12. And So, With Nowhere Left to Run, She Falls in Love

Author: Kiki
Raw: https://novel18.syosetu.com/n2498fn/12/
Translator: Lilia v4
Editor: Yuriko AYA

It was two days after I had turned Ainerinne into a Demi-Vamp.
I waited for Rellie in the chapel, where the setting sun streamed through the windows and dyed everything the color of twilight.
I had no recollection of arranging to meet her.
But I was certain.
Now that Ai—and her prospective mother-in-law, persuaded by Ai—had given their blessing to the marriage, Rellie would hurry straight to the church to share her joy with me.
I looked up at the statue of the goddess and smiled.
What could she be feeling as she gazed upon this church filled with inhuman creatures?
Did the fact that everything was proceeding so perfectly mean the goddess was blessing us?
Or was she lamenting her own powerlessness to do anything at all?
Not that I had the slightest intention of offering her a prayer.
It is not that I doubt the existence of gods, you understand.
But if the gods truly saved humans, then it would make no sense for me not to have been saved long ago.
Thus, I place no faith in them.
The happiness I possess now is the work of my own power. The goddess’s blessing has not the slightest thing to do with it.
So please, watch as best you can while I kill another human being—and make her happy.

“Chigusa!”

The doors flew open with a bang, and Rellie’s voice rang through the chapel.
I rose from the pew and opened my arms to welcome her as she ran toward me, sweat beading on her brow.
Rellie no longer rejected my physical affection.
She raced straight into my embrace.

“I did it! I really did it!”
“You succeeded in persuading Dick’s mother, then.”
“Mm-hm! His sister, who’s always been against it, came around to our side, and with Dick speaking up too, his mother finally said yes! It’s all thanks to you, Chigusa!”
“Not at all. Your feelings for each other simply got through to them.”
“Maybe, but to me, it’s all thanks to you!”

With that, she happily nuzzled her cheek against mine.
It was rather endearing—like having a pet dog take a liking to me.
She smelled faintly of sweat, but I liked that too.

“Still … hee hee. Did you truly need to hurry so much that you worked up a sweat?”
“I wanted to tell you the good news as soon as I possibly could. Things never would’ve gone this well without your advice.”

I could hardly deny that.
After all, had I done nothing, her future sister-in-law—Ai—would never have changed her mind.
I shall have to give her a proper reward tonight.

“They’re even going to throw a party soon to introduce me as Dick’s fiancée!”
“Then you are going to be busy.”
“Yeah … so I don’t think I’ll be able to come see you for a while.”
“In that case, I shall have to enjoy enough of you today to tide me over through the loneliness.”
“Nfufu. Aren’t you exaggerating a little?”

Rellie spoke with a bashful smile.
Hardly an exaggeration. Unless I poured a generous amount into her today, I might find there was not enough when the crucial moment arrived.

“I truly will be lonely. Why, I spent all of yesterday hoping you might come.”
“You’ve been like this ever since we met, Chigusa. Why do you like me so much?”
“Love at first sight, perhaps.”
“I’m asking you seriously.”
“I know of no words that fit better. The first time I saw you, I knew instinctively that I wanted to become close to you.”
“Really?”
“Yes. And as we continued to talk, that desire only grew. By now, I am jealous of Dick.”
“I never knew you liked me that much. I don’t know whether to be embarrassed or happy. Ehehe.”

The sight of Rellie smiling so bashfully made me want to push her down then and there.
Perhaps she would forgive me now if I suggested it in jest.

“Rather than stand here talking in the chapel, why don’t we go to my room today?”
“Huh? You’ll let me into your room? I’ve always wondered what it was like.”
“It is nothing remarkable, but you may find it satisfying.”
“Oh, what’s that supposed to mean? What are you planning to do to me?”

Then, holding hands with our fingers intertwined, we disappeared into the depths of the chapel.

 

◇◇◇

 

The moment we entered, Rellie’s eyes lit up as she inspected my room.
There was nothing particularly noteworthy in it, but even that seemed novel to her.
Once she had looked all around, she dropped onto the bed with a soft whump.

“Knowing this is your room is making my heart race. I wonder why?”

As Rellie spoke, swinging her feet, I approached her slowly.

“What’s wrong, Chigusa? Your eyes look a little frightening.”

She was smiling despite her words, and I could see the trust she placed in me.
Ordinarily, today too would have been a day for patience. Yet when she was exposing herself so defenselessly before me, surely it would be ruder not to touch her.
Just a little.
Yes—as long as it went no further than an extension of friendship, there could be no harm in stealing a taste.
Besides, in all likelihood, Rellie as she was now would be unable to refuse me.

“Ch-Chigusa …?”

When I placed my hands on her shoulders, her voice trembled and she called my name with a touch of sudden formality.

“You needn’t be so formal.”
“Chigusa …?”
“Yes, Rellie.”

I tightened my grip and pushed Rellie back onto the bed.
Straddling her, I stared directly down into her eyes. There was a trace of fear in them, but little by little her eyelids drooped as the mood swept her away.

“Wait, Chigusa … what are you trying to do?”
“If you do not want this, tell me no.”
“That doesn’t answer me. You don’t really mean you ‘like’ me that way … do you?”
“I am not entirely sure myself. But it is true that I was jealous of Dick.”

As I slowly lowered my face toward hers, she put both hands against my chest as if to reject me.
Yet there was no strength in them at all.
Her reason insisted that she ought to refuse.
Her true feelings, however, must have desired me.
The urges welling up inside her had already been etched into her very depths. No human could resist them.

“Once today is over, you will belong to Dick, won’t you? In that case, just for today … would you belong to me?”
“But … that would be betraying Dick …”
“I will tell no one. I keep my promises; I am a member of the clergy, after all.”
“A member of the clergy wouldn’t be doing this in the first place … But, um … I don’t dislike it.”

Rellie took my hand and pressed it against her breast.
Beneath the feverish warmth of her body, her heart pounded against my palm at a pace plainly faster than normal.

“My heart’s already racing this badly … How could I possibly refuse you?”
“Thank you. For today, at least, forget about Dick and allow yourself to enjoy this too.”

As I brought my lips near, Rellie squeezed her eyes tightly shut.
Nunnally had said that they had not slept together before marriage, and Rellie’s romance had begun with a nobleman falling in love with her at first sight.
It appeared she was not even accustomed to kissing yet.
In other words, there remained ample room to dye her in my colors.
Hee hee hee. I wonder how it feels to have your bride taught indecent things by someone other than you.

“Mm, nh …”

When our lips met, a breath escaped my throat in my excitement.
Rellie seemed excited as well; her ragged breaths through her nose tickled my cheek.
Her lips were sealed tight, offering me no way inside.
When I drew back for a moment, Rellie timidly opened her eyes, her face scarlet.

“So that was … a kiss …”

Dazed by her kiss with me, Rellie murmured the words under her breath.
I did not let the tiny opening between her lips escape me.

“Mmph!?”

This time, taking a lesson from Ellis, I seized her lips roughly and slipped my tongue through before the opening could close.

“Mmm!? Mmm! Nnnhuuu!”

Rellie thrashed her legs at the unfamiliar sensation, but she could hardly break free of a vampire’s strength.
I explored her mouth meticulously, searching for her weak points.
First, the mucous membrane lining her cheek—

“Mm, nnngh … h, ha, hap … ngh.”

Next, the roof of her mouth and the backs of her teeth.

“Nnh … haa … ah … hngh … slrp, nngh …”

Then I traced the underside and edges of her tongue—

“Mm, nnhaa … ahn … nn … rrh … slrrp … smck, nnh, Chigu … hyaa …”

Her reaction plainly changed.
Apparently, Rellie’s weak points lay along the underside and edges of her tongue.
When my tongue began to concentrate there, she gradually quieted. Before long, she was rubbing her own tongue against mine as though pleading for more.
Her body too relaxed into slow, sensual motions as she savored the pleasure, and her arms moved one after the other—left, then right—to curl around the back of my neck.

“Shweet … Chigu, mmch … shaa … hah, mmch, I wuv youu …”

Soon she was swallowing my saliva with delight, utterly enslaved by our kiss.
Her arms alone must not have held us closely enough, for at some point her legs had locked firmly around my waist as well.
Would Dick ever receive a kiss this desperate once they were married, I wondered.
After all—at this moment, Rellie unquestionably loved me more than she loved him.

“I wuv … mmch, slrp … you too …”
“Nhaa … ahh … I’m so happy, Chigusa …”

When our kiss finally ended, Rellie lay limp upon the bed.
Her sweat-dampened collarbones rose and fell faintly with each deep breath.
There was no longer any room in her mind for an irrelevant man like Dick.
I took my hand from her breast and began undoing the buttons of her shirt one by one.
Even when she saw what I was doing, Rellie made no move to stop me. She merely gazed up through blissfully narrowed eyes.

“Are we … going to do it?”
“Yes. Will you give all of yourself to me?”
“Mm … okay. If it’s you, Chigusa … I can give you … all of me …”

The excuse that it was “only for today” may have emboldened her to speak and act this way.
If she believed that, because this was the last time, it did not matter how wanton she became—then it was my duty to give her pleasure no man’s hands could provide.

It did not take long after that for Rellie’s cries of pleasure to carry beyond the room.
The unknown sensations I gave her must surely have been carved deep into her memory, her heart, and her soul.

 

◆◆◆

 

Three days had passed since I slept with Chigusa.
The pleasure had been so intense that I fainted. When I woke, I was dressed again, and Chigusa, once more in her nun’s habit, smiled at me just as she always did.
It had been like a dream.
No … perhaps it really had been one.
After all, once I was awake, Chigusa never tried to touch me at all. She simply told me, “I wish you every happiness with Dick,” and saw me on my way.

Now I was at the long-awaited party where Dick would present his bride-to-be.
I still wasn’t used to high society, and the fact that we were the center of attention today only made me even more nervous.
As thoughts of Chigusa and my nerves cast a shadow over my face, a flamboyant woman in a red dress approached, her golden twin-drills bouncing.

“My, a bride mustn’t wear such a melancholy expression.”
“Ainerinne …”

She was Dick’s elder sister, Ainerinne—the woman who had opposed our marriage.

“I believe I told you to call me Sister.”
“Oh! I’m sorry, Sister.”

At the sight of me bowing frantically, she covered her mouth with one hand and giggled.

“Even your flustered little ways are charming. Dick has found himself a lovely bride.”

Lately, her manner toward me had softened so much that she seemed like a different person.
I had no idea what had happened, but I was grateful. I much preferred her as she was now to the stern sister-in-law she’d been before.
Her complexion did seem worse than it used to, though. Was she all right?

“Your younger sister is delightful too. Perhaps I ought to claim her for myself.”
“Oh, Sister. But I think Miri would be happy if you became friends with her.”
“Is that so? Then I shall speak to her later. I have all manner of greetings to make now, so I will see you again shortly.”

With that, she winked and walked away.
She had always been beautiful, and the gesture made my heart give a small leap.
I wasn’t supposed to be interested in women that way … but ever since what happened with Chigusa, I’d begun to have strange feelings even toward other women.
I’d better keep that secret from Dick.

“Was that your new sister, Rellie?”
“That’s right. She said she wants to be friends with you too.”
“Really!? Ehehe, I’d like to be friends with her! What’s her name?”
“Ainerinne. She might like it if you called her Big Sister Ai.”
“Big Sister Ai …”

The girl gazing toward my future sister-in-law with flushed cheeks was my own younger sister, Miri.
Her health usually kept her confined to the house, but she’d been unusually well these past few days, and by some miracle she had even managed to come to the party today.
Thanks to Dick, we’d also been able to borrow a dress in her size. I had never seen Miri as lively as she was today.

“Nobles really are amazing, aren’t they? When I think of you becoming one of them, though, I feel a little lonely.”
“What are you talking about? You’re coming with me.”
“I don’t know if I can. I’m not very good at talking to people.”
“Really? I think if people talked to you, they’d all fall helplessly in love with how adorable you are.”
“You’re the only person who says things like that about me.”

Looking forlorn, Miri burrowed her face firmly into my chest.
Perhaps because she’d rarely been able to leave the house since she was little, Miri’s world was a small one.
She was especially attached to me. For a time, merely telling her that I was getting married had been enough to make her cry.
Now she could come to a party like this and smile. I thought that was remarkable progress.

“Oh, is Dick calling you?”

At Miri’s words, I noticed Dick beckoning to me.
He was surrounded by older noblemen. Perhaps they’d pestered him to introduce me.

“You’re right. I’ll be back in a bit.”
“Okay. See you soon.”

With Miri smiling as she saw me off, I headed toward Dick.
Sure enough, men eager to ingratiate themselves with the Lindforg family had flocked around him, leaving me to smile politely at them all.
The food and wine were delicious, but I really wasn’t comfortable in this kind of atmosphere.
At least the customer-service smile I’d perfected at the bakery was getting me through it—

“Aaaaaaaaaaaah!”

Without the slightest warning, a scream suddenly rang across the party.
Everyone turned toward the woman who had screamed. Before I understood what was happening—Dick shoved me away.

“… Huh?”

Why would he do that?
As I was sent flying, I turned my eyes toward him, and our gazes met.
Dick smiled as if to reassure me.
The next instant, his face was crushed.
Not only his face.
The arms that had held me, his broad chest, the waist I had never once gotten to embrace, and his legs—every part of him was swallowed up.

By the chandelier that had fallen from the ceiling.

CRAAAAASH!
The glass lamps shattered with a deafening sound. At the same moment, the bodies of Dick and the several nobles pinned beneath it burst apart, spraying flesh and blood.
And because I had been standing particularly close to Dick, pieces of him and his blood clung all over me.
With a wet splat, they dyed my pure-white dress red.

“What …? What?”

Still sprawled on the floor, I stared blankly as I raised a hand to my cheek.
It felt thick and slimy.
When I looked at my palm, a dark red liquid that hadn’t been there moments ago coated it.
For one instant I felt warmth in it, but that warmth immediately cooled and vanished.
Then the scent of iron reached my nose and shook my mind.
And I understood: this was blood that had poured out of his body.

“Ugh … urrrgh … bleeegh!”

The instant I understood, nausea seized me, and I vomited up the party food and alcohol surging inside me.
The mess splashed across Dick’s corpse.
I had soiled him. I had soiled him. I had soiled him!
My guilt, the smell of my vomit, the stench of blood, and an excrement-like foulness rising from the corpses all mingled together, churning my mind into even greater chaos.

“Ah … gah … bleeegh … ugh, oooh … urk …”

I vomited again.
I retched and retched. Even when there was nothing left in my stomach, the nausea would not subside.
For one instant, silence filled the hall—then every person’s cry of grief erupted at once.
The party had become a hell of wailing and screaming. No one seemed inclined to help me; as I collapsed and vomited again and again, not a single person came near.
Dick was dead.
We were supposed to marry. We were supposed to be happy, but Dick was dead.
From the very summit of happiness, I fell into the abyss of despair.
Was there truly not a single person who would reach out a hand to save me?
At that moment, one person’s face rose in my mind.

“Chigusa … help me … Chigusa …”

Having lost the one who sustained me, I could only beg her to save me.
Because now that Dick was gone, she was the only person I had left.