Lin Shu lay there, the metallic taste of blood in her mouth gradually fading.
The room was silent.
She turned her head to look out the window, but it was obscured by heavy curtains, blocking out even the slightest glimmer of light from the outside world.
Locked in a room where she couldn’t tell day from night, she was currently unable to move and powerless to use her abilities.
‘What should I do? Do I just have to wait for someone to save me?’
Sefina’s image flickered through Lin Shu’s mind—the smile she had given her before she left.
‘Where is she now…’
A short while later, Lin Shu heard hurried footsteps outside. Two people were rushing down the hallway.
Through the door, their muffled conversation drifted in.
“Look at what you’ve done! You’ve completely spoiled Leah!”
“Dear, didn’t you spoil our daughter just as much? Did you ever deny her anything she wanted when she was little?”
It was the voices of Leah’s father and mother.
“No matter how much I spoiled her, I never encouraged her to go to another family’s estate and act so recklessly! And letting her lock a human in her room… what is the meaning of this?!”
“Oh? Are you blaming me, darling? Do you want to use the tasseled whip tonight?”
“…Keep your voice down.”
The voices outside faded, and Lin Shu could no longer hear the father’s raised voice.
Her heart sank. The two highest-ranking vampires in the family had both tacitly allowed Leah to imprison her.
Then again, it made sense. They didn’t care at all about the personal freedom of a human.
Lin Shu stared quietly at the ceiling.
*Gurgle…* Her stomach let out a protest.
The emptiness in her stomach was becoming painful. The battle at the Drago estate had drained a massive amount of her energy.
She was starving.
After an unknown amount of time, the door was pushed open with a click.
Light from the outside flooded into the room, and Lin Shu turned her head to look.
A vampire maid walked in, pushing a small trolley.
The cart was covered with a pristine white cloth, and the plates were laden with roasted meat and bread.
The largest dish in the center was a roasted suckling pig, its skin golden and crispy, with meat juices and fat dripping onto the iron platter.
The aroma of food instantly filled the entire room.
Lin Shu swallowed reflexively.
“Lin Shu, these are the refreshments the Young Mistress ordered for you,” the maid said with a respectful bow.
Lin Shu, still shackled hand and foot to the bed, said awkwardly, “Cough… Um, can you help me unlock these handcuffs?”
“I wouldn’t dare.” The maid shook her head frantically. “The Young Mistress said that I am to feed you.”
“There’s no need for that,” Lin Shu instinctively refused.
She wasn’t used to being served like this.
“Please, try to eat a little,” the maid urged in a low voice.
“Then please tell the Young Mistress to unlock these, and I’ll eat on my own,” Lin Shu said, rattling her handcuffs to demonstrate.
The maid was silent for a moment before saying, “I… I don’t dare. The Young Mistress is busy in the kitchen.”
“The kitchen?” Lin Shu was confused.
Leah had never set foot in a kitchen before; how could she be busy there?
“Yes. She’s been pestering the head chef for a long time, asking why the food she makes doesn’t glow like it does in human stories.”
The maid glanced warily at the door, and after confirming no one was there, she continued, “Lin Shu, ever since you came back, the Young Mistress’s temper has finally improved.”
“While you were gone, she would alternate between being depressed and being furious. The pressure on those of us serving her was immense.”
Lin Shu was speechless.
‘Look at me. Does it look like I came back of my own accord?’
The maid carefully scooped up a spoonful of mushroom soup and was about to bring it to Lin Shu’s lips.
But the mention of being forcibly brought back made Lin Shu lose her appetite, despite the discomfort in her stomach.
“Just put it down.”
“How is Lin Shu doing?” Leah’s voice drifted in from the doorway.
The maid trembled, hastily put down the spoon, and turned to bow. “Young Mistress.”
Leah walked in, her gaze sweeping over the nearly untouched food on the trolley. “She hasn’t eaten anything?”
“I don’t want to eat,” Lin Shu answered for the maid.
Leah was holding a small plate with a lopsided cream cake on it.
“Leave us,” Leah commanded, dismissing the maid first.
Once the door was closed, Leah walked to the bedside and awkwardly held the cake out to Lin Shu’s mouth. “Then… eat this.”
Lin Shu turned her head away.
Leah pursed her lips. “I made this cake myself. Won’t you try it?”
Lin Shu didn’t respond.
Leah set the plate back onto the trolley.
“Lin Shu, don’t you remember? On my birthday back then, you knew I loved sweets, so you made a cake for me. It was very ugly, but the cream was very sweet.”
“I wanted you to taste my feelings, too. I tried many times in the kitchen, and this is the best one.”
“I don’t want to eat,” Lin Shu repeated.
“You haven’t eaten in a long time. Even if you’re angry with me, you should think about your health!”
“Then unlock these handcuffs, and I…”
Taking advantage of the moment Lin Shu opened her mouth to speak, Leah swiped a glob of cream from the cake with her finger and forced it into Lin Shu’s mouth.
“Mmph!!” Lin Shu’s eyes widened.
“Don’t bite me again.” Leah’s hand gripped both sides of her face, forcing her mouth to stay open. “Since you won’t eat, I’ll feed you myself.”
Her index finger probed into Lin Shu’s mouth, enveloped by the warmth of her tongue and saliva.
The cream on her finger smeared against the tongue, and a thick, cloying sweetness spread across Lin Shu’s taste buds.
“Guh… ah…” Lin Shu let out a muffled sound of protest.
The forceful treatment caused physiological tears to well up in her eyes.
Leah inserted a second finger.
With two fingers pinching the soft tongue, she pushed the cream toward the back of the throat while the backs of her fingers rubbed roughly against Lin Shu’s lips.
“Did you swallow it well?” Leah asked in a low voice.
She slowly withdrew her fingers, which were now slick with saliva.
“Hah… cough, cough!” Lin Shu couldn’t help but cough, her vision blurred by tears.
Leah looked down at her two glistening fingers for a moment before putting them into her own mouth.
Her tongue tasted only a faint, lingering sweetness.
She looked at Lin Shu.
Lin Shu’s hands were cuffed to the headboard, and her long hair was scattered messily over her shoulders from the struggle. Her eyes were red and brimming with tears, and her lips were slightly swollen from the rough treatment.
Looking at Lin Shu like this made Leah’s heart race, sparking a powerful urge.
She wanted to possess her completely.
However, if Lin Shu kept refusing to eat, it would become a problem.
Leah wanted to loosen her restraints, but she knew the human was still thinking about that woman…
Leah said sharply, “Are you planning to starve yourself like this until Sefina comes to save you?”
“Stop waiting for her. She doesn’t love you at all. You might not care that she’s using you as a substitute, but have you ever considered that she’s actually just using you as a tool to climb the ranks?”
“What are you talking about…” Lin Shu started to speak, but she suddenly felt a wave of dizziness hit her head.
Her mind became light and airy, just like when she had been drinking.
Something was wrong.
Lin Shu snapped her head around to look at the cake. “What did you put in that cake?”