Author's note: this is from Bertram's point of view

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Bolek continued talking, "If Aldus takes sides, the power balance in the Council will tip, and that will reflect in all realms. We need to be ready. This is more than just Aldus. Elena is the perfect example. She is currently neutral, but if Aldus favors someone, I'm confident that Elena and a few others will follow…"

I could feel Bolek's irritation as he spoke.

He is the head of the Hunters Association, but in the world of creatures, he is no more than a fly. Food.

I still remember Bolek's outburst when he was denied a seat in the Council. That was one of the rare occasions when Egoth and Omniel were united.

Egoth said, "This is the Council of creatures, and you are not one of us. If you get a seat, should we let dolphins in also? They are highly intelligent. We need to draw the line somewhere. Without innate magic powers and ability to shapeshift, you are not qualified."

Omniel added, "Bolek, you are a creature hunter. It will be like allowing a wolf to attend a meeting of sheep."

Bolek was aware that those are just excuses, yet he was unable to get his way.

The unspoken truth everyone knows is that the Council treats the Hunters Association like a tool, subordinates. They never saw Bolek as their equal, and that only motivated Bolek further to prove that he has the power and connections with the hope that he will be granted that highly coveted seat in the Council.

Bolek is stupid and unable to give up on a thing that will forever be out of his reach.

Even this information exchange is Bolek's attempt to become relevant.

I know that I'm not the only one with whom Bolek is trading information. He is playing on many fields, collecting favors, with the hope that if any of us raises to power, we will help him out.

As I said, he is stupid.

Bolek doesn't get that no matter how much he extends his lifespan with various concoctions, he is still just a human and his chances of entering the Council are zero.

If Bolek tries to convert into anything other than a human, he will be stripped of his current position because that spot was always held by a human and creatures will not allow it otherwise.

The Hunters Association is a personal army of specialized killers, and if it falls into the wrong hands, it will cause havoc. The only reason creatures allow for the Hunters Association to exist is due to its neutrality and role in protecting humans.

Of course, we all know that protecting humans is nonsense. Hunters are in it for the money, and those few who are righteous quickly perish by the hands of their comrades.

Humans are weak and have short lifespans, but their biggest misfortune is the greed that is embedded into their souls. The corruption and promise of power is something that makes humans turn on each other, and creatures use that expertly to manipulate them.

The Hunters Association are assassins for hire, and as long as one faction doesn't monopolize it, no one will make a fuss about it. Bolek is delusional to believe that he has a say in anything.

I couldn't wait for Bolek's speech to end with the hope that masked men have something useful to say.

"We found out who is buying properties that belonged to the Bluemoon pack.", one masked man said, and after a dramatic pause, he added, "It's Seraphina Mezzanotte."

Seraphina again? Why would she buy those?

"There are no significant movements among werewolves.", Bolek said.

After Bolek's comment, I understood the implication. "Do you think that she wants to revive the Bluemoon pack? Why would she do that? She is not one of them."

Bolek tilted his head. "What if Aldus doesn't want to take sides, but to create his own faction? Maybe Seraphina approached Gilbert with an intention to test the waters and see where his loyalty is. Who knows how many such chats happened, but we know only of this one with Gilbert? Many werewolves would love to return to the territory of the Bluemoon pack, but they fear that they are too weak to keep it. However, if Aldus offers them his protection, things might change, and those werewolves will be grateful to him. Aldus might be building his own army…"

Bolek was back into his world of conspiracies, but the idea of Aldus trying to recruit Gilbert and a bunch of werewolves sounded alarming and unbelievable.

Vampires are not social creatures. If we could work together with anyone, we could easily suppress others. After all, a vampire can easily take on a werewolf, but werewolves work in groups and that makes them extremely dangerous.

Did Aldus find a way around his nature?

Is he working on his own, or is the Mezzanotte family behind it?

"Can you find out why Aldus is buying those properties?", Bolek asked masked men.

"If we could, we would."

Bolek nodded knowingly. "Aldus is not an easy target, but what about Seraphina?"

Both masked men shook their heads and one responded, "We tried. She has some protection that prevents us from reaching into her mind. We were nearly caught by that wretched dragon of lightning, and we will not try that again."

My eyebrows shoot up at this speck of information. It seems that these are people involved in the attack on Seraphina which happened during the event the Council organized in their castle.

And they tried looking into her mind? Warlocks!

How interesting.

"Dragon will not always be by her side.", Bolek said matter-of-factly. "And if anyone placed a protection on the girl, that means it can be removed as long as someone capable enough tries."

Even with their masks on, I could see that both warlocks frowned.

Bolek didn't care as he was egging warlocks to do his bidding, "You can take the girl, break the protection, and find her secrets. She should know a lot about Aldus Mezzanotte. Even Calista is close to her."

I groaned internally. It's just like Bolek to get others to do his dirty work. But if those two fall for it, I might find out something useful as well. Will they accept?

"Yes, we can do that and get ourselves killed in the process.", one warlock responded dryly. "We tried kidnapping. We knew that Aldus is not a man to mess with, but we didn't expect that he is so efficient. Within one hour, Seraphina was rescued and everyone who was on site disappeared. It became a ghost town. We don't want to imagine the retaliation if the girl was actually harmed."

Bolek was visibly displeased by this response, and I couldn't believe that he turned to me.

"Bertram, find out what you can about these purchases."

I couldn't believe this. "I am not your errand boy, Bolek."

He rolled his eyes dramatically. "Why are you making it sound like this is only my agenda? Do you know that at the event where Seraphina spoke to Gilbert, Elena was flanking Aldus? The whole evening. Everyone saw them. By finding out what Aldus is up to and why, it will increase your chances of discrediting him in Elena's eyes. Of course, if we can usurp the power of the Council, there will be open spots. A vampire as esteemed as you will be deserving of such a spot. Don't you agree?"

I responded with a tight smile.

If I am a greedy enamored fool, his provocation might work.

A spot in the Council? He must be kidding. I'm aiming for a much higher position, but if I reveal that, I will become a target also. It's better to lay low and stay in my role of Elena's pursuer.

"It would be foolish of me to look down on the position of a councilmember.", I responded. "I will see what I can do."

"Good, good!", Bolek nodded in approval. "If you mention these purchases to Elena and remind her of how previous owners found the bad ending, Elena might be grateful for the warning, and she will dig out the information for you."

Well, he was right about this. Elena was always irritably attached to Aldus, and she will definitely look into it when I bring it up.

I only need to find a way for her to spill what she found out.

I can do that.

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