A Subtle Relationship

,Oh, Blood Demon King-isiyeo!

,Why?

,What do I need to prepare for the raid?

,Hmm… High-grade doping drugs and potions?

,Isn’t there anything else?

,Depending on the situation, there may be bosses that require special alchemy items.

,Hoo…

Jupiter nodded, her eyes shining at my words.

The snow-white hair dangling from outside her armor stole my gaze, swaying gently.

,There are times when special alchemy items are needed, but that’s only in special situations. Usually, the bosses that appear in raids don’t require such things.

,I see…

I looked at Jupiter worriedly.

I had suggested recruiting Jupiter on the spur of the moment, thinking I should find a good tank, but now that I think about it, Jupiter’s party play experience was very limited.

,Do you think you can do well?

,Of course!

Jupiter gave me a confident smile in response to my worried gaze, thumping her chest.

,Hmm…

I stared at Jupiter silently.

The key was whether Jupiter could handle the unexpected situations that would arise during the raid.

Suddenly spiking aggro, dealers dying from unexpected patterns.

In that situation, the tank must maintain composure and keep the boss’s attention fixed on them.

,Have you done any dungeons?

,Of course. I’ve done a lot.

,Not the old dungeons. I’m talking about the ones from this expansion pack.

,I, I’ve done them…!

,Even the last dungeon?

,T, that’s…!

I knew it.

I reached out to Jupiter and said,

,It’s better this way. Let’s run dungeons together and farm special Transcendence Stones.

Since Season 1, Jupiter had been famous as a rich, clumsy president.

She even bought the key item for the World Item Holy Sword with gold, so it was hard to imagine how big her spending was.

But that was all in the past.

Jupiter, who had shed the skin of a male character, had skills that I could acknowledge.

Of course, only a very few people knew about her skills.

Jupiter’s reputation remained the same.

The way Jupiter, who couldn’t run dungeons, raised her stats was obvious.

Just like I raised Yeon Yi-gongju’s stats through tradable Transcendence Stones, she must have also purchased Transcendence Stones to raise only her Ether grade.

,Really…? You’re saying we’ll go to the dungeon together?

,Yeah.

I nodded and answered.

Even if she said no, I would have dragged her along.

That’s how significant the performance of special Transcendence Stones was.

,We’re just farming special Transcendence Stones anyway. We should be able to finish the work today.

,Oh, today…?

,Why, don’t you have time?

,Time… I have plenty of time!

,Then get up.

,R, right now?

,Yeah.

I nodded and jumped off the chair.

Because the chair, made to fit an adult body type, was too big for my short height.

Next to me, who landed lightly, the heavy Jupiter jumped down.

Kong-!

Jupiter is also short. Her feet don’t reach the ground when she sits on the chair, so she jumped down like me.

,How far have you farmed special Transcendence Stones?

,Nothing except for the dungeons that appear in the beginning…

,Then let’s go up from there. If we go together, we don’t need to find party members until the middle.

I said that and led Jupiter out of the cafe.

Jupiter, who was dragged outside, hesitated but followed me.

By the way, the attention from the surroundings is more intense than I thought.

And it’s directed at Jupiter.

A small girl wearing angel wings is bound to attract more attention than necessary.

I fluttered the cloak behind me once and opened my mouth.

,Jupiter.

,Why, what is it?

,Take off the wings.

,The wings… these wings?

,Yeah, a tank needs to have a wide field of vision. So wearing wings like that is a hindrance.

,B, but when you play your main character, Blood Demon King-nim…

,Jupiter.

I stopped in my tracks and turned to look at Jupiter.

She was avoiding my gaze, clutching her angel wings as if she didn’t want to have her toy taken away.

,A tank is a job that requires a wide field of vision. What if you couldn’t notice a teammate’s danger because your vision was blocked by those angel wings?

,T, that’s…

,What if the dealers couldn’t see the boss’s next pattern because of those wings and everyone died?

,T, that can’t be…

,You understand? So take them off.

,I understand…

Jupiter nodded with a drooping expression at my words.

Immediately after, the angel wings spread out on Jupiter’s back disappeared with a pyong- sound.

I looked around and nodded.

The gazes of the people who had been looking at Jupiter’s wings were all directed at me.

This is the right kind of attention.

Enjoying the attention, I intentionally fluttered my cloak even more.

,Hey, Blood Demon King-isiyeo.

,Why?

,Where did you get that cloak?

The question I had been waiting for finally came.

I stopped in my tracks and turned to look at Jupiter.

Flutter-!

The cloak that had been slowly fluttering behind me spread out in all directions as if rotating.

,This cloak?

It’s not just the cloak. I wanted her to notice other things too.

I took off the pointy hat I was wearing and smiled lightly.

,Are you curious?

Jupiter nodded, as if she had finally noticed my change completely.

Look at this pale skin, look at these sharply grown fangs.

I didn’t particularly intend to hide it.

I smiled lightly and opened my mouth.

,It’s a racial trait of the True Blood.

,True Blood…?

,That’s right.

,Race… True Blood… Pale skin… Fangs… Could it be… Blood Demon King-nim, you…!

I knew she would understand quickly.

I wrapped my body in my cloak and smiled lightly.

,That’s right… I am…

,You’ve become a Vampire…!

Vampire?

I frowned at Jupiter’s words.

,I’m not some lowly race like that.

,It’s different?

,I am True Blood. A noble blood that has existed since the beginning. Comparing me to the thin blood of a Vampire is an insult in itself.

Jupiter nodded with her mouth agape at my explanation.

I knew she would react like this.

I spread out my cloak and said,

,Do you understand?

,I understand… You have become the Blood Demon King in the truest sense…

The reaction is better than I thought.

Jupiter’s eyes widened as if she was genuinely surprised, and she circled around me, looking closely at my appearance.

,Ahem…

,True Blood… It must be based on vampires… Is it similar to what they commonly call a Progenitor…?

,You could say it’s similar.

,Cool… cool… So that cloak is also a racial perk?

,You catch on quickly. That’s right.

I nodded and deactivated the skill of my awesome blood-red cloak.

This isn’t some common costume. It was a racial skill.

Shuaaaak-!

The red cloak writhed like blood and was sucked into my body.

,Heok…

Jupiter seemed to be greatly shocked by the sight and collapsed to the floor.

The reaction is too good.

I grinned and looked down at Jupiter.

,How is it?

,That cloak… it wasn’t a costume…!

I nodded and summoned the cloak again.

Flutter-!

,It’s a True Blood exclusive skill.

That’s enough bragging. It was time to head to the dungeon.

I picked up Jupiter, who was sitting on the floor, and said,

,Do you know how to ride a horse? I’m going to walk to the dungeon if you don’t.

,How to ride a horse? Of course, I know. I’ve been learning since I was young.

She’s been learning to ride a horse since she was young?

As expected, kids from wealthy families are different.

I nodded and said,

,Then let’s go right away.

,Oh, I see. You’re saying to summon a horse.

Jupiter nodded at my words and knelt down on one knee on the floor.

It looked like knights praying in front of a goddess statue before going to war.

,Come, my friend. Here I, Jupiter, Knight of Light, need your help.

Chwaaaak-!

The moment Jupiter finished her line, a large magic circle appeared in the air with a bright light.

Tag-dak-

Heeheeing!

What walked out of it was a pure white foal.

The white foal, wearing battle armor, walked tag-dak tag-dak to Jupiter.

,That’s…

,How is it? My friend, Rupellius.

,Ru, Rupellius…?

Heeheeing!

Rupellius, the white foal, cried out intensely as if answering Jupiter’s words.

I gaped blankly.

,Blood Demon King-isiyeo, what are you doing? Summon a horse to ride.

That Jupiter bastard…

She used other skills during the summoning to create a flashy effect.

,Blood Demon King?

,Ah, I understand… Wait a minute.

I can’t lose.

I needed a cool line too.

A line that was cool enough not to lose to Jupiter.

,Ugh…

I use Thought Acceleration.

The moment the surrounding time slowed down, countless lines flashed through my head and disappeared.

I’ve decided.

Seueueuk-

I spread my legs shoulder-width apart and raise both hands high into the sky.

,My kin hidden in the darkness, answer my call! Accept the call of your master, the True Blood, and reveal your form in this place!

Shwaaaak-!

A large magic circle spread out in the sky as the summoning skill ended.

But it doesn’t stop there.

I decorated the magic circle by floating red rune letters on top of it.

Paaaat-!

Tadak… Tadak…

Eureureung…

,That’s…

What came out of the magic circle was my wolf, Eureureung.

The dignified wolf, wearing battle armor, looked cooler than the white foal Jupiter summoned.

,It’s my kin.

,Kin…!

Eureureung…

Heeheeing…

,Your kin… it’s as small as a puppy…

,Isn’t your friend as small as a donkey?

,Huh?

,Huh?

Is this bastard trying to have a war of nerves with me right now?

I was just stating the facts.

The horse that Jupiter summoned was so small that it was embarrassing to call it a horse.

,Can it even run well? That little foal.

,I’m worried about whether that puppy of yours can run well…

I can’t reason with words.

I immediately climbed onto Eureureung’s back.

,It’s a race, Jupiter.

,Hoo…

,The first one to arrive wins.

,Hmm…

,Are you afraid?

Jupiter smiled lightly at my words, then climbed onto the white foal Rupellius and said,

,What does the winner get?

What the winner gets.

There’s no such thing.

But I knew a word that would be good to provoke Jupiter in this situation.

,Honor.

,Let’s start right away.

I nodded and took a coin out of my pocket.

,We’ll start when this coin falls.

,I understand.

Ting-!

The moment I heard Jupiter’s answer, I tossed the coin high into the sky.

It didn’t take long for the coin that had risen into the sky to fall.

Taeng-!

The moment the coin fell.

Jupiter and I were running at the same time.

Dag-dak! Dag-dak!

Tadak! Tadak!