Garden Of Poison-Chapter 209: Blood cake

Emily was pleasantly surprised by Julius Ardolf’s unexpected presence as he walked to where she and Raylen were standing. She hadn’t anticipated having such an early visitor, not that she minded it, and she smiled when the man offered a polite bow to each of them.

"It’s a bit too early to be gracing us with your presence, Julius. Emily here might start thinking you have nothing better to occupy your time than to seek opportunities to come see her," Raylen remarked.

Julius was gazing at Emily’s face when he discerned the subtle hint of sarcasm. However, when he shifted his attention to the king, he found it difficult to reconcile it with how kindly the blue-eyed man looked at him. Feeling perplexed, unsure if it was just his imagination, he returned the smile and said,

"I was at the Ruiz Mansion when I heard about Lady Emily falling ill. I was concerned for her health, especially since she wasn’t feeling very well when we met yesterday. That’s why I decided to come and inquire personally." Julius’s words were earnest, and the tips of his ears turned pink as he finished speaking. "I hope my visit isn’t a problem."

Before Emily could respond, Raylen asked the earthling, "Have you had breakfast?"

Julius nodded and replied, "I did, King Raylen. Thank you for as—"

"Good, because there is no more breakfast food left," Raylen said with a smile, and Emily turned to look at him with a questioning gaze.

"Of course, please do not hesitate to let us know if you are hungry. I am certain we can arrange for some snacks," Emily offered, wanting to be hospitable to Julius, who had shown genuine concern for her well-being, unlike the other men who only paid her attention when she happened to pass them by.

"That is very generous of you, Lady Emily. I am full for now, thank you. I didn’t get the chance to inquire about your health. How are you feeling today?" Julius asked her.

"I am much better, thanks to Lauren and the King taking care of me," Emily replied. "I should be able to regain my strength soon."

Julius nodded before inquiring, "Lady Emily, do you never address the king as your uncle, even within the castle?"

For a brief moment, Emily, who was still in the process of recovering, pondered his question before she realised that it pertained to the uncle and niece charade she and Raylen were maintaining for the people of Storm.

"Because I have never addressed him as my uncle. We are distant, distant relatives," Emily answered. However, in the very next second, Raylen stated,

"Ray Ray. That’s what she used to call me once." He turned to ask the princess, "Don’t you remember it?"

Emily glared at him briefly before schooling her expression as Julius turned back towards her. She replied, "It happened so long ago that I have forgotten most things from back then," and offered a soft laugh, although inwardly, she gritted her teeth. Changing the subject, she said to Julius, "I didn’t know you played the piano."

"I didn’t get the opportunity to learn it initially due to limited resources, but my sister has been receiving piano lessons for the last four years. I learned some notes and songs here and there. If you don’t mind, I would be happy to teach you," Julius offered to Emily, who eagerly nodded with excitement, relieved that she didn’t have to wait.

"I would very much like that." Emily smiled at the man.

"Master," Lauren called out to get Raylen’s attention from the side of the corridor where Julius had entered.

Raylen walked partway, and the head servant covered the remaining distance to inform him, "Westley has brought the lowly demon you found in the forest yesterday. His family is suspicious of his odd behaviour... and speech."

"The lowly demons often have broken speech; it would be something hard to fix," Raylen hummed in thought, while his eyes shifted to where Emily and Julius were enjoying each other’s company.

His tongue subconsciously brushed against one of his canines. He wasn’t very fond of people waltzing into his castle whenever they pleased, regardless of the time. Despite his smile, a glare of irritation lingered in his eyes, a detail that did not escape Lauren’s notice.

"Inform the family that he, the demon, will be assigned to work at the base," Raylen decided, and this caused Lauren to raise her eyebrows in surprise.

Was it to keep an eye on the man the princess was conversing with? Lauren asked herself. Or was it because of what they had learned earlier that morning? To think the princess possessed a Barter Soul, it was difficult to predict whether it would lead to good fortune or misfortune in the future.

"Do you not like the man for the princess, Master?" Lauren asked from a good distance away from the budding couple, who were deeply engrossed in their conversation and paid no attention to them.

Raylen turned to look at them and remarked, "I think she can do better than him, but then again, she’s running out of time for her to be too picky."

Lauren found the man to be decent. He was pleasant in appearance and conversed smoothly with the young woman, although she couldn’t help but think that his clothing could benefit from a bit of straightening up. Not to mention, it was evident that the man seemed to be well-liked by the princess.

I think it is you who is being picky, Lauren silently remarked to herself without looking at him. She could tell that her master wasn’t pleased that his time to play with his newfound toy had been interrupted. It reminded her of when her master was a young boy and struggled to share his toys with his siblings.

She remembered that day very clearly, as if it had occurred only yesterday. Raylen had been twelve years old, and his second brother had taken a cherished toy he had carefully preserved for as long as he could remember.

’Could you please give the toy back to me, Cane?’ the red-headed boy politely requested it back from his brother, who was three years younger than him.

’But you’re not playing with it. Mother said it was alright for me to take it,’ the younger boy replied while dragging the toy across the garden ground, causing it to pick up mud along the way.

’It is mine and not yours. You have plenty of your own things to play with. Hand it back,’ Raylen’s voice remained calm and composed, as he had been taught not to shout. ’Hand. It. Back.’

’No. Mother said we should share each other’s things,’ replied Cane, not paying attention to the older boy.

’Okay,’ Raylen responded, and though he sounded defeated, it wasn’t because he had decided to let it pass. The next day, much to everyone’s horror, the toys belonging to the third prince were found shredded into pieces. When questioned about it, Raylen replied, ’They were at war with each other and died on the battlefield. Sadly, none survived.’

Naturally, her master’s parents were not the slightest bit pleased and had locked him in the dark, under-renovation cellar for him to reflect on his actions. Looking back on it, Lauren realised that it hadn’t been effective.

When Emily’s maid came to stand by her side, the princess politely introduced her to the suitor, even though someone of her status would typically not concern herself with such minor details. The maid bowed at the man, and Raylen remarked only for the head servant to hear,

"Julius and Julia. Time to start writing a book about them and Emily." It looked like the maid was completely smitten by the man, her cheeks turning pink while Julius’s eyes remained fixed on Emily.

"Their names are indeed similar," Lauren agreed, and she observed the faint veins beginning to surface under Raylen’s eyes.

"Allow me to bring you a drink, Master."

"Stored blood," Raylen replied with disapproval.

"Shall I make arrangements for someone to come over?" Lauren inquired. It appeared to be one of those days when her master craved freshly drawn, warm blood coming directly from a living person’s body. She was confident he had consumed sufficient blood earlier in the morning, but he didn’t seem sated. She then saw him smile before he ordered,

"Tell the cook to use blood as the essence while preparing the cake today."

At the same time, Julius turned to address them and inquired, "King Raylen, may we use the piano room?"

Raylen’s smile grew broader as he replied, "Certainly. Julia, please lead the way to the room."

The maid nodded promptly and walked ahead, with Julius following behind. As Emily began to walk, she noticed Raylen walking with them. Was he planning to join them? she asked herself with a hint of suspicion.

When they approached the room and Julius stepped inside with the maid to lift the piano lid, Emily turned to Raylen and said, "You were mean to Julius."

"I am not the one marrying him, so I don’t see why I should be polite. Unless you are proposing his hand in marriage for me? If this doesn’t seal your fate and send you straight to Heaven, I don’t know what will," Raylen teased her, while Emily regarded him with a serious expression.

"Ha ha, so funny," Emily whispered, and Raylen grinned.

"It is, isn’t it?" He added, "Speaking of which, we need to work on your laughter. What would Julius say if he were to find the princess’s laughter to be pretentious?"

Emily shook her head quietly before saying, "Also, I don’t think Julius is your type."

"It seems you know my type quite well." Raylen smiled, noticing Julius sitting down on the bench, facing the piano. "I do like the wild ones."

"I wish I could disagree, but seeing the gorilla, it does seem pretty wild," Emily responded, her lips curling at the corners.

Raylen’s eyes subtly narrowed, but his smile didn’t waver. He remarked, "Looks like you are feeling much better than I initially thought. Perhaps we should have Julius tend to you next time."

"Shh!" Emily hushed him when Julius began to play.

She observed Julius’s form, his back straight, and his hands moving elegantly over the keys, producing a sweet melody that brought a smile to Emily’s face. He appeared to be good at it, and she praised him, exclaiming with enthusiasm,

"That sounds wonderful!"

"Thank you, Lady Emily. The key is to concentrate and practice. Just like anything else, playing the piano requires discipline. With enough dedication and effort, you will be able to play it in no time," Julius replied to her as he briefly paused to speak before resuming playing to showcase his skills, hoping to capture her heart. He played the entire song, and during that time, he didn’t move or turn even once, focusing entirely on the instrument alone. The maid swayed to the music, moving like a pendulum in motion, enjoying it quietly.

When he finished the piece, Julius turned to Raylen and asked, "King Raylen, may I have your permission to have your niece sit next to me on this bench?"

"Of course. It seems that your music alone has already made her feel better," Raylen complimented Julius, who smiled and then turned to look at Emily and then back ahead of him.

As Julius tested the keys, Emily said, "He is going to be a good tutor, isn’t he?"

"Sure," Raylen responded. "He seems just like someone your mother would approve of."

"What is wrong with his piano skills?" Emily asked in a lowered voice, knowing what her mother’s type meant. "Did he not play it correctly?"

"He played it perfectly well, just as it is written in the music book. Exactly like that," Raylen replied with a reassuring, saintly smile, even though he received a frown from her. He noticed her hazel brown eyes staring into his. Despite her fever being gone, he picked up on her lingering vulnerability.

Emily asked, "Then, would you teach me?"

"You don’t need my help when Prince Charming is here. Also, I don’t believe you would appreciate my teaching methods, Princess," Raylen quipped, offering her a crooked smile. He continued, "Why don’t you enjoy your company and get better soon? Because I am looking forward to that repayment for you opening the portal," and then stepped out of the room.