Lady Adele was upset, feeling quite displeased with Molly's words: "Molly, how could you be like this!"
Adele huffed angrily, but Molly, with her usual expressionless face, didn't offer an explanation. Adele had been with Molly long enough to know that despite Molly's impassive face, she was probably amused on the inside. Ignoring Molly, Adele headed straight to the bathroom to wash up and get ready for bed.
While Adele was washing up, Molly prepared some tea with sugar cubes for her. After Adele finished and came out, Molly helped dry her hair, then had her drink the tea before leaving the room. Once she stepped outside, a maid reminded her that the head maid was looking for her. It turned out that Black Castle had also implemented a three-shift system. However, unlike the 9-to-5, five-day workweek, the vampires cruelly expected their human servants to work a grueling 996 schedule!
The head maid, being reasonable, explained that there were both day and night shifts, and most of the human maids chose the day shift. She asked Molly which shift she preferred. Naturally, Molly would have liked the day shift since there wouldn't be any bothersome vampires around during the day, and the head maid wouldn't be around to supervise. Sunbathing while slacking off was the best!
But if she chose the day shift, Adele, already upset, would be even angrier, and it would be much harder to calm her down. After five seconds of hesitation, Molly chose the night shift.
The head maid was a bit surprised by Molly's choice: "You're the first human maid to choose the night shift." Well, that's not surprising—what human would willingly work nights? Back before she transmigrated, night shifts were pure torture. After a while, your mind just wouldn't be clear.
The head maid didn't assign Molly much work since she was considered half of Adele's personal maid, and technically, Adele was supposed to assign her tasks. Moreover, with Adele often away from home and soon returning to school, she would likely take Molly with her, so even if tasks were assigned, Molly wouldn't be around long enough to complete them.
However, with the Blessing Festival approaching, there would be more work, and Molly was needed to lend a hand.
Molly's task, like last year, was to clean a section of the hallway. After receiving her assignment, she returned to her room to tidy up and go to sleep.
Adele's return was quite late, so Molly worked quickly. Three days later, it was time for the Blessing Festival. Just like last year, Adele donned a formal dress and, with the help of her mother's maids, styled her hair in a complex updo. Compared to last year, her hairstyle had some changes, and she now wore a red gemstone crown, making her look like a queen in Molly's eyes.
Once dressed, Adele dismissed her mother's maids. Before she could say anything, Molly pulled her aside. They stood by the window, where the bright moonlight streamed in, and the night breeze gently lifted the white curtains. Molly reached out to pull the bothersome curtains aside and then leaned in to kiss Adele.
Adele was still a bit upset about Molly's "not telling you" comment from a few days ago, but she couldn't resist Molly's kisses. As Molly leaned in, Adele instinctively closed her eyes. She could smell the fresh scent of Molly and feel the warmth of her lips.
Adele's lips were sweeter than usual, perhaps because of the makeup and lipstick she was wearing. This world didn't have the advanced chemical industry of the previous one, so cosmetics were more natural. The lipstick was made from pressed flowers, giving it a floral scent and a hint of sweetness like nectar.
Molly kissed her lightly for a while before pulling back. But Adele wasn't satisfied; she stepped forward, wrapped her arms around Molly's waist, and kissed her again. Adele had gone from having no experience at all to being quite skilled at kissing Molly. Her movements were urgent and passionate, and aside from her cold lips, she was burning with heat.
After a long while, they finally parted, and Molly's lips were smudged with lipstick. Adele chuckled, "Molly, my lipstick is all gone." Of course, it was—most of it was now on Molly's lips, leaving not a trace on Adele's own.
Fortunately, despite Adele's eagerness, Molly hadn't messed up her makeup or hair. Molly looked at Adele's now lipstick-free yet still alluring lips and said, "I'll help you reapply it."
Once the lipstick was reapplied, Adele prepared to head out for the Blessing Festival's prayers. She instructed Molly, "Wait here for me to come back, and then we'll go to the village together."
Molly agreed, and while waiting in the room, she grew bored and began watching the round, bright moon in the sky. After what felt like forever, she finally heard a noise, along with the voice of the second young lady. Molly knew then that Adele hadn't managed to shake off her clingy younger sister. Sure enough, when Adele opened the door, her little shadow followed right behind.
The little shadow wasn't quiet either; on the contrary, she was quite loud, chattering behind Adele: "I can't believe you were away from home for so long. Do you know how worried I was about you? And you even hypnotized Mother—weren't you worried after Mother let her guard down and you hypnotized her?!"
Adele turned to face her younger sister, who had followed her in: "If you say one more word, I won't take you out to play."
The second young lady immediately fell silent, though she still looked at Adele suspiciously, as if asking, "Are you really not going to ditch me halfway?"
If she had asked that question out loud, the answer would have been: Of course, she was going to ditch her! Last year, before they were together, Adele already found her sister to be a nuisance. Now that they were committed to each other, her sister was even more of a third wheel. There was no way Adele would let her tag along for the whole night.
But if she said that, her sister would cry and throw a tantrum.
After silencing her sister, Adele changed out of her elaborate gown and into more practical, casual clothes. Excitedly, she reached out to Molly. Molly knew this meant Adele wanted to carry her in a princess carry.
Since Molly had revealed her true abilities, she had been the one carrying Adele everywhere, which hurt Adele's pride as someone who saw herself as strong. But with the second young lady present, Molly couldn't reveal her identity, so she had to play the role of a delicate and helpless little maid.
Molly didn't mind. A true T wouldn't stop being one just because her wife wanted to show off her strength. So she didn't refuse Adele's princess carry, and just like last year, Adele scooped Molly up, while the second young lady obediently nestled in Molly's arms.
Adele had grown stronger since last year, moving much faster. When they reached the village at the foot of the mountain, the maids had just arrived. So Adele didn't even have to disappear this time; as soon as the maids spotted the second young lady, they rushed over: "Second Miss, how could you come here? We told you last year, and now it's the same this year."
"Wait! This time I came with Adele!" the second young lady argued, but when she turned around, she saw her sister already dragging her maid along, ignoring her entirely. The second young lady opened her mouth to protest but, before being led away by the maids, reached out to Adele: "Adele!"
As they strolled through the village, the background noise was the second young lady's wailing. Honestly, Molly felt a bit sorry for her. Being rejected by her own sister so often was pitiful. And this probably wasn't the first or only time; her life was likely filled with countless moments of her sister's rejection.
But soon, Molly didn't have the energy to think about the second young lady because Lady Adele had captured all her attention. This year, the village had introduced many new activities. The river lanterns were still being sold, but a younger owner had taken over. Molly casually asked, "What happened to the previous owner?"
The lantern seller pointed to the side, and when Molly looked over, she saw the former owner running a different stall—a ring toss game. To prevent the sharp-eyed and agile lower-class vampires from easily winning, the rings for vampires were different from those for humans.
The vampire rings were smaller and more unpredictable, making them much harder to land. Some lower-class vampires protested: "We're all paying the same amount, so why are the human rings bigger?"
The owner smiled and replied, "Oh, dear vampire lords, how could you possibly use the same rings as lowly humans? I'm just worried about you getting the human scent on your hands. Besides, you're all so skilled; only this high-difficulty ring toss could be worthy of you."
Molly stood in front of the stall and asked about the price. The owner smiled and said, "Ten rings for five coins."
—What a scam!
Molly couldn't help but want to curse. This woman! Every year she comes up with a new way to take my money! Adele, however, found it amusing and generously handed over ten coins, receiving twenty rings in return. The owner knew how to size up her customers. Molly's rings were large and heavy, making it easier to control where they landed. Adele's rings, on the other hand, were pathetically small, barely the size of a bracelet, and so light they seemed impossible to aim.
But Adele, feeling confident, asked Molly, "Molly, which prize do you want?"
The owner's stall didn't have anything particularly valuable; most items were small handmade trinkets, including two identical bracelets woven from straw. The most expensive item was probably the river lanterns sold at the neighboring stall.
Molly thought for a moment and said, "Those two bracelets and the river lanterns."
Adele agreed.
With ten rings, Adele wasn't in a hurry. She used the first two to get a feel for it. The rings were indeed light and difficult to control, either flying too far or bouncing off due to their lightness.
But after five tries, Adele had figured out how to make the rings land where she wanted. Confidently, she threw another ring, successfully landing it on one of the bracelets Molly had wanted. The remaining two items Molly wanted were also successfully won.
The owner's face briefly showed a look of embarrassment, while Molly thought to herself: Ring toss games don't work well in a high-powered world!