Adele sat upright, honestly explaining her reasons: "She mixes personal feelings with her duties, abusing her power to punish those she dislikes." She recounted the unfair treatment that Molly had received.
When mentioning Molly's name, Adele hesitated. She had her own private reasons for not wanting Molly to leave a bad impression on her mother due to this incident, as it might make her mother think, "This human is too troublesome." However, Adele was a fair person. If she couldn't be impartial herself, how could she expect the head maid to be? So, she chose not to hide Molly's name.
A flash of interest appeared on her mother's face: "If I recall correctly, Molly is the maid you're quite fond of, isn't she?"
Hearing "the maid you're quite fond of," Adele's face flushed slightly, and she instinctively denied it: "Not really that fond." But her voice lacked conviction, which made her mother chuckle softly.
After a brief laugh, her mother's expression turned serious again: "So, Adele, do you think the head maid is unfit for her position because your favorite maid was treated unfairly?"
The question was sharp, and Adele immediately refuted: "No, regardless of whether it's Molly or anyone else, I wouldn't stand by if I saw such unfair treatment. This is a work-related issue with the head maid, and it has nothing to do with my personal feelings."
Her mother scrutinized Adele to see if she was lying, then smiled: "You've done well, Adele. Indeed, an heir must be fair. How else could you manage the Black family in the future? If other disputes arise within the family, you must handle them the same way."
The head of the Black family and Adele's mother had different views. The head of the family believed that Adele, who only drank synthetic blood, was too weak to lead the family. But her mother valued character more—Adele's integrity and fairness were qualities she deemed essential for the family leader. In comparison, the younger daughter was too willful and not suited to be the head of the family.
Given Adele's potential, which had already shown itself at school, her mother believed that with continued guidance, she would be the perfect head of the family. Plus, Adele was already eighteen, and it was about time to start discussing potential marriage arrangements.
This time, her mother's visit to the Golden family was not just at her sister's invitation but also to gather some intelligence on potential suitors. Her sister faced the same concerns, as her heir was the same age as Adele and a classmate of hers. So, the two had much to discuss on this matter.
Seeing that Adele had taken her words to heart, her mother nodded and said, "I'll see to it that the head maid is sent where she belongs and that a new head maid is appointed. You don't need to worry about these things; focus on your studies at school."
The three of them chatted for a while longer before her mother expressed fatigue, allowing Adele and her younger sister to leave. After the two of them had left, she called for her personal maid to bring in the head maid.
The head maid, summoned by her mistress, knew what was happening. The moment she saw her mistress, she knelt down, pleading for forgiveness. But her mistress remained aloof and unmoved: "You haven't been working in the Black family for just a day, so I'm surprised you would make such a rookie mistake. Given how long you've served the family, I won't send you to the farm or the bank. I'll find a peaceful village for you to live in."
The head maid was not relieved to hear this. The so-called "peaceful village" was still under the Blood Clan's control. While the villagers were not treated like livestock, as those in the farms or banks were, and weren't regularly drained of their blood, they still had to donate blood occasionally in exchange for compensation.
Moreover, because the villagers had little to do, they had to buy necessities and sometimes even sold their blood on the black market.
Although they were better off than most humans, compared to the head maid of the Black family, the difference was like night and day. The head maid gritted her teeth and decided to grasp at the last straw: "Please give me a chance! I can still redeem myself—just don't send me away!"
Her mistress was intrigued: "Oh? Redeem yourself? How?"
"It's Molly!" The head maid looked up, a flash of resentment in her eyes, which her mistress did not miss. As a pure-blood lady of the Thirteen Clans who had lived for so long, her mistress's eyesight was terrifyingly sharp. The head maid continued, "You, the master, and the lady have all been deceived. Molly—Molly isn't human at all! She's an outsider hiding in the castle, waiting to strike at the masters!"
—So, in order to stay, she's resorting to baseless accusations?
Her mistress found it somewhat dull. In her eyes, this was a pathetic move by a desperate human. Perhaps sensing her mistress's disbelief, the head maid anxiously recounted her experiences, swearing that she wasn't lying. Her sincerity was enough to make her mistress slightly suspicious.
In matters like these, it was better to be safe than sorry. Her mistress thought for a moment and then told the head maid to hide behind the screen while she had her maid fetch Molly. However, before the maid could even bring Molly in, her mistress smelled her eldest daughter's scent. Sure enough, when the door opened, both Adele and Molly entered.
Her mistress sighed inwardly, glancing at her maid, who looked back at her helplessly, only able to blink. Her mistress then turned to her eldest daughter, who explained with a serious expression, "Mother, I was there when your maid summoned Molly. I wanted to know what was going on, so I came along."
Her mistress felt a headache coming on. She knew her daughter was very fond of this human maid, but did she really need to follow her everywhere? And she wasn't a monster who would devour Molly. Adele was being overly cautious. However, her mistress also knew that Adele was simply worried and wouldn't actually defy her.
She explained the reason for summoning Molly and told Adele, "I don't really believe what the head maid said, but since she reported it to me, I have to verify it just in case." She spoke gently, as if she truly had no intention of troubling Molly. But as soon as she finished speaking, the maid beside her moved.
Adele noticed the maid's intent to attack Molly and instinctively wanted to intervene, but she knew her mother was testing Molly, so she remained still. If Adele had noticed, then Molly certainly had as well. If she were an ordinary fighter, she would have instinctively fought back. But Molly was more than skilled—she not only sensed the attack but also suppressed her instinct to retaliate. She stood there as if completely unaware, allowing the maid to pin her to the ground. Molly even let out a perfectly timed gasp and adjusted her position to avoid smashing her face against the floor. However, to avoid making it too obvious and to ensure the head maid would still be dismissed, Molly deliberately scraped her elbow against the floor, even tearing her clothes a bit.
Molly silently congratulated herself: Thinking you can test me with this method? You're a hundred years too early!
After pinning Molly to the ground, the maid, feeling slightly embarrassed, got up, and Adele immediately helped Molly to her feet. Sharp-eyed, Adele noticed Molly's bruised elbow, which, while not bleeding, was clearly turning blue and would likely become a full bruise soon.
All of this conveyed to everyone present that Molly was just an ordinary, somewhat fragile human.
Adele turned to her mother and said, "Mother, as you can see, Molly is definitely not an outsider." To further prove her point, she mentioned that she had once tasted Molly's blood: "I've drunk Molly's blood before, and I'm certain it's the blood of a human."
Her mistress opened her feather fan, half-covering her face, but her eyes gleamed with delight. While Adele emphasized that Molly was human, her mother's focus was on the fact that her daughter had finally drunk human blood. At that moment, her mother thought: My daughter has grown up and finally developed a taste for human blood.
It was almost like a parent feeling proud that their child had finally taken an interest in something they previously avoided.
While her mother didn't think there was anything wrong with Adele drinking synthetic blood, she knew others might see Adele as an oddity for it. But now that Adele had said she had drunk real blood, it was a relief to her mother. She even began to view Molly more favorably.
It wasn't that her daughter was sick and couldn't drink blood—she was just too picky. But then again, what could be so special about Molly's blood that even her fastidious daughter would drink it? Her mother was a bit curious, but she had no intention of harming Molly. Not only would she not harm her, but she would also ensure that no other vampires touched her.
Because she knew her daughter was a clean freak, and if someone else drank Molly's blood, Adele might stop drinking it altogether.
Her mistress's gaze toward Molly became almost affectionate, while the head maid, still hiding behind the screen, couldn't bear it anymore and rushed out: "Mistress! Don't be fooled by her! She's faking it!" She even tried to attack Molly, but the maid beside her mistress quickly intercepted her.
Molly pretended to be frightened, hiding behind Adele, who protectively shielded her.
—Am I acting like a damsel in distress right now? But it feels pretty good.
Molly inwardly teased herself, then heard her mistress say, "Enough. You've not only let personal feelings cloud your judgment but also falsely accused someone. I can no longer tolerate you. Since you don't want to go to the village, you can spend your days on the farm." Her mistress snapped the feather fan shut, sealing the head maid's fate.
Hearing that she wouldn't even be sent to a village but to a farm, the head maid turned pale with fear: "No… Mistress… I'm sorry, I'll go to the village! Please send me to the village!"
Her mistress's maid quickly hauled her away to prevent her from continuing to shout in her mistress's ear. The head maid, still screaming, yelled, "Molly, don't get too comfortable! One day, you'll end up just like me—rejected and discarded!"
Molly thought: My acting is flawless!