"Vampire Servant's Devotion"

Ivory turned beet red upon hearing his deep, sexy voice. She was too embarrassed to turn around to respond to him, so she tried to move away instead.

But Sigmund's muscular arms held her waist tightly. "Ivory. You might have forgotten, but I have not replenished my mana for two days."

"Sigmund…" Ivory murmured, feeling guilty about neglecting her Servant's needs, "I apologize if I was an irresponsible Master to you for letting you starve..."

"That's why you have to make it up to me."

"Did you avoid me because I am weak… and I can't control my mana?"

"No. It was because of…" But he chose not to tell her about the kiss to prevent them from being awkward again.

"Because of?" she asked him with a worried expression.

But the Vampire Servant just smirked, "I've been holding back, but… I guess I really can't resist you, Ivory." Using his free hand, he shoved her hair to the side, exposing her neck.

When Sigmund finally pierced her skin with his fangs, Ivory couldn't help but give a loud moan. She missed having his lips graze on her skin, and having him miss out two days of mana replenishment made it even more sensual. She noticed that there was something different about the way he bit her in that moment; he sucked her roughly, but he held her body in such an affectionate way.

Sigmund wanted Ivory to feel his devotion to her, and for him, replenishing her mana by sucking her blood in the most pleasurable parts of her body would make her adore him more. As he licked her skin, he could feel his Master's body became warmer, and it was also odd that he felt warmer within himself, too. He then felt something bulge below him, which should not happen because he's a Servant!

Wanting to stop his crazy body from reacting further, he licked the oozing blood from Ivory's neck before letting go of her. He stood up and offered his hand, "Come, let's go home. Ebleu's waiting outside for us."

Ivory was craving for more, but seeing him return to his usual self made her feel contented, "Ah, I see… Alright," she took his hand and slowly stood up.

As Ivory held Sigmund's warm hand while they walked in the hallway, she could feel that something might have already changed in their relationship... but she couldn't point out what it was.

...

When they reached home, Ivory took time to read some reference scrolls. She wanted to know what made her lose control of her mana, and she wanted to find a way to completely control it. She remembered that in her first attempt in doing Conversion Magic at her own will, she failed, and for some reason after she had collapsed and rested, she had a muscle memory of how she should swing the sticks and control her mana. It was a peculiar event, and it remained a mystery within herself.

Sigmund, on the other hand, waited for Gracie and Flynn to sleep before talking to Ivory's parents. He opened up to his Master's parents that Ivory had two kinds of mana and to control it, he needed to know her ancestors' mana type.

"And that's what happened in class today," Sigmund said with a serious expression, "In order for Ivory to overcome this problem, please tell me what Servant Classes her ancestors had."

Anne and Gordon looked at each other troublingly. They didn't expect someone would ask about their relationship with Ivory, especially not her Servant to ask something very personal.

Since Ivory's parents weren't answering him, Sigmund repeated, "Alright. Let me ask what your ancestors did during the war?

"My ancestors were hunters here in Greensteid Forest," Gordon was the first to answer.

"And my ancestors were dressmakers," Anne replied to the Vampire as well.

'Something's definitely not right,' Sigmund thought as he crossed his arms and studied the couple who was sitting in front of him. "So, none of your ancestors were chosen by the Goddess Destinia?"

Anne and Gordon looked at each other again before nodding at him.

"Are you a hundred percent sure?"

"A hundred percent sure," Gordon answered. He explained further, "We found Ivory in our cart one night. She was in a fruit crate covered with a thick, blue velvet cloth, and we didn't know who put her there. Nevertheless, we treated her as our own and treated her as a real family."

"Ivory is not blood-related to you, and no one told me about it?" The Vampire's jaws clenched. He couldn't believe what he just heard. "Who else knew about this?"

"Just us, Ivory, and… Katie."

"So… that's why she was very unsympathetic towards her..." Sigmund thought everything was just sibling rivalry, but he now knew that it was not the only reason why she was always looking at her sister with disdain. On the other hand, Ivory loved her as if she's her real sister.

After knowing the truth about his Master, he entered her bedroom. Ivory was lying on her stomach and was still reading scrolls on her bed.

"Ivory," Sigmund called her as he slowly sat beside her.

"Yes, what is it?" she said without looking at him. She was concentrating on the scroll.

He ran his fingers on his black hair and said, "Stop reading. Let's talk." With force, he grabbed her arm and made her sit in front of him.

Seeing that he's seriously gazing at her, she questioned, "What's the matter?"

Sigmund gently placed his hand on her cheek. "Why didn't you tell me… that you're adopted?"

Ivory widened her eyes, puzzled as to why he suddenly opened up about it. "It's not important, right? Besides, my whole family is here with me, and they always make me feel that I belong."

"But aren't you curious… who your real parents are?"

She sighed, "I am, but what can I do? They already disowned me… like a rotten apple."

"Ivory, I asked Lucius about your situation… You have two different types of mana, and to control it, you have to know its nature. Hence, you need to find your real parents."

"I have to? I mean, what about my family now? Am I going to be forced to leave them?" asked Ivory worriedly.

"You just have to know who they are, so that we can trace back who your ancestors are and understand your mana types. It doesn't mean that you need to go with them. After all, you're already an adult, and you can decide for yourself where you'd like to go."

"Hmm… You're right," she said with a subtle smile, "I wonder how my real parents would react if they saw me. I want to know if they're terrified of being punished by the heavens because they gave away their precious child."

Sigmund opened his mouth and was about to speak, when Ivory hurriedly placed her finger on Sigmund's lips to stop him. "Hush, let's not talk about it. Anyway, I will work hard to become a strong Master. Who knows, maybe if I win the Servant Competition, my parents might be the ones who will run to me. Perhaps Katie will come back and accept me as well."

When he saw his Master's smile, he patted her head, "Ivory, even if they turn their backs on you, you have me, Your Vampire Servant. You swore to offer your body and blood to me, and in return, I'll serve you as long as you live."

"Thank you…" Ivory felt touched by this, and she couldn't help but shed tears.

Seeing his Master's lonely face made the Vampire Servant rub his thumb on her cheeks to wipe the tears falling from her eyes. "Come here," he said, and so he let her lean on her chest as she continued to cry.

…

The next day, Ivory and Sigmund were called to Educator Wallace's office to discuss what happened in class. The two of them stood in front of the Educator's desk.

"Miss Sprucemint… The fact that you failed to get four blocks yesterday means you have already failed the challenge."

Ivory pursed her lips, nervous about the consequences of disappointing the Educator. She said in a trembling voice, "Yes, sir, I apologize. I was not thinking straight and gave my blocks to another student..."

"But…" the Educator's tone shifted to a happier one, "But you have successfully incorporated the four elements into that single wooden block."

Ivory widened her eyes in surprise, so she wanted to confirm it, "Really? I did?" yet she felt joy upon hearing about it, and a wide smile appeared on her face.

Educator Wallace was puzzled, "You can't remember what you did?"

"I can't… I apologize…" she lowered her head, "I will accept any punishment, Educator Wallace."

The Educator nodded, and then placed a scroll on the table. When he opened it, a map could be seen, and the Educator pointed to a small town in the corner of the Land of Sandria. "Miss Sprucemint, you shall join the third years in the remote town of Gallean… but you need to disguise yourself as a man."