Chapter 32
Even the most reclusive Prince, the one who usually spent all his time sleeping, would be there.
Besides, after a period of observation by a few vampires, those lurking in the shadows had more or less figured out Fu Xia’s personality. After the Full Moon Ball, the number of competitors vying for the legacy would surely increase.
The half-breeds were weaker than the pure-bloods. Whether they wanted to win her heart or find a way to kill her, neither was a simple task. Plus, the pure-bloods had always been very clear about separating internal conflicts from external ones. They would definitely unite against an outside threat first. Trying to take down all seven Princes at once… would probably be faster in a dream.
But now, with the Progenitor’s chosen one’s blood being able to knock out anyone who drank it, it was the perfect opportunity to catch them all in one fell swoop.
Yan Zhu propped his chin on his hand. “They’re a little smarter than I thought.” He hadn’t expected any of the half-breeds to possess such an ability.
“Mhm,” Fu Xia agreed. “And it doesn’t seem to have any effect on me personally.” Her physical condition was completely normal. Aside from losing some blood recently, there was nothing wrong with her.
Xie Rin said sinisterly, “An unwitting lure is the most effective, after all. It would be no fun if you ended up in the hospital.”
Fu Xia shot back, “Right. And someone just couldn’t resist and got taken down just like that.”
The “someone” who got taken down, Xie Rin: “…”
Perhaps because she had nothing left to lose, Fu Xia was no longer afraid of him at all. This made Xie Rin, who was used to being fawned over, extremely uncomfortable. A faint blush of anger crept across his face, and even the skin on his neck seemed to turn slightly red.
But neither of the other two people in the room cared about his feelings.
“Do half-breeds attend the Full Moon Ball with you pure-bloods?” Fu Xia asked.
Xie Rin lifted his chin slightly, about to say, Let me go, and I’ll tell you.
But he had forgotten that his good brother was now a traitor.
“They can, yes. Humans attend the Full Moon Ball too… Wasn’t Pei Wang planning on taking you?” And Chen Wang had also been trying desperately to get into the party.
Fu Xia imagined the scene: suppose she, completely unaware, attended this ball and happened to bleed.
…Wow, that would be a bloodbath.
She mentally made a note against Pei Wang’s name and casually asked, “Is he still alive, by the way?”
Xie Rin’s tone was dripping with sarcasm. “Ha, still thinking about him at a time like this.” His sour tone made it sound as if she had betrayed him right in front of his face.
Of course, she had to think about Pei Wang.
Aside from everything else, she needed to obtain Pei Wang’s heart’s blood to guarantee her own safety. If a half-breed were to inherit the Prince’s power, the difficulty would increase significantly. It was better to have a clear target than none at all.
At that thought, Fu Xia looked at Xie Rin, who was currently trying to break free.
Xie Rin was extremely unstable. Since she had him captured today, it would be a waste of an opportunity not to take some of his blood.
There was a syringe in the first-aid kit. The needle should be long enough to reach his heart. She would draw the blood first; if it worked, great. If not, she’d figure it out later.
Fu Xia confirmed one more time. “After I become a vampire and drink another vampire’s heart’s blood, they won’t be able to harm me, right?”
Yan Zhu spoke quickly. “Right. Want me to hold him down for you? Should we do it now?”
Xie Rin struggled in disbelief. “Yan Zhu…! You dare touch me?! You damn traitor…!!”
Yan Zhu looked down at him. A hint of non-human coldness flickered in his heterochromatic eyes. His next words made Xie Rin’s struggles cease instantly.
“…Haven’t you noticed that your bewitchment doesn’t work on her anymore?”
When he had first made contact with Fu Xia, she had been easily lulled to sleep.
Xie Rin’s face turned ugly in an instant.
In that brief moment, Fu Xia had already approached with the syringe. She tried to insert it, but the needle bent and broke before it could go in very far. She held up the bent needle and stared at it, lost in thought, before looking at Yan Zhu, who was blinking at her.
“The one who takes it must be the one to use it,” Yan Zhu said. “Otherwise, it won’t be effective.”
“Okay,” Fu Xia nodded. But this was something she had to do herself. She couldn’t always count on him being there, could she?
Her eyes lowered, she casually pulled back the white sheet that served as a fig leaf. The curtains in the castle were thick, blocking all sunlight, but she could still clearly see his body. Three shackles restrained his hands and feet, and several layers of red rope were wrapped around his arms, binding him tightly. Unless he broke his own bones, it would be difficult to escape.
Beneath his overly pale skin, blue veins spread like the root system of a tree. Her fingertips traced these roots, slowly and deliberately.
Xie Rin stared at her with red-rimmed eyes, but she ignored his gaze. She sat on the edge of the bed, her fingertips lightly touching his Adam’s apple. He often covered his neck with lace or other ornaments, which both satisfied his tastes and hid his true identity.
“I’m actually a little curious…” she said casually, her fingers still on his skin. “Why do you like to act as a woman?”
Itchy. That was his only sensation. Her fingertips were like a lit flame, igniting him with every second of contact. He instinctively tried to pull away, but she held him down, as if demanding an answer before she would let him go.
His breathing was erratic. “I… ugh… I just like elaborate clothes… don’t touch there…!”
He spoke too late. Her nail grazed his skin, and a hot wetness clung to her hand, pulling into a thin thread as she lifted it before quickly snapping, like the last vestiges of his sanity.
So he’s not impotent after all, Fu Xia thought.
“…I don’t think you need to be so resistant to helping me,” she said, her gaze burning, her voice soft. “You only approached me because you thought it would be fun, anyway…”
Yan Zhu told her even that!!
Xie Rin clamped his lips shut, but a subtle itchiness and a sharp pain swept through his brain. His gaze fell on her face. It was calm, inquisitive. Whether she was drawing blood or toying with a creature that could easily crush her, she showed no fear.
…It was as if she were born to be one of them.
The thought, combined with her deliberate movements, made him tremble.
Yan Zhu, watching from the side, wasn’t faring much better, but at least he was fully dressed and looked less pathetic. His eyes were fixed on her, his gaze possessive and latently aggressive, but his rationality kept him from approaching.
…There will be an opportunity.
“Ah, your hips are lifting,” Fu Xia said.
His skin was pale, but certain parts were a light pink. The blush on his face was spreading to the rest of his body. Her hand landed in the right place.
With the syringe in her palm, she negotiated. “Since you’re not interested in the Progenitor’s legacy and just want to have fun, why not help me? What do you say?”
Yan Zhu, watching with heated eyes, chimed in, “Yeah, yeah.”
“Don’t even think about… Ah!”
The end of his sentence turned into a high-pitched cry. The shackle on his ankle clanked.
Fu Xia tightened her grip with one hand and, with the other, plunged the syringe into his chest, neatly drawing a tube of blood.
As her movements suddenly stopped, he let out a pitiful whimper.
She looked at the syringe in her hand. The blood was a vibrant color. Before handing it to Yan Zhu, she asked, “Is there a freezer to store this in?”
“Yes,” he said.
Just from having a little of his heart’s blood drawn, Xie Rin’s face had turned deathly pale. He glared at her with red-rimmed, resentful eyes, turning onto his side.
…A Prince’s blood wasn’t so easy to take.
“It’s hard to say it’s not a case of playing hard to get,” Yan Zhu commented.
Xie Rin, lying on the bed with his legs drawn up, stiffened.
Fu Xia squatted by the bed and asked patiently, “So, what do you think about what I said?”
Xie Rin pulled at the corner of his lips. “Can you guarantee that I will always be number one?”
“Does it matter?”
Yan Zhu, who was about to put on his mask, heard her words and was about to speak with a slightly hurt expression when he heard her continue.
“A certain someone purposefully climbed into my bed, used his vampire ability on me, and treated me like a monkey,” Fu Xia said. “He can be number one on my blacklist, if you want.”
Yan Zhu silently put on his mask.
Fu Xia poked Xie Rin’s cheek. When he turned his head to bite her, she quickly pulled her hand back.
“Think about it carefully,” she said. “You can get out of this yourself, right? I have to go back to class.”
With Yan Zhu’s protection, she was not stopped by any other vampires when she left the castle. It was located deep within a national forest park, on high ground, and the air was exceptionally fresh. The sun fell on her. She looked back and saw the vines winding around the castle, lush and green, showing none of the previous night’s eerie horror.
She looked up for a while.
In any case, it was better to know what kind of environment she was in than to be ignorant. If she could successfully be turned into a vampire and possess power and wealth beyond most humans, there was no downside for her. She could even take care of her biological father’s family, which was a huge temptation.
As for not being able to bask in the sun—that wasn’t so important to her right now.
She was lost in thought for a long time. Yan Zhu, standing in the shadows, asked, “Did you forget something?”
“No, let’s go.”
She couldn’t wait. “Let’s go find Zhu Ye.”