Moonbound: The Vampire Lord's Reluctant Prize

Every ten years, the vampires descend into the smog-choked Underworld to claim their Tithe — one human from every household, bound by an ancient blood pact that buys another decade of fragile peace. In the Middle and Upper Districts, the Selection is an honour. In the Lower District, it is a gamble. Because for the desperate, it is the only way out. A chance to trade a life for enough gold to save those left behind. Luenna never wanted anything to do with the Spire Lords of the Upperworld. But with debt closing in and survival slipping through her fingers, she makes the unthinkable choice by offering herself. She expects servitude. Obedience. To disappear. What she does not expect was him. A predator who finds the treaty tedious and the ceremony beneath him. A creature of marble-cold beauty, with a tongue sharper than his fangs. He should have no interest in a voluntary offering from the Lower District. And yet, with a careless smirk that promises ruin, he breaks protocol to claim her. "Rules are for those who lack the power to break them. And you, Lune… you look like you'd make a very entertaining mess." Dragged into the dazzling, vicious world above, Luenna is bound to a master who defies every horror story she has ever known. He is arrogant, merciless, and infuriatingly charming. He mocks her sacrifice, tests her defiance, and treats her like something dangerously precious. Yet he would unmake the world before letting another soul touch her. She should fear him. She does. But when she finally reaches for a blade to end him, he kisses her with the soul-crushing weight of a thousand years of obsession. "Go on," he murmurs against her lips. "Fight me. Run. Hate me until it devours you." His voice softens then, just enough to ruin her. "In the end… you still chose this world. And I am what it gives you." --×-- >> Tags: [tragedy • vampire • fated love • sweet • narcissist • romance • possessive • comedy • fantasy] >> Word count per chapter: 1.5k ~ 1.8k