The First Vampire

“No.”

In response to Lady Beryl’s inquiry, the Marchioness mechanically shook her head.

It seemed as though her husband would awaken at any moment, yet he also appeared as if he would never open his eyes again.

Over the past several days, the youthful Marchioness had gone from full of hope to gradually heartbroken. She was now numbed by the torment.

Looking at the haggard Marchioness, Lady Beryl sighed and said, “You should rest. I will keep a watch over Vincent tonight.”

The Marchioness shook her head. She knew it wasn’t just her; the biggest hope of the entire Howell Family now rested on her husband.

Under such pressure, she didn’t dare slacken in the slightest. Even though she knew that guarding his sick bed wouldn’t do much good, she insisted on staying. It seemed to be the only way to alleviate her inner anxiety.

“Think of Eckert. He needs you, too.”

At the mention of her son, the eyes of the Marchioness finally sparkled. After a moment of struggle, she stood up and said, “Lady Beryl, I entrust Vincent to you for tonight.”

After she spoke, the Marchioness left the room.

Lady Beryl then said to the maids, “You may leave as well. If I need anything, I will call you.”

“Yes,”the maids replied and quietly withdrew.

Once the door was shut, Lady Beryl murmured,

“All right, there’s no one else here.”

Then, Marquis Vincent opened his eyes.

Upon seeing this, Lady Beryl didn’t seem surprised at all.

The only reason she insisted on sending the Marchioness away was because Marquis Vincent had covertly touched her.

The spiritless and haggard Marchioness didn’t notice at all.

“Aunt, I’m glad you finally came!” Marquis Vincent gripped Lady Beryl’s hand, revealing a sincere smile on his face.

“What’s going on? Why do you have to pretend to be in a coma?”

Marquis Vincent took a deep breath and said in a low voice,

“Because… my mother wants to kill me!”

“Kate wants to kill you?” Lady Beryl gazed at Marquis Vincent in puzzlement, furrowing her brow, “Though I’ve always felt that that mad woman would kill anyone for the Church, but… she wouldn’t kill her own son, would she? What’s in it for her?”

“My guess is, she hopes to elevate me to the Duke of the East, and then kill me. Thus, Eckert would become the heir to the dukedom.”

At this point, Lady Beryl suddenly understood and said, “I see. With a three-year-old Duke, the whole eastern territory will be under that vile woman’s control.”

“Exactly!” replied Marquis Vincent, his eyes filled with a mix of pain and hatred, “So, she hasn’t made any effort to heal me, hoping that my injuries would eventually take my life. When she saw that I was just hanging on, she even…”

“She did what?”

“Nevermind.” Marquis Vincent quickly changed the subject. “My mother has secretly manipulated many nobles of the east for years, and even the St. Prowse Family has become full of holes under the Church’s influence. I don’t dare trust anyone, so I had to pretend to be in a coma. Until you arrived!

“Aunt, you’re the only person I can trust now!”

With self-mockery, Lady Beryl said, “That’s because I’m the least likely person in the entire Eastern Territory who would be bought by Kate, right?”

“Yes, but more importantly, you’re the most honorable knight of the East, and the most upright St. Prowse!” Marquis Vincent quickly flattered.

Lady Beryl laughed noncommittally and asked, “So what do you plan to do about this situation? Do you have anyone you can trust? Any loyal knights? A controllable army?”

Marquis Vincent gave a bitter smile and said, “Aunt, I only have you now!”

Lady Beryl rolled her eyes and scolded him angrily, “So these days you’ve been busy playing dead, you haven’t thought of any plan to break the situation?”

“Well, actually I have thought of a way…” Marquis Vincent’s eyes flickered.

“What’s the method?”

“I believe all the forces within White Dew City have been won over by my mother, so, to change the situation, I can only rely on external help!”

“External help?” Lady Beryl thought about it and asked doubtfully, “What kind of power do you have outside of White Dew City? Could it be Count Howell?”

“Count Howell is indeed an important force I can rely on, but after all, he is still far away on the Angry River, and all his subordinates are navies… They can’t do anything about the situation in White Dew City.”

“Then what power are you talking about?”

Marquis Vincent hesitated for a moment, then lowered his voice and said, “The Blood Knight Army.”

Lady Beryl raised her beautiful eyebrow, her gaze complex as she looked at Marquis Vincent.

Marquis Vincent hurriedly explained, “Aunt, hear me out, I know the hatred between the Blood Knight Army and the St. Prowse Family, and I know that Count Colin Angler is cunning and treacherous, and has always harbored ambitions for the eastern borderlands. But under the current circumstances, I can only use them to deal with the internal threats, otherwise, the situation in the eastern borderlands will only get worse!”

Lady Beryl smirked and said, “Do you know? Actually, before I came to White Dew City, I had met with Colin Angler once in Lark City.”

“And we reached an agreement.”

Marquis Vincent’s eyes widened in surprise, asking, “What agreement?”

“I help him kill Kate, he spares Viscount Fein.”

Marquis Vincent’s eyes lit up, and he immediately asked, “How are you planning to kill… Mother?”

Lady Beryl did not conceal anything and spoke plainly, “I will secretly open the city gate and let the Blood Knight Army enter White Dew City. Since they were able to kill your father the last time they entered the city, I believe they can also eliminate the protecting forces around your mother this time.

Then, I can kill her with my own hands!”

After hearing this, Marquis Vincent was silent for a while, then said, “Aunt, actually, my original plan was similar.. but…. I intend to let mother die at the hands of the Blood Knight Army.”

“No.” Lady Beryl shook her head slowly, “Kate must die by my hand!”

Marquis Vincent furrowed his eyebrows, puzzled, “Aunt, why must you personally kill Mother? Is it because of past grievances?”

Lady Beryl glanced sidelong at Marquis Vincent, scoffing, “What? Is that the image I hold in your heart, an eye for an eye?”

Marquis Vincent shook his head quickly, and before he could figure out how to answer this question, he heard Lady Beryl say:

“Alright, to tell you the truth, there is only one reason I want to kill Kate by my own hands—to completely break the St. Prowse Family’s ties with the Church!”

The powerful words sent a tremor through Marquis Vincent’s heart.

After pondering for a moment, he finally understood his aunt’s painstaking efforts.

Indeed, if the Archbishop of the Eastern Borderlands died at the hands of Lady Beryl, an irreparable rift would inevitably occur between the St. Prowse Family and the Church, and the Royal Family might very likely accept the allegiance of the St. Prowse Family because of this.

The situation of the Empire might completely change.

However, Marquis Vincent also clearly understood that Lady Beryl, who initiated these dramatic changes, might face relentless retaliation from the Church…

Just as he was about to remind his aunt of the consequences that might result from killing an Archbishop, he heard her speak again:

“Also, I need to kill one more person.”

“Who?”

“Colin Angler!”