Chapter 3

Cassia’s Pov

We were finishing the dressing of the brunch table for the royals when the doors burst open, and a shrill female voice rang out, “What do you mean he’s not coming down? How long will he ignore the issue of his dead brother?”

The maids and I immediately formed the "courtesy formation." I remembered learning that this was a sign of respect for high-ranking officials or royalty—positioning ourselves at the edges of the room, either individually or together.

It wasn’t hard to distinguish the full hybrid royalty from their cousins. Their strides and auras were thick and effortless, and their beauty was striking. I obviously couldn’t gawk at them, but a careful glance confirmed it.

Thankfully, I was just wall decor until the king arrived—or didn’t, as it seemed he might not show up. The hybrid killer was truly disturbing them, especially the loud woman, who seemed to be the king’s aunt.

“Calm down, Aunt Viktoria. I’ve spoken to Landon. He’ll convince him,” a female voice said softly.

“Or help him escape this meeting,” another woman added, before turning to us, “You there! Why is this tea cold?”

How would she know that? Nobody was touching the food or drinking anything… maybe until the king arrived. A senior maid moved to retrieve the kettle, mumbling apologies. “I’m sorry, Your Grace. I’ll heat it up.”

“Why would the king need to escape, Veronika?” The male hybrid sibling asked.

“Maybe because he doesn’t have any leads on the case,” a blonde guy spoke up, reaching for the bread plate.

“Maxim! Don’t disrespect your king,” the soft spoken lady- must be the female hybrid sibling, scolded causing him to retract his hand.

“For royal sake, the king must do something about this. He hasn’t said a word or given any orders to find this hybrid killer. Did he tell you something, Prince Leo? You are his friend after all.” Lady Viktoria asked a white-haired guy.

Gosh, I was risking my neck for this gossip. If I got caught trying to glimpse at them, it wouldn’t end well. But they were so beautiful—so unreal. The bright white-haired guy was obviously a vampire, with his pale skin and exquisitely sculpted face. The fact that the king’s aunt referred to him with respect indicated he was a royal in his own right.

“We haven’t had time to discuss anything, Lady Viktoria,” Leo replied.

Veronika spoke up again, “The life of the royal family could be at stake, and there’s no improvement in the security details or any movement to apprehend the killer. That’s crazy.”

“I think you’re forgetting that it’s not just the royal family that’s at risk here. Other beings could be, including humans,” Leo replied, smiling in a way that clearly ticked Lady Viktoria off.

“Your Grace,” she drawled with fake sweetness, “you forget that the spike used to hook Prince Samyl’s head to the wall had the crest of the Alderan royal family.” The purple tulip and a moon.

She didn’t stop there. At some point, I zoned out of her rant until her tone increased, was that worry?

“I understand that you can’t be bothered as you’re not of this kingdom, but that kind of kill is a direct message to us of the direct line to the throne and even—”

“We?”

A new voice said from outside. The doors opened, and I immediately recognized who had just entered. If I had thought the earlier hybrids oozed aura and ease, I was mistaken. Compared to this man, they were mid.

Everyone stood to pay their respects to this being in our midst, and I forced myself to stop gawking and bow low like the other servants.

“‘We,’ you say, dear aunt?” His serene, deep voice echoed as he sat, with another gorgeous and buff dark haired man next to him.

He looked tall and so fit, like he was in his thirties, but I knew he was way older than that.

“Careful now, or I might take it as an attempt to greedily tie yourself to my throne.” He gave a dangerous smirk before he continued,

“That would also mean you’re ignoring your marriage to the Duke of Naphtonile, which not only makes your family unworthy of being considered pure blood, but also removes you and your descendants from the line of succession.”

The white-haired prince and the buff guy smirked at Lady Viktoria’s scared and embarrassed expression.