The manager came back after a couple of minutes, after hearing that he wanted to leave.
” Sir, is there anything not to your liking ?” Asked the manager.
” No, I came here to taste blood, not women,” Keith replied to the manager.
” Then, I must apologize. I thought you might like the services here.” The manager looked at him with a sorry face.
” It’s fine, I got what I came here for anyway. Here…” Keith put 100 gold-blood coins on the table.
” Sir, if you ever wish to come back, we will give you your desired blood, and your order will take priority over everyone else.” The manager said enthusiastically.
” Hmm… Then, can you arrange baron level blood for me?”
” … Err, this is out of our reach..”
” Then it’s fine, I don’t want to waste my money on weakling vampire blood.”
” …” The manager was silent for a moment.
” If you want to get baron level blood, there is a place I can recommend to you.” The manager said while hesitating.
” And, that place is ?”
” There is an underground colosseum that runs tournaments every fortnight. It is a place hidden from the royal court, but more like, a lot of high level supporters are backing it, so it hasn’t been seized yet. The tournaments typically don’t involve deathmatches, unless they are convicts, who are brought there for deathmatches. Some powerful person must be pulling strings to smuggle those convicts to the colosseum.”
” So it’s like entertainment for nobles.”
” Close enough. Here they train their private guards. They also keep the enemy in check. But the profits of that place are very high, as all the guests are really high-class nobles.”
” So how can I get the high-level vampire blood again ?” Keith asked the main point.
” Sir, if you can win a match there, they will comply with your request, if that is equivalent to the winning prize. This is a gamble since most of them accept gold-blood coins as compensation instead.”
” Hmm, so If I beat a baron level vampire, I can ask for the blood.”
” Yes, most likely they will collect the blood from the defeated one. But you have to declare your compensation and let the opponent agree first. And, you can not take more than two glasses of blood. As any more will seriously weaken the vampire. ” The manager nodded.
” Hmm… I see. Keith stroked his chin.
” Good, I think I will have to visit that place. Do you know when the next tournament starts ?” Keith took out ten gold-blood coins and handed it to him. He got a great deal of information this time. It can really help him get the high level vampire blood.
” It will be held in ten days, the location, well… nobody really knows. Every participant is taken there with a blindfold on. The officials will come and fetch you from a certain place. You just have to be prepared and present at that place, at the given time.”
” Alright, I will come here later, so you better prepare everything for me.”
” Rest assured, sir. I will arrange everything.”
Keith nodded in satisfaction. After that, the manager led him outside to see him off. Keith left the shop and followed the way he came here. After reaching the curved road, he entered the blood forest and came back to the cliff.
He used his legs to propel him upwards as he placed his hands in the broken rocks. He then repeated the move and hopped from one crack to another. After a while, he reached the top. He jumped from the other side and landed inside the garden. Going through the garden, he didn’t find anyone. He then jumped to his window and entered his room.
*KYAAAA*
Keith heard a loud voice. He turned his head and saw that Rena was standing inside the room holding a tray.
” What are you doing here ?” Keith asked her unconsciously, later realizing what it was, after seeing the tray on her hand.
” I… I brought…”
” Just put it on the table,” Keith said to her.
” Yes, young master.” She put the glass of blood on the table and turned around to leave.
” So you are eating properly right ?” Keith asked out of curiosity.
” Mhmm… I cooked meat yesterday. This was my first time cooking meat, still, it was good.” She smiles while remembering her meal last night.
” Good, keep it up. I don’t want you to stay weak. You will be the maid of the future count after all. You will have to do more in the future.”
” Yes, I want to be useful to you, young master. I am learning all the other chores diligently.”
She said enthusiastically.
” Good to hear that you are taking this seriously.”
” Errr… if young master prefers my blood, I am willing to..” Before she could finish her sentence, Keith cut her off.
” You don’t have to worry about that. Just focus on your diet, I will call you when I need your blood. Now go.”
” …Yes, young master.” She bowed her head.
After she left the room and closed the door, Keith sat on his bed. He absorbed the blood essence directly into his blood core, so he needed to circulate the blood qi to consolidate the entire system. The blood core suddenly got energy, but the rest of the body hasn’t circulated the energy.
He focused his mind on the blood core and circulated his blood qi from his blood core to his entire body. Even though the power increased slightly, he could feel his muscles getting firmer. He circulated blood qi for several hours until he heard a knock.
” Did grandpa summon me ?” Keith asked from inside.
” Yes, young master,” Rena replied from the outside.
” Alright.”
Keith got up from his bed and wore a formal suit. He will be learning all about the responsibilities of the count, and many things. He knew that his grandpa wanted to tell him a lot of things before, but due to the final declaration, which was not passed, he kept it from him until now. After he officially received the count title, he was eligible to learn all about the family secrets. He wondered what could be so secretive that his grandpa didn’t tell him. Most of the things were common knowledge, so he was eager to find out what was in store for him.