Chapter 244: The Adventure of the Empty House (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 244: The Adventure of the Empty House (3)
A full day had already passed since my tearful reunion with my loyal subordinates.
“…Hey, listen, girls. I admit I’ve got a bit of a shady track record, and some of that is definitely on me.”
Currently, I was lying on a bed in a hideout I didn’t recognize.
“But don’t you think this is a bit much?”
To my left, Princess Clay had her arm firmly entwined with mine; to my right, Silver Blaze was doing the exact same thing.
“Come on, say something, will you?”
To any outsider, this might have looked like an enviable scene—being flanked by two beautiful women. To me, however, it was nothing short of misery.
Why? Because this had been going on for over twenty-four hours.
At one point, I’d tried to excuse myself to use the bathroom, thinking I could catch my breath for a moment. But no—they simply linked arms and followed me right inside.
“”……..””
They stared at me from either side, their gazes dull, heavy, and unrelenting.
“No, seriously, I’m about to get a cramp… Could you please, just for ten minutes, let me—”
“…Planning to run off again?”
I was practically begging, my arms feeling like they were about to fall off, but Princess Clay’s icy voice immediately shut me up.
“Uh… Princess Clay. You see, I’ve actually become human now.”
“…What?”
“…So, I can’t give you any more of my blood.”
As silence filled the room, I cautiously revealed the truth. Her gaze turned slightly vacant as she processed the information.
“I mean… well… the reason you followed me in the first place was because I was a True Vampire, right?”
“…….”
“So now that I’ve lost my powers and become just an ordinary human… there’s really no reason for you to, you know, cling to me or feel atta—”
Before I could finish, the air was knocked out of me. My eyes widened in shock.
- Chuu…
“……!?”
Princess Clay grabbed my cheeks, and before I knew it, her tongue was in my mouth, exploring and tangling with mine.
What the…? Was this some new form of blood-sucking?
Yet, it didn’t feel like that. She wasn’t biting my tongue with her fangs, nor was she aiming for my neck or shoulder—places where she could easily draw blood if that’s what she wanted.
There was absolutely no reason for her to be doing this in such a… peculiar way.
“…Pwah.”
While I was left bewildered and utterly confused, she pulled back. Her breath was hot against my skin, and her face was flushed crimson as she stared directly into my eyes.
“W-What was that just now…?”
“…Ugh, haaah~”
“Princess Clay?”
She avoided my gaze, hastily wiping the bridge of saliva connecting our lips with her sleeve.
“By now… surely you must have realized.”
“…Huh?”
Her words left me dumbfounded. My mind went blank; I couldn't even muster a response.
“I like you, you bumbling fool!!”
“Uh…”
Wait… Princess Clay was a tsundere? For real?
That haughty, elitist, scheming woman? No way. That couldn't be right.
It felt like my very understanding of reality was crumbling.
“In the end… in the end, you made me say it out loud… Are you satisfied now?”
“No, it’s not that… I didn’t real—”
“Shut the hell up!”
With tears welling in her eyes and her face glowing red, she muttered those words. I tried to stammer out an excuse, but her sharp retort instantly cut me off.
- Crack!
“Argh…”
A second later, her sharp fangs sank into my neck.
“P-Princess Clay…?”
“…You said you’ve turned human, didn’t you?”
“Y-Yeah, but…”
“Then I’ll just turn you back into a vampire.”
“Excuse me?”
Startled, I instinctively pushed her away. She stared at me intently, her voice trembling slightly as she whispered.
“You see… humans die so easily.”
“……”
“…If we’re going to live together for a few hundred years, turning you into a vampire is the only logical solution.”
My brain momentarily short-circuited, leaving me with a dazed expression. She buried her face back into my neck, her voice soft.
“I-I’ve chosen you as my mate… so just accept it.”
As she opened her mouth wide again, I quickly blurted out.
“…I, I don’t want to.”
“……!”
She froze, her fangs just shy of piercing my skin, and stared at me with a bewildered expression.
“You… you don’t want me?”
“No, it’s not that…”
“…I-I’m sorry. I was wrong.”
Then, with a trembling voice on the verge of tears, she began to plead.
“I-I’ll work on my tone… and my attitude… I’ll try to change… I promise.”
“…….”
“I-I’ll even relinquish my authority… no, if you want, I’ll give it all to you… Please? I promise I’ll do better…”
The sight of her like this was so unlike the Princess Clay I knew that I felt like I was having an existential crisis.
“…I think you’re misunderstanding something. It’s not that I dislike you, Princess Clay.”
“T-Then?”
“I just don’t want to become a vampire…”
Unable to bring myself to say I didn't like her, I gave a vague response. She blinked a few times, processing my words.
“B-But… then… we can’t stay together forever.”
“…We’ll just have to find another way.”
“R-Really…?”
When I said that, her flustered face turned an even deeper shade of crimson.
“…Fo-Forget everything I just said.”
Finally, she buried her burning face into my chest, murmuring in a voice so faint it was almost inaudible. She must have just realized exactly what she’d been blabbing out loud.
“I never realized Princess Clay could be this adorable.”
“I said forget ittttttt…”
“…Haha.”
Awkwardly smiling, I lightly patted her back. She had become unexpectedly cute in the two years I hadn’t seen her.
- Ssssshhhh…
“…Huh!?”
Suddenly, a suffocating wave of murderous intent emanated from behind me. Cold sweat trickled down my spine as I cautiously turned my head.
“………”
Silver Blaze was glaring at me with an icy expression I’d never seen on her before.
“Uh, well…”
“……..”
“I mean, um…”
For the first time, I felt a genuine threat to my life from the usually sweet and adorable Blaze. Desperately searching for a way to fix this, I tried to gauge her mood.
“…I’m sorry?”
I carefully pulled the neglected Blaze into my arms, attempting to console her.
“…….”
However, Blaze—who usually wagged her tail frantically at the slightest touch—merely stared at me coldly, her tail limp.
- Smooch…
“…S-Sorry.”
As the tension thickened, I planted a kiss on her cheek and offered another apology.
“………”
Yet, for some reason, her gaze only grew darker.
…Screw it, whatever happens, happens.
With resignation washing over me, I closed my eyes and leaned in, pressing my lips against hers.
- Chuuu…
Mimicking what Princess Clay had done earlier, I slid my tongue between Blaze’s lips.
“”………””
I had no idea how much time passed as I nervously moved my tongue, half-expecting it to be bitten off at any moment. Finally, I pulled back, wiping away the trail of saliva with my sleeve.
“…Hehe.”
“Haah…”
At last, Blaze’s tail began to wag happily, her face lighting up with a radiant smile. I let out a quiet sigh of relief.
“Master’s saliva… it tastes better than carrots.”
- Lick…
“…I want even more of it from now on.”
Blaze leaned in, licking my lips and whispering with narrowed, predatory eyes.
- Gooooooooooo…!
“……!?”
At that precise moment, another wave of intense, suffocating malice hit me from behind.
“…….”
“…Oh.”
Princess Clay, who had been momentarily neglected while I dealt with Blaze, was now glaring at me with a frosty expression. Her aura was downright chilling.
…Is this purgatory?
I finally realized I was trapped in an endless cycle of torment, but by then, it was far too late to escape.
.
.
.
How much time had passed? I wasn't sure anymore.
- Shhhhh…
“Girls, I’m sorry…”
For what felt like the hundredth time, I turned my weary gaze back toward Silver Blaze. My shirt was rumpled, my trousers were askew, and my face looked utterly hollow.
“That’s enough, both of you.”
“…….!?”
A sudden, chilling voice from the doorway made me flinch.
“I doubt I assigned you to him so you could do… this.”
Standing at the door, Celestia Moran’s cold expression radiated an ominous aura.
“…Who do you think you are, brat?”
“Grrrrrrr…”
Princess Clay and Blaze, who had been clinging to me, began to growl fiercely at her.
“…Oh? Would you like me to put you back in your place?”
“”………””
“I’m ready whenever you are.”
As Moran stepped forward, her eyes gleaming with a chilling light, the two flinched and fell into a tense silence.
“From now on, I’ll be the one managing the Master… You two, get outside and stand guard.”
“”…….””
“Did you not hear me?”
Moran’s voice dropped dangerously low as she threw open the door and pointed outside.
“…I said get out.”
A few seconds later, the two women reluctantly stood. They glared at Moran with thinly veiled disdain before finally exiting the room.
“Just you wait… brat.”
“…Grrrrr.”
Moran paid them no mind, her gaze fixed solely on me.
“…Master~”
As soon as the door shut, her cold expression melted away. She dashed to my side with an innocent twinkle in her eyes.
“Do it to me too!”
“…Huh?”
“You know, what you were just doing to those girls.”
Her face lit up with expectation as she closed her eyes, waiting.
“Uh…”
Scratching my head awkwardly, I hesitated before leaning down…
- Smooch…
…And gave her a small kiss on the cheek.
“”………..””
A heavy silence fell over the room.
“…What?”
Breaking the quiet, Moran tilted her head. Her cold expression slipped through for a moment as she stared at me with piercing eyes.
“What was that supposed to be, Master?”
“…I-I just did what I was doing earlier…”
“No, no, no. That’s not what I meant, Master.”
Her tone shifted into mock laughter, but her gaze carried an edge that sent cold sweat trickling down my back. I stammered nervously.
“W-Well… you’re…”
“I’m what?”
“You’re a… a kid.”
The moment those words left my mouth, the innocent smile on Moran’s face vanished without a trace.
“Me?”
“You’re, uh, fourteen years old…”
“And?”
“I mean… um… uh…”
Caught in an explosive moment, I desperately scrambled for a way out.
…There’s only one option left.
Deciding to lean on what remained of her youthful innocence, I resorted to my final move.
“…Ack!?”
“…….!?”
Even though I’d lost my vampire powers and was now an ordinary human, I still had one talent left.
“Kulluk, kullu…!”
“Master…?!”
That talent was acting.
.
.
.
[What are you, a lizard that cuts off its own tail?]
…Shh.
Ignoring the system’s judgmental message, I continued to roll around on the bed.
“If this keeps up, I’m going to die… Ugh…”
“…….Ah, ahhh.”
I cautiously tested the waters, glancing at Moran for a reaction as I tried to spout a convincing line to escape the situation.
“No, no, no, no, no, no, no…”
“……?”
“Haa, ugh… Ughhhh…”
But within seconds, Moran spiraled into a total panic. She clutched her head, pulling at her hair, and began to hyperventilate. I froze, my act coming to an abrupt halt as I stared at her in shock.
“If—if you die… you can’t die, you can’t die, you can’t die…”
“…Uh, um.”
“I’m sorry, I’msorryi’msorrysorryorry…”
It seemed I had unintentionally triggered one of her deep-seated traumas.
“D-Don’t die, please don’t die, don’t die, don’t die, I’m begging you…”
[Wow, you’re utter trash.]
“…This isn’t how it was supposed to go.”
.
.
.
“Hmm…”
Meanwhile, in the Professor’s office.
“…So, communication has been cut off.”
The Professor, who had been calmly awaiting Moran’s report of a successful operation, finally ended the silent, unanswered call and rose from her seat.
“Something’s not right.”
Just like Charlotte, she realized in that moment that something unusual had occurred.
“…Kyaa!”
“Ba-ba!”
“Oh dear, are you hungry?”
However, thanks to her maternal instincts kicking in shortly after, it would be quite some time before she actually took any action.