Chapter 168: She Knows (Part-2)

…

I feel cold sweat running down my back. As stupefied as I am, I cannot help but remember what Zakira told me just yesterday— that her mother is an abnormality among Vampires. She doesn’t focus on leveling up, and thus, isn’t powerful enough to figure out the Blood Bond between us.

Well, she’s an abnormality alright. But for all the opposite reasons.

“…”

“Are you going to answer me or not?” Marianne asks, raising her eyebrows.

Pink, listen here.

[Yes?]

I am going to try and talk myself out of this. If things go south at any point, activate the [Unnamed 01] skill.

[Okay!]

I’ve only used that skill once and not even voluntarily at that, but it is unarguably the most powerful offensive skill I have. Of course, I am not naïve enough to think that just because it was able to thrash Alex and his goon that it will be able to do the same to Marianne.

Even thinking about doing so is enough to make anyone laugh. No, I just need that skill’s power to break free and make a run for it. I am sure that once I am outside, someone will definitely help me stay alive at the very least.

Calming myself down a little bit, I open my mouth to reply.

“It-It happened because of my system. I cannot tell you anything more than that. You know why,” I answer with a slight stutter.

Although this is the actual truth, I have a feeling that Marianne won’t be satisfied with it. And sure enough, she shows her displeasure by clicking her tongue.

“Tch… that seems a bit convenient for you, doesn’t it? Well, no worries, I will fix that,” she says, snapping her fingers a second later.

And immediately, my eyes stop working. I cannot see anything, there’s just pitch-black darkness everywhere.

What the fuck!!? Did she just blind me!?

“No need to look so alarmed, I did not damage your eyes,” Marianne says in a rather reverberant voice.

And the next instant, she appears in front of me again. The darkness is still there, as deep as before, but I can see her very clearly for some reason.

[Look down, you can see yourself as well.]

Huh?

I look down, and yes, Pink is right.

“This is just a small barrier that I put up. Nothing can enter or exit this space without my permission. So, you can speak about your system freely, the WST won’t be able to detect you here,” she tells me coolly.

… fuck.

Isn’t this similar to Rebecca’s ability? Does Marianne have a system like hers?

[Nope. If we don’t consider the level gap, Rebecca’s skill is much more unique and impressive than this. As for Marianne, she’s not even using a system skill.]

Then how is she doing this?

[Her Primordial magic. Take a guess what it is.]

…

Darkness.

[Yup! But this also means that your plan to escape using the ‘Unnamed 01’ skill is completely useless. As she said, nothing can enter or exit this space without her permission… Fufufu.]

Are you seriously laughing right now!? I am in danger, you bastard!

[Oh, come on. Do you seriously think I would be laughing and making jokes about your cock if you were in serious danger?]

Yes.

[…]

[Anyway, she has no intention to actually harm you.]

Huh?

{I agree with Pink, master. This Vampire is not hostile.}

I get taken aback by the sudden appearance of Black. It’s been very quiet since we arrived at Ieproalia. I almost forgot that it can now talk alongside Pink.

…

But why do you guys think so?

[Because we know that she doesn’t need to do any of this. If she really wanted to force you to talk, then I am sure she could’ve done so in several ways without hassle. She’s way stronger than you can imagine, buddy.]

Then why is she not doing that?

[Probably because those ways are not exactly considerate towards one’s life or mental health. And anyway, as far as I can tell, she’s just trying to scare you.]

{Yes. You don’t have to tell her anything, Master. She won’t do anything bad.}

…

Looking at Marianne, I can’t tell if what Pink and Black are saying is true. After all, any parent would be furious if they found out that their daughter is someone’s slave. Her reaction seems appropriate to me.

But well, these two never usually agree with each other on anything, so…

“You really do like taking your time while answering someone, don’t you? Or do you need some more motivation,” Marianne asks, tilting her head.

Suddenly, the grip of the invisible hand around me tightens. It’s a little scary, but I’ve already decided on what to do. I keep my mouth shut and glare at her angrily.

Marianne seems slightly surprised by my sudden change of expression, but she keeps waiting for my reply with a stern face. Not only that, she continues to tighten the grip of the invisible hand as well— that is, until I cannot take it anymore and curse out loud in pain.

“Fucking hell!”

…

…

“Sigh… well, I tried my best.”

The very next second, I find myself falling down to the ground as the invisible hand frees me. Slowly getting up while rubbing my aching arms, I look at Marianne again. She doesn’t look angry anymore.

“Don’t worry, I won’t attack you again. I was just trying to see if I can make you say anything about your system skills. I admire your attitude, though. I wouldn’t tell anyone about my skills, either,” she says with a look of approval.

“… really?” I ask suspiciously.

“Yup. To be honest, I am not even mad about the thing between you and Zakira. Unlike Lucias, I don’t believe in pampering my daughter. She should bear the consequences of her mistakes— no matter how harsh they are. I believe she attacked you first, right?” She asks.

“Yes… she kidnapped and almost killed me while trying to drink my blood,” I answer honestly.

“Well, even I can tell that your blood is irresistible to most female Vampires. My daughter has even put a ward on you to prevent its scent from leaking out and attracting others. But still, she’s my daughter. A pure-blooded Vampire. If I can resist the urge, so should she,” she says sternly.

“But anyway, I thought I can use this as an opportunity to act all furious and make you reveal some of the information about your skills. Don’t blame me, though. With Chaos magic, you will definitely become a powerhouse in the future. I had to try, at least.”

She shrugs with a sly smile.

“Yeah, I totally don’t blame you,” I say sarcastically.

But truthfully, while not showing it on my face, I am actually quite relieved that she’s not angry. If she was anything like Zakira’s dad, there wouldn’t have been anything left of me to put inside a coffin.

“Very understanding of you. Anyway, you must be wondering why am I here if not to punish you for enslaving my daughter, right?” She asks.

“… yeah, I guess.”

“Well, as you heard in the meeting earlier, you are to be assigned someone to help you with leveling up. And I volunteered for it.”

“!”

What!? She will help me level up?

…

After what she just pulled on me, I am not sure if I should be worried or not. Though it is also true that she’s one of the best possible people for this job.

“But first, you need to tell me about your point-earning method. I need to know at least that much to provide you any help,” she says.

I figured that this would be the case, and I don’t really mind it. My point-earning methods aren’t exactly a secret— Layla and a few of my other girlfriends have a general idea about them.

Taking a deep breath, I carefully start telling Marianne about my point-earning methods. Obviously, it doesn’t take too long to finish.

…

“So, you have a system related to sex, huh?” She asks with a serious face.

I give her a nod.

“This is the first time I am hearing someone having so many point-earning methods, though. At most, there have been cases with two or three, but this… And you’re saying that they’re divided into temporary and permanent sections?”

“Yeah.”

“And you’re not trying to get back at me, are you? One of those temporary methods seems a bit suspicious. The one where you have to kiss— no, smooch a girl in front of her parent,” she asks, raising her eyebrows.

“No, I am not,” I answer.

Though you’ve just given me a very good idea.

“Sigh… I believe you. It’s not like I can look into your system to confirm… those who can have already failed.”

She mumbles the last part, but I hear it clearly.

[She’s probably talking about Queen Ilsevel’s attempts to read your system.]

“Well, anyway, I think we’re done here. I have to plan things out to make sure you level up in the most optimum way hereafter,” she tells me while clapping her hands.

The next moment, the darkness around me disappears and I find myself in the study room again. As my eyes get used to the light again, I remember something important.

Shit, I forgot to tell her about my point-consumption rate! Without knowing about it, anything she does will be useless.

“Wait, there’s something I forgot to…”

I stop speaking as Marianne disappears abruptly— only to reappear with her face just a few inches away from mine and her arms wrapped around my neck.

“Oh, and let me give some points as a gift for our first meeting.”

Saying this, she moves her face forward, and kisses me on the lips. She even uses her tongue to open my mouth and exchange our saliva. As shocked as I am, I cannot help but have a pleasant feeling in my stomach.

But her real motive becomes clear just a few seconds later. As I actively start using my tongue as well, a sharp pain comes from my lips. It looks like Marianne has pricked me using her long and sharp canines.

“Ouch!”

“Oh, I am sorry! I got too carried away and accidentally hurt you,” she retracts while apologizing.

Although my wound is already healed due to her saliva, her lips are now covered with my blood.

“Well… while I am strictly against drinking the blood of an intelligent species, this seems like such a waste…” she says without even trying to hide her smile, licking her lips with a face full of rapture.

Accidentally, my ass…

Though the next instant, her expression changes. Her enraptured face now looks horror-struck.

“What happened?” I ask with a frown.

Marianne doesn’t answer. She simply turns around and quickly leaves the room— almost as if running away from me.