Lady Dhampir
Chapter 112

"Good Evening, Lady, Sir. May I see your invitation for tonight?"

Rayan confidently handed out their invitations, but Milena was a bit nervous. What if something went wrong and they couldn't even get in? Or they were discovered before that? The gentleman looked at the invitations, and nodded with a polite smile. "Please follow me," he said.

The young couple exchanged a glance. Rayan had a smile on, but Milena was sure he would have felt that little wave of relief, too. They followed the man on the upper floors of the mansion, where there was far less people. It was a lot quieter, darker, smoother, and there was this strange atmosphere floating around, too. They didn't cross anyone's path, the corridors were empty. From the decoration, Milena couldn't even tell to whom that place belonged. There was no hint for the guests to see, no portraits or anything that would have looked like someone was living there. Maybe a secondary residence?

Milena felt Blanche sneaking out her pocket, probably to go and sneak around. She only caught a glimpse of something very small with silvery-white fur before it disappeared under a curtain. A little smile appeared on Milena's lips. So Blanche may not be fond of him, but she still trusted the vampire prince enough to leave her mistress alone with him...

"This way, please," said the servant, probably a butler judging by his outfit, and lead them into a little office.

It indeed looked like the welcome room of an auction. Two young hostesses smiled at them, both wearing gold masks, and bowed politely behind the desks.

"What will you be offering to the auction?" They asked politely.

Rayan and Milena exchanged a glance. They hadn't really thought that there would be a mandatory price for anyone who entered the auction. Milena tried to think quickly. She couldn't leave any of her jewelry, it would have betrayed her if they looked for who had manufactured it. Rayan, too, probably didn't have anything of large value to give either.

"How about a ruby?" Suddenly suggested the Prince.

The two ladies exchanged a glance.

"The entering price is fixated at one hundred gold credits, Sir. Is your... price enough?"

Milena chuckled. So they were doubting they had what it took to pay. A bit annoyed, the Princess took off her glove and showed them the marvelous ring on her finger. Both ladies gasped before she covered it again.

"Surely my husband can provide with ten of those," she said. "Dear?"

Rayan's smile extended, his fangs appearing.

"You will have to excuse me, Ladies. My friend forgot to mention we had to come... Prepared. However as my darling said, I will bring the rubies within the hour. Surely we still have time?"

The two girls nodded frantically. They had just gotten a glimpse of it, but just Milena's ring was worth at least a few hundred gold credits, a thousand perhaps. If five of these entered the auction, it would easily be among the top prices!

They stood up, even blushing a little to Rayan's smile. Milena tried hard not to glare at them, before realizing once again it didn't matter with her mask on. Hence, she glared, putting on the smile of a snake.

"Of course, Sir! As long as your servants can bring such... gemstones, we will be happy to welcome you inside!"

"Thank you, Ladies."

They were finally allowed inside, and Milena was still a bit sour about this. She couldn't tell if they owed their entrance ticket to those stupid rubies or her fiancé's devilish smile.

"Will you stop smiling like that," she whispered as they followed the butler again into the larger auction room.

"Sorry, but my darling is too adorable when she is jealous."

She pinched his arm, and he finally stopped, a grimace of pain taking over. If the butler noticed it, he didn't say a word, and instead, took them inside the auction room. It was like any auction room, so ordinary Milena felt a hint of disappointment. Rows of chairs, although those were obviously chosen to welcome nobles. Moreover, a lot of those were actually empty. She hadn't expected any number of people, but regardless of how many would come, they seemed to be among the first ones there. Her anxiousness raised to another level, but the fact that she was able to stand next to Rayan gave her a little bit more confidence. She wished Blanche would come back soon, too. Milena wasn't used to having her silver friend away...

"The auction will begin shortly, Lady, Sir. Would you like some refreshments?"

"Surely. Blood for the two of us," said Rayan with a smile.

The man looked baffled for a second, and Milena realized. Rayan was trying to blur their identities.

In any couple, anyone would have expected, if blood was ordered, a human half. Yet, now, both of them were drinking blood. While they could have slightly suspected her identity, it was most likely they would think of vampire siblings; No one would expect a dhampir Princess and the vampire prince to be out there tonight, a few days away from their wedding...

"I will bring them as soon as possible, Sir."

The butler disappeared to get their drinks. Milena sighed.

"I hope he won't understand who we are."

"Even if he does, at best he'll be cautious, he will think we are just pretending. No one will dare to face us head-on."

"But we risk those people being more cautious. We need answers, not all of them running away..." Rayan slowly nodded.

He had a smile stuck on his face, one of those expressions politicians mastered to hide their emotions. Milena wondered how much more nervous she could have been without her fiancé here. Somehow, Rayan always seemed to be in total control of his surroundings, even here where he supposedly knew nothing...

They took their seats to face the stage, seemingly chatting with each other, but they were actually looking at what was going on behind each other's shoulder. Milena couldn't shake off that image of someone with white hair she had seen just minutes ago at the entrance. She wondered who it was, and shared her worries with Rayan.

"The Oracle has been by your mother's side all those years... Wouldn't you recognize her?"

"I already wasn't that close with my mother," he sighed. "At least, not as much as we let the public think. The Oracle already was very... unwilling to show herself unless my mother expressly asked for it. We were never close at all, you may have interacted more with her than I ever did, Milena."

The young Duchess sighed. It looked like they were truly out of clues now. She replayed the scene in her mind, again and again, but she just couldn't decide. The Saint or The Oracle? She had only seen each a couple of times. Worse, what if it was someone else? Another... Silver one? She didn't know how to name them otherwise, but she felt like those two and Blanche couldn't possibly be the only ones!

Suddenly, more people arrived into the auction room. Both Milena and Rayan went quiet immediately, looking at their surroundings. Those people didn't look dangerous, or even shady. Sure, they were all wearing masks, but it didn't look anything different from a regular masquerade-themed party. They all had warm smiles on, and looked a bit excited to be there, too. The Royal couple greeted those seating in the closest seats politely, but without knowing anyone's actual statuses, it felt extremely awkward. Milena was completely lost, actually. When a young lady younger than her greeted her with a rude "ma'am", she felt a little strange. She had never been old enough to be called so, but she guessed Yasina had blurred her age on purpose with all that makeup... Then, the lightening changed, and all eyes turned to the little stage. A man appeared, wearing quite a flashy outfit. All in a bright red, even with some feathers, and a gigantic fan. Milena frowned. What was this? Some sort of eccentric show? Next to her, Rayan had lost his smile, too, his eyes fixated on the man. The vampire Prince had his hand on Milena's, and both were seating close to each other, their knees almost touching.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome! Our Grand Auction is having it's the twenty-seventh anniversary tonight!"

They exchanged a glance. Twenty-eight...?

"We have some quite unusual and extraordinary prizes to be won! Open your wallets, open your safes, and prepare to see the unseen tonight, for we bring you the greatest treasuries of the Kingdom!"

Some music was played, adding a dramatic effect, but Milena didn't care much. She was scrutinizing the host, trying to decide if she knew that man or not. The answer was probably negative, none of his outfit of features rang a bell. She couldn't remember having seen anyone this tall or with such green eyes. He had a long thin mustache that would have been recognizable anywhere regardless of the purple mask he had on. Maybe a fake, but after a few seconds, Milena was sure this man was basically no one important. "We have gathered here the wonders of the Century, the things only the greatest, the chosen ones might see!"

While he was obviously trying to get the audience excited, Rayan and Milena, as advised politicians, were unaffected by such tactics. They were looking left and right, checking people's reactions. A lot of them were excited indeed, cheering and clapping already. Milena frowned. What a circus...

The man went on to explain how the auction should go, but there was nothing unusual. As in any auction, they were to start with the most common prizes and only increase from then on. Milena wondered if Rayan's servants had been able to gather the rubies already... While an even more boring explanation was given, she looked around again, trying to recognize some faces behind the masks. How many nobles were there? Some were probably only wealthy merchants or some nobles' servants. It was common, if one wanted an item in particular, to simply send someone to retrieve it within a budget given.

Moreover, everyone there was hiding their statuses with dark and plain clothing. Actually, Milena's red lips and mask was already standing out too much, despite being nothing but accessories...

Rayan slightly pressed her hand, bringing her attention back to him. She nodded, and, gently, put her hand on his. She had to act the part a little bit, and stare towards the stage. There was no rush, no one was leaving the auction anytime soon. "Then, Ladies and gentlemen! We will start, as usual, with an entering price of a hundred credits for this marvelous painting!"

Milena wasn't very knowledgeable in arts, but as soon as this piece appeared, she knew she had seen it somewhere. It was a famous painting, that did not belong to some shady auction. She bit her lower lip and looked towards her fiancé. Rayan had an undecipherable expression on, but his hand was still on hers. Everything was fine and under control... So far.

Milena was a bit nervous, though. They had found nothing significant yet except perhaps for a stolen painting. Moreover, Blanche wasn't back yet. Where had she gone off to...?

A few more items passed, all of them leaving at crazy prices. It reminded Milena how nobles had much money to spend on trivial items such as art pieces they would only look at twice, or overpriced shiny gemstones.

"And now, Ladies and gentlemen, one of the greatest items of this evening, this gorgeous necklace, Silvra's favorite, the Millenium gem!"

Milena's eyes turned redder as she stared back to the stage. A young woman with a gorgeous smile brought up a magnificent ensemble of earrings with a necklace, all purple amethysts, gold and platinum. Milena's heart went a bit crazy in her chest. Could it be what they said it was? This thing would be priceless if it was true! Just then, Rayan caught her slight change of expression, her leaning forward, and pressed her hand gently to get her attention.

"Are you alright...?"

"Hn."

Milena nodded, trying not to look too impressed. Had those jewels really belonged to Princess Silvra? It couldn't be, right? She tried to persuade herself those were merely some selling speech, most likely a lie. How would they know it belonged to a princess dead three centuries ago? Yet, Milena felt strangely impressed by the pieces of jewelry. Everything was diamond and heart-shaped, and it did felt like the delicacy of three-centuries old jewelry.

Yet, a part of Milena was trying to tell herself to tame her reckless envy. They weren't here to spend money but to replace answers. They had already sacrificed a few rubies worth hundreds of credits to get in there. It wasn't the time for reckless shopping! She just couldn't take her eyes off, though. Milena looked at the jewelry, wondering if Silvra had ever worn those. She did have some texts mentioning she liked amethyst, but... "Five hundred!"

Milena glared at the lady who had claimed such a sum with a haughty expression. She was tall and thin, and cleared her throat in a bit of an arrogant stance, daring anyone to come forward. Milena sighed, but looked down, taking her eyes off the pieces. She just couldn't...

"One thousand."

The room turned towards Rayan, shocked.

Who would spend a thousand on some outdated jewelry! Milena, too, was in shock. She pressed his hand, completely lost.

"What are you doing...?"

"We came here to spend some money, darling, I may as well make my Lady happy with a present from her favorite idol."

Milena blushed all of a sudden. Rayan knew Silvra was Milena's favorite historic figure! Moreover, in such a time and place, he had realized how envious she was of this jewelry? It was so ridiculous!

On the stage, the masked man chuckled nervously.

"A t-thousand, ladies and gentlemen... I... I have to ask, do we have another offer, or...?"

Everyone else in the room remained quiet. A thousand credits was an insane sum to spend. Only ten families in the Kingdom could even afford to say such a ridiculously crazy amount, too. In any case, Rayan had secured the jewelry for Milena but also betrayed their identity a bit. Anyone able to think knew the young couple was now some very, very high ranked noble of the Kingdom, to afford to spend a thousand credits on a whim.

Milena was shocked; She knew she should scold him, but she was just unable to speak at that crazy gesture of his. What was he thinking! Just when she was still speechless, the seller declared Rayan winner of this auction, and the prize would go to him as well. Milena bit her lower lip. How crazy was this man, to spend this much money just to make her happy!

"Now, now, Ladies and gentlemen, one of our prettiest pieces this evening! I know this is a rare sight, and many of you wouldn't believe it, but if you came here, you came for the extraordinary!"

A cage was brought to the stage, but it was covered by a cloak. Milena's heart went cold in a fraction second. What was under that cloak? She was prepared for anything. A beast? Some crazy creature, even a wendigo perhaps? She exchanged a glance with Rayan, who was focused on the stage too. The masked man looked ecstatic.

"Brought to you, fresh from its capture, I present you, a Holy One!"

They suddenly left the curtain, and a lot of people in the room let out amazed "oh!" and "ah!". Milena felt like she was about to pass out. The creature in the cage was a magnificent silver wolf, with a silver necklace around its neck, and chains on all it's limbs. It was Blanche.