Beneath the Vampire King's Desire

Chapter 56

The heavy doors of the library creaked open, and from its depths emerged Lady Aurelia. As always, her presence commanded attention—her cold, piercing gaze remained unwavering as she looked straight at me.

"I heard you've been trying to uncover the truth behind the sacrificial girl's death." Sabi nito sa malamig na boses.

"Yes, My Lady." I answered respectfully, keeping my tone measured. "I'm searching for clues or any hints that might lead me to the truth."

Lady Aurelia took a slow step forward, her fingers brushing against the spine of the book I had just finished reading. Her touch was light, almost absentminded, yet there was something unnerving about the way her fingertips traced the worn leather cover, as if weighing the worth of the knowledge it contained.

"No progress." she stated rather than asked.

I swallowed hard. The weight of her judgment settling heavily on my chest.

"I'm exploring every possible angle." I replied trying to sound confident despite the doubt creeping into my voice. "Anything that could bring me closer to an answer."

Lady Aurelia's lips curved ever so slightly—not in amusement, but in something unreadable, something sharp. She withdrew her hand from the book, folding them neatly in front of her as she regarded me with that same chilling indifference.

"Knowledge is not everything." She said, her tone as cold as the marble floors beneath us. "Sometimes, the answers you seek do not lie in books, but in how well you observe and calculate every possibility."

"Knowledge is power." Sabi ko dito. Bahagyang tumaas ang kilay nito dahil sa aking sinabi.

"Sometimes it makes you stupid." Saad nito. "It blinds you to the truth because you are trying to justify what you see."

"But isn't it natural to seek understanding? To find reason in what we perceive?" I asked Lady Aurelia.

Napabuntong-hininga ito at para bang inaasahan na nito ang magiging sagot ko. Nanatiling malamig ang tingin nito at hindi kakitaan nang kahit anong emosyon.

"Understanding and justification are not the same." She said coolly. "When you justify something, you shape it to fit your expectations. But the truth does not bend to comfort you."

"Kung gano'n ay ano ang dapat kong gawin?" Tanong ko dito habang diretsong nakatingin sa mga mata nito.

Lady Aurelia stepped closer. The dim glow of the library's lanterns casting sharp shadows across her face.

"Look beyond what is in front of you. Listen not just to words but to the silence between them. Watch not just actions, but the intent that drives them. Only then will the truth reveal itself." Saad nito.

Sa isang taon na pagsasama nila ni Lucius ay ngayon niya lang nakausap nang masinsinan ang ina nito. Madalas ay malamig lamang ito at parang agad na hinuhusgahan ang aking pagkatao.

Lady Aurelia studied me for a moment longer before turning away.

"Don't waste your time chasing illusions." She added over her shoulder. "Because once you do, the truth will slip through your fingers before you even realize it was there."

With that, Lady Aurelia strode toward the towering bookshelves leaving me standing there—lost in thought.

"Sigurado ka ito ang iniwan niya, Elara?" Tanong ni Liwayway sakin habang hindi inaalis ang tingin sa papel kung saan niya ihinuhiy ang simbolo na iniwanan ni Eira.