Chapter 24
『Translator: RainTL』
༺ Marie Dunareff (5) ༻
It was cold and chilly.
Her skin was shivering from the cold but there was a scorching thirst in her throat.
She had done something wrong.
She almost killed her own friend.
Without any guilt, as if she was eating a domestic animal for food.
Marie’s moral standards - in fact, the moral standards of everyone born as a human were supposed to differentiate ‘domestic animals’ from ‘humans’. It was a different matter from cracking eggs all day, decapitating chicken and slaughtering pigs.
She was someone who closed her eyes even when slaughtering an animal that was squirming to stay alive, and yet she had almost killed someone.
‘I was starving though,’ she thought to herself. ‘I was thirsty.’
‘I almost killed my friend; a person but…’
‘What was their name again?’
Like how people did not bother remembering the names of domestic animals, she could not remember the name of her friend.
What she felt after waking up was a current of air that was different from before.
The chill running all the way from the tip of her feet to the spine was in complete contrast to the scorching thirst in her throat.
The neck in front of her eyes of someone whose name she did not know of was way too appealing.
That was why she bit it. The long fangs that appeared to have been with her from birth pierced through the skin and reached the veins.
- Gulp gulp!
The livestock in front of her shivered.
Whether it was from the fear of being slaughtered or due to frustration was not very important. Marie did not even feel the need to close her eyes.
- Uhk. Uguk…!
The groan full of pain was as pleasant as the melodious notes of the piano. When the hot stream of blood satiated her throat and spread across her body to warm up her cold skin…
“Ah.”
Her veins expanded as her blood began to move again.
Isabelle’s gasp and the creaking noise of the bed were unable to reach her ears.
The only thing Marie could feel was the thumping pulse of her heart and the sweet scent of blood that felt suffocatingly disgusting. Her body that had been supplied with energy suddenly felt like crumbling to nothing.
She finally remembered that humans were different from livestock.
After noticing that what she had done was the same as treating a human as a domestic animal… the girl ran away.
Until a certain boy came looking for her, she ran away and hid herself.
All the while resisting starvation.
****
Inside the crimson realm, the blood-coloured dog gazed down at the small and feeble human.
Instead of his mother who was refusing to fight properly, he planned on using her mana and blood to wipe them off. Those evil humans were harassing his mother, and among them, that guy was the most annoying of them all.
Even though he was weak and powerless, he was the calmest of them all.
Even the beasts are afraid of my presence, so how could a mere livestock dare show such an attitude? How dare you try to hurt my mother in front of my eyes?
However, what the blood hound hated above everything else was…
- Please. Stop.
It was how that human had an unignorable amount of significance inside his mother’s heart. His mother wasn’t even looking after him nor taking care of him, and yet was concerned that a mere human might get hurt.
That must be why she still couldn’t kill them. That must be why she was still floundering in pain and thirst.
Just wait for me mom. I’ll bring some fresh blood for you.
As a familiar that had just been recently born, the dog was unconditionally faithful to his mother. The loyal dog who moved only for the sake of Marie let out a thunderous roar.
- Roooaaar!!
The realm quaked as the forest echoed after him. Everything with a sign of life shivered from fear and yet the man in front was still calm, which was an extremely irritating sight for the dog.
“A doggy is not supposed to bite people.”
Despite being ignorant of the world, the blood hound could still tell that it was an insult.
The realm echoed with a loud roar as the blood hound displayed his killing intent. Despite having the same goal of trying to save the same person, the two of them knew that their paths would not coincide.
A magic was formed in the air, but instead of a well-calculated equation of spell, it was just a sharp form made by a dense cluster of pure mana.
Unlike the clean and elegant magic equations of his mother, it was a violent and oppressive use of mana.
The missiles of mana were met with a spear.
｢Six Ways of the Spear｣
｢Fourth Style, Spinning Heaven｣
The spear turned. The centrifugal force and the footwork added power to the spear as it elegantly flailed across.
The Fourth Style was one that scattered kinetic energy with the shift of balance and an endless acceleration to the spin. The spear advanced as it rotated and parried only the clusters of mana that were heading towards his body.
- Kwack!
- Kagack!
- Kajik!
“...!”
Seeing that inexplicable phenomenon, the blood hound widened his eyes. The organism born from blood which naturally had a different way of taking in the world noticed the mysterious mass of power hanging on the spearhead.
Using the bare minimum amount of aura, the man parried the attacks. Korin was able to serenely advance through the bombardment that was loud enough to quake the entire world.
Something like this couldn’t stop him.
- Grrrh…!
The blood hound used his sharp claws to dig out a piece of his body. It scattered the flesh to the ground as two four-legged dogs appeared from within.
- Kuraa!
Kill him. Crunch through that human’s neck and devour his guts.
- Pabak!
The four-legged beasts dashed forward at a speed that was too fast for people to see. The two-legged beast that was made to face the rapid advance of those four-legged animals pulled his right hand to the back and bent his upper body like a bow.
｢Six Ways of the Spear｣
｢Fifth Style, Crumbling Mountain｣
To crumble a mountain.
Staying faithful to that seemingly exaggerated name, the spear created an aftershock as it pierced through a sprinting clone.
- Pagack!
After throwing his weapon, the spearman charged in with empty hands. When the remaining animal pounced at the man to bite through his neck, the dog had to confront a letter that was newly engraved in front of its eyes.
Kenaz.
The rune letter meaning ‘fire’ created slow rising flames but the four-legged demonic dog did not stop its charge and followed through with its attack.
The demonic dog was enveloped in magic flames, but little damage was done to it. The flames were so weak that they were at the level of a spark. Something meager like the unprocessed cluster of ether was not enough to scorch a demonic dog.
Hagalaz, Sowilo, Berkana.
But soon, new rune letters were added to the mix.
The consecutive use of magic made the small spark turn into large flames, and the combined power of runes was definitely more than enough to sear the demonic dog of blood to ashes.
After quickly dealing with the two small four-legged dogs, Korin picked up the spear that was stuck in the ground.
The blood hound stared at him with a growl. For the dog, that man appeared very insolent - how rude of him to act like he won after dealing with two weak clones?
It decided to trample on him with an even more oppressive show of violence.
As soon as the blood hound growled, the realm responded to his call as countless bullets of mana budded in the air.
The blood hound was invincible inside this realm. He was one with the world. How could a lowly human contend against the entire world?
Bullets of mana rained on the ground like bombs. Those small balls of mana were like the foot of a giant when together as they trampled on the ground.
Korin Lork took a step forward. Beneath the rain of bombs, he strolled on.
Even though bullets grazed past his shoulders, dug through his thighs and scraped past his ears, he was still unconcerned and patient.
As if he knew the pattern of their fall, he slithered through the interval of the bombardment like an acrobat, while being so relaxed as if anything other than a fatal wound did not matter even if his body was to end up in tatters.
“Roooaaarrr…!!!!”
That leisurely attitude infuriated the blood hound.
Rumble! The ground quaked - the four legs of the beast simultaneously kicked off the ground as the blood hound vanished into the thin air.
The concentration of blood and a colossal amount of mana tremendously accelerated his body. Like a storm, he destroyed everything while leaving behind an afterimage. The body of the blood hound was like the strongest spear; while at the same time being an invincible armor. Crashing into it would destroy one’s body.
On top of that, the blood hound went over the top as his ferocious claws started cleaving through the dimension. It was clearly an overkill, as the light in Korin’s eyes immediately shifted upon seeing that dash.
Korin moved to meet the storm. What was needed was just one step. Compared to the blood hound that marched through hundreds of meters in the blink of an eye, Korin’s one step appeared very insignificant.
However, that one step was enough to turn the situation on its toe.
“...?!”
The blood hound was flustered by the sudden step forward. He belatedly swung his claws but the spearhead was already striking on his wrist.
｢Trap and Stab: Demonic Arts–｣
Clank! The blood hound was dumbfounded from the unexpectedly weak response from the attack. However, the condensed aura emanating out of the spearhead and the small impact was enough to deviate the course of his claws.
At the same time, the feeble body of the man dashed across his side.
- Clang!
The vicious claws of the dog landed on the ground. Unable to stop the forward momentum, the blood hound’s body was leaning forward when the man repostured himself behind his back.
｢— Scavenging the Grass for the Snake｣
- Kwaduk!
Unlike the front side of his body that was being protected by the condensation of blood, his back was helplessly weaker and ended up allowing the spear to stab through. However, that wasn’t enough. The magic organism with no sense of pain immediately reacted by swinging his right arm behind after demolishing the ground in front.
Without even looking at the right arm that was flying towards him, Korin took two steps forward and the right arm ended up barely missing him as it cut through the air.
The spear in his hands rotated.
After failing two big attacks, the blood hound was in a defenseless state if anything.
｢Spinning Heaven: Second Move - Rotating Demon Spear.｣
The shaft of the spear rotated as it slashed through the blood hound’s thighs. Due to the right arm cutting through nothing and the slashed thighs, it couldn’t control his body and ended up leaning to the side.
However, it only needed 2 seconds for a full regeneration. 2 seconds was enough. Using the abundant mana of his mother, 2 seconds should be more than enough to recover his wounds.
However, that same amount of 2 seconds was also more than enough time for the spearman.
“...?!!”
Their gazes collided in the air as the blood hound realized something. Korin’s eyes weren’t even on him - in the midst of his superhuman level of concentration, Korin was gazing ‘beyond’ into the domain which only a handful of fortunate individuals were able to catch a glimpse of.
——
A world of silence and suspended dimension.
The only ones that could move inside the ‘Domain’, where time flew extremely slowly, were very few in numbers.
It was literally a suspended world. No-one was able to take a step forward inside such a place because of the law of time reigning supreme like always.
However, Korin took a step forward regardless. He stepped into the Domain of Heroes.
｢Ominous Snake: Extreme Arts｣
｢Soaring Snake, Rearing Head of the Venomous Dragon｣
The tip of the spear pierced through the center of the blood hound.
- ???
Unable to even utter a single sound, the body of the blood hound crumpled down in an instant. In that split second, the blood hound gazed at the spearman with his blood-stained eyes.
“I’ve seen that same move before. Of course it’s not going to work.”
The man proclaimed. Even though the blood hound couldn’t really understand the logic behind that sentence, there was something he still understood.
I can’t beat this man.
One who had reached the level of a ‘Semi-Unique Grade’ with the sole power of a human after starting as a normal side character.
Named Hero.
AAA-class Knight.
A ‘legendary’ existence which the world had chosen as the successor of the main player.
In front of the Hero who had reenacted the legendary spearmanship, a mere animal, who was lacking experience was far inferior.
Despite having no knowledge of his history; that mythological story and the legends, the newborn demonic animal was still able to understand something.
He was in an inexplicable domain. This man was someone who far exceeded his cognitive capability.
“Cough… cough!”
The blood hound was sucking in both blood and mana to regenerate his body but instinctively turned around after hearing the cough from behind.
“Auhk… Haahk…!”
Marie was struggling after vomiting out an enormous amount of blood.
Mom!
The blood hound immediately canceled the mana and blood that had been channeling towards him and dispelled the realm on top.
While scattering his body that had been formed with blood, the last thing the blood hound heard was the despicable voice of Korin.
“Just watch me save your mother for you.”
****
The Blood Realm was the power of the Familiar of Blood that was formed through Marie’s mana and blood.
For Marie to activate the realm without having sufficiently taken in enough blood, she had to consume her own blood. Marie didn’t even suck all the blood of a single person when she awakened into a vampire, so it was natural for her to have insufficient blood after keeping the realm up for so long.
“T, thirsty…”
The girl who turned into a beast gasped. This was the signal.
This was the last mechanic of the 3rd phase - the bloodsucking mechanic which rendered one of the party members unconscious.
I walked towards Marie, who was gasping for breath in pain without even putting up a guard.
“Kuuh, kyaahk…!”
In order to replenish all the blood she used, Marie instinctively looked for something to prey on. It was inevitable for her to land her hands on my defenseless body.
- Biiite!
Without any retaliation, I let her bite into my neck and held her on the spot.
Phase 3 - Blood-sucking mechanic.
It was a move that allowed the boss to regain both HP and mana before heading to the final phase.
Originally, the other party members were supposed to jump in and push Marie away to save the one that had been chosen as the prey but… there was no-one here to save me.
In a completely defenseless state, I wrapped my arms around the pitiful girl.
- Gulp! Gulp!
I could feel blood leaving my body through the fangs protruding into my neck.
So this was how it felt to have your life taken away.
The rapid disappearance of blood made the body colder as my heart pulsed faster in desperation.
However, it was fine. It was bearable. This was what the regenerative ability was for. It was enough for me to last until she sucked enough blood to regain her rationality.
I was an adult. Something like this was bearable, and it was through this that we would gain a happy ending.
｢You’re thirsty right? Slow down.｣
That was what the kind girl used to say to everyone while sharing potatoes with her tiny hands. Letting her rest in my arms, I returned the goodwill she had shown already.
“It’s fine. You can slow down.”
I felt the girl pause for a moment after hearing that. Soon, the impulse that was beyond controllable made her carefully push her fangs back in as she gently licked the wound on my neck with her soft tongue.
“...Nn.”
When Sebancia Duke awakened as a vampire, he sucked the blood of his own servant to death. While saying that he couldn’t control the impulse that surged during his awakening, he killed his innocent servant.
This was where a doubt came to mind. In both the game and the previous iteration, Marie did not kill anyone.
‘That alone was a hint.’
Another possibility hidden by the scenario. By defeating the thirst and impulse that rose up during the moment of her awakening, Marie was able to separate her fangs from the dying Isabelle. Sebancia Duke’s case was more than enough proof of how insanely proficient she was at controlling herself.
After that, she ran away to the forest as Park Sihu said. She endured for a whole month by living off of the blood of demonic beasts.
The act of sucking the blood of a human was both a survival instinct and a magic process for a vampire. Would drinking sea water satiate your thirst no matter how thirsty you were? It would only lead to a greater thirst.
Despite that, she was able to endure the impulse for a month all the way until she was subjugated and captured by Park Sihu… It was thanks to her superhuman mentality that she was able to overcome the impulse and the starvation.
All of that was proof that there was another possibility aside from the bad end of Marie Dunareff’s boss fight.
That possibility was what I had trusted and betted on.
“Ju…nior.”
A teary voice reached my ears. After satiating the intense starvation, she was finally starting to regain her rationality.
“It’s fine. It’s fine.”
While patting her on the back, I drove her head deeper into my neck. I pacified her by saying I was fine.
“I’m sorry… I’m sorry…”
Marie mumbled with a voice that was hard to understand as she buried her body deeper into my chest.
“I can handle it. Even though I look like this, I have a regeneration ability, you see.”
By etching that fact into her mind, I helped her calm down. She was finally starting to regain her rationality, and I couldn’t stop here and risk making her impulsive again.
A vampire was only able to become rational after completely devouring a person’s worth of blood. Marie had to satiate her thirst with my blood.
This was what the regenerative ability was for. This was why I had learned ❰Regeneration of the Tenacious Warrior❱.
As long as I did not give up, and as long as I had the fighting spirit left inside me… I would stay alive and regenerate even if my intestines were to fall down, and even if my entire body was to be seared or frozen. My vitality would be recovered endlessly.
A tenacious vitality that came to play when driven to a corner - the conviction of a warrior that let them continue the battle without giving up.
It was a specialty which I had gained all for this moment.
“Haa…”
With a deep and heated breath, Marie distanced her lips. After finally being able to control her own actions, she started crying while looking at me.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”
I looked at the young 18-year-old girl who had burst into tears as if there was a broken dam in her eyes. It didn’t matter even if she was a Grade 1 Mage who had crossed through many vicissitudes of life. Her being a vampire was also a trivial matter.
Adults had the obligation to protect children.
That fact which I wouldn’t have known if I stayed on Earth, was something I learned after meeting my benefactor in this world.
『Child, I am an adult. As long as I am an adult, I have the duty to prioritize your safety as a child.』
I met my Master.
A real adult.
She was someone I had been looking down on as an NPC of a game. I used to secretly look down on this world for being a game, and yet I was protected by that NPC for being a child.
There was an adult who showed me her back to face the great evil.
As the successor who watched her last moments, and as the disciple who received her guidance;
“Not bad.”
It should be fine for me to act a little bit like an adult.
『Main Quest: Marie Dunareff』
※ Difficulty: S
※ Reward: Even distribution of 100 points
- Aura Rank Increase {Low} -> {Upper Low}
- Mana Rank Increase {Very Low} -> {Low}
- You have obtained Pain Tolerance
Watch me, Park Sihu.
My path will be different from yours.