The nights were growing colder with each passing day, and the fog thicker, causing people to avoid being outdoors once darkness fell in the land of Nightbrook. In the castle, particularly in the back garden attached to the kitchen, the cold mist had risen so high it blanketed everything around. At that moment, a figure could be seen crouching within the fog, groaning low in the throat.
One of the servants assigned by the duke to work in the castle came into the kitchen to take away the young master's dirty plate of blood snacks to be washed in the morning. Earlier that evening, they had all been terrified when the young master fell from the stairs, but thankfully, everything had turned out well, and the duke had not killed any of them for giving the boy the tray to carry, the maid thought as she made her way toward the basin.
