4. The Potion Works!

Triana

The vampire didn't lie. Throughout her life, Triana had never been scratched on her skin, let alone felt the stab of a knife. But now she was certain she didn't need to experience it firsthand to know how it felt.

The sensation of burning, stinging, and throbbing pain made Triana grimace. Her hand gripped his shoulder, clinging to it just to understand what it felt like to grasp hard bones wrapped in cloth.

As the sharp fangs dug deep enough to pierce Triana's blood vessels, Vlador pulled the fangs off and began sucking the blood flowing out of the newly formed holes.

Fresh blood gushed out like a burst pipe once the fangs no longer blocked Triana's open wounds, yet the excruciating pain she had previously was improving.

Triana thought her suffering had ended. She had heard it would last for a few minutes, but it seemed to only last for a few seconds. Unfortunately, Triana was relieved too soon. A soft, wet object swept over her wound, causing her body to jolt from the pain it inflicted.

In the blink of an eye, the pulsating pain returned in a rhythm that seemed to lead her toward the gates of hell.

"Arghh!" Triana screamed, her voice trembling as she clutched the bones that didn't feel as hard as before, but she wouldn't dwell on that now because her mind was too consumed by the pain and heat engulfing her.

As her blood was sucked forcefully, Triana felt her life being pulled out of her body. She hadn't expected a human—no, a vampire—to suck blood this vigorously. They were true monsters! It's no wonder humans were so eager to kill them.

Triana thought her body would get used to the pain. But instead, the pain intensified, and her strength quickly drained away. A cold sensation slowly spread down her back, and she began to feel the numbness creeping across her shoulders.

"Stop!" Triana exclaimed with the little strength she had left.

However, since Vlador didn't listen, Triana glanced at her guards. "Please... help me. Stop him!"

It was a command, albeit weakly stated. The guards lit their torches and swung them towards Vlador.

The eyes that had turned blood red glanced at the men surrounding him. Vampires never liked fire. Most were even afraid of it. But the vampire named Vlador seemed unaffected by the blazing balls of flame, although he had seen them in his face.

His sharp gaze seemed to challenge the men to kill him. He was like a lion that had successfully bitten its prey's neck. He wouldn't let go.

Since intimidating with fire proved fruitless and also endangered Triana, two guards attempted to kick Vlador's back. Although his body was nothing but a skeleton covered in skin and an old tunic, he possessed great strength, prompting all the guards to draw their swords, intending to decapitate him.

Triana shouted out, "Don't! Don't... kill him." Then she moved her weak hand to try to free herself while saying, "Please... release me. You promised,"

Triana wouldn't let Vlador die because the vampire hadn't drunk his potion yet. His death would be as bad as fulfilling a curse for Triana.

Seeing their Lady almost at death's door, one of the guards kicked Vlador's back as hard as he could. And unexpectedly, the kick made him release his bite and fall to the side.

Another guard immediately dragged Triana's weak body away from Vlador, who was wiping the remaining blood from his lips. Now, he could smile. The previously expressionless face had regained its muscle function.

The skull wrapped in skin had gained a little flesh beneath its skin. He was still very skinny, but no longer emaciated.

"How delightful!" Vlador's lips could move now. Then he extended his hand forward. "I appreciate your efforts. Never have I seen someone so desperate as to trust a monster like me to be consumed. Let me make your wish come true."

Although her muscles seemed unable to lift her body, the positive response from Vlador was a new source of energy that enabled Triana to rise. Without further ado, she discarded her regal demeanor to crawl forward and place the glowing potion bottle on Vlador's palm.

Vlador placed the potion bottle between his fingers before examining it right in front of his eyes, which gradually reverted to brown.

His long-nailed thumb moved to nudge the bottle cap open until it fell off. Then, without taking a breath or showing any hint of hesitation, he gulped its contents down to the last drop.

Triana's eyes remained fixed on the vampire before her. She was still sitting on the floor with her hand hovering in front of her slightly open mouth.

The bite wound on Triana's neck, which was still oozing blood, was painful, but her concern and curiosity about what would happen to Vlador allowed her to set aside the pain.

Like everyone else in the cold room, Vlador remained silent with the empty bottle in his hand, waiting for the reaction that the newly imbibed potion might evoke.

'Would he feel like he's burning from the inside? Would he soon be writhing in agony? Would his body dry up even worse? Would he start spitting blood from his mouth and nose?'

Various questions flooded Triana's mind. Vlador had nearly killed her, but she had witnessed firsthand that vampires indeed needed human blood to live and feel alive.

Triana wasn't disappointed that Vlador had drunk so much of her blood that it nearly killed her. At least she had truly made him feel more alive. And most importantly, he had kept his promise.

Suddenly, a strange sensation spread through Triana's body. In that instant, her face, hair, and entire body glowed green, causing her to stare wide-eyed at her hands. Then, within five seconds later, the uncomfortable sensation and magical light vanished from her body without a trace.

"The magic... it must have worked on me! It work-"

Triana's joyful murmur ceased as the sound of clinking iron rang right beside her. When she lifted her face to find the source of the noise, the smile on her face vanished as she found all the chains binding Vlador had come loose.