Chapter 19 : The Good Days Are Over

Time slipped quietly by, and half a month passed in the blink of an eye.

During this time, Grace got wind that Claire and Phyllis would be returning earlier than expected, and she immediately relayed the news to Lorin.

So when Claire, full of anticipation, tried to pull off a surprise inspection and catch Lorin slacking—she ended up with nothing but empty air. However…

Claire gave her phone a gentle shake, her eyes gleaming with mischief as she smiled.

“Then how about this?”

With that, she tapped on the screen and pulled up a video.

The footage showed a scene both cozy and vaguely incriminating—Lorin sitting behind Grace, rhythmically pounding her fists on Grace’s shoulders in a massage.

Meanwhile, Grace sat at the desk, leaning slightly forward, utterly focused on the documents before her.

Her pen danced across the page with practiced speed, carefully processing the paperwork that should have been Lorin’s responsibility.

Under her efficient hands, the files were swiftly and neatly handled.

“You have the nerve to complain?”

Claire glared at Lorin.

“You two sure had it easy, tossing me into a pit of paperwork while you played around!”

“This is something you have to learn,” Claire replied flatly, her tone brooking no argument.

“Well, I don’t care! You think I want to be some vampire princess or whatever?!”

Lorin turned her head away defiantly.

Seeing this, Claire’s lips curled into a cold smirk.

“You want to use vampire magic, but you don’t want to be a vampire princess? Where in the world does that kind of deal exist?”

Claire’s steps were slow but firm, each one drawing closer, each footfall landing squarely on Lorin’s heartbeat.

Lorin felt the looming presence and a chill surged through her body.

Her eyes widened in panic, and she instinctively backed away.

Her feet scrambled behind her, bumping into a chair and sending it screeching across the floor.

She didn’t even register the pain as she kept retreating until her back hit the corner wall—no escape left.

She curled up tightly, arms crossed in front of her chest as if to shield herself from danger.

Her breathing grew fast and shallow.

She stared at Claire with wide, terrified eyes as fear bloomed in them like ink in water.

“I leave for a few days and you already forget who the queen is!”

“Claire, what are you doing?!”

“This is the royal palace! Watch your behavior!”

Claire ignored her protests, scooping Lorin up and tossing her straight onto the bed.

Since she was about to leave again, now was the perfect time to “strengthen their mother-daughter bond.”

How she had convinced Phyllis to keep being queen in the first place was anyone’s guess.

“Nooo! Waaaah!”

***

Meanwhile, in a quieter corner of the palace office, warm lamplight spilled across a desk as Phyllis reviewed a stack of documents Grace had processed.

Her eyes moved steadily across the pages, and before long, a smile tugged at the corners of her lips—genuine admiration shining through.

Eventually, Phyllis couldn’t help but speak, her tone full of praise.

“Grace, I really didn’t expect you to be this talented.”

Her voice was light, her gaze warm and approving.

But Grace didn’t react the way one might expect.

She kept her head bowed low, long hair falling over her cheeks, hiding her expression.

Her shoulders trembled slightly, and her fingers nervously fidgeted with the edge of her uniform, knuckles turning white from the pressure.

She hadn’t realized that the mirror in the room had been an alchemical device projecting everything to another location…

“Your Majesty, I overstepped…”

“No, no, not at all! I’ve been wanting to find an assistant for a while. Would you like to take the position?”

To Grace’s surprise, Phyllis didn’t scold her—instead, she mirrored Lorin’s approach, speaking with gentle persuasion.

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty, but I still believe—”

“Grace! You have to believe in yourself!”

Phyllis cut her off, clearly unwilling to give up on securing her peaceful future.

She too had started coaxing Grace like Lorin had done.

Grace felt her head throb.

If she’d known this would happen, she never would’ve agreed to help Lorin.

Now she couldn’t even keep her job as a maid.

She was a top graduate from the Bloodrealm’s Elite Maid Academy.

Being forced to handle government documents—what the hell was that?

But Phyllis didn’t care about any of that.

“It’s settled!”

With a flourish of her hand, Phyllis unilaterally declared Grace promoted—and getting a raise, too.

“Eh?!”

“Wait!! Your Majesty, please no!”

In two different rooms, the same fate was playing out on two very different people.

***

“Put it on.”

Claire held up a camera in one hand and a frilly pink dress in the other, her tone leaving no room for argument.

She had found this adorable little number in the human realm—it looked way better than the cameras used in the vampire domain.

“Claire, I’d rather die! I’d rather throw myself off a cliff than touch that thing!”

Lorin clutched the hem of her shirt like it was her last hope, her eyes filled with pure resistance.

Right now she was wearing a white shirt and a pair of relaxed pants—items she’d begged Grace for ages to help her buy.

Though, that kidswear tag still made her want to tear her hair out.

There was no way she’d ever wear something like a skirt—it offered no sense of security whatsoever!

She still held out hope of turning back into her old self.

Then she could finally get away from these lunatics and return to her unfinished playboy lifestyle.

As if reading her thoughts, Claire raised a brow.

“You’re not seriously still dreaming about turning back, are you?”

“So what if I am?”

Since she’d been found out, Lorin dropped the act. She did still believe she’d find a way.

“Outside of our vampire lineage, changing one’s race or gender is completely unheard of across the entire Endless Continent,” Claire sneered.

“So, my sweet daughter, drop those delusions. You drank my blood—so settle in and be a good little vampire princess.”

“Heh…”

Lorin scoffed in contempt. No way was she giving in.

Seeing that, Claire clearly ran out of patience.

She still needed to take their “mother-daughter photo” and didn’t have time to argue.

She’d leave the emotional education part to her dear sister.

“Freeze.”

With a single word, Lorin suddenly found herself completely paralyzed.

“Claire! If you’ve got guts, suppress your power to Tier Three! Let’s fight fair!”

Lorin roared with frustration, but Claire acted as if she hadn’t heard a thing.

It was true—Lorin had left a trail of romantic chaos in her previous life, and all of it involved people of serious status.

Yet she always came out unscathed.

That alone proved how strong she used to be.

But that was her past life.

Now, she was just a Tier Three mage—and Claire’s daughter.

If Claire really dropped herself to Tier Three, she might not have the upper hand anymore.

But why should she handicap herself?

She was Tier Seven now. Why waste that?

“Claire! Are you listening?!”

“Stop! Don’t take it off—!”

“I… I’ll do it myself!”

“I said I’ll do it myself!!”

“According to vampire tradition, you’re not even a year old yet. It’s perfectly normal for me to help you.”

“Get away from me, you creepy daughter-obsessed maniac!”

“Oh? So you admit you’re my daughter now?”