Anger

Lidi and Hemi obediently returned to their own cell.

"Click—" The sound of the lock falling echoed through the corridor, grating on the ears. In the corner, mold crept silently up the stone walls like despair itself.

Here, very few dared to be disobedient.

It was only the newcomers who spent their first few days restless—screaming, slamming against the iron bars, or scratching hopeless marks into the walls with their fingernails... But eventually, everyone learned to curl up, as if all their strength had been drained, and follow the commands of the guards and wardens without question.

To avoid unnecessary incidents, men and women were kept separate in the cells, with women housed together in this western wing... besides, there weren't many men here to begin with.

From the room next door came the sound of kicking and punching, along with a female guard's curses, shattering the relative silence.

"Stubborn mule."

"Hmph, skip the breeding ritual and you'll be eliminated."

"You think you can still act like a human here? Dream on! You lot are just baby-making machines—you don't even deserve the chance to be whores..."

But to Lidi and Hemi's surprise, they didn't hear any cries of pain from the victim. She seemed to be resisting the violence with a silent stubbornness.

"There's a new arrival next door," Lidi said softly, leaning toward Hemi.

"Ah, I saw her in the square too—a very pretty lady, a bit older than us," Hemi moved closer as well, shrugging with an air of indifference. "But that one's always mumbling to herself, maybe a bit off in the head... The guards don't even dare to give her a cellmate."

"Bang—"

A heavy slam against the door cut off Hemi's words. Both girls flinched at the same time, instinctively shrinking their necks as if the blow had landed on them.

Then the guard stormed off, cursing as she left the room next door, and the corridor returned to its oppressive stillness.

"I heard that during the breeding ritual, anyone who tried to touch her got beaten up badly by her... She seems to know some fighting moves," Hemi continued, throwing a clumsy punch into the air to pretend she was a martial arts expert too.

"But she probably won't be so lucky next time," Hemi sighed and shook her head helplessly. "This time the ritual was interrupted, but next time those vampire guards will step in themselves and forcibly hold her down..."

"How sad." A flicker of sympathy passed through Lidi's eyes.

"Don't feel sorry for her—in another year, that'll be us too," Hemi sighed. "We'd better hurry up and figure out how to dig that tunnel through."

As she spoke, Hemi's gaze drifted unconsciously to the loose stone slab in the corner of the wall—their only faint glimmer of hope.

Lidi fell silent for a moment.

She didn't really believe that a single bent and worn-out metal spoon, hidden away from the guards, could actually dig a tunnel all the way through, and that they'd escape even if it did... She was just holding on to a thread of hope, something to keep her from crumbling entirely.

"Hemi..." Lidi's voice suddenly grew thick with tears as her eyes misted over. "What are we going to do...?"

She had always put up a strong front, doing her best to look after the more impulsive Hemi, but now the pent-up fear and despair for the future broke through her defenses. In the end, she was just a little girl who had been sold into this living hell shortly after she was old enough to understand what was happening.

"Uh... huh?" Hemi stared in disbelief at what she was seeing.

Lidi was actually crying.

Hemi was at a loss, flailing her hands. She'd never been in a situation like this, and she had no idea how to comfort her only friend. She'd never seen Lidi this vulnerable before.

"Hey... Lidi, don't cry... your father— yeah, your father is still looking for you, he'll definitely come to save you!" Hemi scratched her head frantically, but then, as if a thought had struck her, her tone turned firm. "You love your father so much, right? So you have to believe in him—he'll definitely come to rescue us!"

"Really?" Lidi looked up at Hemi with tearful eyes.

"Really!" Hemi nodded fiercely, as if that would make the words carry more weight.

"But my father is just an ordinary man... Even if he comes, he can't beat those vampire guards." Lidi wiped at the tears spilling from her eyes, but found she couldn't stop them. "Sob—if he comes, he'll just be throwing his life away..."

Hemi found herself at a loss for words.

Even while crying this hard, this girl still keeps her logic this clear?

"Maybe... he'll bring some powerful helpers with him—yeah, that's it! He'll go find some legendary adventurer who can slice dragons in one swing to come save us!" Hemi racked her brain churning out more comfort. "Don't you worry, Lidi—we'll get out of this place someday, mark my words..."

"Really?"

"Really... probably?" A faint trace of doubt crept into Hemi's own tone. Even she thought what she was saying sounded a bit too far-fetched.

But Lidi seemed to have tired herself out with crying, as if she had let out the emotions she'd been bottling up and felt a bit better now. Her tears had stopped, and she wiped the wet streaks from her cheeks, doing her best to force her face back into that slightly serious expression she usually wore.

Hemi let out a slow breath of relief, feeling drained as if she'd just fought a tough battle.

"Oh, right, Hemi." Lidi suddenly remembered something. "My blanket—did you wash it clean for me?"

Hemi stiffened again, a guilty look flashing across her face.

Hemi didn't say a word, but Lidi already had her answer. Her expression gradually darkened.

"Lidi... I think you're cuter when you're crying just now..." Hemi stuck out her tongue, trying to brush it off with a playful quip.

"Hemi, I'm actually getting angry now." Lidi's cheeks puffed up slightly as her voice rose a notch. "I told you several times to wash my blanket clean!"

"Boom—"

Just then, an earth-shattering crash came from above.

The entire underground prison shook violently, as if grabbed by a giant invisible hand and yanked back and forth. The floor bucked, the walls trembled, and dust and debris accumulated over years rained down from the ceiling like a waterfall, instantly filling the space and making everyone cough.

"Eek!—" Hemi yelped, clutching her head and cowering in the corner, trembling.

After a moment, the rumbling gradually subsided, leaving only dust drifting lazily in the air. Hemi cautiously lifted her head, looking with the same stunned expression at the equally shocked Lidi, and spoke with a tremor in her voice:

"Li... Lidi—since when is you being mad... this terrifying?"