However, Aiwei was not taken directly to Fuluoxi’s bedroom, but instead brought to a spacious bathhouse.
Standing in front of the bathhouse was the only person Aiwei was familiar with in this Vampire Castle—Liya.
“Aiwei, after you’ve bathed and changed, you’ll go meet the Prince.” Liya spoke in a businesslike tone.
Aiwei also noticed that the Vampire Clan guards who had just escorted… or rather, marched her over to the bathhouse, all bowed their heads respectfully to Liya.
Liya waved her hand, signaling for those vampires to leave. Soon, only Aiwei and Liya were left in the bathhouse.
But Liya didn’t chat much with Aiwei, simply motioning for her to bathe quickly, or else the Prince would be angry.
Suppressing the urge to say something to Liya, Aiwei looked at the misty pool, hesitated for a moment, and then began to remove her clothes.
But just as Aiwei was about to undress, a thought struck her. She looked back—at some point, Liya’s figure had vanished.
After searching carefully, Aiwei discovered Liya was now sitting near the entrance to the bathhouse, but her attention wasn’t on Aiwei; instead, she was staring off into the distance.
Aiwei quickly slipped off her clothes and, barefoot, stepped into the pool.
A warm sensation spread from the soles of her feet to every part of her body.
Bit by bit, Aiwei’s body sank into the water, and a soothing feeling welled up within her.
Letting out a breath, Aiwei closed her eyes, submerged her head in the water, and blew bubbles, making gurgling sounds.
After about ten seconds, Aiwei surfaced from beneath the water, wiped the droplets from her face, and looked at her own reflection in the water, her aqua-blue hair dripping.
Youthful, cute, pretty—like a lotus emerging from the water, or perhaps a pure white lotus rising untainted from the mud.
That looks quite nice.
Aiwei evaluated herself in her heart, then shifted her attention and began to observe the bathhouse.
It was fully enclosed; besides the door she had entered through, there was no other exit.
If there had to be another way out, it would be the two or three windows, each about as tall as she was.
Aiwei dismissed any thoughts of escape and turned her attention to Liya, who was guarding outside the door.
At first, she had thought Liya was a blood servant, her status in the castle only a little higher than her own as a Blood Slave.
But now, Aiwei suspected she might have been wrong.
Just the fact that those vampires bowed to Liya was enough to show her unusual status. She looked like just a blood servant, but seemed to have a deep connection with Fuluoxi.
Could it be that she had unwittingly latched onto a powerful backer?
Thinking this, Aiwei mentally upgraded her estimation of Liya’s status.
After that, Aiwei stopped thinking too much and simply relaxed, letting herself sink into the water.
But she didn’t get to enjoy the bath for long before a knocking sound interrupted her.
Liya gently reminded Aiwei that time was almost up.
Aiwei nodded, stepped out of the water, and walked to a basket that had somehow appeared nearby. From it, she took out a…
Maid outfit.
Aiwei’s eye twitched, but thinking about it, this was surely arranged by Fuluoxi.
She put on the undergarments and the black-and-white maid uniform.
Just as she finished dressing, she saw there were also two pairs of white stockings in the basket.
Aiwei’s eye twitched again.
Staring at the white stockings, for a moment she didn’t know what to say. Normally, she would have loved to wear such nice clothes.
But this was the Vampire Castle, and she was about to go to Fuluoxi’s chambers. Wearing these clothes—what exactly did Fuluoxi want to do?
But it didn’t seem like she had any room to resist. After a bit of mental preparation, she finally put them on.
*****
Very soon, Aiwei was once again standing before that familiar door.
To be honest, she was still a little nervous.
Liya, who had brought her here, now stood to the side of the door. In her eyes, Aiwei saw a trace of encouragement?
Aiwei swallowed nervously, squeezed her hands anxiously, then slowly reached for the door, took a deep breath, and pushed it open.
Inside was the scene she was used to—Fuluoxi sitting in a chair, watching her.
Aiwei entered, closed the door behind her, lowered her head, and naturally knelt down, looking every bit the obedient girl.
“Master, I’m here.” Aiwei knelt on the floor and spoke to Fuluoxi.
Although she had already mentally prepared herself in the bathhouse and on the way here, actually doing such a shameful thing still made her cheeks burn uncontrollably.
Fuluoxi raised her eyebrows, clearly pleased with Aiwei’s appearance in the maid outfit and a bit surprised by her obedient demeanor.
Yesterday, Fuluoxi had already noticed the defiance Aiwei hid beneath her docility, her little acts of rebellion stifled only by her lack of strength.
If yesterday Aiwei had acted like this, perhaps Fuluoxi might have actually believed her submission. Unfortunately, Aiwei had already missed her best chance to perform.
Still, Aiwei’s obedience now was indeed somewhat pleasing.
Fuluoxi beckoned to Aiwei.
Though Aiwei kept her head down, she paid close attention to Fuluoxi’s every move. Seeing Fuluoxi’s relaxed expression, she let out a small sigh of relief, then noticed Fuluoxi motioning for her to come closer.
Biting her lower lip, trembling slightly, Aiwei ultimately didn’t resist and crawled obediently toward Fuluoxi.
Even though she’d mentally prepared herself, actually doing it still required a great deal of courage.
Or perhaps… it was the complete abandonment of shame.
Aiwei thought she could be shameless, but in reality, she’d underestimated how difficult it was.
Luckily, it was just her and Fuluoxi here, so Aiwei could just barely accept it.
The stockings rubbed softly against the floor, lessening the inevitable pain in her knees as she crawled—was that a benefit?
Soon, Aiwei was at Fuluoxi’s feet. She didn’t lift her head, obediently bowing by Fuluoxi’s feet, and Fuluoxi gently lifted Aiwei’s chin.
Still-damp strands of hair dripped water down her cheeks. Flustered, Aiwei hurriedly wiped her face, her cheeks flushed like a just-ripe peach, inviting a bite.
Fuluoxi pinched Aiwei’s cheek lightly, then scooped her up from the floor and placed her on her lap.
Like a pitiful little puppy, Aiwei was forced to sit on Fuluoxi’s lap, her hands firmly restrained in Fuluoxi’s grasp.
Uncomfortable, Aiwei tried to squirm, but with just a cold snort from Fuluoxi, she immediately froze, body stiff and head lowered, letting Fuluoxi do as she pleased.