Eve narrowed her eyes at the dim lighting of the carriage.
The vampire earlier was still talking to the woman, yet she could practically guess what was going to happen next. Eve snorted. She closed her eyes and thought of a way to escape this situation.
She had come up with some ways, but none of them would not involve her killing that vampire for his disrespect. As Evelynn Rosetta, she had attained great power because of her sorcery. Her mastery of both magic spells and incantations was unparalleled.
However, she was no longer that powerful sorceress.
This body would not be able to take it if she performed one of the stronger magics that she was able to use when she was still Evelynn Rosetta.
Eve Lucrecia was human. She was weak.
At least before Evelynn occupied this body.
She heard the Vampire's voice echoed through the air, instructing everyone to leave the area.
Then the carriage door swung open.
The man stepped into the carriage, his eyes on her exposed neck.
When closer to him, he appeared even younger than what he looked like from afar. However, she could easily discern a certain antiquity to his gaze, an ancient quality that seemed to tell her that he had been alive even longer than fifty years.
"Eve…" the man smiled. "The name suits you."
Should she thank him? Eve maintained a blank look on her face.
In just a few hours, she experienced dying, waking up inside another woman's body, being sold into the domain of the vampire, and now this…
What luck.
The vampire sat in front of her and smiled, flashing his fangs that were not there earlier.
"Wine?" he asked.
"No."
"Wine tastes the same as water," the vampire said. "They are bland, boring." He poured himself a glass of wine and slowly twirled it, staring at the scarlet liquid in awe. "Yet, we still consume it. Do you want to know what?"
Eve's lips twitched, yet, she said nothing.
The vampire, on the other hand, did not look too amused that she was not saying a word to answer his question. He placed the wine glass on the table inside the carriage.
"You don't look too nervous," he said. Again, his gaze lingered on her neck before he dragged it back to her eyes.
"No."
"Would you be willing to tell me why? Ah, did you perhaps think you would be able to outrun a vampire?"
Eve pursed her lips.
"No. I would not be able to outrun you," she said. "But I could do something else."
"And what might that be?"
"Somnus Involucrum," Eve muttered under her breath. For a few seconds, the vampire's eyes widened as realization hit him. Then before his fast reflex could do something about it, his eyes turned heavy.
Soon enough, his body fell into the carriage.
Eve wasted no time. The only reason why she succeeded this time was because she used the element of surprise.
Vampires could not exactly sense magic or sorcery, especially from someone who was born weak like Eve Lucrecia.
She immediately walked out of the carriage but almost fell to the ground. Using the carriage to support herself, Eve held her head.
She just used magic that would make him sleep. However, this body was too weak so it suffered some sort of backlash.
Still, she had no time to stay in this place. She bit her lower lip, her heart started pounding in her chest.
With her unsteady and feebly movements, she walked into the nearby trees and started moving away from the carriage.
The magic weakened her. However, despite her physical limitations, she pushed herself to run faster as she sought refuge in the nearby dark forest.
The darkness obscured her vision but it was not enough reason to stop now. She fled deeper and deeper into the woods, barely able to see where she was going.
Eve did not know how far she ran. She stumbled and tripped, her movements became slower as her energy waned.
Yet, she refused to give up. There should be another way out of here. Perhaps, a small abandoned hut, or a cave that would keep her safe for the night.
The spell would only last for four hours and she was well aware that she did not have enough time.
Still was originally planning to let the man take her to a royalty's lair to make her join the Night's Courtship. Who would have thought that she would stumble upon a vampire like that?
Thinking back, she should have just killed that woman earlier and escaped before she met the vampire!
Her heart pounded harder, her breath coming in ragged gasps. She was running out of energy, but her thoughts of surviving and making those who betrayed her suffer in return consumed everything that she felt right now.
This body was too weak, too fragile!
Suddenly, she stumbled upon a clearing. She halted abruptly as she saw a man standing on a cliff's edge.
He had his back to her as he stared into the darkness in front of him.
"There are other ways to die than jumping off a cliff and possibly just breaking a bone," Eve uttered as she tried to catch her breath. The sight of another human made her smile. At least, she could use the human to try and fool that vampire from earlier.
Hearing her, the man turned and locked his eyes with hers. His intense gaze pierce her soul with a hypnotic power that seemed to leave her weak in the knees.
Stupid! She thought inwardly as she straightened her back and welcomed his curious gaze.
For a few moments, they simply stared at each other, neither of them moving nor speaking.
"You should not be here," he said, his voice low and silky smooth. "It is not safe for you." His tone was both commanding and strangely seducing.
Who was he trying to seduce?
She frowned as she stared at his strikingly handsome feature of… a vampire.
Just as she thought she just found a way to solve her current predicament, she actually found yet another problem!
How annoying!
Her chest raised and fell.
"Do not move," Eve said. She held her palm and created a small ball of fire, almost as small as her fist. "Or I will burn you." She tried to maintain a brave facade. Yet, her vision started blurring. The fire in her hand vanished as she stumbled forward, her body wracked with pain.
She had used too much magic.
She braced herself for the impact of hitting the ground. Instead, she felt strong arms wrap around her, catching her before she fell.
....
A/N: Although set in the same universe as ROSIE's GAMES, the novel can be enjoyed as a standalone read. This is a completely different story. Maps will be provided in the comment section and review section. Character images will be provided too. Thanks and please add it to your library.
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