Episode 54: The Flower That Grows by Drinking Blood
I am Han Shiwoo, 21 years old.
An ordinary person who has chosen Hunter as a profession.
What a Hunter must do is clear Gates to earn money.
Of course, I live off the association’s funds.
Anyway, I am about to have a wedding ceremony at a Gate that I should clear and close.
And it’s not a request but an order.
I had no choice.
If I raised my weapon and rebelled on the spot, I would surely lose my life, no matter how many I had.
Moreover, I would have to stay here for several days.
Even if the flow of time inside the Black Gate is slower than in the outside world, staying long in the Black Gate isn’t ideal.
If I end up stranded in a place like a snow-capped mountain, it would be difficult to gather the three basic elements of human life: food, clothing, and shelter.
Clothes can be dealt with, but food and a place to stay are essential.
A place to stay.
That much space was provided to me by the being known as the ‘Lord’ of these vampires.
And I was told that food would also be provided.
It would be in the room.
But I must always be cautious.
They are our enemies.
They don’t seem to be monsters…
Still, they are undoubtedly our enemies.
There could be poison in the food, or there might be traps in the room, so I should stay vigilant.
We were guided to the door of our room by a maid who exuded an ominous aura.
Ah, by the way, Harin went in the opposite direction from me.
I began to suspect that the ‘Lord’ intentionally separated Harin and me.
But there was nothing I could do here.
Anyway, the beautiful maid guiding us looked human, just like us.
However, she didn’t resemble any human I knew.
Long hair.
Her hair had a light purple hue.
Her mysterious appearance was reminiscent of characters from the medieval era… but with unique traits.
“I am one of the servants in charge of you, Be… Triche.”
“Triche? Nice to meet you, Triche. Well, I don’t know how long I’ll be here.”
The maid, who introduced herself as Triche, bowed her head at my response and politely opened the door.
【… This place is better than our home?】
A spacious area with a huge double bed placed in the center.
‘What’s that mosquito net-like thing over the bed?’
【Ugh, does that look like a mosquito net? That… what is it… All noble beds in the medieval era had similar decorations.】
I’m not sure if that’s true for all, but it certainly looks like a mosquito net to me.
“If you are eating the meal inside the room, another servant will come to visit you. Until then, please feel comfortable.”
Triche folded her hands politely.
Then she closed the door and left.
【Hmm… That maid, hasn’t she been captured for long? She seems like a newcomer who hasn’t learned her job for long.】
‘That might be possible. It’s a natural law here. There’s no need for us to strain ourselves… If someone from our world is captured, we can rescue them.’
We sat on the bed.
– Flop.
Of course, Chaewon didn’t sit on the bed.
She was currently floating in front of me.
So, saying “we” was misleading.
However, I referred to “we” because there was a young-looking girl who had been following me around since earlier.
With black hair.
A body of a child with red eyes.
She was the girl sitting in a chair beside the ‘Lord’ earlier.
That spot clearly seemed to be the wife’s seat.
Where did the Lord’s wife go?
Anyway, there was a young flower that grows by drinking blood next to me.
I decided to use my insight on this girl before me for my safety.
‘King’s Insight, activate.’
– Ding!
[Checking the opponent’s information.]
[Information]
Name: ???
Position: Vampire (Pureblood)
– Skills Owned –
P.Bloodsucking Impulse(?) LV.1 (Max)
Bloodsucking(?) LV.99 (Max)
Generate(?) LV.10 (Max)
P.Growth(?) LV.1 (Max)
P.Theia(?) LV.1 (Max)
…
[Cannot verify the skill rank due to a significant level difference with the creature trying to inspect information.]
[Cannot discover more skills due to a significant level difference with the creature trying to inspect information.]
– Current Status –
Your feelings toward you are in a state of wanting to eat.
Considering a plan using you.
==========
What is this ‘Generate’ nonsense? Is it a skill anyone can have?
In the outside world beyond the Gate, that skill was considered forbidden due to its strength and rarity, but is it common in here?
Perhaps it’s important what the user puts into ‘Generate’ and how they use it.
‘Generate’ seems to be just a medium.
That’s just my speculation.
And the bloodsucking level is 99.
It seems like she can perform quite precise bloodsucking.
By the way, ‘Theia’ is the goddess of light from Greek and Roman mythology—quite mismatched with a nocturnal species.
As for her current state… it says her emotions are in a state of wanting to eat, so she must just be hungry.
That she’s thinking of a plan using me. Is it related to the marriage the ‘Lord’ mentioned?
Speaking of which, her name… is she not going to tell me?
It doesn’t matter. I can just ask for her name; it’s not that difficult.
“Um… what’s your name?”
As if she was waiting for my words, she turned her head and stared straight at me.
Marrying such a young girl… the Lord is truly insane.
“What did you say?”
“I asked… what your name is?”
“… How dare you, as a mere human… how could a lower being speak informally to me? This is an unthinkable matter!”
【Wow. For a girl who looks like a kindergarten student, she has quite the temper.】
“Hey, kid.”
“Kid, kid?! Do I look like I’m younger than you?”
“How old are you?”
“Humph, I’m at least several hundred years older.”
“… Usually, most vampires have a lifespan of immortal quality, right?”
“Common, common vampires? I am a pureblood, a trueborn! Do not compare Irlya Violet to mere common vampires!”
“Right, nice to meet you, Irlya.”
Finding out the name of this arrogant kid was surprisingly easy.
“Gasp! You just casually said my name! How dare you provoke me… Do you have the resolve to taste death?!”
“Ah, I’d rather eat the food Triche prepared.”
【Is this the food she prepared? Hurry, open the lid!】
“Don’t you dare ignore me!”
‘But aren’t vampires weak against silver? Can I really use silver utensils?’
【Seems like vampires here have a hobby of self-harm.】
That was an utterly unhelpful response.
I had no choice but to ask Irlya directly.
“Irlya, but I’ve heard that vampires are weak against silver and garlic; is it okay to use these utensils?”
Upon hearing my words, Irlya gave me a look of amusement.
“You’re pretty naive for a mere lower being. Of course, that’s just a fictional tale from children’s stories! Those are outright lies made up by humans.”
【Oh, I see.】
I opened the lid covering the silver platter.
Inside was a chunk of steak emitting a hot steam.
I carefully cut the edge with the knife, picking it up with the fork to taste it.
【How is it? The taste of steak eaten in enemy territory inside the Gate?】
‘It’s delicious.’
【What does it taste like?】
I quickly checked my buff window, worried that there might be poison in the food.
“How is it? This dish was made by a strictly selected chef.”
“Ordinarily tasty. Tastes like a 3-minute hamburger steak. Want to try some?”
“What?! Ordinary?! That’s impossible! My eyes are superior to any trueborn!”
My utterly normal reaction seemed to shock Irlya, who started trembling.
With a determined expression, she moved closer to me.
“What, what is it?”
“Hmph, to insult me like that… as a punishment, I shall take your purity.”
It feels strange hearing such things from a little girl.
“What do you mean all of a sudden by purity?”
“Have you ever been drained by another vampire?”
“No, I’ve never been drained—”
– Whump.
“Ugh!…”
In an instant, Irlya had entered my arms and sunk her petite vampire fangs into my neck artery.
It was evident that she wasn’t inexperienced at bloodsucking.
Boldly.
Quickly.
– Slurp.
But she started off gently, cautiously stealing my blood.
【What, what are you doing?! Kissing my neck?! Ugh… it’s all these horny girls!】
– Slurp, smack.
Irlya was getting faster in her blood-thieving action.
– Sip.
When my neck began to feel hot, she abruptly stopped her bloodsucking.
Perhaps she was concerned about my life if she kept going.
As she pulled out the fangs she had embedded in me, blood dripped from the spot where she had been sucking.
Irlya, seeing that, licked the artery area on my neck gingerly to staunch the bleeding.
“… That was delicious.”
Her eyes seemed to twinkle brilliantly.
【Huh? This girl is radiating light from her body?】
Is it common sense in this world for a species weakened by sunlight to emit light from their bodies?
There’s still so much I don’t understand.
Light spilled from Irlya’s body.
In that light, Irlya’s body began to grow.
