Reincarnated as the Vampire Princess' Familiar
Chapter 57 - 11 - The fight for our fate is about to begin!

Chapter 57: 11 - The fight for our fate is about to begin!

«Don’t say anything to Luke, please...»

Those were the only words that Ginevra managed to whisper in a broken, tearful voice, barely audible as she lay curled up on Gerard’s bed.

At this hour, everyone is in the mess hall eating, except for me and her—I just couldn’t leave her alone in this state, so disfigured she’s almost unrecognizable. Around her right eye, a deep purplish—almost black—bruise stands out; her lower lip is split and still bleeding, and her cheeks are slashed by long, deep scratches. I’m sure that having Luke by her side would calm her more than I ever could, but Ginevra—aware of the boy’s fiery temper—must have chosen to keep him in the dark, fearing he’d lash out at Countess Amelia Dulcar in a fit of rage and face disastrous consequences.

Thanks to Gerard’s complicity, Ginevra will spend the night here, hoping it’ll be enough to keep her hidden until Ayra’s victory. My mistress told me that the first thing she’ll do after defeating Countess Amelia—and thus gaining full rights over Ginevra’s life—will be to take her back to that miraculous beauty center and erase, once and for all, the cruelty inflicted by the countess.

Despite all these reassurances, the anxiety—or rather, the sheer terror—in Ginevra’s eyes, still brimming with tears like last night, shows no sign of fading. At the foot of the bed sits a plate with tonight’s dinner, completely untouched—she hasn’t even taken a single bite.

I don’t even want to imagine what Count and Countess Dulcar did to this girl to push her into such a deep state of trauma—the wounds in her soul are surely worse than the ones on her skin. Or maybe there’s something more? I’m convinced of it; I’ve sensed it in her odd behaviors, and in Luke’s too—he acts overly protective toward her, maybe too much so. It’s the kind of attitude that makes sense only if something happened to her before they arrived in Mildelar. Maybe, if I found out what, I could help her... but I doubt she’s in the mood to talk right now.

Her eyes are wide open, fixed on the wall beside her bed, and I don’t know how much longer I can keep my nervousness and anger in check—anger born from my helplessness in easing her pain, and from the memory of last night: Amelia yanking Ginevra by the hair and dragging her naked, battered body across the rocky terrain where Ayra and I were training, worsening her injuries even more.

Only two hours after the fall of the Maius Moon does Ginevra finally bend down to pick up her portion of food—hunger must have won over despair, or maybe, fortunately, the torment gripping her has lessened just enough for her to regain control of her body, until now frozen and curled up in a fetal position.

I’m glad to see that she’s finally showing some sign of improvement, even if it’s certainly not thanks to me. After a couple of failed attempts to start a conversation—receiving only silence in return—I figured that the only thing I could do was keep watch over her: to make sure that, in a moment of desperation, she wouldn’t do something reckless, and that no one—especially Luke—would cross the threshold of my room.

«Unfortunately, tonight’s dinner really sucks—it’s even worse than the lycan entrails in jelly from last night,» I remark in a light tone, trying to ease the heavy atmosphere. Tonight’s menu included the wings of those little demons that stormed the dormitory, fried in something that looked like tempura but tasted... well, better not even go there. I’m starting to think that, to cut food costs and recover reconstruction expenses, they’ve stocked up the corpses of that monstrous army to serve us. Disgusting. «Tomorrow I’ll ask Ayra to take you to the best restaurant in Noxscura. During the weeks I spent at the royal castle, I had the privilege of tasting real vampire cuisine—not the garbage they feed us here—and I can assure you, it rivals the best dishes of the human world.»

«I find it hard to believe that vampires like your mistress really exist...» Ginevra murmurs in a faint voice, with a barely noticeable smile. «She has no reason to care about me—no bond, no obligation. I’m neither her familiar nor part of House Valakys—yet tomorrow, she’ll fight in a Judicium Sanguinis to protect me. It sounds so absurd I’m almost afraid it’s just a dream.»

«As Amelia’s familiar—though luckily not for much longer—you’ll be allowed to attend the Judicium Sanguinis tomorrow too. You’ll be there, right?»

«And you’re seriously asking me?» Ginevra replies with a spark of renewed energy. «There’s no way I’m missing Ayra kicking that bitch’s ass!»

We both burst into laughter. A genuine, liberating laugh that, for a moment, chases away the pain etched onto her beautiful face.

«Speaking of bitches...» Ginevra mutters, frowning with clear annoyance. «That nun, Rossella... last night she basically asked you—without even trying to be subtle—to stick your hands between her boobs just to get that jelly cube. Not to mention all the cooing and weird noises she made while talking to you... you looked pretty eager to help her, didn’t you?»

«Actually, she did that with everyone, not just me...» I say, trying to defend myself—though I don’t know why I even bother. She’s not my girlfriend, after all, but now’s not the time to start some pointless argument. «And I’m sure she didn’t mean anything by it. That’s just how she is. After spending who knows how many years in a convent full of women, she’s acting with us the same way she did with the other nuns. Okay, yeah... put like that, it still sounds weird. But believe it or not, she’s actually still a virgin.»

«Virgin? Her?!» blurts out Ginevra—you’d never guess that just moments ago she could barely speak. I signal her to lower her voice—Luke might hear us, since his room isn’t far from mine—but she clearly isn’t in the mood to listen.

«If she’s a virgin, then I’m Taylor Swift!»

«I swear, she can even use a crazy powerful ability that counters this world’s magic—the Divine Light. According to her, it’s a gift from God granted only to virgins!» I insist, trying to convince her of... I don’t even know what, honestly.

«If you say so...» she murmurs, lowering her gaze. «But from now on, don’t sit near her anymore. Promise me that...?»

«Why?»

«Because... just because. It’s none of your business,» she replies, blushing slightly.

Actually, it kind of is... but whatever.

«There’s very little time left before the long-awaited Judicium Sanguinis, where Princess Ayra Valakys and Countess Amelia Dulcar will face off. The public is in a frenzy—we simply can’t wait any longer! It’s been over a hundred years since the last Judicium Sanguinis; most of those attending today weren’t even born back then. And who knows when the next one will be, so let’s savor every moment of this match that promises to be red-hot!»

The enthusiasm in the announcer’s amplified voice is truly contagious—so much so that even I find myself waiting for the start of the fight with anticipation. Not just to see Ginevra finally freed from that witch’s grip, but also because I’m genuinely curious and excited to witness a Judicium Sanguinis with my own eyes.

The arena where they’ll fight is nothing like the one used for familiar duels—it’s nearly ten times larger. That’s because battles between vampires are far more destructive and require much more space. But the main reason is the turnout: while the Blood Games are reserved for the nobility, the Judicium Sanguinis is open to everyone, and not even the lowest-ranked vampires would dare miss such a legendary event.

The royal family’s tribune is on a whole different level; unlike the simple canopy in the Blood Games arena, this one is more like a full-blown apartment, complete with balconies overlooking the battlefield and wide, comfy sofas instead of the usual stiff armchairs. I almost feel like a VIP. Unfortunately, Ginevra didn’t get permission to enter, so she’ll have to watch from the regular stands.

If I were a little less selfish, I probably would’ve stayed with her. But let’s be honest—when will I ever get another chance like this? And besides, once this fight is over, she’ll unofficially be part of the Valakys family. So it’s not the end of the world if she’s alone for a few seconds—the fight won’t last long anyway. Ayra’s going to crush Amelia in no time. Or at least that’s what I keep telling myself to feel less guilty about leaving her alone, even if just for a moment.

Even Daphne, Sasha, and Levreshka are here with me—or rather, I’m the one tagging along with them.

«Now they’re even letting humans into the royal section of the Judicium Sanguinis? What’s next? A human king and all of us as their slaves?!» Levreshka grumbles the moment she steps into the room.

I’m used to it by now...

«Don’t listen to her, Lyon,» says Daphne, shooting her little sister a deadly glare. «Sit here next to me,» she adds, patting the spot beside her on the couch. Levreshka sits at the opposite end, while Sasha is shamelessly sprawled across the middle—her left leg propped up on the backrest and her right leg stretched toward me, her foot nearly brushing my thigh. The pose ends up revealing even more than expected, considering she’s wearing an ultra-short red skirt... and no panties. This woman truly has no shame.

Instinctively, I scoot to the left just enough to get out of range of that pervert’s foot, ending up almost in Daphne’s lap—who, thankfully, doesn’t seem to mind at all. Good thing she’s here with me; otherwise, I doubt I’d survive those two.

The chants and cheers from the stands suddenly fall silent as the announcer’s voice returns, announcing the imminent entrance of the two contenders.

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