Alice fumed as she paced back and forth. The room was finely decorated, silk and gold at every corner, a show of extreme opulence in a village that was barely scratching its way out of a full-blown ‘medieval’ status. As far as she was concerned, it was a clear sign of a bloated ego, very likely narcissism.

“Ma’am. Please calm down.”

Dia’s voice was meek, low, almost a whisper. The nurse stood next to the door, the only exit to the room. The windows were barred, a storm raged outside, and the feral threat had been dealt with… for now, supposedly until the next wave at least.

But Alice couldn’t focus on that. Her thoughts kept wandering back to Rick and the Baron. It had kept her pacing back and forth since the moment she’d been put into the room. “I am not going to calm down.” She hissed through gritted teeth, throwing a glare at the pink-haired nurse, the maiden squirming and shrinking slightly. “You’re aiding a monster.”

Dia lowered her head further. “I… don’t have a choice, ma’am.”

“Everyone has a choice, always.” Came the sharp retort. “You know what the Baron is doing is wrong. To lock someone up and just straight up torture them like that…”

“That… is how things are, ma’am.” Dia’s fingers gripped the skirt of her uniform, lips curling. “Ferals need to be bonded, and sometimes the method can be…”

“It’s torture!”

“That is only for the extreme cases!” The nurse answered in return. “If a feral does not bond, she needs to be killed! Powerful ferals like White Claw are extremely hard to capture alive in the first place!” Her voice strained slightly. “Such a maiden could help save the life of hundreds of people during a feral rush, and-.”

“Monica was already bonded. She was calling out to Rick!”

That made Dia flinch, her gaze firmly on the ground. “I know.” Silence followed, no further retort, only a hesitant trembling lower lip. Her head nodded slowly in agreement, even if not able to speak the words out.

Alice’s eyes glimmered with an accusatory edge. “Did you heal her? While she was being tortured?” She practically hissed the words.

Dia shook her head almost violently. “I only came to the Lord’s manor when I’d been called to heal the Baron after White-… Monica, after Monica injured him.” Her hands clenched her skirt tightly. “I didn’t know.”

“And now you do.” The words came like a hammer-blow, causing Dia to flinch. “Are you going to keep helping that evil man?”

“I… can’t... I can’t!” The nurse shook her head, pink hair whipping back and forth. “The Lord owns this land, he provides for it, without our Lord, this place would go back to being a forgotten spot at the edge of the map!” Her voice came agitated, shrill, almost gasping for breath. “I’ve been to those forgotten villages, devoid of the resources they need to survive any serious feral threat!”

There was a long pause, Alice’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Are you bonded to the Baron?”

Dia hesitated, her hand reaching up to touch the green collar, barely caressing it before giving a slight nod, her expression pained. “Almost everyone with a green collar is. Either to the Baron or the Baroness. Unowned maidens are to swear fealty and bond with the Lords. It’s the law, ever since Mao’s rebellion.”

Alice took a moment, pausing, thinking. Her conversation with Irene made her scowl ever so slightly. “And what does the bond do to you? What… does it mean to you?”

Closing her eyes, Dia’s voice was reduced to a whisper. “My oath is to protect human life above all else, and as a maiden, I… have to serve the Lords to the best of my ability.” The words felt empty, almost a burden on her soul.

The psychology teacher frowned. “But you let Kat tackle him.”

The words caused Dia to startle, looking upwards to meet Alice’s gaze with wide eyes. Her lips parted with a soft gasp. “I-.”

“Is the bond really as powerful as you say it is?” Alice’s question lingered in the air, the nurse’s expression unreadable, fingers lingering on the green collar, a troubles gaze.

There was a knock, and Dia reacted, instantly moving to stand next to the door frozen like a statue, her eyes peering straight ahead as if she were no more than decoration. “Miss Smith?”

The voice made Alice shudder. Her hand sought anything to grab hold on to but discovered not much of use within reach. The Baron entered the room, accompanied by the muscular green-skinned maiden wearing the gray uniform and a worn dull gray breastplate.

The man moved to sit down on the only couch in the room, smiling with a fake plastic smirk as the maiden took position next to Dia. “I know it is sooner than I had promised, but I do hope you’ve had a chance to calm down.” There was a slight nod to his head. “Just wanting to have a quick chat before we retreat for the night to rest properly.”

“Is Rick even alive?” Alice growled, finding a chair and standing next to it, her mind whirling over the potential ways she could use it to defend herself.

“I can assure you no one’s done anything to your companion.” His smile took a cruel edge. “Whether it stays that way, however, will depend entirely on you.”

She didn’t speak, eyes narrowed as she gripped the chair tighter.

“I’ve had a chance to think things through.” The man crossed his arms. The smile on his face was almost close to being a real one. “I underestimated the circumstances, and it became clear to me I trusted the wrong people. Thus, I come to you with a very simple proposition I believe can work for both of us.”

Alice’s jaw tightened.

“Give me an heir.”

Her eyes widened, mouth almost going slack.

The Baron continued. “The Baroness and I have been attempting such a feat for quite some time, with little success. Whether it is due to her heritage or something else, I care no longer. Fact of the matter is, I am without an heir.” His lips thinned ever so slightly as his eyes coursed over Alice like she was a slab of meat.

It made her skin crawl.

“No.”

The Baron didn’t even twitch. “You’ve yet to hear the rest of the proposal, miss Smith.”

She growled. “No.”

The man shrugged. “Then I can just kill you all and be done with it.”

He did not move, remaining seated with that saccharine smirk plastered across his face, waiting, keeping his eyes on the woman as she hesitated.

“No.”

“It would be all too easy to pretend it was due to the ferals.” He didn’t miss a beat.

“The Baroness-.”

“THE BARONESS KNOWS NOTHING!” The man rose to his feet, the smile gone, face reddening as it twisted into a snarl. “If the events of the past hours have made anything clear, it was that she does not understand what honor means. She’d rather bow and grovel to the demands of a piece of filth who thinks himself above everyone else because his blood is pure.” Fists clenched, he took a single step forward. “The only reason that man is still alive is because of my charity, a grace I do not plan to keep if you refuse me.”

Alice had moved faster, gripping the ornate looking wooden chair and raising it. “Stay the fuck away from me.” She growled, her arms tensed, ready to swing if he took another step closer.

That appeared to break the anger in the Baron. His eyes glanced at the chair she wielded and then at her. There was a pause as the anger receded, a slight chuckle as he took a step back, returning to the couch. “I am a man of my word, miss Smith. There’s no reason for me to harm a woman.”

“You tortured Monica.” She snarled, not lowering the chair.

“White Claw is a feral, an animal, not a person. Do not let the appearance fool you.” There was a slight chiding tone in his voice. “The Tigress is not even a domestic. Creatures such as IT need to learn to submit. You’ve seen how dangerous they are. They kill humans with barely a thought. They are beasts, monsters, their very existence an existential threat.”

“The only monster in this house is you.” Alice answered in turn.

The Baron’s eyes cooled down, upper lip twitching ever so slightly. Turning his nose upward, the man shook his head slowly. “No matter, I believe we can reach a civilized agreement soon enough.” His gaze turned sideways towards the green-skinned maiden, then back to Alice. “White Claw belongs to me.” Crossing his arms, he smirked further. “So the question, miss Smith, is only whether you and your two companions will be alive by the end of tomorrow or not. Agree to my terms, and you all live. Rick and the bratty woman will have their memories of the past two days erased, and they’d be allowed to leave.”

“And if I don’t, you kill us all.”

“If you don’t, I merely have my guards drop your unconscious bodies outside when the next wave hits. The ferals will make quick work of you three, and I will have lost absolutely nothing.” A smirk followed. “If you agree, I can guarantee comfort and an easy life. Once I have an heir, I’ll even allow you to leave as well. There are only advantages to agreeing, for yourself and your companions.”

Alice glared, tightening her grip on the chair.

“I will give you until the next wave to consider the proposition.” The Baron stood, turning towards the door. “If you refuse, then your friends will have to face them on their own.”

The door closed behind him with a soft click, leaving Alice alone with Dia. The teacher lowered the chair, keeping her eyes glued on the couch where the Baron had occupied. The desire to light the piece of furniture on fire was a strong one. A part of her regretted not having anything to do it with. Slowly, her gaze turned towards the nurse. The pink-haired maiden’s face was pale, her hands gripped her skirt and shook with barely contained emotion.

“Do you want to see Rick die?”

Very slowly, the nurse shook her head, her lips tight.

“Then you better help me, because I am not going to let that monster have his way.”

Dia swallowed, nodding. “H-how?”

Alice considered the word carefully, her eyes turning down to the chair she’d nearly used as a weapon. She doubted she’d be allowed to leave. The Baron no doubt had guards keeping an eye on everyone.

“I just need you to send a message.”

“I… I can’t leave the manor.” Dia replied. “I was ordered to-.”

“You don’t need to.” The teacher shook her head, dismissing the idea. “I just need you to meet with the Baroness.”

The nurse tensed, nodding slowly. “And… what do I need to say?”

“The truth.”