Chapter 1242 - Dethrone The KingAlthough Ashley hadn't been in the vampire settlement for long, there was one thing that had been rammed in their heads, by Xander, Timmy and Amy. The fact that if a vampire leader requested something, they were to comply. Of course, there were certain things they could decline, especially if it was something that would cause a conflict with another family. Still, in any case, it was always better to act first and then later to report what had happened. Because of this, Ashley was in a position where he had to do what was asked and had called Paul ahead of time. He felt a little down since if he was more alert or cautious, they could have perhaps escaped or left the place before anyone had seen them. Still, Paul had agreed to the meeting, and now, both Muka and Paul were in the tenth castle together. Sat opposite each other in his personal office. "Do you ever take that helmet off? In the human world, it would be considered quite rude that I don't get to see your face." Paul asked. Muka still was covered in the armour that he always wore, and this included his helmet. The truth was, there weren't many that had ever seen Muka take off the helmet, and there were those who were too afraid to ask as well. "Is everyone in the tenth family as rude as this. I suppose in military terms, I would have a higher rank than you. You know, in the past, I had joined a few wars myself, although we didn't use guns and such. So I have experience being in armies. Let's say even if I don't belong to your squad. I don't suppose you would ask a superior why they were to keep on such a thing, would you?" Muka asked. Paul thought about it for a while. He knew what he was doing. He knew that to ask about such a thing could be considered offensive, but if someone really wanted to work with them, they would have to take this offence in their stride. If they didn't, they would use this offence as an excuse to attack. Muka had done neither but just was trying to reeducate Paul in a way. "I would," Paul answered. "If the two of us were close, I would feel comfortable asking about these things. Sometimes some relationships are beyond rank, and I suppose what you might be asking me to do would go beyond rank, would it not?" Paul replied. After hearing where Muka had arrived at and catching Ashley and the others. Paul could only assume that the two of them were looking into the same thing. The question was, had both of them arrived at the same conclusion about who was just behind all of this. "Your family isn't the only one that has had people go missing. So far, every single family has been affected." Muka stated, ignoring the comments from earlier. "I don't think any of the other leaders have others to look into this, or at worst, it seems some have chosen to ignore this. This is why I'm finding it difficult to pinpoint who is exactly behind this. Right now, my only cleared suspect is the tenth family." "And why haven't you suspected that Bryce is behind this?" Paul said straight after. "I have been by Quinn's side for a while now, and I have been watching all of the leader's actions. Whenever there was a chance, you would be sure to suspect Bryce. Honestly, I thought today you would do the same, so why not him?" Paul hadn't found any leads, leading this back to Bryce. It was strange because his disappearance would sometimes lead them to other families, not just the first family. However, because of the way Kazz had acted, he had a suspicion it had something to do with the first family and who else but the king of vampires to have connections to all of the families. Or even be brave enough to do such a thing. "Because I was wrong in the past, and this time I need to be careful. I have always been trying to do things myself, and I know someone was behind the death of my own knights. However, I can't go around calming things, especially now." Muka replied. By saying these words, Paul knew it was because now Bryce was in a higher position than he was before. As a leader, accusations could be made from others due to being the same rank, but an allegation about the king, in times like these. They would think Muka was trying to stir something up again. "Very well, then let me put a hypothetical question in front of you. Say if the king was to commit a crime as grave as this, is there a way to dethrone him? Or perhaps punish even the king for such crimes?" Paul asked. "There is, or perhaps I should say there was," Muka replied. "The council has the power to vote in the king. Rightly so, the leaders also have the right to dethrone him as well. However, evidence must first be provided why he is unfit, and then there would be a vote. If a king was voted in, it would be very hard to convince those who voted for him to overturn their vote. There is also fear that with the king's power, they could force votes from the other leaders. "The second problem is starting a trial in the first place. Usually, in the past, the evidence would be provided to the fourteenth family. The punishers, a power equal to the king. This allowed the leaders to vote freely, as they knew the punisher would be able to force the king to the council's bidding. As you know, they are no longer with us. Without the Punishers, the king in these times have greater power. "Lastly, even if a vote to dethrone the king was to happen, there would need to be a candidate that was fit for this purpose, and honestly, I don't think there is anyone that the other leaders can be behind. I worry for us. "You may have noticed that the tenth family's mistreatment has started again, but it is not just your family. It is the other families as well. With Bryce coming into power, the divide between the vampire sides has only grown. Those who think we should leave this place come out of hiding and rule over the humans. And those who believe we should be their protectors. "Still, we can use this to our advantage and gather vampires that could vote to throw Bryce out, but first, we need evidence," Muka explained. "And what about someone who could deal with Bryce if he didn't agree?" Paul asked. For this, Muka had no answers. ——— In the third castle was the third vampire leader Suzan. She was currently in her room that was filled with dolls upon dolls of all sizes. They weren't just human dolls but teddy bears, different animals and more. Right now, she was using her special needles to sow outfits for them all. In particular, it was a large one she was working on today. However, her hands were a bit unsteady. She had pricked her fingers a few times, again and again. "What is Bryce thinking?" She thought, with her knees trembling as she continued to sow. "He told us he had a plan but then doesn't inform us of what is going on. Why do I always decide to listen and follow him? I followed him back then, I followed him with the vote and now… it's too late." She suddenly pricked her finger again, this time deeper. She had stopped for a few seconds waiting for the wound to heal and then was ready to start again. It was the only way she could get the worry out of her head, but when she tried to move her hand, it was suddenly grabbed. "You're right, it is too late, and now it is time for you to be punished for your crimes." A dark voice said. When Suzan looked around her, she soon noticed that all the walls were covered in pitch black. Shadows were everywhere, and no matter how loud she would scream, no one could hear it. Her, a vampire leader, one of the strongest vampires, was shivering in fear because she knew there was no hope.