Chapter 128: A Mother’s Cruelty, A Villain’s Redemption

“And as for you, you will bear the ignominy of being human traitors, perishing without a proper burial!”

“You!”

Theresa was instantly rendered speechless by Lovelenica’s words. She glared fiercely at Lovelenica, who met her gaze unflinchingly, showing no weakness.

An eerie silence suddenly descended upon the hall. Both sides waited for the other to show weakness first, each convinced the other was the one afraid of exposure.

Theresa stared directly at Lovelenica, searching for a hint of timidity in her eyes, but found only a gaze as calm and unmoving as still water.

Meanwhile, Julie, still sprawled on the floor, trembled as she lifted her head, wiping away tears with her arm. Her vision, once blurry, slowly cleared.

The blood that had seeped from the corner of her lips now trickled into her mouth, leaving a faint, metallic taste.

She could scarcely believe that Lovelenica, of all people, was shielding her in this moment. A swirl of complex emotions churned within Julie.

Truth be told, on the journey back to the mansion just moments ago, Julie had been seething with resentment toward Lovelenica, convinced she had ruined her plans.

Yet, as the blows rained down, her hatred for Lovelenica lessened. It wasn’t that her dislike had vanished, but rather that her heart was consumed by fear and a profound sense of abandonment.

Her body throbbed with pain. More than resentment, what she had felt most acutely was the terror and hurt inflicted by Theresa. She simply hadn’t had the chance to direct her anger back at Lovelenica.

Now, with Lovelenica standing protectively before her, Julie was utterly bewildered by her intentions. She had incessantly provoked Lovelenica, even sending assassins after her student.

One would expect Lovelenica to relish Julie’s plight and punishment, yet here she was, shielding her.

****

The standoff between Theresa and Lovelenica continued. Theresa still found no crack in Lovelenica’s composure.

She even began to suspect that Lovelenica was the true madwoman, reckless enough to expose the Crimson Family’s secrets if pushed too far. Perhaps Theresa herself was merely putting on a facade.

Finally, Theresa faltered, her gaze unconsciously shifting away.

“Don’t… don’t you wish to avoid a complete rupture with the family? Am I not educating Julie now in accordance with Liliana’s orders, ensuring your identity remains concealed?”

Lovelenica let out a cold laugh. Observing Theresa’s wavering gaze, she knew she had gained the upper hand. Theresa was the one with more to lose.

The burdens they carried were indeed different. Theresa bore the fate of the entire family, while Lovelenica was alone in the world.

Moreover, Lovelenica genuinely believed she wouldn’t die. Even if Lucia possessed the Holy Fire capable of burning all, it couldn’t kill her yet.

If captured, she could simply wait for Liliana to personally come to her rescue.

“Your method of educating others is truly an eyesore, and is this truly how you follow Sister Liliana’s orders?”

Lovelenica ruthlessly exposed Theresa’s pretense, mocking her with chilling words.

“You’re simply venting your anger because you’re afraid of dying. What good does hitting Julie do for the current situation?

Instead of educating Julie, what you should be doing now is reining in your family’s businesses and private soldiers.”

Theresa’s face turned ashen, her chest heaving as she gasped for breath, seemingly trying to compose herself. After a long moment, Theresa finally spoke, her tone returning to its previous feigned calm.

“Miss Lovelenica is right. What you say is truly important, and I will attend to it immediately. This child, Julie, has truly gone too far this time, even sending someone to assassinate your student.

I’ll leave Julie’s education to you, after all, I only agreed to the fasting punishment because she pleaded with me. You must be tired after returning from the Lost City, so consider this your reward for today.”

“However, I also hope Miss Lovelenica will be mindful of propriety and not leave the child too weak.”

Theresa smiled sweetly as she uttered truly terrifying words. This was no mere hint; it was an explicit instruction for Lovelenica to feed on Julie’s blood.

What kind of mother would be so cruel to her own child? In reality, Theresa was still taking her anger out on Julie.

Since Lovelenica insisted on protecting Julie, Theresa would deliberately speak this way. She didn’t care if Lovelenica wouldn’t actually do anything to Julie.

Even if Lovelenica dared to drink her blood, she would never drain Julie completely or cripple her.

“Mother! Please… don’t say such things…”

Listening to Theresa’s utterly cold words, Julie’s heart shattered once more. Tears streamed uncontrollably from her eyes.

She never imagined her mother was serious, that she would actually hand her over to a Vampire, making her their food. Theresa had even pointedly stated as much.

She pleaded with Theresa to stop, but Theresa completely ignored the tears in her eyes.

“Julie, be a good girl and stay with Miss Lovelenica at home. I’ll go clean up the mess you’ve made. Be sure to listen to Miss Lovelenica, alright?”

“If you’re going, then go. Stop with the unnecessary chatter.”

Lovelenica urged Theresa impatiently. How could she not discern the sarcasm in Theresa’s words?

“Please enjoy yourself thoroughly, Miss Lovelenica.”

Theresa sneered, then exited through the mansion’s main door to arrange matters concerning her private soldiers and businesses.

“…What an utterly infuriating attitude.”

After Theresa left, only Julie and Lovelenica remained in the great hall. Lovelenica gazed towards the main entrance, muttering a curse under her breath at Theresa, then turned to look at Julie, who was still kneeling on the floor.

Julie seemed utterly lost, collapsed on the carpet, her body still trembling slightly. Tears rolled from her eyes, tracing paths down her cheeks, and dripping from her jawline onto her collar.

Her eyes were vacant, her face devoid of any expression. With disheveled hair, wrinkled clothes, and covered in dust, she no longer resembled a noblewoman.

Instead, she looked like some unfortunate girl who had fallen on hard times. By all accounts, Lovelenica should have felt a great sense of satisfaction seeing Julie treated this way.

However, looking at Julie in such a state, Lovelenica found herself unable to kick her while she was down. Julie’s lies during the assessment were exposed on the spot, earning her public scorn and forever branding her with shame.

Returning home, she received no comfort from her family; instead, she was beaten, cursed, and subjected to both physical and verbal abuse by her own mother.

Though all of this was Julie’s own doing, Lovelenica genuinely found it hard to be completely heartless. At the very least, she herself shouldn’t continue to torment Julie.

After a final glance at Julie, Lovelenica ascended the hall’s circular staircase, intending to return to her room to rest.

However, as she reached the second floor and looked down from the railing, she saw Julie still slumped motionlessly on the floor, lost in a daze.

“Hey, your mother’s gone, and I won’t bother you anymore. Go back to your room to rest, treat your wounds with magic, or have someone bandage them for you.”

Lovelenica called down to Julie from the second-floor railing, but Julie remained unresponsive, as if she hadn’t heard Lovelenica at all.

‘Has this girl been utterly broken by all this?’

It was understandable. Even in the modern world Lovelenica came from, if she were a student, suffering such a blow at school and being ostracized by everyone, she would surely question her own existence.

“Do you need me to call some servants for you? Hey, wake up?”

Seeing that Julie still didn’t react, Lovelenica felt a sudden reluctance to intervene further. After all, she could just have a few servants carry her back to her room.

But then she reconsidered. Those servants would likely be even more helpless seeing Julie like this. Perhaps this was an opportunity to take charge briefly, and at the same time, make things absolutely clear to her, ensuring she wouldn’t bother Lovelenica or Lucia again in the future.

Ultimately, Lovelenica decided to look after Julie. Her current state was genuinely difficult for Lovelenica to witness.

“Hey, I still prefer your old arrogant self. Theresa has already let you off the hook, hasn’t she? I’ll take you back to rest…”

Lovelenica descended from the second floor, speaking as she slowly walked towards Julie.

However, just as Lovelenica reached Julie, her words still hanging in the air, Julie instantly snapped out of her dazed state, lunging at Lovelenica like a ravenous tiger.

“What the hell!”

Lovelenica was startled. Even she hadn’t reacted in time. Because Julie had been in such a stupor, Lovelenica never expected her to suddenly attack.

Currently in her human form, her reaction time and dynamic vision weren’t as quick. Completely unprepared, she was knocked violently to the ground by Julie.

Julie had collided with Lovelenica’s abdomen, causing her stomach to churn. Julie’s arms locked tightly around Lovelenica.

She couldn’t believe Julie would seize this opportunity to attack her. ‘Is she trying to take her anger out on me?’

Lovelenica snorted inwardly. ‘Indeed, a leopard never changes its spots. I just spoke up for Julie, and now she dares to attack me.’

She suddenly recalled the brainless villains from other short dramas and novels before she transmigrated. No matter what the protagonist did, or how lenient they were, these villains would always blame all their misfortunes on the protagonist.

They would then continue to seek revenge, only to be repeatedly humiliated by the protagonist. ‘No wonder they’re villains,’ she thought. ‘Without these clowns, where would all the fun come from?’

Speaking of which, for Julie, a mere Third-tier Guardian Nun, to dare engage in hand-to-hand combat with a Fifth-tier Combat Nun like herself was truly overestimating her own abilities.

However, just as Lovelenica was about to exert force to break free from Julie’s grasp, she heard Julie say, her voice choked with sobs:

“Lovelenica… quickly… drink… my… blood… please…”

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