Chapter 183: The Blood-Soaked Nun (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 183: The Blood-Soaked Nun (1)
Elize fixed her gaze on the ring.
An accessory that looked quite expensive, even at a glance.
Do people normally give rings to slaves?
She had occasionally seen people who took good care of their slaves, but she had never heard of anyone giving them such a precious piece of jewelry.
A proposal?
That was exactly what it looked like to Elize.
After all, that was usually what a ring given to the opposite sex signified.
“I know I’m beautiful, but isn’t this a bit too soon? We still know nothing about each other.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Isn’t this a proposal?”
“Why would I propose when we’ve only just met?”
“So you didn’t fall in love at first sight?”
“You’re quite the narcissist.”
Karami couldn’t help but let out a dry laugh at Elize’s confident narcissism.
“You were worried about your bloodthirst. This is the answer.”
The crimson jewel.
It was an item he could receive from the Bryan family after fully liberating Narsha Bryan. Having the jewel crafted would produce the Crimson Ring.
It was a unique accessory with various abilities that would be useful to anyone, but there was one character with whom it was particularly synergistic: Elize.
When Elize wore the Crimson Ring, it greatly helped suppress a vampire’s bloodthirst.
It wasn’t an essential item obtainable through the main story, but having it would make things proceed much more smoothly, so he had asked Thorvar to craft it in advance.
“If that’s the case…”
“There’s a condition.”
So this is the real reason.
Of course, he wouldn’t just give away something like this for free.
“What is it?”
“Your form of address.”
“Pardon?”
“Let’s sort out what you call me. I’m your master, in name at least, so calling me ‘you’ is a bit off, don’t you think?”
What kind of nonsense is this? she wondered.
It wasn’t a difficult request, and he was right, considering their master-slave relationship. But for some reason, the thought of calling Karami ‘Master’ made her feel a sense of resistance.
It felt like her whole body was cringing.
Elize, her mind racing, came up with a suitable alternative.
“Very well. Master.”
It was a title that meant largely the same thing and would satisfy Karami’s request. In reality, it was Elize’s own little power play, a way of saying she wouldn’t do exactly as he wanted.
“Excellent. ‘Master.’ It has a nice ring to it.”
Contrary to her expectations, Karami beamed.
He looked so pleased that she couldn’t shake the feeling she’d been tricked. Probably.
Karami handed her the box containing the ring.
“Try it on.”
It was an elegant ring that wouldn’t look out of place on a royal. For Elize, who had once swindled people out of their gold coins, it was a rather tempting object.
But Elize didn’t take the ring.
Karami tilted his head.
“What’s wrong?”
“Even if it’s not a proposal, telling a woman to put on her own ring… You’re not as smooth as I thought.”
Elize pressed her index finger into her chin, her eyes narrowing into a mischievous, devilish smile.
She wouldn’t miss this rare opportunity to go on the offensive.
“My mistake. Allow me to put it on for you.”
Karami slipped the ring onto Elize’s left index finger.
Elize stared blankly at the ring on her hand.
This is quite…
She had thought it was a beautiful ring at first glance, but wearing it felt different. It felt good, as if it had been made just for her.
“How is it?”
“I was skeptical at first, but now I’m sure. The urge has lessened.”
And it wasn’t just her imagination; it was truly effective.
With this, she would have no problem suppressing her bloodthirst, even without fresh milk.
And I don’t feel anything strange about it.
Even if it had been a cursed item, she would have had to wear it if he’d commanded her to, but thankfully, that wasn’t the case. This only made her more curious about his true intentions.
“Thank you. I’ll make good use of it.”
“A master’s love for his slave is only natural.”
His attitude and words made him sound like the kindest person in the world, but Elize was no fool.
There was no such thing as a selfless good person in this world.
Not even among those who believed in God.
“I should get going. It’s not good to be away for too long.”
“You can come visit anytime you’re bored.”
Elize nodded.
She opened the window, preparing to fly back to the convent the same way she came. Karami watched her intently, his eyes filled with expectation.
Elize spoke with a hint of reluctance.
“Have a good night. …Master.”
Only then did Karami break into a wide smile.
“Yes. You too, Elize.”
*
After Elize left, I sat alone, sipping the remaining alcohol.
Including what Elize had left behind.
This stuff is expensive.
I licked the glass clean, not leaving a single drop.
My appetizer was the farewell Elize had just given me.
-Have a good night, Master.♡
“Kyah~”
I might have embellished it a little, but only a tiny bit. In any case, I had succeeded in getting Elize to call me ‘Master’.
‘Juin-nim’ was nice, but sometimes you just want to hear a little variation.
More importantly, is it about time?
[Vampire Elize ver.■■■■■■]
It was obvious at a glance that she was different from the previous slaves.
With the others, I could get a rough idea of how their stories would unfold just by looking at their titles, but Elize was a different case.
That was because Elize’s route changed with every playthrough. The nature of the shackles that bound her was different each time.
That was the meaning of the ‘ver.■■■■■■’ attached to her name. Just like in the game, the information was hidden until I figured out her identity.
The player had to find clues in Elize’s behavior to discover her motif. Only by responding appropriately could she be fully liberated.
The scope of these motifs was classic literature.
There were over a dozen routes.
Some were fairy tales, others were novels.
Elize was, by far, the slave with the highest failure rate.
Of course, I had a cheat sheet, but I couldn’t afford to be careless. There were too many ambiguities. I couldn’t miss a single detail.
First off, she’s definitely not the Little Match Girl, so I can rule that out.
If this were the Little Match Girl version of Elize, we would have met in the Holy Kingdom, not Harlem. And a normal nun would have been at the auction, not Elize.
In that route, Elize would have approached me first upon entering the Holy Kingdom.
Instead of “Buy my matches~,” it would have been something like, “Join the Church~.”
So, I knew for certain she wasn’t the Little Match Girl, but that was all I knew. Elize hadn’t taken any action yet.
While I had proactively led the other girls down the path to liberation, Elize would move on her own.
The trigger was the suppression of her bloodthirst.
Starting right now.
Elize was about to make her move.
*
The nuns of Kassilon were competent.
Their movements were as refined as a ritual, and every minor action was elegant and perfect, as befitting those raised in a world where not a single mistake was tolerated.
They were on a different level from the common nuns one could see anywhere on the continent.
They were living rules, living traditions.
They were overflowing with pride. Although they believed there were no ranks in faith, they lived with the subconscious belief that they were superior.
To them, Elize’s presence was not entirely welcome.
Elize was certainly skilled, but she was undeniably an outsider. Her competence only served to stimulate the other nuns’ jealousy.
Since they had all grown up in the same convent from childhood, their rejection of her was even stronger.
Elize was an invasive species that had joined their flock.
“Look at that. A nun with a ring. What if she scratches the children?”
“How greedy. If she loves jewels so much, she should just quit being a nun. I guess they don’t say anything about such luxuries in the countryside, do they?”
“And what’s with her pale face? She’s caked in powder.”
“If it weren’t for Father Lucas, they never would have accepted a woman like her.”
The nuns whispered among themselves as they watched Elize sweep the courtyard.
Elize didn’t even pretend to listen.
She wasn’t so weak-willed as to be shaken by such trivial chatter. In fact, listening to Karami’s teasing was a hundred times more agonizing.
That man’s words are irritating in a way I can’t explain.
It was something beyond his tone or way of speaking. Even if she tried not to listen, his words pierced right through her eardrums.
Was he using some kind of magic?
He doesn’t seem like a mage.
Besides, if it were magic, she would have noticed.
It was an incomprehensible mystery.
Like a miracle from God.
That man, a god?
Impossible, of course.
“Ouch!”
A faint cry shattered Elize’s unshakable thoughts.
A young girl who had been running around the courtyard had tripped on a stone step and fallen.
She was a novice nun wearing a tiny habit.
“Tana! I told you not to run! I’ve told you time and again that a nun must always maintain her composure!”
“Hic… I-I’m sorry… hic!”
It hurt, but being scolded by the nun, the novice Tana couldn’t even cry freely and forced herself to swallow her sobs.
“Are you all… right…”
Elize, who had bent down to check on Tana, froze mid-motion.
Blue hair. She had taken a nasty fall, scraping her palms and knees, which were now bleeding. Her eyes welled up, looking as if they were about to burst with tears.
A model nun would have helped Tana up, calmed her frightened heart, and healed her with a blessing. But Elize remained frozen, not moving a muscle.
“Sister Elize? What are you doing? Aren’t you going to help the child?”
“…”
“Sister Elize?”
Her red pupils trembled.
Then, Elize kicked off the ground and shot forward.
“Hey! Where are you going!”
Ignoring the calls behind her, Elize vanished in an instant.
She arrived at the deserted area behind the cathedral.
She leaned against the wall for support. Her already pale skin couldn’t get any whiter, but her complexion was noticeably worse than before.
She gasped for breath.
She even gagged from time to time.
“Not yet…”
She thought she was over it.
It seemed she still hadn’t overcome it.
The nightmare of that day, when she was drenched in blood.