Erwin did not sleep. Upon arranging the pile of books on his desk, he went to the castle's kitchen. He borrowed a plate and asked for a little piece of every meal they would serve for today's breakfast. A single bread was not good enough. He was pretty sure Proteus was used to eating whatever nobles ate in his world. Erwin could only wish the food here would suit the vampire's palate.

And the Commander learned later on that he need not worry. As soon as Proteus woke up, he happily ate the bread, eggs, fish, and fruits Erwin took from the kitchen for him. The vampire slept for only two hours but he seemed energetic.

"These are absolutely delicious!" the vampire exclaimed. "And what is that little brown thing there?" He pointed at the mysterious object.

Erwin took it with his fingers and gave it to Proteus. "This is chocolate. You haven't eaten it before? There's no chocolate in Aurum?"

The vampire shook his head. "No." His hands reached for the sweet dessert and tried licking it. His eyes instantly widened and he gobbled the piece quickly. "It's very sweet! And tasty! And just so delicious! Very delicious!"

Seeing him so happy eating the chocolate, Erwin was tempted to go back to the kitchen and ask for more. "We also melt it and then drink it."

"Really? I'd very much like to try that!"

"Maybe I can ask for one tonight. There won't be any chocolate in where we'll be going after my morning duties."

Proteus licked his fingers as he looked at the Commander. "Where are we going, good sir? I thought I mustn't leave this room until the soldiers arrived."

A small piece of chocolate stained the corner of the vampire's lips and Erwin wasn't able to stop himself from wiping it with his thumb. He felt Proteus lean into his touch. Suddenly, it seemed so natural, he and Proteus inside his room. Close and touching. It felt so comfortable. Erwin smiled. "There won't be any nobles and soldiers in where we're going. We just need to hide your features and then we can freely roam it."

"That sounds nice," the vampire commented.

But the place wasn't nice at all. After reading and signing papers until lunchtime, Erwin took Proteus to the Underground. The vampire was dressed in a simple white shirt and brown pants. His hair was hidden inside a brown cap and his eyes were behind thick, dark sunglasses.

"W-what is this?" Proteus was taken aback as soon as they reached the city. "There isn't a mention of this in the books. You didn't mention this place to me."

Erwin explained, "This is the Underground District under Mitras. It was supposed to be a safe place for the rich people, but they abandoned that idea. Now, it's a place for those without citizenship above. There aren't guards in here so you can go around without worrying of getting seen."

The two walked through the dirty ground. Proteus observed the place; it was cluttered, with old brick houses and dilapidated buildings. Not pretty in the eyes. Trash was here and there. And the smell. Most of the streets and alleys reeked of foul odor. This Underground District somehow reminded him of home. "This is like the pens in Aurum." He took a discarded packet and searched for a trash can. There was none, so he put the garbage inside his pocket. He continued to say, "Within the pens, the humans have houses like boxes. They are given little food and water. They seldom clean because they have few items for cleaning. The pens are miserable places. The humans aren't free and they constantly live in fear. There, they fear the vampires. Here, people within the walls fear the titans and those living Underground fear not seeing the sun forever. Our peoples fear they would never be free."

As they strolled, Proteus witnessed two big kids push and shove a tinier kid to one corner of an alley.

"Give me that bread, you little shit!" One of the bullies commanded.

But the little bullied held onto his food tightly. "I-I'm saving this for my sister. She's sick."

"We don't fucking care about your stinky, ugly sister. Give it to us or we'll beat you to a pulp!"

Proteus was about to step up and confront the bad kids, but Erwin had already walked toward the scene. The Commander placed a large hand on one of the bullies saying, "I'm a soldier from the surface. If you don't stop this foolishness, I'll have no choice but to hand you to the Military Police."

The bully clicked his tongue and gestured to the other that they should go. Proteus went to the little kid as the bullies walked away. He was trembling.

"Poor child," Erwin heard Proteus mutter. "Are you always treated this way?" The vampire asked the bullied.

The child shook his head. "Not always. Those two have many kids here to bully. Today, they saw me buy more bread than usual and so they thought they'd like to have them themselves."

"For your sister."

"Yes. She's becoming sicker and sicker. The old people say it's because there's no sunlight here." Tears glistened in his eyes.

"How old are you?"

"12."

"And your sister?"

"9."

So young to suffer. Proteus ruffled the boy's hair. "We haven't eaten our lunch yet. Want to join us?"

"J-join you?"

"Yes." The vampire looked at the Commander. "Is that fine?"

Erwin said, "Of course."

Proteus took the boy's hand and let him lead the way. They passed through streets littered with beggars. Proteus clenched his chest. It was as if seeing these many people caged in a dark, depressing place was too much for him. Erwin was starting to regret bringing him here.

The vampire lost his dark sunglasses but Erwin realized the color of Proteus' eyes wasn't too obvious inside the Underground anyway.

They reached a place selling food. It wasn't much but at least they could buy something to eat there. Proteus bought pieces of hard bread, low-quality fruits, cheap canned goods, and some candy. They sat on an empty stairway where only a few people were loitering around.

Proteus handed most of the food to the boy.

"These are too much! I can't accept all of this." The kid waved both his hands in front of him.

"I insist." Proteus kept one piece of hard bread for his lunch and gave a piece of bread and a fruit to Erwin. "Your sister needs strength and eating as much as she could would make her healthier. Please, allow us to help you. Besides, these were bought also to help the vendors. Erwin and I cannot finish these by ourselves. You'll be helping us too."

Though feeling shy, the boy took the bags of food and said, "Thank you. I've never held this much food in my entire life." He was about to cry again.

"Eat well and go now to your sister. She might be hungry already."

"T-thank you very much!" The kid dashed away, smiling brightly.

Erwin watched Proteus stare at the boy. The vampire was exceeding so much warmth and kindness. It was admiring. Just then, he saw Proteus' eyes redden. Why? What were those? Oh. Blood tears. Since the vampire was moved by the poor kid, he was about to cry blood.

That's bad.

People might see.

Immediately, Erwin gently took Proteus' head and hid his beautiful face in his chest.

The vampire was surprised, but he did not extract himself from the Commander's hold. "Erwin?"

"Your blood tears are showing. Wipe your eyes."

"Oh." Proteus blushed. Erwin didn't know if it was because he got embarrassed by his blood tears or because the Commander was holding him close. Very close. "Thank you," the vampire said as he wiped his tears with a handkerchief.

They stayed like that for quite a time and Erwin wondered if Proteus could hear the fast rhythm of his heartbeat. Was the vampire the same? Was being near Erwin also taking his breath away?

Erwin's stomach growled and he felt Proteus chuckle.

"Let's eat," the vampire suggested.

They ate the hard bread and shared a piece of fruit, a sour apple. They talked about their worlds more, both finding it easy to engage in their conversation. Erwin had many ideas but he seldom communicated them with others. Yet, with Proteus, he found himself telling him even his innermost secrets and musings. The Commander trusted the vampire. Valued his opinions. And shared things easily with him.

With Proteus, he didn't need to hide behind a mask.

He could be naked.

Erwin listened as the vampire said, "The Princess is extremely intelligent. If only she used her talents for good, she would be a good-no, great-Queen of Aurum. She could rule wisely and eliminate discrimination. Make the vampires equal. Give rights to humans. How nice that would be! I shall make sure to take her back to our kingdom."

Then that would mean Proteus would leave, right? He would leave Erwin and this world. He would be gone forever. The Commander didn't like that, so he said, "Take me with you."

The vampire didn't respond immediately. He looked into Erwin's eyes and knew the soldier was serious. He shook his head. "No. Your world needs you here. You fight against titans, against those who hide the truth, and against this-the wrong treatment of people in the Underground." One cold hand touched Erwin's cheek. "Promise me, that no matter what, you'll stay."

The Commander wanted to frown. Wanted to say "no", but he knew that would be stupid. Proteus was right. So he nodded and said, "Yes. I promise."

Proteus smiled. He exclaimed, "Oh! You must take me to the town's square!"

"Why?"

"You'll see!"

They tried finding the square and once they located it, Proteus searched for a certain person. He approached a street musician who he paid coins using Erwin's money. The vampire requested a song with a fast tempo and then started dancing in the middle of the square. At first, people just stared at him like he was crazy. And then, some watched him with a smile. Then, others started to join. The people clapped and jumped, swaying with the rhythm. For a moment, the hardships of the people seemed to be forgotten as they lost themselves in the enjoyable music.

Proteus danced and laughed with the strangers. Erwin thought he looked like an angel who flew down straight from the heavens. The Commander remembered how soft and fragile he seemed in his arms and he wanted to feel the vampire near him again.

One of the elderlies dancing saw Erwin standing alone. She took the soldier's hand and urged him to join the fun. Proteus laughed and gestured that he go to the dancefloor. Erwin complied. He went near Proteus and happily danced with him.

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Proteus was tired when they went back to Erwin's room, but he was enthusiastic as they discussed the kind of music the street musician played earlier.

"Such happy music is seldom played inside Cruor Castle. I like the nobles' solemn music too but I also appreciate the songs of the common folk and the humans. There are times when we need to let ourselves loosen up and just have fun," Proteus remarked.

Already in his night clothes, Erwin climbed the bed. He agreed to the vampire. "Of course. It's alright to feel light and joyous. Enjoy enjoyable music."

"Do you like music, Erwin?" Proteus asked as he climbed the same bed and settled beside the soldier. They shared the same pillow. The vampire laid his head on the pillow as Erwin propped his head on his elbow as he looked at the vampire.

The Commander answered, "I don't hate it."

"I love it. I love performing arts: singing, dancing, ballet, stage acting, anything that you can watch. Performances are always a delight."

"I'm sure they are."

"There is this group in Aurum called the Traveling Theater. They travel the kingdom to perform before lower-ranking vampires. They normally are not allowed to perform inside Cruor Castle, but Princess Andromeda invited them just so I could see them. She's so good to me." He inhaled. "I regret it, you know, betraying her. There was a time when I thought what I was doing was right, but sometime after she was exiled, I realized... I did something bad. Maybe, it wasn't the way." He adjusted his body and looked at the ceiling. "I wonder where the Princess is. I want to see her. I miss her. She is special to me."

With the mention of the Princess, Proteus seemed to be lost in thought. Erwin realized how much the vampire cared for her. Of course, they'd been together for hundreds of years. The connection between them was strong.

Erwin felt his heart twist.