Chapter 356: Are You Trying To Seduce Someone?
"So Gaston failed, huh?"
"Yes, My Lord."
Eleanora was kneeling in front of the mirror that she used to communicate with her superior.
"Their plan wasn’t bad," commented one of the Executives of the underground organization. "But their luck was. Ambushing students during a Dungeon Outbreak? I’m surprised he lasted that long without using his teleportation crystal."
The Executive laughed a little. "I’m sure that fellow who sent nearly a third of his troops to this mission is currently cursing his bad luck."
Eleanora didn’t dare to look at the mirror, keeping her gaze on the floor while she knelt.
The contemptuous and mocking tone her superior used clearly implied his amusement toward the unexpected turn of events.
"How is Evangeline doing?" the Vampire Lord asked. "Is she enjoying her school life?"
"She’s doing well, My Lord," Eleanora replied. "It seems that she has even made some friends."
"Hah.... Friends?" the Vampire Lord smirked. "Are you sure they’re her friends, not mere blood banks?"
"No, Sir," Eleanora answered. "When she needs to feed, she just relies on blood pills to sustain herself."
"Absolutely disgusting." The Vampire Lord clicked his tongue in annoyance. "That one is rather stubborn. Just like her mother."
Eleanora stayed silent.
"Anyway, continue to monitor the academy and Evangeline. Do not make any unnecessary movements, and do not attempt to collaborate with the other factions that have infiltrated the academy.
"If they’re not stupid, they should be lying low right now. Also, did anything notable happen as of late? You seem a little depressed right now. Have you exposed your identity to others?"
"No, My Lord," Eleanora replied, doing her best to keep her voice steady. "I’m just tired because I haven’t had the chance to get some delicious blood."
"Hmm... that is indeed a problem." The Vampire Lord smiled. "I have heard of this amusing guy called Alex Stratos. Try to make him your subordinate. He seems useful."
Eleanora flinched, but managed to regain her composure right away.
"I’ll do my best, My Lord." Eleanora wanted to say that this was her original plan, but she’d made a blunder by trying to use Chuck as a pawn to pull Alex to her side.
She regretted that decision terribly, but she couldn’t possibly tell her superior that she was now under a magical contract that made the infamous troublemaker of Frieden Academy her second Master.
"Make sure to give me your weekly report. Don’t hesitate to contact me if something unexpected arises," the Vampire Lord ordered. "Keep a low profile and just focus on making Alex Stratos your subordinate."
"Yes, My Lord," Eleanora replied.
A moment later, the mirror hanging on the wall returned to normal.
Only then was Eleanora able to breathe a sigh of relief.
But that relief didn’t last for long, for she now faced a problem she didn’t know how to solve.
"What am I going to do?"
Now that her superior had given her an explicit command to make Alex her subordinate, she would soon need to show him some progress. But for that to happen, she would need to actually get close to Alex...
Unfortunately, Chuck had given her a firm order.
"Do not approach any of my club members, or I’ll make you regret it."
Eleanora’s hands were tied. She needed to find a way to bypass Chuck’s direct order so she could somehow manage to form connections with Alex.
Had she known that the young man in question wouldn’t dare to touch her even with a twelve-foot pole, she might have already flipped a table out of frustration.
’Calm down.’ Eleanora took a deep breath. ’Tonight is the farewell party for the delegations from the Solara and Faelarun Academies. I might be able to talk to Alex if he talks to me first.’
Since she wasn’t actively approaching any of the members of Endless Horizon, that wouldn’t be going against Chuck’s order, would it? She would simply be responding to someone who’d struck up a conversation with her first.
But how could she do that?
She’d been pretending to be a dull student who could kill a conversation within three lines.
If she dolled herself up a bit, she would be a stunner.
However, if she really did that, the effort she spent to keep a low profile all this time would be wasted.
After a brief internal struggle, Eleanora sighed before pinching the bridge of her nose.
In the end, she chose to remain the ugly duckling in Class A, whom the other noble students bullied.
Suddenly, someone knocked on her door, breaking her out of her thoughts.
"Who is it?" Eleanora asked.
"It’s me, Eva," Evangeline replied.
Eleanora didn’t hesitate to open the door, but she also closed it as soon as Evangeline entered her room.
"Why did you come to find me?" Eleanora asked.
Instead of answering her, Evangeline asked, "Are you going to the grand ball tonight?"
"Yes," Eleanora answered.
"I’m not good with fashion, and I don’t have any fancy clothes with me," Evangeline continued. "Can I borrow some of your clothes?"
The two ladies had similar figures, so Eleanora’s clothes would fit Evangeline just fine.
Eleanora would be glad to lend her Young Mistress her clothes. However, she now desperately wanted to know why her Young Mistress, who didn’t usually dress up, wished to wear something pretty for tonight’s Grand Ball!
"Are you trying to seduce someone?" Eleanora, who was depressed a minute ago, suddenly perked up.
"No," Evangeline replied, but that didn’t matter because Eleanora heard a very loud "Yes."
"So it’s because of a boy, huh?" The corners of Eleanora’s lips curled up. "My Mistress is finally acting like her age."
"... I shouldn’t have come here." Evangeline stood up and headed to the door, but Eleanora was quick to grab her hand and hold her in place.
"Okay, I won’t say anything." Eleanora smirked. "If you want to dress up, you’ve come to the right place. I’ll make you look so stunning, you will steal the spotlight at tonight’s ball."
Evangeline didn’t know if Eleanora was joking or not.
The way the Second Year looked at her made her feel like she was a dress-up doll. Evangeline really wanted to flee, but if she hoped to shine during the party everyone was looking forward to, who else could she trust but a fashionista like Eleanora?