The straw-covered floor was filled with the smell of urine, and the night pot used to relieve hands had cracked and could not be used, but no one cared. There were no windows, no beds, and the dungeon was so dark that you couldn't see your fingers, and the only sound was the swaying and screaming of rats.

Pavel came alone to the deepest dungeon with a torch, and he carefully walked through the corridors where the feces were piled up, lighting the oil lamps on the walls with torches. In the flickering light of the kerosene lamp, Pavel saw the dungeon clearly. There are at least forty or fifty individual cells densely packed here, all surrounded by huge iron bars, and according to her mother, Katarina, this is where various political prisoners and war fugitives are held. Basically, no one cared, and the jailer came to deliver a cold meal every day and left, leaving the prisoners to fend for themselves.

Well...... It is indeed self-fending. Pavel saw more than one skeleton strewn in many of the cells, presumably the prisoners had been dead here for years, their bodies decomposed. Because of this, the dungeon has become a delicious meal for the rats.

For the pampered prince, he could not have imagined how a man would survive in such an environment, and he would never have come here if it were not for the search for the truth.

"General Vladimir. ”

Pavel called softly. But there was no response, just the sound of a few rats squeaking in the corner. Pavel was disgusted with the creature, even a little terrified. All the creatures in the shadows disturbed him.

"Vladimir ......"

He called again, but still didn't respond.

With the faint light of the fire, Pavel continued on his way, and finally, at the end of the corridor, he saw the deep cell. Two frail figures in the cage are faintly visible.

"General Vladimir ......"

He screamed again. This time, there was finally a response. In the dark cage, the man stood up, his long, messy hair unkempt and stenching. His clothes were also tattered, and there was still some indescribable smell left. But the man's gaze was still sharp. He just stood there, looking at Pavel with a calm, even indifferent, expression.

The cleanly dressed prince cautiously approached, opened the iron door of the cell, and walked into the middle of the cell. He set his torch against the wall, only to find that there was no place to sit. The place where Vladimir and his son were held had no beds at all, no tables and chairs.

"What are you doing here?" ”

Vladimir looked at Prince Pavel, who was dressed cleanly, and asked in a low voice. There was almost no expression on his face.

"Come and see you, great general, and I know one more thing from you. Something that no one dares to mention. ”

Pavel said seriously. He saw the boy next to him crouching on the ground, staring at him with dark eyes. This darkness seemed to merge into a dungeon, the darkness swallowed it, but it gave him the light to see the world clearly.

"Ask, Your Highness. ”

Despite being persecuted by Katerina, the queen is the queen and the prince is the prince. Vladimir knew that he could not be angry with his son because of what the Ice Queen had done. He could have pinched Pavel to death here, but it was pointless, and it wasn't chivalrous.

"You've faced vampires before, right?"

Pavel asked. His eyes were fixed on the weather-beaten aristocratic general, and there was not only curiosity but also sympathy in his eyes.

"Yes, there have been many. ”

Vladimir replied calmly.

"When was the last time?"

Pavel asked.

"When Erengrad rebelled, I led my troops to exterminate a group of ghouls. Their leader is a vampire. "Zero-One Reading Network

"You know what they look like, right?"

Pavel asked.

Vladimir nodded.

Pavel felt suffocated by the smell of his cell, and his stomach was churning, as if he was about to vomit everything he had eaten at noon.

"And what do they look like?"

Holding back the stench, Pavel asked.

"Horrible, bloody, vampires' fangs can bite the throat of any animal, and their claws can tear through iron armor and shields. But this is when they are angry, and usually, they are no different from ordinary people. ”

Vladimir maintained etiquette and calmly returned.

Pavel fell into deep thought. For a long time, the air was quiet, except for the crackling sound of the flame burning grease.

He finally spoke again—

"Rumor has it that my mother, Katarina, is a vampire?

Pavel's face was very ugly. Vladimir instantly understood that the prince was not here to ask for warmth, his real purpose was to seek the truth. After all, this truth is buried layer by layer. When Duke Cohen rebelled, all the witnesses were inexplicably killed, some went mad, and the people talked about it in private, but it was quickly suppressed by the secret police, and no one dared to mention it again.

"I know. Vladimir took a deep breath, he didn't know if the prince in front of him had the ability to carry the burden of saving his family and country, but he still chose to let him know the truth. After all, if he doesn't say it, this truth may be buried with him in this deep underground prison.

"Caterina is indeed a vampire. During the decisive battle with Rod, I met Randolph. ”

Vladimir's deep voice echoed through the gloomy dungeons. Like a ghost.

"You mean the Grand Duke Lan Dao, who was captured by Rhodes last year?"

"Yes, that's him. He reveals his true face as a vampire. He is your mother's most trusted assistant, and you know their relationship. Back in the Erengrad Rebellion, Duke Cohen once led his troops to besiege the Ice and Snow Winter Palace, and at the most critical moment, an undead army rushed out of the Academy of Magic and rushed straight to Cohen's knight army. Do you think both of these things are coincidences?"

After Vladimir finished speaking, Pavel fell silent. He thought about the worst outcome, but when it lay plain in front of him, he still couldn't accept it. The mother he trusted for twenty years turned out to be a vampire...... The contradictions of those years, the cold attitude of his mother all poured into Pavel's mind at this moment. He pondered, struggled, didn't want to believe but had to believe. Stringing this series of events together, the result is so obvious.

"Vladimir, I'll get you out, I promise. ”

After shock and grief, Pavel came to his senses and made a promise to the man in front of him. And glanced at the boy sitting in the dung heap.

"Your name is Boris, right?"

"Yes, Your Highness. ”

Boris slowly got up and replied indifferently.

"You'll get out of here, too, I promise. ”

After Pavel finished speaking, he picked up the torch and hurried away. Leaving Vladimir and his son standing still, they didn't expect the Prince of Kislev to really do anything, if he could, he would have done something a long time ago, instead of waiting until now.