episode_0014

Ian’s blood is sweet.

It has a better finish than any wine, a taste worth savoring until the very end.

The warmth felt from his tight embrace and the pheromones that dizzy the mind.

When he pats her back or runs his fingers through her hair, she feels at peace.

Occasionally, she was surprised by his hand on her chest, but she allowed it for him.

She could give him everything.

He had risked his life for her.

Everything, everything, Ian’s was hers, and she was his.

“…I love you, Ian.”

And so, the next day.

Ian’s voice softly coming through the door crack.

“And… I quite like you, Yuria.”

Her heart raced as it did that day.

He, as usual, sheltered her.

Embraced her trembling with fear.

Despite the sin of touching the daughter of the commander, he tried to absolve her of her guilt.

Experiencing the emotion of loving someone for the first time in her life, every word from him echoed deeply in her mind.

To Yuria, Ian was a man who had saved her, someone incomparable to anyone she had ever met.

Liking,

Liking,

Liking, liking, liking, liking, liking, liking, liking, liking, liking, liking,

Ian. Ian. Ian.

An existence she must absolutely protect.

Since that day, Yuria’s mind had been filled with Ian’s voice.

In the morning when she woke up,

When she wiped the windows and dishes,

Even when she occasionally gave a piece of bread to a fellow maid,

Every single thing seemed to overlap with Ian.

But it didn’t feel bad.

“…Huh.”

Lately, Yuria had been smiling a lot.

Partly because he had embraced her again this morning and let her enjoy the blood to her heart’s content.

“Yuria is a maid I favor.”

She couldn’t forget the words she overheard outside the room yesterday.

As those words overlapped, her hair swayed.

In her mind, Ian was more than just the greatest hero. That’s why, even while receiving a scolding from the head maid, she could maintain an expressionless face. Her mind was filled only with the cool and impressive image Ian had shown yesterday.

It was as if she had been caught in a dream.

…

Before she knew it, evening had arrived. She gazed blankly at the setting sun reflected in the window, looking at her own face. “…Ian.” It felt like it was warming the family’s screams that echoed in her mind every day. Many mornings brought smiles, and the monochrome world of impassivity seemed to be colored.

The embrace of that day, the day she first tasted the blood of someone she liked… According to the myth among vampires, if a vampire drinks human blood and harbors affection, they will never forget it for millennia. Could it be that this cursed love is not her current situation? But it seemed too absurd, so she shook her head.

On her way to the master’s room, recalling Ian’s continuous protection, Yuria lowered her gaze slightly. In her hand was a soup for Ian to consume.

Gulp, it goes down her throat. Human food doesn’t suit her taste, yet there was another reason for her salivation. The desire to become one with him momentarily consumed Yuria’s reason.

“…Maybe there’s poison in it… I don’t know, Ian. Ian….” She slyly stuck out her pink tongue.

Lick. “Huh…”

A maid tasting the master’s food. Even if it was to test for poison, it was an indecent act. But why… does it feel so good?

The rest of the utensils come into view. Putting the spoon in her mouth, she wanted to leave traces as if drooling. Yuria’s senses were more sensitive than others. And the pleasure from her first bloodsucking, akin to an adult rite for a vampire, was on par with that of a human’s ‘desire’. Sharing such pleasure with a lover who loved the act meant being addicted to that pleasure wasn’t strange.

The transparent beauty’s face reflected in the soup.

The thick solid line is cut, and reason briefly returns.

Should I even say something under my breath? But since I’ve already arrived at the door, I grit my teeth and knock.

…

[“?????Incredible achievement. Final boss – Yuria’s favorability has increased to 60!!”]

[Reward: ???]

[This reward will be given when Yuria’s favorability level reaches (Affection) grade in the future.]

[“?????Incredible achievement. Final boss – Yuria’s favorability has increased to 65!!”]

[Reward: ???]

[This reward will be given when Yuria’s favorability level reaches (Affection) grade in the future.]

…But how far does this go?

There shouldn’t have been any significant events, yet after that incident, Yuria’s favorability inexplicably kept rising even when I remained silent.

The beggars occasionally encountered at the mansion no longer gave me the cold looks they used to; instead, they constantly averted their eyes or left the area altogether.

“What on earth are they thinking….”

Today, as I pondered over concerns that were not really concerns, such as what would happen if I left food at the door with a note saying ‘Enjoy your meal’ and then ran away, Yuria coincidentally came to my room.

It was also a good time to distance Yuria from the threat that marks the beginning of the first event in this novel.

….

Formal reception.

A reception held to commemorate Brittna Carman’s return to the mansion.

Various high-ranking gods working around Carman and members working in the territory also attend the reception. As mentioned before, there were quite a few people attending the reception who, although they had the status of commoners, were essentially nothing less than merchants who dabbled in money to some extent and were known in the continent, relatives from other territories, nobles, commanders, vice-commanders of knight orders, and so on. The number of people attending the reception was quite fitting for Brittna’s reputation.

“In fact, among them, some are attending the reception with the intention of targeting Carman, Dylan, and others.”

The reception spans two days.

Therefore, the logistics warehouse, head chef, housekeeper, and even the maidservants worked tirelessly. That was the current atmosphere, to the extent that Yuriya seemed to have four bodies as she took on various tasks.

They say they receive the pay of five people while being treated like working machines?

The reason for working so hard was hardly foreseeable, but it was only hoped not to be suspected as a vampire.

However, there were several individuals who were highly likely to be excluded as assassination targets.

For example, there’s me, Ian, who wasn’t directly described in the novel. However, since there was no description at all, assuming that I quietly remained in the room without any mention of my death led to the highest probability of a subsequent storyline.

In short, the way not to die is to remain still.

In a way, it was obvious.

It wasn’t my time to die yet, and this was the original course of events.

Since the vampire incident had already occurred, I wondered how the original atmosphere had changed. But I expected it wouldn’t have had much impact.

However, there was no room for complacency. It wasn’t just once or twice that I received sudden quests, ridiculous demerits, and a death sentence.

Moreover, I had someone to protect, so I couldn’t just stay still.

Around the dining table of the Breitna family, several high-ranking nobles were also present.

Rachel gave indifferent praise to Dylan and forced an awkward smile, while Cain busied himself elsewhere trying to win the merchant’s favor.

Moreover, Carmen occasionally responded to Rachel’s remarks with a cold “Is that so.”

It was clear that their married life would become cold and lonely nights.

As a result, what remained in the diminished space was Rachel and me.

Black hair, golden eyes. If it were the old me, the beauty who barely met my gaze through the hologram would elegantly put the steak pierced by her fork into her mouth and glance at me.

Her raised smile and caring eyes.

With her black hair falling over her ears, Rachel’s smiling face reminded me of the appearance she had when she became the Ice Queen back then.

“She was truly beautiful back then.”

I never knew the Ice Queen would remain an Ice Queen.

Mother’s sincere anger was honestly beyond my imagination.

No matter how seriously I pondered for a moment, I couldn’t imagine it.

I recalled the memory of Rachel, who used to coldly step on the heads of bandits, but in the end, all that came to mind was Rachel smiling.

Only the lonely sight of Rachel, occasionally wearing a desolate expression while pushing steak into her mouth, came to mind.

The more I thought about it, there was no doubt that Rachel was someone to me.

Always a gentle lady to me.

No matter what I did, she would smile and listen to my story first.

Confessing now, I was truly confused when I calculated the possibility of being assassinated.

Honestly, I’ve always been a failure as a strategist, never clearly planning and executing any plans, calculating all the possibilities and fighting through them.

It was natural.

The guys who are going to kill me right away, telling me to memorize and wait. And that too, while holding onto my life with both hands.

Pretending to be tough, but humans fear many things the most.

Just because you endure it doesn’t mean you can handle everything.

It’s scary. Will the ad-libbed plan, which has only been played out in my head without practice, from theoretical and predictive simulations, work well?

There would surely be variables. Uria was definitely such an existence.

And every time Uria was considered important in my mind, I remembered the times when I argued with Carman.

“…I was scared even at that level.”

Can I really handle the overwhelming weight that is incomparable to just that level?

Perhaps most ordinary people, who simply thought about it in their heads, would understand very well that it’s not the same when seen in reality.

Even if you think “Why can’t I do that?”

Once you’re on stage, you don’t know if you’ll act the same way.

And then, it happened.

“….Ian? Ian,”

“….”

“Wake up. Ian, aren’t you calling for me?”

“….”

“Ian!”

In the moment when I was engrossed in planning and virtually executing the plan.

Into the dark tunnel, I was gradually sinking when Rachel’s voice jolted me awake.

“Oh, yes. Mother. What’s the matter?”

“Why didn’t you answer after I called you five times? Is it so difficult to come outside? I’m sorry; it feels like I forced you to accompany me.”

Come to think of it, Rachel and I were standing alone for a moment in the chilly night air outside. It seems like I was too lost in thought.

“No, it’s not that. I just needed some fresh air for a moment.”

“Hmm, alright. I’m grateful for your excuse. I just wanted to know what you were thinking, even when I call you right next to me.”

“…”

“Is it a difficult topic to talk about? If you need the wisdom and power of the Ice Queen, feel free to tell me. I’ll stand by as a reliable ally at any time.”

Rachel exuded a force that made it seem like she could immediately blast the mansion with ice magic.

She was far too adorable to be a married woman, which brought a smile to my face. However, that smile didn’t reach the outside world.

The sincerity in her eyes when she looked at me was overwhelming. I couldn’t bring myself to reveal it to others.

“…I was just pondering about the upcoming magical ceremony.”

“Is that so? Alright then. Sorry for worrying unnecessarily.”

The last smile from Rachel was pitiful.