I woke up to hushed whispers, the kind that made you wonder if people were plotting your murder or just gossiping about your bad sleeping posture. My vision was blurry at first, but as it cleared, I saw Liam talking to a hooded figure. They looked deep in conversation, so naturally, I decided to ruin the moment.
"Hello," I called, making my presence known.
Liam barely spared me a glance, giving a single nod as if that was enough acknowledgment.
"Wow. Back to the usual charm, I see," I muttered.
The guy beside him turned to stare at me. And I mean stare. Not a polite glance or casual eye contact, just straight-up, full-body scanning like I was a science experiment. It lasted long enough that even Liam seemed uncomfortable because he cleared his throat and started making introductions.
"This is Noah. Noah, meet Luna, the King's granddaughter."
Noah extended a hand, and I shook it, still feeling his eyes on me. Now that I could see him properly, I took a moment to examine him too. He had striking golden red eye which is quite abnormal, black midnight hair, sharp jawline, golden skin, and a build that suggested he could take down an army without breaking a sweat. He was at least two inches taller than me, and judging by his vibe, definitely not the chatty type.
Of course, because apparently every guy in this forsaken land had to be stupidly attractive.
After the handshake, Noah turned and walked off without another word.
"Who is he?" I asked in a whisper.
"Careful. He has enhanced hearing, like all vampires do," Liam whispered back.
I froze. "A vampire?" My voice shot up a few octaves. "Those blood sucking demons, what exactly are we doing traveling with one?"
Liam shrugged casually "he's here because the King sent him for extra protection, he's an outlaw and a skilled assassin. Trust me, you do not want to get on his bad side."
I gulped, mentally noting 'Don't piss off the assassin vampire for future survival purposes'.
"Get packing, we leave soon," Liam continued. "Make sure you eat something we're not stopping until we reach the vampire territory."
I turned to where Noah had disappeared, my stomach sinking. "We're going to his territory?"
Liam smirked, obviously enjoying my discomfort. I already hated everything about this plan.
A Few Days Later
Traveling was exhausting, we moved mostly at night, keeping to the shadows, we stopped only when absolutely necessary, either to rest or eat. Noah barely spoke to me, just the occasional word here and there. Meanwhile, Liam had gone back to his usual cold and broody self, which was fine. Not like I cared.
At night, when we stopped to rest, Noah and Liam would sneak off to talk, leaving me alone with nothing but my dagger for entertainment.
After days of suffering in the cold, the heat, and the company of two of the most boring people in existence, we finally arrived at vampire territory. And yeah, it was just as creepy as I expected. The air was unnaturally cold, the sky looked a little too dark, and the silence felt… wrong.
That night, Noah took the first watch. I tried to sleep, but every instinct in me screamed don't trust the assassin vampire, so I kept an eye on him instead, Liam noticed my internal struggle and, to my shock, actually laughed. Then, he took over the watch.
Just as I was starting to doze off, something fast whizzed past my face, before I could react, Noah shoved me out of the way. An arrow struck the spot where my head had been moments ago.
Instantly, we were on high alert. I clutched my dagger, not that it would do much against a vampire, but hey, emotional support weapons exist for a reason.
A figure stepped out of the darkness, dressed for battle. Liam and Noah moved in front of me, their broad figures blocking my view but I wasn't about to sit back like some damsel in distress. Standing on my toes, I managed to peek past them.
The guy was gorgeous, of course, because why wouldn't the bloodthirsty killer be unfairly attractive? He had an innocent-looking face, but the fresh blood dripping from his lips killed the illusion fast.
"Little brother," the guy purred, addressing Noah. "Didn't think I'd see you here."
Little brother?! Oh, this just got very interesting.
"And, of course," he continued, cocking his head, "you brought guests." His sharp gaze landed on me, fangs flashing.
Liam immediately stepped in front of me, blocking the vampire's view.
"What are you doing here, Leo?" Noah's voice was cold.
"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Leo mused. "I thought Father or should I say, the King, forbade you from coming here."
Wait, Noah wasn't just some random assassin, he was royalty? The crown prince?! How the hell did he go from that to being an outlaw?
"Back off, Leo," Noah warned. "We just want to pass peacefully."
Leo scoffed and whistled, instantly, figures emerged from the shadows, vampires. Lots of vampires.
They surrounded us, eyes gleaming with hunger, most of them were looking directly at me, licking their fangs like I was a walking blood buffet.
I swallowed hard, running? Not an option, fighting? Definitely not an option.
One of them grabbed me from behind, I barely had time to scream before Liam and Noah turned on him, their expressions murderous.
"Let the girl go, Leo," Noah said through gritted teeth.
Leo smirked as the creep behind me sniffed my neck.
Oh, hell no.
"Or what?" Leo taunted.
Before I could blink, everything exploded into chaos.
Heads rolled, literally, within seconds, the vampires surrounding us were dead. Noah's blade was pressed against Leo's throat, but the bastard was still smiling.
"I know you don't have it in you to kill me, little brother," Leo murmured.
Noah scoffed. "You're not worth it." He lowered his blade. "Now fuck off."
Leo stepped aside, mockingly bowing. "Of course, your highness." Then, with a chuckle, he disappeared into the night.
I looked at the carnage, at the decapitated bodies, the blood pooling in the dirt, then at Noah. My stomach twisted.
Without thinking, I stepped toward Liam, gripping his shirt like some kind of lifeline.
Noah walked toward us, stepping over the corpses. His gaze flickered to my hand clutching Liam's shirt before settling on my face, his stare was intense, too intense.
I gripped Liam's shirt tighter.
Liam noticed the tension and cleared his throat. "We need to go. That coward probably ran off to alert the King about Noah's presence."
No one argued. And this time, when we rode out, I made sure to stick with Liam because no matter how dangerous the world was, Noah was starting to scare me more than all of it combined.