Chapter 2429 – 2429. Dark Moon
I met the journalist I was escorting outside of Neo London.
She was a woman with green hair and tanned skin. Quite the beauty. She wore a sleeveless leather vest and tight skinny jeans. Underneath the leather vest, she wore a white tank top, deeply cut to reveal her cleavage.
Her chest and hips were full, and her waist was slender. A classic hourglass figure. Her tanned skin looked so taut it seemed like it would bounce back if you poked it with a finger.
“You’re Mr. Eugene, right? You’re so gloomy, you look just like a vampire, so I recognized you right away.”
“That’s quite rude for a first meeting.”
“Oh, come on. It’s a joke. Isn’t this how we greet each other in the mercenary world?”
“……”
It was true, so I couldn’t argue. In the mercenary world, swearing was the norm. Spitting out curses at the first meeting? It was just everyday life.
She said cheerfully,
“I’m Aisa Gomes.”
“…Gomes? What’s your relationship with Editor Ricardo?”
“I’m his daughter.”
“He sends his daughter to dangerous places.”
“My father tried to stop me so many times. He said it should be left to a veteran journalist. But I’m the one who sniffed out this scoop, you know? Why would I hand over my credit to someone else? In the end, I agreed to compromise with my father.”
“And that compromise is me.”
“Yes. Honestly, I could have done it myself… but it’s easier with a guide, so I accepted it, I guess.”
I stared at her intently. Natural, yet heavy. A presence like a rock. I didn’t know exactly how skilled she was, but it was clear she was at least a Rank 4 or higher.
“…A druid, huh.”
“Yes. I’m a certified druid with a druid license.”
Aisa subtly posed as she spoke. A pose that showed off her cleavage and emphasized her hips. A pose that drew a man’s gaze.
“Enough with the seduction.”
If she kept up the seduction, it would be troublesome for me. It would be hard to concentrate because my male instincts would be stimulated.
“Oh my. I’m sorry. It’s like an occupational hazard. It’s easy to gain men’s favor this way. Oh, but don’t get me wrong, I’m not a woman with a loose reputation.”
Her hips certainly looked heavy. But I couldn’t say that. I just nodded vaguely.
It was probably true that she wasn’t loose.
‘I’ve been smelling something good since earlier.’
As Eugene, a true-blooded vampire, my sense of smell was heightened. Especially when it came to women.
‘The characteristic of a woman who smells good is that she’s a virgin.’
Women who weren’t virgins didn’t have any scent at all. In the case of men, whether they were virgins or not, they had an unpleasant smell.
In short, I was a virgin detector now. Honestly, it wasn’t a very useful ability in combat.
‘It’s not just a myth that vampires prefer the blood of virgins. In this world, a pure virgin is a valuable offering in itself.’
Aisa looked at me with curious eyes.
“What is it? Do you have something to say?”
“I’ve seen vampires a few times. They all seemed to avoid being active during the day… but you don’t seem to be. Although you’re wearing a gloomy robe that doesn’t fit the weather or the times, and you’ve pulled it over your head.”
This robe was an artifact I made myself. It eliminated the ultraviolet rays of the sunlight that touched my body. Even so, in my vampire state, I felt weaker during the day, and it was harder to handle mana. It felt like I was being hindered.
“Let’s talk about the request. I will cooperate with you and protect you. The request starts from the moment we met, and it ends when we arrive in Neo London.”
“Yes. That was the request. I hope you don’t interfere with my reporting.”
“You shouldn’t do anything reckless either. I don’t have a hobby of saving suicidal humans.”
“Yes, yes. My father said the broker was trustworthy… I hope I can trust you too.”
I didn’t react and remained silent. It didn’t matter to me whether she trusted me or not. What I had to do wouldn’t change.
“Let’s begin.”
“I like that you’re not wasting time. Here, take this first.”
She handed me a charm carved from wood. It wasn’t just a charm in appearance. I could feel an unusual power from the small wooden charm, smaller than the palm of my hand.
“It’s a charm made from a piece of 300-year-old wood. It’s enchanted with a concealment spell, so most people won’t recognize us. It’s very helpful when sneaking into corporations.”
Aisa grinned. Her crazy answer reminded me once again that this woman was a reporter for the Liberals.
“…An artifact made with a spell. It’s different from magic.”
“It’s similar yet different. Druids borrow the power of nature from the great spirit.”
“I know. Druids must pay a price before or after using a spell.”
“That’s right. Otherwise, they’ll end up paying the price in an undesirable way.”
Perhaps because it wasn’t magic, I didn’t feel much from the charm.
“Okay, let’s move. Follow me.”
Aisa took the lead. Her hips swayed naturally. I smiled wryly. It was pleasing to the eye… but she was a troublesome woman in many ways.
We walked for about 30 minutes.
“This should be good enough.”
“…Is there a reason we came this far?”
“There are two reasons. One is to avoid the gaze of any Alpha Tier, just in case. This isn’t Neo London, and I don’t have a good relationship with the Alpha Tier.”
“…And the other one?”
“The price for the spell.”
“Just walking is the price for the spell? Anyone could become a druid if they knew that.”
“It wasn’t just ordinary walking. I walked with a heart full of gratitude to the great spirit.”
“…You’ve been quiet since earlier, so you were conducting a ritual while walking. You were chanting incantations in your mind, weren’t you?”
“Oh my. You noticed right away. Even if you’re a mage, you wouldn’t know much about spells.”
“I may not know much about spells, but I know a bit about rituals.”
“Yes, yes. You’re amazing.”
Aisa raised her hand and put it into her cleavage. Startled by her sudden action, I flinched but couldn’t take my eyes off her.
“I feel a lecherous gaze… Mr. Eugene, you’re a man after all, aren’t you?”
“…Should I take my eyes off just that? I don’t know what you’re going to do.”
“It seems like your gaze has been hot since earlier, considering you’re just being cautious. Well, it’s fine. Mr. Eugene is a male, so he’s just following his instincts. I’m relieved.”
“Relieved?”
“Real crazy mages aren’t affected by seduction at all. It’s a natural instinct for a male to be drawn to a female. It’s the way of nature. Not having that instinct means you’re not normal.”
“Do you, do you always talk like that? Male and female….”
“It’s a habit from my time as a trainee druid, I guess.”
She took something out of her cleavage. Somehow, even though she was wearing skinny jeans, she didn’t have a bag, and she was using her cleavage like a pocket. The object she took out was a glass bottle, and it was very small. Miniature size, you could say. Smaller than a pinky finger.
‘Did she make it small with a spell?’
She held the glass bottle in her palm and muttered a small incantation. It was a kind of chant, but as a mage, I couldn’t understand it at all. The glass bottle grew larger. There was blood inside the glass bottle.
“The Blood Chaser spell needs the blood of the target, right? Here it is.”
“……May I ask whose blood it is?”
“Do you know about the primitive attack that happened three months ago?”
I shook my head. It was the first time I’d heard of it.
“I don’t.”
“Well, it’s natural that you wouldn’t know since it happened outside of Neo London. A primitive appeared in a small village and attacked it. In reality, it was just a primitive appearing in the village. A primitive with dozens of small bumps all over its body. That primitive spoke about his village. Surprisingly, the primitive could speak the common language.”
“The bumps on his body… he must have been cursed from somewhere. Isn’t he called a primitive just because he was naked?”
“Most people think so. But then, the Alpha Tier agents moved in and covered up the incident. That’s when I had a hunch. This incident was related to the Alpha Tier. And they moved so quickly? It must be related to human experimentation.”
It was too much of a leap. But considering what the Alpha Tier usually did, I already agreed with Aisa. If it was the Alpha Tier, they would definitely be doing that.
“You managed to get this blood.”
“The power of connections. And a bit of luck.”
I received the glass bottle containing the blood from her. An expectant gaze was directed at me.
I opened the astral and calculated the formula.
Blood Chaser.
Rank 5 Blood Magic. The reason why Blood Chaser was Rank 5 was not because of its power, but because of its difficulty.
‘Blood magic is related to life magic. All living things have blood flowing through them. In other words, blood is a symbol of life.’
The formula was completed, and the magic was activated.
[Blood Chaser]
Clang!
The glass bottle on my palm shattered. The blood inside didn’t spill, but gathered on my palm, forming into the shape of an owl.
Blood Chaser was a magic that temporarily created a magical creature to find the owner of the blood.
“An owl? Is there a reason it’s an owl?”
“Somehow, an owl felt more familiar.”
The Blood Chaser spread its wings and rose into the air. And then it slowly flew in one direction.
We followed behind it.
