CRIMSON HUNTER ♔ PRUSSIA[✔]

I

2 Years Later

Alfred F. Jones slammed a file down on a messy desk.

"Read this," He said with a harsh tone that was directed at the albino male sitting in front of him. Gilbert Beilschmidt turned around and smirked, swishing his water bottle around that was... Clearly not full of water.

"Ah, a new job already? Why, I just finished my last case... This morning." Gilbert said arrogantly, taking a swig of his beer.

"I see you're still the same cocky bastard." Alfred grumbled. Gilbert ignored him and sighed, looking at the manilla folder sitting in front of him.

"I wonder who it is this time." He said, German accent lacing his confident tone.

♔

You squirmed around uncomfortably in your plush vanity seat, huffing in annoyance. Today was an important day- your father and mother were to host a grand dinner for the Earls and Countesses of German provinces.

"Why do I even have to go to this," You whined quietly. You absolutely despised getting involved in the affairs of wealthy and noble families.

"Well, it is an important day for the Marquess, lady (Name)," One of your maids said as she desperately tried to tighten the corset around your waist.

That was right. You were born into the wealthy and noble Černá family. Your mother was a Marchioness and your father was a Marquess. From birth, you were guaranteed the safety of your large manor.

Even though you liked the large hallways and beautiful chandeliers, you found yourself going out into town any chance you got. Instead of having the butler gather the ingredients for meals, you insisted you would go to the market and get them yourself. The townspeople were nice, and although they were formal with you, you felt like an ordinary girl at the market, town square, and at the bookstore.

The bookstore was your absolutely favorite place to go. You read books about foreign romances, wars, princesses locked in towers, and your personal favorite-a girl who fell in love with a coldhearted beast.

Snapping out of your thoughts, you suddenly felt your chest tighten. There were too many people in the room-some of them doing your hair, some of them straightening your dress, some of them doing your makeup, and some of them painting your nails. You were extremely uncomfortable-if it were up to you, you would have gotten ready to yourself. However, your parents always had staff ready to pamper you 24/7.

"C-can we please take a break?" You asked, and gasped as the corset tightened around your ribcage, squeezing the breath out of you.

"Pardon me Lady (Name), but the guests will arrive soon. You will want to be present for the feast if not the Manor tour," One of the maids said. You reached desperately out with your arms, still trying to get air to your suffocating lungs.

Finally, the maid let go of the corset ties and you gasped with relief, stumbling out of their grip. You glanced to your large vanity to see a bunch of makeup neatly sprawled out.

With a sweep of your dress, you knocked the powder over. The maids shrieked in surprise.

"Oops! My bad!" You said between coughs as powder rose between you and the maids, creating a perfect smoke screen. You took this distraction to rush out of the room. Running down the hallway, you grunted in frustration as your large, frilly pink dress was slowing you down.

"Lady (Name)!" You heard a call from one of your maids. You widened your eyes and tumbled into a restroom and shut the door tightly and praying they didn't see you. Thankfully, they ran right past the restroom and into the guest bedroom to look for you.

Fumbling around with the dress behind the locked bathroom door, you finally took it off and shoved it in the closet. You were left in a simple white undershirt and plain (f/c) colored shorts.

"This will have to do," You muttered to yourself. "If mother knew I was going out into town wearing indecent clothing like this I wouldn't hear the end of it."

"I heard a voice!" The head maid's voice rang through the corridor, and footsteps were getting louder.

"Shit!" You cursed in a moment of panic. Looking around quickly, your eyes lay on a window that lead to the outdoor courtyard.

I can't believe I'm doing this, you thought as you tried clumsily  to escape head first.

♔

"Hello, Lady (Name)!" A friendly call came from Tino, the owner of your favorite bookstore-and the only one in town. You beamed happily and skipped to the store. The Finnish boy ran the store with his friend Berwald, a stoic Swedish man. They important their books from the finest European publishers.

"Erm... Lady (Name)? Have you run away again?" Berwald sweatdropped, eyeing your undergarments.

"No..." You laughed nervously, but obviously it wasn't convincing enough. Tino laughed.

You stepped in and scanned the shelves with glee-there were many new books, and you were itching to lay your hands on them.

"We just received a new shipment yesterday from Italy!" Tino said cheerfully, petting his fluffy white dog.

"We got them at a great price considering some are from Renaissance time," Berwald said in his quiet voice.

You kept scanning the shelves while chatting with the couple until your eyes landed on a particular book-the cover was red and velvet, but the pages were golden and shiny.

You pulled it out, and the title was written in delicate, gold print. It glittered in the dappled sunlight that shone through the windows and shimmered as you tilted the book at different angles. It emitted the scent of an ancient book but also a new book, cozy and warm.

"Crimson Hunter?" You read the title out loud in a questioning tone. Tino furrowed his eyebrows.

"Hm, that's not supposed to be there." he said, examining the book in his hands and tilting it back and forth as you did.

"I checked the entire shipment. That book doesn't belong to us." Berwald said.

"That's weird..." You said, and couldn't help but feel a shiver run down your spine. It was creepy, but you were drawn to it.

"Lady (Name)?!" You heard someone call from down the street. You shrieked in surprise. Your maids had finally realized you had probably gone to the market.

"Here you go!" You slapped down a large amount of money on the Bookstore's table. Tino paled.

"You didn't have to pay us, the book wasn't even ours!" He protested, but you had already fled the store before you could hear a word he said. You rushed down the street, book in hand.

Finally hiding in an alleyway, you pressed your back to the wall and sighed in relief as you watched your maids again run by. Then, realizing that you were in the middle of a dark street, you stiffened up and walked out as quickly as you could. A man walked by you in the opposite direction, and you felt a jolt of electricity run through you.

You froze and turned to look at him, but he kept walking deeper into the alleyway and didn't look back. He had white hair that looked as soft as snow, but what unsettled you was the fact that his eyes were gleaming red, like crimson blood.