Married To The Mad Vampire Lord - Chapter 419

Chapter 419: “Do you like her?”
With the arrangements made, after dinner everyone began to head to their rooms. But before Rav could leave, Rohan stopped him.

“Yes, my Lord,” Rav retraced his steps and came back to where the duke still sat at the dining table, a half cup of blood before him. Rohan’s elbows rested on the table, his fingers linked together as he looked up at Rav with quiet intensity.

“Have a seat,” Rohan said, and Rav obeyed, lowering himself carefully into the chair. He watched his master curiously, wondering what more needed to be said since they had already discussed everything in the drawing room with everyone, and they all knew what to do now before the day they would relocate to a new land.

Rohan, however, had been turning his wife’s words over in his mind, her urging him to tell Rav about what had happened years ago. But before doing that, he wanted to confirm something first: had Rav truly moved on from his late wife?

“Do you like her?” Rohan asked suddenly, his gaze steady on Rav from across the table. “Lady Evenly.”

Rav shifted uncomfortably at the unexpected question, his throat tightening. “I—”

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” Rohan continued, his tone calm. “But I want you to know that if you do like her, I support any decision you make. If you want to marry her, I’ll make the arrangements. Once we get to the mountains, I’ll have the villagers build another house for both of you beside ours. You can live your life no longer being my servant but a man of yourself.”

Rav blinked, taken aback by his master’s words. “Are you relieving me of my duties, my Lord?” he questioned, not knowing what brought about this when he had served the duke since he was a prince, for fifty years now.

“Yes, you will no longer serve me,” Rohan told him, “but you will get a monthly wage for all the services you have done before.” He could see that Rav didn’t look happy or show any sign of excitement at his words. Probably because the man must be thinking he had done something wrong to be dismissed of his duties.

“But I do not mind serving you, my Lord. And Lady Evenly doesn’t want to marry me. You don’t have to build us a house.”

He didn’t quite understand why Rohan was suddenly interested in his personal life to the point of wanting to ease him of his duties when, for years, he had never seemed to care what Rav did outside his responsibilities. But knowing how much the duke had changed since marrying Belle, Rav didn’t dwell on it or put a reason behind this.

Rohan nodded his head in understanding. “It’s quite natural, knowing what she went through with that no-good Joshua Clifton.”

Rav cleared his throat and then looked at his master with a spark of interest. “You know what happened to her during her marriage to him?” he asked. He didn’t know much about her life with her former husband. The only things he’d ever heard were the rumors, words that claimed she had insulted her husband’s love and deserved whatever she’d received from him.

Back then, when she used to be harsh toward him, Rav had believed those rumors. But now, after truly seeing her, no amount of gossip could make him believe such lies. She was nothing like what people said she was.

“Mmm,” Rohan hummed. “He married her for her beauty, that was a known fact to many, as he showed her off like a possession to his peers. When she lost his child by accident, he showed his true colors. I heard there were times he beat her and forced her to carry money from his father’s house to give to his mistresses outside. He’s a no-good man.”

Rav didn’t know her marriage had been like that, that her husband had beaten her. No wonder she wasn’t willing to give his proposal any chance or thought, believing he didn’t like her for who she truly was.

“If you truly want her,” Rohan continued, gauging Rav’s blank expression that revealed nothing, “you won’t give up because she said no. You can prove to her that you are different from Clifton. It would be nice to have a wedding the moment we get to the mountains, don’t you think?”

Rohan put it in like a whispering devil on one’s shoulder. Yes, he might be doing this to make up for past wrongdoings, but there was also a part of him that wanted the man sitting across from him to find his own happiness.

For years, Rav had been dragged with him to places, even the madhouse. He had been forced to be there with him, and before then, Rav went through punishment just because Rohan was under punishment. Now that there was a chance for the man to have a life, Rohan wanted to see to it that he got it.

After talking with Belle outside that afternoon, Rohan had made up his mind to set things right before they all left to start anew in another place. This time, he wanted no unfinished business and no regrets to carry with him to their new life.

In two days, the white witch would come, and they would set Belle free of any past ghost of the dead, something that was starting to affect his son as well. He would turn her into a vampire when they left Nightbrook.

If Rav married Evenly, Rohan would tell him about what he had done in the past.

“Think about it and figure out ways to win her over. If you don’t have ways, I can give you some lessons about women,” Rohan said and noticed as color flooded Rav’s face. He got up to his feet, tucked his hands inside his pockets, and looked down at Rav sitting.

“I know about women, my Lord. I can win her over,” Rav said with a confidence he didn’t feel at all, because he knew little to nothing about women. His late wife had been given to him without any courtship, and after she died, he had not even looked or attempted to be close to his opposite gender until now.

He hadn’t only been close to Evenly; he had shared a bed with her, kissed her, and gone as far as to touch her like a man would his wife. He felt his face heat up at the thought, and at that exact moment, he heard the low amused chuckle Rohan let out.

“If you say so, Rav. If you say so. But you should know that I’m always here if you need advice. I can’t wait to attend your wedding, and I promise to make it grand,” Rohan said, giving his word before he began to turn and leave. But Rav’s voice made him pause.

“Thank you, my Lord. For everything, for saving my life many years ago and for giving me a chance at life again.” He bowed at the waist, unable to find more words to express his gratitude to the duke, who had no reason to be so generous to him in any way when he was just a servant.

Rohan didn’t turn around as he replied, “You have nothing to be grateful for, Raven.” Saying that, he walked out of the dining hall, leaving Rav standing there in quiet confusion.

How could he not be grateful? Rav thought, with gratitude swelling in his heart. How many servants ever had the chance to be free once they became bound to a master? Rohan wasn’t only setting him free, but was also willing to give him a house and a monthly wage to start his own life.

Rav had thought that if he wanted to marry Evenly, he would need to start from somewhere, but now, with this, he felt he could truly convince her to be his wife and have the means to take care of her.

Rav watched his master disappear down the hall before turning to leave, but a sharp pain in his chest stopped him in his tracks. His hand flew to the left side of his chest as the pain twisted like a needle piercing deep inside.

The pain was so sudden and intense that Rav slowly lowered himself into the nearest seat, gasping for breath. He felt his vision blur and darken for a moment. If there had been a mirror in front of him at that very instant, Rav would have seen his red eyes flickering between crimson and white.

He sat there until the pain finally subsided, then pushed himself to his feet with a frown, confusion clouding his expression.

“What was that?” he muttered under his breath, unsettled. He hadn’t felt pain like that since the day he was turned into a vampire. Pressing a hand to his chest, he tried to steady himself before shaking off the strange ache, dismissing it as nothing worth worrying about.