The man looked Areum up and down. His eyes looked like they still couldn’t find any good reason to employ such a shabby looking girl. Seeing him gaze at her like a useless object, Areum shivered and tried to look as pitiable as possible. Doing so, she hoped that he recognized her earnest desire to stay by his side.

Areum sensed that if she could just get past this one crucial moment, things would work out somehow. If she were destined to die, he would have already done it when he dug his fangs into her. If not then, he could have done it when she got smart and he wrapped his hands around her neck. But he hadn’t, and she was still alive. In fact, she was still alive even after speaking her piece until she was out of breath. There was a glimmer of hope for her.

The man looked her straight in the eyes and ended up laughing.

“It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen a human wanting to stay with a monster enough to try so hard as you.”

Areum tried her best to disregard how upset his laughter made her feel. There couldn’t be a single person who wouldn’t feel humiliated after such obvious ridicule. Areum could figure out just what he was thinking then. Needless to say, it was something along the lines of her having no self-respect. She didn’t care if that’s how he thought of her, so long as it meant he kept her alive. She forced herself to smile. Seeing her do so, he laughed again. He spoke again.

“Do a turn for me.”

Do a turn? Before even processing what he said, she acted. She did a turn on her knees. Naturally, to keep her balance she placed her hands on the ground. God, this made her really feel like a dog.

A colorful assortment of emotions raced through her mind in the short time it took her to spin once and look at the room’s layout, full of eerie candles, then face the man again. Shame, degradation, rage… But Areum resolved to bury all those emotions. For they weren’t even the least bit helpful to her at the moment.

Her knees ached. That pain made the surreal situation feel much more real again. Areum didn’t think to bite her lip because she thought it could give him a bad impression if she did.

To be honest, doing a single turn for him wasn’t that bad. If this was all he wanted, there wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do if her “master” wanted her to. Compared to getting caned by her parents when they were angry with her or having to hold her arms up for hours, it could be something less shameful. Of course, the two cases couldn’t be treated as the same, but she forced herself to put her childhood memories and her current situation on the same level. She only had one goal: to stay alive. However abject it may be, she was at least going to survive the night.

All while successfully carrying out the man’s instructions, Areum maintained a smiling face. Any way you looked at it, it was a stiff, fake smile, but she hoped he would at least recognize the will she put into it. Once their eyes met again, the man gave his next command.

“Bark like a dog.”

Once again, Areum reacted automatically.

“Woof.”

“Haha, you really will do whatever I say, huh?”

The man’s pleasant laughter rang in her ears. Hearing it, she thought to herself, “Laugh more. More, more, and more. Be happy and satisfied. It was only a dog impersonation. I’ll play ball with him if that is what he wants.”

Areum had no intention of giving in to the man. Although she was obeying his orders and being treated like a dog, that didn’t mean that she was capitulating to him. She had an iron will and was shamelessly taking up his attempts to topple it. She was refusing to yield. His attempt to break her only made her stronger. She had a bizarre desire to win.

“If I told you to take off all your clothes here now, would you do it?”

Curiosity sparkled in the man’s eyes. Was he trying to provoke a sense of shame in her as a woman? Areum responded while untying the ribbon on her school uniform.

“I can do anything that my master desires of me.”

She undid a button of her shirt with a snap, revealing her blood-stained camisole. Once she had undone about four of her buttons, the man spoke again, but this now his face was devoid of pleasure.

“Quit. There’s no fun in looking at a naked kid anyway.”

Bastard. Areum kept the cuss to herself and redid her buttons. Though she was in shambles on the inside, she spoke to the man with a sparkling smile on her face.

“Would you like me to bark again?”

“Don’t get cute with me.”

“I’ll do tricks to keep you entertained. Just tell me what to do.”

“Has there ever been a human with as little self-respect as you?”

He stood up with a crooked smile on his face. He bent over Areum and patted her on the head a few times with his large hand. He didn’t forget to talk to her like she was a toddler.

“You’ll have to keep your promise.”

“Seems like that will keeps weighing on you,” Areum thought and said, “Yes, sir. I won’t speak a word about my blood to anyone.”

“And?”

“And?”

Areum asked back with a puzzled look on her face, but the man only continued to look down at her as if he were waiting for her response. Was there something else I promised? Areum’s mind raced until she realized it and laughed like an idiot.

“I will serve my master diligently. I will do anything my master wants of me.”

Seemingly satisfied with her response, the man stroked Areum’s hair. The sensation of being pet like a dog buried itself deep in her mind. Areum disregarded it and smiled blankly. As if she really enjoyed his touch.

The man left the stone chamber. Areum did not follow after him. He hadn’t told her to do so. All he did was glance back into the room once before taking his leave.

He left the door ajar. Areum stared into that opening into darkness. Once the afterimage of the man who had left the room disappeared from her retinas, she was struck by the delight of having survived.

Ah, I’ve survived!

Areum hugged herself and buried her head in her arms. She shed no tears. Nor did she even close her eyes. Vacantly staring beyond her bloodied skirt and stains, she reflected on all that had just happened. Soon, she began trembling out of a belated sense of humiliation that had accompanied her shuddering. I didn’t die. I barked like a hound. I survived this night. I undid my shirt with my own hands and acted as if I were about to offer my body to him. I must cling to my life beside this monster for days to come.

Was she so lucky to be alive? It was more than obvious what would happen to her going forward. Even after tonight all he needed was to say it and she would have to make animal sounds or strip her clothes off. Who knew if he would take pleasure in her humiliation and treat her like a plaything or raise her like a pet?

If, perhaps, she wasn’t lucky to have survived beside a vampire, did that mean that she would have been devoured to shreds? That she would have offered up her life had she not found her pride or cried so hard she could hardly speak? If she was alive, she could find some sort of way to make it out of this place. But if she were dead, there would have been no possibility left.

The more she thought everything over, the more that Areum Yun was burning with hatred. This unspecified hatred moved from the man to the slave owner, and then to God. It probably wouldn’t be long before she cursed having ever been born.

Luckily, Solenn’s timing was perfect and entered just as Areum was muttering her gratitude and resentment towards god at the same time. Something round and glowing appeared, and then Solenn carrying a candlestick came into view. She stopped precisely at the threshold bordering the stone chamber and the hallway, taking not a single step further.

Areum’s eyes were straining to see in the stone chamber, unhappy with what they saw before them. Seeing Solenn also proved uncomfortable for Areum. The image of Solenn being grabbed and bitten on the neck by the vampire glimmered in her mind. Even though the rosiness had disappeared from Solenn’s cheeks and she was back to the same cold expression she had shown when Areum first met her at the manor’s entrance, the image glimmering in her head would not easily be forgotten.

While Areum’s eyes darted around, unsure of where to place her gaze, Solenn let out a short sigh.

“Get up. We’ll have to get you washed up first.”

It was undoubtedly a begrudged remark. Areum had no idea why she was so sour. Once Areum had stood as she had been told to and smoothed out her skirt, Solenn began leading the way.

Leaving the light-filled stone chamber, they moved forward relying only on the light of the candle that Solenn held in her hand to illuminate the dark hallway. Turning around the curved passageway and entering the long corridor, Areum saw the intricately decorated glass walls that she hadn’t noticed when she had entered. The light of the candle reflected off the glass panel, also reflecting Solenn, who was looking forward with a straight face while walking, and Areum, who was studying the glass. The landscape stretching on the other side of the glass was not visible, for night had already fallen.

It was a sort of darkness that Areum wasn’t accustomed to, having been used to fluorescent lights. Not even moonlight illuminated the glass corridor, which seemed to stretch on forever. Nor were there lights intermittently spaced to light the way. The candle Solenn held while moving was their single source of light. Areum could hardly see a foot in front of her, but Solenn pressed forward with resolute strides.

Once they reached the end of the glass corridor, passed through a wide ballroom and walked through a narrow door in the wall, an even more closed off wooden hallway opened before them. It was drab, with no decorations. Areum followed Solenn through a few wooden doors, and once they passed through the final one, the smell of grass greeted her. They were outside. Walking in eerie silence, they passed a short, paved road and reached a squat building. It was a tiny annex made from wood.

The door opened with a creak. Areum entered and lit a lantern, revealing the stone floor and water pump, a wooden tub full of water, and another on its side as well as fabric hanging from the walls.

“Wash yourself.”

“Wait a second.”

Areum quickly called after Solenn, who was already on her way out the door. Solenn looked back. Areum noticed that her brow was slightly furrowed, as if holding in disgust. In any case, Areum pointed at the water pump and spoke again.

“I don’t know how to use this.”

Pumps were one of those obsolete old-timey things that Areum only knew from pictures—their rusted bodies, rounded handles, and protruding spouts. She knew that if she were to push up and down on the handle, water would come out—at least that was her guess. But the snippets of knowledge she had about priming pumping and wells swirled around in her mind and confused her, but more than anything, she had a great amount of dread about the object she’d never used before.

Solenn’s already twisted face furrowed even further, creating a deep crease between her brows. But without a word she poured the tub full of water into the pump and then began to pump it. Before long, water started to pour out of the spout. Areum rushed and placed the empty tub beneath it. Once the tub was somewhat filled with cold water, Solenn asked, “Got it?” As soon as Areum said “Yes,” Solenn left and closed the door.

Once she had taken off her tennis shoes, she stuffed the socks she had been wearing inside them. Then she calmly took off her clothing and hung them on a nail. She belatedly regretted not waiting to take off her clothes until after filling the tub when she stood in the chilly night air, pumping without any clothes on. Pumping was unexpectedly challenging work. The supple skin of her palms stung.

When she had filled three tubs with water, Areum began to shower by pouring the water over body. She quivered like a leaf in the icy water.

There was nothing that could make a person more anxious than taking a bath in the middle of the night, out in a faraway building, enclosed on all sides by wooden walls. She was nervous that someone else might come in. Every nerve in her body was on edge, listening for sounds coming from outside. Luckily, she couldn’t even hear the buzz of bugs. Besides the splashing sounds she was making herself, it really was perfectly silent. Thinking she should hurry and get this bath over with in the moment of silence, she quickly cleaned herself off.

She rubbed away the dust that had clung to her skin and rinsed off the bloodstains as well. She scrubbed away at the places that were especially grimy by wetting a piece of fabric she brought over from the wall. With another tub, she washed her hair. It had become so tangled and matted in places that it was difficult to pull apart. Nervously, she combed through it with her fingers. Areum scratched at her scalp as well, but since there was no shampoo, she had to make do by dunking it in water and taking it out a few times. She roughly washed her face as well.

When Areum stood up and was wringing out the water from her hair, a knock came at the door. Not thinking that anyone would have been out there, Areum flinched with a start. When the knock came again, she stammered, “Who… Who is it?”

“I’m coming in,” spoke a stern voice, and the door opened. Solenn entered, carrying a towel and clothes with her. Areum hunched forward and turned her body, and then looked over her shoulder.

“Thank you.”

Solenn handed her the towel first without a word. Though she called it a towel, it was really no more than a bit of rough fabric, but in any case, it seemed like it was used to wipe down one’s body. ‘Is she not going to leave?’ Areum took the towel with a sad face. Solenn stayed where she was. Once she had roughly wrung the moisture out of her hair and finally wiped off her body, Solenn handed her the rest of the clothes one by one.

While Areum was wrestling with the zipperless black work dress, Solenn finally spoke.

“What’s your name?”

This was the first normal thing that she had heard since coming to this place, Areum thought. At the same time, she worried about whether or not she should reveal her real name. All the names she had heard so far were strange like Millard Travis and Solenn. Nonsense strings of letters that would only make sense in some sort of fantasy novel. Did this mean she should create a similarly fantastical fake name for herself as well? But the only names that came to mind were things like Elizabeth, Rachel, Sophie, and Mary. Not only were they weird, they didn’t suit her either. In the end, Areum decided to tell Solenn her real name.

“Areum Yun. Areum is my first name, and Yun is my family name.”

Solenn exhibited not even the lightest reaction to what Areum said as she took the rough white apron from her. She merely watched as Areum awkwardly threaded her arms through the openings and twisted her waist in a weird way as she tied on the apron. She was definitely thinking about how strange of a name it was… Doing some guesswork and stomping around, Areum just managed to tie her waistband.

She felt her still damp hair making the area around her shoulders. As she stroked her hair, she stared at the towel hanging on the wall with a bit of confusion. Did she have to use that again? If she were at home, she would have definitely gotten out a clean towel. But she wasn’t home, and ultimately, she picked up the towel that had been hanging again. It was clear that there were no hairdryers here, so she had to get as much moisture out of her hair as she could with this wet towel.

While she was forcefully blotting her hair with the towel, a voice full of suspicion rang out.

“Are you a human?”

Areum looked at Solenn without lowering the towel from her hair. The two women stared directly at one another, without averting gazes. Areum felt that the question wasn’t normal this time. You wouldn’t ask a strawberry if it were really a strawberry or a cat if it were really a cat, after all.

Of course, there are times when people ask others if they are human. The question is used to condemn a malicious person when they’ve done something inhumane or broken a moral code, asking them if they truly are still human after all they have done. Areum, however, had done no such thing. In fact, it had only been two whole days since she found herself here at all, so she couldn’t have even done anything. All that she could say she had done in that time was to be locked up, dragged around, and put on her charm. Even those were what she did in order to survive, which are absolutely human things she judged herself. Yet she was being asked if she were human? How absurd.

Areum responded while shaking her hair out with her hands.

“Yes. I am a human.”

Solenn did not respond. However, her gaze was directed at Areum’s hair. That’s when Areum realized that her black hair had been the start of all her troubles. At the auction house, the color of her hair had been mentioned when claiming she was a vampire. All of a sudden, she recalled the man’s inky black hair—so dark it seemed to absorb every last strand of light in its vicinity.

When Areum felt her hair and thought that she had patted it mostly dry, she put the towel down. As she folded the towel in half, and then in quarters, she spoke.

“Where I come from, everyone’s hair is black.”

Of course, not everyone’s hair was completely black. There were those with lighter hues, even those with brownish or auburn hair as well. But generally, it’s okay to fib a bit when making a point. It wasn’t like they would have any way of verifying it anyway.

“Sounds like a strange place.”

Solenn voiced her thoughts for the first time.