What Balan did to him a couple of nights ago left a huge scar on Noi's heart, making the human boy lock himself in the honoured's personal chamber at the highest peak of the castle. The weeping boy is now sitting on top of the wide canopy bed while hugging his knees and hid his face in between them. He bet his doe-eyes must've swollen pretty badly as the pair feels so sore by just a slight graze, caused by his constant crying that creates a big wet patch on his thin nightgown. Noi's lean shoulders that are covered by the blankets also visibly trembling as his faint sobs softly filling the silence.

Fortunately, Balan somehow seems to not bother or care for him as the honoured never goes back into the chamber after the incident. Well, good! I don't want to see that pervert's annoying creepy face ever again!

Instead, Tao is the one who had been visiting to check on Noi's well-being all this time, leaving food in front of the door so the human boy won't starve himself. And of course, Noi as someone who likes to eat won't miss every delicious meal that Kevin had specially and carefully prepared for him. But before the young vampire leave, the latter often try to coax Noi to let him come into the room and console the weeping boy, which failed every time.

But tonight seems different as Tao is more persistent and has been knocking on the door relentlessly for more than 15 minutes, which is starting to annoy Noi a bit. The young vampire's gentle voice tries to coos him from the other side of the door, "Nong, please open the door. I know you've been eating regularly and finishing everything that we've prepared for but it won't be good for your well-being to keep on being inside that small room all the time,"

Small room? Really? This room is like 8 times bigger than Noi's room back in the city. What in the world is Tao talking about?

"...And the sheets really need to get replace, Noi. Your smell is already stuck to the fabric." Tao continues.

Excuse me?! "Fucking go away!! I don't want to talk or to see any of you!! All of you are awful!" Noi cries and mumbles his complaint about Tao being horrible to indirectly call him stinky.

Noi knows he hadn't showered for 2 consecutive nights but to call him stinky, that's just mean.

Noticing how hoarse Noi's voice makes Tao be worried, "Aw, N'Noi~ you didn't sound so good tonight. Are you okay? Open the door na~" He tries again as his voice gone softer, "If you don't, I might have to force my way in and you can't be mad about it."

But Noi doesn't want to listen and continue to hid his face between his knees as his hug tighten, in hopes that he'll be able to just disappear from this awful place. The memory of him being humiliated is still clearly imprinted on his mind, berating his worth as a human being. The non-consensual touching, the creepy baritone voice that chuckles near his ear, it's just too horrid but unforgettable, like a leech that hid in between the crease of his brain.

At the other side of the door, Tao has finally had enough and carry out his own previous statement, eventually force his way in by turning the doorknob and open it with a little force, making the small part of the frame to be chipped off and break into tiny pieces. The human boy, however, doesn't seem to care as the latter didn't let out any reaction to the gentle break-in Tao just did as he's just too upset right now.

"Aw~ N'Noi~" Tao coos as he puts down a tray filled with food at the coffee table on the seating area and goes to sit on the bed. Immediately, his eyes glow into a deep pink colour as Noi's smell infiltrates his nostril. Tao quickly pinches his nose to block the scent and tries to console the weeping boy, "Please stop crying na~ or your eyes will turn into raisins. Besides, P'In didn't mean no harm."

Noi raises his head, showing his swollen and red face and glare with his glistening doe-eyes, "Didn't mean it?! He humiliated me in front of those people!! He molested me and," the human boy sniffles and begins to cry again, producing fat tears that are cascading down his cheeks, "Take away my p-pri-de as a hu-man!!"

Tao gently coos the upset boy again as he softly caresses Noi's black hair in an attempt to soothe the latter, "Aw~ I'm sorry for what he had done to you, Nong." and bring Noi into his embrace, "Please understand that he just wanted to keep you safe by making the villagers familiarize with your scent-"

"What kind of sick reason is that?!" Noi interrupts with a yell and push the young vampire away, "So just because he wants me to stinking out the place, he's entitled to molest and humiliate me in front of those people?! Are you insane?!!" 

Tao blinks, "Well it's not like the villagers will dare to lay a finger on you anymore."

"They might not take my blood but they must've to think I'm cheap!!" Noi retorts as he continues, "I didn't want to be shown in that state!! But Balan!! He-" the human boy can't proceed to utter out his protest because of his cry.

"Trust me, the villagers won't think that way, Nong. All inside their heads are just blood and serving their master," Tao tries to reassure as he gently pats Noi's shoulder, "Lowest ranks of the undead like them don't have any libido so don't worry about it. Even I thought," The young vampire nods as he agreed with Balan's indecent action, "What P'In had done is much safer than to prick your hand and show it to them. They'll instantly try to kill you!"

"W-what?!" Noi sniffles as he's surprised by the information, "Does that information should make me feel better?! I was humiliated, Tao!!"

"Well," The young vampire shrugs lightly, "Doing intercourse in front of the others are normal for us higher rank vampires. It considers even more common for P'In and P'Elie's time as they had passed a decade where people blatantly have sex in public." Tao chuckles as he suddenly remembered a story from his much older vampire lover. 

Intending to share it, Tao leans closer and without minding whether Noi will be comfortable about the topic or not, starts to relay his memory into words, "This reminds me of that time P'Elie told me a story when both he and P'In joined a cult for fun. One of the rituals that they did were orgies. Whoa!" he exclaims as his hooded hazel eyes widen, "Imagine how wild is that! I bet..."

And throughout Tao babbling about the past times whereas people still joined cults and being dumb by engaged in ridiculous orgies and done it with more than one partner, Noi stopped his sobbing as he's just too shocked by the sudden information.

The human boy never thought that they are that... ancient. Normalizing intercourse to be done in public, which should consider being an intimate and private activity to be done with a couple who love each other in normal times? He can't even fathom how Tao can even joke about those indecent acts lightly.

How primitive are these supernatural beings?

"You've got to be kidding me," Noi mumbles in his still shocked state, "You mean having sex in front of others is considered normal here? How absurd and insane could you guys be?"

Tao stop his blabbering as he heard the human boy's mumble and make a comment, "Well I've told you before, Nong. The youngest vampire aside from me in this village is aged more than 700 years. Plus," the young vampire shrugs, "They are just lower ranks so they don't have any sexual desire left. All inside their minds are just blood and flesh. They're basically more dead than the higher ranks so you don't have to feel ashamed when they see your bare body because I assure you," he pouts and shakes his head, "They won't get turned on."

"So because they can't get horny, means you're appropriating Balan's act of molesting me?!" Noi's voice goes higher as he feels upset by Tao backing up the honoured's wrongful act, "Even though I'm not one of you, I still have a heart and dignity, Tao!! Anyone shouldn't be treated like that under any circumstances!!"

"You seems to forget that we're not human, Nong." The young vampire counters, "Human regulations and emotions don't apply to us."

The statement makes Noi scoff in disbelief as he feels that, his discontentment seems like being brushed off, that the worth of his heart is not precious enough to be considered. This makes him realizes more how foreign and different this place is, making it seems to be so unlivable for Noi.

No, he can't stay here anymore. He needs to get out as soon as he can.

"You guys," The human boy starts to sob once again for feeling upset, creating fat tears that continue to cascade down his reddening cheeks, "Are awful! I want to go home!"

"But you can't," Tao replies, "You'll be dead before you can take 3 steps outside the castle gate. Although," he tilts his head, "You should be glad that you won't be gangbanged to death."

Noi audibly gasps and cries harder as his slender hands grip the nightgown tighter for feeling frustrated by the situation, "Is that should make me feel better?! You're so mean, Tao!"

"Aw~" The young vampire frowns and blinks his glowing pink eyes, "Then how about this, why don't you have a talk with P'In regarding your concern? Ask him to..." he takes a pause as he feels his suggestion seems a little bit absurd in his own mind, "treat you better as a human pet."

The suggestion makes Noi's crying face frown, hearing how ridiculous and offending it is. But his crying turns into faint sobs the longer he keeps on pondering about it. And the sobs finally turns into sniffles as his mind comprehends what Tao had truly meant.