Chapter 3

"Mia, that wolf actually survived you? She's more interesting than I thought."

Mia shot back, cold as ice. "Back off, Darkblood Count. Anyone who survives the 30th floor—I'm keeping her."

That vampire's crimson gaze darkened. The air snapped colder.

He narrowed his eyes, then flicked his hand.

Mia flew like a ragdoll, smashing into the balcony glass with a loud crack.

He sneered. "Growing bold, are you? And who granted you the right to speak to me in such a manner? You really think you're my daughter now?"

Watching him toss my adorable Mia like that? Yeah, no.

I jumped out of bed, full mama-bear mode. "So you're the jerk who bullied Mia! Time to catch these hands!"

I aimed a slap straight at his face—then froze mid-air.

And faceplanted. Hard.

That face...

Way too handsome.

Maybe it was the fall, maybe the adrenaline—either way, my nose started bleeding.

He stared, deadpan. From the look on his face, I could practically hear him thinking:

'Is this chick safe to eat? Or is she gonna kill my brain cells?'

I scrambled up, starry-eyed. "Babe, you're really handsome."

Chat Feed blew up:

[Girl. What?? That's DARKBLOOD COUNT. Rotting face. Shredded body. And she's calling him handsome?!]

[Final boss of Dark Citadel. Nobody's made it out alive.]

Everyone braced for the snap—neck style.

That was always how this ended.

But then... a faint blush bloomed on his bloodstained face.

Chat Feed:

[...Hold up. Is he BLUSHING?! That's creepy!]

[Wait. Why is this kinda adorable though?]

[ADORABLE? Are y'all blind too?!]

Darkblood Count stepped closer, voice low and sharp. "Open your eyes. You seriously think I'm handsome?"

I stroked my chin, eyes trailing down.

And the second I saw that sculpted chest and porcelain-white skin—boom. Nosebleed. Again.

"You're not just handsome."

His eyes darkened. Fangs slid out at the edge of his mouth.

"You're tall, hot, with crazy fair skin. You're like... dream guy overload."

I went all in—he blinked, totally thrown off.

Before he could snap out of it, I grabbed his collar, shoved him onto the bed, and cupped his face.

"If you weren't this good-looking, I would've slapped you by now."

His eyes went wide, stunned. That dazed, innocent look?

Yeah, I was living for it.

Thank god this game tracked fear, not heart rate. No way anyone could stay chill looking at that face.

While I was still admiring the view, Mia—fully reassembled—flew in and kicked his head into the ceiling.

Then she curled into my arms, sniffling. "Mommy, Mia hungry. Feed me."

My heart turned to mush. I hugged her. "Okay, baby. I got you."

Cooking was the one thing I actually had down.

They cleaned their plates like it was the best meal they'd had in years.

After dinner, I told them to do the dishes—and they actually did. No arguing, no drama.

I crashed on the couch, munching fruit and watching a horror flick when I heard them talking in the kitchen.

"She talks a lot, but honestly? Not bad. If she keeps cooking, might be worth keeping her."

"What about those two? If they show up tomorrow, won't they be pissed we didn't eat their stuff?"

"That slop? I'm 90 percent sure they're trying to poison us. They say one word—I'll end them."