The Night Belongs to the Moon | Taeyong

11 | Come Quickly, Taeil

'Shameless! Knocking on a girl's door after midnight,' Doyoung remarked when Jaehyun stepped inside Dal-ae's chamber, bringing with him the reek of blood.

'You are literally standing inside her room,' Jaehyun reminded him.

'I am here on orders.'

'What do you think I am here for...' Jaehyun said then turned to Taeyong, complaining, 'My Lord...'

'Doyoung.' Taeyong gave him a look making him bow.

'Sit down, Jaehyun. No, not here,' Taeyong immediately added when he saw Jaehyun sitting himself on Dal-ae's bed. 'Pull a chair.'

Jaehyun laughed, pulling himself and Doyoung two chairs to sit.

'Has Senior Taeil been intimated?' Taeyong asked.

'Yes, my Lord,' Jaehyun replied. 'He is going to come tomorrow morning with Mark.'

'Why is Senior Taeil coming?' Doyoung asked, taking a seat next to Jaehyun.

'We need his help,' Taeyong said. 'The guard is under a charm. It's the Aseclock charm.'

Doyoung's eyes widened. 'Aseclock? But this charm is so rare and requires a huge blood sacrifice to complete.'

Taeyong nodded. 'I know, but every time the guard tried to speak his lips sealed themselves into knots and his eyes glazed black. Even the tips of his fingers turned purple. It has to be the Aseclock charm. This is why we need Senior Taeil. There is nobody who can break it except the one who casted it but I am sure Senior Taeil must know a way.'

'Can't he come sooner then? Why wait till morning?' Doyoung said, looking anxious.

'It's late, let him rest. The morning is just a few hours,' Jaehyun said.

'I don't think we should delay it. We can send someone over to escort Senior Taeil.'

'I think you are worrying too much,' Dal-ae spoke for the first time in this discussion, her soft voice calming the rising tension in Doyoung. 'We are in the Night Mansion, the house of the Vampire Lord. There is nobody who can enter without permission. This is the safest place in the whole realm.'

'Yeah, what are you getting so paranoid over? The guard has been fed a tonic for his wounds. I saw to it myself. He'll be fine,' Jaehyun said, patting Doyoung on the shoulder.

Despite the placating words from Dal-ae and Jaehyun, it was only after Taeyong's gentle nod that made Doyoung agree.

'It is late, it's best we call it a night,' Taeyong said, rising from Dal-ae's bed. 'Jaehyun, I have asked a maid to prepare a room for you on this floor at the end of the hallway. I insist you stay the night.'

'Thank you, my Lord.' Jaehyun bowed.

'Sleep well, Dal-ae. You need not come to me early tomorrow morning, okay? I want you to rest,' Taeyong said then turned to Doyoung, 'Station a maid outside this chamber, in case Dal-ae needs something in the night.'

'Thank you, Master,' Dal-ae said, bowing her head and with this, the three took their leave.

𓆩 𓆪

The staff of the Night Mansion followed a strict schedule set by Doyoung – the heads of each department awoke before sunrise followed by the other members of the staff. But the one who woke up before everyone else in the Mansion was Doyoung.

In the earliest hours of the morning, Doyoung roamed the dark corridors of the Night Mansion to check for anything amiss and prepare for the day. It was then that he heard a harsh shriek which came from the dungeons and immediately rushed to the towers, where he found a shivering maid on the wet floor beside the lifeless body of the guard inside the interrogation cell.

Hearing the frightening scream of one of their own, it did not take the others long to descend the steps into the dungeon and crowd the already cramped space.

'What is the matter?' yelled Sunghyun, a member of the staff in the Night Mansion.

'There is no need to cause a commotion here,' Doyoung said evenly.

'It's the guard! The prisoner. He is dead!' wailed the maid who had found the body.

'A murder in the Lord's house?!' Sunghyun shrieked earning a gasp from everyone.

'Now, calm down everyone. There is no need for such exaggerated reactions,' Doyoung said and took off his jacket to wrap it around the shivering maid.

'Exaggerated reactions? There has been a murder. A MURDER! AND YOU ASK US TO CALM DOWN!' Sunghyun shouted.

'How are you so sure that the guard was murdered, my dear Sunghyun?' came a smooth voice not from the dungeon but from the steps behind the crowd.

'My Lord,' the staff said in unison and bowed their heads in greeting at the sight of Taeyong descending the steps with Jaehyun in tow.

'Hm?' Taeyong stopped in front of Sunghyun with his hands clasped behind his back. 'How did you deduce that this is a murder, Sunghyun?'

'I-I, my Lord, the maid was... I didn't mean to offend you, my Lord,' Sunghyun mumbled.

'And yet you have,' Taeyong snarled. 'Twice now. I expect better from my staff, especially from the ones who were here from the day this Mansion was built.'

'Sorry, my Lord,' Sunghyun said and fell to his knees in a kowtow. 'Please forgive me.'

Taeyong narrowed his eyes at the kneeling vampire and for a moment everyone thought that he was going to finish Sunghyun off today. But when he spoke, his tone was gentle, like an elder, 'Never cause unrest where it is not needed. It was your mistake and since you asked for forgiveness, I will give it to you this once. But this is your last warning.'

'Thank you, my Lord,' cried Sunghyun, touching Taeyong's feet in a desperate show of gratitude. 'Thank you for your mercy!'

'That's enough,' Taeyong said, sliding away, then turned to others, 'I assume you all have duties to take care of, please return to your stations.'

The vampires bowed once again to the Lord and exited the dungeon without another word.

'Jaehyun, if you would please, escort her to the doctor,' Taeyong said, helping the maid up who already seemed much better than before. Jaehyun gently held her hand to help her climb the steps before disappearing too, leaving only Taeyong and Doyoung with the dead body of the guard in the dungeon.

Doyoung stood by the entrance of the cell as Taeyong himself investigated the scene inside.

'Why did you forgive Sunghyun so easily?' asked Doyoung after some time, unable to hide the irritation in his voice.

Taeyong remained silent for a moment, still peering over the dead body then spoke gravely, 'Because he was right. The guard was murdered.'

Just then, the two heard footsteps on the stairs hurriedly rushing down. In the dim yellow of the lit torches, emerged Jaehyun's figure.

'My Lord, Senior Taeil is here,' he said.

'Very well. Doyoung, please arrange for him to come here. It's better if he sees this with his own eyes,' Taeyong said, prompting Doyoung to dash up the steps.