Yesterday, whatever had happened left a bad effect on my memory. After dinner, I went to sleep. I woke up in the middle of the night because of the nightmare I had. In the nightmare, I saw a glimpse of the event that happened six years ago. It still gives me chills whenever I think about it. I saw my parents and the servants of the castle die right in front of me. Lucas and I hardly escaped. I thought we were probably gonna die as well. Good thing I had a secret passage inside my room. Moreover, in my nightmare, I saw a weird figure who was killing people. There was blood all over the place, and those crimson eyes shone bright in the dark. It reminded me of someone. That someone was Allen Standford, the man I was getting married to.
I rang the bell to call Emily.
"Good Morning, Madam".
"Yeah, Good Morning, Emily. Is Lucas awake?"
"Ahh, yes, he has just woken up."
"Alright, then I'll have breakfast with him".
"Umm, Madam. His Highness wants you to have breakfast with him".
"Wait, whhaatt, oh my god, this is such a pain. I don't wanna have breakfast with him".
"Perhaps, did the two of you fight?"
"No, I mean yeah, it's something like that. It's kinda complicated".
"Don't worry, Madam, couples that are about to get married tend to fight a lot. It shows how much they love each other. You don't know, Madam, how much I'm excited for your marriage". Emily's words left me speechless. Seriously, marriage, I never even thought about it. And the fact that we don't even like each other as a person as well. I don't know about that psychopath, but I don't like him at all.
"I guess I have no choice, I'll be wearing the black and white dress, Emily, and there's no need to do my hair".
"As you wish, Madam". Then I took a hot bath and got ready. I stopped by Lucas's room to say hello. He looked like he was having fun. And then, as usual, Cedric was there to escort me to that psycho's room.
"Your Highness, we're entering". And as usual, we had to do the formal greetings and the bow. This is annoying. I just want to hurry up and vanish.
"Good Morning, Celine". Allen greeted.
"Good Morning, Your Highness". I replied with a straight face.
"Well then, Cedric, you may leave".
"As you wish, Your Highness". And then Cedric left.
"Ehh, Madam was glaring at me when I left. Well, I understand, it's not easy to be in the same room as Allen". Good luck, Madam.
"Celine, take a seat. Eat the breakfast and tell me if it suits your taste."
"Yes, Your Highness".
"And stop being so formal with me, we're getting married soon. You may call me by my name".
Ahh, this jerk. Now he wants him to call him by his name. "I couldn't possibly do that; it would be an insult to His Highness."
"I'm giving you permission to call me by that name. I also call you by your name. I'd be delighted if you call me by my name".
"Your Highness, as I said, it's not poss-!"
"Celine, it's an order."
"Wha-what..?"
"Call my name".
He stared into my eyes so fiercely. Slowly, his eyes began to turn Crimson again. I felt as if I couldn't breathe; the air was way too heavy.
"Do you need my help. I'll be happy to help my wife."
"No..no, I'll say it ... I'll say it!.
"All...Allen". There you go, I said it.
"Again, and this time include Stanford as well".
"Hu..h? Wait a minute."
"Celine, say my name again. Or maybe I should stand up and teach you".
"Noo! There's no need, Allen Standford! Allen Standford!. There, I said it."
"Hmm, good girl. Call me like that from today onwards".He said it with a smirk on his face.
This bastard. I'll make him pay for making me go through this.
"Well, is the taste to your liking?"
"Uhh, yes, it's good".
After a while, we finished our breakfast.
"Okay, now let's play a game". Allen said
"Huhh, a game? Which type of game?"
"Truth or Truth. You can see the white ball above your head right. I'll ask you a question, and you need to tell me the truth. If you lie, the ball will turn red, and then you'll have to face a punishment. As we're getting married, I would like to get to know my wife better".
"It's unfair that you're the only one asking. I want to ask you some things as well".
"You may ask me anything. In return, you'll have to be completely honest. I have the same ball above my head as you have. It'll turn red if I lie. Fair enough".
"Fine, you may ask me anything, but there are things I don't feel comfortable talking about, so I'll skip those".
"We'll see that, now the first question.
What's your age?"
"I'll be turning nineteen this year".
"Hmm, you're not lying. You may ask your question".
"What's your age?"
"I'll be turning twenty-two this year".
"Oh, you're quite young. I expected you to be more like a hundred or two".
"You thought of me as an old man. Seriously."
"Well, mostly vampires are pretty old. Well, go on and ask the next question."
"Whatever. How did you find out I was a vampire?"
"I read it in a book."
"Which book?"
"Only one question. You're asking two. My turn, do you drink human blood, as vampires need blood to stay alive?"
"No, I don't. I've never drunk human blood".
"I guess you're telling the truth, though it's surprising".
"My question now. What was the name of the book you read?"
"It was a book based on Vampires. Honestly, I don't know the name".
"That's....the truth. Damn, I really wanted to know the name."
"It can't be helped. My question is, how many people in the empire know about your identity?"
"I cannot answer this question. You may ask another one".
"Ahh, ok. Then tell me why you force me to marry you. Was it to hide your secret, or did you perhaps fall for me?"
"Hmph hahaha. Well, I can't answer this question either. I've already told you, you're not like the other young ladies I've met."
"Hey, you know you're cheating now!"
"Oh my, how am I cheating? Care to explain?"
"Well, you just skipped two questions".
"Then, you may skip two as well".
"Fine! Let me ask another one. What are your feelings towards me?"
"Hmm, nothing. I feel nothing. Even though we're getting married, it's just a mere contract that is binding us together. So I don't even care about what you want or anything. We're in a contract that would eventually come to an end, and then everything would be over. Mine and your feelings don't matter. One more thing, if you become my wife, you'll have to learn how to suppress your feelings. Don't let your emotions take over. Be emotionless, that's the only way you'll gain power and be the strongest. So don't let other people see your emotions; they'll think you're weak. Do you understand?"
"So I can't even cry".
"No, you can't shed tears in front of people. They'll think you're weak."
"Mhmm. Can't even scream when I'm brutally injured. Got it". The words he spoke so calmly felt like thorns to me. How could he say something like that without any feelings or emotions? He truly is what people say about him. Cold and merciless, a demon in disguise. Or maybe....he's just lonely and doesn't realize it. Well, it doesn't matter to me.
"My question now: Can you use magic?"
"Yes, I can".....My question now. Is the Emperor a vampire as well?"
"No, he isn't"..... My question is, who did you get your hair color from?"
"Mostly people said I got it from my mom".
"Your mother. You don't know what your mother looks like?.
"That's two questions, you know".
"You may ask me two as well".
"You're correct. I never knew my mom. She died right after I was born, and my father married another woman".
"Hmmm, makes sense. You may ask your questions."
"Is there someone whom you cherish a lot. Like a lover, friend, or a family"
"Not really. Well, Cedric's pretty important to me. Except for him, no one."
"Got it. Are there other vampires alive like you as well?"
"Who knows, maybe!"
"That's not an answer!"
"Well, I haven't met anyone yet. I'm the sole survivor only".
When he said those words, it seemed that he really was lonely. No family by his side. The people of this castle are really scared of them, and many chose to leave instead of serving him. In this whole gigantic mansion, there were only some workers who were loyal to him. The only one he had by his side was Cedric. I don't even know what type of face I'm making. Just thinking about this makes me feel so alone, but at least I have Lucas and even Emily.
"Celine, why are you making such a face?"
"That... must be lonely". Oh, shoot, this mouth of mine always spits my true thoughts. Well, it's the truth, though. Allen doesn't really care about these things. I looked up at his face. Wait, why is he staring at me like this?
"Well, umm... That was just a slip of tongue, don't take it to your heart, haha." .. He kept looking at me. Umm Allen, why aren't you saying anything"?
"I need to do something. You may leave Celine".He said with a cold voice.
"Oh yes, as you wish. Take Care". And then I left. Oh my goodness, I thought he would kill me. This stupid mouth of mine, I need to control it if I don't wanna die yet. Now that I'm free, I'll go and look for Lucas.