The World Is Mine For The Taking

Chapter 1319: Epilogue 24 - The Virgin Queen And The Mad Woman (5)

I twisted my arm away just in time, her fangs snapping shut inches from my skin with a sharp click that echoed faintly in the air. The force behind her bite wasn’t small either. If that had landed, it would have torn straight through without much resistance. Before she could recover, I drove my knee upward with as much precision as I could manage, slamming it right into her chin.

"Guaaaahhh!"

The impact traveled cleanly. I could feel it through my leg, that solid, satisfying hit that told me I didn’t miss. Her body lifted slightly off the ground, just a few centimeters, but enough to break her balance completely. She flipped backward midair in a messy, uncontrolled motion, like her body reacted before her mind could catch up.

She landed, skidding a little, then steadied herself.

I kept my eyes on her the whole time.

When she looked back at me, something had changed. It was subtle, but it was there. Her eyes weren’t exactly the same anymore. The wildness hadn’t fully disappeared, but it had shifted. Less chaos and more awareness.

That was good.

Right now, I needed to be sure of something.

I wanted to confirm if I could actually make Sara shift her allegiance to me. Not just temporarily, not just out of fear or instinct, but something useful.

At the same time, I had to figure out where she stood. Whether her loyalty to Sesillian or Moriarty was strong enough to resist being turned. Or if there was a crack somewhere I could push into.

Because if I could tame her, really tame her, then she’d be more than just a problem. She’d be an asset.

Someone close to Moriarty.

Someone who could see things I couldn’t.

Someone who could tell me what kind of shit he was planning behind the scenes.

At this point, I didn’t have concrete proof of anything. It was more of a feeling than anything else, but it wasn’t something I could just ignore. Moriarty felt like the type who wouldn’t leave loose ends lying around forever. Sooner or later, he’d come for her.

And when that happened, she’d probably fall right back under him.

That was the part I couldn’t allow.

If I got to her first, if I made her mine before he even had the chance, then things would turn out very differently. I could use her. Not in some vague, half-assed way, but properly. As a pair of eyes watching him from the inside.

Sure, there was always the risk of him figuring it out. Moriarty didn’t strike me as an idiot. If anything, he was probably the opposite. Careful, observant, and annoying in all the worst ways.

Still, I didn’t think it would be easy for him to catch on.

Sara wasn’t exactly... stable.

She had a few screws loose, and that worked in my favor. Her behavior wasn’t consistent. Her thoughts didn’t always line up in a clean, logical way. Trying to predict her would be like trying to guess where a stray cat would go next. You could try, but you’d probably still get it wrong.

That unpredictability made her hard to read.

And because of that, it would make her hard to suspect.

On top of that, she wasn’t dumb.

If anything, she leaned toward being smart.

Which was funny, in a way.

People liked to separate intelligence and madness like they were opposites, but they really weren’t. Genius sat right next to insanity, like neighbors who kept borrowing each other’s stuff. Someone labeled a genius was usually just someone who didn’t care about common sense when chasing something they believed in.

Take physics, for example. Anyone who pushed boundaries there had to be willing to throw away what everyone else thought was obvious. That kind of thinking looked insane from the outside.

But once it worked, people started calling it brilliance.

Same behavior, different label.

The line between the two was thin enough that you could cross it without even noticing.

Sara felt like she was somewhere along that line.

I couldn’t say for sure if she leaned more toward one side or the other. I didn’t see anything that screamed genius, but I also didn’t think she was just some mindless mess either.

Either way, she was worth testing.

She didn’t give me much time to think after that.

The moment she shook off the disorientation from the hit, she lunged at me again, faster this time. Her claws came at me in a sharp arc, aiming to tear into my side.

I shifted my weight and dodged, her attack slicing through empty air.

"Missed," I muttered under my breath.

Before she could pull back, I kicked low, sweeping her legs out from under her. Her footing gave out instantly, and she slipped, hitting the ground harder than before.

She tried to recover immediately, pushing herself up with a growl, but I stepped in before she could fully stand. Another kick sent her back down, and I followed it up by striking her head, not holding back this time.

"Guh... nghhh...!"

The sound that came out of her wasn’t as sharp as before. It was heavier and strained.

She looked up at me again.

This time, I held her gaze.

The madness from earlier was gone.

It was completely gone.

What replaced it was frustration. Raw, obvious frustration. And under that, something else started to settle in.

Understanding.

She knew.

She knew I was stronger.

It showed in the way her body tensed, not to attack, but to resist. In the way her eyes flickered, searching for an opening that wasn’t there.

She was starving. That much was clear. Her focus on me hadn’t wavered even once. She wanted to bite, to tear, to feed.

But she couldn’t.

And now, she understood that.

"You look like you really want to eat," I said, keeping my tone steady. "If you want a bite, then you’ll have to beat me first."

"Graaah!"

She pushed against my foot, trying to force it off her, but I pressed down harder, pinning her in place.

"You’re going to have to do better than that."

"Nghhh... Aaaahhh!"

Her struggle got more desperate, but it didn’t get her anywhere.

"One drop of my blood would be enough to restore you to what you were before," I continued, watching her carefully. "So go on. Try harder. Otherwise, you’re just making yourself even hungrier."

Her glare sharpened.

That part definitely got through.

Then I let my bloodlust spill out.

It wasn’t something I held back either. I directed it straight at her, letting it press down on her senses like a heavy weight.

Her reaction was instant.

Her body stiffened, her eyes widening as fear crept in.

"L-Let me feed...! Let me feed on your blood!"

There it was. Finally.

She wasn’t just attacking anymore.

She was asking.

It wasn’t polite by any normal standard, but compared to earlier, it was a big step up. There was some kind of restraint there now, some basic level of awareness.

Honestly, I didn’t expect her to switch that fast.

Worked out for me though.

Now all her attention was locked onto me.

"You want me to feed you?" I asked.

"Yes, yes! Please! Let me! Feed me!!!"

She was practically shouting now, her voice cracking under the weight of her hunger.

Yeah, she really wanted it.

I sighed lightly, then made a decision.

"Fine. Just a taste."

I reopened the cut on my arm slightly, enough for blood to start dripping again. It slid down my skin, before falling.

A drop landed right on her lips.

She froze for a split second.

Then she tasted it.

"S-So gooddddddddd~!!!"

Her eyes widened like she had just discovered something unbelievable.

"S-Sweet blood! I’ve never tasted anything like this before!!!" she said.