Instead of quietly leaving, Elena did something much worse.
Earlier in the story, there was a scene in which the twin brothers gifted Elena a necklace. It was a pendant, cradled on a gold chain that she always wore around her swan-like neck.
The pendant itself was round and made from moonstone crystals. A rare material that was not easily found. At its center, whenever the light hit, there was a sparkling reflection of a star shining from within.
It was an expensive and personally crafted piece of jewelry that the king had ordered for Elena. Not only did it serve as a gift to her, but as a warning to others as to whom she belonged.
When the kings had gifted Elena this piece of jewelry, they had told her that it also served as a tracking device.
Telling her that if she ever found herself in trouble, she could activate it, and immediately they would know of her location.
Elena did not think of the consequences that would befall those humans whose lives weren't as lavish as hers. Since the day the kings have taken her under their wing of protection.
Elena had forgotten all about how it feels to go days without hunger and restless nights, never knowing who was out to get you.
Because while Elena had enemies, at least she had protectors.
Not only did she have protectors, but she could dine whenever she pleased, bathe in huge flower-scented hot baths, and sleep in a soft bed that felt like clouds.
Even her gowns and the clothing she wore rivaled those from powerful and high-noble vampire houses, cut, stitched, and tailored from rare fabrics that even vampires from lesser families could only dream of touching their skin.
She was truly living the life of a rich mistress.
But what about the humans who only wanted a better life, but were condemned to a life of endless suffering? How was such a life fair to them?
Living in cramped housing with barely any food, and forced to obey the commands of their vampire masters. Knowing that even a slight act of defiance would grant them a humiliating and painful death, they wanted a better life for themselves.
But Elena didn't think of this, or perhaps she just didn't care.
Regardless, Elena did the unthinkable by secretly placing a drop of her blood on the pendant, triggering the tracking mechanism. The moment her blood landed on the pendant, a faint glow emitted from it.
Elsewhere, the kings and their vampire soldiers, who were searching for her as the escapees had made sure to cover their tracks from being hunted down.
They were furious and obsessed with finding their missing lover when they felt a tingling sensation. Instantly, a picture of Elena's location was forwarded to them.
With her location now revealed to them, the kings and their most trusted soldiers headed in her direction.
In the middle of the night, by the bonfire, the humans laughed and talked about their dreams and hopes for their soon-to-be new future lives.
"I want to be a carpenter!" shouted a young boy no older than nineteen with a bright and cheesy grin on his face.
"I want to be a fashion designer!" A freckled-faced girl who looked to be around the same age as the young boy declared. The flicker of fire from the bonfire highlighted her flushed pink cheeks.
"My old mistress had a huge closet of gowns. Whenever she forced me to dress her, I would run my finger against the fabric. I could never forget the touch of its soft and smooth texture against my fingertips. Its vibrant color and tailored style were truly a work of art. If I couldn't wear them, I could at least dream of making them and sharing them with other girls like myself." A bashful smile appeared on her face.
"Never again do I want to feel the disgusting touch of a vampire," said a beauty who looked to be in her early thirties with bitterness smothered in her voice.
The fire crackled, and though her makeup masked her scars and bruises, her eyes spoke of a world of pain. A pain that stemmed from years of her body being forcibly used to pleasure her vampire masters.
One by one, more voices began to speak, speaking of their dreams, of the freedom they wished to experience, and of life away from pain.
For a moment, hope burned bright just like the fire from the bonfire, but just as the fire extinguished, so did it.
In seconds, laughter had turned into screams. Like shadows of death, the king's soldiers swooped down, and cries of the dying echoed. Underneath the night skies, the blood of the innocent soaked the ground like spilled red paint.
The vampire soldiers descended upon the escapees and butchered them without mercy.
The bloody slaughter burned itself into the memory of that poor personal maid, who stood petrified as she watched those cruel vampires laugh while tearing through her companions, severing their limbs and ripping out their intestines without a care.
Horror gripped Elena's personal maid. Tears blurred her eyes. The look of terror etched on her friends' faces, nor their anguish wails, before their vocal cords were ripped out.
She would never forget it. No matter how hard she may have tried.
By now, under the starless night, blood, despair, and severed body parts painted the snow.
But the fear and horror she felt quickly gave way to rage. Why? Because when her eyes landed on her mistress's. Instead of petrified fear or even remorse.
Not a tear had escaped from Elena's eyes. A blinding smile lit up her face, having caught sight of her lovers appearing last on the scene with awaited arms—sweet apologies spilling from her lips.
"I'm so sorry. I should've never run away with them! Please forgive me~!" Elena cried with a trembling voice.
Her eyes showed remorse, but not for the lives that were lost, but for disobeying her lovers. Not once did she spare a glance at those scattered limbs that had belonged to innocent people whose lives were cut short because of her selfishness.
The personal maid couldn't believe it. She had gone out of her way to allow her mistress onto this plan. Her mistress wasn't perfect by any means.
But when she had come to her in tears, confessing she was tired of the king mistreating her.
She has foolishly believed her.
Having watched her mistress's relationship with the king, the personal maid knew that the twin rulers' relationship with her mistress was complex, sometimes spoiling one second, caging her in their room the next, and then back to forgiving each other, only to become angry again.
Punishing her mistress once before, by forcing her to watch as they dismembered a 'blood-pet' she had dared grow close to.
She had believed her naive mistress had finally seen the light, that the king's love for her was nothing more but a gilded cage. She had thought her mistress had finally wanted to break free.
To see for herself what she had always seen. That she was not an equal partner to them. But a tool of possession. Yes, they treasured her, but for as long as she stayed in their gilded cage, devoured by their obsession for her.
Her mistress may have all the riches in the world, but self-respect was most important. She thought her mistress understood this, but she was sadly proven wrong. Like a mountain crashing, guilt and rage welled up inside of her.
The personal maid finally realized that not everyone valued dignity, nor were they worth saving.
That some were willing to discard such things if it meant they were protected, even if it came at the cost of other people's lives. For Elena, her needs always came first, no matter how hard she tried to put on a caring and selfless front.
Instead of apologizing to the dead. Elena apologized to those who had unjustifiably taken away their lives. The very ones who gave the order and watched as their soldiers enjoyed themselves as they butchered those innocent people like they were animals.
The personal maid mourned the friends she shared history with, companions who shared her pain, all gone in a single night.
All because of her mistress, foolish and desperate love.
A storm of rage took over, and the personal maid's trembling fingers drew the dagger she had secretly hidden on her, and charged at Elena.
The blade sank into the woman she once served, the very woman she tried to save, only to be stabbed in the back.
A favor she was now returning.
Elena felt a sharp pain in her side, and before she could let out a cry. The personal maid was flung aside as the kings did not care to hold back their strength. The human maid sailed a couple of feet before her body crashed into a thick tree trunk.
The last thing she saw before she lost consciousness was the brothers crouching over her bleeding ex-mistress, holding her tenderly as they fretted over her as though only her life held importance.
They were both human, yet they lived in two different worlds. One lives in a gilded cage of endless treasure. The other, a cage of endless pain and torture.
This attack did not kill the personal maid, nor did the female lead die. Instead of dying, the personal maid was dragged back to the palace, where she was thrown into a freezing cell.
It was days later before she was finally freed, only to be brought before the royal court to be tried as if she were some criminal. Presiding over the trial were the twin kings; their advisors were also in attendance, all of whom were high-ranked noble vampires.
Even before she was thrown in her cell, a verdict was already reached. For daring to raise a hand against their lover, the kings wanted her dead.
Every punch and kick shattered bones, her fragile human body unable to withstand the strength of a vampire. Laughter and sneers from the kings court punctuated each hit. They beat that woman until most of her bones were broken, and her body was painted in bruises and blood.
Sasha's blood boiled when she had read this scene; her heart broke for the poor maid. Not just for the maid, but also for those other unfortunate side characters who died unjustifiably.
All they wanted was freedom!
Unlike Elena, they had no shields of protection nor a halo that constantly protected them from harm. Was it truly so wrong for them to crave peace? Of a place far from constant torture and pain?
In the end, the kings did not kill her. Such mercy was only made possible due to Elena's intervention.
She appeared and, despite still recovering from her injury, stated how she wished for the woman to live. Not out of forgiveness, but because she felt pity for the woman.
"This," she said coldly, "Will be my last ounce of sympathy for her. I will not forgive her for trying to take my life."
'Are you serious?! You can easily forgive your manic killer lovers and their bullshit, but not the innocent maid?' Sasha was outraged. The first time this stupid female lead decided to show a backbone, it was towards the one person who honestly didn't deserve it.
After hours of torturing the woman, the king finished their punishment by ripping out the woman's tongue, which satisfied them as this brought forth endless pain to the maid and still obliged Elena's request.
After the trail came to a conclusion, she was fired as Elena's personal maid and thrown back into the custody of her vampire master.
The vampire had overseen his 'blood-pet' trial and was furious with her. Seeing her actions as a massive slap in his face. Later, when they reached his estate, he locked her in the dungeon of their manor with no food, letting her waste away for weeks.
But was this the end of this side character's misfortune?
Sasha wanted to know the answer to this question, which was the only reason she decided to reopen the book, which she had been considering dropping.
'But before I drop this book, I will find out what else happened to that personal maid.' Sasha started from where she left off and began her reading once more.