Volume 1, Chapter 48 – Necrosis (Part 2)

Returning to the mansion, Yisi had the servants bring hot water and quickly dismissed them. Now, the two were alone in Camilla’s room.

Sitting on the bed in a daze, Camilla didn’t even notice the change in her surroundings.

She had disobeyed her sister’s orders.

Though she had long anticipated this day, she never imagined it would come so soon.

Even when her sister had shouted for her to stop at the last moment, she had still killed Assef in a fit of rage.

Disobeying orders meant losing her value, and losing her value meant being discarded—returning to those dark, homeless days on the streets. No, that wasn’t even the point anymore. What was worse was that she would be abandoned by her sister, something far more unbearable than simply having no orders to follow.

If the Camilla of the past had clung to a sliver of hope, killing Assef had utterly shattered it. She was certain now: she was no longer an obedient doll but a worthless, defective one controlled by her emotions.

What shook Camilla even more was that she had had the chance to push Yisi out of the way when Assef lunged at her, but her body had frozen in fear. This wasn’t just a matter of being defective—she was outright useless, unable to act when it mattered most, unable to even protect Yisi.

Like those torn scraps of paper, Camilla now felt only a deep, overwhelming helplessness, at the mercy of fate.

Until something warm and soft poked her cheek.

“Ah…”

Her vacant eyes finally regained focus as she stiffly turned her head.

There stood the vampire who always radiated forgiveness—her sister, the one she could never bear to leave.

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Barely holding back the tears threatening to spill, Camilla choked out an apology.

“…I’m sorry, Onee-sama.”

“About Assef? There’s nothing to apologize for.”

“But I… killed him.”

“Hmm—” Yisi visibly pondered, her expression thoughtful. Like a prisoner awaiting judgment, Camilla held her breath. This wasn’t her first time killing someone—she felt no regret or fear over the act itself. What tormented her was having disobeyed Yisi’s command. “…Since Assef attacked first, by this world’s laws, even if you hadn’t done it, he would’ve been executed anyway. So I won’t blame you.”

“But you told me to stop. I disobeyed your order.”

Desperately, Camilla pressed the point, but Yisi only sighed.

“I’ve told you before, haven’t I? I want Camilla to live freely, according to her own will. You don’t have to follow my orders—even if killing is something I can’t accept.”

Was this forgiveness? Or just consolation?

Camilla couldn’t decipher the emotions behind Yisi’s complicated expression. The only thing she was certain of was that Yisi wasn’t angry with her. But it was precisely this mercy that made it even harder for Camilla to accept—she couldn’t forgive herself for failing to push Yisi away when it mattered.

Yes, Assef was the root cause of what happened. But what did that make her, the one who had been too cowardly to protect Yisi? She wasn’t even fit to be called a doll, let alone a guard.

Perhaps she wouldn’t even need to wait for Yisi to cast her out. The shame alone might drive her to leave on her own.

She no longer had the right to stay by her sister’s side, to receive her forgiveness.

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Yet even so, she still longed for these moments to last just a little longer.

Clutching at the faintest sliver of hope, Camilla bit her lip and hesitantly asked,

“Will… killing Assef cause trouble for you?”

Yisi set the bloodstained towel back into the basin and looked up, her gaze drifting to the ceiling as if deep in thought.

“Trouble… If I said no, I’d be lying. Assef’s last words were cryptic—it seems he had some connection to demons. But even if he did, it must’ve been a weak one. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have been sent on a suicide mission like this. So don’t worry about it, Camilla.”

“Not too troublesome” doesn’t mean no trouble at all. In other words, she had still caused problems—become a burden.

Camilla’s heart sank. Like a drowning person grasping at straws, she fell silent for a long moment before making her final plea.

“Onee-sama… I want to become your familiar.”

“Familiar? I meant to ask yesterday—what exactly is familiar?”

“A familiar is your servant. A servant who will wither without your blood, an incarnation of darkness.”

“So Camilla would become a vampire who can’t walk in sunlight, bound to me for life?”

Precisely because I’d be bound to you for life, that’s why I want to become your familiar.

No—

Perhaps she no longer even had the right to ask for this.

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The memory of her earlier cowardice still weighed heavily on her. Camilla clenched her hands together, the suffocating pressure making it hard to breathe. She fell silent, unable to speak.

“If that’s the case, then I won’t let Camilla become my familiar. My goal is for you to live freely. Turning you into a familiar would go against that wish, wouldn’t it?”

Time passed in silence as Yisi gently wiped the grime from Camilla’s face. Camilla sat so still she might as well have been a statue—if not for the occasional blink, Yisi might have thought she’d fallen asleep.

Something was clearly wrong with Camilla, but Yisi had been waiting for her to voice it herself. That was why she hadn’t left yet.

The two remained wordless until the steaming water grew cold.

Maybe there won’t be any resolution today…

With one last glance at Camilla’s profile, Yisi wrung out the towel and headed for the door.

“I’ll head back now. If you have anything else to say, come find me.”

“Wait… Onee-sama…”

For some reason, Yisi thought Camilla’s voice sounded strained, as if uttering the words “Onee-sama” pained her.

“What is it?”

“I… am no longer a doll that obeys orders…”

“Is that all? Camilla acting on her own will instead of as a doll should be something to celebrate.”

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“…I can’t accept that.”

The truth was, precisely because she had changed—because she was no longer just a doll—she kept acting outside of orders, even outright defying them like today, causing trouble for Yisi.

“Is this really something worth agonizing over?”

“No…” Camilla’s expression suddenly turned desolate, as if she were making a life-or-death decision. “I want to leave. I’m no longer a doll that can carry out Onee-sama’s orders. A master has no need for a disobedient doll.”

Yisi froze. Setting down the basin, she turned back sharply.

“Why must Camilla fixate on being a doll? Even if I haven’t said it outright, hasn’t everything I’ve done made it clear? I want Camilla to become human—to have her own emotions.”

“That’s Onee-sama’s wish.” Though Camilla’s face showed clear conflict, her obsession with being a doll still overpowered Yisi’s words. As if afraid that staying any longer would make her regret her decision, Camilla began gathering her belongings. “If leaving is my own choice, Onee-sama won’t stop me… right?”

Just like before, Camilla didn’t fear death. Before deciding to leave, she had even considered ending her life. But just like before, she had been afraid—death meant never seeing Yisi again. If she simply left, there might still be a chance to meet again someday. She was terrified of the reality that she had changed, that she was no longer a doll and would only keep causing trouble for Yisi. Yet she still clung to the hope of seeing her again.

Only the rustling of clothes filled the silence.

After Camilla’s final words, Yisi found she had nothing left to say to stop her. It was true—she had emphasized countless times that Camilla was free to leave whenever she wished, that she wouldn’t hold her back. But now that it was actually happening, and in such a tragic way, she wasn’t as composed as she’d imagined she’d be.

It didn’t take long for Camilla to pack her meager belongings. She was ready to leave. Even at night, the holy knights guarding the mansion wouldn’t stop her.

The silence was suffocating until Camilla slung her bag over her shoulder. Only then did Yisi, who had been silently watching, finally speak.

“Are you really leaving?”