Conquering His Cold Heart

Vincent’s blood started to boil with rage upon recalling the torture that he had been through in the past. Although that incident had happened over three hundred years ago, it was still fresh in his mind as if it had happened just yesterday.

He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists as he further told his story, “The only reason I survived all that was because the onlookers liked seeing me getting beaten to a pulp, over and over again. I was the only skinny vampire who could throw a punch or two. And I also fell under the ‘rare’ category because I had claws. Thus, my opponents weren’t allowed to kill me. But they would beat me until I would be unrecognizable and until I could no longer lift a finger.”

Tilla’s eyes were already filled to their brims upon hearing that. She couldn’t even imagine Vincent going through such cruelty.

Vincent breathed in and exhaled through his mouth a couple of times. He was trying to calm the anger that he felt toward his captors.

He gulped and then further revealed what he had to go through, “I had already lost hope for my future. But I didn’t have the courage to die. So, I was just trying to earn one more day of my life and I was trying hard to earn a few drops of blood to keep me going.”

“I am so sorry, Lord Vincent.” Tilla gazed at Vincent’s heavy eyes that were hiding all his pain, fear, and anger until now. She couldn’t believe that someone who was so playful and lively had such a terrifying past. “I had no idea that you had been through so much,” she whispered.

Suddenly, a subtle smile appeared on Vincent’s face, and a sense of relief appeared in his eyes. He gazed at Tilla. He was happy to see that genuine worry in her eyes.

He took a deep breath and said to her, “But who knew that Caspian would come to me like a knight in shining armor? I still can’t believe how he single-handedly finished off all those illegal merchants who had kept countless vampires like me. He freed all of us from those monsters and gave a fitting end to them.”

.....

Vincent’s smile widened as he recalled that day. And he began to recount a few things that had taken place.

“I was so impressed by Caspian’s bravery that I clung to his leg and begged him to take me in. I had no place to go, no relatives, and nothing to go back to when Caspian freed me from that horrible place. And since I had been locked up for a long time, I didn’t have the courage to even think about living without a master.

So, I said that I was ready to be his servant for the rest of my life in return. At that time, I had no idea that he was a Prince. If I knew, maybe I would have been reluctant to get close to him and beg him. But I am glad that I begged. Caspian took pity on me and brought me back to the castle with him.

He also reunited the others with their families if they had any, and if they didn’t, he sent them to other lords as helpers, somewhere they would be treated fairly.”

Tilla was also impressed by Caspian. Her respect towards both of the gentlemen increased by leaps and bounds upon hearing Vincent’s heart-wrenching story. “So you served His Majesty then?” She was curious to know how Vincent went from being a servant to being a lord.

Vincent smiled and shook his head. “No, he never asked me to serve him although I insisted countless times. He said it was his duty as a Prince to save the citizens in need. And rather than making me his servant, he allowed me to stay in the castle like a guest. He would occasionally ask me to spar with him, and he would come and talk with me. I thought that he would toss me out of the castle once he was bored.”

Vincent chuckled and then said, “Well, he did toss me out. But to my new house. I couldn’t believe that while I was staying there in the castle as a guest, he was building a small and cozy house for me, not far from the castle. I didn’t want to accept such a generous gift from him. I had said that a small corner in the castle would be more than enough for me. But he said that I could either live on the roads or accept the house.”

He shrugged and then said while laughing, “Well, the house sounded like a better option than the roadside. So, I shamelessly accepted it in the end.”

“That was very nice of him,” Tilla mumbled in a surprised manner.

She could hardly believe that someone as terrifying and as cruel as Caspian had such a soft side to him. But then again, she had seen how he treated Anastasia. He would behave like a completely different person in front of Anastasia. So, it wasn’t that much of a surprise.

‘So, the King is as harmless as a dove to those he cares about,’ she thought to herself, thankful that her friend was among those few that Caspian cared about.

Vincent was still happily singing praises of Caspian. “Caspian would occasionally call me to the castle, saying he wanted me to train him. He said that I had a good experience as a fighter and he wanted to learn from me. I knew that it was all a lie. But I still went and taught him, or to be more precise, I pretended to teach him. When he paid me for my service, I knew then that he was trying to help me without making me feel as if I was leeching off from him.”

“Later, I started sitting together with him in his private lessons. He taught me all the things that I know now.” He had a wide smile on his face when he said, “And everything that I own now, knowledge as well as wealth, it is all because of him. Even this life... I owe it to him.”