Chapter 112: Invitation
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 112: Invitation
“…Master.”
“Ah, Miss Blaze.”
A week had already passed since Isaac Adler had abducted Mycrony Holmes, keeping her confined within his hideout.
“Good morning.”
“…Indeed.”
As was her custom, Silver Blaze entered Adler’s room dressed in her maid’s uniform to begin her daily routine, offering him a quiet greeting.
Swish, rub…
A moment later, she naturally took a seat beside Adler and began rubbing her soft cheek against his.
“…Miss Blaze, remind me again what this gesture signifies?”
“It is a demi-human’s morning greeting. For us, it is an essential part of the daily routine.”
“Is it truly…?”
“Yes, Master. It would be a grave problem if I neglected it.”
Adler, who had been passively accepting her persistent nuzzling, couldn’t help but ask with a skeptical expression. In response, Silver Blaze replied with a rare note of gravity in her tone.
“And what exactly would happen if you didn’t do it?”
“…I would be depressed and gloomy for the entire day.”
Under Adler’s probing gaze, she eventually mumbled her answer in a dejected tone, her ears slumping as her face clouded over with sudden melancholy.
“That certainly sounds serious.”
“…Hehe.”
Watching her adorable display, Adler let out a dry chuckle and offered his cheek to her once more. His silent permission prompted Silver Blaze to giggle softly, her tail wagging in pure delight.
Swish, swish…
The sound of skin brushing against skin echoed softly through the quiet room.
“Is burying your head in my hair and sniffing also a standard greeting among demi-humans, Miss Blaze?”
“…Ah, no.”
When Adler, still focused on the work at his desk, questioned her again, Silver Blaze finally lifted her head and responded in a sheepish voice.
“It’s just because I like you so much, Master…”
“………”
“And your scent is always so pleasant.”
At her candid confession, Adler turned his face away, a faint blush creeping up his neck as he tried his best to avoid her gaze.
“…Ah, that’s right, Master.”
Silver Blaze, unable to stop her ears from twitching at his shy demeanor, lightly slapped her own cheeks to snap out of her daze and spoke up again.
“Today is the scheduled day for your feeding.”
“…Ah.”
She timidly offered her snowy-white neck to her master.
“It is my turn this week, so please, use me without any reservations.”
“……….”
“I’ve also taken care of the fine hairs in advance. It’s better to be clean when being feasted upon by you, Master… Ugh.”
The moment Adler saw the delectable curve of her white nape, he was overcome by the urge to bite. He pressed his lips against Blaze’s neck, closing his eyes tightly.
“”………..””
A heavy silence filled the air.
“…Master. I’ve been thinking, wouldn’t it be better if I took over the feeding duties permanently?”
The familiar sensation of her strength being drained washed over her as Adler’s sharp fangs sank into her pale skin, causing her usually wagging tail to go stiff. Amidst the lightheadedness, Silver Blaze opened her eyes a fraction and began to whisper her thoughts.
“Princess Clay’s blood… even if you drink it, she just ends up sucking it back from you. In the end, it’s a zero-sum game with her.”
“……….”
“And Moran is too young. If you draw from her as you do from me, she’ll become anemic and frail.”
Silver Blaze spoke calmly, her argument unusually logical and precise for someone typically so naive.
“Master, I have plenty of stamina. Even if you take a large amount, I’ll be fine. So, I believe I am the most suitable choice…”
Drip…
“…Huh?”
However, Adler, who had been listening in silence, pulled his fangs back much earlier than usual. Confusion and a hint of panic fluttered in her eyes.
“This is enough for today,” Adler replied, his voice slightly colder than usual.
“…I-I’m sorry, Master.”
Sensing the chill in his tone, her complexion darkened instantly. She scrambled to her feet and then knelt at his boots, bowing her head like a shamed puppy.
“I dared to speak out of turn. I forgot my place. I am truly sorry…”
“It’s not that. I’m simply full.”
“From now on, I will be nothing more than a silent doll, existing only to provide you with blood, Master.”
“………”
“No, I’ll do anything you want… just please, don’t discard me…”
As her voice broke with a sob, Adler looked down at her and eventually let out a soft, enigmatic smile.
“…Are you truly willing to do anything I ask?”
“Yes?”
“What if I said I wanted your soul? Would you give it to me willingly?”
His eyes darkened as he posed the question. Silver Blaze’s reply came without a second of hesitation.
“Of course.”
“………”
“I will go quietly and end my life in an alleyway. Or, if you prefer, would you like to kill me yourself, Master?”
“…Aren’t you afraid of dying?”
Adler looked down at her with a perplexed expression. She hadn’t questioned him once, nor asked why he was suddenly treating her so harshly.
“I am only a tool to be used by my Master. Why should a tool fear its end?”
“…Hmm.”
When Silver Blaze tilted her head with a puzzled look of her own, Adler fell silent for a long moment.
“Well done.”
He reached out and began to stroke her head with genuine affection.
“As long as you maintain that attitude, there will be no problem with you serving me.”
“Oh… th-thank you…?”
“Now, you may leave.”
As he whispered in a kind voice, Silver Blaze stood up with a bewildered expression before bowing enthusiastically, a bright smile returning to her face.
“…Ah, right.”
Turning to leave as ordered, she suddenly remembered something and paused at the door.
“Lately, there has been a sweet scent coming from you, Master.”
“……..?”
“I wonder why? Moran and Princess Clay said you don’t have a scent at all…”
She murmured to herself, tilting her head in curiosity as she finally exited the room.
.
.
.
.
.
‘…A sweet scent?’
Even after Silver Blaze had gone, I remained puzzled by her parting words. I quietly sniffed the collar of my clothes.
“…….?”
I couldn’t detect anything particularly sweet.
Since becoming a vampire, my sense of smell had become incredibly sharp. There was no way I would miss something like that.
So, what was the identity of the scent she mentioned?
“Mycrony.”
After pondering for a while without an answer, I finally called out to her in a low voice.
“…Yes, Master.”
The her in question was none other than Mycrony Holmes, who had been silently kneeling beneath the desk since dawn, tending to my lower half.
“Do you know what this ‘scent’ Silver Blaze was referring to is?”
“…The smell, you mean?”
Initially, she had resisted, refusing to eat or drink, but it hadn't taken long to break her spirit. Now, she willingly wore the maid’s uniform and served me with absolute devotion.
After all, anyone in her position—subjected to sensations they had never experienced before, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week—would eventually succumb.
Even so, the "training" had been so successful that I was still somewhat dazed by how smoothly it had gone.
To think that the formidable Mycrony Holmes was now kneeling quietly under my desk, performing her duties for hours on end without making a single sound…
Perhaps I possessed a hidden, terrifying talent for breaking others.
“Usually, when a demi-human detects a sweet scent from a member of the opposite sex, it is a sign that they are about to enter their mating season.”
Regardless, there was one undeniable benefit to having subdued Mycrony Holmes.
“By the way, there are cases where entering the mating season completely flips a beastkin’s personality while their physical strength increases manifold. You should be careful, Master.”
“I see.”
And that benefit was… the fact that I no longer lacked for information.
“You’ve done well.”
Pat, stroke…
Just by stroking her cheeks or her belly, I gained unlimited access to a living encyclopedia that would autonomously analyze and organize information from across all of Britain.
｢Even if I told you about it back then, you’d just forget it like usual and get devoured in the end anyway.｣
“…So, when will the information I requested be ready?”
I ignored the system’s grumbling message as inconsequential and pressed her for an answer. I hadn't gone through the trouble of training her just to learn about demi-human biology; I needed her perfect insight to overcome the current stalemate in my progress.
“I was just about to report on that.”
Mycrony Holmes pressed her cheek against my leg and began to whisper in a soft, melodic voice.
｢Did I say something wrong?｣
“What you need right now is only one thing.”
For a moment, I had the strange feeling she was talking to the system floating next to me rather than to me. However, I quickly dismissed the thought. That would be impossible, even for her.
“You must face your true identity and the hidden truths of this world.”
“……..”
“By confronting them, you will find the answers that lead to the solution you desire.”
“And where do I go to confront this truth?”
As I listened, Mycrony Holmes silently handed me a slip of paper, her eyes shimmering in the dim light under the desk.
“…You need to go to this address.”
“This place is…”
The address written on the paper was one I knew all too well.
“It seems you are already familiar with it?”
“……..”
“…Hehe.”
To be precise, as a fan of the Sherlock Holmes series, there was no way I wouldn't recognize this location.
.
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.
A few days later…
“……….”
A brief letter containing a single sentence arrived at the worn-out boarding house at 221B Baker Street, where Charlotte Holmes and Watson resided. An identical letter reached the London Metropolitan Police Station, addressed to Gia Lestrade.
A new mystery is upon us. Meet me at the Baskerville estate. — Isaac Adler.
The short postscript written below led the three women toward an event more bizarre and harrowing than anything they had encountered in their lives.