Chapter 349 – Your Blood Is So Sweet – Sowing Discord (15)
The results of the investigation were exactly as Butler Norman had expected: the duke’s ancient castle was completely empty. Not only was the coffin vacant, but even the butler and servants had disappeared.
No wonder no one had been coming or going. They had assumed everyone was accompanying Duke Adams in his slumber—when in fact, they had all moved out together.
The vampire clan was now under Bai Tang’s command. Any vampire who planned to travel far was required to report to him in advance. Yet Duke Adams had never mentioned anything to Bai Tang. Even sending a bat to report his whereabouts wouldn’t have been difficult. Since he didn’t explain anything, it meant he refused to.
Butler Norman let out a cold laugh. He wanted to see just how capable Duke Adams was—capable enough to drag His Highness the Prince down from his supreme throne?
Edith’s mission was to drive a wedge between Trey and Bai Tang, sending Trey away at the right moment.
According to Duke Adams, the current ruler of the vampires—Prince Tang—had awakened less than half a year ago. In the human world, he would still be a snot-nosed boy. Despite his great power, his lack of experience and limited exposure were his biggest shortcomings. In addition to the primary task he shared with Duke Adams, the Pope had assigned Edith another crucial mission: to gain the vampire prince’s trust and extract the clan’s weaknesses from him—for example, how to completely eradicate the vampires.
In the partnership between the Pope and Duke Adams, the latter always held the advantage. Duke Adams never treated the Pope with courtesy, replying only with sarcasm and mockery. The Pope had long grown tired of it. If not for his obsession with the legacy of the vampire race, he would have stopped tolerating Duke Adams long ago.
But wanting to kill a vampire duke and actually being able to do it were two different matters. With his current power, he couldn’t manage it yet.
Thus, he sent Edith to uncover the vampires’ weaknesses. In his eyes, a young man inexperienced in the ways of the world was the easiest to deceive. Since Edith already knew Trey, he wouldn’t be too guarded around her. Her beauty and talent were her most effective weapons.
The Pope’s calculations were flawless. If it were the original vampire prince, Edith would certainly succeed.
But he failed to account for the greatest variable—the prince he most looked down upon.
Bai Tang was not the ignorant fool from the original story. With two systems protecting him, Trey guarding him, and Butler Norman watching over everything, Bai Tang had no need to worry about clan affairs or his own safety. And even if he somehow fell into a trap, Tangtang wasn’t a squirrel raised on pine nuts alone—this little squirrel had more than enough strength of his own.
Life passed calmly and unhurriedly. Edith had more or less settled into the prince’s castle and essentially become the household nanny.
Of course, she didn’t have to do heavy chores. Her daily tasks were watering flowers, airing blankets, and similar things. The leisurely days almost made her forget why she had infiltrated the prince’s castle in the first place.
Until one night, when she was preparing to go to bed, someone tapped on her window from outside.
Edith opened the window and leaned out to look.
There was no one there.
Just as she thought she had misheard and was about to close the window, she glanced down—and saw a slip of paper placed on the windowsill by someone unknown.
Her heartbeat suddenly quickened. She looked around cautiously.
The dark forest seemed to hide countless dangers, and the constant chirping of insects only made her more anxious.
She picked up the slip of paper and closed the window, then slowly unfolded it under the candlelight.
“Edith, you’ve infiltrated the castle for half a month now. Have you obtained any useful information?
Before dusk tomorrow, place your reply in the round stone crevice by the pond in front of the castle.
—Haus Ivan.”
The signature was unfamiliar, but Edith thought hard and finally remembered—it was the Pope’s real name. People were so used to calling him “the Pope” that his given name had gradually been forgotten.
During her half-month stay in the castle, Bai Tang had treated her quite well. Even Butler Norman, who always wore a perpetual scowl, never mistreated her in daily life. And after she learned of the new decrees Bai Tang had issued for the vampire clan, her goodwill toward him had only skyrocketed.
Expecting vampires not to drink blood was impossible—essentially a death sentence. The fact that the vampire clan could now coexist peacefully with humans already made her very satisfied.
But the current situation troubled her. Living in the castle, she naturally learned some things even without trying to curry favor. Yet those things were…
During dinner, Edith absentmindedly poked at the steak on her plate. Across from her was Butler Norman, whose expression was as dark as a burnt pot. And across from him sat Bai Tang and Trey, who couldn’t stop showing affection even while eating.
“I’m full. You eat too~” Bai Tang said, spearing a piece of steak and holding it up to Trey’s lips.
Trey didn’t mind that Bai Tang had used the same fork. He leaned in and ate it straight from Bai Tang’s hand, smiling. “Delicious.”
Butler Norman’s face was turning as black as a crow’s feathers. Edith sighed softly—she really didn’t want to ruin this warm, harmonious family scene.
But Norman was furious. He had been so cautious, yet he hadn’t expected this pretty-faced brat to be so sly. True, the little girl wasn’t Bai Tang’s lover—but she was a smokescreen, used to divert his attention. And he had completely fallen for it, letting that pretty boy get the upper hand.
His soft, fair, innocent prince had been tricked right into that pretty boy’s hands.
What angered him most was that His Highness the Prince was the bottom. Outrageous.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. Unable to control himself, he slammed his hand down and cracked the table.
All three were startled. Bai Tang looked at him with wide, soft eyes and asked, “Butler Norman, are you okay? Does your hand hurt?”
Faced with the prince’s concern, Butler Norman felt soothed despite himself.
He bowed respectfully. “Your subordinate is fine. Forgive me for disturbing Your Highness’s meal.”
“Good, as long as you’re not hurt. The table doesn’t matter—people are more important.”
In Bai Tang’s mind, Butler Norman might not be as important as Trey, but he was still far more important than a table. Even the ancient castle itself couldn’t compare.
A warm feeling spread in Butler Norman’s chest. To be cared for by one’s master was the greatest honor for any subordinate.
Edith hesitated for a long time but ultimately didn’t write a reply.
Before long, a bat flew in from outside and landed steadily on the dining table.
As Butler Norman communicated with the bat, his expression gradually darkened.
“I understand.”
The little bat flapped its wings and flew off. Butler Norman said, “Many people in the city have died. Their blood was completely drained. And beside the corpses, the unique mark of His Highness the Prince was left behind.”
Bai Tang’s face fell instantly.
“This is a setup! It has to be!” Qiu’er fumed.
“Qiu’er, don’t be angry. This kind of trap is far too crude. The host and the male lead will figure it out,” Xiao A said, trying to calm Qiu’er and urging him to wait and hear what the male lead had to say.
Of all people, Trey knew Bai Tang’s movements best.
The little squirrel stayed with him every day and drank only his blood. It was impossible for him to sneak out and drink anyone else’s.
“To drink blood, then leave a mark beside the victim… this is clearly meant to turn hatred toward Tang Tang,” Trey said.
“The one behind this must be Duke Adams. Bai Tang hasn’t gone out at all these days—Duke Adams must be running out of patience.”
Edith revealed the incident of the note delivered to her, though she didn’t show the actual slip of paper. After all, its contents didn’t fully match what she claimed.
As the Holy Maiden of the Church, she still wanted to preserve some dignity for them.
Although they knew Bai Tang wasn’t responsible, humans didn’t. And with the Church’s propaganda, people would only believe the Church—and redirect all suspicion onto Bai Tang.
Rumors, repeated often enough, could kill. Even if the vampires didn’t believe it at first, the more they heard it, the more doubt would grow, eventually leading them to question Bai Tang’s ability to rule.
Why should he forbid vampires from draining humans dry, yet secretly drink blood himself?
Unfairness breeds anger. And anger leads to violence.
If the prince lost his throne, the one who benefited most would undoubtedly be Duke Adams.
Once they sorted out the clues, everything became clear.
Xiao A had spent half a month thinking and had devised a plan targeting Duke Adams. He explained the plan to Bai Tang, who nodded repeatedly as he listened.
“Tang Tang, what’s wrong?” Trey, who was always watching Bai Tang closely, immediately noticed something was off.
“Duke Adams has tried to target me again and again. I’m not that easy to bully. I’ve come up with a plan—listen to this…”
The more they listened, the brighter everyone’s eyes became. Butler Norman looked at Bai Tang with admiration, Edith couldn’t help but feel impressed, and Trey smiled as he gently patted Bai Tang’s head.
“Tang Tang is amazing.”
Butler Norman felt sincerely relieved. His Highness the Prince truly was clever. After this incident, let’s see who would still dare cause trouble for him.
Trey then turned to Edith.
“Just follow the Pope’s instructions. Whenever he sends you a letter, you send one back.”
“Huh?” Edith blinked in confusion. What was she supposed to write—Bai Tang and Trey’s loving daily interactions? The Pope would probably die of fury trying to strangle Trey first.
Trey smiled calmly.
“Just write some secrets about the vampire nobles. For example, Duke Adams’ ‘heroic past.’ I’m sure the Pope will be very interested.”
Knowing the Pope well, Trey understood that someone as ambitious as him would never willingly submit to anyone. Likewise, Duke Adams—who had ruled the vampire clan for centuries—would never bow to a human he looked down upon.
A classic dog-eat-dog scenario. Used correctly, it never goes out of style.
Now that they were on the same front, Butler Norman fully trusted Trey.
He said, “From now on, every night, I’ll tell you something about Duke Adams.”
Among those present, Butler Norman knew the most secrets about the various vampire dukes, earls, and viscounts.
“Alright,” Edith agreed readily. She had only been in the castle for half a month. If her very first report were to perfectly detail the vampires’ weaknesses, that would be suspicious. Instead, she would write things that seemed trivial but would serve as leverage against Duke Adams from the Pope’s perspective. That way, she wouldn’t appear incompetent.
And so, everyone split up to play their part, weaving a vast net—waiting for Duke Adams to fall into the trap.
With the help of the two systems, Bai Tang modified the emblem that belonged to the vampire prince.
Every prince could alter the design of the personal emblem—but only if his power surpassed the legacy left behind by the previous prince.
In the entire history of the vampire clan, the last prince capable of altering the emblem was five generations before Bai Tang. The difficulty of such a breakthrough could be imagined.
After changing the emblem, the two systems tampered with it further, pushing the modification timestamp back—placing it before the blood-draining incidents.
Duke Adams was still using the original emblem. Bai Tang had effectively severed his attempt to sow discord between the clan and their prince.
Author’s Note :
Xiao A: I finally get to be useful for once. It wasn’t easy!