The Veil of Darkness
Chapter 162: Playing The Host

Chapter 162: Playing The Host

Annalise stood in the front garden with Kenric and Damien on her either side while Sera, Aunt Claire, Garron, and Mr. Warren stood right behind them as they all waited for the arrival of Valerius and their special guests.

It was already past sunset and stars had started filling the sky. A light breeze was blowing through the castle grounds that carried the sweet scent of flowers. For a change, the atmosphere of the castle was filled with a welcoming warmth.

Unlike the day Annalise first arrived at the Cursed Castle on her wedding night and found a derelict place filled with nothing but darkness, the cursed castle was now filled with light as numerous lanterns hung around the place, a building that had started looking more like a home, and a beautiful one on top of that.

She felt Kenric stepping closer to her side and the very next second, his warm breath came in contact with her ear as he whispered, "Never thought this place could ever look this welcoming for anyone. Thank you for your hard work, wife."

Annalise didn’t respond directly but the smile that stretched on her lips made it pretty clear that she was more than just pleased with the compliment.

It didn’t take long before they all heard the sounds of horses heading toward the castle and within a minute or two, the person she was waiting for the most to see finally stepped inside the castle grounds followed by Ezra, Marley, Elijah, Leela, and five other people - three females, a male, and a kid in his teens.

A bright smile appeared on Annalise’s lips as she watched Valerius heading right toward her and the other dark lords. He only stopped when he was standing merely a couple of steps away from them.

"You are finally here..." Kenric spoke as he welcomed his brother with a bright smile before continuing, "... and you even brought some company." His words were directed toward the five unknown people that had arrived there with Valerius and their guests.

"I thought since we are going to have more people living here, Aunt Claire and the others will love some help. I have chosen each one of them personally, they won’t disappoint." Valerius informed as he moved aside to allow them a look at the new servants.

There were a bunch of establishments built in every city of the Empire that provided the services for servants and even house guards for the rich and noble families. Interested people have to get admission to these establishments to get trained to get the jobs they desired based on their capabilities.

And it seemed like Valerius paid a visit to one of those establishments on his way to the castle, a wise decision considering the amount of work that would be piling up in the coming days as more people would be staying at the Castle.

Annalise looked at the servants and felt the sense of loyalty and trust that Valerius just talked about. Indeed, they would turn out to be loyal just like Aunt Claire, Sera, Garron, and Mr. Warren. She just knew as soon as she saw them.

"What about the kid?" She asked Valerius as her gaze met with the beautiful but scared brown eyes of the boy who was hiding behind one of the women.

"Her little brother. They have no other family." Valerius informed in a low voice for only her to hear as he moved to stand next to her while Damien moved to stand beside him. "Time to welcome our guests."

Till that moment, Annalise didn’t realize that she had to play the ultimate role of the hostess of the castle but one look at her husbands and it was pretty clear that none of them wanted to be involved. Letting out a small sigh she nod her head in understanding and finally turned her attention toward their guests.

"We all welcome you guys to our humble home. Please accept our hospitality during your stay here." She spoke the words out loud in a warm but powerful voice and watched as all four guests of theirs bowed in greetings.

"Everything aside, Lady Annalise, your humble home looks really beautiful." Marley commented as his gaze shifted around to take another good look at his surroundings.

Annalise just bowed her head slightly with a bright smile on her lips as she silently accepted the compliment. After all, they all had worked hard to earn the praise.

"How about you all head to your rooms and get refreshed? We all will meet at the dining room for the welcome feast." She suggested and watched as they all agreed hurriedly.

Mr. Warren and the others moved immediately to get the bearings of the four guests before they led them to their respective bed-chambers.

"I will go and get washed up too." Valerius told them before he too headed inside, leaving Annalise with Kenric, Damien, and the five new people that were about to become a part of their family.

"The five of you..." Annalise spoke in a powerful tone to get the attention of the five of them and once she had it, she continued, "... follow me."

She didn’t wait before she turned around and also headed inside, followed by the two dark lords who seemed to be stuck with her.

On the other hand, it took quite a couple of minutes before the five new servants finally got their courage mustered up to step inside but the look of fear on their faces explained just how much freaked out they all were, not like Annalise blamed them. But she did think that they were kind of lucky as, unlike her, they got to enter the Cursed Castle in a way better situation than her.

"Princess...!" All five of them bowed in greetings as they finally made their way to where Annalise was standing waiting for them.

"Address me as the official wife of the Dark Lord’s, I’m no longer a Princess inside these walls." She corrected and all five of the servants bowed their heads again, accepting her command.

"Yes, My Lady."

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