Lady Dhampir

The Royal Palace

“Welcome to the Royal Palace young Lady."

Milena could barely contain her excitement. Her first time at the Royal Palace! From the carriage, she was already impressed by the large buildings, their roofs covered in snow, with so many windows they seemed endless. Even if she had gotten accustomed to her life in the manor, the Royal Palace was indeed on an even bigger scale. Soldiers were posted in each corridor and servants continuously walked around, cleaning or carrying different things. Every time she had walked across someone, people had bowed in front of her, recognizing her noble status by her outfit and the maid accompanying her. As a young Duchess, her status was second only to the Royal Family, and thus, as they had only come across students or anonymous officials, she hadn't needed to greet anyone she didn't know so far. Moreover, Milena had hurried to meet Valentin, guided by a Palace servant.

As expected, her brother had been waiting for her and met her halfway to the Library. She was actually in the East Wing, not the Main Building but it didn’t make it less of a priceless experience for her.

"Big Brother!"

Milena hurried to him and Valentin took her small hand.

"Good Morning, little sister. Aren’t you cold?” Asked Valentin as he felt her cold skin.

“No, thank you, big brother.”

Indeed, Milena had proven she wasn’t very sensitive to the cold temperatures. It was an advantage in a country like theirs where snow and ice covered the ground for four long months each year. Valentin, however, was human and usually needed an extra layer even while being inside the Palace. He was glad that Milena took on her vampire side for the cold.

The Solar Kingdom faced very harsh, cold winters every year and most humans had a rough time until spring came back. Considering her still weak health, this could have been fatal to Milena if she had been born completely human...

“So, a lot of these rooms are actually used for conservation purposes." He explained as they walked around. "Most scholars and government officials have their offices in this building. The Royal Library is the largest room of course, but you still need an official permit to get in.”

“Do you have one because you are a Royal Apprentice?” Asked Milena

“That’s right. Royal Apprentices get access as soon as we are acknowledged by the Palace and we can only bring a few guests, after authorization from the Royal Library Bureau.”

Milena felt a bit proud to be able to step into that Library despite being so young. Not anyone could get inside this treasure room! Even her maid had to stay outside when they approached the Library but Milena didn’t even notice. Instead, her eyes had grown wide in surprise as soon as they crossed the entrance. Thousands of books! There were books everywhere her eyes set on, perfectly stored and ordered on dozens of shelves. She kept looking in all directions and could only see books all around them.

Valentin chuckled at his little sister’s delighted expression.

“Young Lady, you should learn to control your emotions a little!”

“Sorry big brother…” Murmured Milena, blushing a bit.

Even as she had finally entered that place she had dreamed about so often, Milena didn't let go of her brother's hand and stayed very close to him. He could feel her puffy dress against his leg and thought she might be unwilling to go any further by herself.

“Young Duke! Is that your little sister?”

A middle-aged, smiling man approached them. He wore a dark brown suit and looked extremely elegant with his perfectly shaped beard. He was carrying an old book which Milena couldn't see the title of. Valentin greeted him politely, placing a hand on Milena’s shoulder.

“Indeed, Minister De Gardenia. Please meet my little sister, Milena de Crescent.”

Immediately, Milena did the reverence she had been taught, doing her best to appear polite despite her nervosity. She grabbed a side of her purple dress and bowed, placing one foot behind the other.

“It is a pleasure to meet you.”

“Oh, that’s a very beautiful young Lady! I have a pair of twin daughters who are around your age, my Lady. I hope you will be good friends with…”

The Count suddenly went silent when Milena raised her head. Speechless for a few seconds, it became obvious he couldn’t take his eyes off her purple irises. It was then that Valentin gently pulled his little sister a bit closer to him.

“Thank you very much for approving my little sister’s visit.”

The man regained his senses and turned towards Valentin as if nothing had happened.

“It’s nothing much, young Duke. We should always help bright young minds! Young Duchess, please take all your time! Now, if you’ll excuse me Young Duke, I have a lot to attend to before the meeting with his Majesty.”

Sending a last glance toward Valentin, the Count left the Library quickly. Milena thought a bit and turned to her older brother. Valentin was still looking the Count's way, frowning a bit. She gently grabbed her older brother's cloth to get his attention.

“Was he surprised?” She asked.

“Probably Milena but do not worry. Many people might react like this when they meet you, as Father said.”

“... Is it bad?”

Valentin smiled gently to her, caressing her dark hair.

“No, little sister. You are just unique. Now, shall we go? What books do you want to see first?”

As soon as he had asked, Milena forgot about her questions, preoccupied with how many books she could read or borrow that day. Valentin took her across the long alleys, showing her the detailed organization of books, helping her to grab the ones on the highest shelves, and introducing her to the Library staff. All had similar reactions to the Count once they met her but Valentin always made sure to cut the conversation short so as not to let his little sister feel uneasy.

The Royal Library had a large glass veranda they finally sat on to have lunch. However Milena soon ignored the delicious Palace cuisine that had been brought for them, to get to her reading. She had eaten very little like usual but still asked for his permission to read. Valentin didn’t take offense though, as he had figured this would happen. He knew his little sister's endless love for books. He and Raphaël secretly called her their Book Bunny, as they often found her lost in one of her readings somewhere in the manor, with her adorable ponytails and Blanche guarding her.

Milena was indeed happy. In a short time, she had found at least a dozen books she wanted to borrow or at least read there. She couldn't wait to read them all and move on to the next ones! Valentin looked at her little pile with a smile.

“Milena, how did you find so many in just an hour?”

She blushed a bit.

“Those shelves were so well organized… big brother, I wanted to take more but I don’t think I can read so much today. Can I really borrow all these? For how long?”

“Knowing you, you will probably ask me to bring more home long before I can worry about bringing them back.”

Like the rest of the Manor, Valentin was truly impressed with Milena’s progress. She was still very uneasy in front of strangers and lacked a lot of the education she should have had according to her status as a Duchess but aside from that, she was incredible on many points.

With the help of the great professors their father had selected, Milena had caught up on all the basic subjects a child her age should know. Her love for reading was the most notable change as if they had unlocked something in her. Moreover, the young bibliophile was also slowly overcoming her fear of crowds and becoming closer to what a young girl her age should act like instead of a frightened, abused, and uneducated child...

“By the way, what about Blanche?” Asked Valentin.

He knew the odd shape-shifting creature was very important to his sister, like some sort of comfort pet. Milena raised her hair a bit, unveiling the silver weasel that was hiding around her neck, under her dark waves. She wore her like a fur scarf. The young Duke chuckled.

“Nice hiding but cover her, it would be better if no one knows about Blanche...”

They still had no clue about Blanche but like their father, Valentin didn't really care as long as she was doing some good to Milena, who had been so hard to take out of her shell.

“Young Duke de Crescent?”

A young guard was behind them and bowed a little.

“Sir, the Chancellor is asking to see you. He needs you to attend the meeting about Military Health Finances.”

Valentin frowned.

“Wasn’t the second assistant supposed to attend with him?”

“I am afraid the Young Count is ill, Sir.”

“I see…”

He looked at his little sister, a bit unsure. He wasn’t supposed to leave Milena on her own, especially in an area where her maid couldn’t follow but his sister had already caught on and smiled at him.

“Do not worry about me, big brother. I can stay here and wait for you until your meeting is over.”

Indeed, nothing could possibly happen in the Royal Library… and Milena had Blanche with her. If anything happened, she would surely defend her. Valentin sighed.

“All right but you won’t leave the Library. You can ask the head librarian if you need anything. I won’t be long.”

Milena nodded and he put a little kiss on her forehead before leaving.

Even left alone, Milena didn’t mind. Anyway, she was too absorbed in her book to mind. This one was an adventure book, which smartly displayed geographic information as well as military ideas. It was truly captivating! She imagined herself, like one of the heroes, fiercely exploring new countries in search of long-lost resources…

“Excuse me, young Lady?”

Milena turned her head. A young boy a bit older than her was gently smiling at her, politely standing a few steps away. He started talking once he had caught her attention.

“Forgive me for bothering you but I would like to borrow this volume if you don’t mind…”

His finger was pointing at the second volume of the exact book she was reading, that she had taken to thinking she would finish the first one quickly.

“Oh, hm... Please, do… Take it.”

She was a bit unsure of how she should address another child her age, as it was her first time interacting face to face with one of her peers. The young boy smiled, with an angelic expression.

“Thank you, my Lady.”

Milena couldn’t help but observe him as he took the book and read the back cover. He seemed just a bit older than her. He was wearing a white and gold ensemble that shined along with his golden hair. She thought he looked like one of those paintings of characters, a bit too perfect to be real. Noticing that she had been watching him all along, he bowed politely.

“Excuse me for not introducing myself properly, my Lady. I am Ellias de Solar.”

She was speechless. That was the name of the Royal Family!