When A Ghoul Falls In Love

She’s something.

Tamara, Duke Balthier Sanguine’s third wife, observes the human with a smirk on her face.

The girl can’t be underestimated.

Cyan leans closer to his mother. “Mother, is she brave or foolish? She destroyed Judith on the spot on her first day here while you couldn’t do it for hundreds of years.”

Tamara’s eyes turn cold. “Why are you here?”

“A mother should be glad to see her child.” Cyan tsks as he picks up the glass of wine. “But I have the best mother in the world.”

Drace snickers, lowering his head when his mother shoots him a glare. Why isn’t Siouxsie here? She is missing so much fun.

“Why is the food not here?” Cyan mutters under his breath.

“I wonder what’s taking them so long.” Drace looks towards the door. “We have a special guest here today.”

“Quiet!” Balthier Sanguine snaps at them. “If you are starving, get out of here.”

“Why did he call them for dinner if he wants them to leave?” Drace whispers to Cyan. When he notices his father scowling in his direction, he shrinks his shoulders, trying to hide from his father’s sight.

The atmosphere is stifling. But a certain man and a woman are unaffected.

With an air of indifference, Nell leans back. She’s highly aware of Eli’s hand that is slowly crawling between her thighs. She glances at Eli’s father who isn’t meeting her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she pinches Eli’s hand.

“Ow!” Eli pretends to be hurt, taking his hand away. “Wife, don’t pinch me that hard.”

“Asking for a beating,” She mutters under her breath. Eli’s stepmother number four is staring at her, unblinking. Nell is sure that she has seen that woman licking her lips. Stepmother number one is not a ghoul. Stepmother number two is sitting on the right. So, she can’t see her directly.

But the youngest stepmother and Belinda are watching her with sparkling eyes.

“You must be thirsty.” Eli pours her some wine. “Drink it. This wine is special. It nourishes the internal organs and the source.”

“Seems normal to me.” Nell takes a sip. It’s rather strong but smooth. The taste is sweet and tart with some spiciness. Somehow, she finds herself relaxing. Nell realizes that she’s been tensed since she came here and the ‘source’ that Eli mentioned must have been related to the feeling that she had when the Devil Cat drained her of something special.

“How is it?” He asks her with expectations in his eyes, completely forgetting that he’s not the host.

“I have had better,” She replies honestly, “though I can’t remember where.”

Strangely, her tongue remembers a certain taste after drinking this wine. That one also gave her a similar feeling, but she can’t remember when or where. It must have been inside her sealed memories. Nell doesn’t push the idea. In fact, it’s better if she doesn’t remember any time soon.

“Nobody makes better wines than the Fae.” Balthier Sanguine chimes in, “You must have a few Fae friends.”

The smile vanishes from Eli’s face. Why is his father asking about Fae? He says to his father, “It’s not her. I have a few Fae friends.”

So, there are ghouls, dwarfs, leprechauns, and whatnot. Nell creases her forehead, thinking hard. She realizes that she doesn’t know anything about the world of magic.

Balthier Sanguine chuckles. The corners of his eyes crinkle as he rests his elbow on the edge of the dinner table. “A human who smells like a Fae, but she doesn’t know about Faes Human, do you know that you are owned by a Fae?”

How did his father Eli fists his hands. “Father, she isn’t owned by a Fae.”

“I only belong to myself,” Nell adds, unperturbed by Balthier Sanguine’s remark.

Eli pinches his lips together. Does it mean that her heart will never belong to him?

“Eli wants to be with me.” Nell puts down the wine glass. “So, I am taking him under my protection. Don’t worry about my smell. We will have each other’s scent after we get married.”

Duke Balthier Sanguine has never met such a shameless human with a straight face. Nobody in the kingdom has ever spoken like that. On top of it, his son is watching this human with awe in his eyes.

Does this moron want to go at war with the Fae? To have such a strong smell even after coming to this world, the woman isn’t marked by a weak fae. It has to be someone from the royal family. Only they can have such strong marks.

His fourth son only knows how to give him a headache.

The awkward silence is broken by the entrance of the servants. They push the food trolly toward the dinner table.

Eli widens his eyes when he inhales the scent. He stands up abruptly and grabs Nell’s arm. “We can’t eat here. Let’s go back to the room.”

His father laughs when he sees Eli’s enraged face. What is this boy doing? It’s their nature. Everyone on the table is a ghoul. “Why? Are you scared that she will reject you after seeing what we eat?”

“Father, I thought that you would have some decency,” Eli utters through clenched jaws. “How could you do this? She’s still a guest.”

“She’s the woman who wants to marry a Sanguine,” Duke Balthier Sanguine scoffs as he scrutinizes Nell’s face, excepting to see fear or disgust. However, only a dull look awaits him.

Maybe she’s pretending to be calm. The Duke beckons the servant. “What are you doing? Serve the future wife of the fourth young master.”

“Nell.” Eli urges her, “Please get up. Let’s go out. I will take you to a nice place.”

“I don’t want to.” She jerks his hand off her. “Sit down. You should act spoilt when we are alone.”

A layer of sweat forms on his forehead when he sees the maid serving a raw heart to Nell. Eli doesn’t sit down. “Nell, just close your eyes. I will take you away.”