Chapter 95: A Performance
As Adele spoke, her eyes sparkled, brighter than usual, like the crescent moon in the night sky. But words were often inadequate. Adele’s speech had been eloquent, but the humans before her didn’t believe her.
Adele felt a pang of defeat, but Jasmine offered her support, “As she said, perhaps we can forge a different path.”
Silence fell over the room. After a long moment, the Commander finally voiced her thoughts, her voice raspy, “Are you saying… we should accept vampires?”
She was questioning Jasmine. Jasmine looked at her, her expression unreadable, her ice-queen persona giving nothing away. After a moment, she said, “Not just vampires, but other weak, otherworldly beings as well. As long as they desire peace, they are our comrades.”
Someone protested, challenging Lady Dawn’s authority despite her revered status among humans, “Accept vampires and otherworldly beings?! What about the blood they’ve spilled, the lives they’ve taken?!”
The others echoed his sentiment. Jasmine asked softly, “Then what do you propose? To kill all vampires and otherworldly beings, to leave only humans in this world?” Her question stunned them.
They probably haven’t even considered this, Jasmine thought.
She continued, “Let’s assume you could achieve this. What would be the difference between you and the vampires who oppress you now?” She left them with a final thought, “Think about it carefully.” Then she led Adele out of the room.
Adele didn’t put her hood back on. She walked under the moonlight, like a moonlit elf, but everyone who saw her looked at her as if she were a demon. Adele had spoken with such conviction and confidence earlier, but now, outside, she felt apprehensive. Their hostile gazes stripped away her usual haughty demeanor.
“Jas… Lady Dawn, where are we going?”
“My room.”
Jasmine had her own house at the Human Resistance Army base. It was a well-built, two-story building with dedicated servants to clean and maintain it. It was far more comfortable than the accommodations she had had while serving Adele. Adele followed Jasmine to her house and entered.
Once inside, Jasmine transformed back into her maid persona. She looked at Adele, who, upon entering the room, immediately relaxed, collapsing onto the sofa. Her feet were still on the ground, but her upper body was sprawled across the cushions, her cheek resting on the armrest.
She even let out a dramatic sigh.
Jasmine sat down on a nearby armchair, struggling to suppress a smile at Adele’s dramatic display. She said softly, “This path is difficult.” Adele rolled over, facing the ceiling, one leg now resting on the sofa.
She looked up at the ceiling, muttering, “I know. I won’t be deterred by such a small setback.” She was determined to stay at the Human Resistance Army base for the entire month before school resumed.
Jasmine truly admired Adele’s determination. If it were her, she would have run away long ago. She wasn’t the type to endure such hostility. If those she rescued didn’t understand her intentions, she would simply abandon them and flee.
She wouldn’t stay and try to do something that wasn’t appreciated.
From that day on, Adele and Jasmine engaged in a delicate dance with the Human Resistance Army. They would prepare food for Jasmine, delicious-looking meals. But they completely ignored Adele, which didn’t matter. Adele didn’t drink animal blood anyway. She only consumed artificial blood.
Initially, the Human Resistance Army members were surprised by Adele’s prolonged abstinence from blood. Then they thought, That damned vampire must be drinking Lady Dawn’s blood! This realization horrified them. The Commander even went to see Jasmine personally to confirm her suspicions.
But she received an even more unbelievable answer, “No, she drinks artificial blood.” Lady Dawn even showed her the artificial blood sugar cubes. Curious, the Commander picked one up and tasted it. She could faintly taste blood, but it wasn’t quite the same.
The Commander had been on the battlefield, had been injured. She knew what blood tasted like. This artificial blood… it tasted vaguely like blood, but it wasn’t actually blood. Jasmine didn’t know how it was made, but she thought the difference was like that between artificial sweetener and sugar.
Similar taste, different essence.
Seeing the Commander’s disbelief, Jasmine added, “She’s always drunk artificial blood. She’s never had anything else.” She lied. Adele had drunk her blood, twice. But she couldn’t reveal such a personal matter to the Commander.
It would be embarrassing. The fact that she, the strongest among them, had been fed on by a vampire would shatter her image as the invincible Lady Dawn. And most importantly, why share such an intimate detail about their relationship?
The Commander found Jasmine’s words even harder to believe. Under normal circumstances, it would be impossible to believe. What kind of vampire didn’t drink human blood? If Adele hadn’t been raised by Jasmine, Jasmine herself wouldn’t have believed that such a vampire existed, one who had never harmed a human.
Seeing the Commander’s skepticism, Jasmine didn’t force her to believe. She simply said, “She’s different. If you get to know her, you’ll eventually understand.”
Life at the Human Resistance Army base wasn’t easy for Adele. Few people were active at night, except for the patrolling sentries. Whenever Adele walked under the moon, the sentries would glare at her with hostility. Their hatred wasn’t directed at her specifically, but at the vampires who had oppressed them. But now that a vampire stood before them, they couldn’t help but project their anger onto her.
By hating Adele, they were hating the vampires who had tormented them.
Adele didn’t give up. She continued trying to connect with the humans, but she made no progress. The rumor of “Lady Dawn bringing back a vampire” spread throughout the base. After a few days, everyone knew that a vampire was living among them.
They were apprehensive, but Lady Dawn’s presence reassured them. There were children at the base, some born in recent years, who had never seen a vampire before. They had only heard their parents describe how terrifying and hateful vampires were.
Children, being children, were often fearless and curious, doing things that adults wouldn’t expect. They secretly made a plan to see this rumored vampire for themselves.
One moonlit night, the children stealthily approached Lady Dawn’s house. They had no hatred for vampires, no fear of Lady Dawn. They simply pushed open the door to the room where the vampire was supposedly staying.
Adele and Jasmine had already sensed their approach. Their hearing and sense of smell were acute. To them, the children’s quiet footsteps were as loud as a foghorn.
Adele felt a mix of embarrassment and helplessness. She disliked children. Her attitude towards the little girl at Spark Farm and her own younger sister was proof enough. To her, children were a nuisance.
Jasmine, however, saw this as an opportunity for Adele to connect with the humans at the base. Of course, if Adele had been unwilling, Jasmine wouldn’t have forced her. But despite her awkwardness, Adele didn’t express any resistance, so Jasmine let it be.
The children pushed open the door and saw two figures sitting on the sofa. For a moment, they couldn’t tell which one was the vampire. One had long silver hair, pointed ears, and crimson eyes. According to their parents’ descriptions, this person fit the image of a terrifying vampire!
But the other was dressed in black, her face hidden behind a black veil, blending into the darkness. Only the moonlight revealed her silhouette. Her dark eyes stared at them, sending chills down their spines…
Could this be the vampire?
The children shuddered, remembering their parents’ warnings: Be good children, or the vampires will take you away! But this was terrifying! There were two vampires here!
This thought made them burst into tears. They were small, but their cries were loud and shrill, piercing the air. Adele looked at Jasmine, hoping for a solution, but Jasmine simply looked back at her, expecting her to handle it.
After all, the children were clearly terrified of Adele, the vampire. Lady Dawn didn’t see herself as the problem.
Adele had no choice but to stand up.
The Commander, hearing the sentries’ report of children screaming and crying in Lady Dawn’s house, was stunned. Although she believed that Lady Dawn had been deceived by the evil vampire, Lady Dawn was still their hope. She couldn’t allow a child to be harmed by a vampire. But the sentries’ report forced her to act. She gathered a group of people, including a mage, and rushed to Lady Dawn’s house. The mage said, “There’s vampire magic inside!”
She took a deep breath and led them inside. And they saw… the vampire Lady Dawn had brought back, her hands ablaze with small flames, performing magic tricks for the children.
Everyone froze, both the newcomers and the vampire.
Leave a Reply