”
Winston’s question caught Baili off guard—he hadn’t expected such keen observation. Since he’d been found out, he could only nod in acknowledgment.
“Since you’ve admitted it, would you honor me with a duel?” Winston’s expression became subtle, clearly intending to show off in front of Baili.
The girl in the black dress looked slightly annoyed. “Winston, don’t make trouble, alright? Talk to me when you can defeat Senior Dagufu in a duel.” With that, she pushed Winston out.
Baili was puzzled. His swordsmanship was unmatched—why wouldn’t she let him face off with Winston? And any observer could see that Winston was left-handed, wasn’t that clearly a provocation?
This question nearly drove Vivian mad. Though without magical enhancement, she knew Baili’s heavy-handed style. What if he accidentally injured Winston?
Though Winston couldn’t die, she didn’t want him to suffer needlessly.
“You seem quite biased. Afraid there’ll be no one to approve your paperwork?” Baili teased.
Seeing her thoughts exposed, Vivian decided to solve the problem at its root.
And so a certain unfortunate fellow ended up nailed to the wall again.
After Vivian returned to her room and changed clothes, she finally let Baili down. The fall hurt a bit, and he could only dust himself off, trying not to look too pathetic.
“Alright, I have some questions for you, and you must tell the truth, okay?”
Baili smiled awkwardly and nodded, hoping she wouldn’t ask anything too perverse. The contract had specified he couldn’t lie.
“Do you hate our vampire race? Why?”
Almost instinctively, the word “hate” slipped out, but as for the reason, his mind went blank.
“Well… um, can I say I don’t know?”
To Vivian’s surprise, Baili’s response didn’t trigger the contract’s punishment mechanism, indicating he was telling the truth.
Indeed, Baili had always worn a mask on the battlefield, and any enemy who had seen his face was dead. It was natural that no one at Rose Sanctuary recognized him.
Otherwise, he would’ve been torn to pieces by the other vampires long ago, considering the blood on his hands.
“Think carefully about the meaning of your existence. Is it fun being used as someone else’s weapon?” Leaving behind what seemed like a mocking comment, Vivian closed the door.
She left him to sleep on the sofa. He wanted to go to the dome to look at the stars. At night, countless stars adorned the dark sky, decorating the dim heavens.
“White Li, what are you doing? Can’t you bring yourself to do it?”
He trembled as he held the knife, facing a blood-covered, dying person.
“…Why must we do this? He’s clearly…”
“What a waste. The Empire has no need for such a weak, incompetent blade.”
He remembered clearly: the first time he was supposed to kill someone, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He was punished with three days of solitary confinement—no light, no food.
Afterward, under coercion and threat, he finally swung the blade. He was only twelve years old.
When blood splattered onto his face, his eyes became hollow and soulless. Over time, his senses became numb.
At some point, killing went from being a psychological burden to causing no ripples in his heart.
“It seems I was truly brainwashed.”
Why did he feel no burden? He didn’t know. In a daze, he fell asleep under the open sky, using his arms as a pillow.
…
When he woke up, he was lying on the sofa.
“Strange, wasn’t I looking at stars on the dome?”
Examining his surroundings, he saw Terez already making breakfast. Steam rose from the pot, and eggs were frying nearby.
Everyone at Rose Sanctuary knew she had once been human, but no one discriminated against her.
Baili slowly sat up and fixed his appearance in a nearby mirror. By the time he finished washing up, Terez had prepared a steaming breakfast.
She looked at him timidly, seeming afraid of something. Though she could probably recognize him, Vivian had told her he had turned into a child due to his injuries.
He was about to say something to reassure Terez, but thinking of his past actions, he silently lowered his head, not knowing how to face her.
His hand hung in midair, caught in indecision.
“Thank you for your hard work, Terez. Big Brother Prince Baili has been waiting for you for a long time.” Vivian walked out of the room holding a bouquet of blooming roses.
Terez was a bit stiff, seeming somewhat afraid of Baili, but she slowly approached.
Though she seemed scared, making breakfast had been her own initiative.
On the table were toasted bread slices. Baili picked up two, added a fried egg and sausage, and made a simple sandwich to eat.
Terez sat nearby, silently watching him. Just then, Vivian unexpectedly slapped Baili on the head.
“Eat slower. Don’t choke yourself.”
Baili coughed dryly. The sandwich was indeed delicious. “Thanks to you, I almost died here. By the way, Terez, aren’t you eating?”
“I… I… I’m not very hungry right now. I already ate earlier.”
As she said this, Terez was clearly looking away guiltily.
Blood was actually the best way to replenish energy—these food items were just snacks to them.
Seeing Terez like this, Baili didn’t know what to say.
Fortunately, no one on the battlefield had seen his face.
There was only one fried egg left on the table, but two forks pierced it.
Vivian and Baili looked up at each other, both surprised by the other’s gaze.
“Wait, I clearly got it first!” they exclaimed in unison.
As the two faced off tensely, Terez quietly walked to the frying pan.
“Stop fighting, you two. There’s one more here…”
This gave Baili a way out. He took the plate from Terez’s hand.
Fighting with Vivian could lead to who-knows-what humiliation in front of Terez, but simply giving up would be losing face.
Terez sat to the side, clearly relieved that the two had temporarily ceased hostilities.
“Strange, why does this fried egg taste burnt?”
He glanced over to see Terez with her back to him, her laughter faintly audible.
“Well, well, so you’re quite the actor too…” Baili shrugged helplessly while cleaning up the dishes.
At least now when he cleared the tableware, he didn’t break the bowls, thanks to Terez’s previous lessons on basic life skills.
…