NOVEL WEB Chapter 233: Want Me To Lick It...?
"How many of the top rankers in the United States are left unturned?" Battlemonger asked.
Bladedevil replied, "Only the newly recruited have yet to be turned. We now have a large surplus of Husks sitting around in the Mothership."
"Voidworm Season is indeed on the horizon, and they will be searching for tribute from the Dissonants," Battlemonger mused. "Well, when is the next Void Hunting Cycle again?"
This time, Victor responded, "Void Hunting will start within the next few years. But until then, the Husks will be safely preserved and kept until the time arrives."
Battlemonger nodded.
With that, the three high-ranking Dissonants and the numerous disguised Gremlins walked away from the Auditorium in a rather organized fashion. Though, after a few seconds, they eventually dispersed and went their own ways.
World domination and/or destruction waited for no man… or alien.
—-------------
— Meanwhile, in Hoshito, Japan, shortly after Cassius solidified his breakthrough into the Archdemon Rank —
As our intrepid protagonist nonchalantly made his way down one of the many empty streets leading to his mansion on the hills, a sudden, unexpected visitor arrived. One that left him greatly conflicted. Enjoy new adventures from My Virtual Library Empire
"Hello, young fellow," said a black-haired, starry-eyed woman with a white beard and a slightly humped back. "Are you looking to try some of my goods? I promise you the quality does not disappoint."
A woman—who was most obviously Bella dressed up as an old man—was playing the part of a streetside peddler. She sat cross-legged under a makeshift tent, but had sprawled out before her only a few random rocks and one diamond-plated vial with a single droplet of reddish-silver liquid inside it.
It was quite clear that she wanted him to purchase whatever was in that vial.
"...."
Cassius had no idea what could possibly be going through the head of this girl. From how unkempt she appeared, it was fair to say that she had been waiting out here for a long while. But for what reason?
All to sell him this suspicious vial with some mystery liquid inside?
Not long after he totally told her to essentially p*ss off as well!
Was there actually something wrong with her frontal lobe, or what?
Then again, that was a given…
'Perhaps I should just ignore her—' But just as that thought entered his mind, the System picked the oddest time to pop up a description for the sole item being advertised at Bella's stall.
BLING!
{[Rank 6 Vampire Duke Blood]} - (EX+++ Rank)
—[The purest form of blood, pricked and extracted from a genuine Vampire Duke. Upon consumption, the user will either directly acquire an EX- Vampire Duke Bloodline or have their prior Vampire Bloodline upgraded appropriately.]
—[If the user consumes several drops of this type of blood, the original EX+++ Vampire Duke Bloodline will be obtained. Though it's unknown how many hundreds of droplets that'll take…]
The moment Cassius finished reading the item's description, he realized right then and there that he couldn't pass up this chance.
'If the SSS-Rank is after the SS-Rank, then the EX-Rank must be after the SSS-Rank,' he thought introspectively. 'And if that's the case, then the blood inside this vial is worth an absurd amount…'
After a brief pause. "I'm quite interested in this item you have here," he said. "How much will it cost me to get it from you?"
First off, he had to figure out what game Bella was playing at. This question should do the job just fine.
Bella's eyes visibly sparkled as she nearly leapt up and hugged him. But holding herself back, she said, "I can sell this extremely valuable item to you; however, you must give me two—no, three kisses! Wait…! I mean, you must, uhmm… sign this completely normal piece of paper!"
Sweat beads trickled down her forehead as she nervously slammed an unknown thick piece of paper on the ground in front of her. She averted her erratically flickering eyes, doing a very bad job of not acting suspicious.
"...."
Cassius glanced over the paper set out in front of him.
'The Tournament of Yggdrasil?? Join the Crestmore Vampire Duke Family!? Become the wife of Bella Crestmore!??'
The last part was not originally part of the contract, as it was written in Bella's handwriting. Quite sloppily, at that.
Yet, that didn't make what he was looking at any less baffling.
Right after he accepted Flora's proposal to acquire a ticket to enter Yggdrasil, another opportunity found its way to his doorstep.
However, the first opportunity was already complicated enough—not to mention how absurd this one was!
'Should I accept the offer?' Cassius looked up from the contents of the contract and saw Bella's expectant eyes. 'I want to hate her so badly… But I don't understand why I can't…'
If it were the old, more human version of him, he would've rudely denied whatever Bella was planning. But with how he was now and with such benefits presented before him, it was hard to do something like that. Especially when the one offering these benefits was staring at him with so much love and affection that it nearly blinded him.
'...I don't know what to do here…'
If Cassius accepted the terms of the contract—excluding the last unofficial part—then he would acquire both the Rank 6 Vampire Duke Blood droplet and a ticket to Yggdrasil. As for the downsides, he would be forced to join the Crestmore Vampire Duke Family, which could lead to any number of troubles. Particularly when it involved being around this insane woman.
He wasn't sure if he'd ever be able to forgive her for what she had done to him…
But with lucrative benefits on the line…
A sigh escaped Cassius's lips. He extended a hand.
Bella tilted her head in confusion. "Want me to lick it?"
"???"
Hurriedly correcting herself, Bella said, "I-I mean… Do you want me to, uhmm… ki-kiss it—"
"I'm asking for a pen…"
"Ohh!! Y-Yes, of course!"
Bella immediately scrambled for a pen and handed it to Cassius, her cheeks flushed red.
'Did she completely forget that she's supposed to be playing the part of an old streetside vendor?? Seeing her look like that while blushing as if she were a pubescent teenage schoolgirl is…'