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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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The sensation of having blood sucked was strange and unpleasant. It wasn’t that I had never donated blood in my previous life, but this was more blatant, so to speak.
The stinging sensation of a needle being inserted was the same as fangs piercing the skin. But that’s where the similarities ended. With blood donation, you just had to sit still and hold out your arm, so the awareness of blood being drawn out was faint, but this case was a bit different. Especially since we were in close contact.
As I felt the touch of her hand stroking my back, I thought.
‘…Was she very hungry?’
After all, there was a certain amount of calories needed for metabolism, and I thought it would be similar for vampires too. Thinking about it that way, it made sense that she would be hungry if she only licked a few drops of blood three times a day.
“…Arwen, but this really feels strange.”
“Didn’t I tell you to get used to it since you’ll experience it often?”
“Easier said than done. Imagine someone sinking their fangs into your neck and constantly licking your neck. Do you think you could get used to that?”
“…Well, that’s true.”
Arwen detached her face from my neck and smacked her lips, as if she was unsatisfied.
At times like this, I had learned recovery magic for this purpose, but anyway, after having my blood sucked, I felt a bit dizzy and lightheaded, like right after donating blood.
It would be hard to get used to this.
Grumbling, I cast a simple recovery spell to heal the wound caused by her fangs, and only then did my gaze meet Arwen’s, who had been staring at me intently.
“…What, is there something on my face?”
“You seem strangely skilled at it. As if you know what to do.”
“If that were the case, I would have regressed along with you, not just you. Come here, don’t go around with blood smeared on your face like a beast.”
Sighing, I took out a handkerchief and wiped the blood from the corners of Arwen’s mouth.
Perhaps because she had been spending a lot of time as a cat recently, Arwen was obedient even when I rubbed her face with a handkerchief, and after wiping away the blood, I unconsciously placed my hand on her head, as I would when she was a cat.
And I slowly stroked her hair. Of course, since she had been well-behaved, it was meant as praise.
“…?”
Of course, Arwen naturally widened her eyes and gave me a look as if asking what I was doing.
…This was like an occupational disease. An occupational disease that owners of cats commonly develop.
Apart from that, Arwen was currently in human form, not cat form, so stroking her hair was indeed a rude action.
“Why?”
“What’s the meaning of stroking my hair?”
“An owner pets a cat. A cat bites the owner when angry. That’s what I saw on YouTube.”
“…I don’t know what you mean, but there’s one thing I need to make clear.”
Arwen, with an expression that seemed to say this must be addressed, slowly counted on her fingers one by one.
“…First of all, I’m not a cat. I’m just taking the form of a cat out of necessity, but it doesn’t change the fact that my essence is Arwen Nosferatu.”
“But cats are cute, you know.”
“Cu-cu-cute… Tsk. Anyway, think about my age. An incomprehensibly long time has passed. Unlike you, who has only lived for twenty years–”
“Men are, no, here it’s women. Women are always children even as they age, you know.”
Of course, my logical rebuttal followed. I didn’t fight unfairly with agitation and fabrication, but honestly with facts alone.
In the original world, there used to be humorous posts circulating like “Men are always children even as they age lol That’s why men die early.gif.”
But from what I had observed so far, that applied to women in this world too. Since I was twisted in the opposite direction from what was considered “normal” in this world, I got along well with such women.
Anyway, my gambler’s spirit of not engaging in a match unless I was certain was fully displayed without any filter, and Arwen shut her mouth, seemingly at a loss for words.
Her expression seemed to say, “Is this really right…?” But… Who cares!
“…Hmph. But do you have the right to say such things?”
Arwen puffed out her cheeks with a dissatisfied expression.
However, attacking the messenger when you can’t logically refute is a long-standing tradition. It was already within the expected range, so I shrugged my shoulders.
“If you’re hungry, say you’re hungry. Don’t suddenly pounce like a beast and start sucking blood before anyone else.”
“…Eek.”
Arwen’s face instantly turned red.
So she did have the awareness that it was an embarrassing action. Well, that’s good enough. I’m about to shed tears at this remarkable progress.
Chuckling, I turned off the magic stone lamp. Leaving only the dim nightlight on for sleeping.
Anyway, since I had spent the whole day out and about with Sylphia, I was starting to get sleepy. It was time for the new country’s child to depart for dreamland.
“Anyway, I’m going to sleep now, Arwen.”
“…You must be tired after wandering around so much. I understand. Then slowly… Slowly…”
I was about to take off my uncomfortable outdoor clothes haphazardly and lie down in my T-shirt and shorts that I wore underneath.
But Arwen had her gaze fixed on me, unable to finish her words.
“Is there perhaps a problem…?”
Perhaps it was due to the dim light of the nightlight, or her face hadn’t calmed down yet. Arwen, with a fully reddened face, tried to say something but eventually transformed back into her cat form.
As she silently tried to go under the bed, I stopped her with a suspicion.
“Arwen.”
“…What is it?”
“Do you want to sleep together?”
Come to think of it, I had never tried sleeping together with a cat even though I had one.
Now the cat would lie next to me with its eyes closed, purring and also serving as a warm, living hot pack. Isn’t that what cat owners usually do?
In my previous life, I was an online cat owner who watched such scenes on YouTube, so I asked the question just in case.
“Wh-what are you saying! Get a grip! Even if it’s a joke, you can’t carelessly say such things–”
“You’re a cat, though.”
“…”
I thought it would be okay to sleep in the same bed to that extent since she was in cat form, but Arwen seemed to have a slightly different idea.
Well, come to think of it.
She must have lived a long life, so as a trade-off, she became a stubborn old-timer who could rival the Confucian Taliban in her way of thinking. It was understandable…
What a shame.
I wanted to try sleeping with a cat too.
However, Arwen, who seemed to be lost in her own thoughts, let out a deep sigh and placed her front paws on me, saying.
“Rudrick, didn’t I tell you? The reason I’m taking the form of a cat is out of necessity. You mustn’t overlook the fact that its essence is fundamentally different.”
“…”
“The fact that I’m already living with you in the form of a cat is something I can’t defend even if I’m criticized for it.”
“…Even though you’re a cat?”
“You may see me as a cat, but in the eyes of others, it’s no different from an unmarried man and woman living together. Keep this in mind. People’s perspectives can often differ from your thoughts.”
Arwen looked at me with a pitiful gaze.
It was a rather unfamiliar and rare experience to have a cat look at me with pity, but it felt like she was implying that my mind was a flower garden, so even though I had a mouth, I had nothing appropriate to say.
…Well, if others think that way, let them think that way. There’s no need to make a fuss about it.
Grumbling inwardly, I grabbed Arwen’s arm and held onto her, lowering her under the bed.
Arwen also obediently let me hold her without much resistance.
“Arwen, good night.”
“…Yeah.”
A response came from under the bed a beat later, and I also laid my body, tired from working hard all day, on the bed.
So basically, Arwen was telling me not to treat her like a cat. She meant that even if Arwen transformed into a cat, other people wouldn’t treat her as a cat.
–Well, it would be natural for ordinary people to think that way.
I should be careful.
It seemed that my actions weren’t always conveyed to others with their original intentions and were sometimes over-interpreted or taken in a different meaning…
Of course, apart from that, getting my blood sucked by Arwen was something I had to get used to eventually.
There was no way for a vampire to properly obtain blood in the Imperial Palace, and if she attacked someone else, it would immediately cause a commotion.
It wasn’t that it felt unpleasant or bad to have my blood sucked, but it was strange…
It couldn’t be helped.
I made a resolution in my heart. There was no one else who could give blood to Arwen besides me, and it wasn’t like I could buy blood by selling my own blood.
If I didn’t take responsibility for feeding our family’s cat, who would?
Although Arwen told me not to treat her like a cat, her transformed cat form was really cute, so what could I do? Liking cute things is a basic human instinct. That’s why babies are born with a cute appearance to increase their survival rate.
Let alone a cute cat.
Feeding our family’s cat when it’s mealtime is a major matter.
“…Rudrick, were you perhaps having some strange thoughts just now?”
“I wasn’t?”
“…I have a bad feeling about this.”
I shamelessly lied without even wetting my lips, but as expected, a True Ancestor had a very sharp intuition.
If Arwen knew I was having such thoughts, she would probably sigh deeply again or look at me with an absurd expression.
But what can I do?
‘For now,’ I needed to slowly assess the situation.
There was nothing more foolish than meddling or making a fuss without knowing what was going on.
‘Yes, at least for the time being, I should continue to lie low.’
If I kept watching for an opportunity, it would come eventually.
The only fragmented information I knew right now was that I had died before they regressed. It wasn’t that I was particularly worried or anything.
At least after I fully figured out what had happened before the regression.
It wouldn’t be too late to make a move after that.
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