Ch.80Glass

After resolving the werewolf problem, we headed straight to Seoul.

The integration of the werewolves, including Mulbitbaram, was postponed until after the vampires had reorganized.

Clop-clop-clop!

We arrived at a street near Seoul Station riding on Hwang-gu.

However, the vampires’ expressions were concerning.

They were frantically searching everywhere as if looking for someone.

They even had their weapons drawn as if there might be enemies around.

“What’s happening?”

“I’m not sure…”

I answered Aurel’s question and gestured to a nearby vampire.

As long as they lived in this area, no vampire could refuse my orders.

“M-me…?”

The male vampire approached hesitantly in response to my gesture.

He stopped in front of me, carefully reading the situation.

“What’s going on? Why is everyone running around?”

“Well, there was an attack by a human…”

“A human attack? Really?”

“Yes, even Prix was attacked…”

The moment the vampire finished speaking, I pulled on Hwang-gu’s reins.

Hwang-gu immediately started running.

I heard the vampire’s surprised voice behind me, but I didn’t stop.

“Could what he said be true?”

“Hmm…”

I couldn’t answer Aurel’s question.

The red Hwang-gu arrived at Prix’s clan hideout at three times her usual speed.

There were more people than usual stationed in front of the large warehouse, and their expressions weren’t good.

“Oh, Charlotte?”

As I approached on Hwang-gu, some vampires greeted me.

I frowned and asked about Prix’s whereabouts.

“I heard Prix was attacked?”

“Ah, yes…”

“What happened? Who’s the leader now?”

“Well, Prix is still our leader…”

“What? I thought he was attacked. Did he survive?”

The vampire hesitated with a confused expression at my question.

He stammered before turning around and saying:

“F-follow me… I think you should see for yourself…”

I exchanged glances with Aurel.

We had rushed here worried after hearing that the reliable guy had been attacked, only to find out he was perfectly fine.

Was our concern unnecessary?

The vampire guided us into the clan hideout.

We arrived at the room where Prix usually spent his time.

“Um, Prix… Charlotte is here to see you…”

I tilted my head at the vampire’s words.

I couldn’t see Prix anywhere in the room.

In Prix’s usual seat sat a small girl with a sulky expression.

“Get out.”

“Ah, yes…”

The small girl with the sulky expression ordered the male vampire to leave.

I tilted my head and looked around.

Only one person in this clan could give orders to the vampires.

“Did you resolve the issue well?”

I examined the girl sitting in the chair with a curious gaze.

She had long, straight black hair.

The slight wave at the ends added to her cuteness.

And her face? Large eyes and slightly flushed cheeks that looked so soft I almost wanted to reach out and touch them.

“Who are you?”

“Haa…”

The girl sighed deeply at my question.

She brushed her hair back and opened her mouth.

“I’m Prix.”

Question marks appeared in my mind at the girl’s answer.

Prix? This girl?

The Prix I knew was a tall, slender, handsome vampire.

Not this cute, soft-looking girl.

“Gasp…!”

-Tweet tweet!

Aurel, who was hanging on my back, seemed quite surprised too.

Even her sparrow Jjakjjak tweeted in surprise.

Now that I looked closer, the clothes she was wearing were similar to Prix’s.

Of course, vampires can create their own clothes at will, but still…

“Are you joking?”

“Check for yourself.”

I used my Mystic Eye at the girl’s words.

Immediately, the girl’s information appeared.

[Prix]

Level: 20

Race: Vampire

Health 100%

Mana 100%

Emotional state: Embarrassment, Anger

“You, you… are really Prix?”

“You still don’t believe it after seeing that?”

“Gasp…”

I covered my mouth with both hands.

I had imagined a serious situation when I heard about the attack, but instead, it had turned into the best situation possible.

Who could have done this to Prix, and what were they thinking?

Actually, I had a pretty good idea who it was.

I nodded as I recalled the human village that consisted entirely of women.

“What exactly happened?”

“It was when you headed to the werewolf territory…”

Prix began explaining what had happened that day.

While harvesting Blood Fruit and searching for new dungeons throughout Seoul Station, Prix suddenly encountered a human girl.

Naturally, the two clashed.

Prix, thinking she was an ordinary human user, was thoroughly defeated.

But the girl didn’t finish Prix off.

Instead, she used an item called a Gender Change Ticket to transform Prix into a small girl, then stole the [Cloak of Dignity] Prix had been wearing.

Prix was left in despair, wounded, turned into a girl, and robbed of the cloak.

All Prix could do was wait for the wounds to heal while watching the human girl walk away.

“Grrrr…”

Prix trembled with anger recalling the memory.

Her small hands shook as she struck the chair she was sitting on.

Thunk!

She must have controlled her strength, as the chair didn’t break.

“That’s fortunate.”

“Fortunate…? Yes, I suppose it is fortunate…”

Prix gave a self-deprecating smile at my response.

I approached and patted her head.

Immediately, Prix’s face scrunched up as she rose from her seat.

“What… do you think you’re doing?”

She backed away with a fierce expression.

However, she looked more like a cat raising its fur in caution than anything threatening.

I smiled awkwardly and said:

“So the vampires are moving around looking for that human?”

“That’s right.”

“Do others know about your transformation?”

“Everyone… everyone has seen me… like this…”

Prix answered while rubbing her face.

Her gaze shifted slightly toward the corner.

There sat a teddy bear that Firin always carried around.

“What’s that?”

“Firin gave it to me as a gift…”

“Do you like teddy bears?”

Instead of answering, Prix glared at me with a frightening gaze.

It didn’t seem like we could continue the conversation any further.

I left Prix’s clan hideout, riding on Hwang-gu.

“Will Prix throw away that teddy bear?”

“No, I don’t think so.”

I shook my head at Aurel’s question.

For just a fleeting moment, I had seen it.

A subtle change in Prix’s expression as she looked at the teddy bear.

It was a smile. She had smiled, if only briefly, while looking at the teddy bear.

Perhaps the interior decoration of this clan hideout would change completely.

“Are we going to look for that human?”

“Huh? Of course.”

I nodded at Aurel’s question.

A human attacking vampires was an intruder who needed to be caught.

Of course, I needed to talk with Yuri because of the special power she possessed.

Seeing that she didn’t kill Prix the vampire, she probably didn’t harbor any particular hatred toward vampires.

Plus, she had left the human village she belonged to. That meant she didn’t feel any sense of belonging to her own race.

If we could communicate well when we met, we might be able to bring her into the vampire faction.

“Hwang-gu.”

“Woof!”

“Do you still have that thing?”

Hwang-gu wagged her tail at my question.

Just in case, I reached into the penguin bag Hwang-gu was carrying.

Previously, when we raided the human village, I had taken some of Yuri’s clothes to track her since she could use the Cash Shop.

“Oh…”

Fortunately, Hwang-gu hadn’t thrown away those clothes.

I pulled out a white pair of panties and held them out to Hwang-gu.

“Here.”

“Sniff sniff!”

Hwang-gu naturally began tracking Yuri’s scent.

After sniffing around, she seemed to catch something and started running.

Clop-clop-clop-clop!

The red Hwang-gu ran without hesitation.

Sparking with lightning, Hwang-gu stopped at a certain location.

“Woof!”

Hwang-gu barked at something on the ground.

She threw away the panties she had been holding in her mouth and grabbed a stocking that had fallen on the ground.

“What’s this…?”

“I think it’s something that Yuri girl took off.”

Hwang-gu nodded as if agreeing with Aurel’s words.

What kind of person was this Yuri to leave only her clothes behind like this?

She wasn’t a snake shedding its skin.

Anyway, since her discarded stocking was here, she might be wandering around nearby.

I pulled on Hwang-gu’s leash once and said:

“Let’s go!”

“Pant pant!”

Hwang-gu ran really hard.

Seeing how she moved relentlessly in one direction, it seemed that Yuri was still around.

As Hwang-gu was running enthusiastically and leaped over a large building, I felt an intense gaze from below.

When I looked down slightly, pale cherry blossom-colored eyes were staring at me.

I instinctively knew. That girl was Yuri.

“Wow…”

Yuri looked up at me and let out a strange exclamation.

Then she swung something she was holding in her hand.

At that moment, a bright light burst forth.

When I squinted at the flashing light, Yuri’s figure instantly disappeared.

“Gasp…!”

Aurel inhaled sharply in surprise, and Hwang-gu, who was floating in the air, flapped her ears as if startled.

Clop!

Hwang-gu landed on the ground and rushed to where Yuri had been standing, but there was no trace of her.

“Whine…”

“Sigh…”

A sigh mixed with regret escaped.

I thought we had finally found her, and she seemed like someone I could communicate well with…

Hwang-gu looked guilty, as if she had done something wrong.

I hugged Hwang-gu’s neck, which had become dejected.

Hwang-gu hadn’t done anything wrong.

Hadn’t she run here as fast as she could?

Of course, if she had been a little faster, we might have caught Yuri.

In the end, we couldn’t find Yuri that day.

Despite Hwang-gu’s frantic running around, the result remained unchanged.

***

Yuri clutched her pounding heart.

Just before using the warp item, the image of the girl soaring through the pale moonlight had been deeply imprinted in her mind.