Breakfast. That was what awaited me when I finally recovered from the surprise that sprawled across my face when the Princess announced that there would be food.

It was something that didn't cross my mind, or rather, my own body when I had woken up from the Eternal Sleep. It had been so long, and there was a smile on Eleanor's face that said that this was completely her idea—because who else would think of it? Surely not Rose, she might prefer to attempt to poison me.

There were already those in the past who had.

Funnily enough, my body and even those of others my kind were incredibly strong and resistant to poison and the most effective one had been—silver, yes, silver dust mixed in with the food. Its effect was slow, it was only done in traces, so minuscule that my people had not noticed it until it was too late.

My expression must have relayed that to the Princess, or I may have told her about it in another time because she stepped forward and then offered a hand.

"Is there anything else that you need, Lord Blackwell? Would you like me to fetch you some water first and draw a bath?"

I swatted her hand away and narrowed my gaze at her.

As expected, Eleanor simply kept a small smile present on her face, and it was as if she hadn't even seen my unhappiness. Or she ignored it.

"You... you irk me with this attitude of yours, there is no need for you to go through such lengths. Seeing you so accept the role of a servant is unbecoming of you. It's loathsome."

"Oh, my apologies." Eleanor bowed her head. "I did not wish to offend you, my Lord."

"Bah." I scoffed and looked her in the eye. "You seem to be having so much fun with this, far more than your friend."

Those words finally resulted in a change in her demeanor. The proud and calm face of the Princess morphed into something more maudlin. She cleared her throat and looked me in the eye—or at least attempted to.

"It is true that Rose does not like you, and the situation is rather grim... but if we did not come across your manor, if we did not agree to be your servants then we would have already been long gone and it would have been my fault. Rose would have chosen to die so that I may live, and I will not allow that to happen."

Finally, an ounce of vulnerability.

I did not realize it at first. But I thought that Rose was more refreshing even if she was a tad more combative, but it was simply because she followed her heart and spoke what was on her mind.

There was no need for me to second-guess myself and be wary.

For someone like me, transparency and honesty was much more preferred than deceit—perhaps time has made me less patient for clandestine affairs and twisting of words. While we may have had all the time in the world, it did get boring when you waited for five hundred years before a Traitor finally chose to unveil himself as an enemy.

Royalty were quite good at it.

Even though I called myself as a Lord and was seen as one, I did not have time or patience for tricks or diplomacy, if I were to be frank. Far better to overwhelm someone with power and make them obey.

Now, Princess Eleanor showed a bit more honesty.

I nodded my head.

Before I could dwell on the fact and even ask about the details as to why both of the women seemed so focused on the other's safety—another person finally came up the stairs. It was no other than Rose herself.

After our conversation last night, one could see the dark eye bags underneath her eyes. She did not sleep at all. Far too focused on protecting Eleanor no doubt. Which was contrary to Eleanor's appearance.

Rose stiffly curtsied and said, "Breakfast awaits downstairs. Or would you prefer it to be brought up here, Lord Blackwell?"

"We will join you shortly."

Rose nodded slowly.

When I finally arrived at the dining hall, honestly, I did not know what to expect. However, there it was, it was by no means a feast—there was no extraordinary bloody steak from a Great Griffin or anything else that may have whet a Vampire's appetite, instead it was not rich, but still something pleasant. There was... a bowl of grains, porridge, along with some cooked omelet and some juice. There were even some fruits too, surprisingly.

"I thought you had ingredients," I said.

"Well. it was mostly non-perishables," Princess Eleanor said. "While we were traveling, we also came across an orchard for the fruit."

I shook my head but then made my way to a seat and plopped down the chair. The table was only set for one so I looked up at them and asked. "Have the two of you already eaten?"

"It is not common for—"

"Sit and eat," I said.

"If you insist, my lord." Princess Eleanor seemed to have been waiting for me to offer because she sat down so fast before looking at Rose who remained standing. "Let's sit down and eat Rose, the two of us eat together often do we not?"

Rose bit down on her lip and looked at me.

"Do you not wish to dine with me?" I asked.

Wordlessly, she placed down two sets for breakfast and sat down beside Princess Eleanor. Completely unlike last night, but she did sit.

I then looked down at the food and started to eat without waiting for them, the princess and Rose followed after... but it still seemed like something was missing. I looked around the dining hall that was adjacent to the kitchen and suddenly stood up.

"My lord?" Princess Eleanor asked.

"We could use some dessert, I may have a need for the berries."

The two women looked at me in surprise, and to be honest, even I was shocked. What was I doing?