After a week of imprisonment and just enough food and water to make it through, I appreciated my former life more than ever. Before the Choosing, everything had been great. I trained hard to earn a combat Power strong enough to explore the world. To roam through strange lands and exotic regions, fighting fierce monsters and conquering wondrous ruins.
A kind and beautiful companion would have been a great addition.
Thoughts like that made me smile.
Instead, I had to watch a soldier die a few meters before me. Trixy's teeth dug deep into his neck. Then… she sucked at him. A pained scream tore through the air, then his legs caved in. The soldier's body shriveled and shrank while Trixy let out moans of the greatest pleasure.
The other soldier scrambled back. His trembling hand reached for his sword, but he stumbled over his own feet and fell hard on his butt before he could pull out his weapon.
"H-Help! We need help!!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. However, Trixy was already upon him.
She hurled the husk of the first soldier to the side and turned into a crimson flash. Blood trickled down her full, mesmerizing lips as her hand blurred before the young soldier. A thin line appeared on his neck. Nothing happened for a moment, but his scream died down as soon as the line burst apart, releasing a flood of blood.
Licking her bloody fingernails, Trixy frowned. "Your blood's disgusting."
She kicked the dying body and moved to her next target. Toward… us.
"Hey, you! Help us get out of here! Please!!" one of the taller guys said, the light of hope glowing in his eyes.
You fucking moron. I cursed, my face draining of all blood even before that psychotic woman reached me.
My hair stood on end, the sight of the murderer as terrifying as it was beautiful.
Why is that beautiful? There is nothing beautiful about this! I shuddered, now certain that Trixy's Power was devious.
She retrieved the keys from the soldier's husk and approached the remaining cages with a sultry smile that was as dangerous as it was sexy. Trixy reached the cage of the tall guy who had spoken earlier first. The cage snapped open with surprising ease.
"Thank you. I owe you a big one, dear!" He laughed happily, rushing out of the cage, only to be stopped mid-track.
Trixy blocked his path, her tiny body staying rooted even as the tall guy didn't slow down.
"What are you doing?" he asked, still laughing.
I was almost sorry for him. That guy was already delusional from one week of imprisonment. So much so that he didn't even realize he had just run into certain death.
"You owe me," Trixy snickered quietly before leaping at him, her teeth digging into his neck.
The tall guy shrank within seconds. His skin looked brittle, and the remaining strength in his body faded rapidly.
"Not enough," she gasped, smacking her lips as soon as her latest victim collapsed.
Her smile was brilliant, but it was no longer alluring to me. I was just scared shitless, if I had to be honest. There was something about Trixy that was deeply unsettling to watch. The ruthless murder was already bad, but the death and lust for blood shining in her crimson eyes were even worse. It was downright terrifying.
The only reason I didn't shit myself in fear was probably the commotion from the soldiers' room. Someone must have heard Trixy.
And as much as I hated the earl's soldiers, I prayed for their timely arrival.
Trixy must have heard the commotion as well. She glanced back, and a flicker of something flashed through her eyes before she turned back to open the cages even faster than before.
Her movements were fast and nimble, and it almost looked like she was becoming faster with every prisoner she freed and fed. Screams and shouts of retaliation resounded, but they were weak. Trixy crushed their resistance with a swipe of her hands, her fingernails sharp enough to cut through flesh.
I couldn't even tell how much time had passed before the doors to the soldiers' room swung open, but most of the cages had been opened and the prisoners killed. Then she reached my cage, her fingers a blur.
The gate swung open, the smell of blood and sex hitting me like a bat.
"Fuck."
"To my utmost displeasure, we don't have the time for that~" Trixy said sonorously, stepping forward as I pulled back further into the corner of the cage. "But I promise to savor you, handsome. Do not wor–"
Her sentence was cut off abruptly as something pierced her back. It jutted out on the other side. Warm blood sprinkled on my face, but I was too starstruck to realize it at first. My eyes lingered on the pointed object protruding from her chest. It spread out into a hook and nestled into Trixy's flesh.
Then came the pull.
Trixy was dragged out of the cage and yanked through the air. Her eyes grew wide as she slithered across the ground, but she was not dead yet. She looked far from dead. Was that amusement?
"A thrall? No, a Lesser Vampire." A hoarse voice echoed, sounding not a bit amused. "How did nobody notice you?"
Trixy leaped to her feet, her claws digging into her own chest as she ripped out the hook along with chunks of flesh.
I almost vomited from the sound alone and nearly missed it when she disappeared again. Trixy appeared at the far left of the row of soldiers that had formed by then. I hadn't even noticed them before, but now that I did, I couldn't help but shudder.
The man who had spoken earlier blurred as well and emerged before Trixy. He looked unfazed, almost annoyed, as he grabbed her by the neck.
"Why are you here, vampire?" he grunted, lifting her from the ground. All eyes were fixed on Trixy–soldiers and prisoners alike.
Her amusement was replaced with desperation as she thrashed around in a futile attempt to break free. A crack resounded as the man applied more pressure to Trixy's neck, followed by a quiet creak of metal.
I barely heard it, and I was probably the only one who did. After all, it was the gate to my cage creaking. The open cage.
My mind went blank for a moment, but the sound of Trixy's cracking neck pulled me out of my stupor.
I stayed as low as possible and approached the gate. My heart threatened to leap out of my chest as I took the first step out of the cage. Then came the second. By the third step, I could almost smell freedom.
Then came a sound.
I couldn't tell whether I made a mistake or if someone coincidentally glanced over and saw me, but I was discovered. At first, it was only one shout, but it quickly grew into an uproar. By then, I was already sprinting.
My head was empty as I ran. The shouts rang louder in my ears, but I continued across the deck. I was almost on the other side when searing pain shot through my shoulder.
Something hit me, slamming me closer to the wooden deck's edge. It burned badly, and it hurt even worse.
Someone shot me. I realized it as I glanced down and saw the gaping hole in my shoulder. No blood flowed from it, but the smell of burned flesh struck me immediately.
Glancing back, all I could see was death or forced servitude under someone willing to bribe the Order and threaten the families of anyone who retaliated.
I did have a choice to make, but it certainly didn't feel like one.
"Fuck it," I cursed as a crimson bolt whipped past my head, missing it by a hair's breadth.
A moment later, I leaped across the railing.