Bloodline Legion
A legion born of blood? After returning to the officetel for the first time in a while, I checked whether the manipulated location tracker was functioning properly, then tossed it beside the bed. I let out a languid sigh.
“Huu…”
Above me, Yuria dripped aromatic oil onto my back and spread it in wide strokes, massaging me. Despite this being her first time, she showed surprising talent. Her slippery arms gently rubbed my lower back, while her fingers pressed with just the right pressure, secretly grazing the area near my chest to stimulate my erogenous zones. The way her spread thighs lightly squeezed my waist felt wonderful too.
“Jihyeok… does it feel good?”
Yuria asked from atop me. Without even turning my head, I answered.
“It feels good. Keep going.”
“But I’m struggling…”
“Struggling? It hasn’t even been thirty minutes.”
“It’s haaard…”
Her nasal whine made me burst into low laughter. Feeling playful, I stayed perfectly still. In response, Yuria’s pressure intensified. “Heek… Hek…” She even vocalized her exhaustion, lifting her hips before dropping back down onto my waist with considerable force. She couldn’t openly complain, yet she wanted to express her discontent—so this was her coquettish way of throwing a tantrum.
I let out a soft chuckle and tapped her thigh, signaling her to get off. Her face lit up as she quickly clung to my side. I lay down properly and slid my arm behind her neck, offering it as a pillow.
“Where’s Sehwa?”
“She went to school.”
I gazed at Yuria. Sehwa attended university to stave off boredom, but Yuria had no such outlet. Since her corruption, she had nothing to do. Aside from the occasional human hunt, the house or the secret base were her only destinations.
“Not bored?”
“I’m… fine. But it would be really nice if you showed your face from time to time.”
“I’ve been neglecting you lately.”
“No… I’m truly okay.”
“What do you do when Sehwa returns?”
“I go out for drinks or wander around shopping. I collect human souls to build my strength too. Oh, last time we filmed a video together, and the response was really good.”
A video? And the response was good? Had they made a Twinkle account and posted themselves in a lesbian kiss?
“What kind of video?”
“Just a moment…”
Yuria neatly wiped her hands, picked up her phone, and opened the world’s largest video platform app. She then showed me a clip.
In the video, Sehwa and Yuria stood side by side wearing short hot pants and crop tops, swaying their hips in a dance. It was one of those currently trending memes where they struck various poses to an electronic beat. The view count was thirty million—an astonishing number for an upload from complete unknowns.
After watching it to the end, I let out an amused chuckle. Cute. They must have been incredibly bored.
I closed the video and handed the phone back to Yuria.
“It’s pretty.”
Her face brightened instantly. Beaming, she changed the subject.
“Oh, and the bow is finished, so I tried it… I really like it. The only shame is that I can’t generate arrows while hiding my magi. For now I still have the nanotube arrows from my Beast Slayer days, so there’s no immediate problem.”
“You could drop by the Magic Realm and test it out. You could see Meryl while you’re there.”
Yuria’s round eyes widened further.
“I-Is that really okay?”
“It’s fine. But you can’t bring her back. Meryl can’t conceal her magi, so if Adel notices, it could cause serious trouble.”
“Just meeting her and getting closer is enough. Thank you so much…”
“You probably want to rush over right away, but hold off this week.”
“Why this week…?”
“Depending on the Doctor’s condition, I’m thinking of calling both you and Sehwa to the lab.”
Yuria tilted her head. Wearing a meaningful smile, I bent the arm serving as her pillow and stroked her soft cheek.
At lunchtime, I met the Doctor at the appointed time and casually fed her a lie. I told her I had an overseas business trip.
“A business trip…?”
“Yeah. Looks like I’ll be gone three days or so. It came up suddenly. It’s a big chance to expand the company.”
“…..”
The Doctor made no effort to hide her displeasure. Arms crossed, she stared at me for a long moment before making an absurd suggestion.
“Can’t I come with you?”
“What… you want to tag along on a business trip?”
“I’ll behave. I just don’t want to be apart from you.”
“I promise I’ll come back as fast as I can.”
“I think I’m hearing voices again…”
“Voices?”
Schizophrenia symptoms must be emerging. There had been signs before, but today seemed to be when she truly felt them.
“In the car today, someone spoke to me.”
“Who?”
“E-Edward…”
“Your sister’s husband?”
“Ex-husband…”
Whoa. Ex-husband. She seemed fully prepared to let him go.
“Was it bad?”
“It happened before too… but back then they were short and disappeared quickly…? Today was different. It felt like an actual conversation. No, we did have a conversation.”
“Really…?”
“It got better soon after, but I felt like I was turning into someone else…”
If she was holding full conversations with auditory hallucinations, the symptoms were already severe. It was excellent news for me, but I needed to reassure her first.
“Let’s head home for now.”
“Home…? Don’t you still have work?”
“You’re clearly struggling. Let’s go home and have a proper meal.”
“I-I’d like that… but I feel so bad…”
Bad? Her face practically screamed she was overjoyed.
“Let’s stop by the hospital first, then go home. Sound good?”
“H-Hospital…?”
“Auditory hallucinations are a symptom of schizophrenia. This needs proper treatment. It’s a serious condition.”
“…..”
The Doctor suddenly looked terrified. I comforted her in the gentlest tone I could manage.
“Let’s get it checked at the psychiatric department. If the doctor confirms a positive diagnosis, I’ll stay right by your side even if it means postponing the trip.”
“Then… all right…”
After a lengthy consultation, the doctor gave the Doctor a positive schizophrenia diagnosis. No visual hallucinations, but severe auditory hallucinations and delusions that could develop into a serious case. Consistent outpatient treatment would be necessary.
I wrapped an arm around the tearful Doctor’s shoulders, collected the prescription, and paid the bill. After picking up the medication from the pharmacy, I coaxed her into the car. The moment she settled into the passenger seat, she bit her lip and stared at me. She was clearly fighting to hold back, but her expression suggested she might burst into sobs at any second.
In a pitiful voice, she asked, “What am I supposed to do…? It really was schizophrenia… They said there’s a risk of other personality disorders too… What if something terrible happens…?”
I said nothing and simply pulled her into a tight embrace. My hug seemed to calm her; her trembling gradually subsided.
When I released her, I offered a kind smile.
“Don’t worry too much.”
“How can I not worry…? I…”
“Didn’t you hear the doctor? It’s a disease caused by excessive dopamine secretion.”
“What does that…”
“Remember what you did when I was addicted to drugs?”
At the hint, the Doctor’s face brightened.
“The m-medical device… I put you inside and normalized your dopamine.”
“Exactly. Let’s stop by the lab now and get you treated.”
“Okay…”
“The prescribed medicine is a dopamine blocker. Don’t take it. If anything feels strange, go straight into the device and check. The medical device can handle the dopamine levels. Understand?”
“I understand…”
“My heart feels so heavy. It seems like this happened because of me.”
“D-Don’t say that… The doctor said so. Starting a passionate romance after being alone for so long also raises dopamine levels. My ex-husband’s influence must have been too strong… It’s all because of him.”
It was no exaggeration to say that, thanks to me, the Doctor had acquired not only schizophrenia but every Cluster C personality disorder—obsessive-compulsive, dependent, and avoidant. Depression was likely waiting in the wings as well. The groundwork to pin the cause on Edward Parsons had already been laid perfectly. Naming him as the trigger for her schizophrenia was proof enough. Excellent.
I gently massaged the back of her neck with light pressure, then softly stroked her chin and throat. The Doctor closed her eyes and gave a faint smile, like a dog enjoying being petted by its owner.
After caressing her for a while, I asked, “Did you order the ring?”
“Yes… They said it’ll take two days.”
“Good girl. Shall we head to the lab now?”
She looked up at me.
“You’re not going to leave me because you feel sorry, right? None of this is your fault.”
Leave? After I finish breaking Adeline, I plan to turn you into my subordinate as well, so don’t worry.
“I’ll stay with you forever.”
Moisture welled in the Doctor’s eyes. Overcome with emotion, she confessed.
“I only believe in you… I love you…”
You. A plain word, yet in this moment it sounded irresistibly seductive.
From now on, the Doctor would begin reshaping her entire value system to match mine. She would even smash her husband’s statue with her own hands. I pursed my lips slightly. She slowly leaned in, kissed me, then wiped my lips with her fingers.
“Lipstick got on them…”
“Too bad. I was going to eat it.”
At my teasing, she let out a small laugh. I smiled back at her, started the car, and drove toward the lab.
I sent the Doctor into the medical device to normalize the excessive dopamine and low serotonin throughout her brain. When she emerged complaining of dizziness, I rushed over to support her. I sat her down in the lounge, crouched in front of her, and asked.
“How do you feel?”
Pressing her forehead, she answered, “Dizzy… but it feels much better.”
“That’s a relief. I’ll cancel the business trip.”
“Is that really okay…?”
“You’re struggling right now. Can’t be helped.”
The Doctor lowered her head with a complicated expression. After a moment of deep thought, she looked at me with resolute eyes.
“You can go.”
“Why?”
“I’ve received treatment… and you won’t be gone long. While you’re away, I’ll focus on work. I should start building the Device’s frame.”
I took both her hands resting on her lap and interlaced our fingers, gazing at her with open affection.
“I’ll send a proxy. For the time being, I’ll stay with you.”
“…. Really?”
“Really. How could I leave my sick sister behind?”
“I’d be happy if you just called me…”
“Enough. Let’s just stay together. We’ll undergo treatment together too.”
“Thank you…”
“Still, overcoming a mental illness depends mostly on your own will. You know that, right?”
Your once-solid beliefs have begun to shake. Reshape them to fit me. Accept and obey everything I do. If you accept your changing personality as your true self, everything will become much easier.
“Yes…”
“Shall we head home? Today and tomorrow, rest well while we monitor your condition. Then we can start work on the Device.”
“All right. Oh, before that… wait a moment…”
The Doctor stood up and checked her physical state. Once she confirmed the dizziness had vanished, she hurried to the medical device and retrieved something. It was the test result sheet from earlier.
After examining it carefully, her face fell.
“What’s wrong?”
“The effects of the birth control pills I was taking have completely disappeared thanks to the device, but my fertile window won’t arrive until next week… And even if it does coincide with ovulation, there’s no guarantee I’ll get pregnant…”
Since I had canceled the trip and offered to stay by her side, her desire to have a child seemed to have grown stronger. Her love had fully ripened.
I would make her bear many children, so she needn’t worry. After impregnating all five Evil Valkyries and having them give birth to the Demon King’s offspring, I could create a demonic legion.
A legion born of blood… Not bad at all. I’d go with that plan.
With a bright smile, I told the Doctor, “Don’t think negatively. We just need to try together. I believe in you.”
My gentle tone made her face flush crimson. In a tiny, shy voice, she answered.
“I… believe in you too…”