Trickster

After quickly tying her hair up in a rough bun, Leah made the decision to leave her room and head down for dinner. She realized that the maid who usually served her meals would no longer be bringing them to her room.

As she unlocked the door and stepped out, she paused for a moment, recalling how Lucius had instructed her to remain in her room. The way he had spoken to her gave the impression that he was trying to protect her from a potential threat or danger. Leah dismissed any thoughts she had about Lucius, reasoning that he was only skilled at telling the most convincing lies. She briefly glanced at his door before closing her own and walking away.

As she made her way through the house, Leah couldn't help but notice how eerily quiet and empty it felt. When she had first explored the house with Lolly, it had been bustling with activity and workers could be found around every corner. However, now she couldn't spot a single maid in sight and it seemed as if everyone was holed up in their respective rooms.

As she was just a few steps away from the stairs leading to the foyer, a shattering sound caught her attention from the side. Her head snapped towards the direction where the sound had come from, her brows furrowing slightly. Despite her initial impulse to ignore the sound and continue on, she heard another crash, like the sound of broken plates.

She began walking towards the source of the noise, taking measured steps as she moved. As she approached the small turn around the corner, faint whimpers reached her ears. The sound of glass shattering under someone's footsteps grew louder. With cautious steps, she proceeded and turned to the corner.

Her eyes widened in shock as she beheld the scene before her. Lucius stood behind a maid, his fangs latched into her neck from behind. One of his hand encircled the woman's waist, while the other gripped her throat tightly.

The maid appeared to be in a state of ecstasy as Lucius fed on her, soft moans escaping from her lips while her fingers gently traced through his hair. Broken pieces of plates littered the ground in front of them, and she unconsciously stepped on them, further fracturing the already shattered porcelain. Leah recognized her as one of the maids she had encountered in the kitchen earlier that afternoon, the same one who had insulted Dawn.

Leah stood there, her gaze fixed on the shocking scene unfolding before her. Despite her desire to flee from that place, her feet remained firmly planted, as if they were rooted to the ground.

Lucius, in the midst of feeding on the maid, was well aware of Leah's presence. He had sensed her the moment she had reached the staircase. Her scent was overpowering, even amidst the taste of the maid's blood in his mouth. It was stronger than he had ever perceived it before.

The maid slowly began to struggle, as if she was trying to pull herself away from Lucius' grasp. Her struggles were feeble and delicate, as if she wasn't even exerting enough effort to free herself from his hold. In less than five seconds, the maid's hand slowly slid down from Lucius' hair, and her body went limp in his arms.

Lucius dropped the woman's body to the ground, on the shattered plates, the body landing with a soft thud. Lucius threw his head back, his eyes tightly shut, breathing heavily. His lips and jaw were stained completely red.

"I told you to stay in your room," Lucius said, his hands running through his hair.

Leah wore a look of absolute horror as she gazed at the maid's lifeless body on the floor.

"Y-You killed her," Leah stammered, her lips trembling slightly.

Lucius scoffed, then opened his eyes, which now bore a deep, darker shade of red. "She knew what she signed up for when she came to work here." Lucius sounded less bothered as he spoke, as if killing the maid was nothing. "And besides, I can give you a ninety-five percent guarantee that she enjoyed what I did to her," he added nonchalantly, staring at Leah.

"You are completely insane. How can you even say something like that after taking the life of an innocent person?" Leah asked, her voice filled with anger as Lucius showed no remorse for his actions.

"Innocent," Lucius said, wiping his mouth with his sleeve, which helped in cleaning the blood on his mouth and jaw, but not completely. "Oh trust me, this maid would have gladly slit your throat if given the opportunity to do so," Lucius said, his eyes settling on the dead woman's body on the ground.

Leah brought her hand up to her throat as soon as the words left Lucius' mouth. She couldn't fathom why the maid would want to harm her. After all, she had never even spoken to the woman before. Leah glared at Lucius for even suggesting such a scenario as an excuse for his actions.

'What a despicable man,' she thought to herself before turning to leave.

She had only taken two steps before turning back to face Lucius. Lolly's sudden disappearance had been bugging her for some time now, as she was close to the girl. If Lucius was aimlessly murdering his workers, could it be that he had also... Her eyes widened when that thought crossed her mind.

"I haven't seen Lolly for some days now," Leah paused, while Lucius tilted his head, waiting for her to complete what she wanted to say. "D-Did you also kill her?" she finally asked, already dreading that her thoughts were correct.

"No. I sent her back home to spend a week with her mother," Lucius replied, causing a sigh of relief to escape from Leah's lips. "But I killed the maid who usually brings your food to your room." Lucius said, a devilish smile tugging his lips.

Leah's face immediately went pale, when she heard Lucius. That woman had been very nice to her. On a few occasions, the maid had even taken out time to prepare separate meals for Leah, when she requests for something else.

She glared at Lucius with intense disgust and seething anger before abruptly turning away from him, unable to bear the sight of him any longer. The very thought of smashing the nearby flower vase over his head crossed her mind, as her boiling frustration threatened to spill over. Just as she was about to stride away, she heard Lucius emit a pained groan and began panting heavily.

Leah turned and fixed a questioning stare at Lucius, her expression deepening into a frown as she noticed him clutching his chest in obvious pain. "What do you think you're doing?" she demanded, folding her arms across her chest.

She wasn't buying whatever he was trying to do. The man was a trickster... A conniving trickster.

"M-My restriction is reacting," Lucius replied, his voice strained and breathless.

He leaned heavily against the wall, his grip on his chest growing tighter as his nails began to dig into his shirt.

The pain etched on Lucius's face was agonizing to witness, and Leah couldn't help but feel slightly concerned for him as his situation was clearly serious. She wanted to ignore him but she couldn't bring herself to do so, she just wasn't that way. She moved closer to him to stop him from crawling at his chest.

"I need water, I need to shower right now," Lucius said weakly, his voice strained and his body trembling.

Leah nodded without asking any questions. She didn't know what was happening to him, but it didn't look good. Lucius' skin was beginning to turn pale, and his breathing was becoming more labored.