In a distant memory in Roxanne’s head, she remembered that she had once tasted Caius’s blood. They had been sexually entangled just as they were right now when she did, but, like many memories before today, it seemed almost insignificant.

Sure, considering this particular memory pertained to Caius, it held much more importance, relevance, and focus in her head than memories of other people, things, and events. However, it still paled in comparison to the clarity—the strength—of the emotions and pleasure she was gleaning from being in Caius’s presence right now.

In any case, in the distant memory, Roxanne had acknowledged the power within Caius’s blood. But again, that was nothing compared to the newfound and far stronger sense of appreciation she felt right now as the blood touched her taste buds.

The light that burst in her eyes was so glorious, so dazzling that Roxanne feared she might go blind staring at it. Except, she was unable to stop herself from staring— from reveling in the absolute wonder.

Roxanne had long left mundane things behind. After she became a vampire, there were just certain things that, to her, seemed unimportant. Royalty was one of those things. It was just a title attached to the one who had managed to somehow convince others to let them rule while not being any more special than their subjects.

The Acherons, for instance, had not captured and secured power over the Empire because they were so special. Once upon a time, the Acheron Kingdom was only one of the many kingdoms in the region and one of the many families that had a long-standing history and power to rule a kingdom.

The Acherons weren’t even the first to conceive the idea of uniting the region into an empire they could command. In fact, such ideas had long spawned wars and death in the region. There had also been alliances of multiple kingdoms, but it was never anything concrete enough to achieve the idea of a unified rule. Mostly because the alliances always broke apart as their members were after their own interests.

Anyway, the Acherons were once even the last anyone would ever have thought were strong enough to unify the empire. They were located at the very center of the region, surrounded by other kingdoms just as large or even larger than they were. To wage war on anyone could have caused a swift unity to squash them.

For so long, the Acherons were actually quite meek. Staying out of the wars and skirmishes that broke out, always with the excuse that they weren’t actually good enough to offer much assistance.

Little did anyone know that the Acherons had been conserving their resources. That, while they preserved a visage of weakness and only ever publicly sought amicability with all, the Acherons were actually responsible for stirring up conflict among the many other kingdoms, creating so many of the wars that had ravaged the region.

And when many of the other kingdoms had been considerably weakened, having been ravaged by many needless and often stupid wars, the Acherons set their conquest into motion.

First, they erected defenses so strong that an alliance of all the kingdoms would struggle to break through, and then, they sent specialized forces—that had been honed in their secret peace—into the other kingdoms to weaken them from within.

The conquest went on for half a century. Only until about half of that time did the other kingdoms realize what was happening and tried to rally together to stop the Acherons, but it was already too late.

Being in the middle had also given the Acherons easy and quick access to the surrounding kingdoms, and thanks to their defenses, they couldn’t be breached.

Then there were laws, decrees, many scapegoats, and various other measures since the end of the conquest and the establishment of the Empire that prevented anyone else in the Empire from doing as the Acherons had done. And for centuries since, they had managed to secure the rule.

Still, their victory and success were a result of planning, stealth, subterfuge, and just plain dirty politics. Within their blood was nothing to truly mark them as different. They were like anyone else who had such access to their wealth and resources.

If one were to taste their blood, they could never feel the burst of raw power Roxanne was feeling from Caius.

And that was what had caused her mind to wander so far.

There was true authority in Caius’s vampire blood— A right that placed him above the rest. Much unlike the Acherons.

When there is true power, stealth, subterfuge, and other dirty means to acquire an imitation of it are much less important. After all, why struggle to acquire something you already have?

Also, the power wasn’t due to his Vampire Nobility, which Roxanne could taste separately in his blood. No, this authority was different. It wasn’t something that could be acquired or taken away with something like the Rite of Noble Ascension.

Speaking of the Rite:

Roxanne had seen it performed for the first time over a month ago, and even then, she had noticed something in the ancient circles that appeared after Caius chanted in that ancient tongue.

Now, of course, Roxanne didn’t actually understand the symbols within the ancient circles, just as she couldn’t understand the words leaving Caius’s lips, but she had spent over a century studying Arcane scripts, which was vital for the level of acumen she had gained in Formations. Thanks to that knowledge, she spotted familiar patterns in the ancient rite that sent her into more research.

And while the progress she had made was slow, what she had learned confirmed all the more how much that powerful authority in Caius’s blood differed from his Noble Authority because no ancient Rite could affect it. It was innate.

Roxanne allowed herself a few seconds of revelry, indulging in the blood already in her mouth while she just kept her fangs in Caius’s neck but didn’t draw more blood from him.

And then, gripped by a hunger and a slavering reverence, she sucked even more mouthfuls from Caius and, in every gulp, she tasted the explosion of power.

With how the power seemed so innate and not something Caius could have recently acquired, Roxanne felt it had to have been there in that distant memory she had of drinking his blood. But she hadn’t truly taken note of it then.

Roxanne wondered, as she gulped down even more mouthfuls of the blood, if Caius was aware of this power in his blood.

She assumed he would.

But what if he didn’t?

Also, where did it come from?

Roxanne had been doing some research—long before Caius came into her and her fellow Leopolds’ lives—into Vampiric history. It had always proven difficult since, as far as she knew, vampires are not the kind to keep records. It’s not their way, especially when they hardly ever stay in one place for long. Always moving to avoid detection due to their feeding habits.

Still, vampire bloodlines can sometimes be traced. For example, her blood came from Kerwin, whose blood came from a Vampire called Abraxus, whom the Leopolds had killed in a plan devised by Kerwin so he would be independent and free of his creator’s will.

Abraxus had been turned by a Vampire woman named Kreane, also dead. And Kreane had been turned by one called Toth... and so on.

The farther back you go, the more difficult it can be to track down.

Still, Roxanne was sure there was nothing special in her vampire blood. She had tasted it for herself in Lorton, who shared her blood and had also gotten it from Kerwin.

So where did Caius’s specialness come from?

Roxanne had actually researched this and hadn’t had much success. For one, Caius was definitely—at least while he was still human—a Von Helsing and their blood had never mixed with a Vampire’s until him.

And since Vampire blood replaces human blood when one is turned, that power didn’t come from the Von Helsings, whom Caius, technically, no longer shared blood with. Naturally, that meant it came from his creator.

And who was that? Roxanne had no idea.

Caius had never spoken about he/she, at least not to the point of saying their name. Really, he had never spoken of how he came to be a Vampire.

With a start, Roxanne realized how lacking in knowledge she was of her lover’s history. And as she finally stopped drinking his blood so she didn’t suck him dry, she found herself filled strongly with curiosity. She wanted to know... everything.

She wanted to understand him as she never had before.

Her red eyes were bright as she pulled away from his neck.

But then, she saw his face, smiling lightly at her. She felt the stiffness of the rod currently between her thighs, and also felt the dripping of her juices as arousal gripped her hard.

Curiosity burned, but longing burned hotter.

When Caius pressed their lips together and they exchanged the metal taste of blood still lingering in each other’s mouths, Roxanne only let out a moan as her body melted against his. Her mind kept hold of the questions she had, but there would be time for that later, surely.

Yes, this time had to remain dedicated to the passionate and dutiful explorations of each other’s bodies.