The days after returning home passed incredibly happily.
Every morning, Mary would knock on the door and enter the room, bringing hot water, drawing back the curtains, and collecting the clothes from the previous night. Then, Elena could go to the dining room for a sumptuous breakfast. The Campbell family also drank morning tea—a rather luxurious habit here—since boiling a pot of water took at least 45 minutes.
While Elena enjoyed breakfast, the maid would iron the freshly arrived newspapers nearby. The iron she used was like an iron box; adding a few pieces of coal inside made it heat up quickly. The handle was wooden, so it wouldn't burn her hand. In this era, the newspaper ink easily stained hands, making the print blurry, so ironing the paper to dry the ink was necessary to avoid dirtying fingers while reading.
Reading the latest newspapers every day had become a new habit Elena picked up at the club. Lady Campbell and her sister Janet, concerned about the situation with Frances, also checked the papers daily for any related reports.
Today's paper was the newest issue of The Strand Magazine.
The freshly ironed paper still emitted a slight warmth as Elena gently lifted the first page. A shocking headline immediately caught her attention, causing her brow to furrow.
The report described a rumor from a remote countryside village: the villagers guarding the graves had heard eerie chewing sounds from the tombs. They claimed to have seen a red-skinned monster sucking the blood of living people. Terrified villagers screamed loudly, eventually scaring the creature away. The article ended with a solemn warning to beware of such red-skinned monsters and to keep an eye on any new neighbors, as the monster might be hiding among them.
What utter alarmism!
At this time, newspaper reports still carried a certain credibility. Even Elena's own small fabricated stories could be believed. Such seemingly true news could easily incite public panic. Although she had now shed the most obvious vampire trait—the red skin—she could not remain unaffected. Not to mention, she certainly couldn't just watch Vera, Grace, and the occult club members Boulder and Regina be captured and killed.
What was the purpose of this report? Was it trying to use the power of the people to expose vampires hiding among them? Thinking of the club members in the countryside castle, Elena felt a strong wave of unease. The rumor also happened in the countryside—could the tribunal have uncovered some new clues?
Although her mind was in turmoil, Elena still tried to pretend she was calm. She sipped her tea and passed the paper to her mother, sneaking glances at her mother's and sister's expressions. They both seemed very frightened by the article.
Indeed, when Vera came to treat her, she wore a black veil, wrapped tightly. Elena herself had worn powder before appearing before her family, mainly to avoid frightening them. So her mother and sister did not know that the red-skinned monster in the paper might be her. Perhaps it was better that way—ignorance meant no slip-ups.
"Could this really be true?" her mother asked anxiously after finishing the paper. "It doesn't sound fake."
Elena hurriedly reassured her, "The Strand Magazine makes up all sorts of stories. Maybe it's just hearsay to grab attention. Besides, even if it's true, we're in Lunton, not some remote countryside."
"You're right," her mother nodded, folding the paper and setting it aside. "There are so many fake stories. I remember last time they said a murderer was hiding in a closet, coming out at night to kill people. Later the authors clarified it was made up."
Elena's hand stiffened as she held her teacup—didn't that story sound awfully familiar? It was one she had written herself!
Unexpectedly, the Strand's credibility had dropped partly because of her too!
Feeling guilty, she drank the rest of her tea and could only nod, agreeing with her mother.
After the reading time ended, the maid Mary brought two letters and handed them to Elena. She glanced at the envelopes' addresses and then went back to the study.
Local express delivery was indeed fast. The Duke had sent a cheerful letter congratulating her, then subtly mentioned that her luggage seemed to have been "forgotten" in the countryside. However, the topic suddenly shifted, and he began talking about music... Huh? Music? This sudden turn confused Elena.
The Duke wrote that after painting the portrait of the goddess of beauty, he had been troubled by music. He admitted he was not favored by Phoebus, the god of music, and had no musical talent. Fortunately, Phoebus was also skilled in archery. He felt lucky that in his youth, he had trained hard in archery for fox hunting. Although it hadn't helped much in fox hunting, perhaps Phoebus took pity on his flawless archery skills and granted him some favor.
This long passage about the Duke's longing for music and his hunting experience left Elena very puzzled. She muttered to herself, "Strange, what exactly does he mean by this letter?"
When she heard her own hoarse voice, she suddenly had an epiphany.
Indeed, the goddess of beauty could only change her appearance, but the voice belonged to another realm. Maybe the Duke was reminding her that to fix her voice, she must seek the help of the music god Phoebus.
Elena really knew little about music. If it were modern pop songs, she could handle them easily, but now she hadn't even stepped foot in an opera house or concert hall, and she had no idea what styles of music were popular. If it were complicated symphonies, then she was doomed. She could only play and practice, but composing was beyond her reach.
As for archery, it seemed out of her reach too. She didn't even know where a bow and arrow shop was. If the Duke hadn't been secretly watched, she might have been able to freeload his resources—the Duke's house probably had bows and a shooting range, right? But even if she could, archery wasn't something to learn quickly, let alone reach a level favored by the gods—it would take years.
Elena felt frustrated. She didn't want such a horrible voice—was there no shortcut?
The Duke's letter was long. He also mentioned that he had found several old houses with a dark history, which she had once asked him to look for. He included the addresses for her to choose from if she had time. Elena remembered that when the club was still around, before they moved to the countryside, she had planned to create a haunted house and wrote to the Duke asking him to keep an eye out. But with so many emergencies later, she had forgotten. She didn't expect the Duke to remember.
He had bought them all… so rich and indulgent.
Finally, the Duke said he roughly understood what Elena meant by "more private and direct communication" in her letter and would try to have the club members practice it but was not very optimistic.
After finishing the Duke's letter, Elena picked up the one from the editorial office. It was obviously a reminder to submit her manuscript. The Ladies' Monthly was about to print, but the author of "Helen" had been unreachable, making the editors very anxious. They finally got in touch with Elena and were urgently pressing her to submit the manuscript as soon as possible—even if only 500 words, it was better than nothing.
Alright, alright, she'd write now!
Elena stretched and put the letter aside, picking up her usual quill pen to ponder the plot after "The False Heiress."
According to her previous plan, Helen would stay at home, repeatedly tormented and heartbroken. When readers could no longer bear it, the misunderstanding would be resolved, and her family would suddenly wake up, full of regret. But today's Strand Magazine gave her a new idea.
If there could be a red-skinned blood-sucking monster, why not a pale-skinned, handsome vampire noble?
Elena quickly sketched an outline on paper. After enduring all kinds of unfair treatment, Helen felt deeply disappointed but still chose to endure out of familial attachment. Then, suddenly, a new trend swept through high society—a noble family from the Rhine attracted wide attention.
This Rhine family was, of course, the vampires. Their skin was pale as if they had never been exposed to the sun—which was true since they never appeared in sunlight. They drank the richest red wine, which resembled blood. The entire family was shrouded in a mist, mysterious and frightening.
This time, they came to find a wife for their youngest son—the male lead.
To outsiders, this family seemed so strange that rumors spread about their wives dying mysteriously. Naturally, families who loved their daughters avoided them, unwilling to marry their daughters into this family.
However, the Helen family was different. Helen had just returned home and was still distant from her biological parents. She was also constantly bullied and falsely accused by the false heiress, widening the gap with her family. Although her parents felt some guilt, they actively encouraged her to attend balls, hoping she could marry into the Rhine noble family to save their increasingly declining status.
In the end, Helen married in, and everyone discovered the noble family's immense power. The entire upper class was shocked. The false heiress became jealous and envious, causing friction with her fiancé. After learning of Helen's experiences, the male lead was naturally heartbroken, and Helen's parents had to humble themselves—turning a story of suffering into one of triumph and sweetness.
Well, she was a vampire after all. Writing another vampire novel was much easier than "Helen," which was already well-known.
After outlining the sequel, Elena began typing rapidly. She quickly finished the sections describing Helen's ongoing physical and mental torment, as well as high society's rumors about the Rhine noble family. She deliberately depicted the family as a den of demons, chilling readers. Then she carefully described Helen's biological parents' plans, making readers sense ominous foreshadowing.
Elena wrote until nearly dark, finally finishing this part. She packed up the manuscript, preparing to send it to the editorial office the next day.