Academic gathering with a lich-Chapter 665 - 616: The Red Dragon’s Plea

On the borderlands of Hamlet County, facing the cliff upon which the castle was situated, lay a gentle hill that housed a courtyard, decadent amidst its once luxurious past. This ancient structure belonging to the Hamlet family was once their summer retreat. A thick fog wound through it, throwing a light-obscuring veil over the courtyard.

Countess Meglu Hamlet now resided here.

Its former glory had long since cooled, leaving nothing but broken stone sculptures and a stench of rotting earth. A faint hint of blood lingered within the moisture of the air, and Lyle felt as if he saw scarlet hues in the mist.

Kevin brought only a few henchmen and Lyle, as if this meeting was nothing more than a friendly negotiation. They followed Kevin in silence, their vision restricted to no more than five meters by the dense fog. They had to rely solely on Kevin’s intuition to navigate.

Along the way, they passed by banquet tables and wine barrels, leftovers from feasts or bacchanals, with rotting flesh still clinging to them, shockingly fresh and crimson—a sign that this was no historical event.

The Countess and her servants made no attempt to hide their intentions.

With white wigs and dark teal frock coats revealing bloodstained cravats underneath, and boots sunk into the soil under long stockings, the gentleman with the narrow, hooked nose seemed to have been standing there for ages. His lips were like those painted with lipstick, and he smiled courteously at Kevin, bowing slightly with an arm gesturing towards the depths of the courtyard.

Without exchanging words, Kevin headed straight for where the blood servant’s gesture pointed, deeper into the courtyard. The further they walked, the more stationary figures appeared, clones with near-identical outfits and bloody smiles.

Lyle grew concerned.

"Are you sure we have enough people, Kevin?"

Kevin replied as if it was a matter of course.

"Of course, Lyle. This is Hamlet. Numbers are meaningless to me here, you merely need to face Countess Meglu."

In the center of the courtyard, where grapevines entwined, surrounded by vampire servants, the Countess awaited with anticipation. Draped in a floor-trailing, dark black gown, Countess Meglu stood with a folding fan in hand at the heart of it all, blooming like a black flower in grandeur. The vivid lining peeked from her neckline and the hem of her dress, outlining the curves of a woman; her foxlike eyes revealing her allure.

Noble, graceful, confident, and wilful, Countess Meglu Hamlet’s poise was the epitome of what human nobility of the era should be – a beautiful yet poisonous bloom.

Meglu curtsied with an air of high spirits, her every movement exuding the élan of a dancer ready to perform.

"I have long awaited your visit, Earl Hamlet, my liege lord."

Kevin, after his recent intensive training, returned the courtesy with grace, though his response lacked such elegance.

"Countess Meglu, would you mind getting off my land?"

Meglu brought her fan close to her face, her laughter tinged with mockery as she looked at the aloof lord, bending forward slightly.

"I had forgotten, my lord, I thought you would not mind such a slight physical difference." Indeed, Meglu currently appeared as a stunning woman, but she was an imposing one meter eighty-nine in height. "Why resist me? I can bring you the bloodline of Hamlet, legitimizing your reign even more..."

"I don’t need anything superfluous to legitimize my land, I know what lies within the wicked Hamlet bloodline, your blood has turned you into a bloodsucking monster..."

"I’ve never hidden anything from you, and what’s so bad about being a monster?" Shadows crawled unseen over Meglu’s body. The once svelte woman transformed into a corpulent monster with an insect-like abdomen and multiple legs. Her elongated nose was akin to a sharp syringe, while her gaping maw could swallow Lyle whole without the need to chew. Meglu, now a bloated mosquito-like creature, continued with a raspy voice,

"I once thought Hamlet was a nightmare, nothing here was worth lingering for. Now, I realize this bloodline is a gift; it has granted me strength. This is the only consolation I received after being sold in marriage like a commodity. My father gave me the power to freely choose my future. My liege lord, I am quite pleased with my posture, whether it be my former appearance or my current form. I must admit, the man who wanted to turn me into his pet, my betrothed, was quite delicious. Especially when he screamed, as his flesh and blood entered my stomach, it was a rather pleasurable experience."

"This is much more freedom than living at the mercy of others. I have been redeemed, so I want to fulfill my responsibilities as a member of the Hamlet Family and ensure that our bloodline continues. Are you still worried about my dangerous nature? Don’t worry, during our consummation, I will restrain my appetite, and you will not be injured, will you?"

Kevin’s face was cold as he looked at the monstrous figure in front of him, intoxicated by her words.

"You are a monster who eats people. I will never tolerate such a person becoming my wife."

"Why? Haven’t you killed for hunger before? You eat animals, I eat humans, isn’t it the same? As for the monstrous form..." Realizing Kevin’s disgust, Meglu reverted to her human shape. She pointed her finger behind Kevin, at his three twisted henchmen, "Aren’t the ones by your side, monsters just like me? As the king of the ghouls in this land of terror of Hamlet, why would you resist a monster as a companion? I am harmless to you, respected family head."

Kevin gritted his teeth, extremely repulsed by Meglu’s ingratiation.

"No normal human would ever want a freak as a partner!!! Am I wrong!!??" Mr. Kevin, somewhat shaken, turned toward his fellow travelers, then spoke with an increasingly subdued tone, "...Lyle?"

"You’re right! My friend." Although Alianna is a Lich, Beatrice is a vampire, and Helena is a Soul Reaver.

Kevin stepped back with a look as if a traitor had appeared among them, somewhat despairing, he shouted loudly.

"I don’t care! I will never like a monster with tentacles or bug legs!!!"

Meglu gently shook her fan, smiling and making a concession.

"If the head of the family is still so rigid, then shall we start as siblings?"

"What do you mean start as siblings... If you don’t intend to become my partner, it’s not impossible for you to stay, but you must stop your unreasonable thoughts, and you can’t live in the castle, for your own good."

Meglu smiled. She had touched Kevin’s bottom line, now the bargaining was about to start. Kevin actually bore no grudge against Countess Meglu, the remnant of the Hamlet Family. Because of Serio’s inheritance documents, Kevin had been granted the position of head of the Hamlet Family, and deep down, he even felt somewhat indebted to Meglu. What really irked him was this woman’s undisguised aggressiveness, as she tore up the innocent lord’s naïve and sweet love stories in his heart.

With one party eager to please, and the other without resentment, Lyle and the three henchmen became witnesses as Kevin and Meglu truly engaged in negotiations.

Kevin, as the head of the Hamlet Family, recognized Meglu Hamlet’s status as a family member. The Crimson Courtyard would be the dwelling for this vampire countess. Her vampire forces became part of the dark powers in Hamlet New Town, swearing loyalty to Kevin. As for the vampires’ feeding habits, Kevin also accepted them completely, considering the citizens of Hamlet faced many ways to die each day, this one was no different.

Finally, with Meglu’s cordial farewell, Lyle and the others left the courtyard, unharmed.

[That woman, she hasn’t given up her aspirations, she plans to erode his resistance slowly.]

"When she considers herself a subject of Kevin, she has already lost."

Afterward, Lyle stayed in Hamlet a few more days at Kevin’s invitation, until an unexpected visitor came looking for him.

In Naslan’s castle, Lyle faced the first-time visitor somewhat surprisingly.

"Mr. Fleisheimer?" The Red Dragon Priest, a Fire Dwarf, was gripping Lyle’s wrist, staring intensely at him.

"Imelt is in trouble, Dragon King Priest, we need your help."