Chapter 60: Suspiciously… (5)
tbc“No. I don’t want to.”8sCaY
ysv“What did you say?”dJg
Bar5DCgHey buddy. That wasn’t very elegant was it? You need to put your etiquette mask back on!AkXca0G
EAAkHoa“Listen. Junior…”FSMQm
yModN“We are not in the Academy, Senior.”JhGm
jpD“…What?”xpx7
oMA“And if we are talking about hierarchy, it is you who should be showing your respects, Sir Vlandria.”e3B2VE
Mq8Efg“???”LOa
E9OHHEvLevent frowned as if he couldn’t understand what I was saying.aq0
2elQ2“What do you…”BbHF3ZO
qCqqJog“It means that I have a higher rank than semi-Grade 1, Sir Vlandria.”Mwi
E83DpH1“That’s nonsense…!”alBIKjZ
CpgThe young noble masters buzzed and whispered to themselves after hearing me imply that I was a Grade 1 Knight.O2Pr0ca
hwk“How could a freshman be a Grade 1 Knight? It is not wise to tell lies that…”7eF
l7RO7“He’s not lying.”UuruNa
1NfFc5IMarie was the one who refuted Levent’s words.5Z3
iO86“Korin was promoted at the same time as me. I can guarantee it.”FiLVow
MviOThat was the guarantee of Marie, the lady from Dunareff Dukedom, who became a semi-Unique Grade mage before the age of 20. She was at the pinnacle of the southern regions of the continent and there was thus no-one that could talk back to her.2Hbh
T2J5Nh“B, but even then…!”UNx
wH1kLevent Vlandria stubbornly held on as if he couldn’t back down yet.1fA
ollI“Marie’s first dance is mine, you see.”yLmsR
9beJvLQI gently grabbed Marie by the shoulder and pulled her towards me as she then landed in my chest.BTqaXXn
MmmHNow, what did it mean for me to do something like this, you might ask?l6n9
ITfFw‘I am so close to Marie that I can even hug her like this and I am free to do so. You are the one that needs to go away.’ – That was what I was suggesting with my action.7z9
zXJZ3e“K, Ko, Ko, Ko, Ko, Korin…!”sFn
xsOMarie mumbled something from my chest but I didn’t really hear what she said. It was probably embarrassing but she had to hold on a bit because this was the fastest way to get rid of these people.qIRN
PY9YJWhile openly hugging Marie, I gave a victorious smile to the infuriated young noble masters.FltCKtZ
506toSeeing them made me recall how the 1st Princess said that the envious face of a man was the most humorous sight out there.62tWClY
gaWuI used to think she was a very bad-tempered princess, but now I could somewhat agree with her words.kvClA1E
xoFF8“Marie. Can you please dance with me first?”IaS
4km“…Yesh.”ox1
c8VncxZShe replied with her head stooping low. For starters, we walked away from the crowd of young masters.3835pe
jIi9o5“You are very popular, aren’t you senior?”flK3
Ymq“N, nn…”Fy0b7IG
Rv6ik“Was that a bit too violent? Sorry if that put you in a bad mood.”FamuPRs
HHO6Hwi“N, no! It was feisty and I actually liked… N, nothing!”IDf
bYbIy8TThings became a little awkward. It might have been a bit embarrassing for her… I felt slightly sorry, so this time, I decided to be more polite, like a gentleman.GYmYLd
z0Jr– Kiss!aGCc1
qeZAfter kissing her on the back of her hand, I offered with a soft voice.IeFe05
PG58IRa“Will you please dance to a song with me, my Lady?”7BD
jDdTResting on one of my knees, I raised one of my hands and lowered my head. After being frozen stiff for a while, she grabbed my hand with a full smile blooming on her face.WpI5
kolt5“With pleasure!”e9BGwCA
zJVW8itWe walked to the dance hall hand-in-hand. The sound of footsteps loudly echoed from Marie’s clear glass shoes as we walked forward with a minimal distance between us.WFrKqO
5yNFG6Stopping our feet, we looked at each other. Behind Marie, I could see that everyone’s eyes were on us.F6zx
UR45Th‘This is not good…’9ecYjkb
5Rsqgu6Even I was feeling quite embarrassed now, and I became worried that she might notice the speed of my heartbeat.KOP
yLPWhatever the case, the music began and we were at the center of the hall. Matching ourselves with the pace of everyone around us and the music, we started to dance.fG89D
kLwGently holding onto both of Marie’s hands, I guided her on.6RILWe
PfR5OfHonestly, I wasn’t that confident in banquet dances since I only tried it a few times and only had some superficial knowledge about it, but it wasn’t that distressing since it was something that required a physical movement. However…lzA3G
JhMPe– Clomp!2VnrG
WECbVZT“Hmm…”4k4P9j
s9m7Ie“S, sorry!”85bvKZC
dftalUnexpectedly, the flower of this banquet, Marie, was fairly clumsy with dancing. It was her second time stepping on my feet and it was quite painful because she was wearing hard heels.YEy64
rbxw“Ugh… Sorry. I’m not good at dancing.”UJci6q
6ZtIt seemed that she just wasn’t good at everything that required her to move her body because otherwise, it would be hard to explain how someone at her social position couldn’t dance.W1J
tqPpMarie sweated profusely while trying not to step on my feet. Since she was now intentionally trying to avoid my feet, her steps turned more stiff which ended up interrupting the pace of our dance.q0Hj
GifyRKUSeeing the reddened face of my partner, I quietly whispered into her ears in a voice that only she could hear.UaWY
8SxRDJS“Place your foot on top of my left foot. Let’s dance like that.”WNRCnq
Pzzl623“H, huh? But then…”z8l
81lyX“My shoes might get a bit dirty and our dance might not be the most aesthetically pleasing one to see, but that’s all there is to it.”2gvn
PEAE“I, isn’t that…”Jewir
XxPzzRMarie mumbled while glancing at the crowd that was focusing their eyes on her. Even though she didn’t need to be conscious of anyone else, she couldn’t help but notice everyone else’s gaze when they were blatantly looking at her like this.dnOi
cYOP1“You don’t need to worry about anyone else right now. Just focus your eyes on me, your partner. All you need to do in a dance is enjoy it.”RGzx
TF78SkEven when I was at the college welcome party; even when I was at a club, and even when I came to a banquet for the first time in this world, what I always thought to myself was that dance was a fun entertainment activity that was fine as long as you enjoyed it yourself.VB0bp
AixHonestly, I even wanted to do some breakdancing right now, but it created a commotion when I did that in the last iteration, so I had to hold back on that one.4XQ
epgIAcrobatic rock and roll and breakdancing was a bit too much for the people of this era.wDieg
8eiI returned the advice I received before to Marie.2Usp
Ey0NKV2“Now. Place your foot on my foot and follow after me. Your eyes are good, right? Look at my eyes, look at my feet and read whether I’m trying to pull or push you.”wwvP
i8roUSaying that, I looked into her bright golden eyes. Her quivering eyes became stable again after we stared at each other for a while and before long, we started to smile at the same time.RGd
A15tIn alignment with the beautiful melodies of the orchestra, Marie did a spin on her foot with the support of my arm embracing her waist.c9bd
pIjUnder the bright lights of the banquet hall — she and I danced together and shared a dreamy moment together.r4g
xAJJN****DkDp
q1r9yjMAfter the song was over, we walked away from the center of the dancing hall.iemUWi
VJcLNQWA refreshing breeze swept across as soon as we let go of each other’s hands, and that reminded us how the warmth from before was due to us clinging onto each other. Even though both of us had superhuman stamina, we still had to collect our breath and settle our fever.ExRxOP
mNba“Lady! If you may please…!”6No
NoIi“No! Please let me have the honor of…!”7yPALL4
RabYKS8Guys ran in at her without even giving her the time to have a break. In response, Marie raised her arms with an apologetic and troubled look on her face.QUso
9lL4“Sorry. I’m a bit tired and would love to take a short break.”yOJ46
1JmTIt was the right of a gentleman to ask for a dance, but it was the right of a lady to accept or refuse the offer. When Marie talked about having a break, the guys had no other option but to retreat back while hiding their dejection.LdxK7F
OTY1RA0“Shall I guide you to the resting lounge, Lady?”NIcoX
EGujHFd“I would appreciate that, Sir Korin.”nIv
43ihWalking up to Count Casseus, we talked to him about how we would like to visit the office as we had mentioned beforehand and received his permission. The Count seemed slightly disappointed by the fact that his son didn’t get to create good ties with Marie, but wasn’t in the position to complain about it.ArOT54
2mrSWe unhesitatingly left the banquet hall as laments echoed from behind.YtubvVQ
8BjXW8“Ahh…”HEsd9j
CDzz9I“Lady Marie is being taken away by that scrub…”Ir9paNa
CR6tFDhWell, they were probably swearing at me for taking Marie away from them.O51MHc
60Im“Wow~ did you see that?”Nkza
8Kdw“Yes I did.”XsF
HE7jtuF“Dancing with their feet piled together… How romantic.”VMCZgv
TaA5TOq“The gentleman was very considerate. It was a clumsy but amazing dance.”Rsnc7
4se“Did you see that bright smile on Lady Marie’s face? That is 100%, right?”Uy8wlW
C3p“I would say it is definitely above 99%.”K8aV
sA9nGjJIgnoring the words of those behind us, we headed straight away to Sebancia Duke’s office.B6xp10e
jbYR****OjIX
NDfvGlLUsing the key we received from Count Casseus, we opened the office and entered the antique-looking room.LsXE
ogFp4auThe bookshelves were full of old books made of orc skin. From what I heard, it seemed that Count Casseus kept this office as it was without touching anything.ghw
haUUvH“So this is the office of Sebancia Duke, huh…”VUE
KvlVsSebancia Duke.YZalS
jpywHe was the grand general who had the entire continent under his command 800 years ago. He was a legendary figure and a Hero of the kingdom.mTd9
JZnNYou could say he was like the combination of Yi Sun-sin[mfn]Yi Sun-sin: A famous historical figure of Joseon Dynasty in Korea who held off the Japanese navy during their invasion. Famous for making the turtle ship and the Battle of Myeongnyang where he defeated 133 Japanese ships with 13 of his own. There is also a movie about the Battle of Myeongnyang.[/mfn] and Cheok Jun-gyeong[mfn]*Cheok Jun-gyeong: Called the Sword Master of the Korean Peninsula, he is widely believed by Koreans to have been the strongest swordsman of Korea throughout history.[/mfn].48G0Le
ceRdzPSince this was the actual castle and office used by someone like that, Count Casseus must have kept things as is since moving things around would be a waste.r1sh
luUP0NBWho knows, this castle might become a famous tourist attraction after a century.eZPO
wmnPuCE“Korin. What are we looking for here?”hdd
O7bo“Hmm~. Anything is fine. Let’s try to look for Sebancia Duke’s traces.”dJk
6ryIZ“Nn!”zhE
M7g3CLCMarie and I started searching through the office. I first went to the bookshelves and found a familiar journal.drQJ
IWp7eP『Story of the Duke Duchy』NS3fs
L5g“This…”ZE0
CqlThis was the article written by Cecilia Duke and was an item describing the histories of Ruina, the wife, and Cecilia, the daughter, that the player had to search for in the game for Sebancia Duke’s questline.Hpj
6Xl1MvDTaking this item to Sebancia Duke was the way to complete Sebancia Duke’s quest.CuPONq
ghlBut even in the game and in the last iteration, he never talked about ‘searching the office’ so what exactly was it that we needed to look for?Nwh
KChC6aFor a long time we searched through the office in vain. Drenched in sweat, we threw our body on the couch.glpMNMz
R4aHsQ1“Uahh, I can’t find anything!”FLId
YC3GMh“It’s certainly not easy.”djGNC2S
CPpaq“Are there any clues? I was expecting to find some kind of secret passage but there’s nothing!”QXVPXH
IihT“Hmm…”ZxSsSEv
TgoWe mindlessly searched through the office but couldn’t really find anything. Adding this up with my experience from the last iteration, I had a feeling that we wouldn’t be able to find anything at this rate.f1u7Q
RZImSJb“Uhh… I’m hungry.”2ZdY7e
7aWV9“Did you not eat anything at the banquet hall?”WEa
GH2j“I didn’t have time to… Umm, Korin?”JWE0Pt2
LUL“Yes?”Ucb
33VcL“…”sPT
xSbMXkThat gaze on her eyes was a signal that was naturally formed as we started this relationship. Undoing my tie, I placed it on top of the coat that I took off a long time ago as Marie started deeply staring at my neck.brrOszb
Lex“Not sure if I mentioned this already but… your neckline and your collarbone are really pretty, Korin.”7H5S99
M1yP8S“…I would prefer hearing handsome over pretty though.”g2q
BYwG“O, of course, you’re very nice and handsome too!”WmQKo45
INfw“I might smell like sweat a little, but please bear with me.”t8pUUK
VamQZ“Even bette… I mean, don’t worry!”eMEkNMG
Mi9In a fluster, she sat on my lap with me still sitting on the couch.MLpfVz
AM2vcrK“Uhh… can I start?”8V2P
KaxedBDShe carefully buried her face into my neck after seeing me nod.PuAV0
e5N– StabUEc
SuBKpI1I could feel her sharp fangs digging into my skin, as her soft lips rested on my neck.F2Jm0vI
08G– Gulp! Gulp! Haaaa…E2X
ZH2hm—The sound of a gulp and heated breaths echoed at a regular pace. After who knows how long…kKCHq
5IPI opened my eyes and took a deep breath and Marie flinched in response, but she refused to move away. It seemed that she still hadn’t had her fill yet.6sq
FcyXDDQ“———”s6q1vhs
TSieMy blood was being sucked out in an irregular direction. At the start, it felt a bit spooky because it felt like my life was being drained away but these days…YAqxNSJ
F09I4X‘It feels like I’m sharing my life with her.’zVClGck
xTk8xfPerhaps thanks to Pain Tolerance, it wasn’t painful in the slightest now that we repeated this process a few times.3pD8Rd
i1Uc– Squash!w7I
wdW6Indulged in sucking my blood, Marie pressed her body on mine and squeezed my body. As if trying to make up for the decrease in my body temperature as a result of having less blood, she increased our touching surface area and squeezed me towards her in an attempt to bring our hearts together or something.xU1lS
z0Gc5“Huu…”SSxz8
Kj7YNow that I had more room to take in the surroundings after my heart started fiercely pumping out more blood, I gazed down at Marie mindlessly sucking my blood.E0ZB
lesC“Gulp. Haaaah…”dCHThD
tFO1What I could tell from her rushed and heated breath was that Marie was frantically craving my blood without even taking a break. And the heat being conveyed from her cheeks was a sign of her satisfaction.KzM5sO
O2H9754“Haaaah…”aE0cEbm
FnI“Are you done drinking?”hr4
E2uFLsc“Nn…”597r
DwG2After mindlessly drinking my blood, she powerlessly leaned on my body while gasping for breath. Her chin rested on my shoulders as we both took some time to take a breather.NjEGsV
iYTUEWe had a moment of silence without saying anything.0aFbCh6
hdFiYA– Thump thump…!nJQkZY
7ulI could hear her heartbeat across the aligned chest.JIz6L
J3MNUOUnlike my heart that was furiously thumping out blood, Marie’s heart was beating at a softer yet more frequent pace.wkmX9Gz
0ZyxYubAfter a while, she raised her head back up from my neck and retreated, but she still had a dreamy look on her face as if she had yet to wake up from the pleasure of sucking blood.srW9e9o
lJmGfrQI waited a bit for her to calm down and regain her sense of self.LlS
wvJapvQ“S, sorry… I drank too much right?”8XmD
PyWY“I regenerate just as much so don’t worry. It doesn’t hurt either.”xIWj
jTB“Nnn… Sorry. When I drink fresh blood… my body doesn’t feel like my own.”WQUB
cwIO“Ah, it’s okay. Life is about helping each other, isn’t it?”NVSXlc
jLypI wiped the leftover blood around my neck and soon, my skin wriggled and refilled the wound with flesh. The Regeneration of the Tenacious Warrior was at work like always.NGw
nzM“Hmm?”3YBbJG
uY20Wait a second.FpDWNQ
IBuULA『Regeneration of the Tenacious Warrior』eH32EKI
pRl70mm『Soul Warrior』Rw2oFRu
W34A grimoire that we gained from Sebancia Duke at the secret area in the Great Library…R87520
fpVReBuSuddenly, a trail of thought sparked across my head so I immediately said to Marie.2zHyz
3jm“Senior. Can you summon Doggo?”i3A
FZy3“Hnn? Okay. Doggo.”1vkKlw
JfXq3DDoggo immediately gained a form from within her shadow. Since his usual body existed in real life, he was closer to a demonic beast than a demonic spirit.05UA3OY
kl3qRWA“Senior. Can you make the summon dimmer?”qX6IrPF
GQQu56k“What do you mean?”Um6A1
UXBHZ“Make him closer to an astral body… like how he would look before obtaining a body.”NzhyFeH
JqHtA vampire’s familiar was by nature a spiritual existence that could gain access to a body using the blood and mana of their master as a catalyst. In other words, just like how gaining a body was possible, going the other way around was also equally doable.i6NmDms
tw9c4Mp“Okay. Doggo. Can you hold on for a little?”HGX7M
gZV– Woof!dgOKklQ
E3YZDoggo seemed discontent from the fact that his body would now go through a semi-destruction and wailed, but Marie started demolishing his body and made him closer to an astral body.CyP
QU6RAfter a while, he was no longer visible to my eyes that could not perceive spirits, and…l0QQCYN
nwjFwIt was then.SXACSc
kNnzSfC– Sheeeeeeek!!hrjjM
UPzA faint chilliness started to fill the office. Since I could also perceive this sudden drop in temperature, it was definitely not because of a spirit.uBnTH6C
GLusgw7“Senior Marie. Be caref…!?”Nucdn
l5BrMy vision turned upside down before I could even say anything.bW4d
BuSG3dThud—!!AL7
SlHL8WXA thick layer of pressure oppressed my body along with a sticky reverberation of mana. This was something I was used to.7Ax
01L8“A Blood Realm?”TyJPATs
Nx3P9Everything flipped upside down and by the time I reopened my eyes, I was at a pitch-black location that was full of darkness.zHOU
bH0kcs“Ah~. I wish he explained this to us beforehand at the very least.”D3pO9
TcfdoKTThe one that was sealed inside the grimoire of the Great Library was the soul of Sebancia.KJ0
ICobSebancia couldn’t even kill himself and had to constantly suffer from bloodsucking impulses and thus, what he chose to do was separate his body from his spirit. After separating his spirit, he sealed it inside a book forever.b8d6z7
wcHuzyAnd that raises a question –XXo
5H6ODuke Sebancia Duke.EryW4I
x6qODm2The great and legendary Hero of all time.Z9e8
OVJHe, who used to be revered as the strongest man of all time, turned even stronger after becoming a vampire. At that point, he gained a body that was essentially unkillable.BG3
wXLw– The question raised was this. His soul was sealed, but what happened to the ‘body’ of the strong vampire called Sebancia Duke?Z8JTkPu
QWPuobThe answer to that question was right in front of my eyes.LzCT5Y
UBzT“This was supposed to be something my soul left behind for my daughter. I wonder why a random bloke came here with the scent of my soul.”EV4wwE
YDJKJiA man wearing crimson plated armor with long hair and a dignified beard opened his mouth while gazing at me.tS27Hc
AYuGrHl“Let me ask you, visitor. Why have you come to my castle?”ozC6
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