My Most Precious Human

"W-what?" A single word left my mouth, even though I heard Will's words loud and clear.

I could feel the blood running off my face, turning it pale while my furious heart kept pounding. Suddenly, I started to feel dizziness, nausea, and even my eyes hurt from the light, but I doubted that it was a vampire blood side-effect.

"Certainly, it's not like Sariel would ever manipulate your feelings..." Will laughed awkwardly, ineptly trying to assure me that his friend wouldn't abuse the fact that his blood was in my system. Some part of me tried to find some form of explanation that would keep me from feeling deceived, but how could I not feel that way?

"Will... How is it possible that the traces of Sariel's blood stayed in my body for four years? And now... Am I going to change somehow? I'm not turning into a vampire, am I?" I asked, hectically. Will sat closer to me and grabbed my hands.

"Of course, you are not turning into a vampire," he assured me, looking straight into my eyes, "What I can tell you is that vampire blood will be completely digested and out of your system in a few days tops, bu Sariel's traces within you is a completely different matter. I can only guess, but it seems like your blood had assimilated the essence of his blood. Only that could explain the weak scent that didn't faint for so long and the fact that you could use Sariel's ability," he pondered aloud.

"Then, what about now? Will this bond grow stronger? Will my emotions be clouded because of that?" I inquired feverishly.

"I... I cannot tell you that. The truth is, only Sariel can feel how strong the blood-bond is. It is similar to a bond between a newly-turned vampire and its maker." He shrugged, an awkward smile painted on his face.

"A master-servant relationship..." I mumbled under my breath.

I felt as if somebody had stabbed my heart multiple times. I didn't even know what I was supposed to feel at that moment. Pathetic - was one of the words that came to mind when I described the state of my heart. I became a mess inside, but my outside shell seemed expressionless. Perhaps it was because my own mind wasn't sure what kind of emotions should appear on my face.

"I will leave you alone. Get more rest. Someone will take you to the Duke's castle in a few hours," Will stated and then left me alone in the room.

I sat on the bed, covered with sheets. I took off the bandages. I looked at my fully recovered body. I was grateful to be alive. I appreciated the amazing gift I received, but a part of me wished to know the pros and cons before taking it. I hated being special. I hated the fact that once again, having a unique DNA could turn me into someone's slave.

I began recalling every situation involving Sariel from the moment he rescued me from the wolves and gave me blood. I remembered the night when I started running in an unknown direction and then found myself in the place of Sariel's accident. At that moment, I became certain that it was this essence of his blood that made me run to him.

Then I started questioning every single emotion I had ever felt for Sariel. Could I even differentiate whether my feelings were real or not? What if everything I felt for Sariel wasn't real? The confusion grew within me with every second. The truth was, I had never felt anything as intense as those feelings for Sariel. Developing such emotions seemed completely unlike me, including my irresistible desire to be bitten by him. It could only be rational to assume that what I felt was the blood bond's creation... There was yet another fact that made my heart ache. Sariel knew that I couldn't resist him, that I was vulnerable to him He knew that because he must have felt the bond and he used it. He used it to mess with me. He must have found it highly entertaining to see how the assimilated essence of his blood wrapped me around his little finger. The fact that I had no idea that I had acted against my will was sickening, and that had happened after I drank merely a few drops of his blood. What would happen after I drank almost half of the cup? Thinking that he could turn me into his puppet was terrifying. I would rather die than lose my free will.

I spent my "time to rest" lying motionless on the bed with my eyes open and my mind absolutely occupied with the what-ifs. I couldn't distinguish between logical thinking and paranoia. I needed to calm down, but the anxiety was taking over my mind every time I tried.

Three hours later, Mr. Gotha knocked on the door. For once, I was glad that it was him and not Sariel since I didn't know how to face him. Mr. Gotha brought me clothes and told me that he would wait for me outside the room. That was the first moment that I realized that I didn't even know where I was. The state of shock kept me inside this place that looked like a hospital room from the moment I woke up. Once I went out into the corridor, I found it familiar. It looked exactly like the bank corridors I walked every day. I silently followed Mr. Gotha to the elevator.

"Um... this might be a stupid question, but... where are we?" I asked with an awkward smile on my face.

"We're on level -5 in the bank's headquarters, at Master's private medical facility," he tossed while looking down on me.

"I see..." I mumbled.

"You seem to be fine..." A slight concern sounded in Mr. Gotha's voice.

"Yes." I smiled nervously, "All thanks to the Duke and Doctor Duarte."

"I'm only asking because Master seemed worried over his employee." That was what he claimed, but his eyes, cautiously examining my condition, proved otherwise. "Thank you." I gazed at him warmly.

He made a weird grimace in the form of a brief smile, then looked away. We went to the parking lot, and then he drove me to the castle himself.

"You will be assigned protection from tomorrow. Each time you enter the company, there will be two bodyguards to follow you wherever you go, Master's orders," Mr. Gotha conveyed while driving the car. "Thank you," I replied faintly.

My emotions were far too messed up to show more gratitude. Mr. Gotha seemed to notice that something was wrong with my mental state, although I was confident that he wouldn't comprehend any of my human anxieties.

"Master has left the castle to visit Lady Calvet. He will be gone for at least a few days," he suddenly informed me.

I smiled awkwardly. It was the first time that I was actually informed of Duke's whereabouts. My heart seemed to be conflicted about my reaction to the news. A part of me wanted to see him and confront him; the other part was terrified of meeting him now that I found out about the bond.

As soon as I opened the door of my chamber, I heard Martha, frantically running along the corridor while weeping. Thankfully, I managed to pull her into my room before she alarmed the whole castle with her feverish lamentation.

"I was s... so afraid... that you would die!" she cried out loud.

"How did you know that I was in danger?" I chuckled nervously, patting her head to calm her down.

"The Duke raised such an uproar that it was impossible not to know that something happened to you..." She sobbed.

I grabbed her hand and made her sit on the bed. It took some time before her swollen, tear-filled eyes looked at me clearly. "Now... Tell me exactly what you heard." I locked my eyes on her.

"Mr. Francois said that after the Duke had heard about some people verbally attacking you, he ordered the installation of additional cameras in the bank that only he and the CFO had access to. Apparently, when he came back to the castle yesterday and you weren't there, he decided to log into the bank's surveillance system to check up on you, and he found out that all the regular cameras were turned off for some reason. No one knew what he saw, but he became so furious that it took him a split of a second to jump into his new Bugatti, and then he drove away to the bank at full speed!" she told agitatedly. My heart's reaction was obvious. Hearing that Sariel rushed to my rescue like the knight I had long imagined him to be, woke up all the butterflies that could fit in my stomach. Certainly, clenching my fists in order to let my rationality surface didn't work. A faint smile appeared on my face, even though I strongly wanted to keep my face indifferent.

"You weren't hurt anywhere, right?! The Duke came on time, right?!" she called out hectically while looking me up and down.

"No... those bastards didn't even touch me." I lied, forcing a bright smile on my face.

"Thank goodness..." She sighed, but then glared at me suspiciously, "You're not lying to me just to keep me calm, are you?"

"No..." I laughed nervously. "Trust me, everything is fine."

I hated lying to her, but I couldn't tell her the truth either. The fewer people knew about Sariel giving me his blood, the better. It was something that probably even Mr. Gotha wasn't aware of. On the other hand, couldn't think of any other believable story that would explain how I managed to survive and remain scarless after my entire chest was ripped to shreds.

"This is so romantic!" Martha sang dreamily, "The Duke ran to save his chosen princess!"

"Please, get a hold of yourself!" My laughter turned into a hysteric one. "There is nothing between me and the Duke, and he certainly doesn't treat me like a princess! I am merely his employee..."

"Oh yeah?" She smirked. "I don't recall him running to save any other employee, and yet he always seemed to be your knight in a shining amour."

"Yes..." I smiled bitterly, "He certainly might be every girl's dream."