The Eclipsed Bloom
Chapter 105: Manipulation

Chapter 105: Chapter 105: Manipulation

"Who am I to you?"

"You are my love," I replied, my voice overflowing with warmth and devotion.

She nodded gently, her fingers slipping into mine.

"Yes... I am. Come with me, my love," she whispered.

I smiled and followed her willingly. But as we walked, my gaze fell on the cages again—on the broken, bleeding humans trapped inside.

A flicker of confusion broke through the haze.

"Love... why are there so many humans tied up like that?" I asked, my voice quiet, almost childlike in its curiosity.

Anahi stopped walking. Slowly, she turned to face me, her eyes shimmering as if she were about to cry.

"Would you scold me if I told you the truth?" she asked, her expression trembling with guilt.

Her voice shook with vulnerability. She looked so pitiful... so delicate.

Suddenly, a sharp pain twisted in my chest—as if someone had grabbed my heart and squeezed.

I gasped softly and shook my head, rushing forward to wrap my arms around her.

"No... I would never scold you," I whispered, my voice hoarse with emotion.

A strange, enchanting grin spread across her face—beautiful in a way that made my chest tighten.

"I knew you’d never scold me," she said sweetly. "Should I tell you the truth, then?"

I nodded, though something inside me twisted. Something felt off... but I couldn’t understand what.

Anahi leaned in again, her breath brushing my ear. Her voice was soft, almost like a lullaby.

"These humans are here, my love... because it is their fate to become dhampirs. I’m the one who will make them."

She pulled back, her eyes glinting like moonlight. "Should I make one for you?"

Her words echoed in my mind.

I stared at her, stunned. "Love... how can you do that? That’s... that’s wrong, isn’t it?"

But my words faltered as I saw her eyes begin to glisten.

Tears welled at the corners, slipping down her pale cheeks.

Seeing her tears... I don’t know why, but my heart clenched with unbearable sadness.

Without thinking, I cupped her cheeks gently and wiped her tears away with my thumb.

"Don’t cry," I whispered. "I wasn’t scolding you."

She suddenly stopped crying—and let out a soft giggle.

I blinked, confused.’Why... why did she start laughing all of a sudden?’

She leaned forward, eyes shining with strange excitement.

"Come with me," she said sweetly. "I’ll show you how to make dhampirs. Then you’ll help me, right?"

Her voice was like honey—poisoned and sweet. My mind hesitated, something deep inside resisting...

But when I looked into her eyes, that hesitation melted.

I can’t bear to stop her... I don’t want to see her cry again.

I nodded slowly.

"Yes, love."

Anahi’s POV:

A wicked grin curled across my lips as I watched her nod—so obediently, so beautifully mine.

I could feel it—my face flushing with delight, a delicious shiver running through me.

’Hehe... I knew it. No one can resist me for long. Even a marquis like her...’

As I walked ahead, I kept my steps gentle, my voice soft, my presence addictive.

’I just have to make sure she never realizes I’m controlling her. Not yet. Not until she’s completely mine.’

Zara POV:

Anahi stopped in front of one of the cages.

I followed her gaze, my eyes landing on the rusted bars and the walls around them—caked in moss and crawling with spiderwebs. The cage looked less like a prison and more like a pen meant for beasts.

Inside, a man hung unconscious.

His wrists were chained to the ceiling, his arms stretched above his head, his body suspended midair like a discarded puppet. Bruises and dried blood stained his bare skin.

I stared, my chest tightening.

I felt a hand on my shoulder, gently shaking me awake from my daze.

Turning my head, I saw Anahi looking at me with soft concern in her eyes.

"Love, don’t be sad," she said, her voice sweet and soothing. "This is for their own good. Once they become dhampirs, they’ll gain power—real power."

She turned her gaze toward the cage, her expression oddly tender as if she were speaking of something noble.

"These people... the ones in these cages... they’re murderers, outcasts, people who were running from their own kind. They were already lost."

She turned back to me, her eyes shimmering with conviction.

"I simply offered them a choice. I gave them a chance to be reborn. And they accepted it—without hesitation."

Her fingers brushed against the bars, almost lovingly.

"But there’s a catch," she continued, her tone turning casual. "I can’t marry all of them to turn them into dhampirs, you know? That method takes too long. So..."

She looked over her shoulder at me with a smile that sent a chill down my spine.

"I developed my own way. A better way."

My body trembled.

A flash—a picture—flared across my mind.

Me, standing in blood-soaked armor. Countless dhampirs lying dead around me. My sword dripping crimson.

Then... nothing.

The image vanished just as quickly as it came.

’Huh... what was that?’

I tried to hold onto it, to remember what I’d seen, but my mind came up blank. The only thing I could recall clearly now was Anahi’s face—soft, loving, full of concern.

I turned toward her just as she spoke again, her voice calm... almost warm.

"For this method to work," she said, "I have to break their will first."

Her tone didn’t change, even as she continued.

"And I couldn’t find a better way to do that... than torture."

She walked slowly past the cages, trailing her hand along the rusted bars, her smile never fading.

"All the people here? Their wills are already broken. All that’s left... is the final step."

She opened the cage door slowly, the rusty hinges groaning.

Then she looked back at me and gestured with a single, delicate finger.

"Come, my love."

I followed her inside.

The man was still hanging there, unconscious—or so I thought. But as I stepped closer, I noticed Anahi gently cupping his face, lifting it. His eyes were open now, but... empty. Dull. Hollow.

Anahi looked at me with a sweet smile.

"See?" she whispered, "They know nothing. Look at him... completely broken. Now, I’ll make him mine."

She leaned in, her fangs sliding down from her gums.

Without hesitation, she sank them into his neck.

My eyes narrowed, watching the way her throat moved—swallowing greedily. His body convulsed once, then began to change.

His skin darkened, turning ashen-black, and pulsing red lines started crawling across his flesh like living veins. His entire form seemed drained, like the blood had been pulled straight into his bones.

Suddenly, his eyes snapped open. A low, inhuman growl escaped his throat.

"Isfisjfsjofjsofos," he muttered—his voice twisted and unnatural, like static.

Anahi pulled away and licked the blood from her lips, then gently patted his head like he was a pet.

In a strange language I couldn’t understand, she whispered something to him:

"Sisjfijsijefiejo9tdlf."

The man bowed his head, turned around without another word, and walked out of the cage.

Within seconds... he vanished.

Now, it was just me and Anahi.

Alone. In the cage. Her smile slowly returned.

She walked closer, her steps soundless against the cold stone floor. I could feel her breath now—soft, warm, brushing against my skin. Her hand rose and settled on the side of my neck, fingers cool and deceptively gentle.

My heart pounded.

Her face tilted up toward mine, lips barely inches away.

Her eyes gleamed with that strange, beautiful madness.

I froze.

Her mouth came closer—closer—

I turned my head away, sharply, like instinct.

A silence followed, heavy as stone.

My pulse raced.

Something inside me twisted and burned, a flicker of... guilt? No. Fear? Maybe. But underneath it all, something more.

’W-Why am I feeling like this?’

’This isn’t right... something is clearly not right...’

Her hand stayed on my neck. I didn’t look at her.

I couldn’t.

It was as if my own body had betrayed her. As if my heart remembered something my mind couldn’t.

Anahi Pov:

When she turned her head away from me, something sharp snapped inside my chest—rage, betrayal, panic.

My smile didn’t falter... but inside, I was screaming.

No... no, no. She’s slipping. My beautiful toy is slipping from my grasp...

I clenched my fists, taking a slow breath to calm the fire burning in my veins.

It’s fine. She just needs a little... reminder. A little more pressure.After all, no one truly loves me—not without a little help.

Still smiling, I reached out and gently cupped her chin, forcing her to look at me.

"Are you... angry with me?" I asked sweetly. "Is it because I tortured them?"

Her eyes flickered—confusion, conflict, maybe even sorrow.

Perfect.

I brushed a lock of blood-matted hair behind her ear, lowering my voice into a whisper.

"You want to know why I do it?"

She didn’t answer—but she didn’t pull away.

Encouraged, I leaned closer, lips brushing the shell of her ear.

"The world only respects monsters," I whispered. "It devours the gentle. Breaks the kind. That’s the truth no one dares to say."

I pulled back just enough to see her eyes.

"So let me give you some advice..."

"Never soften your heart."

Her lips parted, as if something inside her wanted to argue—but the words didn’t come.

Finally... she nodded.

A slow, hesitant nod.

My smile returned—genuine this time, and full of wicked satisfaction.

Yes. She’s still mine.

I swallowed hard, then leaned in close once more.

"Then let me tell you everything..."