Looking at the street with exactly 21 headless zombies, Theo felt an indescribable sense of accomplishment.
With two cleavers, he went around cutting off the zombies' heads with every step he took.
2 levels make all the difference. While he's at level 5, none of these zombies were above level 3.
Going one by one, he absorbed their cores. Whether common or special, it didn't matter to him.
[It has been identified that the Host has found a level 3 core, 70% pure, would you like to absorb it now [Yes] or [No]?]
On the twentieth, he also clicked to absorb.
[You have leveled up!]
Smiling, he went to the last one.
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Level 6
Progress to the next level: 1.3%
[HP: 601/601]
Essence: 721
════════════
'Not bad.' Theo thought: 'But now I'll need about 100 level 3 cores for the next level…'
Seeing that no more zombies appeared, he entered.
The place he was in was a small shopping center.
There were a few stores on a single floor. Be it a cell phone store, clothing, pastry shop, electronics, etc.
'Let's take a look at the clothing store.'
The door was locked with a sliding metal gate from top to bottom.
Placing his hands at the bottom, Theo applied a bit of force, breaking the lock in the process.
The metallic sound of the door being forced open made a lot of noise.
Theo looked outside but didn't see any zombies being attracted.
'I think those 21 zombies were the only ones near this place.'
After opening the metal hinge part, there was still a glass door and iron bars.
Taking the sledgehammer, he struck the glass.
*Shatter!*
Stowing the sledgehammer after breaking the glass, he grabbed the iron bars and started pulling to open them.
With the sound of the door breaking, he managed to get it open.
Finally inside the clothing store, he saw that everything was moldy.
And why wouldn't it be? The snow melted, and the water flooded practically all the stores, including this one.
Some were still damp and smelled terrible.
The most presentable ones were those still sealed in plastic bags.
Theo took only the ones in plastic bags and stored them in his inventory.
It didn't matter the size; even if they didn't fit, they could still serve as rags.
...
After clearing out all the stores, he left.
Outside, he thought: 'Why aren't there any zombies? Really, were there only those 21 zombies?'
"Daddy, be careful!"
Hearing Emily's warning, Theo didn't stay still and, even without knowing why she shouted for him to be careful, Theo simply went into stealth mode and ran as fast as he could.
*Whoosh!*
Across his face, something grazed him.
When he looked to see what had tried to hit him, he was surprised to see that it was actually a person.
It was a woman with a striking and dark appearance. A gothic and mysterious style. She wore a wide-brimmed black hat that partially covered her face. Her long, straight, dark hair fell over her shoulders, swaying in the wind.
She wore a tight black dress with lace details and a neckline that revealed an intricate necklace. Over the dress, a long, flowing cape, predominantly red with dark tones, extended around her.
Her legs were adorned with black lace stockings featuring bold cuts, paired with tall, shiny boots full of buckles and metallic details. In one hand, she held a black cane, which reinforced her imposing posture.
When she looked up, Theo saw a pair of blood-red eyes.
Her free hand had long nails painted black.
On the tip of her middle finger, Theo saw blood. It was clear to him that it came from him.
Touching his cheek, he saw a trace of blood.
[HP: 596/601]
'A simple scratch from her caused me 5 damage…'
[HP: 1,019/1,019]
When he saw her HP, he understood.
'Fuck! She's level 10!'
All the warning signals started blaring in his mind.
And, to make matters worse, even in stealth mode, he was easily found.
'Who the hell is she, and why does she want to attack me?'
[Evolved Zombie -> Mutant Vampire (Mikaela ???) Level 10 – Triple Special Ability: [Mental Resistance], [Blood Manipulation], and [Superhuman Speed]]
"…"
'Damn it! She's not even human…!'
He was screwed, not to mention that she was a special type like his daughter, possessing triple special abilities.
Before, he had some confidence in escaping if Emily could command her to stay still, but 'Mental Resistance'… It didn't seem like that would work against her.
'Huh? Why isn't she attacking me?' Not that he wanted her to, but it was strange; she didn't seem to fear him, yet she stood there, watching and studying him.
"You're not bad at all," she said suddenly.
Her voice was slightly husky and pleasant to hear, like that of a singer.
'What did she mean by that? Is it because of my looks, or because I managed to dodge in time?' Theo wondered with doubt.
He said unintentionally: "Really? Well, I also think I'm pretty decent."
Lifting her hat with her slender finger, she gave a wild, predatory smile, overflowing with confidence as she said, "Be my boyfriend. I promise to protect you."
"…"
'First a ghost, now an evolved zombie turned vampire?'
And this pattern… If he refused, would she want to be his daughter, or maybe, since she seemed older, his older sister?
But… If he rejected her, would he be attacked?
"If I refuse?" He tried saying cautiously, stepping back a bit.
Her smile deepened, making the sharp fangs in her mouth gleam brightly.
"Haha, you dare?" she asked with a dangerous glint in her eyes.
"Daddy, I like this mommy~"
"…"
'I had a traitor by my side!?'
He felt like the world had abandoned him.
With a blank stare, he could only agree for now.
"Okay, I'll be your boyfriend," he agreed.
When she smiled, his heart raced.
Was this love? Wrong. It was pure fear!
She almost killed him just moments ago if it weren't for Emily's warning. Not to mention, she had the 'Superhuman Speed' ability—how could he escape someone stronger than him who also had an ability that gave her superhuman speed?
'I'm still too weak…' he lamented.
"Who's hiding in your shadow?" Her question snapped him out of his thoughts.
"My adopted daughter," Theo didn't hide. She'd find out sooner or later, and he didn't know how trustworthy this vampire was, so it was better to feign obedience for now: "And she's a ghost."
"An adopted ghost daughter…" She smiled: "Interesting… Very well. As your girlfriend, I'll adopt her as my daughter too."
"…"
"Thank you, mommy~~" Emily's voice came from his shadow.
"Mm." She hummed softly, approaching Theo.
Still wary of her, Theo saw that she simply stopped in front of him.
"Do you have a place to go back to?" Theo asked, thinking: 'Go away, let's date long-distance!'
"Your place is my place," she replied.
"…"
'Right, how could I not guess that pattern…'
"Long-distance dating…"
"No such thing exists," she interrupted.
"Alright…" He sighed and started walking: "My place… Our place is that way."
"Mm, let's go then." She began walking beside him while holding her cane.
Though curious about why she was holding that cane, he didn't ask.
'Is she really not going to attack me?' After a few minutes walking together, he really didn't know how to handle this situation.
It was strange that this vampire decided to be his girlfriend just like that.
'Am I really that attractive? Why didn't I know?' Theo touched his own face.
He knew he wasn't ugly, but he didn't think he was some Henry Cavill.
'I really don't understand… This is driving me crazy!' He glanced at her side profile and thought: 'Well, at least she's attractive…'
Because he thought of the popular meme he saw in his past life: If it has a hole, it's in!
"I have a daddy~ And now a mommy too~ La~ la~ la~ Mommy is super powerful and will help Emily protect daddy~~ La~ La~"
"Yes, I am powerful, and I will protect them," Mikaela, the vampire, said with a smile.
'Oh my God, my heart just raced~!' He laughed at his own thoughts, thinking: 'But seriously… What should I do? I didn't hold back in front of Emily, but I can't do that in front of Mikaela…'
"By the way, I still don't know your name," he said. "By the way, I'm Theo."
She replied in an almost sexy tone: "Mikaela."
'Well, I already knew that,' Theo thought.
He had several questions he wanted to ask. For example: Does she remember everything from before she became a zombie? How did she manage to evolve from a zombie to a Mutant Vampire?
"Two zombies," she murmured.
Then, she moved so fast that Theo couldn't even follow with his eyes.
But, knowing she intended to attack the zombies, he looked in the direction of the two zombies about 300 meters away.
[HP: 360/360]
[HP: 355/355]
When she appeared in front of them, he saw what she used that cane for.
[HP: 0/360]
[HP: 0/355]
With quick and precise attacks, she pierced the heads of both zombies at once, and on the other side, he saw the cores being extracted.
That's when he saw a kind of metallic claw at the tip of the cane grab the cores.
She pulled the cane back and appeared beside him.
Taking one core, she opened her mouth and swallowed it, blood and all.
However, she didn't continue; she said, "This one's yours."
A bit stunned, he foolishly asked, "For me?"
"Yes," she nodded, handing the core to him.
'Is she fattening me up to eat later? Or did I hit the jackpot and find a Vampire Sugarmommy?'
After thinking about it, he shook his head, ridding himself of such thoughts: 'Why do I feel like I'm thinking more and more outside the box?'
"Can I know how old you are?" Theo asked.
"Mm… I think I'm 29," she replied.
'So I'm younger…' He thought: 'Then, if she keeps offering me cores, does that make me a Sugar Baby to an older vampire woman?'
No, no… He wasn't planning to live off her!
Slapping his cheeks, he stopped having those wonderful dreams… *Cough* deplorable dreams where he just stays at home while his vampire girlfriend goes hunting zombies and brings him cores.
He shifted his attention to the information that appeared when he held the core.
[It has been identified that the Host has found a level 3 [Stealth] ability core with 71% purity, would you like to absorb it normally or improve the [Stealth] ability?]
He clicked the option to improve his ability.
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Continue reading on my Patreon up to chapter 27:
patreon.com/Lruska[1]
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