The Dread of Damned Train

We walked down the hallway, which opened into the large living room I had passed earlier. To the right were the towering staircase. We continued straight ahead and entered another hallway that ran parallel to the one we had just walked down. With every passing second, I could see the expectations building on Lucian's face, and I beca genuinely curious. What kind of woman could cause the typically serious and stoic Lucian to display such expressions? She had to be an intriguing character.

We walked for a while before coming upon a simple white door. We stopped in front of it, and Eldon knocked. "Who is it?" a deep, alluring, and throaty voice called from inside.

"It is , Eldon," Eldon replied. The voice responded, asking him to wait for a mont.

The door opened, and she stepped into view—the mystery girl. Her brown skin reminded of chocolate from my previous world. Her hair was light, curly, and black. She was looking down, adjusting the crop top she was wearing, paired with denim shorts.

As she looked up, her deep black eyes first t Eldon's before shifting to mine. As her gaze moved over , it landed on the figure beside . I noticed her eyes widen with disbelief and surprise. The black orbs seed to reflect the very stars themselves. Then, relief filled her face. It looked like she had been worried about soone—perhaps Lucian, maybe even herself.

Lucian stepped forward, and she rushed into his arms. I moved aside slightly.

"You really took your sweet ti this ti," she said, her voice accusing but still warm.

"I am sorry," Lucian said as they embraced each other tighter. They exchanged a few more words before separating.

"Oh, how negligent of . et His Highness, the Prince. It is only by his grace that we are able to et today," Lucian said, turning toward and gesturing towards while he introduced .

I saw the excitent in her eyes quickly shift to respect, tinged with a touch of fear. She offered a bow, her movents accentuating her curves. "Greetings, My Prince. I am Elina Stiles," she said.

"No need for formalities. Please, rise," I said, signaling for her to stand.

"Thank you, My Prince," she responded.

"There's no need to be so formal. Lucian is not just my trainer; he's a friend, and by extension, so are you." I said, my tone calm and steady.

"Thank you for your grace," they both replied in unison.

"Well, now that I've done my part in reuniting two lovebirds," I said, straightening up, "I feel it's ti to leave you two to reminisce in peace." I turned to leave, Eldon following close behind .

"Farewell, My Prince," I heard their voices call from behind.

"Eldon, prepare a room on the second floor—one of high quality. Once it's ready, move Lucian and Elina there," I instructed as we walked back toward the open living room.

"As you say," Eldon replied.

"His Highness wanted to et you," Eldon inford just as I was about to ascend the stairs.

"Where is he?" I asked.

"He's in the living room on the top floor," Eldon answered. I nodded and turned back.

"You can continue your work; I'll go there myself," I told him. As he started to follow , I stopped him with a nod, and he bowed before returning to his duties.

I climbed the grand staircase, the urge to run to the top flashing in my mind, but the thoughts swirling in my head made slow down and think. The image of Elina from earlier—her chocolatey skin, her presence—flashed before .

I probably wouldn't try anything with her. She was Lucian's girlfriend, and he was soone I considered a friend. I wouldn't ruin things for a girl, and besides, she seed relatively normal—if a bit striking in her own way. I'd seen won like her in my previous life, but there was sothing about the way she carried herself that made her stand out, reminding of her origins: Elina Starwood. Starwood.

Perhaps, in my past life, I might have thought differently, even if I had been involved with my own mother—the wife of my very father in this world— the power dynamics between us were the sa. In this world, Mother and I were on equal footing. No one was kept in the dark, as evidenced by my father's actions of numbing my mothers senses as a welco gift last night. He definitely knew what was going on and had no issue with it. But with Elina, it would feel wrong—like abusing power or forcing her into sothing she didn't want. Normally, I wouldn't care, but in this case, I didn't want to antagonize Lucian, lose his friendship, or keep him in the dark by doing sothing behind his back—not now, at least. He was still a friend, and one who had his uses still.

I reached the top of the grand staircase as the glint in my silver eyes was replaced by my normal expression , I walked into the living room as I adjusted my mber beneath the silver robe. the exaggerated grandness of the living room on the top floor deeply contrasted the simplicity of the first floor. I saw my father sitting on a sofa to the side and walked toward him.

"Greetings, Father," I said.

"Greetings, son. How have you been?" he asked. I didn't miss the teasing and knowing undertone in his voice.

"Very happy, I would say, especially after last night. Thanks for your arrangents," I said, sitting down.

"Nothing to thank for. Just a father making his son happy," he replied.

"Why did you call for , Father?" I asked, shifting the topic after we exchanged pleasantries.

"I wanted you to start becoming a part of the official business. You need to start preparing now," he said, picking up a teacup from the table.

"I like tea. One of the best human inventions," he said while taking a sip. It wasn't like Nocturnals couldn't indulge in human delicacies.

"How do you want to start?" I asked, and he turned to , placing his cup down.

"First and foremost, you should start joining the training sessions from today onward," he said, his eyes fixed on mine. The house had its own guards—called knights—and they were divided into three tiers.

The Knights of Bastion were responsible for the outer boundary and maintaining law and order outside the inner boundary. They were level-three knights. Then there were the Knights of Aegis, who protected the inner boundary and upheld order within it. The Knights of Aegis were further divided into two groups: the lower-level ones, known as Aegis Wardens, handled the boundary and law enforcent, while the higher-level knights, known as Aegis Guardians, were in charge of the castle grounds and its security, including the first three floors of the castle.

The highest-tier knights were the Knights of Zenith. They were the epito of authority and prestige in terms of military power and combat strength. Their re nas would strike fear into the hearts of most vampires. They were responsible for the upper four floors of the castle.

"Where do I start, then?" I asked as he took another sip of his tea. I was beginning to crave it myself as mories of my previous life ca flooding back. I had been quite obsessed with tea back then.

"You won't start with the Knights of Bastion, Aegis, or Zenith," he said, making confused.

"What do you an?" I asked.

"You will train with level zero," he said, a gleam in his eyes. I was confused for a mont before it clicked.