The excitement in the ballroom started to build, with guests murmuring to each other in a hushed manner. On the other hand, Eve felt fear trickling down her spine. All this time, she had been careful never to have a single drop of her blood fall when in a crowd.?
She had felt something poke, but she had only believed it to be her feet behaving funny like it usually did. How long was she supposed to stay here before she could dash out of here, Eve asked herself.?
��Are you ready?�� Marceline asked the guests while the servants held the four sides of the wooden box. At her command, the four wooden slabs around the box were removed and silence filled the room.
Eve was ready to slip out of the room, but seeing the gift that Lady Marceline brought, her throat went dry and her face turned pale.?
Most of the guests stared at the yellow-tailed mermaid with awe. The mermaid was placed in a glass case, surrounded by half-filled water. The helpless and frightened mermaid moved to one side of the glass. The mermaid was too scared to say anything.?
��Oh my!�� Lady Annalise exclaimed in surprise. She took slow steps towards the glass case. ��Where did you find her?!�� She asked Marceline, unable to look away from the mermaid inside the glass case.?
Marceline was more than pleased to receive the reactions from Annalise and the guests. She replied, ��I had to put in a lot of effort to find the right person with connections before handing in a lump sum of gold. Finally after a lot of waiting, I was able to get my hands on this precious thing and brought it here.��
The guests�� mouths started to salivate at the thought of tasting the mermaid��s heavenly blood touching their tongues. Though the women and gentlemen behaved properly, their eyes looked at the mermaid hungrily.?
��I asked for a vial of the mermaid blood, but you brought a whole mermaid,�� Lady Annalise was in slight shock as she hadn��t expected a fantastic gift like this. The woman finally laughed in glee before turning to look at Marceline. ��I should have known, you always do your best, Marceline.��
��I wouldn��t give anything less to you as a gift, mother. I knew this would impress you the most,�� Marceline answered like a dutiful daughter in front of people.?
Lady Annalise stepped closer to Marceline and hugged. She kissed one side of her cheek, ��Your gift has more than just impressed me, dear.��
Eduard Moriarty was as impressed as his wife, as in recent years finding a mermaid wasn��t easy. Most of the mermaids lived far away and didn��t let themselves be captured by the people on the lands. He praised his daughter,?
��You have outdone me and the rest of the people in this room with your gift, Marceline. Finding a mermaid in such weather, you must have been looking for one for a very long time.��
Marceline sweetly smiled and bowed, ��I have, father. It wasn��t easy to get one, but alas, my dedication in looking for one didn��t stop and here we are.��
Eve stared at the mermaid with wide eyes like others, except that she was scared for the mermaid��s life, unlike the others in the room who wanted to sink their fangs and tear the mermaid apart. Seeing her kind in the glass case helpless, it squeezed her heart. She wanted to help the mermaid to escape from here.
But right now, it was impossible because if she tried something, she would be the second mermaid to be put on a display.?
Her hands turned into fists, and her eyebrows furrowed while she clenched her teeth in worry, not knowing what would happen to the mermaid.?
Maybe there wouldn��t have been anything to be terrified about if a mermaid was only kept in the glass case of water. But the creatures present in this room were ruthless.?
One of the female guests asked, ��Is the mermaid for a showcase? Or only a little blood of hers will be drawn out from her body every day?��?
Marceline turned to the woman and answered, ��That will purely depend on what my mother wants and pleases her. It is her gift after all.��
The young vampiress enjoyed the attention she received from everyone right now. She looked at some of the guests, who looked pitiful in her eyes as they didn��t have what she and her family owned.?
In the crowd, Eve stood at the back, trying hard to calm her breathing. When one of the guests stepped backwards, she moved backwards so the person wouldn��t collide with her. In an effort to move, it only made her condition worse. The glass piece now had moved further upward, sticking to the sole of her flesh.?
With the mermaid in front of Eve��s eyes, she didn��t realize that blood had started to drip in her shoe from her injured foot.
��I would like to see the mermaid closely. Bring her out,�� ordered Lady Annalise. ��A little bite to know how good the mermaid��s blood tastes.��
Hearing Lady Annalise��s words, Eve��s eyes snapped back to look at the front.
Soon two of the servants stepped forward and pulled out the struggling mermaid. She was placed on a table for everyone to see more clearly without the water surrounding her. The servants held the mermaid so that she wouldn��t move.?
Lady Annalise ordered, ��Someone get a knife and a glass for me,�� and soon, a servant came with it. But the lady didn��t take the knife, wanting the servant to cut it.?
��She looks young and tender. You wouldn��t mind if I have a scale or two from her, would you?�� One of the guests was bold enough to ask, as he couldn��t resist the sight of the mermaid. He wasn��t a vampire but a werewolf and his golden eyes glowed.?
As the man was an important person in high society, Lady Annalise agreed, ��Of course, two scales can be offered to you as a treat,�� she smiled.?
The man stepped forward, walking towards the mermaid and standing next to her. Lady Annalise turned to the servant who held the knife, but the werewolf waved his hand and said, ��That won��t be needed, milady.��
The man leaned forward, admiring the delicious delicacy of food placed in front of him. The mermaid tried to move away, but there was nowhere to go as her predators surrounded her. The werewolf��s hand shot near the mermaid��s tail, sliding his hand downwards before moving it upward.?
He then suddenly pushed one of the mermaid��s scales harshly, and the mermaid screamed in agony,
��AHHH!��
The mermaid��s scream echoed through the ballroom, and the creatures stood there unaffected. Instead, they enjoyed the sight of it, while Eve felt her heart ache for being unable to do anything. She wanted to reach out to the mermaid, and when she took two steps forward, the glass piece in her shoe reminded her not to.?
With every guest��s eyes concentrated on the mermaid on display, no one had seen the floor near where Eve stooda�| which had traces of her blood dripping from her shoe.?
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