Mage Slayer: Book Four of the Empress Saga

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

Having been an empress for little more than two months, Enfri didn't consider herself all that accustomed to the duties of a sovereign. Many aspects of the job remained difficult for the daughter of a village errand boy to get her head around. All that aside, there were parts she believed she was getting better at, even used to. One of those was having experienced and powerful men, who until recently had been so high above her in social status that they were hardly the same species, kneel before her and swear fealty. Prideful, perhaps, but Enfri had gotten used to that sooner than she expected.

And then, Enfri was confronted with her current situation, where she was reminded with devastating clarity that she was still just a village girl who had stumbled into her empire.

He must think me an utter wreck, she thought while her cheeks burned with shame.

Enfri didn't have a throne room to receive Lord Seifer the Nolaas. What she had instead was a little garden she'd chosen to tend in the early morning while the preparations to leave Sandharbor were handled. She didn't have one of her resplendent gowns, just a dingy cotton dress that might as well have been made from burlap for how common it was. Enfri's head was wrapped in a threadbare shawl, her fingernails had dirt under them, she was unbathed, ungroomed, and she could count the number of hours she'd slept the night before on one hand without running out of fingers.

And yet, Lord Seifer treated with her as if this was her best day for appearances.

It didn't help Enfri's composure at all that Lord Seifer was as lovely as his daughter. He was tall and fit with an athletic build, long and straight hair the color of snow, skin so pale as to appear deathly, an aristocratic jawline, and piercing red eyes. Dressed impeccably, Seifer had his top hat tucked under the crook of his arm along with a fashionable walking cane. His double-breasted blazer was pressed with an amount of lace just shy of being feminine. Rubies were set within his cufflinks and in the earrings hanging from his pierced ears. It was all but impossible to believe he was in the latter half of his fifties; Enfri would have put gold marks on him being no older than Ban.

He's not human, Sunny, Yora reminded her. He's a vampire, and they have longer lifespans than mortals. Or so the others tell me. Never met one that I know of.

Off to her side, Enfri noticed Kiffa doing her best to remain unnoticed. She was hardly able to even look in Lord Seifer's direction. In fact, just about everyone who was up and about at this hour was casting furtive glances his way. It didn't look like anyone was coming to rescue Enfri. Even Jin, returned from Deebee's lair late last evening, was no help at all.

Enfri cleared her throat. "Please forgive how unprepared we are. I'm currently without a scribe to document anything."

Lord Seifer inclined his head and gave a short bow from the waist. "Not at all, Your Majesty. It is clear that my arrival came in the midst of events of far greater importance. You have done me the greatest honor just by agreeing to hear my pledge, and all else may be seen to in due time."

"I do regret the circumstances, my lord. A family as old and respected as House Nolaas deserves better from me." She picked at some caked mud on her sleeve. "Winds take me, but I wouldn't blame you if you turned around and went back home."

Seifer put a hand over his heart as he performed the most refined fit of laughter Enfri had ever seen. His red eyes shone with amusement over a wide smile which revealed his fangs. "I confess, Your Majesty, that the state I have found you in has accomplished nothing but reinforce my convictions. It is refreshing beyond words to see one in power who knows how to get their hands dirty in the literal sense, not only the metaphorical."