"Are you the half-blood dog named Azu?" One of the vampires clad in dark silver Armor asked as he stopped Azu from stepping inside the palace grounds.
"I can't believe he had the nerve to come here," Another vampire guard mocked as he looked at Azu with pure contempt.
"What makes him think that we won't cut down the son of a traitor right here and now? He deserves the worst punishment possible for even dreaming of courting our princess," Another vampire guard said with a sneer as he stepped forward, while more of his fellow guards also joined with condescending looks.
Meanwhile, a few minutes ago, inside the palace, a middle-aged vampire with crimson eyes was sitting on a large icy throne.
The middle-aged vampire was none other than the feared and respected Frost King, the ruler of the Frozenblood Kingdom.
His face and bearings gave off a majestic aura, while his exquisite silver robes only added to his noble grace.
But his expression seemed serious as he looked at his important guests.
A couple of vampires were seated while a few were standing behind those seated in the throne hall.
There were two vampires seated on the guest chairs while their guards stood beside them with expressionless faces.
The older one with a thick gray mustache was wearing grand dark red robes and had an aloof yet grumpy look, seemingly angry about something.
His name was Lauden Frey, the head of the strongest branch family of the Frozenblood bloodline.
The other one was a tall, handsome vampire. He was looking in his late mid-twenties and was dressed in extravagant dark red robes with dark golden patterns along the ends of the fabric.
He had a charming, confident smile as he looked at the middle-aged vampire sitting on the large icy throne.
He was Draven Frey, eldest son of Lauden and the most eligible bachelor in the kingdom. He was well renowned even outside his kingdom due to his great exploits and achievements.
Most were even talking about how he might be the next Frost King despite being from a branch family.
Unfortunately, the Frost King only had a daughter, and due to bloodline constraints, he wasn't able to produce an heir.
Still, people weren't that worried as, over the years, all of them witnessed how beautiful, gifted and talented their princess was.
Surely, someone like her would definitely attract the strongest vampire in their kingdom, and the Frost King wouldn't even have to worry about having an heir.
Of course, the Frost King was okay with how everything was going until that day when his daughter did something stupid he could never fix.
"Your Majesty, are you really serious about this? Making my son battle some weak half-blood dog and that too the son of that traitorous bitch? If the respected elders hear about this, they might not like this," Lauden said as he firmly gripped the armrest. When he said 'traitorous bitch' his eyes shone with a bitter light.
The Frost King subtly frowned, especially when he understood the subtle threat in Lauren's words about the elders.
"I told you before, Lauden. My daughter is the most gifted woman in our kingdom, and as her father, it is only natural that I want a worthy son-in-law for her, someone strong enough to take care of her even if the heavens were to fall on us. This is my daughter's wish as well. But that doesn't mean I doubt your son's ability. Instead, I am giving your son the opportunity to show everyone how worthy he is and quell any unscrupulous rumors. The respected elders also agree with my point," The Frost King said with a firm expression.
Lauden squinted his eyes as he felt that something felt off and didn't feel fully convinced. His spies had already told him certain information regarding the princess and the half-blood boy, but for the sake of his own and his son's face, he can't even mention it, and the Frost King knows this.
The Frost King added, "Anyway, why does it matter if the challenger is a dog or a bird if your son will win anyway? I know how fond of my daughter Draven is, and I am sure she knows it as well."
Draven smiled as he said, "It's alright, Your Majesty. I knew she would change my life the day we met as kids, and later on, I realized she was the only one for me, even though my father had offered me so many women to choose from. But none of them were even worth a fraction of your daughter's grace. So I don't care if I have to defeat a half-blood or even a hundred of them as long as I can prove to her how much I love her. Talking about it, where is she? I would prefer it if she could witness my battle."
The Frost King narrowed his eyes and said, "Of course, she will be there. Why don't you all take a seat in the arena, and I will come there with my daughter," Saying so, the Frost King got up and left.
The moment he was out of the throne hall, Lauden looked at his son and said, "Draven, you make sure you crush that half-blood dog to a bloody pulp. I want you to give him the most miserable death possible."
Draven smirked as he said, "You didn't even have to mention it, father," His smile became cold as he continued, "He dared to court my woman, so it is only natural he realizes how puny and pathetic he is under my foot. But father…the reason you seem so pissed off about him, is it because the traitor, his mother, was once your fiance?" He asked casually
"Draven…don't you ever mention her name to me. You understood?" Lauden asked sternly.
Draven cleared his throat, not expecting his father to still be so bitter about it, and said, "Sorry, father. It won't happen again."
"Good. Now you do what you have to do so that you won't suffer the same fate I did," Lauden said as he inwardly cursed that woman and the werewolf who stole her away.
