Chapter 15: Crassus

“That one in the silver suit is Samuel.”

Madam Sharon touched her arm and signaled toward a spot not far away.

Upon hearing the name, Lorevil followed the woman’s gaze.

She saw a tall Vampire man with handsome features, yet he bore an arrogance that was difficult to conceal.

Perhaps sensing Lorevil’s gaze, their eyes met.

Alarm bells rang in Lorevil’s heart.

‘This guy is dangerous…’

“Ignore him. Let’s go meet some important guests first,” Madam Sharon said in a low voice, pulling Lorevil toward the other side of the hall.

However, it didn’t end there.

After Samuel saw them turn to leave, he said a few words to the nobles beside him and actually followed.

“Madam Sharon, it has been a long time. Who is this beautiful young lady?”

“Allow me to introduce you. This is Miss Lorevil. Lorevil, this is Samuel,” Madam Sharon said, coming to a halt.

“Miss Lorevil? I have heard much about you. I didn’t expect the heir of the Lorevil family to be so beautiful. I wonder if Madam Sharon could part with her for a moment and allow Miss Lorevil to accompany me for a dance?”

As expected, Samuel went on the offensive immediately.

“Samuel, I’m sorry. Miss Lorevil is my partner,” Madam Sharon said calmly.

“Madam Sharon, am I really not worthy of dancing with Miss Lorevil?” Samuel’s face darkened, and he spoke with dissatisfaction.

Lorevil looked at Madam Sharon.

She was curious about how the woman would handle this provocation.

Madam Sharon had mentioned before that being entangled with the vengeful Samuel was a nuisance, and there was no need to invite trouble for the sake of a moment’s anger.

The guests in the hall, who had been conversing in low voices, noticed the commotion and looked over curiously.

After all, the entanglement between Madam Sharon and Samuel was no secret in aristocratic circles. Now that Samuel was making a scene in public, it was clear he was ready to drop all pretenses.

Lorevil subconsciously sized Samuel up.

The hostility radiating from him was almost overflowing. He was clearly an extremely conceited person who could not tolerate rejection.

Although Lorevil was a Level 2 Vampire, she could clearly feel the pressure of a Level 3 Vampire emanating from him. No wonder Madam Sharon found him difficult to deal with.

“Young Master Samuel must be joking. With your status, if it were just a dance, you would naturally be worthy of any lady,” Madam Sharon said with a slight smile.

“It’s just that tonight, Miss Lorevil is my specially invited partner. We agreed on the first dance long ago. If I were to go back on my word halfway through, wouldn’t that make me appear too rude?”

“Since you put it that way, Madam, I will wait a little longer,” Samuel said, his expression softening slightly. He turned and left with his attendants.

Lorevil breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, the madam handled things smoothly. But why did Samuel want to dance with her? Wasn’t he the one pestering Madam Sharon?

“It’s because you’re dressed too brilliantly today,” Madam Sharon said playfully.

‘Is that really the reason?’

‘Talk about a stroke of bad luck,’ Lorevil thought as she looked helplessly at the surrounding nobles who were watching the drama.

Lorevil was worried about whether the events of the ball would reach Noxia’s ears.

Furthermore, the recent commotion had even caused Catherine, who had been silently drinking blood wine, to look over.

Catherine watched Lorevil and Madam Sharon, who seemed somewhat intimate, with a cold gaze before putting down her glass.

‘Since when… did Lorevil and the madam become so close?’

Catherine was puzzled and couldn’t help but wonder if the breakup was related to this.

Clearly, she was misjudging them.

Currently, Lorevil and the madam were merely in a cooperative relationship. Completing tasks and providing work was a normal transaction, not to mention it concerned their daily grades at Holy Blood Academy.

Lorevil instinctively looked toward the corner where she had seen Catherine earlier.

Catherine had already retracted her gaze and continued to deal with the nobles trying to strike up a conversation.

“What are you looking at?”

Madam Sharon noticed her distraction and followed her gaze.

“Actually, Samuel used to pursue Catherine as well, but she rejected him mercilessly. Their relationship has always been quite poor.”

Lorevil was startled by this.

‘This Samuel is a real scumbag.’ She had thought his persistent pestering of Madam Sharon was out of devotion, but it turned out he was just casting a wide net.

At that moment, the host’s voice rang through the hall, amplified by specialized Vampire magic.

“Distinguished guests, the ball has officially begun! Please enter the dance floor!”

“Let’s go, Madam Sharon,” Lorevil said, taking a deep breath and following her into the center of the dance floor.

***

With a dark expression, Samuel returned to a private suite.

He slammed the wine glass in his hand onto the ground.

*Smash!*

This was followed by a continuous series of crashing and shattering sounds.

A woman with tawny hair stood at the door. Hearing the commotion inside, a breathtaking smile curled onto her lips.

She pushed open the door.

“Samuel, you look quite pathetic.”

“That hateful, stupid woman Seraphina. This isn’t the first or second time she’s rejected me. Does she really think I wouldn’t dare touch her?” Samuel said furiously.

He didn’t believe for a second that Madam Sharon would let him dance with Lorevil just to please him.

“Crassus, you’re here to watch me make a fool of myself, aren’t you? I didn’t see you standing up for me just now.”

“How could I? I saw that Catherine came as well.”

Crassus stepped onto the broken glass with her high heels, her voice mocking.

“Catherine?”

Samuel was confused. He had long since forgotten about that boring, ice-cold woman.

Crassus massaged her forehead.

If she didn’t need Samuel’s status as cover, she really wouldn’t want to collaborate with this Vampire man if she could help it.

Crassus was a teacher at Holy Blood Academy, and the family backing her was naturally not weak.

However, she couldn’t compare to the massive influence of families like Catherine’s or Lorevil’s.

Still, the power she could mobilize was not to be underestimated.

“Samuel, haven’t you seen the situation clearly yet?”

“Madam Sharon and Lorevil are together. You can’t make a move on them anymore,” Crassus reminded him kindly. “However, Catherine came alone. You can target her.”

“I need a piece of Blood Jade from her body.”

“Blood Jade? What is that?”

“And what do you mean by that?” Samuel asked, perplexed.

“You don’t need to worry about what it is.”

Crassus took a small porcelain bottle from her handbag and placed it on the table.

“I have a drug that can make a Level 4 Vampire or below collapse while keeping their mind conscious.”

Crassus’s amber eyes stared at Samuel. “Once you take her body, she will never dare to expose you afterward.”

Samuel was stunned. He finally remembered who Catherine was.

“Catherine has a proud and lonely nature. She has no close friends in the academy, and she has long been estranged from her family. Even if she suffers a loss, she can only grit her teeth and swallow the humiliation,” Crassus added.

“After all, she would be the one losing face if word got out, and Holy Blood Academy would never allow such a scandal to affect its reputation.”