"?"
Raising one brow, Eleanor opened the metre-long box, uncovering a dozen pairs of half-framed glasses, an equal number of black studded earrings, and a new set of devices.
Three different phones, laptops, and tablets were inside, with two of each designated as backups for the primary devices.
Also arranged in the box was a government ID, a B-Rank Hunter ID, and a badge bearing an unfamiliar crest.
She recognised it as a noble's badge, usually inscribed with their family crest and bound to the owner by blood and magic, capable of lighting up only in the hands of its rightful bearer and commonly used as proof of noble identity.
However, this one was slightly different, modified for Title Holders rather than for those simply born into nobility.
"That's a lot. Thanks."
"You're welcome."
With that, the butler departed, and Eleanor carried the box into her room, setting it on a table before pricking her finger with a dagger and binding the badge to herself, thus unofficially accepting her new title as Baroness.
She left the rest of the items where they were and went to take a shower, slipping into a sleeveless satin nightwear shirt and shorts before hopping onto her bed and starting to sort through the remaining contents.
The glasses and earrings were inscribed with Recognition Inhibition magic, ensuring that while people could see her and register her facial features, they would find it difficult to recall her appearance the moment they looked away.
Furthermore, even when staring at her directly, their minds would fail to associate her face with the identity of 'Eleanor Crafiel'.
"I assume this doesn't work on Helga, right? Now that I think about it, what's her plan for today? I am supposed to be her attendant, after all."
With that thought, Eleanor hopped off her bed and moved toward the connecting door.
Just before opening it, however, she recalled how Helga had acted after their morning training, and a mischievous smile curved her lips as an idea came to her.
"Let's put her endurance to the test."
◇ ◇ ◇
Helga had just finished her shower, walking across her room while using a wireless hair-dryer on her hair, a towel wrapped around her body.
The moment her eyes landed on the bottles placed on her desk, she froze, a faint frown forming as she recalled how she had practically forced herself to finish their contents.
She had told the maids cleaning her room to fetch blood from other supplies instead of her main one, but nothing seemed to taste the same anymore.
'I only drank her blood once…'
Just as the thought crossed her mind, the connecting door to her room opened, and a now-familiar voice reached her ears.
"Hey, Helga. I wanted to ask about these glasses and your plans for the da—oh."
"!!"
Helga froze, her gaze snapping toward Eleanor, who stepped into her room dressed lightly, her frown deepening.
It wasn't because Eleanor had walked in while she was half-naked, nor because she had entered without permission.
Nor was it Eleanor's lightly dressed state, or the way the grey-eyed teen didn't bother hiding her gaze that seemed to be undressing Helga with her eyes, or her comment about them being 'both Ds' after glancing at Helga's chest and the underwear she was about to wear on her bed.
Taking a deep breath, she calmed herself and shut off the hair dryer as she asked.
"Why are you bleeding?"
Eleanor lifted her eyes to meet Helga's slightly glowing red eyes, suppressing the smirk threatening to form on her lips as she replied.
"I just got my new Title Badge, so I had to cut my finger to bond it with my blood."
She held up her index finger as she spoke, and Helga, spotting the line with her sharp vision, couldn't help but feel that the cut was a bit more than necessary.
The wound had been cleaned, but a small trail of blood still seeped out of it, and as Eleanor held up the finger and applied pressure with her middle finger behind it, more blood seeped out.
'She's doing this on purpose, isn't she?'
Helga already regarded Eleanor with suspicion, so she couldn't help but feel it was far too convenient that the reason she was suddenly struggling to drink the blood she had consumed for years without issue appeared right after she had forced herself to swallow the now-bland liquid, bringing with it, a sweet scent that filled her nose.
Eleanor lowered her hand, closed the distance, and tilted her head with an innocent expression as she asked,
"What's wrong?"
Helga instinctively stepped back, but since she was already standing in front of her bed, the back of her legs hit it, and for some reason, the balance that her superhuman body should have provided seemed to abandon her as she toppled backwards.
Before she could fall onto the mattress, Eleanor's right hand shot out and caught her by the waist.
"You okay?"
Eleanor looked at her with confusion, then met Helga's gaze, and a look of realisation crossed her face.
"Your eyes are redder than they were earlier. They're practically glowing."
"Can you back away for a bit?" Helga asked, raising her left hand to push Eleanor away.
The force behind Helga's hand wasn't strong enough to move Eleanor, so she remained perfectly still. Eleanor's eyes dropped to Helga's hand, and a faint smile curved her lips as she replied.
"I can back away, but I'm not sure you really want me to."
"Let go of me, Eleanor."
Helga's eyes narrowed, and Eleanor released her, though with Helga still off-balance, she ended up falling onto the soft mattress beneath her.
Almost immediately, just as she had done the day before, Eleanor straddled her and looped her arms around Helga's neck.
"I did say I'd let you have a sip when you wanted, didn't I?"
"Eleanor…"
The glow in Helga's eyes deepened, a hint of annoyance slipping into her tone, but even though Eleanor knew she was pressing the limits and risking truly angering her, she didn't stop.
"If I'm not mistaken, a certain person's blood tasted far sweeter, so now the usual doesn't quite satisfy you, does it?"
"You're overestimating yourself. Get off me," Helga retorted instantly.
"Myself? When did I say I was talking about myself?" Eleanor countered with a sheepish grin that made Helga's eyebrows twitch.
"Are you playing word games with me?"
"Yes, I am," Eleanor answered bluntly, seizing Helga's hands as they moved to push her away and redirecting them behind her back.
"Feel free to indulge yourself," Eleanor continued, and before Helga could wrestle her arms free, she leaned forward, resting her chin over Helga's left shoulder with her neck right before Helga's lips, while her left pinkie traced a fine line across her own skin, slicing it slightly with a small blade of magic formed around her nail.
Then, with her lips near Helga's ear, she whispered, "I'm all yours."
For a moment, there was silence, and before Eleanor could utter another word, a sharp pain lanced through her neck, drawing from her a sound caught between a gasp and a moan as Helga's fangs pierced into her skin.
'Mission…accomplished…'
She had succeeded in striking while the iron was still hot, before Helga could grow accustomed to her usual again.
But just as Eleanor was struggling to keep herself from letting out a moan at the electrifying sensation coursing through her, her vision suddenly spun, and before she could process what was happening, her back landed against a soft surface.
Blinking rapidly, she looked up only to be met with Helga's glowing, red eyes, the vampire's blonde hair falling loosely over the side of her face as she stared down at her.
Both of Eleanor's arms were now pinned against the bed by Helga's hands, holding her in place.
This was not part of Eleanor's plan.
Helga held her gaze, her grip tightening gradually from a simple hold to something close to a crushing force, as though she intended to break Eleanor's wrists.
She winced at the pain, and only then did Helga finally speak.
"Eleanor...don't tempt me."
"!"
Eleanor froze at those words, her breath catching as the two of them held each other's gaze in a silence heavy with tension.
Helga clearly understood what Eleanor had been trying to do, and she was naturally annoyed as no one enjoyed being manipulated.
Eleanor said nothing, keeping her silence, and the stillness stretched on until the tone of Helga's phone broke it.
Taking in a deep breath, Helga blinked, the glow in her eyes dimming as she released Eleanor's arms and stood up, turning away to walk toward her desk, where her phone rested.
As Helga lifted her phone and began reading the message, Eleanor remained sprawled across the bed, her hands slowly rubbing at her sore wrists while her unfocused gaze lingered on the ceiling.
The moment from just seconds ago kept looping through her mind without pause.
Then, unbidden, a single word slipped through her thoughts—
'Hot.'
She blinked in disbelief, realising what she had just thought, and in an instant her cheeks burned red as she shot upright.
Just then, Helga's voice rang out in her ears. "Go get dressed. We have places to be today."
Eleanor nodded silently, scrambled to her feet, and hurried into the other room, shutting the door behind her.
Pressing her back against it, she slid down slowly until she sat on the floor, her palms cupping her flushed cheeks.
'You must be going crazy, Eleanor. Crazy! Why the hell would you think that was hot?!'