Chapter 72
Chapter 72
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: Doubts
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The store manager hid away, tending to the magic circle while keeping a constant eye out for an opening.
Preparations were nearly complete. All that was left was to spot the chance and activate it.
The biggest problem right now was that those guys were avoiding the magic circle.
In its hastily modified state, no matter how much she adjusted it, there was no way to completely hide the brief flash of light from the outside world during activation.
In the end, the light from the magic circle was bound to be exposed for just a split second...
'...They won't dodge it, right?'
It was a moment less than a second long.
For most people, reacting the instant they saw the light and escaping the area would be impossible. But these were swordsmen who had honed their bodies.
She couldn't afford to be complacent.
If they spotted the light, sensed something suspicious, and slipped out of range...
[Was that strange trick just now your doing?]
[Ah, no, that's not...]
[I won't hear any excuses.]
'...It'd be goodbye to this world right then.'
She wasn't afraid of death.
She was doing this because she wanted to devour that man at least once before then.
She'd already staked her life—what more was there to fear?
"You keep your eyes peeled too. The chance will come for sure."
"Yes."
Her heart—which normally didn't even beat—was pounding so hard from the tension it felt like it might burst.
Staring wide-eyed at the two women smashing up her shop...
-Slash!
'Got it! Now's the chance!'
The disciple's leg was severed, and she collapsed to the floor.
She still seemed awkward handling her vampire powers. Before she got the hang of regenerating her leg, they had to hurry and send her far away.
"It's good! Assistant manager! Now!"
"Yes!"
At her signal, the assistant manager initiated the spell.
The magic circle, invisible to everyone else's eyes, took shape, encompassing the two women who were the root of this chaos...
"W-Wait a second! Why's that guy in there too?!"
The fallen man was also inside the magic circle's range.
She startled and scolded the assistant manager, but his response left her strength draining away.
"Pardon? Weren't we sending them together? Aren't they a group?"
Come to think of it, she hadn't said to exclude that man.
The assistant manager must have assumed they were all traveling together and planned to send the trio as one.
'Oh no! If we send him off from here, how will we ever find him...!'
She had already sabotaged the arrival coordinates formula, so even they didn't know where the targets would end up.
It was a wide-range random teleportation spell now—one that could drop them nearby or fling them to another region entirely.
"Qu-Quick, cancel it!"
"What are you saying? How do you cancel it at this stage?!"
"This means that guy goes with them too?!"
"So? What's the problem with that?!"
As she argued with the assistant manager, the spell continued to complete itself.
She had controlled the energy meticulously, so no one else would notice.
But with the spell already in motion, stopping it was a pipe dream.
'Wh-What do I do? Do I just let them slip away like this?'
While she stamped her feet helplessly, an unbelievable sight met her eyes.
-Roll
The fallen man had rolled a full turn, slipping out of the magic circle's range.
For a moment, she wondered if energy had leaked, but no, that wasn't it.
"You... You're no different from me... You say my love is twisted, but in my eyes, you're the same."
The two women, who should have been more sensitive to energy, were too busy with each other.
'I don't know what that was, but thanks!'
It could only be chalked up to coincidence.
Thinking the heavens were on her side, she pushed harder to complete the circle.
Moments later, the magic circle finished without issue and activated, emitting a brilliant light.
"What is this?!"
Along with the master's startled expression, a harsh metallic screech rang out amid the blinding light.
The sound of something being cleaved by a sword.
'...No way.'
No matter how strong they were, there was no way swinging a sword in that instant could damage the magic circle.
That's what she thought.
She desperately wanted to believe it.
-Shoooo
The light faded soon after, revealing the spot where the magic circle had been.
And the result was...
"It... It worked!!"
"Success!"
It had worked.
The two women were gone.
"Wh-Where's the man?!"
Confirming the women had vanished, she rushed to where the man had been.
She worried he might have been caught in the circle or injured by the fight's aftermath.
If he was badly hurt, devouring him right away would be tricky.
No matter that he was a vampire, she wasn't evil enough to assault someone on the brink of death.
Fortunately, he looked fine on the surface.
"Ahh... Good... Customer... Are you hurt anywhe..."
She let out a sigh of relief and reached out to him.
-Smack
"...?"
He brushed her hand away with an oddly indifferent gesture.
For a moment, she was so stunned she couldn't process what had just happened.
But as time passed and her brain caught up...
'He just swatted my hand away?'
Realizing that, annoyance bubbled up into anger.
What right did this future sex slave—to be thoroughly ravaged later—have to act so brazen?
She needed to make him realize his place.
-Gulp
Forcing down the saliva pooling in her mouth, she prepared a mind control spell.
First, she'd ask how to remove that weird cloak.
As she reached for his head again...
-Smack
-Crack
She confirmed him boldly swatting her hand away once more.
Frowning, she spoke up.
"Customer. I'm not trying to harm you—I'm just checking if you're injured. Could you let me touch you for a moment?"
"..."
"...Customer. If you keep being this uncooperative, I'll have to use force?"
"...5... 4..."
The man suddenly started counting down numbers she hadn't asked for.
"...Customer? What are you doing?"
"3..."
"Ha. You think counting down a few numbers changes anything? Those women who could protect you are long gone, far away."
"2..."
He ignored her completely, counting in a flat voice.
The situation felt off.
'...Was his voice always like this?'
Just moments ago, he'd been so drunk his tongue was slurring and he could barely move. But now, his counting was crisp and clear.
Cold, indifferent, almost mechanical.
Just counting meaningless numbers, yet it felt dissonant somehow.
Like he'd become a different person.
'Did the alcohol wear off that fast...?'
Since she'd met him after he was wasted, she'd never heard his sober voice.
"1..."
"Customer...? So what does that countdown even..."
"Done."
With that, he flopped down flat.
More like his body went limp and he toppled backward, but that hardly mattered.
'...Huh?'
She was filled with immense confusion right now.
What the hell was going on?
The fish she'd thought was hooked was acting bizarre.
The most likely explanation was that he'd drunk too much and lost his mind again.
"Ha... Fine. Whatever. Just drag him to bed like this..."
She decided to strip the cloak later, carry him to bed first, and figure it out then. As she reached to lift him...
"...What are you doing?"
-Chill
A voice that shouldn't have been heard rang out here.
"Master. Where did you learn all this stuff?"
I fiddled with the bead she usually cherished, speaking to my master as she lay on the floor.
"What do you mean by 'all this'?"
"Everything. Reading the heavens, your own martial prowess in hunting beasts every time, spells to handle fire, talismans, and so on... You seem to know a ton of skills."
"Skills, hm..."
Every breath she took made those two massive mounds rise and fall, drawing the eye—but that was old news now.
It wasn't a fresh sight anymore; the thrill had worn off.
"You pick up all sorts of miscellaneous skills naturally when you've lived a long time."
"Have you lived that long, Master? Just how long have you been around?"
"Didn't I teach you it's rude to ask a woman's age?"
"Then stop acting so old."
"...Tch. Tonight..."
"What was that?"
"Nothing."
After this brief rest, it was time to clean the house.
"Master. Has something been up with your hair lately?"
"Pfft!"
"I've been seeing golden fur around a lot, and the only place it could come from in our house is your head."
For some reason, the next day I was so drained I couldn't even get out of bed.
But thankfully, Master brought back game, so I recovered quickly.