393 [Bonus chapter] Blue Rose Order
One month went by in the blink of an eye. Arthur went to the training under Leonard’s command every day and kept improving quickly, making everyone around him astonished.
Arthur’s name was getting more attention in the castle, especially after he reached the tenth circle in one month! Leonard wanted him to reach the eighth circle in that time, which was already pretty good, but the tenth? It shocked him so much that the duke went to the ceremony of Arthur’s new position as the squad’s vice-captain!
That vampire, the one looking for ways to harm Arthur, could not find one as Arthur barely left his room during that month, focusing solely on his training. Also, what could he do with his power against a tenth-circle mage? He never imagined Arthur would increase his power in such a short period.
“Congratulations on becoming the vice-captain, Arthur,” the duke said to him.
“I am Duke Mikael, I think you have the right to know my name now,” Mikael said.
pAnD a(-)n0ve1.com Mikael was a powerful vampire who had lived for two centuries! Even though he was old, Mikael looked like he was in his thirties, with a short beard and slick back hair.
“I feel honored, lord duke,” Arthur said with a bow.
They exchanged a few words, but the duke said something that caught Arthur’s interest.
“Tessa will look for you later to speak about some things,” he said, and then he left the training area.
Arthur did not know what Tessa would want to talk about, but it could be something about their secret order. That was precisely what he wanted, as it was the perfect opportunity to rescue Sybille!
He had yet to discover where she was, but if someone were trying to create chaos in the Von Stein family, it would only be easier for Arthur to rescue Sybille while they were occupied with something else.
All the other vampires, who also joined the army with Arthur, could not understand how he had increased his power so quickly. Some even thought he was cheating or hiding his strength before he went there, which was not the case!
The reason for his success was the Blood Monarch’s inheritance! A man with an extraordinary talent that mastered the Blood Essence and was one of the most powerful beings in the universe!
They felt jealous of Arthur, but there was nothing they could do about it, and now that he got the vice-captain position, their only hope was to increase their power and eventually get better positions in other squads.
Leonard smiled as he said, “you surprised me, Arthur, I can see you surpassing me soon, which is good! I may have another position in the future, and I hope you can become the captain.”
Arthur got Leonard’s trust, which meant he would probably become the captain after Leonard left, and that was good! The two talked to each other for some time, drinking some beers in celebration, and then the two parted ways.
Tessa was waiting for Arthur on that bench near his room where they would talk about something; something Arthur did not know yet.
She waved at him, “I am here!”
The two sat on that bench, and she was the first to ask, “Arthur, tell me, are you satisfied with the continent?”
It was a tricky question to answer, considering Arthur was an outsider, and that question would decide if he would join their order.
He had to think about it carefully, and given the short time he had to answer, his mind worked at full speed.
“What does this secret order want? Think, think!”
There was an army of werewolves beneath the castle, meaning they were gathering some force to fight. Everyone knew that the vampires, more precisely the Von Stein family, wanted to take control over the whole continent — as they were the only family with two rank-four vampires, turning them into the strongest beings among all races at that point.
So, if Tessa and the duke were gathering an army, that could only mean they did not want the current leaders of the Von Stein family to take control of the continent!
“I believe the demon continent has failed as a whole. Many races live in it, yet almost all of them hate each other or act for their benefit. I believe the continent needs a strong ruler to stop the conflicts and give the peace all the habitants deserve. But, not everyone can take that role,”
“It must be someone powerful, but more importantly, a decent person who thinks about the well-being of the citizens. It may be imprudent for me to say this, considering I am under the roof of the Von Stein family, but I’m afraid I have to disagree with how the leaders want to dominate the continent and turn races into cattle. So yes, we need a powerful ruler to act on behalf of everyone else, but that person cannot be evil.”
Arthur did not know if that would convince Tessa, but that was how he felt about the demon continent’s situation. He knew one person long ago who tried to unify the mainland and start a peaceful relationship with the other continents, like trading goods and exchanging information.
When that happened, many of the powerful mages of the time gathered a force to trap that person so they could keep controlling the continent behind the curtains.
The few rank-four mages did not want to give up their control over the rest of the continent and wanted to keep acting as the gods of the demon continent, controlling the general population. Those were the same people that wanted to attack the central continent.
Arthur wanted to stop that! If he could join a force with the same goal as him — make the demon continent a peaceful place, and a civilized one with the rest of the world — he would join it.
Tessa went silent for some time, but the more she looked at Arthur, the happier she was. That was precisely the answer she was looking for, and Arthur seemed to think about the situation the way she did.
“Good, good. Tell me,” Tessa said, looking around to see if someone was listening to what they were saying.
After making sure there was no one, she went closer to Arthur, and he could feel her breath on his ears, “do you want to join a secret order who shares the same feeling as you?”
Arthur nodded, and then she said, “follow me.”
They went to a place Arthur knew very well, the library. There, Milton waited for her, still angry about the previous situation.
“Tessa, did you find who stole me?”
He was talking about Arthur, who not only stole the blue robe and golden mask but also a lot of his money.
“No, but I will. This is Arthur, a new member of the Blue Rose Order.”
“Hey, I’m Milton.”
Milton was a bald skinny dude that gave chills down Arthur’s spine the more he looked at him.
“Here, take this,” Milton said, grabbing a blue robe and golden mask from beneath the counter.
“This is yours now, but make sure no one else sees it.”
Tessa waited for Arthur to put on the new robes and mask, and then she said, “Come, let’s meet with the others inside.”