Chapter 190
Chapter 190
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 190
Chapter Title: The Meaning of Life 2
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"...Can we win?"
A half-joking remark tossed out in this desperate situation.
But Dang Ayoung's response was enough to make me doubt my own ears.
"...What?"
"That thing will target me first since I'm even a little more threatening than you, who has no abilities at all... While I'm holding it off, if you zigzag your way out, it won't be able to chase you."
"Ah, no... That's not the issue."
I'm not asking whether I can escape or not.
"Then what about you...?"
"..."
"You can come back alive, right...?"
-Grip
Dang Ayoung couldn't easily open her mouth.
...What did this woman just say?
"You're saying you'll die in my place so at least I can live...?"
"..."
"You think I'd be happy surviving like that...!"
"Oh my~ Who are you two? Trying to pass through up ahead?"
-Flinch!
The heat rising to my head instantly cooled at the voice coming from behind me.
It was a voice I'd never heard before, but instinct told me exactly what kind of person its owner was.
"...Vampire?"
"Huh? How'd you know that name? People usually call us bloodsuckers or whatever. The pronunciation's pretty good, though?"
Dang Ayoung and I turned our heads toward the source of the voice together. There, hovering in the air, was a woman with red eyes and black bat wings looking down at us.
She was blatantly advertising 'I'm not human~', but no one here could call her out on it.
In this village turned into a total mess, the vampires were the ones holding the humans' lives in their hands.
'...We can't win this.'
I'm no expert in combat, but it was obvious our chances of victory were hovering near zero percent.
The bloodsucker over there wielding sword aura already required Dang Ayoung to risk her life just to buy time, and now a vampire had shown up too. There was no way we could win.
"..."
Dang Ayoung seemed to realize it too, her expression gradually filling with despair, when
"Why the long faces? Who said anything about killing you?"
""?""
The vampire said something completely unexpected.
"...You're not going to kill us?"
"Well... The mission was to kill humans on sight, but letting two slip doesn't really matter. Our kind are all pretty my-way-or-the-highway types anyway—personal fun comes first no matter what anyone says."
"Then..."
"Ah, first off, you—the short one in the cloak. Take off your hood. My sister got done in by someone with a similar cloak, so even though it's probably not you, I'm feeling petty and wanna check."
"..."
Come to think of it, this cloak belonged to a hero who fought undead.
Showing my face in public had always been a bit iffy, but with death hanging over us, who cared about that? I pulled down my hood.
-Rustle
"What do you know, you're pretty. Why hide a face like that? Such a waste."
'...What?'
Based on my experiences with women who'd seen my bare face, I'd been bracing for trouble, but her reaction was different from what I'd expected.
Calling me pretty, and referring to herself as 'sister' earlier...
'...Does she think I'm a girl?'
I had a feeling she was under that misconception.
It wasn't an unlikely hypothesis.
With my small frame and delicate features, if I claimed to be a girl anywhere, people might actually buy it.
"Hey, you two. What's your relationship? Sisters? Friends? Not mother and daughter, I hope... She told you to run alone, so you must be pretty close."
And her next words confirmed it.
This vampire thought I was a girl.
It bruised my pride a little, but it wasn't a bad thing.
If she found out I was a guy, it could lead to unnecessary hassle.
Based on my experiences so far, being mistaken for a girl was actually more stable in this situation.
As long as her tastes weren't unusual, anyway.
-Glance
Dang Ayoung seemed to pick up on the misunderstanding too and calmly responded to her.
"Friends. She was staying at my place due to some circumstances, and then suddenly everything outside turned into this mess..."
"Ah, that explains why you smell kinda similar. Roommates, huh? Makes sense. You'd share the same shampoo."
"...Pardon?"
"Oh, no shampoo in this world, huh?"
...This vampire seemed like quite the chatterbox.
Fortunately, the bloodsucker who'd approached her side showed no particular movement—maybe under her control—but who knew when it might act.
If she wanted, she could send both of us to the afterlife in an instant, so I hoped her chit-chat would drag on.
"Oh, right. Look at me, rambling and scaring you kids. You were probably thinking, 'So, is this bitch gonna let us live or not?'"
"N-No, it's fine. That could happen."
"Aww, you're so sweet on top of being cute. They say pretty girls live up to their looks."
"Ah... Haha..."
Even if that's what we were thinking, how many people would say it outright?
It was obvious your head would roll if you did.
"Anyway, bottom line: I feel like letting you live. But you know, when someone gives you something, you gotta give back, right? That's the deal with trades, yeah?"
"Y-Yeah?"
"Yep. So... Wanna try being a vampire?"
It took a fair bit of time to process her words from my ears to my brain and convert them into understandable language.
And once I grasped the meaning...
"...Pardon?"
I ended up blurting out something stupid without thinking.
"Why not? It looks scary at first, but tons of perks. Eat as much as you want, no weight gain; easy skincare; no aging; extended lifespan. Just follow sister around and help with what I ask. I'll even make you a full-blooded vampire as a special favor."
"????"
"Ah, you do have to die once, but don't worry about that. I've got like thirteen painless death spells. Close your eyes, open them, and boom—new life. Then just help with research for about 200 years..."
That was when Dang Ayoung moved.
-Stab!
"You crazy bitch, who the hell are you dragging off to kill...!"
She'd been watching for an opening ever since the vampire approached and started talking.
She figured these people plotting the Central Plains' downfall wouldn't just let them go easily, and they'd make some outrageous demand.
And sure enough,
Mistaking him for a woman was unexpected, but once she revealed her intent to take him, kill him, and do as she pleased, negotiation was pointless.
With her distracted by him, ignoring Dang Ayoung completely, it was the perfect ambush opportunity—or so she thought...
"...Ow."
"?!"
She couldn't help but be shocked at the vampire casually speaking even after her dagger pierced clean through the back of her head.
"This dagger looks exactly like one I saw before... What are you two, anyway?"
"..."
-Grip
"Whatever... I was only interested in her anyway. Not you. Useless big-titted bitch. Kill her."
Dang Ayoung tried to pull back, gripping the dagger embedded in the vampire's head to retrieve it, but the bloodsucker moved faster.
-Boom!
"Gahk!"
It was an arm swing enhanced by bloodsucker transformation and wrapped in qi energy.
Dang Ayoung flew across to the opposite wall in an instant, collapsing and vomiting blood, showing just how powerful the blow had been.
"Soyoung!!!"
"Eek, gross. Don't look at that. Not a pretty sight for a pure girl like you. Close your eyes tight."
"L-Let go, you crazy bitch!! Let go!!!!"
"Where'd you learn such naughty words? Did she teach you?"
I struggled, flailing my arm caught by the vampire, but the restraint showed no sign of loosening.
She was stronger than she looked, but more than that, I was just too weak.
A frail body that couldn't even budge against a simple grab from a girl.
'Shop window!! Shop window!!!!!'
'Heaven and earth, you damn bitch!!! I cursed, so hurry up and smite her!! Drop lightning now!!'
'Saintess?! Saintess?! Why no reply?! Saintess?!'
In the end, even in this situation, all I could do was mentally beg someone else for help.
"Guhk... Hack..."
-Step... Step...
'Please...! Anyone, please...!'
Squeezing out every ounce of my usually nonexistent faith as I watched Dang Ayoung, too gravely injured to even move, just twitching on the ground.
And at that moment
A single ray of light pierced the despair filling my vision.
'S-Saintess!! I've got a decent amount of points! Anything useful right now? If not, Dang Ayoung's...!'
'We don't have time for that?!'
The bloodsucker was already heading for the fallen Dang Ayoung, sword aura flaring on its blade.
There was no time for searching.
'D-Do you have any good ideas? Like something that activates automatically...'
'What is it?'
'Y-Yes, do that.'
I didn't care if it used up all my points.
Saving Dang Ayoung was the top priority right now.
'What is it?'
Having a saintess descend into my body wouldn't be simple.
I steeled myself to do whatever prep she needed before she arrived.
The moment I heard those words, my heart sank.