Cursed Together With Mr. Vampire; I need to drink his blood!

18. Blood Flow

Triana.

As seen from the outside of the stained-glass divider, it separated a small room.

Once again, Triana glanced at Vlador, who still had his back on her. He probably wouldn't appreciate her exploring his treasure room. Since childhood, Triana had been taught not to inspect or enter places she didn't recognize because it could be dangerous for her. However, while her parents weren't there, she would break that rule just this once.

Triana's slender legs stepped into the room. There, she only found a large, wide black wardrobe facing a dark red bench.

Gulping, she approached one of the wardrobe doors and carefully opened it while holding her breath. The luck was with her because the wardrobe door didn't make any noise.

"Gowns?" Triana muttered before covering her mouth with her hand.

Three beautiful gowns hung inside the wardrobe. All were dark in color but adorned with glamour and intricate embroidery details.

Were they spoils of war or gowns belonging to Vlador's family? Or perhaps he once had a woman? Considering his charming face, it would be strange if he didn't have a woman.

Triana closed the wardrobe door. Since the room seemed like a dressing space that used to store clothes that had special meaning for the castle owner, she decided not to investigate further.

As Triana was about to leave, she noticed a large suspicious red curtain in the middle of the room's wall.

“I remember we descended stairs on the way here. This room should be underground. That curtain couldn't possibly cover a window," she murmured.

Then she approached the curtain. Perhaps she would find a painting of the owner of those gowns. It was impolite, but Triana couldn't deny that Vlador's mystery piqued her curiosity.

Holding the edge of the curtain, Triana carefully pulled it. Instead of a painting, she found her dress reflection. Her eyes widened as she realized it was a mirror. She froze with her hand still gripping the curtain's edge. It was the thing she had been desperately searching for all this time. It was the thing that allowed her to see what her cursed face looked like.

Pressing her lips together, Triana took a deep breath while closing her eyes tightly to gather courage. Nevertheless, she had to see her current face. She might be hysterical or faint, but it was better than not knowing at all.

Still with her eyes closed, Triana took two steps while pulling the curtain further. When she felt the curtain was open wide enough, she faced forward with a hammering heart.

Slowly, she peeked with one eye, only to widen both eyes a second later.

Touching her cheek, Triana furrowed her brow and muttered, "My face... hasn't changed."

"I thought you were afraid of monsters?"

Triana's eyes widened as Vlador's voice sounded right behind her head. Then she turned around, almost screaming, when she found a tall figure right in front of her face.

Triana's pupils shrank as she lifted her face, so her gaze met a pair of blazing golden irises staring sharply at her. Then her brow furrowed again. She turned back to look in the mirror and found herself standing alone in the room.

Triana turned back to the front and found Vlador still in the same place: in front of her.

"You... aren't in the mirror," Triana said, half murmuring.

"Now you should understand why there are no mirrors in my castle. We don't appear in mirrors like you humans do." Vlador explained before turning Triana's body to face the mirror again.

Staring into the mirror, Triana felt like she was dreaming. She only saw herself in there, as if there was no one behind her. But she could feel a hand touching her back and the presence of someone standing right behind her.

All this time, Triana had never come across information about vampires not being able to appear in mirrors, even though she had read many books and heard stories from the elders. But despite the surprising new fact about vampires, Triana was more shocked by the sight of her unchanged face. She still looked as beautiful as always.

Turning her body back, Triana looked at Vlador with squinting eyes. "Is that my real face, or does the mirror have magic?"

"It's just an ordinary mirror," Vlador answered.

"Then that means I'm not cursed to be ugly, am I?" Triana asked.

"No, you’re not," Vlador answered.

"Then why did you say I looked like a monster? You even called me Gosling!"

A smile formed on Vlador's face. Triana could hear a suppressed chuckle beneath it. Once again, dimples appeared on that pale face, and now they were even deeper.

Now Triana could conclude that out of all the handsome men she had ever met, Vlador ranked in the top twenty. But it was a shame for her to secretly rank men's handsomeness. Besides, she had to hear an explanation of why Vlador had deceived her.

Finding Vlador only continuing his chuckle, Triana's blood boiled. She coughed hard and said, "Excuse me, Mr. Vlador! I'm asking you, are you... Ah!"

Triana's sentence was cut off as Vlador suddenly spun her slender waist so she was facing the mirror again. Her breath caught as her body was embraced from behind, with Vlador’s hand wrapped around her waist and the other across her chest to grip her jaw.

"To preserve your beauty, you've ensnared me in a curse again. I suppose making you think that you were turned ugly was a small punishment you deserve for making my life difficult." Vlador whispered directly into Triana's ear.

Staring at the mirror, Triana found herself standing alone with a slightly tilted, stiff body. She could feel Vlador, but she couldn't see him.

"But.. but if I hadn't come to you then, you would still be hanging there. If I hadn't given you that potion, you wouldn't have escaped from that dungeon, would you?" Triana asked.

Of course, Triana didn't accept being blamed like that. Vlador kept speaking as if she had ruined his life. Yet his life was shattered in the first place. Triana's arrival only changed the form of the catastrophe that had befallen his life.

"Well, you're right," Vlador said. "Clearly, you're the one who freed me from that curse, but do you realize who you've freed? You've released a vampire who drinks human blood and eats human flesh to survive. You barely even know about vampires. And do you know the consequences of dealing with a demon descendant?"

Vlador's whispers sent shivers down Triana's spine. She swallowed hard and retorted, "You'll die if I die."

"I know," Vlador replied with a whisper that lingered, sending a warm breeze into Triana's ear.

With heavy breaths and a pounding heart, Triana's eyes widened as she watched her long hair move on its own, from her shoulders to her back. Then she saw the shoulder of her dress being pulled away from her shoulder.

"What are you doing?" Triana asked with a trembling voice.

"Do you know that every time you're frightened, your heart beats fast, pumping blood so vigorously that I can hear its whisper in my ear?" Vlador asked.