**Chapter 24: The Curse III**
I leaped from the roof, gravity pulling me down as I unleashed the full force of the Vampire’s robust arms, striking with *Light Eater*. Alba-tos met my attack head-on with her right arm.
The pitch-black blade sank into her dark fur, tufts of hair flying off. Alba-tos’s eyes glinted with a fierce light.
However… the blade did not penetrate further. Despite the immense force that shattered bones and crushed flesh, it seemed to have little effect. What a resilient body this is!
Even so, there was pain; Alba-tos shuddered violently. As I landed on the ground, I quickly crouched down, slipping around to her blind spot with a fluid motion.
Thanks to the ability of the *Dark Stalker*, Alba-tos’s reactions were slower than a moment ago. Now, I was nearly silent. Perhaps I was even odorless. My instincts had sensed the danger, activating *Shadow Veil*, which, while lacking pure offensive power, granted me exceptional concealment.
But this wouldn’t last long. The blackened skin was gradually returning to its original hue.
I had to secure a victory quickly. I intercepted her whip-like tail with *Light Eater*. The force was overwhelming. I braced myself but was pushed back several meters.
She was too strong. How could this monster be defeated? To think… *Light Eater* would deal so little damage.
My thirst was nearing its limit. It seemed that using *Shadow Veil* consumed energy as well. The blood I had tasted from Alba-tos was running low.
Her movements were not sluggish compared to the beginning; if anything, they had intensified.
I felt no fatigue, but damage was accumulating. Not only from the attacks I couldn’t dodge, but also from the recoil of my own strikes. Time was on her side.
Overwhelmingly… my offensive power was insufficient. How many more times could I unleash my full strength? I desperately dodged attacks while searching for an opening.
I needed to find a way to win. If there was a unique opportunity to deal significant damage, it would have to be by utilizing the momentum of her attacks.
From my previous encounters, I understood Alba-tos’s attack patterns. After she swung her foreleg down, she would likely follow up with a bite.
The reason she didn’t lead with her head was probably to minimize openings… but if I were to target her, that would be the spot. To defeat Alba-tos, I needed to deliver a single, deep blow to her vital point.
Alba-tos was strong. Though she surrendered to her primal instincts, her attacks were not merely brute force. But I had no choice.
With all my might, I swung my hatchet towards her swiftly approaching jaw.
Would this be enough to bring her down? I didn’t know. But I had to try. My escape route was already cut off.
I dodged the strike from her foreleg, stepping back just in time. As I evaded, I lunged forward. I aimed to slash through her protruding jaw. Even if I felt discomfort along the way, I couldn’t let my momentum falter.
Alba-tos must have been somewhat careless now. I had hidden and stealthily brought my weapon, and it hadn’t worked against her.
Heat clouded my thoughts. My instincts craved battle, thirsted for blood. I steeled my resolve.
I utilized *Shadow Veil* to the fullest, dodging Alba-tos’s relentless attacks, enduring, and holding on.
Ah, I craved blood. Sweet, sweet blood. In Alba-tos’s golden eyes, a monster reflected, shining crimson like blood.
My mind was no longer functioning. I fought on instinct, blood splattering everywhere. Not the blood of others, but my own.
My consciousness began to waver. I would survive. No matter what, I would survive.
And then, the moment Alba-tos raised her right foreleg high, my awareness snapped back. Reflexively, I stepped back, avoiding the initial strike. The ground shook, but oddly, my balance remained stable.
With all my strength, I poured into my right hand gripping the hatchet, stepping forward with reckless abandon.
“How dare you, fool! Will you not drink blood?!”
The sudden reprimand echoed, causing me to freeze in place. Just in front of me, at an extremely close distance, a claw descended. Alba-tos’s—left foreleg.
The hatchet I couldn’t stop was slammed into the middle of that pillar-like leg.
It was a trap. Had I not stopped, I would have been crushed from above.
The blade, swung like a counterattack, sank into Alba-tos’s left foreleg, piercing through her fur and halting midway against something hard. Bone?!
I instinctively tried to pull back, but it wouldn’t budge, as if my muscles were holding it in place.
My consciousness was uncertain. It felt as though my feet weren’t touching the ground.
In that instant, my thoughts accelerated, and Alba-tos’s movements slowed. A phantom of the Lord, who had appeared beside me, whispered.
“You are still a lower rank, do you understand?! The only ability you possess as a Vampire is—*Bloodsucking*!”
*Bloodsucking*… only that. The words flowed into me with surprising ease.
That’s right. I did not possess the powers of a Vampire to transform into a wolf or bat, nor could I become mist. I lacked the alluring eyes to charm others and the ability to summon familiars.
I was a mere chrysalis of a Vampire. My only power as a Vampire was—sucking blood.
But could I do it? Her fur had resisted even *Light Eater*. Was there even a chance to bite such a wildly moving beast? What would happen if I did suck blood? The promise with Senri…
Various thoughts and doubts swirled in my mind, but the golden eyes continued to look down upon me.
Yet, in the next moment, my two canine teeth elongated and sharpened.
The ability of Shiki (Ghoul). I had rarely used it—*Sharp Fang*.
I released the hatchet that had lodged itself halfway and kicked off the ground with all my might. My target was—her neck.
I slipped past her pillar-like foreleg and dove beneath her jaw. Alba-tos did nothing against my reckless, unstrategic charge.
But the moment she saw my extended fangs, her pupils dilated in surprise.
I closed the distance. Up close, Alba-tos appeared like a black wall.
Grasping her coarse fur, I clung tightly and, driven by instinct, opened my mouth wide, plunging my fangs deep into her massive neck.
Despite swinging the hatchet with all my strength, her fur had remained unyielding, but my fangs pierced through with ease. Realizing what had happened, Alba-tos twisted and thrashed violently. Though my fangs were insignificant compared to her massive form, she thrashed with incredible ferocity.
Her forelegs collided with her body. But it was too late. With us this close, she could not retaliate.
—And then, I experienced the life of Alba-tos.
The Lord’s excited, almost mad laughter echoed in my mind.
“Yes! *Werewolves*, *Evil Eyes*, they are nothing compared to this! The essence of a Vampire lies in *Bloodsucking*!”
This was different from the blood I had taken from Senri. The blood flowing into me was hot like flames and dark as the night.
My heart raced violently. My body, my soul, felt as if they were transforming, and I almost released my grip, but I focused my strength into my fingers and endured.
The voice of the evil, ambitious necromancer resonated.
“Now, this is the culmination of my long research, surpassing all ‘Kings’—*Curse Steel*!”
A dark power surged within me. My body convulsed. Now, I was not merely drinking blood.
The massive neck of Alba-tos trembled, clearly shrinking.
It was a curse. Now, I was absorbing the very source of Alba-tos’s transformation!
I was swept away by images that were not objects I had experienced before, swirling chaotically in my mind.
Yet, even in such a state, I did not release my fangs. The flow of blood through her throat remained unchanged. I had experienced something similar before—when I absorbed the Lord’s soul.
It flowed in. The curse, Alba-tos’s memories.
I had never heard of absorbing a curse. Ancestor. A special ability. Was this the power designed by the necromancer, Holos Carmen?!
No voice answered me anymore. The laughter that had been so grating just moments ago had vanished.
A scream-like cry erupted from Alba-tos’s throat. Her once-massive neck tilted skyward, and her pillar-like limbs trembled, her colossal form shrinking like a deflated balloon. I drove my fangs in deeper, determined not to let go.
The black fur shrank, transforming into smooth, white skin. I retracted my elongated fangs, holding back from tearing into the flesh, continuing to sink my fangs in and drink.
Finally, when the black power mixed with the blood had diminished, I released my hold on her massive body and lifted my head.
I was at my limit. My legs wobbled, and a tremendous dizziness overwhelmed me, pressing my hands against my head. My heart’s pounding showed no signs of slowing.
It seems that the spell known as “Curse Steel” carries quite a heavy negative burden.
But I did it. I managed to escape from a dire situation.
Before me, slumped down and exhausted, was Alba-tos, who had been beside the Master Beast. It was hard to believe that this small, white, and delicate figure could have been the one to torment me so thoroughly. The contrast with the massive dog form from just a moment ago was staggering. Anyone who hadn’t witnessed that transformation would never believe that this girl could turn into a beast.
Her eyes were wide, filled with disbelief, as she stared down at her hairless palms as if they were something utterly foreign.
I can win. Though I’m feeling a bit off, I can’t lose now. Alba-tos likely has no strength left. That overwhelming power was probably derived from the curse. What stands before me now is just an ordinary human with no combat capabilities. Moreover, she isn’t even armed.
I steeled my resolve, straightened my back, and looked down at Alba-tos.
Serves you right. This is what happens when you try to kill me.
I had broken my promise with Senri and drank blood, but since Alba-tos was not human but a dog, it was an exception. Receiving my gaze, Alba-tos stood up and took a step back. The murderous intent she had directed at me just moments ago was gone, and her face was pale, likely from the blood loss.
I’m sorry, but… you’re going to die. You’ve seen my power. If word of this spreads among the vampire hunters, I can only imagine the consequences. They might band together and come after me. I’m not as lenient as Senri. I won’t forgive those who come to kill me.
As I closed the distance, I forced a smile to mask my discomfort and unleashed the power I had just drained from Alba-tos. Instinctively, I understood how to wield it. My heart pounded fiercely, and my bones and flesh creaked as they transformed.
Alba-tos’s expression twisted in shock. In the blink of an eye, my perspective began to—
—shrink.
“What?!”
The ragged cloth I had been wearing became oversized and slipped down over my head. I shook my head in a panic, crawling out from under the tattered fabric.
I was huge. Alba-tos, who stood frozen, seemed like a giant. No, that’s not right. I realized that I was… shrinking.
I turned my head to look behind me. A fluffy white tail, clearly different from the object Alba-tos had transformed into, was visible.
“……kuun.”
I raised my right hand to look down at it, only to see pudgy paws and claws about the size of a single nail. The fur was excessively long. And… it was fluffy… My belly fur was fluffy too.
C-could this be… a toy-sized dog? Compared to the Alba-tos that had leaped through the window earlier, I was clearly much smaller.
In front of my eyes, the humanoid form of Alba-tos began to move unsteadily. Despite not wearing even underwear, she stood confidently, picking up the “Light Eater” that had fallen beside her with both hands, looking down at me.
There was neither malice nor fighting spirit in her eyes. Without a hint of emotion, Alba-tos raised the hatchet high above her head, aiming it at me.
!? Wait, how do I turn back!?
I tried to revert, but I didn’t know how.
Perhaps my strength was waning; Alba-tos, swinging the hatchet, wobbled unsteadily, but she could still probably overpower me in my current state.
And what was this? The sky was starting to brighten. I should have finished her off in human form quickly. Even if I wanted to escape, I needed to bring my clothes back; otherwise, the “Night Crystal” I had just acquired would be reclaimed.
“Kyawn!”
Her yelp was high-pitched. As I stepped back, desperately trying to intimidate her while she swayed and aimed, my body suddenly floated into the air.
The scent I recognized from memory. Senri. She had flown in with her Light Wings and picked me up.
Senri looked ragged. Her cloak was dirty, and her skin was blackened with soot. However, she didn’t seem to have any major injuries.
“End… Is it fine?”
“Kyankyan!”
“I’m late. I understand what happened…”
There was a savior before me.
In the faint sunlight, my body ached. Smoke wafted from the tip of my tail. Senri picked up the clothes I had dropped and wrapped me tightly in them. Though it was to keep me from being exposed to the sunlight, it felt a bit excessive.
I wanted to complain, but as a pitiful little puppy, I couldn’t say a word.
In the darkness, only Senri’s quiet voice could be heard.
“……Please, don’t pursue us anymore.”
…Are you not going to provide any protection? That’s a rather naive response. Yet, at the same time, I understood. The vampire hunters were not her enemies. That’s why I had intended to deal with Alba-tos before Senri returned.
But… it’s fine. I won’t ask for much. I’ve drained Alba-tos’s power. As long as I’m safe, and Senri is safe, that’s enough.
I didn’t know what had happened to the Master Beast, but if he was still alive, he wouldn’t be foolish enough to challenge me alone.
It wasn’t the best outcome, but it was better than nothing. Now, I needed to think about how to revert from this dog form.
It was a major predicament, yet of all times, the Lord wasn’t showing up.
Moreover, an overwhelming wave of drowsiness washed over me. No matter how I looked at it, now was not the time to sleep, but it seemed it was the vampire’s sleeping hour.
Senri took off running. I could feel the vibrations as she moved.
“Kyawn.”
“……We’re leaving this town. If we stay here, it will trouble your father.”
“Kyankyan.”
“It’s fine. Without evidence… I can’t accuse a noble.”
“Kyuuun.”
“End. Leave everything to me.”
Senri’s voice was resolute.
Though our words didn’t fully connect, I felt my tension ease just from her presence. I relaxed, closing my eyes in the darkness. A strong, comforting drowsiness enveloped me.
I trusted Senri. Sometimes… being carried like this didn’t seem so bad after all.