Chapter 468: Madame (1)
A black cube absorbing the flow of mana from inside the coat as if drinking it, instantly surging.
“……Hmm?”
It was an item The Clown coveted and Myeong had given him, so he kept it close, but he never expected it to react on its own at this point.
Lennok, who was about to immediately withdraw his mana, soon changed his mind and watched the cube transform for a moment.
He could retrieve it anytime, so he decided to take this opportunity to see what the Penteract would spew out.
Kiririric…!!
The cube, which had fallen at his feet, pulsed before swelling in size and stretching out lengthwise.
Rising to his waist, its tip curved slightly, transforming its shape into a dazzling silver form.
Lennok looked at the Penteract, which had changed its appearance in an instant, and silently parted his lips slightly.
“……”
A silver staff with a handle of a deep blue jewel at its tip.
The silver metal appeared to ripple and rise, taking the form of a staff, much larger than a wand.
As he cautiously grasped the staff, mercury-like liquids surged from near the handle, gently wrapping around Lennok’s wrist.
It firmly supported the staff and his wrist itself, yet moved as if burrowing into his veins.
He was slightly surprised, but it didn’t actually burrow into his veins; it merely gently supported the inner forearm of his invisible elbow.
It was an object that only had the function of supporting the user’s body, felt no mana at all, and was even questionable as an artifact.
Lennok gazed down at it quietly, then let out a soft laugh.
“Bad luck.”
Indeed, since when did Lennok rely on luck to navigate situations that he would now depend on an object of unknown origin?
However, perhaps because it was an item received in the name of Myeong and The Clown, Lennok had, unbeknownst to himself, held a certain degree of expectation.
Still, holding the staff and leaning on it felt surprisingly comfortable for maintaining his balance.
Lennok tapped the staff as he walked onto the road, stepping onto the asphalt where a commotion was actively unfolding.
The young vampire, who was about to grab Ryan by the collar and drag him away, stopped abruptly upon seeing Lennok.
“What is it?”
“Let go of him first, and then we can talk.”
Lennok said.
Ryan, who had been hanging limply, suddenly lifted his head upon hearing Lennok’s voice.
“V-Van…!!”
Those wide eyes were unmistakably those of the blood wizard boy Lennok knew.
A talented blood wizard who originally worked in District 44 before a city council inspection led him to work as a freelancer at Jenny’s bar.
Lennok himself had received help from blood magic a few times during his freelancing days.
“…Van? You mean Van?”
The vampire, too, seemed to recognize the name, sweeping his sharp gaze over Lennok.
The young man, instantly raising his formidable presence, unconsciously took a step back, biting his lip.
“What brings Adamant Thunder here…?”
“Are you asking me that now?”
Lennok replied with an indifferent expression.
He tapped the staff he was holding towards the faltering young man, making the young man’s shoulder flinch once more.
The opponent, too, must have heard extensively about how famous and skilled Adamant Thunder was in this field.
Even a small action, if perceived as a wizard’s trick, would be hard to dismiss lightly.
Lennok clearly saw through the opponent’s psychology and was thoroughly exploiting it.
“The person you kidnapped is our company’s human asset. A request for collaboration without prior agreement must be politely declined.”
“…It’s none of your business. Don’t interfere.”
“Did you even listen to what I just said?”
“…”
The young man, his face turning grim, stumbled backward.
He clearly wanted to flee instantly but hesitated, realizing that moment would be irreversible.
A battle wizard rumored to have fought and defeated an 8th-level Commander Wizard head-on.
To even exchange blows with a War Mage said to have never been defeated in this city was impossible without immense confidence in one’s skill.
“Put him down and get out. I have something to discuss with that friend.”
“Igh…”
He seemed to be overwhelmed by a sheer presence devoid of any mana.
The young man, desperately sizing Lennok up, suddenly widened his eyes as if struck by lightning when his gaze fell upon Lennok’s staff.
His expression instantly changed, and he turned his head completely towards Lennok, muttering.
“…It was a bluff.”
“What?”
Shwiiik…!!
The young man, instantly forming hand signs and drawing up the copious blood accumulated around him, let out a sharp laugh.
“Others might be fooled, but not a vampire. Did you think I wouldn’t know that staff you’re leaning on is a life support device?”
“…”
While Lennok tilted his head, unsure what this vampire was talking about, the young man seemed to confirm his suspicions from Lennok’s reaction.
“So the rumor about you being gravely injured in the battle with Madrich Onnion was true. You can’t even move around without relying on such a device… How dare you…!!”
“No, what on earth are you seeing…”
“It’s even better this way. On this occasion, I’ll turn you, Adamant Thunder, into one of our clan’s blood kin!!”
Ignoring any further reply, the vampire reached out.
Sharp blood-stream thorns, surging from the middle of the street, pierced sharply into Lennok’s immediate vicinity.
Could it be true that the vampire, who had been so afraid of Lennok just moments ago, would change his attitude and attack because of this one staff?
Lennok, looking down at the staff he held with a dumbfounded expression, eventually burst into laughter.
“Right… This is much more convenient than him running away.”
He drew up mana and layered the bursting lightning onto the tip of the staff.
The thunder and lightning that erupted along the silver metal stained everything deep blue, clashing with the blood-stream thorns in the middle of the street.
Red droplets burst and scattered everywhere, instantly turning the bustling street into a chaotic mess.
Kwakwakwang!!
“Kyaaah!!”
“Someone call the police, quick!!”
“Damn it, run!!”
As blood seeped into the intact asphalt, the road cracked like a drought-stricken land,
And countless red thorny vines, rising from all directions, bent long and tilted their heads in one direction.
Kagagak!!
A fierce assault of blood magic, poured with full force towards a single person.
Blood magic is known for its low efficiency in combat due to its massive consumption of blood, but for a vampire, it’s a different story.
A demi-human who can freely manipulate their own blood flow without special intent or mana.
Through this, the cost of consumption is greatly reduced, and the risk of sacrificial incantations using one’s own blood as a medium is also diminished.
The flexibility and destructive power of blood manipulation are in no way inferior compared to other firepower-specialized spells.
“Damn it…!!”
However, the young man, ceaselessly forming hand signs and chanting blood magic, showed no sign of his expression easing.
Between the blood-thorn forest that entirely occupied the intersection and the storm of blood explosions tearing through it,
Blinding blue lightning streaked back and forth, pushing back all that firepower head-on.
Standing amidst the raging storm of electricity was a single wizard, leaning on his staff, gazing intently.
He made no gestures or movements, simply stood there watching, yet the young man could not land a single effective blow within the wizard’s immediate vicinity.
“How can the suppressive power of a pure-attribute spell be this strong…!!”
“Damn it, let go of me!!”
Ryan, caught in the aftermath, struggled frantically.
Bbaak!!
The young man, having slammed the back of Ryan’s neck, growled.
“Shut up, you’re in the way.”
Being overpowered head-on was humiliating, but the young man didn’t misunderstand what he had to do.
The losses incurred by his clan’s plan being ruined by this blood wizard were substantial.
Even if he couldn’t subdue Adamant Thunder himself, he absolutely had to take this one.
Fortunately, Adamant Thunder didn’t seem to be in perfect condition, so if he could only target and neutralize the life support device…
At that moment, a flash of light burst through the densely rising blood-thorn forest.
Paaat!!
[Territorial Lightning Orb]
[Greedy Exchange]
Pajijijik…!!
Lightning, transferred along the blood-soaked puddles, instantly surrounded the young man and flickered.
Gritting his teeth and chanting blood magic, the young man quickly retaliated, shifting his weight to pull back, and at that very moment,
The electricity that had risen behind him instantly took on a human form, pushing the young man in the back.
Beok!!
“Kugh!”
It was already unbelievable that lightning could be gathered and formed into a human shape, but was that all, for a spell to exert physical force?
In the fleeting moment that the utterly unexpected exchange caused the young man to stagger slightly, something even more preposterous happened.
The human-shaped mass of lightning transformed into Lennok’s exact appearance, as if their positions had instantly swapped.
“A-Adamant Thunder…!!!”
Kwak!!
Lennok, pressing down on the terrified young man’s collar with his staff, smiled.
“I’m tired of hearing your nonsense.”
[Small Deployment: Ice Jade]
Centered on Lennok’s hand, which clutched the young man’s collar, an ice prison large enough to freeze a person instantly manifested, completely restraining him.
There was no sign of water rising.
The speed of the ice spell’s deployment was so absurd it was questionable whether it was even drawing in moisture to freeze water.
“Damn it, a sick wizard like you…!!”
The young man didn’t hesitate long.
With both hands covered in blood, he firmly grasped the staff pressing him down.
“Once I break this life support device, you’ll be nothing!”
“No, that’s not the problem…”
“SHUT UPPP!!!”
The young man, shouting over Lennok’s words, quickly formed hand signs with both hands and vomited blood.
“Kahak…!!”
The spell, reacting to that series of triggers, intensified, drawing hundreds of blood-red webs centered around the two of them.
The moment Lennok’s coat sleeve touched the edge of the web, the hundreds of blood nets entirely curved, tightening around the space where the wizard stood.
Through the blood nets, which instantly narrowed the space and sharpened their edges, the young man swung his hand like lightning.
The target was not Lennok’s body, but the staff itself, which heavily pressed against his chest.
“Ughaaa!!”
[Mossy Blood Net], which, if it made contact even once, would bind and sever the space itself from that point onward.
It was not merely a spell using blood as a medium; it was a sacrificial incantation created by grinding his own flesh and blood.
A gamble thrown with every last ounce of remaining strength. It felt excessive against a mere wizard, but the young man never let his guard down.
The opponent was a master rumored to have defeated an 8th-level Commander Wizard head-on. In a normal confrontation, he was a monster impossible to even touch.
However, the young man did not back down at this point due to the rumors that Adamant Thunder was gravely injured, and the existence of the staff he held.
Adamant Thunder himself seemed to deny it, but the young man, a vampire, could not be deceived.
The blue jewel attached to the tip of the staff, and the tube-like structure connected to his wrist.
Were they not strikingly similar to the characteristics of artifacts used by high-level wizards to maintain their dwindling lifespans?
If Adamant Thunder, known for his young age, was using such a device, he must indeed be suffering from a fatal injury.
If he could just destroy that staff, that life support device, he might be able to capture Adamant Thunder here and take him to their clan’s main house.
‘If I get proper credit, I might even get a share of the blood kin he absorbed…!!’
Such hopeful delusions of the young man were entirely erased by the six lightning orbs Lennok ignited from the tip of his staff.
[Hexagonal Resonance]
[Disassembly Branching Lightning]
The six lightning streams gathered and rotated, repelling each other, then shot out in all directions the moment Lennok’s manipulation ceased.
These spreading lightning tendrils didn’t merely destroy the thick blood net; they gnawed at it and rapidly swelled in size.
The currents, which were originally as thick as a finger, transformed into the size of rebar, writhing like living snakes and glowing.
Kwagwagwa!!
“…!!”
It wasn’t a simple spell, but a sacrificial incantation woven from the young man’s own flesh and blood.
There was no need to explain what it meant for such a net to be devoured rather than simply destroyed.
The young man, his face pale, was about to abandon the net he had made with parts of his own body as a catalyst and flee, at that moment.
[Concealed Thunder Strike]
Amidst the collapsing net, a precisely curving flash of lightning twisted dozens of times in an instant, accurately pursuing the young man.
In his final moment, as the young man struggled to somehow evade the pursuit, the lightning leaped as if transcending space, accurately piercing through his back.
At that moment, the flash of light explosively swelled, transforming into a massive lightning spear that pressed the young man down onto the middle of the road as if taxidermying him.
Eujijijik!!
“Kahak…!!”
The young man lay on the ground, one arm and leg unable to fully regenerate, writhing pitifully.
Lennok looked down at the staff he held quietly, observing the vampire.
“It seems it wasn’t a lie…”
Just now, until the very last moment, the vampire didn’t attack Lennok, but rather did his best to destroy this staff.
Unless he was insane, it meant he was truly convinced this staff was part of a life support device.
Could this staff, transformed from the Penteract, not be a mere ornament, but truly an object related to the user’s health?
As a result, Lennok was able to easily capture the vampire, who had mistakenly thought he was in critical condition, without having to pursue him.
The existence of this staff, which had led the vampire to a mistaken conclusion about Lennok’s health.
Could the Penteract’s ability to hand him such an item at this particular moment truly be a coincidence?
“…”
Lennok, looking down at the staff with an intrigued expression, tapped the fallen Ryan beside him with it.
The red ropes binding Ryan’s body snapped, and the boy sprang to his feet.
“Damn it, why does this kind of thing always happen to me… Anyway, thanks for helping.”
Lennok shook his head, watching Ryan grumble and rub his limbs.
“You’ve grown quite a bit since I last saw you. How old are you this year?”
“…Seventeen.”
Ryan replied with a gloomy sigh.
“And now I’ll be seventeen for at least a hundred years.”
Vampires don’t age. However, they need a large amount of blood to maintain their power and existence, just like basic meals.
Ryan also knew what kind of predicament he was in now.
“First, I think I need to hear your explanation of the situation… but it’ll be difficult here.”
He had left the young man to make a ruckus to capture him, and now the middle of the street was covered in blood.
If he were to leisurely listen to the circumstances here, it wouldn’t be strange to be detained by law enforcement, who would arrive belatedly.
Lennok’s gaze swept around, landing on the old sedan that seemed to belong to the vampire.
“Let’s move.”
In a deserted factory warehouse, the young man was thrown onto a creaking chair, his limbs bound with mana-strings.
His arms and legs were tied behind him, and mana-strings connected his opposing limbs, making him a rather pitiful sight.
Ryan, too, briefly forgot his own predicament and clicked his tongue at the sight.
“…Right, this is how he was.”
“I’ve already contacted Jenny, so explain before he wakes up.”
Lennok dusted off his hands, pulled a chair opposite him, and sat down.
With his hands clasped over the staff, his body felt perfectly balanced.
“I want to hear what happened to you, and what kind of resolution you desire.”
It wasn’t that he suddenly wanted to act like he cared for a freelancer from his affiliated company.
Lennok’s relationship with Ryan wasn’t particularly deep, and Jenny’s company had too many freelancers now.
However, the reason Lennok was interested in Ryan’s situation was that what he had just experienced was one of the alternatives Lennok himself had once seriously considered.
There were not a few ways for an ordinary human born in this world to acquire the body of a demi-human, and becoming a vampire was one of them.
He wanted to hear directly how Ryan became a vampire and how he felt about his current state.
“Are you… are you okay?”
The boy hesitated, then looked at Lennok, asking.
“I heard you were very ill.”
“I can manage for now.”
Lennok replied with an expressionless face.
“More importantly, I want to hear your story first.”
“…It happened after I handled a request from the Madame.”
“The Madame?”
“She asked me to transport something, saying it was a job only a blood wizard could handle. The pay was good, so I took care of it without much thought and forgot about it, but about three days after the job was done, something felt off.”
“…”
“I realized I was being followed and told Jenny, and she found someone to work with me temporarily as a bodyguard… That very day, I was attacked.”
“Attacked.”
“They forced me to drink some strange liquid, saying if I wanted to live, I had to swallow it. After drinking it, I passed out, and when I woke up, I was being chased by this guy… That’s pretty much it.”
Lennok asked again after Ryan’s heavy sigh.
“How does it feel to be a vampire? Can you compare your condition to when you were human?”
“Well, honestly, it doesn’t quite feel real… My senses actually feel a bit duller. My head’s a little hazy too…”
Ryan replied, bending his limbs back and forth.
“It’s more like my magical senses have opened up? Manipulating blood flow is much easier than before. I don’t understand why I even hesitated until now.”
He conjured blood droplets between his fingertips, as if slightly intoxicated.
As he shaped the spreading blood into the form of a beautiful flower, Ryan’s face took on a hazy expression.
“It doesn’t feel so bad…”
“I see.”
Lennok nodded.
“It’s probably best to find a way to turn you back into a human.”
“Why?”
“You might not realize it yet, but I’ve been carefully observing your physical reactions…”
Lennok leaned back in his chair, propping his chin on his hand, and shook his head.
“You haven’t been breathing for over five minutes now.”
“…”
“You weren’t even aware of it, were you? And it didn’t hurt. If sufficient blood is provided, metabolic functions like breathing become largely unimportant. That’s how blood demons, a type of demi-human, are.”
Seeing Ryan speechless, Lennok continued.
“You’ll quickly forget the sensations you had as a human. If you wait too long, you won’t be able to turn back even if you want to. It’s common for them to feel suffocated at every opportunity, or pass out from not eating for too long. That’s completely different from those born as vampires.”
“That’s…”
“It means it becomes easy to forget basic survival instincts as a living being.”
That was precisely why Lennok had seriously considered changing his body to that of a vampire, but ultimately gave up on the idea.
Just as Lennok was about to continue speaking, seeing Ryan’s hardened expression, his phone rang. It was Jenny.
“…Jenny?”
[Van, I saw your message about securing Ryan. Is it okay to talk?]
“The situation is resolved. I’ve captured the vampire. I plan to interrogate him briefly on site and hand him over; that’s fine, right?”
[Wait, there’s something else we need to discuss first. It’s about the doctor’s matter.]
“…”
As Lennok fell silent, Jenny immediately continued.
[I found a doctor who specializes in the theme you mentioned. They say he’s well-known among medical professionals in this field.]
“Can I make an appointment for a check-up?”
[That’s the problem. The doctor is from the Central City, so his connections aren’t very wide. He’s very particular about only seeing people he knows personally.]
“You mean I need an intermediary.”
[That’s why I looked up a few of his business partners, and one of them is…]
Lennok ended his conversation with Jenny and immediately rose from his seat.
“Let’s finish up quickly and move.”
Ryan looked at Lennok, who stood before the vampire, leaning on his staff, with a bewildered expression.
“What’s wrong?”
Lennok tapped the vampire’s head with his staff and said.
“I have one more reason to meet the Madame.”