Adele's gaze finally fell on Molly's neck, more specifically, on the two small puncture wounds. She seemed to realize something, and couldn't help but raise her hand to touch her own fangs. She froze, and after a moment, let out another sharp cry: "Did I…did I drink your blood last night?!"
Adele's face turned grim and unusually pale in an instant. She likely realized that she had lost control the night before, becoming a creature driven purely by instinct. Molly couldn't tell if she was more worried about having drunk too much of her blood, possibly causing her to feel unwell, or if she was more concerned about having looked like a beast and frightening Molly.
In response to Adele's question, Molly nodded. "Yes, Miss." She even went on to describe Adele's actions the previous night: "You pinned me to the ground, sank your fangs into my neck, and drank my blood. Even though I resisted, you wouldn't stop. In the end, I had no choice but to defend myself and injure you."
Hearing Molly's account, Adele looked even more embarrassed. Her embarrassment stemmed from the fact that her actions had been so excessive. Molly thought she might ask how she had managed to injure her, but Adele didn't ask that. Molly guessed that Adele's highly active imagination had probably filled in the gaps.
Indeed, in Adele's mind, the scene was completely different from what had actually happened. She imagined Molly entering the room, trembling with fear, only to be pounced on by her out-of-control self. Molly had called out her name in desperation. Adele remembered that Molly had called out to her at one point, and for a brief moment, it seemed like she might regain her senses, but she quickly fell back under the influence of her instincts.
There was such a moment, but Adele got the timing wrong—it happened not after she had pounced on Molly, but when she was still hanging from the ceiling, about to leap at her.
Back to the point, Adele felt Molly's call reach her, but she soon lost consciousness and acted purely on instinct. She imagined pinning Molly down, holding her firmly in place, and then, amid Molly's terror, sinking her fangs into her neck, sucking her blood.
Molly must have felt helpless and terrified. Adele remembered feeling her hair being pulled by Molly. That slight sting on her scalp was probably because she had hurt Molly too much. Molly had likely resisted out of sheer desperation, not knowing how else to make her stop.
Adele wouldn't blame Molly for this, knowing she was a weak human and only did what she had to. The rest was a blur for Adele—she just remembered her neck and head hurting before she passed out. Thinking back, Molly might have hit her on the head with a vase or something to escape.
It must have been difficult for Molly to knock her out while being drained of blood. Afterward, she might have felt terribly guilty and scared. Adele had heard that after being bitten, humans feel tingly and weak all over. In such a state, Molly had managed to carry her to bed and even change her clothes...
Wait! She had changed her clothes!
As soon as Adele thought of this, her face turned bright red. After all, changing her clothes meant…first undressing her! And she felt much cleaner now, so it wasn't just about taking off her clothes. The more Adele thought about it, the more she looked at Molly with a complicated expression. Even before understanding her own feelings, Adele had been shy about revealing her body to Molly. Now that she was aware of her feelings, she was even more embarrassed.
And she hadn't taken care of herself for days—what if she smelled bad?!
Adele's mind raced with thoughts, and she awkwardly asked, "Molly…when you changed my clothes, did you also…?" Before she could finish, Molly answered directly, "Yes, Miss, I also wiped your body."
Seeing Adele's embarrassed reaction, Molly realized it was unlikely Adele would confess her feelings on her own. With Adele's awkward personality, if Molly didn't take the initiative, she might never express her feelings. So Molly decided to take advantage of Adele's current confusion and make the first move: "Miss, I have a question for you."
Still caught up in the previous topic, Adele replied absentmindedly, "What is it?"
"Why are you so opposed to the engagement?"
Adele's mind went blank upon hearing Molly's question. She turned her head slowly to look at Molly, swallowing nervously, unsure of how to respond. She instinctively wanted to avoid the question because it wasn't something she should discuss with Molly. She intended to bear everything alone until she was strong enough to confront everyone, then be with Molly.
But to Adele's surprise, Molly asked, "Is it because you like me?"
Under normal circumstances, Adele would have stubbornly replied, "What nonsense are you thinking? Stop daydreaming and focus on your duties!" But at this moment, with her resolve not to bow to her mother, not to go on blind dates, and not to get engaged, she found it difficult to say such things.
Sometimes, no answer is the best answer.
Molly, who usually had a tough heart, couldn't help but feel it soften. Her proud and beautiful young lady was being so honest in this moment. Molly decided to voice the plan she had been considering. For someone as strong as she was, the plan was simple and impulsive.
She said, "Let's elope."
Adele's eyes widened in shock. Her eyes, which had turned crimson, were now back to their original soft red, no longer dark and sinister, but as beautiful as red flowers. Her wide-eyed expression looked a bit silly, but to Molly, it was endearing.
Adele hadn't expected such a suggestion from Molly and had never considered such a solution. As soon as the idea entered her mind, it was filled with temptation. For a moment, Adele genuinely wanted to drop everything and leave with Molly.
The suggestion made Adele feel exhilarated, but as her excitement faded, she began to think more seriously. If it were just her, she wouldn't mind leaving the Black family and living a rough life. Although she wouldn't be able to enjoy the luxurious lifestyle or afford expensive artificial blood, she could manage with animal blood if necessary.
After all, when it's a matter of survival, there's no room for being picky.
With her strength, she could easily find a remote countryside to hide in. But if she took Molly with her, things wouldn't be so simple. Molly was human, a girl who had been living in the castle since she was six and had never experienced life in the wild. Adele could handle facing other species on her own, but with Molly, it would be much harder to protect her.
Her experiences at school with the doctor and on the airship facing those creatures had shown Adele that protecting someone without harm was beyond her current abilities. More importantly, if they eloped, the Black family would surely pursue them, making their already difficult life on the run even harder.
Moreover, as the young lady of the Black family, she couldn't just leave without a word. Adele couldn't do that.
Molly's suggestion was tempting, but after thinking it through, Adele shook her head and declined.
"I… I can't do that."
When Adele said this, she didn't even dare to look at Molly, afraid of seeing disappointment in her eyes. Molly must have gathered all her courage to make such a proposal, and yet Adele had refused. She felt terrible about it.
As Adele continued to berate herself internally, she heard Molly reply with a simple "Oh." Molly hadn't expected Adele to agree right away. She knew it was a very bold suggestion.
The atmosphere grew quiet. Molly said nothing, and Adele didn't know what to say. After a while, Adele, feeling guilty for rejecting Molly, finally spoke up: "Molly, how did you get into my room?" She also remembered how Molly had somehow managed to knock her out despite being too weak to resist.
Molly knew Adele was deliberately changing the subject, but she didn't mind. The suggestion had been denied, so it wasn't that important anymore.
At this moment, Adele's expression became very serious. "You shouldn't do that; it's too dangerous. You have no idea—when a vampire is deprived of energy for too long, they turn into bloodthirsty monsters with no sanity left."
—But she had seen it.
Molly had seen such vampires, captured by the human resistance forces for research. They had been starved until their eyes were blood-red, with no trace of rationality left, looking even more beastly than Adele had been the previous night. They forgot how to use weapons, how to perform magic, and Molly had seen them in their most desperate state, craving blood.
But Adele seemed genuinely concerned, so Molly simply reassured her, "If it weren't you, I wouldn't have come in." Her words made Adele blush instantly. She quickly asked, "Molly, how did you get in?"
Having been locked in her room for so long, Adele had lost track of time, but she instinctively felt Molly had come at night. The maids outside were all her mother's servants, and with them guarding the door, how could a weak human like Molly have slipped past them into her room?
Molly answered Adele's question: "I asked the lady, and told her I could persuade you, so she let me in."