The Crown's Obsession

Music Recommendation: Milton's Tower by Joel Corelitz

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Lucy sat with her knees pulled close to her chest, hugging them while sitting on the bed. She didn't know what was taking the maids so long in bringing her dinner to her room. She was so used to eating in time that her stomach started growling, and she sighed, staring at the door.

"Guess I will go out myself and see," she muttered under her breath, and pushing the blanket away from her legs, she carefully placed both her legs on the floor.

One of her legs looked normal, while the other leg looked swollen. She quickly held both her hands together, looking up at the ceiling. She said, "Oh God, please don't leave me with this swollen leg forever. Make the swelling disappear by tomorrow morning.."

If someone were to hear what Lucy said, especially her family members, they would frown and reprimand her along with the maids around her, believing them to be brainwashing her with the humane beliefs.

Getting up from the bed, she walked towards the door and opened it. The maids were not there, and even the servants didn't appear to be walking anywhere near the corridor. She wondered where everyone had gone.

"Amice? Ruby?" Lucy softly called the maids name by peeking her head out of the room without stepping out of the room. "Clara? Brielle?" but she received no response from anyone.

Lucy pulled open the door and stepped outside the room. It was late...She had waited for her meal to appear in her room and had fallen asleep before waking up and wondering where it was.

Her bare feet walked on the castle's cold marble floor, passing through torches that were lit on the walls. When she met a servant, Lucy questioned,

"Where are Ruby and Amice? My food has not been sent to my room," Lucy crossed her hands against her chest, staring at the servant with a frown on her face. The servant bowed his head, and he informed her,

"Milady, Queen Morganna has ordered us to not send you any food to your room tonight nor offer food."

"What? Does grandma expect me to sleep on an empty stomach?" she let go of her hands that she had crossed a few seconds ago.

The servant bowed his head deeply, "Queen Morganna seemed unhappy by your absence in the dining room," and Lucy rolled her eyes. It wasn't like her grandmother couldn't swallow food without seeing her. "Unfortunately, we cannot help you as she has ordered all the servants not to help. If anyone does, it would warrant us time in the dungeon."

Lucy nodded her head, "You can go now. Thank you," she dismissed the servant, and the person bowed his head again before making his way to the servant quarters.

With some of the torches blown out as the oil in them had finished for the night, Lucy could only tell that most of the servants had gone back to their quarters to sleep. The outer part of the castle had guards standing and guarding the castle. Wandering in the quiet castle and accompanied by her growling stomach, she tried to distract herself and wondered how she could get something to eat.

The dining room had fruits!

When Lucy arrived at the dining room, she looked at the table and was greeted by an empty bowl. Her grandmother was sure not happy, thought Lucy to herself.

Lucy idly walked through the corridors, and she heard something. She wondered what it was and followed the sound. Her eyes turned wide when she caught sight of four people in the dark place.

Lucy was greeted with Calhoun and Theodore, who were sucking blood from the two maids. Calhoun was quicker in drinking blood from the maid, and the maid lost her balance as if she fell unconscious on the ground.

"W-what are you doing?" Lucy demanded, looking at the maid. Seeing the vampiress, Theodore pull away from his meal.

"Having dinner," came Calhoun's nonchalant response, but Lucy didn't find it right, and she shook her head to snap out of her daze.

"You cannot go killing a person for your meal! They are living people!" Lucy had grown up around them, and even though they weren't her maids, they belonged to her...oh no, thought Lucy to herself. "Grandmother is going to rage tomorrow morning," she said, "Didn't they serve you enough at the dining table that you decided to take the maids' lives?"

"You speak as if you survive on plants," muttered Calhoun, barely bothered by seeing the panic in the vampiress' eyes. "You think the blood you drink comes from the plants or rabbits?"

"Yes."

Both Calhoun and Lucy stared at each other without blinking their eyes. Calhoun didn't know if the princess was too sheltered or was purposely acting dumb right now.

Lucy's gaze was interrupted by Theodore, "We were denied from having meals, Lady Lucy, and we were starving."

Frowning, she asked, "Why? Did you both not go to the dining room to have dinner?"

"We did," responded Calhoun before picking up the maid's body on his shoulder and licked the blood off his fingers.

Theodore, who still held the maid, went to explain, "We were in the dining room, but your grandmother didn't want us joining the table because she didn't like something that Calhoun said."

"Grandmother is intolerant about a lot of things. It is why you won't often find me where she is," the young vampiress grinned. Most of the things Lucy liked to do were things that her grandmother and the other royal family members disapproved of. "By the way, what did you say?"

Calhoun didn't reply to her, and he instead walked past her without a word.

Watching her half-brother leave, Lucy commented, "He seems very aloof."

Hearing this, Theodore smiled, "Calhoun disapproved of your grandmother's words about you being denied any food. There was just a little discussion that didn't go down well."

Lucy's brows raised high, and she quickly turned around, but Calhoun had disappeared. Had he stood up for her sake? Asked the young vampiress in her mind.

Until now, no one had ever done it for her.