Her words finally prompted Adele to speak, unleashing a flood of grievances she had been holding back for a long time. She began, "It's unbelievable. How could there be such a person? Clearly, she's just a little girl, a weak one at that, yet she wants to become my maid, or even my blood servant."
Adele used the word "even" because, in the eyes of the vampires, a blood servant held more significance than a mere maid or servant. After all, a blood servant represented the source of one's life and sustenance. Moreover, becoming a noble's blood servant was not a simple task.
First and foremost, once someone became a blood servant to a noble, they were bound to that noble alone. No one else could drink the blood of that servant, or it would be seen as a provocation to their master. Therefore, vampires were exceptionally careful when selecting a blood servant.
Otherwise, if a blood servant caused a provocation that required the noble to intervene, it would be quite inconvenient.
Additionally, the treatment of a blood servant was much better. At the very least, they didn't have to deal with trivial tasks, and in some cases, the blood servants of high-ranking nobles were even served by other servants. All they needed to do was wait for the vampire to come and drink their blood each day.
Lastly, not everyone could become a blood servant just because they wanted to. Vampires were particularly picky about blood, and most had an obsession with cleanliness. Once a human was bitten by a vampire, they would inevitably carry the vampire's scent. Non-blood servants were often bitten by multiple vampires, especially in less fastidious places. When a vampire smelled another's scent, it would reduce their appetite. Therefore, to a vampire, their dedicated blood servant must have never been bitten by anyone else.
The most crucial point was that the blood must be delicious, right? If the blood wasn't tasty, how could they be expected to drink it every day?
Many humans took pride in becoming a vampire's blood servant. After all, they didn't have to work, and they were served by others. Rumor had it that the head of the White family's blood servant was even attended to by lower-level vampire maids, a treatment that even fallen nobles couldn't enjoy.
However, most people still didn't want to become blood servants. After all, being a blood servant was synonymous with having a short life.
Being drained of blood every day would naturally shorten one's lifespan significantly. The vast majority of blood servants didn't live past twenty-five, with a few lasting until twenty-six or twenty-seven. Even though the average lifespan in this world was short, this was excessively brief.
The term "blood servant" remained significant among the vampires. Yet many vampires would never have a blood servant in their lifetime. The reason? Their obsession with cleanliness and pickiness. Take the Black family, for example—four noble vampires lived there, yet none had a blood servant.
This is why Adele found the little girl's desire to become a blood servant utterly delusional.
Molly wanted to speak up for the little girl, thinking perhaps she didn't even understand what being a blood servant meant. Maybe she just thought it was a position of luxury. But before she could say anything, Adele suddenly said, "Molly, if it's you, I could make you my blood servant!"
Adele had already moved on from her earlier anger, now smiling haughtily, lifting her chin with a look that said, "If you beg me, I'll let you be my blood servant."
But Molly declined, "I don't want to."
"Huh? Why not?!"
Molly replied honestly, "Because blood servants have very short lives. From what I know, the shortest-lived died at nineteen, just a year after becoming a blood servant; even the longest-lived only made it to twenty-five or twenty-six. I'm already nineteen. If I became a blood servant, I might die before you even graduate. I don't want that."
Hearing Molly's words, Adele became quite animated. She uncrossed her legs and patted her chest, assuring her, "I wouldn't do that! Those others don't understand science and drain their servants dry. If it were me, I would take good care of my blood servant. I'd only drink a little bit each day... or maybe just once a week!"
Molly believed Adele, as she was someone who kept her word and never drank human blood. She must have strong self-control.
But Molly still said, "I still don't want to."
"Why not?"
Molly didn't respond, instead turning her head to look out the window at the snowy landscape. Adele huffed, turning her head to look the other way. But after a while, she turned back, staring at the same snowy scene as Molly.
Wasn't the reason obvious? Molly wouldn't even let Adele have a drop of her blood, so how could Adele think she would allow her to drink once a week? Molly had lived to nineteen, and in those thirteen years, she'd only let Adele drink a tiny bit once, during the previous semester when she was unconscious.
The carriage swayed as it arrived at the port. Adele stormed out, with Molly following slowly behind. After walking a bit, Adele turned back to pull Molly along. "You're walking too slow!"
It was cold and snowy, wasn't it normal for a human to walk slowly? Not only did Molly think this, but so did Adele. So she didn't walk fast either and didn't pull Molly's wrist too hard. But honestly, being pulled along by Adele wasn't a pleasant experience.
Adele wore small deerskin gloves, which had become cold and stiff from the icy weather. When they touched Molly's wrist, she couldn't help but flinch. She instinctively pulled back, but didn't completely withdraw her hand, as Adele also instinctively tightened her grip.
Adele glanced back at Molly, as if to say, "Don't fuss."
She held Molly's wrist firmly, leading her through the snow. Soon they reached the port, but the airship hadn't arrived yet. The liaison officer was already waiting, and when he saw Adele, he nodded and called out, "Miss."
Adele nodded in response.
Molly could feel the liaison officer's gaze lingering on their joined hands after greeting Adele. She desperately wanted the officer to say something, at least enough for Adele to let go of her. Because Adele was holding her wrist, Molly's hand had been exposed to the cold the entire time. While her physical condition wouldn't lead to frostbite, she still felt cold.
But under Molly's hopeful gaze, the liaison officer simply looked away without a word.
—What a jerk!
Molly almost ground her teeth in frustration. Fortunately, they didn't have to wait long at the port before the airship slowly floated over. The gusts of wind it brought knocked Adele's hood off and blew her cloak upwards. Molly, not as sensitive to the cold as Adele, was only dressed in thick clothing and didn't wear a cloak. Even so, she shivered as the cold wind from the airship nearly froze her.
As the airship landed, the vampire staff rushed over with smiles to greet Adele and directed the servants to carry her luggage. They were especially deferential, informing Miss Black that her room was ready. Adele responded with a reserved nod and led Molly inside.
The suite was much warmer than outside. Adele removed her cloak, and Molly took it to hang on a hook. When she turned around, she saw Adele already sitting by the fireplace, warming her hands. The sitting room had a small hearth with a few logs burning inside, a chimney venting the smoke away to keep the room odor-free.
Though Molly found it a bit absurd to have a fireplace on an airship, considering the fire risk, she reasoned that vampires might have some magical safeguards in place.
Adele warmed herself by the small fireplace for a while, finally feeling revived. She moved over and patted the seat beside her. "Molly, come and warm up too."
"...Alright."
Adele felt pleased with herself, thinking she was being kind. But if Adele hadn't dragged her by the wrist, Molly might not have been so cold. Still, warming by the fire wasn't a bad idea. Molly sat down and, after a moment, asked, "Miss Adele, may I take off my shoes and socks?"
"What?! Why would you..."
Adele quickly turned her head, looking surprised. Molly explained, "My shoes got wet from the snow, and I suspect my socks are too." Molly's reason was entirely legitimate, and Adele didn't make things difficult for her, nodding slowly.
With permission granted, Molly didn't want to keep wearing damp shoes and socks. She first removed her shoes and felt her socks, which were indeed wet. She took them off and placed them on top of her shoes, then moved closer to the fireplace to dry them more quickly.
Since she had just changed into clean shoes and socks before leaving, they should be odor-free.
After this, Molly sat back down on the floor.
There was a furry rug near the small fireplace, and both of them were now sitting on it. Molly hugged her knees, her bare feet touching the plush rug, which felt a bit ticklish, but the warmth from the fire was comforting. She sensed Adele's gaze on her feet and, feeling a bit self-conscious, curled her toes, crossing her feet to try to hide them.
"Miss, what are you looking at?"
Adele awkwardly turned away, "I wasn't looking at anything."
Come to think of it, normally no one paid attention to others' feet, and they were usually out of sight. Adele had occasionally seen Molly after a bath, and of course, she wasn't wearing socks then, but her first instinct wasn't to look at her feet. Now that her feet were right there, Adele couldn't help but stare.
How to describe it? Adele wasn't sure if it was her bias, but she thought Molly's feet were quite pretty. But thinking this made Adele feel a bit strange. She shifted her gaze to Molly's shoes. Unlike Adele's mid-calf leather boots, Molly's shoes were simple, thick, and fabric-made, so it wasn't surprising they got wet in the snow.
Perhaps… she should find an opportunity to buy Molly a new pair.
Molly: I always knew vampires were a bit weird.
Other vampires: ...Hey, we're not all like that!