Ascendant Path of a Lustful Vampire

Chapter 431 431: Excuses and Promises

Caius had actually given it a good bit of thought.

There was likely a lot going on behind the scenes. His ascension to nobility can't have gone down smoothly once it was noticed by the others. Vampire Nobles act like an exclusive club. Even if they all secretly want to murder each other.

Still, while there is usually a steady truce between them to keep them from waging all-out war on one another, they very much object to another joining their ranks. Especially one who wasn't 'one of them', i.e wasn't accepted by them beforehand.

To be honest, Caius had known this would be a concern. It's just thar he also knew he was at least safe from them unless he revealed himself to them. Powerful as they were, they didn't have a way of knowing his identity unless Athenodora told.

The fact that Brogan had seen him and not recognized him, as well as these rampant vampire attacks on the Capital being dedicated to outing and finding him, confirmed to him that his identity was still secret. On that front, he could be calm.

But Brogan was a threat that needed to be stopped. Right now.

Besides the concern of how much attention Brogan's coven was bringing to Vampiric existence in the Capital, the longer it was allowed to continue, the larger Brogan's force would be.

Brogan hadn't made all that much of an impression in canon. As a Vampire Baron, he was mostly doing the bidding of much more powerful vampire nobles who outranked him. As far as the Vampire Nobles went, Brogan was, at the moment, the easiest to defeat. But that was relative to the others and it would still be a challenge.

"Tell me all you have learned," Caius said then after letting his declaration to kill Brogan settle a bit.

The other council members looked over at Kerwin now. He had been silent so far but presenting the results of their ongoing investigations (which they had kept from Caius) felt like his job.

Kerwin rolled his eyes at them and then let a magical item out of his storage ring so that it floated to the center of the council table where it projected enchanted images of reports, maps, and occasional footage to assist his presentation.

"… We've known of the enemy coven, who we now know to belong to this Brogan Kraxia, for a while and we have tried to ward them off and end their attacks on the populace—"

"All behind my back," Caius quipped with a frown.

The other council members winced. This was why none of them had offered to present in place of Kerwin.

Kerwin cleared his throat.

"Apologies, my Lord. But we weren't sure you'd even want to know. It hasn't seemed like you care what we do in any way," he said with as much snideness as he could manage.

There was an unnatural silence then as everyone seemed to wait with bated breath. Roxanne narrowed her eyes and looked between Caius and Kerwin, wondering why the Coven Leader was addressing such a touchy topic with such recklessness.

Caius said nothing for a while and then he shrugged.

"Fair," he admitted, "I have indeed been distant."

"I'm glad you agree, My Lord," Kerwin said with a smirk on his weirdly aged yet youthful face,

"And might I add, an attempt to learn names is a tiny step in the right direction and I'm glad you thought of it. Though it's a wonder why it took so long for you to realize it was needed…"

"Don't… push it," Caius said with a reluctant smile that caused the other council members to manage chuckles.

Kerwin acquiesced with a bow.

"Understood, My Lord," he said and then placed a thin finger to his lips,

"Still, it would be nice to know exactly how you'll rectify the deficit going forward."

"Obviously, I'll take a more present role," Caius said.

"But what will that mean, exactly?" Kerwin pressed.

"Drop it, Kerwin," Meline said in a whisper that carried a bit.

The other council members shifted uncomfortably. They could all still remember how easily Caius could be a threat and how little they would be able to do in the face of his animosity.

Roxanne just smiled. She wouldn't dream of assuming she knew Caius well just because of the few intimate hours they had shared today but she at least knew enough not to be quite as unsettled as her fellows.

"More time here, at the Coven," Caius said in a tone of promise.

"And?" Kerwin still pressed.

"By Nyx!" Kyre Leopold swore in a low voice with his hand clenched into a fist to demonstrate his discomfort.

Kerwin was unbothered.

Caius's lips were curled in a smirk.

"You really don't know when to call it quits, do you?"

"Neglectful as you might be, I believe my Lord is gracious enough to at least reassure this humble servant."

"Humble?" Caius scoffed and then let out a sigh,

"I'll make a point to always look through every report and all matters of the Coven. Arlette will remain my representative but I'll lessen her load and not be—as you've so succinctly put it—neglectful."

Kerwin gave a bow.

"It's all we ask, my Lord."

As Kerwin straightened up, Caius just eyed him. He would be the first to admit he was everything Kerwin had accused him of. Even though he had the excuse of not being as free as he would like, being under his father's roof and all, the truth was that that wouldn't even be all that true because Lucious already knew enough of Caius's connection with the Leopolds to excuse a few odd visits.

The truth was, while Caius had plans for the Leopold Coven and saw having his own Vampiric force as a much-needed insurance for the future, he didn't know what to do with them in the meantime. He didn't even really want to deal with them and only acquired them as fast as he did to rid a potential threat where 'Ophiuchus' services would be used to attack Lochxen.

That was the reason Arlette had been sent undercover as a Professor at the Academy and, not wanting to let it continue, Caius took over the Coven only to not know what to do with it and simply let it exist and do its thing away from him.

But that was dumb. Whatever plans he had for the Coven in the future would most likely fall apart if he didn't engage with them in the present.

So he was fine with Kerwin's insistence on a promise really.

"Still, if I'm making these Promises, I'd like you to make one yourself," Caius said easily.

"And what would that be, My Lord?" Kerwin asked.

"To never be as incompetent in dealing with a threat as you have been with this," Caius said.

Kerwin paused and then became solemn as he bowed and spoke with the fervor of one making a vow.

"We promise."

Harsh as the criticism may be, it was true and Kerwin himself had been feeling quite ashamed. It was actually one of the reasons that made revealing it so difficult because that felt like it would be an admission of abject failure in controlling a situation in his own home.

Sure, he had excuses such as the fact that they were dealing with no ordinary Coven but one led by a Vampire Noble. Alas, those would be just that: excuses.

Kerwin launched into the rest of his presentation and even though it was bleak because there was very little they knew of the threat until Caius gave them the name of the leader of it all, there was a calmness in the council.

They weren't on the back foot.

Sure, they were facing a threat being led by a Vampire Noble but they themselves were led by a Noble. One whose eyes were gleaming with the signs of a mind working hard to get ready for a decisive counter.