“You’d be scared, wouldn’t you?”
Lorevil turned her head and spoke with a serious expression.
“Scared?”
Looking into Lorevil’s sincere eyes, Mahina’s heart couldn’t help but flutter in a panic.
“A single job might not mean much to me. I don’t have to live in fear because my status as a Vampire grants me privileges. I don’t have to worry about food or shelter.”
“But for you, Mahina, this job is your hope for survival.”
Lorevil took Mahina’s small hand and spoke gently.
“You’d be afraid of having no work, of not being able to afford even a cheap apartment, and of ending up on the streets. You would toss and turn at night, overthinking everything. You would feel anxious and pained, and your mind would go to extreme places.”
“People need to do something to feel like they are truly alive.”
Lorevil thought of her grandparents from her previous life. Even in their 70s, they couldn’t feel at peace unless they were doing some kind of farm work.
“That’s why I decided yesterday to help you find a job as quickly as possible. I didn’t want you to feel uneasy or unhappy.”
Mahina was stunned.
After Lorevil had left the other day, she had been constanty worried. She had fallen into a spiral of self-doubt, feeling as though she couldn’t even handle the simplest workshop job. She had even begun to question if her life had any meaning.
But then Mahina would think of Lorevil, and she found herself wanting to see her again.
That desire was deeper than anything she had felt before.
Her mind was filled with Lorevil’s image. She had replayed every moment they spent together on the day she lost her job over and over again. It was only because of those memories that she had been able to drift into a sweet, peaceful dream the night before.
“Mahina, life is still beautiful. We don’t know what will happen tomorrow or what the future holds, so many things don’t need to have a grand meaning. You are already braver and more amazing than most people! You are already doing great.”
Lorevil’s voice remained tender.
“Mahina, you have to pull yourself together.”
Mahina’s tears finally escaped her control. They rolled down her cheeks and splashed onto the back of her hand.
—
Mahina’s childhood had turned gray on a rainy night when she was only 4 years old.
She remembered how heavy the rain was that day. Her father had gone into the mountains to dig for medicinal herbs to earn a little extra money. By the time her mother found him, he was already dead.
When her mother returned carrying his cold body, her face was a mask of despair, drenched in a mixture of rain and tears. At that time, Mahina didn’t understand what death meant; she only knew that her father would never open his eyes to smile at her again.
With her father gone, Mahina’s mother had to perform labor beyond what most people could imagine just to survive. The other villagers bullied and mocked the widow and her child.
In the beginning, her mother would still smile and say, “It’s okay, Mahina.”
But eventually, under the weight of mental torture, the smiles vanished from her mother’s face.
Not long after, her mother drank a bottle of unknown medicine in front of her father’s grave and died an agonizing death.
Mahina still remembered the last time she saw her mother.
By then, her mother was exhausted and haggard, a shell of the person she had been when her father was alive. She looked at the young Mahina with extreme reluctance, her tears having long since run dry.
Stroking Mahina’s hair, she had said, “Mahina, you have to live on. Be happy, be cheerful. You have to pull yourself together.”
Her mother’s final tear fell.
“Mahina, life is still beautiful… You are already braver and more amazing than most people! You are already doing great.”
Lorevil’s gentle words overlapped perfectly with her mother’s voice.
“Mahina, you have to pull yourself together.”
She missed her mother so much… She had struggled so hard to get this far.
‘Mother, I’m so tired.’
The memories caused Mahina’s eyes to burn. She sniffed, her face covered in tears.
“Yes… Thank you, Miss Lorevil.”
Mahina nodded vigorously, her voice thick with a sob.
“There, there. Don’t cry. You’re a grown-up now. You have an interview in a moment, and you wouldn’t want the shop owner to see you with watery eyes, would you?”
Lorevil hesitated for a moment before reaching out to pat Mahina’s head.
“If others see you, they’ll laugh and ask, ‘Lorevil, why are you bullying such a cute girl?'”
Hearing this, Mahina almost let out a stray sob, but she quickly raised her sleeve to wipe her face.
“That’s more like it.”
Watching her, Lorevil’s lips curled into a slight smile. She then asked, “Also, if a colleague bullies you, what will you do?”
“I’ll… I’ll endure it…”
Mahina subconsciously bit her lip and blurted out her usual response.
“Endure my ass! You’re the stupidest student I’ve ever taught,” Lorevil said, her tone carries a hint of frustrated disappointment.
“Resist. You give me some resistance. If your colleague curses at you, curse back. If they slap you once, you give them two slaps back. If anyone tries to stop you while you’re fighting, hit them too. Whether it’s a colleague, the manager, or anyone else — if they bully you, you bully them right back.”
Lorevil had read many reports about school bullying.
Every time she saw them, it broke her heart. Those perpetrators were barely human. One had to resist. If you couldn’t beat the whole group, you caught one and beat them down; otherwise, the more you showed fear, the more you would be bullied.
“But I’ll get fired if I do that…” Mahina said weakly.
Lorevil interrupted her.
“You have me behind you. If I can get you one job, I can find you many more if you get fired.”
Mahina’s life had been far too tragic. Lorevil’s small amount of concern was like a lifeline to her. In this state, Mahina’s mental health was clearly fragile.
Lorevil thought of the scissors she had seen earlier. Perhaps they were meant for suicide if Mahina couldn’t find a way to live on.
Lorevil had to help Mahina stand on her own feet. Once Mahina was stable, Lorevil would have the chance to suggest a breakup. She couldn’t stay by Mahina’s side forever.
“I understand.”
“I hope you really do understand what I’m saying,” Lorevil sighed.
Having asked Madam Sharon for this favor, Lorevil felt quite grateful to her.
Mahina turned her head to look at the scenery passing by the window.
Outside the carriage, the low-rise buildings of the apartment district were quickly left behind, replaced by increasingly refined and elegant architecture.
‘Tomorrow will be better…’
The thought suddenly popped into Mahina’s head. She stole a glance at Lorevil’s profile, and her lips curled into a faint, shallow curve.
Thirty minutes later, the carriage came to a stop in front of a cafe.
The wooden door frame was entwined with pale pink rose branches. Lorevil could see the spotless glass windows of the cafe, and she could make out quite a few customers inside.
The rich aroma of coffee drifted through the air, mingled with a light scent of milk.
“We’re here.”
Lorevil was the first to push the door open. She turned and reached out her hand to Mahina. “Come on, let’s go in.”
“Okay.”
Mahina placed her small hand in Lorevil’s.
The warmth of Lorevil’s palm made Mahina feel incredibly safe.