A warm soup, bread, and wine graced the table, but not a hand touched it. Scarlet eyes never feasted on it as three people occupied the table while the others sat around them. The smell of the dish was wanting and the bread and wine were decent enough for a winter feast, but they were ignored as those who settled at the table commenced a staring contest – a contest of silent threats.

Master Rafael broke the eye contact and reached for his humble goblet of wine. He pulled himself away from the drink after having tasted it, pondering some before he spoke, “Your cousins might have not known me, but you do. You both do.”

He could feel the pair’s eyes remain on him as he settled his cup on the table. The couple sitting across him was a force to be reckoned with, he had heard. And Master Rafael had to attest to that for he could sense strong wills coming from both younger vampires imposing on his own. The auras about them demanded fealty, nothing more and nothing less.

Master Rafael may have mustered the audacity to defy the two’s grandfather, but he found himself conceding before the current generation.

“Your eyes both reflect your grandfather’s piercing ones.” Master Rafael commented, trying his best to ease the tension being caused by his guests.

“You broke your oath to our grandfather.” Taeyeon said in a deadly low tone. Her eyes were stern and unwavering.

“And betrayed his trust on you as one of his banner men.” Sooyeon added.

“I did. And for that, I was branded a traitor. After your dear granddad’s conquest, I was put in exile. My rights to my land and my title were stripped from me and now, here I am living in this peaceful cottage in the mountains of England while your grandfather slept forever in a crypt beneath the Jung castle with his heart missing from his limb.” Retorted Master Rafael.

He studied the faces of his guests, bracing himself for the outburst that the two were expected to unleash because of the insults he had spouted against their grandfather, the late king before the current vampire lord. But all he saw was an alarming calm about the faces of the granddaughters he had insulted. There was not a trace of any aggression in them.

“It is true that our grandfather is now dead.” Taeyeon acknowledged his remark, “But his legacy lives on in his children. In his descendants. In us, his granddaughters.”

“And we are here before you to give you a chance to reclaim your title.” Sooyeon said calmly, “And my fiancée and I assure you that you will concede to this bargain.”

It was an offer the old vampire could not refuse.

***

“Can’t sleep?”

Miyoung turned to the familiar voice, hands clutching tighter to her ebon cloak as she replied with a shake of her head. “No. I couldn’t.”

The person strode closer, arms wrapped around the Hwang’s waist and in that spur of a moment, Miyoung found herself succumbing to the calming embrace. The young archer took in the scent of her beloved, closing her eyes to enhance her other senses, feeling the smooth heaves of the other person’s chest as the older one took a breath.

The older one hummed a song, a hymn familiar to Miyoung’s ears. The soothing voice made her relax and soon, sleep began to cloud her mind. The other figure embracing her must have sensed her stupor, and Miyoung felt the arms shift. She lifted her head to meet sapphire eyes.

“Go to sleep, Miyoung.”

“So