Chapter 52: Adele’s Empty Room Strategy
Night had fallen, and Adele, curled up on the plush sofa, her gaze fixed on the television screen, its flickering images a welcome distraction from her thoughts, her anxieties, her… plans, was enjoying a lighthearted variety show.
Celeste, lying on the floor beside her, her gaze fixed on Adele, her body relaxed, her mind… content, didn’t care about the show. Her attention was solely focused on her Master, her every movement, her every breath, her every… sound.
She was like… a loyal golden retriever, her devotion… unwavering.
And it wasn’t something Adele had demanded, had ordered. It was… Celeste’s choice.
Is this… who she truly is? Adele wondered, a shiver running down her spine.
The variety show was surprisingly entertaining, its humor lighthearted and relatable. The celebrities, unlike their counterparts in Adele’s previous world, seemed… down-to-earth, their interactions with the audience genuine, their willingness to participate in silly games and pranks… refreshing.
The idol on screen, a beautiful young woman with a bubbly personality and a voice that could melt hearts, was gamely participating in a… rather embarrassing challenge, her laughter echoing through the apartment, its melody a counterpoint to the quiet hum of the air conditioner.
And according to Celeste, this idol… she was a vampire.
Adele had been shocked.
“Why would a vampire… choose to be an idol?” she had asked, her voice laced with disbelief. “Shouldn’t they be… enjoying their immortality? Their wealth? Their power?”
“Why would they… work so hard? Perform for humans? Cater to their fans?”
Celeste, her gaze fixed on Adele, her smile enigmatic, had simply shrugged.
“Maybe it’s… a hobby? A passion? A way to… find meaning?” she had said, her voice thoughtful. “Most vampires… they want to… integrate into human society.”
“We’re not… that different from humans, you know.”
Her words, delivered with a sincerity that surprised Adele, had lingered in her mind, a seed of… understanding?
Celeste was right. Vampires… they were the closest to humans, in terms of their desires, their emotions, their… weaknesses.
Except for a few stubborn traditionalists, most vampires had chosen to embrace… modernity. They had infiltrated human society, had adopted human customs, had become… indistinguishable from their prey.
Initially, they had thrived, enjoying the conveniences of modern life, the technological advancements, the… abundance of fresh blood.
But then… the truce had been signed, a pact between the vampire elders and the human leaders, a fragile agreement that had… changed everything.
Vampires were no longer allowed to feed on humans. They were provided with blood bags, their quality and quantity strictly controlled. And they were given a choice: join the government, become soldiers, their loyalty rewarded with… privileges, their descendants guaranteed a place in this new world… or… live among humans, their every move monitored, their freedom curtailed, their lives… constricted.
It was a form of… domestication.
Like the idol on screen. If an emergency arose, if a threat emerged within her city, she would be conscripted, her duty to protect… non-negotiable.
One moment she could be dancing on stage, the next… she could be fighting for her life against… who knew what horrors lurked in the shadows?
Adele understood now why the human leaders had been so… upset by the vampire hunters’ actions. Rights and responsibilities… they were two sides of the same coin. And vampires, over the years, had shed their blood for humanity, had fought alongside their former prey, had… earned their place in this world.
The vampire hunters, clinging to their outdated traditions, their thirst for vengeance… they had become… an obstacle to progress.
Adele sighed, her thoughts drifting to… Linlang. That sweet, naive girl, her determination, her unwavering loyalty, her… blind faith in a cause she barely understood…
She had been burdened with so much… too much…
Adele’s eyes narrowed, her attention drifting away from the television screen, her thoughts traveling to a distant place, to an ancient estate, to a young girl kneeling before the ancestral tablets, her heart filled with a longing… a desperation…
Is she… okay?
………………
Meanwhile, at the Tang estate…
Linlang and her father knelt before the ancestral tablets, their heads bowed, their hands clasped in prayer, incense sticks burning before them, their smoke curling upwards, carrying their… pleas.
They were about to make a decision, a choice that… defied their ancestors, their legacy.
The world was filled with spirits, with unseen forces, with… magic. It was an undeniable truth, a reality that even the most skeptical of minds could no longer deny.
And if their ancestors disapproved… well, the doors to the ancestral hall were open, the wind howling outside, threatening to extinguish the flames of the incense sticks, their smoke scattering, their prayers… unanswered.
If even a single flame flickered, if even a single stick was extinguished… Linlang’s father, Tang Wuying, would withdraw his offer, would refuse his daughter’s… request.
The flames danced, their light flickering, their smoke swirling, as gusts of wind, carrying the chill of the approaching winter, swept through the hall, threatening to… snuff them out.
Linlang’s heart ached with every flicker, her body tensing, her fingers digging into her palms.
But the flames endured, their light rekindled, their smoke rising, their prayers… heard?
Time seemed to stand still, each passing second an eternity, as Linlang and her father waited, their hearts pounding, their breaths shallow, their hopes… fragile.
Tang Wuying, his heart torn, his loyalty to his family, his ancestors, battling with his love for his daughter, her determination, her unwavering resolve, both admired her courage… and dreaded the path she had chosen.
It was a path of… suffering. Of sacrifice. Of… loss.
Linlang pressed her forehead against the cold stone floor, her prayer a silent plea for… guidance, for… strength. Her small body, fragile yet resolute, trembled with a suppressed emotion, her tears threatening to spill over.
The wind outside subsided, its howling replaced by a mournful sigh, a whisper of… acceptance?
Tang Wuying, his body aching, his gait unsteady, rose to his feet, turning to leave.
Linlang’s tears spilled over, tracing a path down her cheeks, her heart sinking with… disappointment.
But then… her father turned, a sad smile curving his lips, his eyes, usually so filled with pain, now… bright.
“Get up, Linlang,” he said, his voice gruff yet gentle. “They have… granted your request.”
Linlang, her eyes widening in disbelief, her tears blurring her vision, looked up at the ancestral tablets, their names, their faces, a blur.
And before her… the three incense sticks had burned down to their ends, their ashes piled in the incense burner, a testament to their… sacrifice.
Fire might consume, might destroy… but from its ashes… something new could be born.
………………
Adele had planned to spend the night at Celeste’s… no, at her own… apartment. The ownership hadn’t been legally transferred yet, but Celeste had said it was hers, so… it was hers.
Adele trusted Celeste. Just as Celeste trusted her.
She crouched down, her fingers gently stroking Celeste’s hair, her touch lingering, her gaze soft, her thoughts… hidden.
Celeste, her eyes closing, her body relaxing under Adele’s touch, didn’t understand. But she didn’t need to understand. She simply… accepted.
Adele had chosen to spend the night here, in this luxurious apartment, instead of accepting Hermione’s invitation, or returning to her dorm room to… torment Sharon in her dreams.
Well, she’s not actually a succubus, but… “little succubus” has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?
She was playing the long game, manipulating Hermione’s desires, her possessive nature. If she gave in too easily, too often… Hermione would lose interest. The thrill of the chase, the challenge of… conquest… that was what fueled Hermione’s desire.
And she couldn’t risk… spoiling her appetite.
As for why she hadn’t returned to her dorm… well, that was a more… strategic decision.
She had almost kissed Sharon in her dream. Not because she was afraid, or… guilty.
She was, after all, very bold.
Her decision to stay away from the dorm was a calculated move, a way to exploit Sharon’s insecurities, her tendency to overthink, to… worry.
She wanted Sharon to… wonder. To doubt. To… panic.
To spend a sleepless night, tossing and turning, her mind racing with… what ifs.
What if Adele found out?
What if… she leaves me?
It was a classic tactic: the empty fort strategy. Create an illusion of vulnerability, of absence, and your opponent, their mind clouded by doubt, would make mistakes, would reveal their… weaknesses.
And then, when Adele returned to the dorm, she would resume her role as Sharon’s dream girlfriend, her affection, her attention, a balm for Sharon’s anxieties, a reward for her… loyalty.
And Sharon, relieved, her fears allayed, would become even more… pliable. More… controllable.
Adele would turn the tables, transforming the dream realm, Sharon’s domain, into… her playground.
Sharon had hypnotized her in the real world.
But Adele… well, she could hypnotize Sharon… in her dreams.
It was a brilliant plan, a two-birds-one-stone strategy that would require patience, careful manipulation, and… a flawless performance.
It was a risky gambit, a tightrope walk over an abyss, but… the potential rewards were… enticing.
Even ordinary humans struggled to resist the allure of… power.
And Adele… well, she was a greedy girl.
And there was another reason, a reason that… involved Celeste.
………………
And as Adele had predicted, Hermione, alone in her luxurious bedroom, her heart aching with a longing she couldn’t quite name, her body restless, her mind… tormented, was… not having a good night.
She touched the spot on her bed where Adele had slept, her fingers tracing the outline of her body, her warmth… still lingering. She picked up Adele’s pillow, pressing it to her chest, its softness, its scent… a poor substitute for the real thing.
Her breath hitched, her chest heaving as she struggled to… control herself.
And then… an idea, a dangerous, forbidden idea, crossed her mind, her cheeks flushing with a warmth that spread through her limbs, a tingling sensation that made her… weak.
She glanced around, her gaze sweeping over the empty room, her paranoia, her need for… secrecy, overriding her usual… aloofness.
She was alone. Her servants wouldn’t dare disturb her, not at this hour.
Her icy blue eyes flickered with a mixture of hesitation and… desire.
Just once… just this once…
And then… she did something… unthinkable.
The Ice Queen, the embodiment of elegance and power, the untouchable Sequence One… she buried her face in Adele’s pillow, inhaling deeply, her breath ragged, her body trembling, her voice… a broken whisper.
“Ha… Adele… My Adele…”
“But it’s… not enough… It’s not enough…”
“It’s never enough…!”
A wave of icy magic, fueled by her frustration, her longing, her… despair, swept through the room, coating the walls in a layer of frost, dimming the lights, their warm glow replaced by a chilling blue.
She tossed the pillow aside, her gaze hardening, her body turning cold, her heart… a frozen wasteland.
She strode out of the bedroom, her destination… the training room. There, she could simulate battles against Dorothy, against the other Sequence Ones, against… her own demons.
Perhaps… exhaustion… was the only way to… silence them.
Meanwhile, in Adele’s dorm room…
Sharon, her head buried beneath her pillow, her silver-gray hair a tangled mess, her body slick with sweat, her mind racing with anxieties, with fears, with… what ifs, whimpered softly, her voice a broken whisper, her pain… palpable.
She couldn’t sleep. She couldn’t dream.
She didn’t know how to survive this night, this… emptiness.
Her spirit withered, her heart aching with a loneliness that threatened to consume her.
Alone in the darkness, her thoughts spiraled, her fears taking root, growing, twisting into… nightmares.
Why isn’t Adele back?
Did she… find out?
Why did I run away? Why?
What if… what if she leaves me?
No… Please… Don’t leave me, Adele… Don’t leave me alone…
She squeezed her eyes shut, tears spilling over, soaking her pillow, leaving behind damp patches that mirrored the… emptiness within her.
She curled up into a ball, her arms wrapped around her knees, her body trembling with a chill that had nothing to do with the temperature.
She couldn’t bear this loneliness, this… silence.
She had tasted… happiness. Connection. And now… it was gone.
If she could have those dreams again, those dates with Adele, those stolen moments of… intimacy… she wouldn’t refuse. Not anymore.
She wouldn’t reject Adele’s touch, her kisses…
She would give her… everything.