Had the knights not been brainwashed just weeks earlier, Ulysses' sharp question might have snapped some of them back to their senses.
But their minds had been wired to trust the emperor without question. Emperor Kaan had etched a single truth into their consciousness: the enemy—the elders and the vampires of Eira—could not be trusted.
Now, nothing could shake their loyalty. They wouldn't budge.
"They're trying to mess with your minds!" one of the veteran knights shouted, desperate to keep his comrades loyal.
Ulysses glanced at Madam Silvia, who slowly shook her head. "It's no use," she said. "They can't hear us."
It wasn't just the two of them trying to break through Emperor Kaan's lies. Even Griswold—the aggressive one, the one everyone assumed would strike down any vampire without hesitation—was trying to reason with the knights of Asvaldur.
None of it worked.
