ー ⊰ ✟ ⊱ ー

[THIS IS A PREVIEW - THE PUBLISHED BOOK CAN BE FOUND ON AMAZON, WWW.NUMENVERSE.COM, AND OTHER MAJOR RETAILERS]

[You can also read the published book via the $2 subscription tier on my Inkitt profile, T_Csernis]

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| Alucard |

A week passed since Alucard killed the Amarok. His wound healed, no other werewolves had left the forest, and the city believed his tale that the bodies he found in the monster's den were killed by a demon. Thinking about it brought a smirk to his face, but it quickly withered when he was hit by the fact that he had to meet Zalith again tonight.

He took his eyes off his glass of red wine and glared at Elvin, who was sitting in the armchair opposite the couch he slumped on. "Vhat are you scribbling over zhere?" he snarled as the scratching of the bard's pencil clawed at his eardrums.

Elvin kept writing and glanced at him. "Everything you told me earlier; it takes me longer to write than it takes you to speak, you know."

"Do you 'ave to do zhat so loudly?" the vampire grumbled. He sat up straight and glanced out the window behind Elvin, watching as the six moons started to appear in the darkening sky.

"Do you always have to be so grumpy?"

Alucard rolled his eyes.

"Shouldn't you be heading out soon anyway?" Elvin asked. "Don't you have a hot date with a demon?"

The vampire scowled at him as a feeling of revolt consumed both his feelings and the look on his face. "You are not vunny, Elvin."

"I wasn't trying to make a joke; I was being serious," he grinned, taking his eyes off his book.

"Zhe only ving that intervests me about zhat man is zhe vay I vill kill 'im if 'e demeans me vonce more."

Frowning, Elvin rested his arms over his book. "Why do you wanna kill him? From what you've told me, it sounds like you guys are already friends. Didn't you flawlessly kill that Amarok last week together? I mean...minus the bite."

"I zon't 'ave vriends, Elvin," Alucard muttered, glaring back into the fire.

"What about me?"

Glancing at him, Alucard shrugged. "You are my vamiliar."

Elvin pouted. "Vampires have familiars; you're Aleksei, more than just a vampire, so you can have friends—like me." He smiled, pointing to himself.

"I zidn't vescue you vrom zhat orphanage to become your vriend."

The bard smirked and said, "It might not have been your first intention, but the way things have unfolded, it looks like I'm more your friend than some dumb familiar. You don't send me to get groceries, and you don't make me clean your shoes or fetch your food, do you?"

Alucard stifled a snarl. "Are you done now? I need to get veady to go."

"N-no, no, wait," he said, quickly looking through the notes he had just written. "So, the council bought the story about a rogue demon killing those people in the Amarok nest and getting away?"

"Da."

"I'm just worried that if someone sees you with that Zalith guy, they might think you two are in cahoots or something, you know? I mean...what if they ask you to hunt the demon from your story down?"

Alucard sighed deeply. "Zhen I vill just go and vind some vandom zemon, cut 'is 'ead off, and deliver zhat."

Elvin nodded slowly. "Okay, well...if you think it's gonna be—"

"Vill be vine, Elvin. Zhey're too busy getting veady to let vampires into zheir city to care about a zemon killing a vew people vrom a village zhat zhey zon't give two shits about."

The bard went silent for a moment and shuffled around in his seat. "Kinda grim. Well...I did have a question about that: why do werewolves choose to eat us? To eat...humans?"

"Sport," he answered.

"Sport?"

"Zhey vind zhat vun; you vun like imbeciles and zhey like zhat."

"Sounds like you like it, too," Elvin mumbled, writing it into his book. He then sat up straight. "Can't I come with you this time?"

"No," Alucard denied, standing up as he finished the rest of the wine in his glass. "Go 'ome."

Elvin hurried to his feet and followed Alucard as he made his way over to the door, where his cape and sword sat on the table.

"Can I come at some point?" the bard whined.

"No," he refused once more. "I zon't know zhese vampires, and I'd vather not visk you being eaten."

Elvin then smiled. "Aww, did you just say you care about me?"

Alucard attached his rapier to his side and pulled his cape on. "Sergiu vill take you 'ome again," he said, disregarding Elvin's question.

"Sergiu always takes me home—he's boring, Aleksei; all he talks about is what new tea he had last night and how the horses are acting like any other horses," he complained, following Alucard out into the gardens.

"Content vor your book, no?" Alucard smirked.

The bard scowled. "My book is supposed to be exciting; it's about adventures and ethos and vampires and demons! Not about what some random groundskeeper had to drink."

"Zhen go 'ang out vith Ben. I'm sure 'e 'as some stories vor you," he grumbled, leading Elvin over to the stables.

"The book is about you, Vurren, not your friends."

"I zon't 'ave vriends," he repeated, a stern tone in his voice.

Elvin frowned. "Why are you so insistent about that?"

Ignoring him, Alucard set his fiery eyes on the groundskeeper, who emerged from the stables. "Take Elvin 'ome, and give me Sebastian."

Nodding, Sergiu disappeared back into the stables.

The vampire then set his eyes back on Elvin. "I vill see you tomorrow," he said as Sergiu returned with his black stallion.

"What are we doing tomorrow?"

"Noving." Alucard shrugged as he mounted the horse. "You just come by every day, zon't you?"

He sighed as he tucked his book into his pocket. "Yeah. You'll tell me everything, right?"

"Maybe," Alucard answered before tapping his horse's side with his foot.

Then, his stallion raced out of the manor, heading for the docks. He wasn't about to be late and give Zalith a reason to sneer. He wanted to get the night over with and spend as little time in that demon's company as he had to.

⤝❖⤞

When Alucard reached the castle docks, he left his stallion by a fence and headed towards the ship.

"Yo, Aleksei," came Tobias' gruff voice.

Alucard turned to face the blonde, rugged man, who stood in his muddy leather jacket and torn jeans, waving with a grin on his stubbly face. The vampire sighed quietly, watching him as he made his way over.

"What's up, man?" he asked, holding out his hand.

The vampire glared down at it, and when he saw the patches of dirt, he grimaced in revolt. Did Tobias honestly think he'd shake that thing?

Tobias chuckled and slipped both his hands into his pockets. "Sorry I couldn't meet you earlier in the week; shit's been a mess since the last full moon. Few of my guys got a bit carried away."

"Not too carried away, I 'ope," he mumbled skeptically.

He shook his head. "Nah, don't worry. We buried all those bodies like you asked; I ain't seen an Amarok since the wars, you know."

"'Ave you seen or 'eard anyving new since I killed zhe ving?"

"Nothing, boss. We're keeping our senses peeled, though. If anything's happening wolf-wise, we'll be the first to hear of it—and then you, of course."

Alucard nodded. "Vank you."

The vampire then moved past him and boarded the ship. He looked up at Rodney, who was chatting to a smaller, younger man on the quarterdeck. The guy looked either seventeen or eighteen and had spots of red stubble sprouting here and there on his freckled face. His scruffy hair was as orange as hair could get, shimmering in the multi-coloured moonlight, and he had a northern accent.

Who was this kid? And why was he aboard Alucard's ship?

Alucard stepped onto the quarterdeck, and as Rodney and the boy looked at him, he asked, "Who is zhis child?"

Rodney smiled from ear to ear as he held his hand out to greet Alucard. "Aleksei, this is Kevin; he's my new apprentice."

Kevin offered his hand to Alucard. "It's great to meet you, sir."

Alucard ignored their hands and scowled. "Vhat did I say about bringing outsiders 'ere?"

"I need help sailing this ship, man," Rodney complained, dragging his hand over his head. "The kid was on the streets, so I took him in. He's not a threat, is he?"

Snarling, Alucard moved closer to the boy, but as he backed off in fear, Alucard snatched his collar and glared into his eyes. "Vhere do you come vrom?"

"Th-the north, sir," he answered. "I was a stowaway for a while, then I ended up here and...well, I was looking for work, see, and Rodney was also looking for—"

"Vhy zidn't you tell me you vere in need of 'elp? If you 'ad told me, I vould 'ave vound you somevone," Alucard growled, taking his eyes off the startled boy to glare at Rodney.

"He's just a kid," Rodney insisted, grabbing the boy's arm.

Taking his eyes off Rodney, Alucard eyed Kevin. He was human, and the mortified look on his face was the same as that which Alucard would see on someone who had never seen him before. From what he could tell, the boy wasn't an enemy, but the fact that Rodney hadn't asked him if it was okay to bring some random stowaway aboard his ship pissed him off so much that he wanted to throw them overboard.

However, this was the first time Rodney had ever made a mistake, so he felt as though he should be a little lenient, especially since Rodney was one of his most loyal, longest-serving men.

He let go of Kevin's collar and said to Rodney, "Next time, ask me. Zon't bring in outsiders."

As Kevin hid behind him, Rodney frowned. "Sorry. I just haven't seen you since last week; I thought you were busy."

"You know zhe vules, Vodney. Vemember zhem."

The captain sighed and nodded. "Yeah, it won't happen again."

"Let's go," Alucard snarled, stepping down off the quarterdeck.

"Oh, Drac's eating sharks," Rodnay called. "It's not werewolf corpses, but at least he's not starving down there."

"Good," Alucard mumbled as he walked into his cabin.

The vampire slumped in his seat behind his desk and sighed deeply. He leaned back, huffed quietly, and closed his eyes, trying to relax. But the sound of Kevin and Rodney's muffled voices stole the silence.

"I didn't mean to cause you to get into trouble," Kevin said.

"Nah, it's just Aleksei—well, it's mainly my fault," Rodney replied. "I know the rules just as everyone else does."

"Why doesn't he want outsiders here?"

"Can't say, kid," Rodney denied as the ship started moving away from the docks.

"Why not?" the kid asked excitedly. "Is this all some top-secret stuff?"

"You've been reading too many stories, kid."

"I've been in Dargamoore a while—well, I've been all over Dor-Sanguis. All the bards here tell stories about uh...Alucard. The first vampire. That is who he is, right?"

"Yeah, it is..." Rodney confirmed slowly. "But his name is Aleksei."

The kid gasped excitedly. "I love listening to the stories! And now...I'm working for him?"

"You ain't working for him, kid. You work for me."

"Yeah, but you work for him, which means I technically do, too."

Rodney grunted. "Great, another Elvin."

"What's an Elvin?"

"Aleksei's fanboy."

Kevin then scoffed. "I never said I was a fan; it's just cool to meet the guy all these stories talk about."

"Wait until you've been around him for at least a week to say that."

"Why?"

"You'll find out," Rodney mumbled.

When their conversation ended, Alucard snarled and rested his legs on his desk. He still felt furious. He had a tiny circle of people he trusted, and Rodney was one of them. But the fact that he brought an outsider in made Alucard lose some of that trust. Rodney was aware of his rules, and he broke one of the most important ones. Alucard had many enemies, not just werewolves, and while it was easy to sniff out a wolf, it wasn't so easy to sniff out an agent of the Diabolus—the cult that haunted his past.

The Diabolus were quiet, deadly, and efficient. They managed to tear his life apart more than once, and he wasn't going to let it happen again. He'd lost his mother's people to them, and the family he had come to find in Vanessa and her sons. Although his vampirism helped him avenge them, the ever-growing cult never seemed to wither. They were still out there, they were still looking for him, and he knew he'd have to keep hiding.

A skeptical scowl clung to his face. Kevin's story was hard to believe. All the bards in Dargamoore spoke of him? No, the only bard he let talk about him was Elvin because no one believed the stories he told of how Alucard wasn't some cold-blooded murderer. And as far as Alucard was aware, Elvin never spoke his actual name. How would Kevin know it? The Diabolus knew him by his birth name, and so did Damien, but the Daegelus would never sell him out.

So, how did this kid know his real name?

Alucard glared at the ceiling, listening as the kid kept gossiping. Right now, he wasn't sure who might be more foolish: Kevin or Rodney. The captain disobeyed his rules, and Kevin made one of the biggest mistakes any spy could make. But was he a spy? Alucard had to be sure. Yes, he knew his real name, but could Elvin have unintentionally mentioned it in one of his sonnets? He couldn't just kill this kid unless he was sure that he was an agent of the Diabolus.

He sighed and stared out the cabin door, setting his eyes on the black, rainy island as it came into view. First, he had to deal with the vampire business, and then he'd deal with Rodney and his new little friend.

ー ⊰ ✟ ⊱ ー

[THIS IS A PREVIEW - THE PUBLISHED BOOK CAN BE FOUND ON AMAZON, WWW.NUMENVERSE.COM, AND OTHER MAJOR RETAILERS]

[You can also read the published book via the $2 subscription tier on my Inkitt profile, T_Csernis]

ー ⊰ ✟ ⊱ ー

✧ Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed the chapter! ✧

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