Yawning, Duke Fredo watched Marquis Gersey's mouth moving and tried to pay attention, but the man's voice seemed especially grating today.
He was sitting in a luxurious room within the white castle, enjoying some tea sweetened to offset the bitter astringence of his company. The White Star was seated at the head of a moderately-sized table, overlooking a map of the ocean that separated the continents, while Gersey flapped his insufferable jowls about something. Count Mock and Count Hubesha were also present.
The Duke's thoughts drifted involuntarily back to the Duchy. He wondered what Naru was doing at that moment. His life had become considerably more exciting since Fredo the Second became a real being, and Duke Fredo found his 'son' to be much more entertaining than a regular child.
No, he was even more interesting than other Vampires. It was quite amusing to watch his own face as a boy scheming and smirking like it was his job. He almost felt bad for the White Star as he watched the human's emotionless eyes focused on the map.
'He'd probably drop dead if he knew what his sweet nephew was capable of.'
"Is there something funny, Duke-nim?"
Marquis Gersey sounded entirely pleasant, but his glare was sharp. Such a scary individual, to have noticed the Duke's subtle smirk even while in the middle of speaking.
"Mm, perhaps? I was just amused by the idea of a swimming tiger."
Such a lie was easy for someone like him. Though Duke Fredo preferred the idea of being at home with his little Naru, he was quite adept at multitasking. Listening while also not paying attention was as natural to him as breathing.
"It is a bit funny. Those creatures are utterly useless in water."
Count Mock was duller than dirt in the Duke's opinion, but his pride as a Dark Elf was easy to expect when presented with the opportunity to look down upon the Beast people. His response only made Duke Fredo's lie more convincing.
They had just been discussing the success of Arm's recent expedition in the mountains. There were very few steps left towards the White Star's full dominance of the Eastern continent's underworld, and one of those entailed gaining access to certain mountain ranges that were key thoroughfares between areas. The Tigers who had inhabited those territories were annoyingly spread out, and were positioned as natural enemies to some of the White Star's subordinates, so it was deemed simpler to just exterminate them.
The few Tigers who had managed to escape were fleeing to Hais Island at that very moment. Such was the subject of their current discussion.
Of course, Duke Fredo did not reveal that it was Vampire messengers who had managed to get a warning out to the few surviving Tigers. He would not put his own people in danger for some random Beasts, so the subjects he dispatched did not reveal themselves as Vampires to these Tigers and only passed along the warning before returning.
A few managed to escape in the end, but the remaining Tiger's numbers were so small that posed virtually no threat to the White Star. There was hardly any worth in hunting them down.
"So annoying."
That was all the White Star had to say before pushing the document in front of him away in disgust.
Count Hubesha weighed in. "Shall we just order the mermaids to kill them? It's the least they could do as a good-faith effort since we're going to give them dead mana. We'll make them work hard."
"We should only give the mermaids enough dead mana to know what they stand to gain in siding with us. Nothing more."
Marquis Gersey grumbled unhappily. If Count Mock and Hubesha were greedy for power, the Chief Priest was greedy on the White Star's behalf for dead mana. He hated giving it up to anyone else.
Duke Fredo made a suggestion subconsciously.
"Why do we need to get involved directly? Make them gather it themselves. There are plenty of places they can go to collect some. We just need to tell them where."
He was really thinking about what kind of treat he should bring home for Naru. The boy really seemed to like cookies, but that probably couldn't be good for a child to eat all the time?
Of course, Marquis Gersey empathetically supported Duke Fredo's half-assed idea. Any chance to keep his cache of dead mana undisturbed by outsiders.
"Hmm. The Forest of Darkness is close to the shores, and that dead dragon is simply rotting there. Let's just show the mermaids where it is and make them take care of the rest."
Count Mock nodded while Count Hubesha spoke.
"Yes, that should do. There's no settlements around there, so the mermaids should have an easy time accessing it."
Once everyone agreed, the White Star pulled the map towards him again.
He made a short declaration.
"I will go there myself."
Silence followed. It was tense and abrupt, like a rock plummeting into water but producing no ripples on the surface. The nobles desperately wanted to ask why the White Star would do something so beneath him, but the answer was completely different than expected.
The White Star gestured to the map. Though it primarily depicted the oceans, the borders of both continents surrounded the edge of the page.
He was pointing at the Forest of Darkness.
"There is an ancient power there that I need to retrieve. I might as well move together with Arm."
Duke Fredo began to nod slowly, the way one might after savoring a sip of expensive wine. He sat back, wearing a neutral, aloof expression once again.
"How fitting for you to find it in the land of boulders."
His statement implied that the ancient power must be related to boulders. The earth attribute ancient power.
The White Star, not known for his gentle temperament, clearly did not appreciate the Duke's innocuous statement. His lips pulled back into a vicious smile, which was all the answer Duke Fredo needed.
'It is an ancient power, but not the one he so desperately wants. If it was, his reaction would have been different.'
'Not that he'll ever admit that to us.'
"You may leave now."
The four nobles all rose from their seats and respectfully said their goodbyes while exiting the room. Duke Fredo could feel Count Hubesha's stoic gaze burning the side of his face, so he turned with a graceful smile in the Black Knight's direction.
She became immediately uncomfortable with Duke Fredo looking at her.
"...Is there something you needed, Duke-nim?"
"Hmm? Oh, I was just wondering, Count-nim, do you think I should bring my son home cookies or a different kind of dessert today?"
Count Hubesha stared at him in disbelief.
'How could this fool rise to the position of Duke? I need to hurry up and expand my influence already.'
"...I'm, ah, not sure. You would know your son best, Duke-nim."
"Hmm. That's true. I suppose I'll just think about it some more."
Duke Fredo's grin became even more pleasant as he walked away without another word, looking like he was seriously debating such a nonsensical thing immediately after having a noble's meeting.
Marquis Gersey and Count Mock had both been within earshot during the exchange, and both seemed similarly baffled.
'What useless thoughts that man has. But his simple desires make him an easy pawn for his Highness.'
'That kid coming back to the main house might be the best thing that's happened this decade. The Duke is so distracted doting on that hopeless child, it'll be easy to push him out of power.'
Of course, Duke Fredo had been expecting these kinds of reactions from his fellow nobles. In fact, he had been aiming for them.
Moving in the shadows was much easier when no one feared the dark.
Melundo bowed as soon as Duke Fredo stepped past the threshold of the foyer.
"Welcome home, Duke-nim. The young master-nim is in his room."
"Thank you. Melundo, can you prepare these and bring them up?"
He deposited a bag of snacks he had picked up into the butler's waiting hands.
Count Hubesha had been more helpful than he expected. As she mentioned, since Duke Fredo should know his son best, and all he knew right now was that Naru liked cookies, he took it upon himself to buy some of everything from the bakeries, cafes and shops Solena had recommended.
Perhaps it was a byproduct of the growing trust between them, but Duke Fredo wanted to spoil the boy more than ever.
'Even if he's an adult, it's natural to treat him like a child.'
No, more than that, it was quite fun for Duke Fredo to do so. Naru's reactions were the best.
Duke Fredo knocked on the door to Naru's room, a little mystified in thinking about the tense breakfast they had shared in this same room not even a week ago. Things had developed in a way he would have never anticipated.
'It's much better than I expected.'
"Come in."
"My son, I'm home! Have you missed me terribly? Melundo said you cried for me the moment I left."
The boy was sitting in a cushy chair, surrounded by books. He shut the one he was currently reading with a sharp snap.
"We'll have to dismiss Melundo at once. It will reflect badly if word gets out that we employ liars."
Duke Fredo smiled at the unamused look on the boy's face.
"How cruel. In that case, I suppose I'll tell him to leave the estate before he can finish bringing you snacks."
The word 'snacks' was Duke Fredo's attempt at a peace offering. Naru's gaze grew suspicious, but he didn't say anything more before placing the book he'd been reading aside in a pile.
"Did you have a nice chat with that bastard?"
The older Vampire took a seat on the adjacent couch, lounging back against the cushions.
"You'll have to go in my place one of these days. Aren't you excited to see your darling uncle again?"
Naru did not even dignify that with a response, and Melundo arrived a moment later with the things the Duke had brought home.
The boy's brows raised at the spread and he reached for a bundle of grapes. Duke Fredo observed Naru with a mischievous gleam in his eyes.
"Do you like grapes, my son?"
Naru's hand froze just before he could pop the grape into his mouth.
'This crazy bastard, did he do something weird to the food?'
"...Why are you asking?"
Duke Fredo snorted. It was an undignified sound that did not at all suit his noble sensibilities. Melundo, who was backing out of the room, flinched before closing the door.
"Ho! What did you get up to as a human that made you so suspicious?"
Naru proceeded to eating through a few handfuls of grapes as if nothing happened.
"Isn't it better to be suspicious of everyone?"
"Spoken like a true Vampire."
"...Whatever you say."
Naru ate some other fruits and moved onto pulling bite-sized pieces from a heel of bread.
"So, what did the White Star say? Did you learn anything?"
"Mmm. As a matter of fact, he's discovered another ancient power. It's not the earth attribute, however."
The boy's eyes clouded over.
'Shit, how fast does this guy move? I thought ancient powers were rare but he seems like he's finding them left and right?'
"What ancient power is it?"
"I'm not sure, but it can't be one with an elemental attribute. His plate is unbalanced enough as it is. The only thing he revealed was that it is located in the Forest of Darkness."
"What?"
Naru sat up so fast, he accidentally sent one of the towers of books tumbling.
"The White Star is going to the Forest of Darkness? He's going there personally?"
Duke Fredo started to have some of the snacks too, curiosity piqued by Naru's reaction.
"That seems to be the case."
Perhaps it was because Naru was still unused to the White Star's occasionally impulsive behavior–for someone so thorough-he could also be surprisingly short-sighted–but Duke Fredo did not find this to be all that surprising. Ancient powers end up hidden all over the world in all sorts of strange places.
He had no idea how chaotic the inside of Naru's mind had become from just that one sentence.
While it had been impossible to completely narrow down his sense of time to an exact point, he had a pretty good idea of what was happening due to the news about the Whipper Kingdom's upcoming civil war. The Plaza Terror Incident would be a few weeks later, which meant the present, right now, was around the same time Choi Han's life would fall apart.
The destruction of Harris Village, if not already ruined, was imminent. Would Choi Han have reached the Henituse territory by now? What the hell was the White Star doing in the Forest of Darkness?
'There's no way I already changed things so that the two would meet this early, right?'
No, that couldn't be. He hadn't done anything that should have impacted the timeline yet. So was this unplanned trip of the White Star's one that came before or after Choi Han became twisted? If the White Star went into the Forest of Darkness after Choi Han went to find Count Deruth, then it was theoretically possible that both of these events happened concurrently and Naru simply did not know because the novel hadn't revealed anything about the White Star yet. If it was before Harris Village was destroyed…
"Do you have any informants in the Roan Kingdom?"
Duke Fredo just looked at Naru with a bemused expression, and the boy shook his head. Right, he knew better.
"Of course you do. Rather, is there anyone near the Forest of Darkness right now?"
"Hmm." The older Vampire appeared thoughtful while passing a random snack towards Naru, who accepted it and began to eat. "Liana will probably be nearby that area by now. She was the one who had been in the Whipper Kingdom until recently. She's moving North now to meet with Rock Sekkah's people."
"That is perfect. I only need one person. Can she confirm whether or not Harris Village still stands?"
Duke Fredo tilted his head to the side. "Still stands? What do you mean by that?"
"Can we just ask her, please?"
"Sigh, of course, we can call her now. Actually, this is a good opportunity to teach you a bit more magic."
While the Duke rose from the couch, he laughed at Naru's obviously unhappy expression.
"Now, now. Unless you want Solena to be assigned to stay by your side every waking moment so she can operate a video communication device for you, you will need to learn how to do this."
Naru flinched. As much as he liked Miss Solena for being reliable and, compared to this old man, normal, he had no desire to be under her constant surveillance.
"Ugh... Fine."
It only took him a few minutes to return. Duke Fredo entered Naru's bedroom with a handheld glass orb in one hand before showing the young Vampire where the 'lens' was for recording, how to hold it, and explained how to connect with specific orbs that belonged to different people. Some channels were restricted, some required special access, and some were open to anyone.
Finally, after explaining the method of connecting the device with his mana, Duke Fredo gently placed the orb in front of the boy. Naru needed to use both hands to hold it properly.
"Now, Liana will probably answer right away, but if she doesn't you can leave a message. This channel is only used by our internal network and can only be accessed by Vampires. Other channels may have more or less restrictions. You'll push your mana into the device as if filling it, and then, when you feel it hit a 'wall', it will stop for a moment to verify that you have the proper authority to use the channel. Then, it should connect."
"Okay."
Naru did as he was told and channeled his mana into the device. The 'wall' came down almost instantly, a slightly resistant force that yielded almost as quickly as it came. The device connected quite quickly.
"Hello, Duke-n… young master-nim?"
Liana's eyes widened momentarily before she regained her composure. The orb was held far enough back from the woman's face that Naru could see a bit of her surroundings. She appeared to be moving in some kind of carriage.
"Hello, Miss Liana. I apologize for contacting you so suddenly."
"Not at all, young master-nim, I was just surprised. It has been a long time since you've called this humble Liana directly. What can I do for you?"
Naru liked this Vampire. She got right to the point, unlike Duke Fredo. Melundo was too jumpy and Solena was too familiar to be useful as a comparison.
'Is this how other Vampires who don't know the truth about Fredo the Second will treat me?'
Ignoring his private qualms for the time being, Naru focused on Liana's awaiting expression on the other side of the device.
He quickly explained the situation, and Liana held back her reaction until he was finished.
"I am only a few hours away from Rain City. I can ask the driver to redirect to the northeast."
"If you wouldn't mind, that would be very helpful, Miss Liana. You don't have to do anything besides just check if the village is still standing. It will be very obvious if it is destroyed."
"I understand, young master-nim. I will report back in soon."
Naru thanked her and ended the call. While the situation wasn't ideal, Naru could still gather some useful information this way.
'I wanted a little more time before I had to start moving.'
That was why he was reading as much as he could about this world while he had the chance to sit still. If he was going to destroy the White Star's precious things, he was going to do it properly, but that would cause him to be a bit busy for a while. If the White Star was already on the move, however…
'I can't let things go the way he wants.'
"What is special about Harris Village?" Duke Fredo asked, pulling Naru from his reprieve. "Is that perhaps where you lived before?"
Naru ignored him and started to speak about something else.
"I was thinking, Father, if we're going to start suffocating that bastard, it will become obvious very quickly that someone is working against him. To avoid suspicion, wouldn't it be nice to have a powerful individual who was on our side? Someone to draw attention away from us."
Wearing a sordid smirk, of course Duke Fredo agreed. It would be a relief to have a powerful ally that could capture the White Star's attention while they acted in the background.
"It is a bit difficult. When anyone rises to enough power to be even the least bit threatening, the first thing that annoying punk does is try to recruit them. If they don't agree, he kills them."
"Heh."
Naru was laughing. Duke Fredo was no longer surprised by this sort of reaction from Naru.
"Hmm? Could it be my son already has someone in mind?"
"I, heh, I happen to know a bit about the birth of a certain hero."
"A hero?"
Naru's eyes were bright as starlight.
"Father, do you remember how you said I can play and mess around?"
"…Yes."
"And that I could do whatever I wanted? That you would take care of everything? You said as a child, I wouldn't be expected to do much."
Duke Fredo seemed, for the first time since their very first conversation, wary to agree to something Naru proposed. It was hard not to feel that way when the boy was wearing such a particularly wicked smile. He looked more evil than the White Star.
Hesitantly, the older Vampire answered.
"Mm. I might recall saying something… similar."
"And you said you had a lot of money, right Father?"
Fingers tapping on the arm rest, even the ever-languid Duke Fredo was beginning to feel restless.
"Aigoo… please, just say what it is you're thinking about before you give my undead heart an arrhythmia."
Naru couldn't hold back his laughter, and Melundo, who happened to be walking by the room at the same moment, felt chills spread all over his body.
The boy pointed to the window.
"Can I go outside and play?"
More specifically, he was pointing at the Gate to the Demon World high above their heads.
Duke Fredo blinked several times after following the direction of Naru's extended finger.
"...Ha. Hahah."
The man's head fell back against the couch cushions, and Naru was genuinely curious as to what he might be thinking. He waited with a bright expression for the Duke to say something.
"You are an unusual child."
"I've told you, I am an adult."
"No matter how old you were as a human, you are undoubtedly still a child compared to me, my son."
Naru couldn't refute his point. Even as a 36-year old human, he hadn't even been 'alive' for half as long as 'Naru' had existed in the minds of the people here, and that was to say nothing of Fredo the First's age. He had never said exactly how old he was, but Naru guessed based on all he's learned that the older Vampire was probably at least 450 years old.
For once, Duke Fredo seemed more fatigued than usual. No, maybe that wasn't quite it. Was it because what Duke Fredo said was technically true?
'He seems more… honest?'
That was what Naru guessed, but the truth was, Duke Fredo wasn't exactly fatigued.
He was just a little exasperated for the first time in a while.
'This is why humans are so dangerous.'
The White Star and Naru.
Well, whoever Naru had been before.
These were the first humans Duke Fredo had met who he found to be beyond expectations. The White Star was a different kind of beast, exceeding the limitations of human life through his curse. But this child? He had only lived one lifetime, however long that had been, and still managed to surprise the Duke. It had only been five days since he woke up to find his 'son' sleeping in his room, and Naru was ready to begin to take action at a level that was irreversible.
'I spent hundreds of years getting to this point.'
It was a bit frustrating. Should he have moved sooner? What had he been waiting for all this time? Duke Fredo had been playing along to the White Star's schemes for so long, it was hard to imagine deciding, just like that, to act.
To move, decisively.
But this was good. The Duke had always put the safety of the Vampires above everything else, and he had succeeded in that goal. They had a safe place to live, homes to which they could return, and they could not be challenged by anyone who valued their lives.
If Fredo the First had been waiting for something, it was here now.
Looking at him, expectant and mischievously grinning all the while.
That was why he seemed tired, but was really more enlivened than he had been in hundreds of years.
"You can do as you wish, but I have some conditions."
Now Duke Fredo was the one smiling. Naru felt iffy for the first time since they had started to properly cooperate.
"... I have to hear the conditions first."
The Duke's smile grew even thicker, like he'd been expecting that response.
"Of course. What good is making a deal if both sides don't benefit? You may leave and I will give you the money and means to do so, but there are a few things you must do for me."
Nodding, Naru showed he was listening by sitting up in his chair.
"First. You must not reveal yourself or your connection to this place. I trust you to realize that by now, but it is worth repeating."
"I understand."
"Next, you must be prepared to come back at any moment. I still need you to act as the beloved young master of the Endable Kingdom. It is only because of you that I can move without suspicion. The White Star likes to spend time with his nephew and, more importantly, the people all adore you. It would be difficult to explain if you are suddenly absent for a long time after your health was just announced to be improving."
"Mm. That could be a bit difficult depending on the situation, but I suppose it can't be helped?"
"No, you must come back once I call for you. I will try to give you as much forewarning as I can, but you must come back."
"Very well, Father. Anything else?"
"Just one more thing. And this one is essential."
The Duke's lips twitched, looking out the window once again. This time, his gaze was focused on the white castle and not the hole in the ceiling.
"You have to promise to make a big, giant mess for that bastard."
Naru didn't hold in the short laugh that bubbled up in his chest.
"Heh. But I was going to do that anyway?"
"...Yes, of course you were."