CHAPTER 241: BLOCKED PATH

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When the hours had passed and Kaya had finally taken down her vines to not only strip them of the privacy she had provided but also to unlock the doors of the Mage-Knight Training classroom, Caius saw the two ladies off to their dormitories.

The puncture marks he had made in their necks with his fangs had been healed by Kaya which had ignited a short debate.

"What are you doing?" Eloise said after Kaya healed herself and turned to the same to her.

"Getting rid of the marks," Kaya said with a smile, "Or the evidence, if you will."

"Why would you do that?" Eloise had asked with her hand clamped over the marks so as not to give Kaya access, "It’ll heal on its own and I want it to stay a while longer."

"That’s... not preferable," Caius said then, "It’ll draw attention."

"Why would it?" Eloise asked with a shrug.

"Very few things make those particular sort of wounds," Caius told her gently with a hand on her cheek, "It’s just better safe than sorry."

Eloise would be lying if she said she didn’t see reason in his words. Her stubbornness to wear the marks as some badge of pleasure and desire remained strong in her.

Caius stroked her chest with his thumb then, mesmerizing her with his purple-eyed gaze not entirely by choice. His smile gained an even more charming quality than the default as he told her,

"I’ll make it again next time," he said, "You won’t have to go too long without it,"

Eloise nodded with a sigh and took her hand off her neck to let Kaya get to work. As the healing was underway, her mind ran through alternatives;

Like what if she got Caius to bite her somewhere she could hide better? Like her arm. Nah, that seemed so impersonal. She liked the bite to her neck so much especially because it seemed like the result of a sensual, if somewhat deadly kiss, and having it on the arm just didn’t present the same kind of image.

What about her thighs? She wondered. That was intimate. Or maybe on her ass... That could be hot.

"Done," Kaya announced then.

It had only taken a second and it was almost incredible how much had run through Eloise’s mind in such a short amount of time.

"Oh," Eloise said touching the skin that had been mended and felt very normal and unmarked, "That was quick."

"You’re welcome," Kaya said with a nod and then she looked at Caius, "We should be going,"

She meant ’we’ as in her and Eloise of course and Caius nodded.

He grabbed them both close and kissed them on their lips, not at all surprised that the two ladies’ passions got the better of them and had them almost stripping right there and then to continue where they had left off in the Mage-Knight Training Classroom.

But they were sensible and pulled away. They both licked their lips already reminiscing on the feel and taste of Caius’s lips as they gave him one last wave and walked away.

Eloise looked back a few times while she walked. It had passed by fairly quickly but she had taken a massive step forward in her relationship with Caius. Not in the sex really—even though that was beyond incredible and mind-blowing—but in knowing who and what he was. She believed there was more to learn about him and she couldn’t wait to learn it.

Caius waved at Eloise every time she looked back at him. He stayed right where he was, watching until the two ladies took a turn and were out of sight and then he turned away, walked out of the Academy’s corridors, across the grounds, out the gates, to the entourage of carriages that were here to ferry and escort him home.

It had been weeks since that incident on the way from Lochxen but the security detail his father had placed him under had not reduced. It was almost bothersome and he’d be a lot more irritated about it if he actually had places to go and they were being a hindrance. For now, he didn’t so it was fine.

Caius had run through things in his head and unless Athenodora decided to pull another stunt and get him involved in yet another old grudge, he believed he was safe. Or at least he wasn’t expecting any attack.

But then again, one can never be too safe.

Acknowledging the Hellsingers, Caius sat in the carriage and had his self-composed Grimoire open to do as he usually did; study the Arcane symbols and combinations.

It was while he was doing this and when they were a long distance away from the vicinity of Lochxen entirely that the carriage came to a complete stop.

"What is it?" Caius asked.

The leader of this security detail was seated opposite him as Gareth used to be before he was relieved of his duties following the last incident. The leader turned to look at the driver to question the need to stop but the driver was already answering Caius’s question.

"A few carriages are in our path, Young Lord," he said.

"How many?" Caius asked before the leader could.

"Three. And..." the driver started and paused.

"What?" Caius asked, again beating the Leader to it.

"They look expensive my lord," the driver said.

That was an interesting thing to say. Especially when the driver said it with a tone that somewhat implied that the carriage he was driving and the others in Caius’s entourage were not expensive.

But they were. Just that they were built to be sturdy though and were not quite so flashy. Since the ability to protect the occupants within was more important than an ostentatious display.

Anyway, the driver’s tone told Caius that the Carriages that had blocked their paths looked ’expensive’ because they were flashy. Before Caius looked out the windows to confirm this, the leader of his security detail finally got a few words out and they were orders.

"Everyone," he called, "Protect the Young Lord!"

It sounded like the leader was speaking only to those in Caius’s carriage but his voice rang out in all the carriages in the entourage as they opened up and the Hellsingers filed out.

"... we mean you no harm..." Caius heard someone say before the doors of his carriage were shut and the voice was cut off.

He didn’t recognize the voice but he was intrigued. He was feeling a tug in his heart that urged him to open the door and step out.

"Young Lord, it’s not safe," the leader said, "Please return to the carriage."

"It’s alright," Caius said with a hand raised. Now that he was out of the carriage, he got a better view of the carriages that had blocked their path and he recognized them. Or at least, he recognized the level of showy luxuriousness.

Of the three carriages, one was more behind the other two which were angled as though to protect it. It was while looking at that third Carriage being guarded, that Caius felt an increased intensity in the tug on his heart and he now fully understood who their blockers were.

"I am Kiltz from the Leopold Estate," said the one who had been selected to be the spokesperson for the Leopold carriage entourage. His hands had been raised in placation from the start and they stayed that way as he continued,

"My betters merely seek an audience with Lord Von Helsing."

"Well—" the Leader of Caius’s security detail started to say in what was clearly a rejection of the request.

Caius stepped in.

"Captain, it’s alright," he said and made to walk forward.

"Young Lord, this is highly disrespectful for protocol—"

"The protocol here is to keep me safe. You’re not holding me hostage, are you?" Caius asked gently.

"No, my lord," the Captain said, "But—"

"But nothing. It’s safe," Caius insisted, "And I won’t be long."

And with that, he walked up to the entourage of Leopold Carriages, past the two up front, and to the third whose door had been opened for him.

He took a seat and raised a brow in surprise at who was waiting for him,

"You?"