Kneeling at Javier's feet in a gesture of absolute loyalty, she reached out, took Javier Li's palm, and kissed the back of his hand.
She offered her loyalty through this direct Rite of Fealty.
On the back of the hand kissed by Lady Dimitrescu,
the Family Crest unique to the Dimitrescu Family remained. This was no mere brand, but a contract—a covenant of loyalty.
Javier: "...Huh?"
The eldest daughter, Bela: "...∑(;°Д°)?"
The second daughter, Cassandra: "...(=?Д?=)?"
The third daughter, Daniela: "...(☉_☉)?"
Without a doubt,
faced with the situation before them, all four were stunned, unable to comprehend what had just happened!
Just moments ago, she was acting as if it were a matter of life and death, so why are they so close now? And Mother...
That is the crest of the Dimitrescu Family, representing a contract of absolute loyalty. Did you just sell us out along with yourself so flippantly?
What kind of magic does this wild man possess? Could the blood she just swallowed have been mixed with some sort of hallucinogenic obedience potion?!
But the truth was indeed as it appeared.
What made Lady Dimitrescu so eager to pledge her allegiance was the power of the Viral Blood.
With just one taste,
Lady Dimitrescu understood the significance of the Viral Blood. If this blood could turn her back into a normal human,
and allow her to survive without consuming blood while retaining her supernatural power, then the so-called Mother Miranda could be overthrown at will.
After all, she was ambitious.
Since Javier could restore her to normalcy, what difference did it make which master she served?
Lady Dimitrescu had only been loyal to Mother Miranda in the first place because of her power; now, she was simply switching to someone else.
"It seems the power of that Viral Blood has satisfied you beyond expectations, My Lady. In that case, all the better. I will be staying in the castle for a few days until Mother Miranda summons you to the church."
"Let us get along well from now on, Lady Dimitrescu. If the plan goes perfectly, the power of that Viral Blood might truly restore you to normal..."
Seeing the faint blood vessels appearing on Lady Dimitrescu's skin, the sharp-eyed Javier roughly understood what was happening and replied calmly.
The Blood Virus was even more potent than he had imagined.
It was actually causing signs of recovery in Lady Dimitrescu, who had already been infected by the e-mold.
This was truly incredible.
If she continued to drink the Blood Virus, it might actually be possible for a Vampire to become human again one day.
After all, the shriveled and vanished blood vessels were regrowing; slowly, Lady Dimitrescu's skin would regain the healthy color of a normal person.
This was a pleasant surprise, as even Javier hadn't known the Blood Virus could achieve this level of restoration.
At the same time,
Javier was also caught off guard by Lady Dimitrescu's decisive pledge of loyalty.
It was too decisive.
In just an instant, she had judged the situation to be in her favor.
Upon understanding the power of the Blood Virus, Lady Dimitrescu instantly realized that Mother Miranda was no longer worth her continued loyalty.
She turned around and joined Javier's camp—and not as a partner, but by dedicating herself as a servant.
Such decisive speed made Javier marvel at Lady Dimitrescu's intelligence; she was far more than the simple character in the game whose backside players swatted with flyswatters...
After all, the power Mother Miranda gave her was flawed.
Since Javier could help her fix those flaws, there was no need to analyze which side was superior.
Lady Dimitrescu chose Javier without hesitation. Once she was back to normal... why would she care about that old hag Miranda!
However,
though this display of loyalty was swift,
Lady Dimitrescu did not know
that the clever Javier had also set a trap for her. After all, this blood wasn't so easy to drink. There is a special connection between a Vampire and their Thralls.
That connection is blood.
A Vampire assimilates their chosen Thrall through the First Embrace. Once turned into a Vampire, that Thrall falls under the control of their Vampire master.
No matter where they are, they can be sensed, and it is difficult for a Thrall to resist the master's commands. This is caused by the assimilated blood within the body.
And now,
Lady Dimitrescu had drunk so much of Javier's blood
that her body would soon be filled almost entirely with Javier's own assimilated blood. Although Javier himself was not a Vampire,
his wife Lisa, who supported him, possessed Vampire abilities (for details, see the underworld spin-off chapter). Lisa had extracted Vampire blood for research and gained those abilities herself.
If Javier was considered Lisa's Thrall,
then Lady Dimitrescu was now their indirect Thrall.
In the future, if Lady Dimitrescu ever dared to betray them, she would suffer a backlash. So, this blood was not consumed without a price.
Since she chose to pledge loyalty,
it would never be as simple for Lady Dimitrescu to betray him as she had just betrayed Mother Miranda. Loyalty would mean loyalty for a lifetime!
"Yes, my great Father. I, Alcina, shall be forever loyal to you...!"
Upon hearing Javier's explanation,
Lady Dimitrescu, unaware of the Blood Virus's side effects, was secretly delighted. she quickly assumed an even more respectful expression and bowed.
But the sight of the 2.9-meter-tall Lady bowing to Javier was truly a bit bizarre.
In the end, Javier didn't bother with these details.
After finishing his meal, he turned and went to the second floor of the castle to prepare for sleep. His only thought now was waiting for when Ethan would enter the fray.
After all, only then
could he justifiedly head to Heisenberg's Iron Factory to negotiate.
As long as he persuaded the two Great Lords, Lady Dimitrescu and Heisenberg, the chances of successfully overthrowing Mother Miranda would increase.
After all, in the original timeline,
Mother Miranda was only defeated after Rose absorbed most of her power.
If a butterfly effect occurred and Mother Miranda's power was at its peak, what then? Javier had to prepare more contingencies!
"..."
Watching Javier's retreating back as he climbed the castle stairs,
Lady Dimitrescu didn't stop him. Instead, her face was full of emotion; this world was truly too marvelous.
A few minutes ago,
she thought Javier was just a bold, death-defying Merchant.
The probability of his attempt to overthrow Mother Miranda's rule was not very high; it could only be said he had courage. So, she had planned to see how long Javier could keep up his antics.
But now,
a single Blood Virus
was enough for Lady Dimitrescu to overturn all her previous dismissive thoughts. That confident posture of his wasn't an act;
it was the result of a long-premeditated plan.
Someone had set their sights on Mother Miranda's power.
Combining everything Javier had shown so far,
even if it was just the tip of the iceberg, Lady Dimitrescu already felt that Javier was an opponent on the same level as Mother Miranda.
Especially the power of that Blood Virus...
Lady Dimitrescu savored the memory.
She believed her decisive pledge of loyalty was perfectly correct. The Blood Virus was in Javier's hands, and she couldn't obtain it from anywhere else.
Therefore, she could only choose to serve.
Rather than being forced into service, taking the initiative to show loyalty would earn her more favor.
As long as she became human again while retaining her original power, then she, Alcina Dimitrescu, would no longer need to stay in this backwater, godforsaken village.
She could enter human society like a normal person,
to enjoy her long and beautiful life. This was Lady Dimitrescu's own ambition and desire.
After all, since the 1960s—
around 1950, when she debuted as a jazz singer—
she had been forced to return to this village land because of her porphyria, and she hadn't truly been in contact with the outside world since.
What Lady Dimitrescu wanted most wasn't power or wealth, but more time to enjoy life...!
Volume 10: Resident Evil Village, Revenge: Chapter 11 Vampire Maid
Nightfall—
Lying in a room in Castle Dimitrescu, Javier was boredly playing with an old-fashioned M1873 revolver.
He was looking forward to the meeting in a few days.
Calculating the time, if there were no major deviations,
Ethan would likely arrive in the village by tomorrow morning.
After all, knowing that Rose had already undergone the Crystallization Surgery, the time for Ethan's arrival was naturally not far off.
*Crackle crackle...*
At this moment,
a bonfire was burning in the room's fireplace. The room Lady Dimitrescu had arranged was quite nice.
It wasn't a servant's guest room; the various silk beddings were very smooth, clearly luxury items, and it had its own independent fireplace.
Even in this freezing weather, it wasn't too cold. Coupled with the firelight reflected from the fireplace, it presented a scene reminiscent of the Middle Ages.
This was surprisingly pleasant.
Living in this isolated village castle for a long time
truly made one feel as if they had stepped into the Middle Ages. Castles, bonfires, monster hunters, Vampires, werewolves—the elements were so similar to Western fantasy novels.
*Knock knock knock...*
"Mr. Javier, are you asleep?"
Just as Javier was staring blankly at the fire out of boredom,
a knock suddenly came from outside the door, and a slightly strained, gentle voice spoke softly.
Before Javier could even respond,
with a "clack," the door slowly opened.
Bela, the eldest of the three Vampire sisters, pushed a dining cart and slowly walked into Javier's room.
Clearly,
that strained voice just now belonged to Bela, Lady Dimitrescu's Vampire daughter.
But the most eye-catching thing
was her attire.
The black lace dress and veil had been removed, replaced by a black-and-white, slightly bulky maid outfit.