Chapter 195

Chapter 196. Responsibility Without Pleasure (2)

Even though I heard the word “dad,” I naturally thought it wasn’t my child. Before even considering the details, my instincts told me so.

But since nothing is absolute in this world, I tried to recall the women I had been with. There weren’t many. Just three, at most.

I compared those women to the girl in front of me.

The Star Witch Serena. She said she was infertile, so she’s out.

If it were the child of the Fox Tribe’s Inara, there should be a tail, but there isn’t, so she’s out.

If it were the child of the High Elf Kadia, the ears should be pointy…

*Fidget fidget.*

I touched the ears buried in her soft hair, but they were just ordinary human ears. Very squishy.

‘As expected, she’s not my child.’

Then who is this girl who appeared in my room and is calling me dad?

While stroking the girl’s hair, I looked around.

Actually, there’s a part that makes sense.

‘Jjokjjok isn’t here.’

Jjokjjok is nowhere to be seen in the room. Normally, when I appear, it would fly over and cling to me just like the girl in front of me.

So, is this girl Jjokjjok?

‘Hmmmm…’

Let’s piece it together. Jjokjjok is a white bat.

The girl in front of me also has hair close to white, a pearl-like color, and her dress is white too. The way she’s obsessively fond of me is just like Jjokjjok.

‘Wait, Jjokjjok… were you female?’

It’s not that surprising for an animal to transform into a human. The Beastmen do it too. Of course, Jjokjjok isn’t a Beastman but a vampire.

The fastest way to figure this out is to ask the person in question.

“Are you Jjokjjok?”

“Yes!”

Wow, she answered so straightforwardly.

*Scratch scratch.*

It’s fine to call a bat Jjokjjok, but calling such a cute girl Jjokjjok feels a bit off.

‘What was her original name? I’m sure she had one.’

I tried to recall the memory of going to Ruquer with Luke. In the underground dungeon ruins that Cork was searching for, it was written that Jjokjjok was the first vampire…

“Elije?”

“Yes!”

“Why did you turn into a human?”

“I don’t know! I woke up like this. And I smelled dad!”

“Whoa.”

It’s not that I couldn’t let go of Elije, but because she was so cute, I carried her into the room.

Then, something caught my eye. Something that could hint at why Elije suddenly transformed into a human.

“Why is this here?”

An Orichalcon Arrow was lying on the floor. It’s a familiar arrow.

“It’s the one that stabbed my palm at the blacksmith’s.”

There was definitely blood on the arrowhead, but now it’s clean. As if it had been washed.

“Elije. Did you, by any chance, suck the blood from this arrow?”

“Huh? I don’t know! I don’t remember!”

Ugh, every word she says is so cute and lovable.

One of the things humans are most vulnerable to is cuteness, especially small and cute things.

I’m weak to cute things too. So, I can’t help but think, ‘Well, what does it matter?’

But the cuter they are, the stricter I need to be. Because the cutest things in this world are the most dangerous.

“Really, you don’t remember?”

“Yes, dad!”

Even though I heard the word “dad,” I ignored it and observed Elije’s physical reactions. Holding her made it easier to feel.

If someone is lying, their body will always react differently. This is the realm of the unconscious. Even if they’re not human, there are no exceptions.

‘Her voice is the same as usual. There’s no trembling or change in body temperature. Her saying she doesn’t remember isn’t a lie.’

At least, I could feel that Elije wasn’t determined to deceive me. That’s a bit of a relief.

Then, I felt a familiar presence behind me. The footsteps were filled with urgency and confusion.

*Clang!*

“Young master?! Who on earth is that?!”

The butler Jacques, who had just come in, dropped the tray he was holding in shock.

Hmm, it’s refreshing to see the old man’s fuss after so long.

“Y-young master, did you bring that little girl from the tournament?!”

“It’s Jacques, old man!”

“Huh?!”

Elije pointed at Jacques, recognizing him. She’s smart, huh?

Then, the old man Jacques came over to me with a very serious face and whispered in my ear.

“Young master, I understand that you’re at the peak of your youth. But isn’t she a bit too young… Ah!”

“Old man. It’s good that you have a vivid imagination, but please don’t use it in such a disgusting way.”

“…!”

“And you, get off me now.”

I pushed Elije away, who was clinging to me like a cicada. If she resisted, it would have been annoying, but it seems she listens to me well.

Elije, who fell from my arms, did something incomprehensible.

She glared at Six Hundred.

Even though she was glaring with the cutest face in the world, it was still adorable, but the bloodlust in her ruby-like eyes was intense.

Six Hundred didn’t pay any attention to Elije, but Elije was wary of Six Hundred.

“Dad. Can I break that thing?”

“Dad?!”

I gestured to the shocked old man Jacques that it wasn’t the case and placed my hand on Six Hundred’s head.

“This is Decameron. It’s mine, so you can’t break it.”

“But it’s unpleasant!”

Elije seems to know that Decameron is a homunculus. But why is she feeling unpleasant? It seems like her memories and intelligence are all gone.

Whatever the case, I can’t just watch Six Hundred get destroyed. Moreover, Six Hundred is just standing still now, but if attacked, it would retaliate.

‘…Who would win?’

It’s just pure curiosity. Elije is the first vampire and an A-class named monster. She’s probably even stronger now.

Come to think of it, it’s strange.

‘Just because she drank my blood from the arrowhead, she suddenly turned into a human.’

Does my blood have such a miraculous effect…? Or rather, it’s probably because Elije is a vampire.

“Elije. Can you turn back into a bat?”

Even though her human form is cute, it’s better to have her as a bat than to manage a girl like this.

At my question, Elije puffed her cheeks and turned her head away.

Is she sulking…?

I don’t know why she’s sulking, but the solution is obvious.

*Poke.*

I strongly pricked the tip of my index finger with the Orichalcon arrowhead. Then, Elije turned her head back and stared at my finger.

“Want it?”

*Nod nod nod!*

Like a puppy wagging its tail, Elije nodded her head at lightning speed.

“Wait, I’ll put it on a plate…”

*Chomp!*

Before I could even say to wait, Elije chomped down on my finger.

*Suck suck.*

She licked my bleeding finger like a baby sucking on a bottle.

She had the happiest expression in the world, but that’s not the point.

‘I couldn’t dodge it.’

When Elije was a bat, she would go crazy at the sight of blood. So, I predicted she would be the same even in human form.

Still, since she’s human, I thought she wouldn’t suck blood like a bat, so I tried to put the blood in a bowl. I even prepared myself mentally in case she lunged.

‘What kind of speed is that?’

If something is fast, there should be a ‘reaction.’ Speed is essentially pushing air.

So, the faster something is, the louder the noise or the shockwave should be.

Of course, it’s not impossible to achieve speed without any phenomena. If it were, there would be no assassins in this world.

But even so, Elije just now was too fast and stealthy.

‘Comparing her to other monsters, she seems at least ten times stronger than Norman.’

Of course, Jjokjjok, who was called the Red Comet, was also classified as an A-class named monster and was strong, but not as strong as now. She’s incomparably stronger. Even without fighting, I could feel it from her movements just now.

But there’s something strange.

Not just me, but old man Jacques also noticed and spoke in a bewildered tone.

“Young master. Unless I’m seeing things, is she growing taller?”

“Yeah.”

Elije, who was sucking my blood, was growing taller in real-time. At first, I thought it was just my imagination, but now she’s definitely a finger’s width taller.

No, it’s not that she’s growing taller, but it feels like she’s aging.

“That’s enough.”

I was worried she might get drunk on my blood like she did in Ruquer, but Elije obediently let go of my finger and stepped back.

It’s worth the scolding I gave her in Ruquer.

And I almost got into trouble too.

‘Judging by the amount of blood she sucked, it’s only about 10 milliliters.’

But the burden on my body feels like I’ve lost an arm. It seems like our Jjokjjok is turning into something dangerous.

“…?”

Elije, who licked the blood from her mouth, looked up at me and smiled brightly.

Naturally, my hand went to her head. Women usually don’t like having their heads patted, but Elije leaned in even more, saying she liked it.

Cuteness truly rules this world. But even aside from that, I don’t abandon what I’ve taken in.

If they want to leave, I won’t stop them, but if they want to stay by my side, I won’t stop that either.

Even if she’s the first vampire or whatever grand title she has, there are no exceptions.

Still, I should confirm Elije’s identity.

“Elije. What are you?”

“Huh? Elije is Elije.”

I expected that, but it’s a meaningless answer.

If I feed her more blood and let her grow, maybe her memories will return.

‘But it might be dangerous now.’

Cuteness is the opposite of strength. We find rabbits and cats cute because they’re ‘harmless.’

Elije is a rose. Beautiful and fragrant, but if mishandled, you’ll likely get pricked by the thorns.

So, I need to be careful.

‘At some point, I’ll get involved with vampires. What’s bound to happen will happen.’

When I acquired the Blood Sword Dracula in Ruquer, I sold it to the Grand Duke because it was troublesome to handle.

At that time, the Grand Duke said that if I kept the Blood Sword Dracula, I would inevitably get involved with vampires.

‘Anyway, the Grand Duke is also wicked. He made it seem like I wouldn’t get involved with vampires if I handed over Dracula, but in the end, I’ll get involved because of Elije.’

The list of things to prepare for has grown.

I need to prepare for a confrontation with vampires.

I should ask old man Vulkanus to make some silver arrows. Vampires don’t take damage unless it’s from silver arrows.

Really, why do all the strong ones have conditional immortality? It’s enviable.

“Elije. You’ve had your blood, so can you turn back into a bat?”

“Hmm… I don’t want to, but if it’s dad’s request!”

“Ah, I’m not your dad.”

“Not dad? Why?”

“Why do you think I’m your dad? We don’t look alike at all. Of course, we’re both handsome and beautiful, but the texture is different.”

“Dad is dad.”

I feel a hot gaze from the old man watching us. He’s really suspecting if she’s my child.

“Well… just because she calls me dad doesn’t mean we’re alike. Fine, you can call me that. But you have to listen to me like before, okay?”

“Yes!”

Perhaps because I allowed her to call me dad, Elije happily shook her body.

But it seems she wasn’t just shaking out of joy. Blood energy enveloped Elije’s body in an instant, and with a pop, it burst.

And what appeared was a pure white bat. The Jjokjjok I knew, the one old man Jacques knew, had returned.

*Flap flap.*

The adorable bat flapped its wings and climbed onto my shoulder, nuzzling my neck.

“Gasp, was that girl Jjokjjok?”

“You caught on quickly.”

I placed Jjokjjok on my finger and held it out to the old man. Jjokjjok, who felt familiar with the old man, climbed onto his shoulder without hesitation.

“I’ll be back soon. Please take good care of Jjokjjok this time too.”

“You just came back today, and you’re leaving again? And judging by the atmosphere, it’s not just for a day or two, and it’s not a nearby place, is it?”

This old man has a sixth sense, he picks up on things like a ghost.

“That’s how it turned out.”

“Understood. Please be careful.”

He worries but doesn’t stop me. That’s the charm of old man Jacques.

No, maybe it’s because I like such people that only they remain by my side.

Anyway, I rolled out the carpet for the first time in a while. The teleportation magic circle to Ruquer greeted me.

“Six Hundred. Step onto this magic circle.”

“Yes.”

It’s not annoying to have someone who only listens to commands, but it’s not fun either. I kind of miss Luke, who used to make a fuss.

“What’s Luke been up to lately?”

I asked old man Jacques out of curiosity.

“He’s been gone for about three weeks to subdue goblins that settled in the Rubian region.”

“As long as he’s alive, that’s fine.”

Having heard about Luke, I immediately activated the magic circle.

“Six Hundred. Don’t resist my mana and the teleportation magic.”

“Yes.”

The teleportation magic circle glowed brightly. In addition, I activated the ring, a keepsake from my mother.

The ring’s seal turned black. I slammed it down forcefully onto the teleportation magic circle.

*Boom! Crackle crackle!*

The teleportation magic circle activated, merging with the ring’s seal.

*Poof!*

With a dazzling spark, my body and Six Hundred’s were engulfed in space.

* * *

Ruquer, Keter’s Office.

*Crackle!*

With the distortion of space, Keter and Decameron popped out.

*Stagger.*

Keter, who emerged from the gap in space, staggered and placed his hand on the wall.

“Ugh, my head.”

Keter pressed his temples and made a face.

“As expected, there’s no such thing as omnipotence in this world.”

The reason Keter, who was fine when he came with Luke last time, is now staggering and complaining of a headache.

It’s because of Six Hundred.

“I thought my head was going to explode.”

When moving with Luke, I only felt a bit uncomfortable. But bringing Six Hundred along, the sensation of spatial movement itself was different.

“Is it about the rank?”

The keepsake my mother left, allowing me to freely come and go to Ruquer, wasn’t something that could be used indefinitely without cost.

The higher the rank of the target being moved, the greater the pressure becomes, as I learned from this case.

“I’ll have to prepare a bit when moving Popo and Maknun. By the way…”

After the headache subsided, Keter looked around.

It’s a familiar office, but it felt different.

It wasn’t just because the office was neatly organized.

*Swipe.*

Keter, who bent down, swept the floor. There were faint footprints in the dust and dried blood.

“It’s not Maknun’s foot size.”

In other words, there was an intruder in the office.

It was already strange that Maknun’s presence wasn’t felt in the office. No, the atmosphere throughout Ruquer felt different. It felt off.

“The air is different.”

Keter left the office. Being at the top of the tower, the surrounding scenery was clearly visible.

“This is…”

It’s only been a month or two.

But in that time, Ruquer has changed.

Outwardly, it doesn’t look much different, but to Keter, who has lived in Ruquer for decades, it felt different.

Chaos.

Of course, Ruquer itself is chaos, but before, it was ‘ordered chaos.’

But the chaos I feel now is pure chaos. I could tell without even looking down at the ground.

“It’s a mess.”

Instead of the usual arguments, the sound of fighting and clashing came from below.

“What’s going on?”

In my past life, Keter returned to Ruquer after spending a year in Sephira. At that time, Ruquer hadn’t changed. Even after being away for a year, it was still ordered chaos.

But now, Ruquer has changed.

“Is it because of me?”

Keter scratched the back of his head. Certainly, unlike in my past life, I did kill Cork, but Cork’s influence in Ruquer is ambiguous at best.

“That’s probably not the reason.”

Then what on earth is the reason?

Keter didn’t ponder deeply.

“Maknun would know.”

There are traces of intrusion in the office, and Maknun is nowhere to be seen, but there’s no particular worry.

Maknun isn’t the type to die easily, and more importantly, Popo is alive and well. That means Maknun is also alive.

Moreover, Maknun has the ‘Black and White’ elders as guards.

“Even Walt wouldn’t be able to kill those old men easily.”

So where is Maknun now?

“Since he was learning swordsmanship from Captain Joyray, he’s probably at the tavern, I guess.”

I roughly guessed he’d be there, but I don’t act on guesses alone. If he’s not there, I have no idea where he’d be, and it’s bothersome to run around everywhere.

Returning to the office, I looked for the communicator. Maknun’s communicator. As expected, he left it behind. In the process, I also found some interesting things.

“They really intruded boldly.”

Keter’s office is full of traps. The traces of those traps being triggered were evident.

“Who on earth is targeting my office?”

Just because I was away for a while, they dared to invade my office like this. Keter thought they still needed more education.

“Just wait until I catch you.”

I activated Maknun’s communicator and deciphered the coordinates. As expected, Maknun was at Joyray’s Tavern.

Then, green slime dripped from the