Ch.85EP 3 Manticore

After completely pushing back the human forces, a significant change occurred.

That change was the reappearance of electricity.

The wicked humans had hidden turbines in Busan and were using them only among themselves.

Vampires are ignorant about mechanical devices. They couldn’t learn about them either. None of the vampires wanted to, for that matter.

It was a game setting, but none of the vampires questioned it.

Therefore, humans were needed to manage the turbines.

I selected humans who could manage the turbines and granted them limited freedom.

I didn’t extract their blood or force them to work.

As long as the turbines kept running without issues, I provided them with delicious food and warm spaces.

If they wanted, I even provided human women.

They seemed quite satisfied. Of course, even if they weren’t satisfied, I made sure they became satisfied.

The captured humans became slaves.

Humans with severed tendons in their arms and legs couldn’t even resist.

Human users have excellent regenerative abilities. This means severed tendons can regenerate.

However, their regeneration wasn’t as fast as vampires’.

Human users received new knife marks on their arms and legs just before regeneration could occur at regular intervals.

Managing over 250 slaves is difficult work.

Therefore, a new profession emerged in vampire society: slave manager.

All of this happened in just one month.

***

Swoosh—

A cold breeze that doesn’t match the hot summer weather envelops my entire body.

Not a natural breeze, but a manufactured one.

With the return of electricity, air conditioners have been revived.

Electricity has dramatically improved the quality of life.

Washing machines run. Refrigerators run. Air conditioners run.

The vampires’ behavior began to change gradually.

Vampires who reached level 20 no longer focused on farming as they did before.

They probably thought there was no need to become stronger since humans, their enemies, had disappeared.

The situation wasn’t different for lower-level vampires either.

They didn’t focus on leveling up.

This was because an environment where they could easily obtain human blood had been established, even with lower levels.

I didn’t like this situation.

Or more precisely, I didn’t like the vampires’ attitude.

It’s good that electricity has returned. It’s also good that food concerns have disappeared.

But I couldn’t tolerate the vampires becoming lazy.

The reason I united the vampires and sought cooperation from werewolves to defeat humans was to easily defeat the upcoming episode bosses.

Reform is needed.

I shook Hwang-gu, who was sprawled in front of the air conditioner, to wake her up.

“Hwang-gu!”

“Mmnyaang…”

Despite my call, Hwang-gu curled her large tail around her body.

I pulled her collar and said:

“Transform!”

Eventually, Hwang-gu became a fluffy riding wolf at my urging.

I rode on Hwang-gu and went to visit Prix.

Hwang-gu was struggling in the hot summer weather.

Prix was still staying in the large warehouse.

As we entered, cool air poured out.

Prix was also one of the few who received electricity.

“Huff huff…”

Ignoring my orders, Hwang-gu went to sit in front of the air conditioner.

She looked pitiful with her tongue hanging out, panting heavily.

I had no choice but to get off Hwang-gu’s back and head to Prix’s room.

“What brings you here?”

As always, Prix welcomed me while sitting in his seat.

In the form of a small girl, that is.

A month had passed, but Prix chose to remain in the form of a girl.

When I asked him why, he made excuses about not wanting to waste points on a gender change ticket.

No one believed it, but no one pointed it out either.

What could we do if that’s what he wanted?

In truth, his current appearance was pleasant to look at.

“I came because of the vampires these days.”

“The vampires these days?”

“Yes.”

I began explaining how the vampires’ behavior had slowly or quickly changed over the past month.

And I explained that we needed to abandon the current laziness to defeat the upcoming episode boss.

Prix, who had been listening to my story quite attentively, smiled slightly and replied:

“Charlotte. We’re being rewarded for our efforts so far.”

“Hmm…”

“There’s no need to rush, right? Humans have fallen, and we possess all the special powers.”

Just as Prix finished speaking, a small door next to the room opened slightly, and a familiar figure appeared.

A naked girl wrapped in a white blanket.

It was Yuri.

“Prix~”

I hadn’t seen her around lately and was starting to worry, but it seems she’d been rolling around with Prix.

I looked at Prix with an astonished expression.

“Ahem… ahem…”

Prix cleared his throat and turned his head away from my gaze.

He jumped off the sofa and added:

“Anyway, Charlotte. I’m saying don’t be too hasty. I’d like you to enjoy this situation too.”

Prix approached Yuri and embraced the small girl’s body.

Yuri naturally accepted Prix.

The way she opened the blanket wrapped around her body to cover them both looked very familiar.

Click—

Yuri gave me an eye greeting and then closed the door.

Not even the slightest noise leaked from behind the closed door.

The soundproofing must be well-established.

I sighed and headed toward Hwang-gu.

Hwang-gu had fallen asleep during that short time, and when I climbed onto her back, she whined and threw a tantrum, not wanting to leave.

But Hwang-gu had to be with me on my journey.

I pulled Hwang-gu’s collar and headed to Firin’s hideout.

I visited Firin with some expectation, but she also gave a similar answer to Prix.

She said it was okay to rest a little after working so hard until now.

In the end, I had no choice but to return home.

As soon as we arrived home, Hwang-gu went to the cool air conditioner and sprawled on her belly.

She looked like a wolf fur carpet.

While I was grumbling to myself sitting on the sofa.

Three sparrows flew to the closed window and tapped on it.

Knock— Tap tap tap—!

Familiar ones.

They were Aurel’s sparrows.

I opened the window to welcome the sparrows.

—Chirp! Chirp chirp chirp!

—Chirp!

—Chirp!

Chirpy, Two-chirp, Three-chirp.

Aurel had created one more subordinate over the past month.

While welcoming the sparrows, a large shadow leaped through the window with a whoosh.

“I’ve returned after completing my mission!”

The shadow was Aurel.

She entered the room with a gust of warm air.

Despite all vampires becoming lazy, only Aurel remained unchanged.

She always moved for me.

“Welcome back.”

“Hehe…”

Aurel hurriedly closed the window and came to me, hugging me.

I picked her up and sat on the sofa.

Aurel naturally sat on my lap.

Her bottom felt warm and soft against my thighs.

Aurel began chattering about everything she had seen and heard.

Who wouldn’t be moved by the efforts of a girl who went out in this heat to gather information for me?

I gave Aurel a light kiss on her forehead.

Smooch—

“Oh!”

Aurel, who had been talking non-stop, was startled by my kiss and her face turned red.

Her twin pigtails fluttered like they were dancing, showing she was in a good mood.

Prix and Firin might be right.

For some unknown reason, I was rushing. The anxiety in a corner of my heart wouldn’t disappear.

“Ch-Charlotte…”

Aurel looked up at me, checking my reaction.

She was pulling her twin pigtails to slightly cover her face.

Suddenly, laughter escaped me. The person I was when I first opened my eyes in this world and who I am now were completely different people.

I was already prepared to accept changes to adapt to this crazy world.

One step.

I just move forward.

I reached out and touched Aurel’s cheek.

I felt both softness and warmth at the same time.

My thigh where Aurel was sitting was already damp.

****

A year passed from that point.

Vampires who settled into the era of peace became even lazier.

Now, even those who used to search for newly created dungeons disappeared.

Farming was done at the bare minimum, and even that was assigned to human slaves.

The breeding of humans seemed successful at first glance.

Most human women became pregnant after being placed together with men without distinction.

During this time, a vampire with the slave manager profession came up with a crazy idea.

He began milking the pregnant human women.

Of course, without milking machines, the humans had to do this work voluntarily.

The milk collected this way was offered to the clan leaders ruling Seoul.

Of course, no vampire wanted to drink that milk.

Except for just one.

Prix took all the milk, saying he would drink it.

He somehow obtained a baby bottle, filled it with milk, and carried it around.

According to Yuri, he used that bottle for special play, which was absolutely insane.

During this time.

The third episode boss, Manticore, appeared.

Like other episode bosses, it was created out of nowhere.

Naturally, no one witnessed its creation.

It simply existed as if it had been there all along.

An emergency meeting was called due to the Manticore issue.

The problem was its location.

Manticore appeared in Goseong.

It was a city close to the area ruled by werewolves.

At the meeting where all clan leaders gathered.

“I think we should just hand it over.”

Prix was the first to give his opinion.

He was holding that ridiculous baby bottle in his hand.

I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of his statement.

What on earth had changed him so much?

“I don’t think we need to go through the trouble of catching it…”

Firin also expressed an opinion not much different from Prix.

They say the position makes the person? The two vampires seemed unwilling to risk losing their current positions.

“Are you serious?”

“But that area belongs to the werewolves, right? If we step in to catch it, they won’t take it well…”

“We’re allies with the werewolves, aren’t we? We should catch it together.”

“Hmm…”

Firin showed a skeptical reaction to my words.

In the end, that day’s meeting ended inconclusively.

No choice.

I called Aurel and Hwang-gu and headed to Gangwon-do, the werewolves’ territory.

However, contrary to my expectations, Mulbitbaram did not allow vampires to participate.