Adèle hurried off, needing to eat. For vampires, their life and strength come entirely from blood—their own and what they consume. If the blood is of high quality, it can sustain a vampire for a long time; otherwise, they need regular doses.
Adèle had never drunk human blood, something others couldn't understand. Whenever she faced the blood provided by her family, she would turn her nose up, claiming it reeked. She only drank synthetic blood, which other vampires said had no taste or smell, making it the only thing Adèle could tolerate.
But synthetic blood was artificial, like a cheap sugary drink made with low-quality sweeteners. Sure, you could drink it, but expecting it to provide substantial energy was wishful thinking. Adèle, who could only handle synthetic blood, had to eat regularly and on time, or she might weaken or even pass out.
Jasmine couldn't understand why Adèle, who hated blood so much, was so intent on drinking hers. Did her blood not stink in Adèle's nose?
With Adèle gone, Jasmine began her tasks. She needed to clean her room, then head to Adèle's quarters in the student dormitory, tidy up, and wash the clothes Adèle had changed out of the previous day.
When Jasmine reached the dorms, there were no students around, only maids bustling about. This was normal, as the students were all in class at this time, leaving only the maids to tidy up their masters' things.
As Jasmine picked up the laundry basket to take it to her room for washing, she encountered another human maid. She had a sprinkling of freckles on her face, giving her a cute appearance.
The freckled girl seemed a bit shy but still approached Jasmine, asking for her name.
"H-hello, I'm Anna."
"Jasmine," she replied briefly, giving Anna her name. After receiving a response, Anna seemed to relax a bit, and they walked side by side, each carrying a basket of dirty clothes.
They were both headed to the servants' quarters. Jasmine didn't mind the company; since Anna was human, she didn't mind her getting close. When a low-level vampire passed by and gave them both a disdainful look, Anna flinched.
Jasmine, however, remained unfazed and kept walking. Anna hurried to keep up, and once they were in step, she quietly praised Jasmine, "Jasmine, you're so brave, staying calm even when facing those vampires."
"Maybe I'm just used to it. There were many low-level vampires around before I came to the school."
Anna was surprised. "Oh, does your master have vampire maids too?"
"Yes."
Hearing Jasmine's answer, Anna was puzzled. Feeling more at ease around another human, she voiced her confusion. "Then why didn't your master bring a vampire maid instead?"
Realizing her question might be impolite, Anna quickly apologized. "Sorry, that was a strange thing to ask... It's just that if a student brings a human maid, like my master did, it usually means they're from a fallen, impoverished noble family. Even if their family was once powerful, now they can only afford to buy human servants."
Anna's words were risky; saying such things could be seen as badmouthing the nobility. If Jasmine reported her to her master, Anna would be punished. Realizing this, Anna's voice grew quieter.
"I thought... you might be in the same situation."
She had assumed Jasmine's circumstances were similar, which is why she approached her. But if she had known that Jasmine's master was a legitimate noble, she would have kept her distance. Anna was already wondering why, if Jasmine's family had many vampire maids, they would bring a human maid to school. To their masters, this was an embarrassment.
Jasmine glanced at Anna. "How would I know what my master is thinking?"
At first, Anna thought Jasmine must be especially good at pleasing her master to make her bring a human maid to school, risking the disdain of her classmates. But hearing Jasmine's response, she realized she had a point. Even after serving vampires for so long, Anna had no idea what went on in their minds.
Then she thought of something unpleasant, and her face fell. "Jasmine, could it be that your master brought you to school just to drink your blood?!" For anyone, being fed on wasn't a pleasant experience, especially the dizziness that followed, which could take a long time to recover from.
In school, the dining hall provided students with pure, high-quality blood from reliable sources, but some students preferred their usual food—like the maids they brought from home. If that was the reason, it made sense that Jasmine's master would bring her along.
Anna's gaze turned sympathetic, imagining that Jasmine might have her blood drained, a truly miserable fate.
Jasmine didn't know what Anna was thinking but could tell it was something off-base. However, she couldn't just say, "Don't worry, I'm fine," unprompted.
Thanks to Anna's wandering thoughts, at least they grew a bit closer. And since Anna wasn't tight-lipped, Jasmine learned a lot from her during their short walk.
Anna was a maid for a second-year student and had been at the school for over a year. During that time, she had been constantly harassed by the low-level vampire maids, and it wasn't just her—others had suffered the same. In the entire school, there weren't many human maids; counting Jasmine, there were only twenty-four.
There were human servants among the male staff as well, but since the male and female dormitories were separate, they rarely crossed paths. The servants and maids had even staggered their meal times, so they never saw each other and didn't know how many humans were on the other side.
Because they were so few in number, and their masters were no match for the low-level vampires' masters, they had no choice but to endure.
Anna also warned Jasmine about a few maids who were not to be provoked. One of them came from a family that had once been noble and wasn't a low-level vampire. She now served a high-ranking noble lady from one of the thirteen clans. Not only was her master formidable, but she also held significant sway among the servants.
Jasmine blinked, intrigued. She was curious, even eager, to meet this maid—her hands itched at the thought. When she was a hunter, she had taken down many high-ranking vampires, but she had never crossed paths with a noble from the thirteen clans, as they were hard to find. The Black family, though one of the thirteen clans, was among the weakest.
If she could challenge this maid and her mistress, it would help Jasmine gauge the strength of the thirteen clans.
Anna, of course, had no idea what Jasmine was thinking. If she did, she'd probably keep a three-hundred-meter distance from her. As they talked, they reached the servants' quarters. Anna's room was on a different floor from Jasmine's, so she nodded to her and left with her laundry basket.
Jasmine returned to her room and hand-washed Adèle's clothes, then hung them to dry on her balcony. She had been washing Adèle's clothes for a long time, having watched Adèle grow from a girl who didn't need underwear to a fully developed woman whose bust far outstripped Jasmine's.
Although she had some cheats, Jasmine's chest remained average, never becoming the ample bust of a mature woman. The thought made her grit her teeth—she didn't have a particular obsession with large breasts, but she felt her persona would fit the big-busted look perfectly. That mysterious, powerful, and stunning older sister type was just so cool, but unfortunately, Jasmine didn't have it—Adèle did.
When Jasmine realized during puberty that she wouldn't become a busty beauty, she adopted the ice queen persona. She cut her hair short, keeping it just above her shoulders. Her hair had a slight wave, almost like a bob, with a fringe that complemented her maid outfit. Jasmine was quite satisfied with her appearance.
Her transmigrated body likely had Asian ancestry, with slightly yellow-toned skin and black hair and eyes, which made her feel much better. She couldn't imagine herself as a white person.
After hanging up Adèle's clothes, Jasmine found herself with nothing to do. Serving vampires meant that the maids also adopted a nocturnal schedule, but it was still a while before dawn. Jasmine could only sit in a chair, yawning out of boredom. Even though she was now nocturnal, she still preferred to do things during the day.
On her first day at school, Jasmine was already bored to death. She would have rather stayed at the castle, where at least she could chat with the other human maids. After her last meal, she returned to her room.
She stared into space for a while, and as the sky began to lighten, the students returned to the dorms, ready for sleep. But Jasmine was growing more alert, eager for the day to begin.