— No, Your Grace, they are not in any danger.
— What could threaten a dozen paladins? If necessary, they will cut down all the bandits, — Captain Vilor, who had been silent until now, dared to voice his opinion.
— But they won't do that, will they? — The Duchess looked at the vampire with some anxiety. Having heard about the suffering her sister endured before her death, the woman was determined not to let the scoundrels die an easy death from steel or magic. They should be tormented by the executioner for several days.
— No, Your Grace, they are only ordered to conduct reconnaissance.
— Excellent. Captain Vilor, proceed to Daer with your men and bring those creatures back here alive.
The man who received the order simply raised his eyes to the sky but remained stoically silent. Although, with some feminine intuition, the Duchess sensed his displeasure with the order and coldly inquired about what had happened.
— Your Grace. I want to remind you that I serve your son and have duties in the capital. I am sorry for your sister, and I would like to handle this matter personally, but I will send my deputy and a hundred of my men to Daer.
— That's not enough, — the woman flared up and even jumped up from her chair. — I need them alive.
— With all due respect, Your Grace, it is impossible to capture them all alive. And I cannot allocate more than a hundred men. There are other places where their presence is urgently needed right now. Sir Blood's men will easily find the bandits, and we will try to capture as many alive as possible for a thorough interrogation by the executioner, — the captain remained firm, showing his character.
The Duchess chose not to escalate the situation and turned her gaze to the vampire.
— Will you go there, sir, or will you issue a written order to your men?
— My men will only follow my personal instructions, — Alexander bowed.
— Everything is different with your mages than with regular people.
"If only you knew, dear, that we are vampires!"
— That's the way it is, Your Grace.
— I don't know the customs of your magical orders, but I will be grateful for the assistance.
— We will easily find the bandits, and if you entrust me with commanding the squad, I can promise that most of them will arrive in the capital alive.
The last statement caused an indescribable play of emotions on the captain's face, but he did not risk voicing them. The Duchess, on the other hand, stared at the vampire for a long time.
— Very well, — she finally spoke. — Captain, place a hundred of your men under Sir Blood's command.
When the guests left the room that Alexander was renting at the inn and took the witness with them, he sighed with relief and sat in the still-warm chair from the Duchess's presence.
— Such discussions are more exhausting than battles, — the triumvir complained to the gendarme.
At that moment, the door swung open without knocking, and a second gendarme, who had been stationed in the inn hall to monitor the situation, appeared.
— A Valerian merchant with his clerk and bodyguard has just checked into the rooms, — he announced immediately.
— What are they doing here? That's so far... Damn it! I need their blood!
The gendarme with a satisfied look took out a flask and shook it in the air.
— Already done. The bodyguard briefly lost consciousness while handling the horses and generously shared his blood, — he said with a joyful smile.
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