Chapter 86: I Need a Leave of Absence
As night fell, a knock came at Adele’s door. The Blake Lady’s maid waited for a while, and the door opened from the inside. The human maid who had entered the previous night stood aside as Adele stepped out, properly dressed.
It seemed Adele had anticipated the Blake Lady’s summons, but instead of heading towards her mother’s room, she walked in a different direction, without the human maid following. The Blake Lady’s maid was surprised. She glanced at the human maid, then hurried after Adele.
“Miss Adele,” she called out, “you’re not heading towards the Lady’s room.”
Adele didn’t stop or even turn her head. She simply continued walking, saying, “Do I need a maid to tell me where to go?” Her words stunned the maid. Of course, she had no right to order Adele around, but these were the Lady’s instructions.
So, she persisted, “But the Lady requested that you visit her room as soon as you woke up…”
“Hmph.” Adele snorted, ignoring the maid completely. The maid, feeling pressured, exchanged glances with another maid who had caught up to them. They decided to enforce the Blake Lady’s orders. They reached out towards Adele, their nails extending into sharp claws.
The Blake Lady’s maids included both low-ranking vampires and those with far superior abilities. As the wife of the Blake patriarch, she even had a personal maid who was a minor noble. Many of them were as strong as the school doctor.
These two maids were no exception. Adele hadn’t even been able to defeat the school doctor last year, let alone two opponents of equal strength. However, Adele felt incredibly strong right now, confident that she could easily overpower them. And she did.
Adele looked at her hands, surprised by her own strength. She knew that Jasmine’s blood was potent. The first time she had tasted it last year, the energy it had infused into her body had kept her full for over a fortnight, and she had only had a small amount then. Last night, she had drunk so much. She was at the peak of her strength now.
A vampire’s power was largely derived from the blood they consumed. That was why high-quality blood fetched a high price in the vampire market. Jasmine’s blood was not only fragrant and delicious, but its effects were also exceptional. If others knew how potent it was, they might capture Jasmine and use her as a blood bag.
Looking at the maids lying on the ground, easily defeated, Adele clenched her fists, her resolve to protect Jasmine strengthening. She was about to do something risky, but it was worth a try.
She took a deep breath and continued walking. She reached her father’s study and announced in a clear, confident voice, “Father, Adele Blake requests an audience.” The door opened from the inside, and her father’s servant bowed, inviting her in.
She waited in the drawing-room outside the study for a while, then the servant invited her into the study.
The Blake patriarch was busy writing at his desk when Adele entered. As the head of the Blake family, he had many responsibilities. Seeing Adele, he gestured towards the sofa in the sitting area, “Have a seat.”
Adele obediently sat down. The servant brought her black tea with her special artificial blood sugar cubes, then bowed and left the study.
Her posture was perfect, her back straight, the epitome of noble grace, as taught by the Blake Lady. She sat there for a long time, while the Blake patriarch continued working, his quill scratching across the paper, filling the room with a soft rustling sound.
The sound continued for a long time. After finishing a stack of documents, the Blake patriarch finally put down his quill, stood up, and walked over to Adele.
He sat down opposite her, looked at her for a moment, and then asked, “So, you came to see me as soon as you left your room. What is it? You’re not here to complain about your mother, are you?”
If that was the reason, he would have sent Adele back to her room, telling her to face her mother directly instead of seeking refuge with him. But Adele shook her head.
That wasn’t why she had come. She said, “I want to make a deal with you, Father.”
The Blake patriarch was intrigued. “A deal with me? What kind of deal?”
Adele looked at him, her posture relaxing slightly, and then she laid out her plan.
Meanwhile, the Blake Lady had learned that Adele had knocked down her maids and gone to the Blake patriarch’s study. She was furious. She had thought Adele, having lost their battle of wills, would come to her obediently. But instead, she had done something so audacious. Adele had attacked her maids, not only defying her but also humiliating her. Everyone knew that the maids had been acting on her orders. The Blake Lady couldn’t sit still any longer. She stormed out of her room, heading towards the patriarch’s study.
Of course, she didn’t need to announce her arrival. She barged through the two doors, and before even opening the second door, she heard Adele talking to the Blake patriarch. Her usually stern husband sounded cheerful, which made her even more upset.
She threw open the door. The father and daughter both looked at her. Suppressing her anger, she called out Adele’s name, “Adele, don’t you think you owe me an explanation?”
Adele looked at her father, who chose to betray her. “I only promised not to take your mother’s side. It doesn’t mean I’ll take yours. If you can’t even handle such a small matter, how can I trust you to fulfill our deal?”
You old fox!—
Adele cursed silently. She knew it wouldn’t be that easy.
The Blake patriarch gestured, indicating that he wished his wife and daughter to leave. Adele knew that staying any longer would be pointless and embarrassing. She stood up and followed her mother to her room.
The Lady walked briskly, her pace almost aggressive, a far cry from her usual graceful demeanor. Upon reaching her room, she sat down heavily on the sofa, her movements forceful and unrefined, unlike the ladylike grace she had always instilled in Adele.
She didn’t offer Adele a seat, but Adele, unfazed, sat down opposite her. Seeing that the Lady had no intention of speaking, Adele took the initiative. “Mother, to be honest, I don’t want to get married. At least, not now.”
—When I’m powerful enough to silence everyone, and more importantly, if Jasmine is willing, then perhaps I can marry her.
Her words enraged the Blake Lady. “I thought you would have learned your lesson after being confined for so long! What do you gain by defying your parents? If you don’t want to be locked up again, then obey your father and me!”
Unlike the Blake patriarch, the Blake Lady wasn’t easily swayed. She was a stubborn woman. Adele could negotiate with her father, but she couldn’t use the same tactics with her mother.
Their conversation devolved into a heated argument.
By the time the news reached Jasmine, it had become: “Have you heard?! Miss Adele attacked the Lady and ran away!”
After Adele left her room, the maids guarding the door had also withdrawn. Jasmine sat there for a long time. Adele had eaten her fill last night, but Jasmine hadn’t eaten anything. Although she wouldn’t starve to death so easily, as a foodie, she felt it was time for a meal. She left Adele’s room, making sure to wear a scarf to cover the bite marks on her neck.
It wasn’t early when she arrived at the dining hall. Most of the maids had already finished eating. As she left the hall, she noticed something strange about the atmosphere in the castle. Then she overheard the words that made her head spin… What? Adele attacked the Lady and ran away? But she had seemed so confident when she left the room earlier.
Jasmine froze, then she saw the vampire maids turning to look at her, their gazes fixed on her neck. Clearly, the scent of blood hadn’t completely dissipated. She hadn’t noticed Adele leaving the castle. The castle was where Adele had spent most of her life, and her room, where she had stayed for over a fortnight, was now where Adele’s scent was strongest.
If a stranger entered the castle, Jasmine could easily detect their presence. But it wasn’t so easy to notice the absence of a regular resident. Whenever she moved around the castle, she relied on both her hearing and her sense of smell to avoid vampires. But Adele’s whereabouts were unknown. How could she possibly track her down?
Jasmine felt a surge of anger. Adele had just drunk her blood last night, and now she had run away without a word. It felt like a classic “one-night stand and then ghosting” scenario.
Ignoring the vampire maids’ stares, Jasmine walked up to them and said, “Tell the head maid that I need a leave of absence.” Then she turned and left, ignoring their calls.
She returned to Adele’s room, packed a suitcase with clothes, then went to her own room and added two sets of casual clothes. After finishing, she grabbed the suitcase and left, determined to track down the “heartless” Adele.
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