Ascendant Path of a Lustful Vampire

Chapter 226: Standard procedure

By the end of Alchemy class, Caius still hadn’t given Aylin an actual answer to the question she asked besides telling her she needed to do more.

Besides the commotion with Kaya’s work and the tube shattering before that, the experiments largely went well. Most failed in actually creating the proper solutions but at least their kits didn’t explode.

”Come on,” Caius said to Aylin when the rest of the class was starting to gather up their things.

”Where are we going?” Aylin asked with her eyes wide and a suggestive smile on her face.

”Get your mind out of the gutter,” Caius said with a little laugh, ”We’re going to speak with the Professor.”

”Oh,” Aylin said and paused, not knowing how to respond until she eventually said, ”I see...”

”I’m sure you’d get around to it eventually but maybe we could speed it along. The weekend will afford you time to really take in whatever knowledge you happen to gain,” Caius said.

That was really his intention with this. At least, somewhat. On a deeper level, Caius saw Aylin in a different light than he had so far.

At first, she was mostly just a girl he knew would certainly be devoted to him no matter what especially if he fostered that affection within her. Shallow as it might sound, he had mostly just seen her as an easy mark to add to his hopefully growing array of women to feed on. Hell, he would have sealed the deal already if he weren’t so specific about cultivating her ability to cooperate with and tolerate others.

Now, this was not to say Blood was all Aylin had to offer. She also had her family’s name and the title of future leader of said family to sweeten the deal. Such a title was something Caius himself wasn’t even privy to.

Caius was sure to inherit his father’s Noble Title (which was that of a Count at the moment) as well as all his father had to his name which included the Estate and the Hellsingers, but he wasn’t really in line to be the head of every Von Helsing in the Acheron Empire. This was because his father wasn’t the current head of the extended family. That title belonged to Lucian’s older brother.

But we digress.

Anyway, the other benefits Aylin could offer were more in the future capacity. They were not even boons she had access to at the moment, but this— Alchemy was a benefit that could bear a much quicker result.

Arlette herself had attested to Aylin showing promise in Alchemy a few weeks ago when the class was tasked with experimentation and from what Aylin said, that remark had only blossomed during the one talk they had had so far.

Caius decided he wanted to foster that.

In the original story, Aylin must have lost interest in Alchemy and the fact that the loss of interest happened after her not getting a meeting with Arlette showed how fickle her interests were. Hell, a new Professor took over after Arlette ’departed’ and that somehow didn’t reignite her interest.

In other words, while she had glowing remarks for Arlette and seemed to admire the Professor, if care wasn’t taken, Aylin could drop the subject as she did in the original story.

Caius would have thought that was not high in possibility because of him but the original story proved that wrong.

Caius Von Helsing studied Alchemy in [To Kill A Demon Lord...] and that had not been enough to keep Aylin’s Alchemical furnace burning so to speak despite how much she desired him.

All in all, that interest in Alchemy could be easily snuffed out. But Caius was interested in what could be if it were nurtured instead of neglected.

With a gesture, he caught Arlette’s eyes and got her to hang back before she left for her office.

With that, he walked to the front of the class with Aylin following close behind.

”Professor,” Caius greeted like a dutiful student.

”Mr. Von Helsing,” Arlette responded, and instantly felt she should have just called him by his name. Saying his last name sounded a bit forced. Which it was since she was merely trying to keep up appearances.

Arlette directed her eyes to Aylin then and the perfect-faced beauty didn’t seem to have caught anything. She seemed more focused on not looking nervous and trying to tell herself she was silly for even being nervous.

”Ms. Khione,” Arlette said gently, and then looked between Caius and Aylin waiting for one of them to explain why they approached her together. This was very rare. Caius usually came to her alone.

Caius looked at Aylin and gestured with his head. He may have ’brought’ her here but didn’t think he should be the one to voice the request himself.

Aylin frowned at him like she was telling him she hadn’t been ready when he ’forced’ her here. And then she looked at Arlette who was still looking at her expectantly and managed an awkward smile.

”Professor, I was thinking we could continue the conversation we were having a couple of weeks ago,” she said.

”Oh?” Arlette said taken aback as to why such a simple and natural request seemed so difficult to get out,

”Of course, of course. Do you have a date in mind?”

”Today,” Caius cut in to say then. Aylin had made the request herself, so he could at least suggest the time.

”Today?” Aylin said and looked to the side at him.

”Today,” Caius said easily with a nod and a smile.

Aylin eyed him for a few seconds and then turned her icy blue eyes back on Arlette,

”Today, Professor,” she said and hastily added, ”If you don’t mind.”

”Certainly not, dear,” Arlette said, and with a wave of her hand, she summoned the portal Gate,

”Head right in. I’ll be with you shortly.”

Aylin nodded and gave Caius one last look, one stuck between gratitude and surprise at this turn of events and then she walked through the portal. It stayed and continued to swirl with magical energy while Arlette cast her eyes all about the classroom.

The students had walked out already, except for a trio of ladies who started right where they were and seemed not quite in a hurry to leave as the rest of their classmates had been. The trio was of course Delia, Kaya, and Eloise. Caius didn’t even have to look back to know they were there waiting for him.

”What was that about?” Arlette asked Caius when she was done roaming the classroom with her eyes so she could look directly into her lover’s face.

”Oh, I’m sure she’ll tell you all about it,” Caius said with a gentle wave and a head gesture toward the still-open portal Gate before he then continued,

”And next time, I’ll make up for missing out on today’s meeting.”

That was probably the one loss of getting Aylin to meet Arlette today.

”Be my guest,” Arlette said with a little laugh and then she paused before she added in a more somber tone,

”I’m leaving the Academy.”

At first, Caius heard it as a definite but then his brain corrected such a notion so he knew just the right question to ask.

”For how long?”

”Not entirely sure,” Arlette said, still somber, and then she reduced her voice to a whisper even Caius—standing right in front of her—had to strain his ears to hear,

”If I’m to receive the ’thing’, I must leave the environs of Lochxen entirely and take a few precautions as well. It’s standard procedure really.

Just thought you should know.”