"Promise, I won't push you straight to the dirt;

If you promise me, you'll take them off first."

She was another human. However, she wasn't a bride.

Sakamaki Shuu was informed that there was a noble vampire who had a foolish heart for mortals, leading him to starve himself to death. What an idiot, he thought, mindlessly reading his father's letter. At the bottom part, he read, "The vampire left a mortal under his care. You are not allowed to kill her, as she is beneficial to my plan. However, she can be your toy or whatever you want her to be."

Reiji frowned, pushing up his glasses. "Another handful, I see."

While the others are already complaining (and indulging in secret) about another human living with them, Yui was relieved that there's finally another one like her who she can empathize with.

It was only a few minutes later when Subaru entered the mansion, dragging the mortal inside the place forcefully. She was yanked down to the ground harshly, the hood of her cape falling to reveal a woman with doll-like features, pale skin, long dark tresses, and blood-red eyes. Upon noticing the stares at her, she immediately put the hood back on and tried to hide from them.

"I saw her hiding in the garden," Subaru said angrily. "She won't talk, so I forced her to come here."

"That's bad, Subaru," Laito remarked. "You shouldn't be harsh with women."

"I heard mortal women don't like it rough," Kanato added. "Isn't that the case, Teddy?"

"Well, doesn't matter either way." Ayato eyed the woman mischievously. "Food is food."

Reiji held a hand to stop him. "I don't think she's food."

Everyone was startled by what he said. Humans who stumble upon their mansion are food, and all humans are food to them. How can a mortal not be food to vampires like them?

To prove his point, Reiji held the woman's wrist and bit her flesh to sample her blood.

"No fair, Reiji!" Ayato complained.

After drinking her blood, Reiji was finally able to deduce his hypothesis. "Her blood... It doesn't taste anything."

They were all confused, silence ensuing in the area.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Laito asked. "They all taste the same," he turned to Yui, "though Bitch-chan's tastes the sweetest."

"L-LAITO-KUN!"

"It doesn't taste anything," Reiji repeated. "It's not like Yui's or any other human."

Kanato clicked his tongue and muttered, "I hate food that doesn't taste sweet."

"I think the vampire taking care of her created a spell before he died," Shuu sided with Reiji, then sighed.

"Great! We have another burden." Subaru huffed, folding his arms on his chest.

"Well, she can be our toy or anything. Might as well make her useful," Reiji said.

It seemed that the woman cannot speak, hence her need to use a pen and board at times.

The others loathed the set-up, complaining at the dead vampire for gifting them with worthless food. "Not only does she lack taste, but she also can't speak!" Yui didn't mind it though, delighting in her silent company despite only a few reactions from her. On the other hand, Kanato praised the woman one time during dinner.

"Well, if you look at it in another way, she resembles my dolls," he said darkly. "What do you think, Teddy? We should add her to our collection."

While the others were disgusted at the idea, the woman could only nod at the suggestion. That made Kanato laugh at her naivety.

"Mortals... they are really foolish," the 4th Sakamaki muttered. "Ne, Teddy?"

On the other hand, the woman thought being a lifeless doll would be better than being a breathing mortal.

Ayato learned her name by accident.

The brothers started to call her 'Doll' because she acts completely like a doll and only does what she's told. It bothered Yui that 'Doll' doesn't defend herself from their teasing or attempts to inflict injuries on her body. Yui asked her one day about this and she wrote, "I don't know if I still have humanity in me."

And she added, "Yui-chan won't understand. She's still human, after all."

A few days after that, Yui was down with a cold, making her blood taste nasty to the other vampires. Ayato complained, "Chichinashi can't give me food. What the hell." Since 'Doll' worked her days helping Reiji with the household chores and other affairs, Ayato decided the poor girl can make him his favorite takoyaki.

"You're so boring, you know," he mused. "Is there any way you can speak?"

'Doll' was only silent as she started cooking. Ayato frowned at that. "A vampire took care of you, right? What's the name again?" He held his chin in deep thought. "Gilbert Feinze?"

Upon the mention of the name, her eyes widened in fear as she felt something constricting her throat. She was suddenly choking words from her mouth, alarming Ayato, who instantly went to her side to find out what was happening.

"Hey, Doll! What are you up to?"

"M-M-Maya..."

His green eyes widened. "Maya?" Then he realized. "Is that your name?"

Afterward, she fainted.

"Please spare me," a young girl cried at the assailant, begging on her knees as the town behind her burned into ashes.

"I'll do anything!"

The man chuckled dryly. "Anything?"

She nodded.

"How about you become a doll?"

It was an interesting name. Maya. Maya. Maya.

Kanato kept repeating her name like a spell he chants whenever he summons a demon familiar to Teddy. He's been visiting her bedroom, staring at her sleeping form because she was so fascinating.

She might be my favorite doll, after all.

"Kanato."

The said man frowned and looked behind him to see Reiji in the doorway, holding a tray of food. Maya might not be able to eat, but if they force it, she can drink them.

"Visiting hours are over," he informed, placing the tray on the nearby table.

Kanato sighed. "You're still uptight as ever, Reiji." He gingerly held up Maya's hand and pressed it to his cheek. "Ne, Reiji, do you think Father would mind if I make her my doll?"

"I don't care," he deadpanned. "Father told us to do what we please."

Kanato stood up from his chair with a smile. "Then it's settled."

He started walking away and before he could leave the room, Reiji spoke.

"I will not clean your mess if you decide to kill her."

Kanato glanced briefly at him. "I know."

Maya became Kanato's favorite doll, but with certain rules that Kanato despised a lot.

Dealing with Reiji is a pain, they all thought, observing Maya, who was still diligently doing the household chores while Kanato was only glaring at everything he set his eyes on. But dealing with Kanato is harder.

Reiji has informed everyone that Kanato has acquired the right to be Maya's owner ("A doll is nothing without its master"), but Maya is still required to do the household chores assigned to her. Well, Kanato can object, knowing fully that Reiji just wants to boss her around the house. But Shuu, being the headmaster of the house and all, agreed on Reiji's terms, much to his dismay ("That fool is not noisy, and she makes the best steak.").

"It's surprising how Reiji and Shuu agreed, considering how they are always at each other's throats," Laito noted in glee, making Kanato sulk more in the current situation.

Nonetheless, Maya spends her free time with Kanato. Sometimes, he'll give her frilly dresses and tell her to wear them like his dolls. He'll also invite her to his tea parties to indulge in his sweet treats. But there are times he'll take out his anger and irritation on her.

The thing about Maya is that her face would only contort in pain and terror. She wasn't like Yui, who would cry and moan whenever someone grips her hand tightly or bites into her skin forcefully.

"That's right, Maya-san," Kanato purred, grazing his knife on the delicate skin of her stomach. He laughed maniacally. "Keep making that face. Ah, I really enjoy it when mortals are mingled with fear."

When tears would slip out, Kanato would stop and reward her for her excellent behavior.

"As I thought, it's really fun to play with Maya-san. She doesn't make any noises and her face is my favorite. You think that too, right, Teddy?"

"You have to drink my blood."

Gilbert shook his head. "No." It's not that he wasn't tempted. It's just that—

"You can't replace my thirst for her, and there's only one of her in this world."

"Ne, Maya-chan," Yui called her one night. "Has Kanato-kun drank your blood?"

Maya shook her head. "No one in this house drinks my blood."

Yui sighed and tried to smile. "You're lucky."

Maya raised a brow in confusion, then Yui added. "If a vampire likes you, they'll like you for who you are. But for me, I'll always be treated as food."

"You can't replace my thirst for her, and there's only one of her in this world."

Maya wrote, "The vampire who took care of me... he told me that there's only one human girl that he loved in this world. Even though he was starving, he didn't eat me."

"Then why are you sad about it?"

"I wanted to be as important as that person to him."

Gilbert was consumed by bloodlust, and the next thing, she was sprawled on the forest ground, blood oozing out from different parts of her body. He was panicking. How could he do that? How could he kill her?

As punishment for what he's done, he said, "I'm sorry for hurting you. I'll let you live and you'll never have to see me again."

Before she could stop him, he slit his wrist and dropped his blood into her mouth.

"Drink them. Drink me until the last drop."

Kanato discovered a deep secret.

Maya-san might not have a taste, he thought while watching her bake a cake, but I'll just add cream and she'll taste better.

Kanato quietly approached his target, making calculated moves to ensure she wouldn't get away from him. He suddenly hugged her from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder.

"The cake is taking too long, Maya-san," he whispered, delighted at her surprised reaction.

Kanato dipped a finger in the cream and spread it on her neck. "I wonder how your blood will taste with this."

Before she could stop him, Kanato had already sunk his fangs into her skin and drank her blood. He thought he would only taste cream, but there was something else. It was a delicious taste, not like anything he had before. In fact, it may even be better than Yui's.

"Do you always taste this good?" he asked. "Is this why Reiji lied that you don't have a taste?"

Maya shook her head in denial. For her, Reiji has no reason to lie about that. If she's a tasty human like Yui, the others must have eaten her by now.

Kanato chuckled. "Could it be that this is your secret?"

Maya was confused, making Kanato laugh even further. He laid a hand on her cheek and gently caressed it.

"Maya-san, starting from now, I'll be the only one to drink from you. This will be our secret, okay?"

She nodded, and he went back to savor her blood.

"I wanna make you mine, but that's hard to say.

Is this coming off in a cheesy way?"