Volume 5, Chapter 38 – Nightmares, One After Another

The sun, symbolizing the end of a day, gradually rose from the east. The nocturnal vampires returned to their homes one after another, and the streets grew quiet. Some races that could bask in the sun began to wake up and start a new day.

Unlike the Royal Capital, the Astrid Territory was illuminated by sunlight during the day. Thanks to this, within the vast lands of the Blood Clan, the number of non-Blood Clan members in the Astrid Territory was second only to some of the border territories.

Forcing herself to fight off the drowsiness that flooded her mind, the freshly bathed Yisi walked into the basement. This mansion was a manor exclusively for the Queen’s use. Every year during the Festival of Original Sin, the Queen would rest here. Although its scale was not large, in terms of comfort, it was much better than the castle.

Lighting the magic lamp hanging on the wall, Yisi first ran her fingers through her long, silver hair, which was streaked with a deep blue at the ends, then covered her mouth and yawned.

“Ahhh~ I wonder how Andrea is doing now. After encountering something like that, is she really okay?”

After teleporting back with Andrea and her companions, Yisi had gone straight to Boris to have him arrange for their accommodations. Because Andrea had failed to purify Count Hillary, there was little conversation among her companions on the way back, and the somber atmosphere had lasted until dinner was over.

No one knew how to comfort Andrea. Even if they brought up other topics, the conversation would quickly fall silent again. In the end, it was Andrea who said she wanted to go see the village within the manor grounds that finally dispelled the awkward atmosphere.

And then, Yisi, having just bathed, had come to the basement to prepare to process the Swamp Poison Spider’s carapace into armor.

The basement was empty. Yisi walked to the center of the room and placed the [Foundry Platform – Tier 4] in the middle.

“I can only process the carapace into small pieces first, and then take the finished product to a blacksmith to help assemble the armor…”

Scale mail was not something just anyone could make. She could use the Foundry Platform to easily shape steel into whatever form she desired, but if she didn’t know the internal structure, even with a convenient tool, it was out of the question.

Taking out the corpse of a Swamp Poison Spider from her storage, the thick smell made Yisi cover her nose. “I didn’t notice it when we were in the fog, but now that I have it out by itself… as expected of a monster that lives near a swamp.” It had a foul, rotten smell.

Helpless, Yisi could only first chop off the spider’s legs with an iron sword, then throw the body into a pool of water. After washing the mud off, she could begin the processing work.

To summarize it simply, she shaved off the bristles from the spider’s body, leaving only the carapace, which was as thick as a fingernail. Then, she placed the processed carapace on the Foundry Platform and used its magic blade to cut it into intact scales.

“This is where I had a problem last time. I can’t be careless.”

Letting out a long breath, Yisi had the magic blade follow a pre-drawn path. Previously, when she had been processing a metal called “Steel Mithril,” because the material was too brittle, it had shattered into several pieces of varying sizes the moment she cut it into a thin sheet, making it impossible to continue processing.

Fortunately, the Swamp Poison Spider’s carapace did not have this problem. Yisi was slightly relieved. As long as she could process the carapace into scales, the rest of the assembly could be left to a blacksmith. At most, she would just have to test the armor’s strength again.

Just as the processing work was about to finish, a knock suddenly came from the basement door.

The sound seemed to lack confidence. It was probably Mary.

Yisi put down her work and walked to the basement door, opening it.

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As she had imagined, the one who had knocked was Mary, but Tiffany was also standing beside her. Both of them were holding white pillows and wearing loose pajamas, looking as if they had just climbed out of bed.

Yisi tilted her head. “Mary? Tiffany? What’s wrong? It should be time for bed now.”

“Wh-What about you, Master? Aren’t you going to sleep?”

Hugging the pillow to her chest, Mary looked up, her purple eyes a mixture of probing and fear. Yisi couldn’t help but find it strange. After spending so much time together, Mary shouldn’t be afraid of her anymore.

“I plan to sleep after I’m done with the work at hand.”

“Can I wait here for you to finish, Master?” Mary took a small step forward, her cute face full of expectation.

“I don’t have a problem with it… are you planning on sleeping with me, Mary?”

Coming to find her while holding a pillow, what she was going to do next was quite obvious. Mary was not good at sleeping alone to begin with. It had been the same back at Margaret; Mary had slept with almost all the Fallen girls. ¹ cute

Now that they were on a journey, if Mary wasn’t sleeping with Tiffany, she would definitely come looking for her. Although in principle, Mary was already an adult and she shouldn’t have agreed to her request, she couldn’t resist her pitiful look. Plus, Mary’s body temperature was higher than her own, which was very warm when it was cold, so Yisi didn’t pay it much mind. This was also the point that Camilla found most unacceptable—she would let Mary into her room, but not her own sister-in-name.

Her intentions having been pointed out by Yisi, Mary shyly twirled a strand of her chestnut-colored hair with her finger. “Yes…”

“Then what about you, Tiffany? I remember you already replenished your magic before bed.” Shifting her gaze to Tiffany with the light green pigtails, Tiffany nodded seriously.

“Me too.”

“You too, Tiffany? If you’re looking for someone to sleep with, can’t you and Mary just sleep together?”

Tiffany shook her head decisively, her light green pigtails slapping against Yisi with a crisp sound. “NG.”

“Did you have a fight…”

“N-No, that’s not it! It’s just that Tiffany and I had a nightmare, and we can’t sleep, so we came to find you, Master…”

No wonder her eyes held a hint of fear when she looked at her earlier. If she had a nightmare, then it made sense. Children always lacked a sense of security. Yisi made way for Mary.

“Mmm, then come on in. The work will be done soon.” Her bed could accommodate five or six people, and since Mary and Tiffany were both children, it wouldn’t be crowded.

With joyful expressions, Mary and Tiffany entered the room one after another. However, just as Yisi was about to close the door, another person walked up to the entrance.

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Camilla, in a white nightgown.

Perhaps because she had already slept for a while and then gotten up, Camilla’s golden hair looked a little messy, and her ruby-like eyes were full of anxiety.

Remembering Mary and Tiffany in their pajamas inside the room, Yisi’s expression stiffened slightly. Although she hadn’t done anything to feel guilty about, she couldn’t suppress the feeling of guilt.

“C-Camilla? What’s wrong? Coming to find me in your nightgown.”

“Onee-sama!”

A hug was the only answer Yisi received. As if afraid she would slip away, Camilla held her tightly. Yisi could even feel her body trembling slightly.

Did something happen?

After being stunned for a moment, Yisi gently patted Camilla’s back. After a full minute, Camilla finally calmed down and slowly released her.

“Did something happen, Camilla?”

“…I dreamed that you left me behind and went away alone, Onee-sama.”

No wonder she had been so agitated just now. Yisi smiled. “Don’t worry, I won’t leave you behind, Camilla. Do you want some tea first?”

Camilla shook her head, her fingers toying with the hem of her nightgown, her face a little pale. “C-Can I sleep with you tonight, Onee-sama? Just for one night. I won’t do anything, as long as I can be by your side…”

Now that she had put it that way, even if she had a legitimate reason to refuse, she couldn’t bring herself to say it. In fact, there probably wasn’t anyone in the world who could refuse Camilla. Even with her flat chest, Camilla was very charming in both personality and appearance.

Yisi looked back at Mary and Tiffany, who were hiding in the corner. “Mmm… but Mary and Tiffany will be sleeping with me too. Is that okay?” To prevent Camilla from getting angry, Yisi added, “Mary and Tiffany came before you. I already promised them.”

Contrary to her expectations, not only was Camilla not angry, she didn’t even frown. She just nodded very obediently, walked meekly into the basement, and stood with Mary and Tiffany.

Is something wrong today? Yisi couldn’t help but feel strange, but something even stranger soon happened.

This time it was Edith and Refina. Although Edith was in a formal dress, from the fact that Refina was only wearing a nightgown, they must have also just gotten out of bed. It was worth noting that although Edith did not have a panicked expression, she gave off an overall feeling of being anxious about something. Refina, on the other hand, had the words “still shaken” written all over her face.

Yisi’s voice rose a notch. “Pepe, Refina? Why are you two here too?”

Seeing that Yisi was unharmed, the sense of urgency radiating from Edith quickly dissipated. She then caught something wrong with Yisi’s words. “‘Too’? Were there others before me?”

“Er… more importantly, why are you here, Pepe?” Unlike when she was facing Camilla, Yisi walked out of the basement, casually closing the door behind her.

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“I just wanted to see if you had been dismembered by those undead. I had a boring dream.” While Yisi wasn’t looking, Edith secretly glanced at her. “Are you going to sleep in my room tonight?”

“Huh?”

Why is everyone coming to sleep with me today?

While feeling strange, Yisi answered Edith. “I don’t have the kind of interest where I get excited after being abused. I’m going to sleep in my own bed.”

“Then move your bed into my room.”

“No—way—.”

“Tch.” Edith clicked her tongue in dissatisfaction, then, as if she had spotted something strange on Yisi, she frowned and walked up to her, picking up a strand of hair with her fingers. Golden.

“This is… Camilla’s?” Edith sniffed the scent on Yisi. “Didn’t you just take a bath?”

Yisi’s gaze shifted to the ceiling. “Well…” It must have gotten on her when Camilla hugged her just now.

“I remember you said ‘too’ just now. In other words, Camilla also came to find you, is that right?”

“Ahem, it’s just that Camilla had a nightmare.”

“A nightmare? Camilla too?” Instead of the fact that Camilla had come to find me, Edith was more concerned about the nightmare?

Connecting the fact that all her companions had had nightmares tonight, Yisi asked back, “You had one too, Pepe?”

“Not just me, Refina too. And when I passed by the servants’ rooms just now, I also heard them waking up from dreams.”

“Even the servants?”

One person having a nightmare was not strange. Two people having a nightmare was just a coincidence. But if everyone in the entire house had a nightmare, then it was clearly an abnormal situation. Considering that this was a world full of magic, it might be the work of a certain person or thing.

Yisi opened her [Omniscient Map] and checked her companions’ statuses. There was no abnormality in their status bars. In other words, the nightmares were not a buff effect.

Immediately after, Yisi began to search for suspicious targets within a ten-kilometer radius—creatures above Level 30, undead creatures, fallen angels, demons.

Soon, a suspicious target, both expected and unexpected, appeared before her eyes.

The fallen angel Rahab.

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Although the nightmares might not have been the work of the fallen angel, he was more suspicious than anyone else. Yisi let out a light breath.

“The nightmares might be man-made. I’m going to find the person who’s creating them. You should go back to your room first, Pepe.”

“So something really is at work… I suspected it when we were in the Royal Capital. Remember to bring that guy back after you find him.” Edith bared her sharp fangs in a grin. The savage smile was chilling. If she were to bring Rahab back, Pepe would surely torture him until he was no longer human. At that point, even death would be a blessing.

Yisi gave a perfunctory, wry smile. “I’ll give him a couple of punches for you to vent your anger, Pepe. Well then, I’m off.”

After saying a quick word to Camilla, Mary, and Tiffany, explaining that the nightmares might be intentional, Yisi used [Concealment] and [Short-Distance Teleportation] in succession.

She appeared on the edge of a cliff outside the manor.

A fallen angel with an exceptionally burly build, two horns on his head, and a bare upper body was standing on the edge of the cliff. In front of him was a table filled with glasses of colorful liquid. Although he looked like a warrior in every way, Rahab’s every move right now was very gentlemanly.

Because Yisi had used [Concealment], Rahab did not notice her presence and was just sipping his wine by himself.

“Hah… wine brewed from despair and fear really does taste better than the flavor of sweet dreams. Although I’m on official business, it’s a rare trip out, so I should relax a bit first. I wonder where that bunch of scum from Tartaros ran off to.”

Taking another light sip, Rahab raised his wine glass to the sky with a look of emotion. “It’s a pity that Guy Samael isn’t here, otherwise we could enjoy this delicacy together. A fine wine made from the nightmares of thousands of people. I’m probably the only one on the entire continent who can make it.”

Rahab tilted his head back and downed the wine, smacking his lips in satisfaction. “Hah, what a beauti—”

Before he could finish his sentence, his face was deformed.

Pwoof!

That punch was for Mary and the others. The reason she hadn’t made a move was to see what Rahab was up to. From his words just now, she could confirm that her companions’ nightmares were his doing.

Immediately after, before Rahab could react, Yisi landed a second punch on the other side of his face.

So that you won’t be broken by Pepe, this one is an extra for her. Thank me.

However, to Yisi’s surprise, while the slender Samael and Ariel were both very resilient, the burly-looking Rahab fell to the ground after just two punches, his teeth scattered all over the place, the whites of his eyes showing as he lost consciousness.

“Mmm… so he just looks strong. I’ll wait for this guy to wake up first. Maybe I can get some information out of him.”

Collecting all the wine glasses from the table into her storage, Yisi tied Rahab tightly to a tree with a rope.