Blades and Claws (Lady Dimitrescu x Female Reader)

3. Path

Before heading out, you went to the shops and bought more food for your undisclosed road ahead and some supplies like matches, a scarf, a flask of water, and two new whetstones for sharpening your blades.

You got on the road, heading for the nearest village to yours, to at least find a tavern to spend this night in and, possibly, some new acquaintanceships.

Sun has come out of the clouds and was shining generously, blinding you.

The road wasn't the shortest one. You had to stop several times to eat, make a fire and fight off a few solitary lycans. Strangely, the farther you went (and closer to the next village), the more aggressive and strong they became. What do they eat around here?

Finally, you saw rooftops appearing in the distance, wreathed in the warm light of the setting sun – a welcoming sight to behold.

Alas, the village and its people didn't seem to be that welcoming. As you wandered the streets, you caught the stares of the villagers – some frightened, some annoyed, some... threatening? Not only they looked at you this way, but most of them went straight inside their houses, locking their doors and closing windows. Do you look that menacing?

On the other hand.. a random figure appearing in the village, dressed in black and armed to the teeth? You didn't look quite friendly yourself.

Your gaze soon fell on a gigantic castle that was towering over the village. Its sharp towers and overall daunting but refined appearance were beyond impressive.

Walking through the village, you searched for a tavern that was nowhere to be found. Only houses and a grotesque church – and you weren't going to enter this thing.

As you were walking around, the sun got blocked by a heavy layer of clouds and it slowly started raining. You usually loved the rain, but right now it wasn't a joyful feeling – having nowhere to sleep this night and especially in such circumstances.

The village looked eerie now, covered in darkness, silence, and rain. The lights were going off even inside the villager's houses.

You turned around and faced the castle again. There was a big ornate gate leading to it.

Suddenly, you remembered.

You heard some strange stories about this castle from people in your old village – but they weren't very coherent or convincing, sounding more like gossip that changes and evolves each time it leaves someone's lips – or worse, the people may just blame the scary-looking castle for all their troubles and missing relatives. There are lycans all around, after all. In any case, you surely can protect yourself if anything goes amiss.

With a bit of force, you managed to open the heavy gate. Your hands were already wet from the rain, you started feeling chilly. The wind was bone-freezing.

Arriving at the castle's main door, you took a minute to look around. Everything looked calm and silent – empty, even. There were a few windows with the light shining through them, so apparently the castle wasn't abandoned.

You confidently knocked with a bit of force and waited for anyone to open.

Minutes passed. Suddenly, you heard some kind of fuss behind the door.

"Who's there?!" asked a loud, but noticeably frightened female voice.

You took a second to collect your thoughts and answer properly.

"I'm a traveler and a swordmaster in need of shelter for this night. May I talk to the head of the castle?" you answered loudly to be heard through that thick door.

"You better look elsewhere," answered the worried voice.

"Please call the head of the castle, I need to speak directly," you persisted.

No answer followed.

You started waiting, examining the castle more thoroughly in the meantime. The architecture was truly splendid. Thunder flashed behind the castle towers – there was something both thrilling and frightening about this. You liked that feeling, it made you feel alive. Mortal.

Minutes passed, but nobody came to the door.

Maybe they forgot about you? Or was no one going to call the head of the castle? As you doubted the success of your initial idea of trying your luck at the castle, a sudden voice cut through all your thoughts and even through thunder and rain.

"I'm listening."

That was a firm, but a very deep and velvety voice that dragged your attention from the castle towers to its main door in an instant.

"I left my village and need shelter for the night. I can offer some Lei or my combat skills, I am good with my blades," not to waste anyone's time, you decided to cut straight to the chase.

A few seconds passed in silence after that. Did she leave, or...?

"You may enter," the voice concluded. There was something about that tone that you couldn't quite grasp.

Before you could reply anything, the door started rumbling and opened with a small creak.

The first thing you saw was a vintage white dress. Then, the fact that the mesmerizing woman standing by the door and inspecting you was a lot taller than you expected and even thought was humanly possible – and you could say the same about her beauty.

And there you stood for a couple of seconds, just glaring at each other. She – with a graceful squint of interest, you – a bit like a dumbass.

"Did you change your mind, or...?" she grinned, standing a bit to the side as a sign that you better finally enter the castle.

You regained your consciousness, your eyes showing embarrassment. You quickly stepped towards the main door and followed her.

Your body and mind were too exhausted from the long day to process anything, including her unnatural height.

The castle's interior caught your attention nevertheless – it was a peak of elegance, each detail so exquisite and refined. You still struggled with concentrating your attention, so as you walked through the halls, you mostly saw just fragments and random details. A giant posh chandelier, four majestic faceless statues, an ornate staircase, beautiful portraits all around. You were completely overwhelmed with all that.

The warmth of the castle was very pleasing, you felt your bones warm up, and your heart, too.

You finally arrived at what seemed to be the guest room. She motioned for you to enter, and the next thing you saw made you lose your breath for a bit. She ducked to enter the room, which showed a lot of her impressive cleavage. You gulped and quickly looked away, acting like you haven't been watching that. You probably would've blushed now if your blood wasn't so stale from all this cold.

"This will be your room. One of my maidens will check on you tomorrow morning and bring some breakfast. Ask her if you need anything else," she said, looking at your soaking-wet robe.

"Thank you, -" you suddenly remembered that you don't know her name.

"Alcina Dimitrescu, the head of the castle Dimitrescu. You may call me Countess or Lady Dimitrescu," she saw your confusion and explained.

"Thank you, Lady Dimitrescu," you corrected yourself. "My name's Y/N."

She left the room and closed the door, you heard her heels echoing in the halls.

A "wow" suddenly escaped your lips. You really got nothing else to say about this whole... meeting.

You walked around the room, taking in its beauty and noticing another door that led to the bathroom. You washed off the rain, blood, and dirt from your body and clothes, and hung your clothes to dry off.

This took the last of your energy for today, so you hurried to the bed. It was extraordinarily soft and luxurious, something you never experienced to this extent before.

You contently closed your eyes, thinking that this castle didn't seem as bad as the stories told. They didn't even take your weapons away.

But that's enough thought for today. You returned to this moment and soon drifted to sleep.