The lower-class vampires harbored resentment toward the Bloodclan. Even though they were the same species, they were labeled as "lower-class" and excluded from their own community. The nobles enjoyed the best resources and freshest blood, while they, due to their appearance and history, became the nobles' servants. How could they not be bitter?
But now, as servants, they had no choice but to bow their heads and hope for the mercy of those in power.
However, the integration of the lower-class vampires into Spark Farm was not smooth and even caused a lot of trouble for Adele. The first issue was their food. Lower-class vampires were still vampires, and they drank blood. Adele provided them with pig blood, cow blood, and other types of blood produced by Spark Farm.
The blood resources at Spark Farm were excellent, good enough to earn a substantial profit when sold to the banks, with no issues regarding quality. But some of the lower-class vampires, seeing the healthy and vibrant humans around them, couldn't help but have wicked thoughts.
Not long after, an incident occurred where a lower-class vampire attacked a human during the night.
When the lower-class vampire was caught by the human guards, he brazenly declared, "What's wrong with a vampire drinking human blood?! Lady Black is also a vampire; she will surely understand me! How dare you humans arrest me? I'll see how you explain this to Lady Black!"
When Adele received the news and rushed over, she could still hear the lower-class vampire yelling, threatening the humans. Adele took a deep breath; she had been carried over by Molly, whose speed caused her hair to become slightly disheveled. She smoothed her hair, lifted her skirt, and walked into the residential area of the farm.
Because of this incident, everyone who should have been asleep was now awake, and the farm was brightly lit. Many people pointed at the lower-class vampire, while other lower-class vampires stood silently by, watching Adele.
In truth, lower-class vampires were not very useful at work. They were nocturnal creatures, but most of the work was done during the day. They were best suited for patrols, with their natural ability to move and see in the dark, making them excellent night guards. If they were trustworthy, they could be given important responsibilities.
But their recent actions made it clear they could not be trusted by Adele.
The farm was not yet electrified, so the area was lit by torches. The flickering firelight cast a warm orange glow on Adele's silver hair. Her expression was serious as she looked at the now silent lower-class vampire and the young girl who began crying upon seeing her.
The girl, who appeared to be in her early twenties, had transformed from a refugee into a healthy young woman with full cheeks under Adele's management of the farm. Although she wasn't particularly attractive by noble standards and would never be a target for them, to a lower-class vampire, she was undoubtedly a delicacy.
Her neck was bandaged, with fresh blood seeping through.
Adele lifted her skirt and approached the girl, who was sitting on the ground due to weakness from blood loss. Not far away, the lower-class vampire who had bitten her was being held down by the guards. Seeing Adele, the girl seemed to find a source of strength and began to recount what had happened while crying, "He started harassing me a few days ago. I was so scared, but I didn't know what to do, so I just tried to avoid him. But tonight, I was sleeping soundly when suddenly I felt a sharp pain and screamed."
"Then, the patrol team rushed in and pulled him off me, and that's when I realized I had been bitten!"
Although she was panicked and her words were a bit jumbled, she managed to explain the situation. In other words, the lower-class vampire's actions were premeditated. Adele's face darkened as she crouched down in front of the girl. She reached out toward the girl, who flinched at first but then relaxed, remembering that Adele, their manager, had never harmed them.
Adele removed her bandage and saw two small puncture wounds on her neck, still oozing blood. The farm's people had little experience treating wounds, so they just wrapped them up and left it at that. However, vampire bites had a slight tearing effect, and if untreated, they would continue to bleed. Typically, a vampire's saliva would stop the bleeding after feeding, but the lower-class vampire had been pulled away in a panic and hadn't had the chance to stop the bleeding. The farm's people, not knowing how to treat it, just wrapped it up.
Adele could have licked the wound to stop the bleeding, but she certainly didn't want to lick another person's wounds. Adele was a germaphobe and far too proud to do such a thing.
So Adele raised her hand, and Molly, who was following her, stepped forward, took out the medical kit she had brought, and stopped the bleeding for the girl. They knew to bring it when the farm guards reported the incident, or else things would have been much more troublesome. Sure enough, the medical kit proved useful.
As Molly bandaged the girl, Adele stood up and walked over to the nearby lower-class vampire. His gaze at Adele wasn't that of someone facing judgment but of someone seeing a savior. He was certain Adele would save him. After all, Adele was a vampire! What noble would punish a lower-class vampire for harming a human?
Unfortunately for him, the one before him would.
Adele frowned as she asked the lower-class vampire, "Is everything the young lady just said true?" Adele was very noble in demeanor, always addressing others as "Miss" or "Sir," unless she particularly disliked them. The lower-class vampire saw no reason to lie and nodded, admitting that everything she said was true.
He even had the audacity to speak boldly, "Lady Black, it's not my fault. I asked her several times before, but she refused, and I was starving, so I did it out of desperation." His implication was that if she had agreed earlier, he wouldn't have had to do this.
Adele's frown deepened as she asked, "I recall providing you with meals, and the quality of the pig and cow blood is quite good. How could you be starving?" Perhaps Adele's tone was too calm, leading him to believe she was genuinely asking, so he quickly replied, fawning like a lackey, "The blood is of good quality, but human blood is the real delicacy. Of course, everyone wants to drink human blood!"
Hearing his words, those around them were filled with righteous indignation and anger, ready to tear the lower-class vampire apart. But the vampire remained unconcerned, confident that as long as Adele was there, he had nothing to fear.
However, the elegant noble before him wore a stern expression, and her gaze was as cold as ice. Her lips parted as she spoke words the lower-class vampire could hardly believe: "You have violated my property. According to the treaty issued by the Council of Elders, I have the right to punish you. In the name of Adele Black, I sentence you to the Sun Punishment. The farm's chief guard will carry out the sentence tomorrow morning."
After hearing this, the lower-class vampire was shocked and began pleading for mercy, admitting his mistake. But Adele ignored him and instead turned to the other lower-class vampires.
"I brought you here to work for me, not to harm my property. I told you when you arrived that harming humans was strictly forbidden. But what did you do? I don't believe you were unaware of his intent to harm others, yet you all stood by and did nothing, waiting for him to test my resolve. You have offended me!"
Her voice was stern, and the background noise of the lower-class vampire's pleas and wails only added to her authority. The lower-class vampires before her all lowered their heads, not daring to speak. Adele snorted, "I don't understand why you still crave human blood. I've given you high-quality blood to fill your stomachs. Before coming to this farm, you were the ones who were truly starving. These humans are just as impoverished as you, yet you choose to bare your fangs at them."
"This is your last warning. If this happens again, I will drive you all out of my farm."
After speaking, Adele led Molly out of the farm, heading back to the estate. Molly noticed that the humans looked at Adele with admiration in their eyes, filled with reverence. But once inside the carriage, Adele seemed defeated. After they left the farm, Adele sat next to Molly, resting her head on Molly's shoulder.
"Ugh… I made it clear that it was forbidden, so why do they still think I would side with them and let them bully others? We're all weak, so why don't they try to live together instead of trying to exploit others… Molly, am I failing at this?"
—Absolutely not. Adele was doing an amazing job.
Molly wanted to comfort Adele, but she wasn't good at it, so she remained silent. Then, she reached out and took Adele's hand, squeezing it tightly to let her feel her warmth and strength. After a moment, Adele perked up again. She sat up straight and tossed her hair back, "Hmph, I won't be defeated by something like this. I'm Adele Black. I will become the strongest vampire, and I will make this world the way I want it to be!"
"Mm, you can do it."
Even Molly, who wasn't good at comforting others, managed to get these words out. Adele crossed her arms, lifted her chin, and her hair followed her movement, making her look like the proud young lady she always was.
"Hmph," Adele chuckled, her eyes shining brightly. "That's right, I can do it!"
Molly's eyes were full of admiration for Adele, and she firmly believed that if it was Adele, she could definitely do it.