On the other side of the door, the royal guard approached his lord.
"Your highness, the patrol brought a non-complacent intruder."
"An intruder?" The lord furrowed his brows with concern.
"It's a human. They've found her near the woods. She has refused to answer any questions."
"A human woman?" The vampire lord was intrigued. "Did she say anything?"
"She claimed to have killed two vampires in the woods and she wanted to find the nearest human village."
"Bring her in." The lord smiled, anticipating another boring human to enter his throne room. It was a good distraction from all the boring meetings he was subjected to throughout the entire night.
The lord readjusted himself on the throne and forced a fierce expression onto his handsome face.
The brass door was pulled open revealing his two knights that held the woman between them. She was exact opposite of every vampire around. Her long blonde hair shined with golden strands and she had a warm brown eyes. She had round cheeks that were now blushing in deep red and decorated with a multitude of cuts.
Her state was pitiful but yet she stood straight and tall. Her eyes locked on the lord without an ounce of fear showing on her face.
The lord's confidence instantly plummeted as he looked at a women of ethereal beauty hidden in the cuts and shreds of her velvet dress.
The lord's chest tightened in the most unfamiliar sensation and his breathing sped up. He clenched the armrests of his throne.
"I have heard that you breeched my land." The lord spoke in his usual deep baritone. His crown shone on top of his ruffled black hair. His blue eyes twinkled in excitement. His skin was pale, almost silvery. The woman noticed all of that. She heard that vampires could smell fear so she forced herself to show none.
"If you plan to kill me, why should I be brought here?" She asked as she tilted her head in an inquisitive sort of way.
"They've said that you claim to have killed a vampire."
"Two vampires. I have severed their heads." She said directly.
"That's a crime." The lord answered although he didn't believe her to be capable of such. It took a lot of physical strength to severe a head and fight a vampire and she certainly didn't look strong.
"It would be if it wasn't on the human land. They've attacked me and my convoy, killing my guards, coachmen and my maid."
"None of my people would have done that."
"Perhaps you have less power over your people than you know." She pointed out and in turn hurt his ego. The lord wasn't pleased with her accusatory words and stood up.
"You cannot eat me." The woman declared with pure (and fake) confidence as she faced the vampire lord.
"Why?" The vampire piped up in curiosity, even if he had zero intent of doing so in the first place. He expected to hear one of those reasons that her family was of power, not what followed.
"I'm fat. It ain't going to be healthy for you."
"That's… that's not how it works." The vampire furrowed his brows and stuttered in the response taken aback by the statement.
"I bet that I taste greasy as well."
"Again, that's not how it works." He repeated.
"Do you ever feel guilty after eating someone? Or drinking their blood?" She asked curiously. "By the way, what's the deal with that? Do you need a blood straight out of human or can you drink a blood that was withdrawn from a human? Does it need to be freshly pumped or is that just your preference?" The two vampires beside her watched with increasing amusement as well.
"What?" The lord's confusion grew but also interest. "Why would you like to know?"
"I am just curious whether you genuinely have to kill your prey or whether it is not wiser to have a pasture of humans that you can use for this purpose without killing them."
"A pasture of humans?"
"Almost like dairy cows. A bit of blood letting here and there to satisfy you but no need to kill them. You could cultivate blood, in a sense."
"I hardly imagine that having a human farm will be that much better for humans."
"It'll be if they think that they are deciding themselves or if they are rewarded or if they think that they are doing a good deed. You could hide your intentions behind a blood bank label and have humans donate blood to you willingly." She suggested. "All it takes is a good marketing strategy."
"Why do you care about how I feed?" The lord tried to hide a bout of laughter at an outrageous statements that the woman spewed out.
"Firstly, I do wish to save my ass today so there is a personal benefit to it. Secondly, I do feel that we could co-exist as species. It is unfair that either of us has to die for another to exist. We could try to problem-solve and overcome our differences."
The woman's openness was certainly refreshing.
"Co-exist? I expect that your specie would be very keen to come with pitchforks as soon as they can to get rid of me." The lord scoffed.
"What century do you live in?" The woman asked with intrigue. "It'll be likely a bunch of explosives. Pitchforks will do nought. Most humans want to see the world burn."
"And yet, you suggest that we co-exist?"
"Indeed. Humans can be complicated and often attack out of fear. If they learn what your kind is like, and if they agree how best to live alongside you, I suspect that over time they can learn to accept you and live in peace with you."