Adele skipped class and arrived at the doctor's small house. Once again, she knocked on the door, and it was the doctor who answered. They sat in the first-floor parlor, where the maid served them tea. Adele watched the steam rising from the cup for a moment before glancing at the maid standing nearby.
She didn't look at the maid for long, but her sharp eyesight allowed her to take in the maid's entire condition in just one glance. The maid's state was worse than during Adele's previous visit. Adele had initially assumed that the maid had been mistreated by other students and then rescued by the doctor. But now, it seemed more likely that the person tormenting her was the very doctor she had mistakenly thought of as her savior.
Adele didn't directly ask the questions that were on her mind. Instead, she engaged in small talk, discussing trivial matters. The doctor frequently glanced at the clock on the wall, clearly concerned about the time. Adele knew he was waiting for Molly.
Molly was a very responsible person, unlikely to come over without finishing her tasks. Based on Molly's usual efficiency, it would be at least another hour before she arrived.
As the minutes ticked by, the doctor grew anxious. "Miss, shouldn't you be in class right now? What brings you here?"
As he spoke, the doctor unconsciously used his hypnotic abilities, which Adele immediately detected.
If it were any other student, they might have easily fallen into the trap. But Adele was a member of the prestigious Black family, one of the Thirteen Clans, a pureblood vampire. His hypnosis had little effect on her. Sensing his attempt, Adele took advantage of his distraction to use her own mental magic against him. Her crimson eyes gleamed brightly in the dark night.
Soon, the doctor's gaze became unfocused, clearly under Adele's control. Sitting elegantly on the sofa, her legs tilted to one side, and her hands resting gracefully on her lap, Adele's voice was cold as she asked in a low tone, "Doctor, why do you want Molly to come here? What do you plan to do to her?"
The doctor, in a daze, answered, "What else? I want to drink her blood. That girl is too tempting. The first time I bandaged her wound, the dried blood on her arm smelled so enticing that I could barely restrain myself. But forced blood tastes bad. For such high-quality blood, I must wait until she willingly offers herself to get the most delicious taste."
Adele frowned, but quickly smoothed her expression. This was something Adele couldn't allow to happen. As long as she was there, Molly wouldn't be harmed. But she still asked, "How are you so sure Molly will willingly offer her blood?"
The doctor chuckled, his tone making Adele feel disgusted. "I'm certain because hypnosis is a specialty of vampires. During the last two treatments, I used mental magic on her. This time, she'll willingly..."
"The other human maids, did you also use the same method to make them offer their blood against their will?"
"Come on, Miss, there's no need to make it sound so harsh. This has been a vampire method since ancient times, hasn't it?"
Adele looked at the doctor across from her and could only utter two words: "Shameless."
Moments later, the doctor snapped out of his hypnotic state, realizing what had happened. His face turned sour. "You used mental magic on me?! Who are you?! How could a first-year student escape my hypnosis and use magic against me..."
Adele thought for a moment, then decided that revealing her name to the doctor would only demean her. She glanced at the maid standing nearby and took a deep breath. "My surname is Black." She stood up, towering over the doctor, whose eyes widened in shock. "I will report everything you've done to the school administration. I will not allow a doctor like you to remain in this school."
"Wait! Miss Black! Please wait, I haven't done anything wrong!"
The moment he heard the name "Black," the doctor's legs almost gave out. As a vampire, he knew all too well the power of the Thirteen Clans. He also realized that Anna had deceived him. That wretch must have known Molly's true identity! Far from being a fallen noble, she was someone he could never afford to offend!
He had miscalculated. Even if the vampire in front of him wasn't a match for him now, her status as a member of the Black family was more than enough to ruin him! But then again, even the Thirteen Clans might not be able to expel him. After all, he hadn't technically done anything wrong!
Hearing the doctor's words, Adele took a deep breath, trying to calm her anger. The man before her, still unrepentant, disgusted her. "Is that so? If you're so confident, don't regret it later." Adele didn't want to waste any more words on him and turned to leave.
But before she could step out the door, she heard the maid's scream behind her. Adele's pupils constricted, and before she knew it, she had pulled the maid behind her, shielding her. Adele glared at the doctor, her voice simmering with anger. "What do you think you're doing?"
The moment Adele had turned to leave, the doctor's anger boiled over. Unable to direct it at Adele, the maid who had suffered under his torment became his outlet. He kicked her without hesitation, his mind filled with rage: it was all because of these humans! If it weren't for them, he wouldn't have caught the attention of the Black family!
The maid instinctively tried to dodge, knowing the doctor wouldn't hold back when striking in anger. Yet she was still kicked hard, sent crashing to the ground, her bones seemingly ready to shatter. The maid had already endured so much; under normal circumstances, she might have gritted her teeth and silently accepted the pain. But this time, the agony was too much, forcing her to scream out loud.
In that instant, something inside Adele snapped. She couldn't stand by and watch this any longer. She had to protect the weak human in front of her.
The doctor watched her actions, utterly baffled. "Miss Black, what are you doing? Are you going to interfere with how I discipline my maid?"
"You've already behaved despicably, and now you're resorting to abusing someone even weaker. Have you no sense of shame?" Adele's crimson eyes glowed with an intense light that the doctor found unnerving. He muttered, "It's natural for you to protect your maid, but this one is my personal property. Whatever I do with her is none of your concern, Miss Black."
As the doctor spoke, he reached for the maid behind Adele. His actions pushed Adele beyond her breaking point, and she attacked him without hesitation. The doctor, already filled with anger over the situation with Adele and Molly, looked down on her assault. While he feared the Black family behind Adele, he didn't see the newly-turned vampire as a real threat.
If the Black family struck first, then he had every right to retaliate.
The two quickly clashed. In terms of combat experience, skill, and physical strength, Adele was at a disadvantage. Vampires weren't just skilled in mental magic; they could also use other forms of magic. In these areas, Adele was no match for the doctor.
But Adele wasn't without her strengths. Vampires had become the rulers of this world due to their unparalleled mastery of mental magic. Even though Adele was inferior to the doctor in most aspects, she excelled in mental magic. Her bright, crimson eyes, glowing slightly, could slow the doctor's movements or even cause him to lapse into confusion.
Whenever his attacks faltered, Adele seized the opportunity to counter. The doctor gradually found himself struggling. As he began to regain clarity from his earlier haze, he realized that if he actually injured Adele, the situation, which could have been resolved relatively easily, might spiral out of control.
He needed to subdue Adele and then sit down to negotiate. But he also needed to stop his own bleeding and regain his strength. For a vampire, the best remedy was undoubtedly fresh human blood. Conveniently, there was a human maid right there, who would serve as the perfect tonic.
He deflected Adele's sharp claws and then grabbed the maid, rushing to the second floor. Realizing the danger, Adele followed closely behind. When she reached the second floor, the doctor had already sunk his fangs into the maid's neck, clearly intending to drain her completely.
Gritting her teeth, Adele charged forward, interrupting the doctor's feeding. In her desperation to protect the maid from further harm, she fought recklessly, even getting herself injured in the process. The doctor realized something: Adele was shielding this human maid. Reflecting on their two encounters and Adele's actions, it became clear that she was trying to protect weak humans.
The doctor couldn't understand it but didn't let that stop him from mocking Adele. "Miss Black, what are you doing?! Protecting a human, even getting hurt for her?!"
Adele shielded the maid behind her, her shoulder still bleeding from where the doctor had struck. She had a vague sense that her actions went against the current mainstream vampire ideology. But she couldn't stand by and do nothing while the weak were harmed.
What... what would she do if it were Molly in this situation?