As he stood in front of a door, he read the nameplate before his eyes.
[Lilliana Roseblood]
He was currently standing in front of her dorm room.
Then he took a deep breath and…
Knock knock
"It's Soren."
– Come in, it's unlocked.
He put his hand on the handle and twisted it slightly.
Creak!
The first thing he saw was a large plant pot filled with roses right by the front door.
As the door opened wider, he quickly realised that it wasn't a one-off item either.
'They're everywhere.'
Given her personality and appearance, Soren had somewhat guessed that Lilliana enjoyed plants, but he never expected it to be at this level.
Everywhere he looked, there were either potted plants, vases or some other form of decoration, her whole dorm blooming as if it were a sanctuary.
Then she walked out.
Upon seeing her, Soren instinctively held his breath.
"Wow…"
Lilliana's usual outfit very much fit her strict mask she usually wore, but right now she was standing right in front of him in somewhat loose-fitting pyjamas that were a few sizes too large.
Seeing that sight, there was only one possible word to describe it.
"Adorable."
"Ah… uhm… Thank you." She fidgeted, ears twitching faintly.
"So, anyways, what did you want to see me about?" he asked quickly, trying to push away the strange thoughts creeping in.
"First come in and sit down, I'll get some tea."
He followed her directions and took a seat on the small sofa, waiting patiently for Lilliana to return.
Soon she walked in with two mugs and sat down directly next to Soren, not quite as close as Amelia, handing him one of the mugs.
"Thank you, Miss Rose."
He smiled and took a sip.
'It's sweet.'
Soren had noticed that she had recently been increasing the amount of sweet foods she included in his lunch whenever they ate together.
He looked at her questioningly, wondering when she had picked up on his sweet tooth.
She watched reactions, amused.
"It was obvious. Whenever I gave you anything sweet, your face would light up. You especially like anything with cherries in it, but you wrinkle your nose at strong smells. These are things you have to pick up on when you cook for others."
Soren rubbed his neck awkwardly, he had been caught so easily.
"Do you like sweet things, Miss Rose?"
Instead of responding, she handed him her mug with a grin.
He brought it to his mouth and sipped carefully before his face contorted in disgust.
"Ugh… Ew, What is that?"
"Ahahaha! Sorry, sorry, it's black coffee. I used to prefer sweets, but ever since enrolling at Stellaris, my tastes have shifted towards bitter things."
It was the first time he had ever seen Lilliana laugh; the sight warmed his heart so he couldn't help but smile.
"I'll keep that in mind then."
"Oh, does that mean I'll get to try Soren's cooking one day?"
"I can try if you'd like, but don't get your hopes up."
Soren was somewhat confident in his ability to cook as he had looked after himself and his roommate for such a long time in his previous world, though he wasn't sure if he could match Lilliana's abilities.
Clink
They chatted idly, mugs clinking, until at last Lilliana set hers down with a quiet clink.
The air changed immediately.
"Soren, are you sure you want to learn blood magic?"
He nodded in response.
"Do you know the risks involved?"
Another nod.
"Then can you promise to listen to me, no matter what?"
"I promise."
She softened at his quick reply.
"Then I'll teach you blood magic on the condition that you practice it in front of my eyes only."
"That's fine."
It was a condition he had expected, given how much Lilliana worried.
Plus, it wouldn't be a detriment to Soren's growth at all since he would only be able to practice blood magic a very limited amount anyway, thanks to the blood loss side effect.
But then her expression darkened.
"There's… also something I need to tell you first."
'Huh?'
This, however, was unexpected to Soren; he had thought they were going to end it there, talk a bit more and then maybe have a blood magic tutoring session, but instead Lilliana became more serious.
"What's that?"
"You figured out what I was, didn't you?"
'Ah…'
He froze.
He hadn't thought about it, but she was right.
He had been treating her dhampir heritage like common knowledge.
"I'm sorry," he admitted quietly.
She shook her head.
"No… I'm not angry. I just want you to listen."
He nodded.
"As you've figured out, I'm a dhampir. My mother, the Duchess of Bloodrose, is a vampire, and my father was a bear-beastkin."
He nodded, as this was knowledge he already knew, given that the head of the Bloodrose Duchy was a name that came up in the game.
"From the time I could walk, my older brother and I were taught about our lineage and how to be careful. As you know, across Ivansia, vampires aren't looked upon positively." Lilliana looked into Soren's eyes. "You're aware that vampires need blood, right?"
She didn't bother waiting for his response, as it was such common knowledge.
Her hand clenched in her lap.
"But did you know that to vampires, blood isn't just food? It's what enables their regeneration, what restores their mana… without blood, a vampire can barely live." Lilliana paused for a moment before continuing with a sorrowful expression. "When I was younger, my mother would train me and my brother…"
He patiently waited for her to continue, already guessing the direction Lilliana was going.
"...She would purposely starve us of blood, saying it was her way of building our tolerance…"
Her voice faltered, a thin tremor breaking through her mask.
"We would practice magic daily while being starved of blood. The only reason I survived for so long was because of my father…"
Her words trailed into silence, her small shoulders trembling.
If what she was saying was true, then during her childhood, both she and her brother had almost become ghouls on multiple occasions.
'That's…'
It was hard for Soren to put into words.
Ghouls are mindless vampires that have lost their sense of self due to severe bloodthirst, leaving them as empty husks that only know how to kill and feed.
And because of how shattered their minds were, a ghoul couldn't be turned back outside of very special circumstances.
He looked up at the girl in front of him.
Soren's fists clenched.
He understood now, her small stature, her frail body.
All of the pieces that he had once thought were simply cute, they were the scars of starvation.
"Are you okay?" he whispered, hating the weakness of the question.
Her lips curved into a faint smile.
"...Now I am. Since coming here, everything's changed. I learned magic I enjoy. I have work I like. I… don't have friends, but…" her eyes softened, "I have a student I treasure."
He watched as she poured her heart out.
"...I'm happy at the moment. I'm free from that house, I learned fun magic, I got a wonderful job, and although I was unable to make friends, I have a wonderful student."
The words twisted in his chest.
Before she could go on, he reached forward and wrapped her in his arms.
"H-Huh? Soren? W-What's going on?"
Her body was so small it seemed to vanish against his chest.
He patted her back gently, the same way she once had for him.
– If you ever need someone to talk to, I want you to know that I'm here.
"If you ever need someone to talk to, I want you to know that I'm here…"
Her body trembled.
"You've helped me so much in these past couple of months, so I want to return the favour. I know I'm only a student, so I may seem untrustworthy, but I will always be here…"
She clutched his shirt, her grip fierce as though she would fall apart without it.
"So please rely on me."
"I-Is that okay?"
"Of course it is, so promise me like I did for you."
She nodded her head.
"I promise, Soren."
"I-I tried so hard… I wanted to be strong, I wanted to endure… b-but it was so hard!"
Her voice cracked, breaking past the dam she had built for years.
Soren only held her tighter as tears soaked into his shirt.
"Waaahhh–! I thought if I smiled enough, if I worked hard enough, it would stop hurting… but it never stopped!"
He didn't speak, didn't try to reason, he just kept her close, letting her cry until her fragile body shook against him like a vase ready to break.
In that moment, he understood.
Lilliana wasn't just cute, wasn't just strong, wasn't just mysterious.
She was also breakable, and yet, despite everything, she was still here.
————「❤︎」————