Side Story 2: Vampire

 

The massive three-story iron bus carrying two hundred people traveled along the empty forest road. Through the window, Liao Tingyan observed the tall cypress forests lining both sides, appearing dark green beneath the dim sky.

The air hung humid, rain having fallen not long ago. Water vapor rose from the ground, and white mist shrouded distant mountain peaks. Even sitting in the bus surrounded by so many people, Liao Tingyan felt bone-chilling cold. The chill seemed alive, creeping beneath her thick coat and gripping her limbs. Her feet especially had grown so cold they'd gone nearly numb.

She glanced at the despair and dejection etched on others' faces when her peripheral vision caught a small deer leaping from the forest. She quickly turned to look. Indeed, a small deer—wildlife often crossed such forest roads. She wanted to watch longer, but the iron bus moved too fast, and soon the lively little creature bouncing on the dark road disappeared.

"You don't look like someone headed to be blood food. You can still smile at a time like this," a man sitting before her had turned to look at her, his tone somewhat sarcastic. "After you've donated blood once, you'll know exactly what you're going to suffer."

Liao Tingyan instinctively produced a social smile. "Hmm, all right. I understand."

After speaking, she realized she'd been a corporate slave too long, reflexively wanting to say "okay" or "received." She'd almost politely added "thank you."

Wake up. You're no longer that '996' corporate slave working overtime seven days a week without rest. You're now just a poor adult who transmigrated to a strange world and finally got a good night's sleep.

She'd transmigrated here yesterday, becoming a person named "Liao Tingyan," living in a messy, five-square-meter can-like room. Her phone showed an enormous unpaid debt and blacklisting, requiring her to enter the blood bank for repayment. Too much information to process. Liao Tingyan hadn't inherited the original owner's memories and was completely puzzled. The room contained no diary or manual, just a suicide note stating the world was too dark, and the original owner wanted to embrace death, hoping for wealth in the next life.

Yeah, who doesn't want to be rich in their next life? But sister, with you owing so much and now bailing out, I'm in quite a predicament!

Since she couldn't return, what else could she do but survive for now?

That morning, two staff members—a man and a woman—collected her. They seemed to be this world's "civil servants," specifically responsible for sending those with large unpaid debts to the blood bank to work off their obligations.

Perhaps they'd never encountered someone being sent to the blood bank who wasn't panicking, despairing, suffering, or struggling, but instead asking numerous basic questions as if consulting about a service.

Through these two relatively decent staff members, Liao Tingyan gained preliminary understanding of this world.

This was District 98, also called the Vampire District, ruled by the Vampire Grand Duke. Compared to the chaotic evil of adjacent District 97 (the Werewolf District) and the xenophobia of District 96 (the Mermaid District), the Vampire District was generally more free and open. There was one catch—its specialty related to vampire diet. Ordinary civilians living in District 98 voluntarily donated blood annually. Many poor people sold blood when struggling financially, and those who failed to repay loans or committed serious crimes were required to pay with blood.

This is blood debt paid in blood.

Liao Tingyan owed so much she fell into the most severe category—she was practically vampire property now. Being sent to the blood bank, her future life would likely involve remaining in that cage-like facility, having blood extracted daily to supply the vampire community until she dried up and died. Generally, people like her who entered the blood bank lived at most three years. No wonder the original owner wanted to embrace death—who would want to be a blood bag?

If Liao Tingyan wasn't afraid of pain and couldn't bring herself to commit suicide, she would have chosen quick death too.

However, before dying, she wanted to see what the legendary vampires looked like. She came from a scientific world and hadn't yet experienced magical creatures of a fantasy realm!

Before seeing vampires, she first saw the blood bank where she'd be living. How to describe it? A huge warehouse complex surrounded by dense forests, large groups wearing identical blue uniforms, reminding her of livestock farms. She and her busload of dejected companions were arranged in a "warehouse," where they showered, changed clothes, and ate together.

Everyone seemed to have poor appetite except Liao Tingyan, who started eating. She hadn't expected steak here—surprisingly well-grilled—along with roasted pig liver sprinkled with sesame seeds, crisp and flavorful, with milk as beverage. After eating a while, she noticed people watching, and she returned their strange looks.

She hadn't eaten for a day. What was wrong with eating? The dead-faced uncle distributing food looked at her clean plate and gave her another piece of roasted pig liver, along with a milk refill.

After eating her fill, she felt drowsy. Each person was assigned a cubicle, and Liao Tingyan patted the white sheets and blankets inside to ensure no unusual smells before lying down and falling asleep.

She didn't know how much time passed when someone woke her. Opening her eyes, Liao Tingyan saw three people: one holding a blood collection device, another carrying dozens of vials, and a middle-aged man with a butler-like appearance wearing gold-rimmed glasses, standing outside like a supervisor.

Liao Tingyan noticed his slightly red eyes and pointed ears.

Ah... so this is a vampire? He doesn't seem particularly special.

The blood-collecting brother also had an expressionless, dead face and didn't speak. He pulled back her wrist, took a small vial of blood, and quickly left. Liao Tingyan pulled down her sleeve and turned over to continue sleeping.

If she died, she might return to her original world and have to continue overtime work. So during this interval, she'd first catch up on sleep here. At least she could relax mentally—her previous overtime work had been too exhausting, constantly revising design proposals until nearly dead on the spot.

"Mr. Conan, the collection from this batch of new blood is complete."

"Hmm, I smell several with good blood quality. Don't drain them to death in just a few extractions."

"Yes, sir!"

The middle-aged butler-like man took this batch of new blood and boarded a plane painted with a red rose emblem. They would fly twenty minutes, over the adjacent mountain range, to reach the Rose Manor on the other side. The Rose Manor was the estate of the Vampire Grand Duke, ruler of District 98, surrounded by endless dark green forests. The ancient estate, passed down for thousands of years, was devoid of outside clamor, just as quiet and still as its master.

The blood bank, separated from Rose Manor by a mountain, was District 98's largest. It contained blood food that had been screened, with quality reaching medium grade or above, and was also known as Rose Manor's backyard garden.

In strictly hierarchical District 98, the sole Grand Duke possessed all blood-drinking rights in his territory. The highest quality fresh blood in the blood bank belonged only to him, so whenever new blood arrived, it would be uniformly sent to the Grand Duke for selection... However, the Vampire Grand Duke suffered from hemophobia and hadn't drunk blood for many years, so this practice had become mere formality.

The butler of Rose Manor's inner garden received this batch of new blood. He took a light sniff and felt this time's fresh blood was slightly better than the previous batch. Just as humans were obsessed with fine wine, vampires spent their lives pursuing more delicious fresh blood. Following custom, he walked through the dark corridor, down the spiral underground stairs, past that tall door of thorns.

Deep underground, the Vampire Grand Duke lay in that pitch-black wooden coffin.

"Grand Duke, the new batch of blood has arrived." The butler respectfully presented those tantalizingly scented blood samples, mentally counting. He would usually count to ten seconds, then, with no response from the Grand Duke, retreat, allowing other high-ranking vampires to select one by one.

He'd counted to five when he suddenly heard slight movement. He couldn't control his shock as he glanced over, surprisingly finding the Grand Duke had stirred.

A pale hand rested on the black coffin's edge, and a slender figure sat up from within. That waterfall-like, seemingly living black hair flowed sinuously as he rose.

The butler was terrified, involuntarily starting to tremble. He felt pressure from the bloodline, his spine bending more and more, not daring to look directly at the Grand Duke.

That figure, wrapped in black, passed by like a silent shadow. The butler saw that transparent white hand pick up a vial of bright red blood.

The Grand Duke—the Grand Duke had blood he was willing to try?!

For so many years, the Grand Duke suffering from hemophobia had shown no interest in tasting not only ordinary human blood but even the blood of high-ranking vampires just below him. Because of this, how many female vampires had been heartbroken?

The butler was excited inside and inadvertently looked up—he saw a handsome, pale face. The Grand Duke slightly tilted his head back, revealing the neck wrapped in a black shirt. He tasted a sip of that fresh blood, his Adam's apple moving, his red lips becoming even more vivid.

...

Liao Tingyan ate her second meal at the blood bank, with identical arrangement as the previous one. As she ate, she wondered—surely they wouldn't serve this daily? Even the most delicious food becomes tiresome when eaten every day. But then she thought, those breeding farms generally only feed animals the same food, so expecting three different meals daily seemed impossible.

She decided that if they served this again in two days, she'd ask the chef uncle who distributed food if they could change the feed... no, change the food flavor.

She found her mindset much better than her despairing companions'. Perhaps because she was used to it. In her world, she'd often felt like a cow, working diligently and exhaustingly. Here, she was more like a pig, idly eating and waiting to die. Hard to say which was more unacceptable.

Unfortunately, before she could finish three days of meals here, a plane hurriedly flew over that day. Dozens of armed personnel and more than a dozen maid-dressed sisters, led by three red-eyed butlers, rushed into her small cubicle and transported her onto the plane.

"???"

She was squeezed among a crowd of people or vampires, feeling like she'd become a fragile item because they carried her entirely. The butler kept seriously admonishing them to handle her gently, to be careful not to use force that might cause wounds, and so on.

On the plane, she looked down through the wide-open cabin door and saw the cold, wet cypress forests below shrouded in clouds and mist. The sky was dark, and cold winds howled.

So these people are vampires! Could humans sit on a plane with the cabin door wide open in cold wind?

Shivering with cold, she was carried off the plane in a manner akin to an antique vase and brought into a dark and lifeless manor, where she was handed over to another group of maid sisters. They cleaned her with water, marinated her with cleaning products... Liao Tingyan seemed to hear "A Bite of China" background music in her ears, the kind played when ingredients were being prepared.

Are you preparing to eat me after processing? She tried to talk to the sisters, but they ignored her.

"I think I can wash my butt."

Still, no one paid attention.

As they scrubbed her, she suddenly remembered washing her dog with her roommate in the past. The big dog had struggled like this and might have made such pleas, but she hadn't paid attention and had scrubbed it hard. This must be karma. Those who wash will be washed in turn.

She was scrubbed squeaky clean by a group of sisters, dressed in a thin silk nightgown, and then carried by these passive-aggressive maids to a room with thick carpeting.

They respectfully withdrew without a word, leaving Liao Tingyan standing barefoot in the spacious room.

The room had only one large bed with dark red curtains hanging from its four corners. It was very dark, perhaps because the curtains were too heavy and had all been lowered. The dark red curtains with black patterns made the room look extremely eerie.

But Liao Tingyan couldn't feel any of this. She only felt she was about to freeze to death. Everyone here seemed immune to cold and didn't think others would be cold. Looking around and seeing no one approaching, Liao Tingyan went straight to the large bed in the middle, pulled back the covers, and got in.

There was no other choice. The blanket on this bed was the only thing in the room that could provide warmth.

She finally managed to recover, exhaling a long breath. After her eyes adjusted to the surroundings, she realized there was another person in the room.

That person sat in a high-backed chair in the corner, his appearance unclear, only a pair of red eyes watching her in darkness.

Tss—This is like some terrifying ghost story.

She pulled the blanket over her head, just like when she was a child watching horror movies and being too scared to sleep.

The room was quiet. Huddled in the blanket, Liao Tingyan thought: Could I have been seeing things? Why didn't that vampire react just now? Thinking this, she cautiously peeked out her head and saw those red eyes close by.

Being so close, Liao Tingyan finally saw what this vampire looked like—he resembled Snow White.

Skin as white as snow, hair and eyes like ebony, lips red as blood.

As she looked at him, she suddenly and irrationally felt her heart racing.

His fingers were cold, his lips were cold, he didn't breathe, but the breath in his mouth was like frost. Her throat was gripped. This vampire of unknown name and identity drew close to her, his nose and lips hovering over her neck. She couldn't move, her head lifted, and then he buried his face in the side of her neck and suddenly bit down—

It didn't hurt, just a bit of itchy numbness. Liao Tingyan felt somewhat dazed for a moment. She felt as if she'd plunged into a snowy pine forest, her nostrils filled with the crisp scent of snow and the cold fragrance of pine trees, faint and cold, like a pine forest at night, with a bit of night's tranquility amidst the bone-chilling cold.

She was lost in a trance for a long time. When she came to, she found herself holding the vampire's head, her hand tightly grasping his hair at the back of his head. He'd stopped drinking blood but still leaned against her neck, gently sniffing the warm blood scent through the thin layer of skin.

Um, his hair quality is excellent.

The Snow White with excellent hair quality was the Vampire Grand Duke, the master of Rose Manor, the ruler of District 98, and a man of vampire bloodline.

He always wore a black shirt and trousers, draped in a robe, coming and going without sound.

She inexplicably slept on that bed for a day, and when she woke, her treatment had changed again. The gazes of butlers and maid sisters looking at her were complex—a mix of envy, jealousy, and awe, which Liao Tingyan couldn't decode.

She wasn't sent back to the blood bank. It was said she'd been favored by the Grand Duke and had become his exclusive blood provider. The hemophobic Grand Duke had finally found food, and thus Liao Tingyan, this precious ration, received the highest level of care. However, vampires didn't know how to care for humans. They lacked understanding of humans. For example, the food was too monotonous, and Liao Tingyan was very concerned that eating like this long-term would cause constipation, so she requested improved meals.

"We are the Grand Duke's kinsmen! The highest status among vampires! We have lived here for generations, the most loyal servants of the Grand Duke, serving only him!" The brothers and sisters were very proud and refused her request.

Well, fine.

That night, Snow White came to find her, and Liao Tingyan tried to whisper in his ear, "I want to eat some other food, just some snacks. Can I?"

As they say, a man is most agreeable after being well-fed. Snow White embraced her, lazily humming in agreement, his voice carrying a hint of intoxication, as if drunk.

Liao Tingyan was held by him, her neck licked for a long time. Seeing how preciously he drank, almost just making a small cut and licking for a while, she felt this brother had been starving for so many years—too pitiful, not daring to eat too much, fearing he'd finish it all at once.

Given that she was the food, she wouldn't encourage him to eat more.

The Grand Duke said one sentence, and the next day Liao Tingyan saw a stream of chefs arriving at the manor, specifically to cook for her. Three meals a day plus afternoon tea and night snacks, all available. She could even order dishes, with an extremely thick menu that could only be opened and flipped through on the table. Detailed descriptions of delicacies from all districts, with illustrations. Unbelievably, they even had preparations for Rou Jia Mo (Chinese hamburger) and spicy hot pot.

It was too damp and cold here, permanently gloomy without sunlight. Liao Tingyan couldn't stand the cold and consulted with the brothers and sisters. "Can electricity be installed here? An air conditioner or floor heating or something? It's too cold. I'm wearing many clothes and still feel cold."

They looked at her strangely, almost screaming, "Where do you think this is? This is the ancient and mysterious Rose Manor! It's been this way for thousands of years!"

"Then should I talk to Snow Whi... to the Grand Duke?"

She saw their faces screaming this shameless little spirit only knows how to act coquettishly with the Grand Duke, it's detestable, and then they reluctantly set up a fireplace for her to warm up.

But I still really want electricity.

These people liked gloomy weather, liked dim light, but she felt that after staying here a while, her eyes would become nearsighted. The lighting environment was too bad.

So she sneakily spoke to Snow White Grand Duke again.

"Hmm, electric lights?" His voice was lazy and magnetic, making one's ears tingle.

"Yes, have you seen electric lights? They're very bright. And air conditioning—I think it would be better to install floor heating in the room so I can walk barefoot. If there's floor heating, I wouldn't need to wear such thick clothes here."

Hearing she wouldn't wear such thick clothes, the Grand Duke, who lay lazily like a black cat nearby, nodded. "Hmm, not bad." She was wrapped too tightly for him to smell her scent.

Soon a construction team came to install electricity. The group of vampires looked at Liao Tingyan as if she'd killed their parents and defiled their purity, but they could only endure the humiliation.

"You dare! How can the Grand Duke be so indulgent with you!"

Liao Tingyan didn't know either, but from their first meeting, that man had been very good to her, nodding to whatever she wanted, making her feel quite embarrassed—after all, even her parents hadn't spoiled her like this.

As everyone knows, humans are greedy. Having one thing, they want more. So after electricity was installed in Rose Manor, it was also covered with internet. Liao Tingyan's room could open the heavy curtains and turn on bright lights. She could sprawl on the thick lazy sofa with a tablet, watching online dramas.

"I want some milk tea."

The milk tea was delivered.

She drank a large cup of happy health milk tea before bed. That man held her, licking her neck, tasting a bit of blood, saying, "A bit sweet."

"Oh, then I'll add less sugar to my milk tea next time."

"You can choose what you like."

Liao Tingyan stroked his hair. "Then next time I'll drink some cola, let you taste the happy otaku water."

The man smiled, deeply, greedily, and obsessively inhaling her scent. Sometimes Liao Tingyan felt he was being too naturally good to her.

He might have been reluctant to drink too much blood but was unsatisfied, often starting to lick other places after licking her neck, such as her lips. After the first time embracing and kissing this man, such things seemed to become natural. Later, he even preferred to directly kiss her lips, then bite her lip during their entanglement, licking the blood on it.

Initially, he only came at night, holding her for a while.

Later, he would appear during the day too. When she sprawled, watching dramas and laughing loudly, he would sit profoundly in a high-backed chair three meters away, watching her with those red eyes. The entire room was very bright, only the corner where he sat had shadows. He looked pitiful, like a little kitten whose nest had been occupied, forced to observe secretly from the corner.

There was a large open space in the manor, and Liao Tingyan's room directly faced this space.

"Many red roses were once planted there, which is how the Rose Manor got its name originally," said the butler who'd stayed in the manor longest. "But even I have never seen what the Rose Manor looked like when it last bloomed with roses."

That night, the Grand Duke suddenly asked her: "Would you like to see rose flowers?"

Liao Tingyan's eyes brightened. "Yes!" Besides the tall cypress trees, there were few other plants around here. It would be wonderful if the garden had flowers!

When she said she wanted to, all the open spaces in the manor were planted with red roses. When they bloomed, the bright red flowers connected into fields, and the lush floral fragrance permeated the night, making even dreams fragrant.

Liao Tingyan had a dream of this rose fragrance. She dreamed she became a woman from many years ago, also living in this manor. She said to the man in her dream, "Can these red roses be eaten?" Then she walked with him by the wall of red roses, kissing his red eyes.

The dream was continuous. Besides this one, there was another where she became yet another woman, but seemingly from an even earlier time. At that time, she always thought about how hard it was without the internet, and there were few food varieties. The Grand Duke asked her what the internet was and what she wanted to eat... The red roses bloomed twice in her dream.

Liao Tingyan ate many foods made from rose flowers—flower cakes, flower tea, flower pastries—until she was filled with rose fragrance. The man seemed to find it a bit unbearable too. When he approached her neck that night, he sneezed, making Liao Tingyan laugh until midnight.

Gradually, all the vampires in the manor knew the Grand Duke had been enchanted by a human woman, indulging her every wish. Some dissatisfied vampires tried to deal with Liao Tingyan but were torn into pieces by the Grand Duke. That ferocious scene made Liao Tingyan's life even more leisurely here, as no one dared to provoke her.

...

Later, when she became too weak and was about to die, she saw the man sitting before her and the large patch of rose flowers outside the window behind him.

"How did you recognize me?" she murmured.

"I will always recognize you," he said, then bent down and took large gulps of the blood in her body.

The rose flowers outside withered overnight. The Grand Duke carried the corpse drained of all blood, walking along the corridor, through the thorn door, and again into the dark underground. The lights along the way dimmed one by one, no longer as bright as before.

The Rose Manor returned to silence once more.

"I know you will come back again." Perhaps it would be a long time later, but she would eventually return.

End of Vampire Side Story

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