Charlotte didn’t know what had gotten into Albrecht, or whether he approached her deliberately or by accident. He had suddenly come over to chat with her.
Although she had never met him in her true form, as Count Castel, she was still considered one of the well-known lords of New Moon Kingdom.
As an active Dark Apostle in the New Moon Kingdom, and someone who had secretly reported her to the Holy Royal Court, had he really not recognized her identity?
This guy surely knew that the "Blood True Ancestor" was behind Count Castel!
In fact, Albrecht truly hadn’t recognized her identity...
In reality, Charlotte had misunderstood a Dark Apostle who was usually very cautious.
As a high-level member of the Blood Demon Church, Albrecht was well-informed about events in the Northern Land, but the church itself was not entirely united, and information was often mixed with truth and lies.
Although he had heard rumors about a little Earl backed by an Evil God, Albrecht was skeptical from the start.
Truth be told, Albrecht did not take it to heart.
Even when he reported her, it was actually to divert the attention of the Holy Royal Court to facilitate his own machinations in the Royal Capital of New Moon.
So... Albrecht had never paid much attention to the Castel family, nor had he closely studied the young "Count Castel."
As for what Count Castel looked like, he was even less informed.
He had only heard that she was exceptionally beautiful.
But being exceptionally beautiful wasn’t anything special.
The Bloodline descendants could all live for long periods, and as a seasoned third-generation Bloodline, Albrecht had seen countless beautiful young women, even having had the fortune to catch a glimpse of Aphrodite, the Beauty God famous during the Mythological Era from afar!
So... even though the beauty of the "New Moon’s Pearl, Charlotte of Castel," was hyped up, he had merely smiled it off.
Of course, he later encountered the resurgence of the True Ancestor and realized that a God truly existed behind Castel and that it was indeed the resurgence of the Bloodline Ancestor.
But by then, compared to the fear of the True Ancestor and the worry over his Blood Servant Contract, the Castel family didn’t seem to matter anymore.
So... a very coincidental outcome occurred.
That was—up to this point, Albrecht had no idea what "Charlotte of Castel" actually looked like.
Had he researched the Romany Palace banquet ahead of time, he would have easily recognized Charlotte’s identity.
But he had attended the banquet on a whim.
In fact, he didn’t even have an invitation to the banquet; he had relied on magic to sneak in.
As to why he approached Charlotte...
The reason was quite simple.
The noble young lady before him had an appearance that closely matched his preferences.
From the moment the girl stepped into the banquet hall, Albrecht, who had been lazily savoring the Romany Royal Family’s red wine, was intensely captivated...
Her golden hair cascaded down like a waterfall, like waves of gold, setting off the youthful smile on the young girl’s face.
Her blue eyes were as deep as the sea, revealing a purity and clarity.
Her waistline, though youthful, had gained a touch of maturity under the emboldenment of her dress, her budding chest just right, lacking the seductive appeal of a mature woman, yet already possessing a feminine charm.
In her pure eyes, there was a hint of youthful innocence coupled with a dignified maturity, offering a dual sense of beauty.
Albrecht was instantly enchanted.
He did not fancy overly mature women.
Mature women were too coquettish, their minds already tainted by the filthy human world, failing to catch his interest, and the blood of a body that had been tarnished was not palatable, difficult to swallow.
Nor did he like excessively young women.
Young women were children, and children implied ignorance; they were unripe fruits that made interactions irritating, and while their blood remained pure, it lacked a certain flavor, dry and dull.
But the girl before him was just perfect.
At the age of twelve or thirteen, she was at the cusp of maturity, no longer the naive child she once was, nor yet the hypocrite that adults become, her appearance and temperament were just right, and her whole being exuded an irresistibly tempting aura.
That feeling... was like a perfectly medium-rare steak, with the innermost meat retaining its raw flavor, tender, moist, richly savory, and surely very fresh to eat.
Albrecht felt a thirst rising within him.
In nearly two thousand years since he had become a member of the Bloodline, he had rarely felt such a strong compulsion:
The blood of this noble girl... must be delicious, and it was certainly of the highest quality!
He really wanted, truly wanted to conquer her, to make her his own.
He wanted to capture her mind and then, in the moment of her surrender, to imprison her.
He wanted to possess her amid her innocent eyes filled with terror, incomprehension, and bewilderment, to devour her.
He wanted to suck her fresh blood, to listen to her screams, to make her take on his scent, to watch as she was gradually soaked in blood and sank into darkness...
Almost subconsciously, Albrecht’s body moved.
Before any of the other young nobles could act, he was already in front of the girl, extending an invitation to dance.
Albrecht was quite confident in his human disguise.
It wasn’t modesty, for as a Legendary Bloodline, even among his kin, his appearance was outstanding, and thousands of years spent hiding in the human world had honed his manners to a level even more exquisite than the oldest human nobility.
He was confident that no female human could resist his advance, especially not one as enticing as a bud about to blossom, pure as a blank sheet of paper.
Of course, indifference was no matter.
His proficiency in Spirit Magic might not match his Dark Magic, but it was still quite decent.
As Albrecht made the inviting gesture, he also flashed a gentle, friendly smile, and at the same time, a fleeting crimson flashed through his black pupils as he quietly utilized Mind Suggestion Magic.
He did not sense any Transcendent Aura on the girl.
He believed that with his perfect facade and the guidance of his magic, capturing such a delicious and tempting prey would be effortless.
Albrecht looked forward with anticipation and joy, as the melancholy brought on by Lutecia’s misfortune had dissipated a fair amount, and he was even more eager for the interaction to come with the girl.
It was wonderful indeed, having left New Moon and even momentarily escaping that fearsome Majesty, his luck was finally turning for the better.
And just as he predicted, after he displayed a gentlemanly demeanor and the suggestion of Spirit Magic, the girl’s fair cheeks quickly blushed a light pink.
She seemed a bit flustered, somewhat nervous, yet the cute animal-like glances that she stole seemed to reveal a tinge of the pure joy of a young girl.
When her eyes met Albrecht’s inadvertently, she immediately averted them in panic, and her shy voice stuttered,
"Thank you... Sir, but... but I’m not good at dancing, and I don’t know how to..."
It seemed she was a rather introverted child, and furthermore... it seemed she did not like dancing.
Albrecht immediately made such a judgment.
He was still very observant, the girl might be shy but she did not show the joy of being asked to dance, there was only nervousness.
However, Albrecht didn’t mind.
The invitation to dance was just an excuse.
As long as he could deepen his interaction with the girl, the rest would naturally fall into place.
"I apologize, beautiful miss, you seem not quite accustomed to the noise of the party, I am aware that there’s an observatory behind this hall from where the starry sky is visible and quite beautiful, and it’s currently unoccupied. Would you like to go see it with me?" Albrecht invited warmly again.
"An observatory? Stars?"
The girl’s eyes immediately lit up.
Albrecht internally declared in his mind.
Watching the girl’s interest being piqued instantaneously by him, his mood was very pleasurable.
Indeed, after having been away from that Majesty, his luck had finally begun to improve.