NAPE - 4

The room was soon filled with the sweet scent of blood. Bibi’s stomach, shriveled from hunger, churned madly. Saliva dripped from her mouth. Her self-control kept threatening to break. She wanted to rush over and drink it immediately, but she had to endure. For a hunting dog, patience was an essential quality.

“You’re hungry, aren’t you?”

Doyoon urged again, approaching and holding out the pack. Bibi growled lowly, baring her sharp fangs. At her unwavering wariness, Doyoon slightly raised his eyebrows and brought a large dish. He poured the blood into the dish in front of Bibi, then placed it on the floor and slid it over to her.

“Here. This way, we won’t have to touch each other.”

“…….”

Doyoon didn’t understand. What was important to Bibi now wasn’t physical contact, but whether or not she should drink it. Bibi squeezed her eyes shut. With all her heart, she wanted to rush over and greedily lick the dish clean, but she couldn’t.

Her master’s permission was absent. If she drank blood without permission, she would surely be whipped. Even if not right now, it would definitely happen someday. The trainer was omniscient. He could tell if a hunting dog was good or not.

With the dish of blood in the middle of the room, the two engaged in a strange silent battle of nerves. About an hour passed. Doyoon, who had been patiently waiting, stood up again. With an expression that showed he had reached his limit of patience, he raised his hand.

She was going to be hit.

Instantly, Bibi flinched, thinking he was going to strike her.

“I was just going to brush your hair back.”

Doyoon made a dumbfounded face and swept back the bangs that had fallen over her eyes. He let out a languid sigh and dipped his little finger into the dish. Bibi stared at Doyoon with wide eyes.

“Watch closely.”

Doyoon brought his blood-stained little finger straight to his mouth. Then, he pursed his red lips as if savoring the taste. A human drinking someone else’s blood. It could be sickening, but his expression was utterly nonchalant.

Only belatedly did his face come into clear view. Unlike the owners she had lived with so far, Doyoon had a peculiar, nationality-unknown aura, along with well-defined and delicate features.

His thick knuckles, Adam’s apple, and prominent nose bridge were very masculine, but his face shape, lips, and straight eyes made him a strikingly handsome man. It was a rare face, the kind you only occasionally saw on television.

“Why do you keep looking at me? The food is over there.”

Doyoon, realizing Bibi was admiring his face, took his finger out of his mouth.

“There’s no poison or anything. Eat.”

He nudged the dish with a soft thud, practically giving an order. He seemed to think Bibi wasn’t eating because the blood was poisoned. Bibi dejectedly lowered her head and tried to turn away. It seemed better not to look at it at all.

Suddenly, a strong force pulled her. Doyoon, his patience exhausted, had grabbed Bibi’s handcuffs and pulled her towards himself. It was a strong force that she couldn’t resist no matter how hard she tried to shake it off.

“Kyaak! Kyaak! Awoo!”

Bibi let out a high-pitched scream and leaped wildly. She tried to run, but her movements were limited by the handcuffs. Bibi’s body was very small, and she was weak from hunger. Doyoon aggressively swung his hand up.

She was going to be hit. This time, she was really going to be hit!

She squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for a harsh blow, but suddenly felt a sweet taste on the tip of her tongue. Doyoon had flicked the blood from his finger, which he had dipped in the dish, into Bibi’s open mouth.

“……!”

As a few drops of blood touched her lips, Bibi stopped thrashing. She widened her eyes and smacked her lips. Doyoon chuckled and tilted the dish towards her mouth. Before she could refuse, blood flowed into her mouth. Ah… it was a sweet and addictive taste.

The moment when hunger and appetite exploded simultaneously was not when she hadn’t eaten anything, but when she had tantalizingly tasted the food. The craving for blood surged madly. Now, she couldn’t resist even if she tried.

Despite being thoroughly trained with electric shocks and whips by the trainer, she couldn’t suppress her instincts. Having tasted the sweet blood in a state of extreme hunger, her mind went blank. Before she knew it, Bibi was lying down like a dog, greedily lapping up the blood in the dish.

Doyoon released the cuff chain and crouched down beside her, silently watching Bibi.

“You eat so… well… why did you… refuse?”

He was saying something to her, but she couldn’t understand him clearly. All Bibi was focused on now was the blood she tasted on her tongue and his face.

“You finished it all?”

Doyoon wore a rather pleased expression as he watched Bibi lick the bottom of the dish clean. Reason returned to Bibi, and she wiped her mouth and quickly backed away. Only belatedly did her pride get hurt. She had broken the hunting dog principles she had firmly adhered to, all for a bit of blood! Ah, if the trainer knew… he would surely wield the whip.

“Well, we have plenty of time.”

Saying he would be satisfied with this much for today, Doyoon retreated without hesitation.

Left alone, Bibi touched her full stomach and tilted her head in confusion. Kwon Doyoon. Why had that hunter fed her blood? He hadn’t poisoned it, and he really just wanted to fill her up? Why?

No matter how hard she racked her brain, a clear answer didn’t emerge. Having finally filled her belly after a long time, drowsiness washed over her. She bit her lip and tried to resist, but her eyelids grew incredibly heavy, just like when she had been hit with the tranquilizer dart. Bibi lay down on the floor.

This place was vastly different from the iron cage she had lived in until now. It was warm, spacious, and her back didn’t ache. There was no dirty, musty dust or filth; only a clean bed, blankets, and white wallpaper. The room even had a fresh scent.

Bibi turned her gaze to the rectangular window. She saw a clear, blue winter sky. White clouds and green trees radiated vibrant light.

The daytime scenery, which she had seen after so long, was truly peaceful. To reside in that peace was a wondrous and unfamiliar experience for Bibi. A sense of unease and doubt arose: was she allowed to just lie here like this?

She wished someone would explain this situation to her, but one of the owners had escaped, and the others were dead. Dead… turned to white bones. They wouldn’t regenerate, would they? Bibi unconsciously felt relieved.

Despite having broken the taboo and drunk blood, the trainer was nowhere to be seen. Did he not know about this situation?

No, that couldn’t be. The trainer in her memory was omniscient. Perhaps he was watching her from afar, testing her. To see if the hunting dog would continue to act as trained, or if she would submit to the hunter.

She couldn’t let her guard down. She had to look for an opportunity and escape from here. The blood… she had already drunk it, so there was nothing she could do about that now.

Finally, Bibi’s eyes closed completely. She slept soundly for the first time in her life for more than ten hours.

________________________________________

Whether animal or human, the one who gives food when you’re hungry is the best. Doyoon decided to use this to ease the vampire’s wariness. For fifteen days, every day at two in the afternoon, he headed to the small room in the villa with a blood pack in hand.

The first thing he saw upon opening the door was a pile of blankets heaped in the corner of the bed. Inside, the gaunt female vampire, as thin as if she were starving, was curled up.

“Hello.”

As he greeted her, the vampire straightened up and stared intently at Doyoon with eyes as red as the sun. When Doyoon held out the pack, she blinked several times, then snatched it and greedily tore open the bag, sucking down the blood.

It was a huge improvement that she was accepting what he gave her and drinking it. Just a few days ago, he had to force her mouth open and pour in a few drops for her to barely drink.

But that was it. If Doyoon spoke to her or tried to make unnecessary contact, she would become very sensitive and agitated, not allowing him to get close.

Doyoon stared at her with annoyed eyes. The bruises were gradually fading, and her gaunt cheeks were a little fuller than before… but the woman was too filthy. He couldn’t tell if it was rust from the cage or mud. He wished she would wash. At the very least, change out of that tattered rag she was wearing.

It was a relief that she didn’t defecate since she wasn’t ingesting solid food.

“So. What’s your name?”

Doyoon, looking at the vampire with cold eyes, crossed his arms nonchalantly and asked the same question as yesterday.

“Are you a pureblood?”

“…….”

As expected, there was no answer. The vampire just quietly looked up at Doyoon with large, round eyes while sucking on the empty blood pack.

At first glance, she had an innocent expression, but anyone who knew vampires well would be on guard. Her dilated pupils meant that the vampire was focused on the situation and ready to attack at any moment.

If Doyoon did anything out of the ordinary, she would surely let out her unique sharp cry and bare her fangs.

Another day of no proper conversation. Doyoon was slowly reaching his limit of patience. Did she even understand human speech? Maybe he had misheard her back then? She could just be a hybrid vampire with unusually good regenerative abilities. That high level of aggression could be a sign of a lack of reason.