“Ahaha! That’s why it’s hard to find. You found it really well. It’s so difficult to get the complete edition.”
“Is that so?”
“I’d say you made a great choice.”
Kuoh replied in a confident voice as he looked at the two beautiful female vampires he had drawn into the most extravagant room on his floor.
The two vampires were fresh newcomers who had just received the title of Baron, named Lily and Lasty.
Although it bothered him a bit that they were younger yet already Barons…
‘This is even better!’
If they’re not competitors but ‘lovers’, that’s much more preferable.
Bloodsuckers are semi-immortal, so they don’t age physically, but they inevitably grow old mentally.
Even if their aging is slower compared to other races, long-lived bloodsuckers can be quite narrow-minded.
“Everyone these days is looking for the Book of Revelation. Just mastering that guarantees you a rise.”
“You’ve definitely got it, right?”
“Hah. Don’t you trust me? If you just do me a favor, I’ll show you right away.”
“Oh…”
“……”
“By the way, you can’t show this to other bloodsuckers, okay? I went through a lot to get it.”
“Got it.”
The tall woman called Lily nodded.
While Lily was quite appealing, Kuoh’s gaze was drawn even more to the sulky-looking Lasty sitting beside her.
With skin even paler than a vampire and eyes that seemed to be filled with rubies, her attire resembled that of a noble lady, and if the word ‘vampire’ were to materialize into a creature, it would definitely look like her.
Every time their eyes met, his whole body shivered…
“Um… but say…”
“Yes?”
“Is your friend over there mad or something?”
“……”
Is she trying to look pretty or something?
Lily smiled sweetly as she responded, but Lasty hadn’t said a word since earlier.
Her cold gaze clearly indicated that she was feeling quite uncomfortable.
Having caught Kuoh’s eye for just a moment, he flinched and stepped back, but then thought that it was just because of her crazy appearance, so he leaned in again.
“Ah. Our Sti has been working hard to find the book. She’s really tired.”
“Our Sti?”
“Ahaha! I see? That explains it. Don’t worry now. Just trust me.”
Lasty muttered “our Sti…” without even glancing at Kuoh.
Then she leaned her head sideways onto Lily’s shoulder.
“You two seem really close.”
“We’ve been together for a long time.”
“Are you from the same family?”
“No, we met later. We hit it off, so we’re hanging out together.”
“I met her. We get along well, so we’re hanging out together.”
“…Right.”
The voice I heard for the first time.
Lily had quite a lovely voice, but Lasty’s voice was something else entirely.
The moment I heard her voice, my mind went hazy, and I almost felt lightheaded.
Kuoh shook his head to regain his composure.
“So, what’s the condition?”
“As you know, it’s really hard to obtain the complete version. No matter who I am, it’s difficult to casually show it to a bloodsucker I’m seeing for the first time.”
So!
“You’ll learn with me, with the book.”
“Together?”
“I think of it as a process of building trust. We’ll check our compatibility and help each other out if there’s something we don’t understand. By the way, I’ve already mastered the first chapter of the Book of Revelation, so it’ll be helpful for you guys.”
Considering the importance of the complete version, I could ask for a ‘wish’ or a ‘favor’…
“But… if I start with something like that, they might have a bad reaction.”
There’s no need to rush from the beginning.
Just like how a light rain soaks your clothes, I’ll show them just a part of the book to narrow their vigilance, and when they become familiar with it and focus solely on it, what if I make a request then?
They wouldn’t be able to refuse whatever I ask.
They would already be feeling the power and wouldn’t bother about ‘trivial’ values in the face of such immense power.
If Lasty, who’s next to me, reacts like Lily, I might have asked for something bolder, but she seems way too cautious, so I had no choice but to back off.
“Hehe… I’m looking forward to the future.”
“Alright. What do you think?”
“Hmmm… then what does Kuoh-san gain from this? If it’s just sharing a book, wouldn’t that be a loss for you?”
“…..”
‘Sharp, aren’t you?’
I had just thought she was simply nice, but being nice and being clueless are two different things.
Kuoh gestured as if it were obvious and replied.
“Well, it’s about sharing knowledge. No matter who I am, I can’t fully master the Book of Revelation. It’s a good thing to have companions to learn with, right?”
“Don’t you have any other competent friends? From what I see, this castle doesn’t seem to belong solely to the Baron.”
“…All these guys are competitors, competitors. Those kinds of people are lower than me in knowledge and don’t understand gratitude, so there’s no need to take care of them.”
“What about us?”
“Of course!”
“Hmm…”
‘…This woman seems to have quite a bit of suspicion too.’
I was aiming to target Lily first and then use her to get to Lasty, but this might take a while.
Without any lingering thoughts, Kuoh stood up.
“Well, if you don’t like it, I can’t help it. I was just trying to share since you guys seem trustworthy, but if you don’t believe me…”
“It can’t be helped. I was just trying to share with you because you all look fine, but if you don’t trust me…”
“No, that’s not it.”
“Isn’t it that you don’t want to?”
“It’s not that I don’t want to.”
Lily quickly grabbed Kuoh, who was about to leave.
“See?”
This again?
Is this what they call gap moe?
“I know you said there are many competitors, but there are plenty of bloodsuckers willing to share knowledge. If you make the same suggestion to other barons or lords from different castles, they’ll jump at the chance.”
“Umm…”
“Hurry up and decide. If you don’t, the opportunity might slip away to someone else.”
“Uh… what should I do…”
“Hehe.”
So cute.
If only the woman next to her wasn’t there, I’d have moved on to the next step by now.
Kuoh chuckled, imagining a bright future as he watched the flustered Lily.
“Ah~ what should I do first?”
I need to sweet-talk Lily quickly so I can have my way with that doll-like girl too.
While Kuoh was lost in his blissful thoughts, Lasty, who had been staring at him, broke the silence with a bored expression.
“Hey, sis.”
“Yeah?”
“How long are you planning to do this?”
[Sssss...]
The atmosphere suddenly turned cold.
It wasn’t just the vibe; Kuoh felt an intense pressure as he looked at her, overwhelmed.
‘What is this overpowering force…!’
“W-what?”
“Are you bored?”
“Yeah. Let’s stop this and find something.”
“Wasn’t it somewhat fun?”
“Not really.”
The two continued their conversation, completely ignoring Kuoh.
It seemed like it wasn’t just Lasty changing, as Lily wore a joyful expression instead of looking flustered.
She almost looked like a completely different person…
“What are you two talking about…?”
“Kid, give me the book. We need to get going.”
“What? What nonsense are you spouting? I’m telling you to share─”
Swoosh!!
“Ugh, cough!”
Blood churns.
The blood flowing within him was uncontrollable, wildly thrashing about.
Kuoh tried to control it using the power of blood, but instead, the turmoil intensified.
‘W-what the hell is happening…!’
What kind of trick is that woman using?
But magic always comes with a sign.
No matter how adept a bloodsucker is at handling blood, to cast a spell, one must draw the ritual.
But the woman sitting there, Lasty, didn’t do that.
She simply made ‘eye’ contact, and he found himself rolling on the floor in excruciating pain.
He was rolling on the floor in extreme pain.
“Ku, kuck… save me… help me…”
Kuoh opened his hazy eyes and reached out.
He was sending a desperate plea for help towards the once kind-looking Lily, but she just watched, not bothering to intervene.
“How dare you! Where do you think you’re going, sis?”
“I’m fine.”
“I’m not fine.”
“Pl, please…”
Thwack!
When Lasty snapped her fingers, the turbulent blood flow within Kuoh’s body came to a halt.
Kuoh collapsed messily on the floor, vomiting blood, but it was instantly pulled back into his body by Lasty.
“Cough! Thank you… thank you…”
“Book.”
“Here! Here it is!”
Kuoh handed over the complete edition he had obtained with the speed of his life.
With an expressionless face, Lasty took the book and immediately slammed it down on the desk.
“…?”
“You’ve already read it all?”
“Yeah. It’s a book copied by some worthless kids, so it’s the same old stuff.”
Worthless…
A book containing a great revelation is worthless, huh?
Kuoh, who had risked his life over this in recent weeks, felt a surge of anger, but anger is relative.
‘I should just keep my mouth shut…’
Kuoh wasn’t dumb enough to get angry at a monster that could twist his blood flow with just a glance.
“Where did you get this? The book?”
“Um…”
“If you say you don’t know, this won’t be fun.”
“I know! I know a noble person! I got it after working hard to… no, I mean, doing my best under that person’s feet.”
“A noble? Who?”
“Juruinas, sir… do you know him?”
“No.”
“Y-you don’t know him?”
Kuoh muttered this, but Lasty completely ignored him, standing up and leaving the room.
For some reason, Lily followed, seemingly chatting with the air.
At first, Kuoh thought she was a maid or subordinate she had brought along, but…
‘…maybe it’s the complete opposite.’
“Guide me.”
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
