Bloody Mary/Story

I. Hunting

II. Craving Blood

III. Search

IV. Beginning

V. Bloody Mary

The castle is full of light, the ornate halls are boisterous, men and women elegantly dressed in their finest clothing step in time to the melodious music.

Dazzled by the opulent scene before me, a feeling of warmth fills me.

Partners swap around, but the body pressed against me is a constant heat.

As the dance reached its climax, the haughty young lady no longer refused my invitation and nestled her soft body against this gentleman’s chest.

“It’s a bit stuffy in here. How about we get some fresh air, somewhere where there are fewer people?”
My arms circled her slim waist as I bent down to whisper in her ear. She couldn’t wait to nod a promise to leave with me.

Old castles always have many hidden doors. I brought her to a stairwell where only servants passed, calling this adventure a sweet secret.
She thought I was taking her out on a date- she didn’t know I took her to be a sacrifice.

Every castle has hidden corners where the servants rarely pass, perfect for a secret rendezvous. The young lady, who also lives in the manor, did not object to the place I took her- until two manservants entered the room we were in.
“W-we--”

The lady is in my arms, skin bared in an intimate touch, our clothes messy and disheveled. She panics in an attempt to explain the situation, to have the servants keep it a secret.
She leaped out from my embrace and pleaded with wide eyes, hoping to save her reputation.

The warmth surrounding her dissipated as soon as she left, and the disgusting coldness surrounded me again. How annoying.

“You came in too early.”
“Sorry to bother you, Bloody Mary, the lady has become impatient.”
“The ball isn’t even over yet, is it so urgent? Well then, lead the way.”
“Yes.”
“What are you doing?! Let me go! Save--”

I watched the servants capture the struggling young woman and skillfully knock her out to bring her to the basement for the ceremony. Her lifeblood will be drained as a ritual sacrifice and poured into the bathtub for the royal bath so my lady, who is nearly forty, can keep her youth and beauty.

My mission is to seek out young women for my lady.
At the ball, in town, traveling…
No matter where I am, I will follow my orders and fulfill her wishes.
Except for one thing-- Personally killing for her.

My lady summoned me into the cold basement.
Only a few scarce candles illuminated the room smelling of blood and corruption.
In the center of the room are the bodies of three young girls tied up, their blood drained. The odor of dead bodies combined with the blood in the closed, cold space is disgusting.

For a long time afterward, the smell of blood recalled this uncomfortable memory.

Naturally, I don’t want to kill the girls I’ve deceived for her, or help her bathe.
Fortunately, there are others who can help her.

“As compensation for going against my orders, you bring those girls to me- Moreover, you enjoy their warmth don’t you, Bloody Mary?”

My lady pointed the fan in her hand towards my chest and smiled purposefully.

Yes, I enjoy it very much.
Somehow, when I was summoned, the only warmth I could feel was from humans.
Their warmth makes me fall in love.

But that’s it.

### II. Craving Blood

“Kill him, Bloody Mary.”
“Why?”

I took my eyes off the window and looked down at the crouched servant who had incurred my lady’s wrath.
Of course, I know why I have to kill him. The people who make mistakes have to take responsibility for them.
After the death of the count, no one could stand up to the countess who had inherited the family castle and all the assets. Disobeying an order meant “punishment”.

Only I had a bit of leeway with my status as a food soul.
However, right now, my master attendant seemed especially short of temper.

My lady did not seem surprised I would talk back but she became even more annoyed by my actions. She kicked aside the person clinging to her skirt for mercy and spoke in an enraged tone.

“Did you not hear me? He wasn’t watching the girl you captured today and let her commit suicide.”
“Isn’t that perfect?”
“She’s been dead for more than an hour. That blood can’t be used. If I can’t find a new girl now, I will use his blood to make up for it.”
“... Can someone else do it?”
“No one else. You are my food soul. I am commanding you, so what are you doing?!”

“Obeying your command.”

I began.

I drew near the footman and stabbed into his heart. Blood spurted out and my face and clothes were not spared. Although I did not touch his body, I felt the places where the blood had touched became unusually warm. My hands felt the burning heat in his chest.

“This feeling…”

I couldn’t feel the scorching heat any longer. His heart had stopped beating in my hands.
“Bloody Mary! Stop wasting that blood!”

The sharp voice of my lady woke me from my bewilderment. I met her gaze and in her sapphire eyes I saw myself, who had never felt so exhilarated.

“I understand, master attendant! This warmth-- I finally know!”

At one time, I couldn’t understand why my lady was so obsessed with human blood. The blood of the dead is so cold, can it really preserve her youth?

All along, I was as cold as a corpse. Only a human’s body can make me feel a short warmth. However, once people die, they become like me. Without a trace of heat.
This is one of the reasons I didn’t want to kill the servant. I didn’t want to see the warmth of the past disappear.

But now, I don’t care.

The moment his blood touched me, I felt from him the heat of the sun on my skin, warmer than any other contact.

I want only this warmth.

Since then, I no longer limit myself to hunting young women for my lady. I share their blood with her.
If one is not enough, then just bring another.

Unlike my lady, I don’t discriminate. I will also tempt strong men to get their blood if there is not enough.
Humans can’t compete with me at all, and when those men resist, their blood becomes even hotter!

As the days passed I couldn’t remember if I had killed dozens or hundreds of people.
My lady and I, with her power and my strength, we became convinced nothing could stop us.

Until the day another food soul appeared in my lady’s castle. Everything became like the wings of Icarus, destroyed in an instant.

### III. Search

My lady became known as a witch after death.
In their stories, the prince broke into the crisis-ridden castle to save the princess, who had been kidnapped by the witch. The witch is executed on the spot.
The heroic prince saved the princess and they lived happily ever after.

People always like this sort of naive, disgusting story.
The witch is always suffering.
The prince and princess are always glowing incarnations of goodness, without a single flaw.

After Master Attendant died, I left the castle.
No one dared to approach the place, once famous for the dances held there, after the stories got out.
I have no interest in a place devoid of humanity, only somewhere bustling with people suits my taste.

I immerse myself in the masses from one town to the next, rarely staying in the same place for long.
Not only has the death of Master Attendant taught me, I am also searching for the one. The one to make me feel warmth like I never have before.

Steak, who is a food soul like me, but curiously, he gives off more heat than anything I’ve encountered before.
It was a warmer, more burning temperature than any human I’ve seen. I couldn’t help but want to get closer and closer.

I want him! His heat, his blood… his everything!

The food soul called Red Wine is the one who murdered my lady.
Not only did he deceive and slaughter my master attendant, he’s also all over Steak.
——Unforgivable!

Out of hatred, I have been searching up information about Red Wine but he and Steak are like vapor, disappearing without a trace. I can’t find a single clue.
Therefore, I left a message in every town I traveled.

The legendary vampire aristocrat is an undead creature who feeds on blood.
The vampire is averse to the sun, acting only at night.
He has scarlet eyes and sharp teeth…

“If you see these features, please let me know!”
“My lady, how she died must have been… she must have been killed by that creature!”
“She is still so young, just like my lady...”
“I will get vengeance on your behalf as well!”

Human beings are always so gullible.

As long as you give a sad story, shed a few tears, it will be enough to have them overflowing with sympathy.

Those knowing someone who died will not refuse the help of others under the threat of legendary creatures, or even gods, that make them feel powerless.

After all, they will never know the real culprit behind the death of their loved ones and took away the deliciously warm blood was the “victim” who offered to help- me.

Collecting information this way is much easier than searching on my own.

Finally, I found them.

### IV. Beginning

I didn’t want to clash with them.

The food souls that travel with Steak is not just red wine, but also a girl named Gingerbread.
Alone against the three of them, I have no chance of winning.
I tried to draw Red Wine away from them but whether it was an arrow I secretly released or a hired thug to grab his attention, he was unmoved.
It’s as if he already understood my purpose, but was unwilling to give me a chance to realize it.

—— I was only a clown in his eyes, he disdained to respond to my provocation.

Unforgivable!
The food souls surrounding Steak are so complacent, yet they dare to look down on me!
I must destroy his reputation, make him taste the same despair as me!

Then, this soul that was born for me, will truly become my possession!

I haven’t returned to my lady’s castle in a long time. The place is much more run down than it used to be. Halls once lively with dance are now gloomy and cold.

A letter I sent out reached the hands of Steak, with enough information inside to have him guess it was handwritten by me.

Although I don’t want to be back at the castle again, I have to admit it is the place I know best. I can take advantage of every secret passageway, nook and cranny.

“Please… You must listen to me, Steak.”

Disguising is my specialty, and language my most powerful weapon. It’s easy to make people drop their guard.
I walked out from between the stone pillars, like the humans who had seen the death of their loved ones, as I tried to approach him.

“I’ve been looking for you for a long time. I know Red Wine is close to you, you’ve been tricked by him!”
“He deceived my lady and used the dances she held to find a sacrifice, to satisfy his desire for blood.”
“Those girls… And the many who die afterward. Their deaths are on his hands!”
“When you went through town, did you hear the rumors? Scarlet eyes, sharp teeth, aversion to the sun, eager for blood - they all speak of him!”
“Don’t fall for his lies anymore, you’ll become his next sacrifice —— a sacrifice of strength!”

Steak didn’t speak, but the look in his eyes made it clear he didn’t believe a thing I said.

By now I had closed the distance enough to paralyze him with my poisoned dagger but the attack failed to reach its intended target.
I reacted to Steak’s charge, quickly retreated to the wall and pulled a pre-prepared trigger. A fire roared to life between us, keeping him away.

Ah, what a stubborn guy. Why are you so partial to him?
Why would you rather believe in that nasty guy than to warm me?
Isn’t he just like me, with a greedy desire for blood?

“I can take care of all the people who bother you, for you, only for you!”

In the light of the flames, the entrance to the cold, dark passage slowly opens.
Before leaving, I look back at Steak one last time. Even through the hot fire, I can feel the heat radiating from his body.

This is just the beginning, Steak.

I will never give up.

### V. Bloody Mary

Bloody Mary is not a food soul born from blood, but whether it is through the cruel orders of his master attendant, or through his own wrongdoings, he has become inextricably tangled with these bloody deeds.

All warmth is short-lived.
The flame in the fireplace, the human body, even the blood that captured his obsessions, only warmed him for a short time.

Bloody Mary was displaced after the death of his master attendant.
Although he didn’t feel that way, he couldn’t go back to that void. He left only spiders spinning their webs in the corners of the castle.

On cold winter nights, the fire in his lodging had no effect on him. He could only endure the cold, waiting for someone braving the wind and frost to pass by, so he could warm himself with human blood.

It was this moment Bloody Mary reminisced on his first meeting with that fiery hot spirit.

Right in the middle of the dance floor, Bloody Mary with his carefully selected prey caught sight of Steak barging into the ball. At that moment he knew. He felt the heat from Steak, he knew that he could always warm him!

After meeting Steak, Bloody Mary who escaped from the castle was in no hurry to meet him again.
He is waiting, waiting for a better time when the rumors of Red Wine take root and grow.

However, this time, Bloody Mary’s plans did not go as expected. Instead, he encountered another food soul he would come to hate, that he couldn’t wait to escape.

The soul was dressed in the clothes of the clergy, and knocked on his door one drizzling afternoon.

“You’re Bloody Mary.”

In the most disrespectful door opening Bloody Mary had ever seen, the flatly straightforward tone was extremely unwelcome. It carried the sound of a judge delivering a sentence.

“Who are you?”
“I am a servant of God.”

Bloody Mary had not heard such a ridiculous statement in a long time. He leaned against the doorframe and laughed, one side of the nightgown loosely hanging from his shoulders falling to expose an arm.

“What have I doing wrong, Father?”

“Twenty years ago, you killed two girls in the town of Vita. When you returned there ten years later, you killed another two people.”
“Eight years ago, you killed at least one man in Parisel.”
……
“You attributed these deaths to the legend of a vampire, and intend to frame others.”

Bloody Mary listened to the man count the people he killed with a smile of interest and leaned back slightly.

“To have investigated me so deeply, are you maybe secretly in love with me, Father?”

The food soul, not expecting Bloody Mary to speak out like that, was flustered for a moment.
Bloody Mary took this moment to slam the door in his face and get ready to escape.

However, the other food soul wasn’t going to give him the opportunity. He kicked down the door and rushed straight to Bloody Mary, who had already opened a window and was about to jump out.

“Bloody Mary, on behalf of the Lord I will judge you here!”

Bloody Mary never looked back at the food soul chasing behind him, gritted his teeth, and ran off in the rain.

He never got Steak, never got that endless warmth, and never got Red Wine the punishment he deserved.

——He will never be judged by anyone!