"My Lord, are you certain of this?" A visibly old man with greyed out hair, who was called Count Black, asked Father.
I watched them from my crib, as we were all outside at the front area of Castle Nor, the royal house of House Stern, the ruling house of Norland.
Meaning Father, Lord Edric Stern, was the current Duke of Norland, while Mother, Lady Macbetha Stern, was Duchess of Norland—when she was alive at least.
Father glanced at me in my crib and nodded at Count Black.
"I am certain it is for the best. He is not of House Stern, and House Solman cannot be trusted with his life. So I am left to give him to someone Lady Macbetha honored and respected. And that is you, Count Black. His curse is too dangerous, and I want my children to be safe. I beg you."
In the past few days, Little Rhena often came to my crib and yapped about their heritage endlessly. Jorn, that rascallous boy, came only when he wanted to annoy Little Rhena. From those two, I was able to glean some history of this world.
Lady Macbetha was the younger sister of the Crown Prince of the Holy Solean Empire, who was also the current Duke of Kingsland and head of House Solman. And her father, my grandfather, was the Emperor of the Empire and also the Pope of the Church of the Sun, hence he was called the Holy Sun Emperor.
Jorn took ultimate pride that his grandfather was the ruler of the empire and practically 'fan-girled' over that fact and never shut up about it, which of course brought him much scorn from Little Rhena, who was more proud of being a Noble Princess of Norland.
Jorn and Rhena were strong kids, because although it was obvious Mother's death deeply affected them, they always drowned out the thoughts as best as they could.
However, they were still just children. There was a time Jorn was insulting Rhena, and then Rhena mentioned that she was going to tell Mother that Jorn was being a bad child again, but she quickly froze as she remembered, and Jorn started crying, with Rhena joining in too. I was deeply saddened.
Regardless, I was quite fascinated to learn I had so much connection with royalty, but the more I thought about it, the more frightened and scared I became.
This was a Holy Empire, so what would happen when it was found out that the daughter of the Holy Emperor gave birth to a bastard who also happened to be cursed? Death to both of us, of course. It may not be from the Holy Emperor himself or her brother, but most likely from fanatics in the Church and extended family who wished to uphold the unstained and divine image of House Solman.
This very much explained the assassination attempt, but also didn't explain why on earth it was a Vampire of all people that carried it out. Also, considering the fact that the Dragon of the Beginning confirmed my birth being one of divine engineering, there must have been someone aware and afraid of my existence. But even worse, since my birth was heavenly-inspired, I might not actually even have a father, so Duke Edric's anger towards Mother due to her infidelity was entirely baseless.
There was a conspiracy within a conspiracy at play here.
'My first task in this world… is to find the secret behind Mother's death and bring the perpetrators to justice. I will burn them all.'
Count Black seemed to be an upright man. I hadn't heard much about him from Rhena and Jorn, but the maid who took care of me was discussing with another and mentioned that he was a known hero loyal to the North, but for some reason was given the moniker "The Blood Knight."
He had grayed-out hair and was sporting a black double-breasted suit with fine embroidery and shoulder pads, a white cravat around his neck, white gloves, and leather boots. From his white trousers, a thin, long sword hung down his waist.
"Very well, my Lord. I shall take him under my care," the elderly knight said, bearing a scar across his left eye.
Around his mouth was a properly trimmed goatee. His gaze was cold and calculating, with blue eyes so thin one would think they had merged with the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes. He gave off an elusive feeling of coordination, mystery, and a sense of dread. This was a man with a lot of power.
The maid handling may crib wheeled me over to Count Black's side, so the latter looked at me and smiled lightly.
A black horse-drawn coach strolled and parked before them, and Count Black gave a court bow.
"I must take my leave now, my Lord. I offer my condolences to you and your family once again. May the light of the Moon guide you in these trying times," he said and drew a crescent at the corner of his chest.
Lord Edric just nodded and watched as the count took my crib and entered the coach.
"Does he have to go?" Little Rhena asked with teary eyes and tried to follow the old count, but since Lord Edric was already holding her hand, he easily held her back and scorned her, saying, "Rhena, you promised to behave. This is for the best. Only Count Black can protect your Little Willie."
"Don't you worry, Little Miss. Your brother is in safe hands. Farewell, my Lord," Count Black said from inside the coach and signaled for the driver to begin moving.
I crept from my crib to see Rhena and Jorn one last time, but I couldn't. I was sure they were waving at me, though.
Edras, Silas, and Silvia were also there for the send-off, but they were older and more aware of what was happening around them, meaning they tried their best to keep away from me. I mean, of course, they wouldn't like me. Not after being the cause of Mother's death.
That was why I couldn't blame Lord Edric for giving me away. My arrival here hurt me and a whole lot of people, and the last thing I wanted right now was to hurt more people.
I would certainly miss Little Rhena and Jorn, but I knew we would surely meet again.
'Farewell, brothers and sisters. I go to a land unknown; most never venture back in one piece. But I shall return and claim my throne,' I joked in my head and laughed.
Count Black looked down at me and smiled.
"You are in good hands, child. It won't be long before we arrive at Winterholm."