When A Ghoul Falls In Love

Talon shrugs. If they are useless, are they not her sons? Talon can't ask that question without getting beaten up by Eoin or Nicholai. Their mother doesn't raise her hands on them. But her mouth is vindictive enough. 

He doesn't like coming to see his mother, He places his arm on the couch arm and leans away from Nicholai. Both Eoin and Nicholai have been angry since yesterday. Why is he back here? He wants to return to the university already.

Unlike his brothers, he doesn't hate Eli Sanguine. Eli has never harmed him. So, he doesn't have any reason to hate him. But his brothers aren't like that. Nicholai and Eoin hate Eli.

Talon lets out a sigh. Today, Eli Sanguine is getting engaged to the human female. He wonders how Eli Sanguine had dealt with the king and Duke Sanguine.

"Mother, you are giving him too much importance." Eoin glances at his mother. "Even if he is a prince now, he can't ever become a king because he is getting engaged to a human. His engagement with Carmine will be broken. Now, he won't have the prime minister's support."

"Tch!" Nicholai clicks his tongue. "How could that human become a part of our family?"

That human female! Judith grits her teeth. How could that woman speak like that to her? The Duke didn't say anything either. What irks her the most is that even an outsider like that human female was able to decipher that the Duke still loves Nilora. 

"It's good for us." Eoin smiles at Nicholai. "I only need some time. Princess Ophelia is showing interest in me."

Princess Ophelia is the Crown Prince Rian's older sister. There are not any good rumours around her. Talon murmurs with a faint voice, "Wasn't she interested in Fourth Brother?"

Judith glares at Talon. "Whom did you call Brother?"

"I mean, Eli," Talon corrects himself. When they are alone, they aren't allowed to call Eli their brother. "It's a habit. Don't think about it, Mother."

"That boy is evil!" Judith yells at Talon. "Didn't I tell you that he killed his own mother? Don't ever call him your brother. You are still young. I don't want you to ever talk to him."

They live in the same house. How could he not talk to Eli Sanguine? Talon doesn't reply. He has no interest in the dukedom or the throne. His third brother Ephraim is also like that. 

"Calm down, Mother." Eoin takes his mother's hand and squeezes it gently. "Talon is a kid. Don't scold him harshly."

"His grades aren't good." Judith clicks her tongue. "Eli graduated from university when he was even younger than Belinda."

Talon resists the urge to roll his eyes. Even Eoin and Ark didn't graduate from the university at Eli's age. Nicholai is also not doing well in studies. Why is he the only one being scolded? He is envious of Drace, Lennix, and Voss. Their mothers are lenient. 

"Tell me about Princess Ophelia." Judith places her hand on Eoin's head. "Did she agree to take you as her husband?"

Princess Ophelia has a higher status than Eoin whose mother has a common background. Only Eoin knows how much Princess Ophelia hates her younger brother. She wants the throne. In the past, she was interested in Eli. But something happened between them. Since then, she hates Eli Sanguine's guts.

Since Eoin also hates Eli, Princess Ophelia is his ally. He has been discussing the marriage with her. She is interested in a contractual marriage. They will be husband and wife in names only. Both of them can take other husbands and wives after they take the throne from the Crown Prince Rian. 

Eoin is fine with this contract. If he becomes the king, Ophelia doesn't have to live for long. All he needs is an offspring from Ophelia. It won't be hard. Princess Ophelia's status is higher than him, but her magic is way weaker than his. That's why Crown Prince Rian is chosen to be the next king. There is a huge difference between the magical prowess of Crown Prince Rian and Princess Ophelia. It's one of the reasons why Princess Ophelia wanted to marry Eli. 

There are ten powerful sorcerers in the kingdom. Eli Sanguine is ranked first at the moment. The second position belongs to Ark. Eoin is ranked third. 

The Crown Prince is at sixth position and Carmine is ranked seventh, but she has more political power. Princess Ophelia is too weak to enter the ranks. 

Ark should have been Princess Ophelia's second choice. But Ark is a hybrid. No royal would ever marry a hybrid. The status of the hybrids is lower than a commoner. But Ark is a second-ranked sorcerer. He's valued in the kingdom. 

"I haven't talked to Father yet." Eoin says to his mother, "After Eli's engagement, I will speak to Father. As the head of this family, only he can request for Princess Ophelia's betrothal to me. The king won't deny it. He wants to add powerful blood to his bloodline."

It's one of the reasons why the Crown Prince is interested in Eli. Having a sorcerer like Eli next to him will make him a powerful king. In addition to that, if Eli marries a woman, the crown prince will accept them as a part of the royal family. The crown prince had also invested in research on motherless babies. If the research is successful, two men would be able to have babies. 

The Crown Prince might act like a fool in love. But he's also seeking power. What the King and the Crown Prince want is to bring back the dark elemental power in their bloodline. 

If Eli had been a female, it would have been quite bothersome. 

Eoin isn't as powerful as Eli, but he still has Duke Sanguine's blood in him. The King wants to join the royal family and the Sanguine family. At the moment, Princess Ophelia is pretending to support the Crown Prince. 

"Mother, you will become the mother of a king," Eoin promises his mother.