Timothy… Timothy… Please save me, Timothy…

"Allison!" William shouted and woke up to see himself on his bed. He breathed heavily, gasping for air like had just woken up from a nightmare.

"I'm… at home." William's heavy breathing slowly calmed down as he looked around and was sure he wasn't dreaming.

"Argh…" William groaned as he suddenly felt sharp pains all over his body.

He looked at his hands and was surprised to see that they were wrapped in silk and gauze used to cover injuries in this not-so-advanced era.

William stood up despite the pain and went to see himself in the mirror with torpid steps. His face, hands, and feet were covered with silk and gauze.

…I survived, didn't I? Contrary to the joyous reaction expected from surviving such an ordeal, all that was written on William's face was utter disgust as he stared at himself in the mirror.

…It seems like I was caught up in a fire or so. Well, who cares anyway? I'm still alive and that's enough. I'm tired of playing this isekai sh*t. This is the second time someone has tried to kill me in this world. I want to say "this is now serious", but that would mean I haven't been serious this whole time. And sadly, it's true. I haven't been serious until now.

After a few seconds of deep thought, William didn't hesitate to start removing the silk and gauze off his face.

"Don't remove them." The old and grainy voice belonging to Viscount Maxton came from the couch on the left side of the room.

"Father… What happened to me?" William touched his face in the mirror with shaking eyes ready to deny the truth that he will be disfigured for the rest of his life.

Viscount Maxton stood up from the couch and went over to William and helped him sit on the bed, "You should rest, for now, Liam. You have been unconscious for 5 days now."

William grabbed his father's arm and said with a determined look in his eyes, "Father, I need you to teach me the sword."

A slight shock appeared on Viscount Maxton's face, "You were in the middle of an explosion that crumbled the buildings in the vicinity. Selene, she was in the area and went to check what was and found you lying in an alley, all burnt. She quickly brought you back and you were treated."

…Wait, she just 'happened' to be in the area? I highly doubt it. More importantly…

"How many… How many casualties are there?"

Viscount Maxton sat beside William on the bed, "Surprisingly, just one man other than you was found in the alley. Now, tell me, what were you doing at Cottonshire, Liam. That was not the way home."

…Did the vampire self-destruct to kill us both? But I was already as good as dead, wasn't I? So why would he try to self-destruct? Unless someone came and the option he was left with was to commit suicide. Selene, she should know what really happened…

William seemed absent-minded. He tried closing his hand but felt sharp pains. He repeated this action before he tightened his fist and answered, "Father, the last thing I remember is experiencing my death at the hands of a man, no… a vampire."

"A vampire?"

"He said he was sent to assassinate me because I…"

William's brain quickly spun …Wait, if I tell him it's because I'm of royal blood it'll guarantee me the swordsmanship training compared to saying it's because I'm the son of a viscount. If he thinks someone with ill intentions knows the truth about my heritage then the seriousness of this issue increases tremendously…

He finished the sentence, saying, "...was the son of a very important person to the empire."

"Hmm…" Viscount Maxton placed his hand under his chin and thought for a few minutes before he asked, "Did he say anything else?"

"No, Father."

"...Very well then. I will teach you the basics."

"Father, I need more than the basics."

Viscount Maxton smiled, "The basics of my swordsmanship are more than enough to defeat measly vampires."

Knock knock knock… Selene announced her entrance before she came in and said, "Sir, a man by the name 'Reiss Thorne' is here to see you. He says he's a special agent from Denvern Police. I led him to the meeting room."

"Tell him I shall be with him shortly." Viscount Maxton said then turned to William, patted him on the head, and followed Selene out the door.

…So now the police are involved in this? They must have come to interrogate me, but I'm sure father will handle it. I swear I'll find the people that sent that vampire to kill my mother and the one that targeted my life. I'll make you all pay… William thought to himself and laid back down on the bed, thinking about the next step he should take in the meantime.

…

Selene was walking behind Viscount Maxton down the corridor with one hand over the other in a ladylike manner.

Selene spoke up, "His body was burnt beyond recognition but he can move in only five days. Surely you don't think this is normal."

"There is a reason for everything. I'm sure I will get the answers to what I seek." Viscount Maxton said.

Selene stopped walking and said spitefully, "Why? How many times do I have to tell you he's fooling you?"

Viscount Maxton didn't mind her and said with full confidence, "I trust my son."

Viscount Maxton got to the meeting room and saw a middle-aged man with blonde hair, wearing a brown formal attire with a teacup in his hand.

The man dropped the teacup on the table in front of him then stood up and turned back to see Viscount Maxton, "I never knew you had such few maids, Count Walter. Care to properly introduce me to the one that just left here?"

Viscount Maxton smiled weakly and shook the man's hand as he said, "I am just a Viscount, not a Duke, Commander Thorne. And I advise you to stay away from that one, she gets angry very easily."

"Haha, those types are the ones I love the most. Who knows, she might finally make me settle down." Commander Thorne sat back down and Viscount Maxton sat at the opposite side of the desk.

"I'm sure you didn't come all the way here to talk about frivolities, did you?" Viscount Maxton rested his back on the chair and crossed his leg.

Commander Thorne sighed, "The city is restless because of the missing children. We've been busy stopping riots and protests and also chasing leads but they all stop at a dead-end."

"Hmm, it's sad, but we both know none of that is of my concern, Commander Thorne. So why don't we get to why you're here?"

"My goodness, still as dense as usual and straight to the point," Commander Thorne's face stoned up and he continued, "The report has come. The body belonged to a vampire. The explosion five days ago was capable of turning the whole of Cottonshire to ashes but we're lucky only a few buildings were affected."

Viscount Maxton nodded, "So you're informing me that M21 will look into this matter."

"Yes. And you know how they do their things. An explosion of this level could only be caused by military artillery or…"

"A witch." Viscount Maxton said in all seriousness.

"A dangerous one to be exact."

❈❈❈

Right when Viscount Maxton entered the meeting room, William went out of his room to see Selene standing still in the middle of the hallway with tightened fists.

…She should know what really happened after I passed out… William went over to Selene and said after greeting her, "Please can you tell me what exactly happened when you saved me?"

She turned at stared at him with hostility, "So you will do what with it? You think you can fool everyone, acting like you don't know anything. Your tricks won't work on me."

William was dumbfounded. What was this lady saying? He spoke, "I don't understand. What are you talking about?"

She immediately grabbed William by the neck and asked, "If I didn't stop you do you know how many lives you would've taken?"

She tightened her grip around his neck and declared, "I swear if anything happens to him because of you, I swear you will face my wrath. You demon."