NAPE - 33

Doyoon was born in London at the end of the 18th century, around the time the Vampire Wars ended.

Like any vampire, he counted his age in centuries. He had long since passed his 200th birthday, but rounding up, he was still under 300 years old. In a world where the basic lifespan was over 1000 years, he was considered quite young.

For a race living lives close to eternal, death was something that didn’t occur, even felt romantic.

Vampires didn’t value the future or place serious meaning in life like humans did. Wasn’t life special only to those with a finite and short lifespan? For those who lived for ages, only balance and pleasure were important.

This was precisely why vampires wanted to infiltrate human lives. Their lives were intense. They were steeped in the harshness of the law of the jungle, where you starved if you didn’t work and were robbed if you didn’t fight. A world of constant upheaval and vitality every single day.

Observing that life from a third-party perspective was an endlessly entertaining amusement. Like others, Doyoon also enjoyed the fun of blending into the human world.

Born as the son of a prestigious pureblood vampire aristocratic family, he enjoyed all sorts of wealth and honor before coming to Korea due to a certain incident.

At the time, Doyoon’s hobby was to witness civilizations that were about to disappear from the map. He firmly believed that Korea, having suffered the scars of war, would also vanish. But... who would have known it would achieve such dazzling development?

Fascinated by the ever-changing scenery, people, and culture, Doyoon canceled his plan to stay only briefly and ended up living in Korea for 60 years.

During his time there, his occupations changed several times: soldier, carpenter, clergyman, professor. However, he had to continue his work as a hunter.

His hunter activities were a good means to achieve his goal. The balance of the vampire world had currently collapsed. The Elder Council had too much power and was frustratingly conservative.

Just as nature and history had proven countless times, any entity, regardless of what it was, would inevitably face the worst outcome if its power only accumulated and was never released. Doyoon felt the need for reform and secretly began searching for vampires who were free from the influence of the 60 families listed in the lineage and the Elder Council.

After a long wait, Doyoon finally met Bibi, a pureblood vampire. Initially, she had been wary of him with her whole being, but she became a friendly figure to Doyoon. Now, all he had to do was use her according to his plan. But from some point onward, he had been feeling a personal interest in Bibi. Ah, he could even call it affection.

Although Doyoon preferred casual relationships and was prone to emotional whims, he felt that this time was different.

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Over the past few days, Doyoon and Bibi had been engrossed in quenching their thirst and training their self-control. He provided her with blood packs and iron supplements instead of his own blood, and Bibi, who had initially shown resistance, gradually consumed them, slightly alleviating her thirst. Meanwhile, through the “keep the rabbit alive” practice, she steadily built her patience.

Whenever she thought of Doyoon’s blood, Bibi would devour pudding and immerse herself in Tetris (her concentration was so great that she achieved the feat of ranking in the top 100).

Enduring her thirst was difficult, but she could find satisfaction in hearing Doyoon thank her and in snuggling into his bed every night to receive kisses.

However, now the one struggling was Doyoon. Every night, angels and demons waged a fierce battle in his bed. Far from rejecting Bibi, who came into his room, Doyoon would hold her in his arms and shower her with kisses. If only it ended there, but unable to resist his desire, he went much further.

In his mind, a voice urgently warned him not to rush things and create regrets, while another voice fiercely argued not to self-deprecate and to seize what he desired immediately.

Rather than suffering through this torment, there was a way to fundamentally block such situations by locking the door. But Doyoon didn’t want to do that. He had tried it once before, and Bibi, who had waited all day, had curled up pitifully in front of his bedroom and fallen asleep.

Seeing Bibi huddled on the cold floor, he couldn’t bring himself to be cold-hearted. It was better for him to clench his teeth until they ached and endure it himself. Now, Doyoon had become resigned. He was even curious to see how far his patience would extend today.

“Bibi. Would you like to come to my workplace?”

Early in the morning, Doyoon, with bloodshot eyes, proposed to Bibi, who had just woken up. Bibi, who had been lying in bed, fluffed her messy hair and then nodded with wide eyes. She had expected him to ask her to keep the rabbit alive again today, so this was a truly unexpected suggestion. Without hesitation, Bibi jumped out of bed.

After eating breakfast, the two showered and changed. Bibi had a clear preference and didn’t hesitate about what to wear, choosing a sparkling pearl knit. Doyoon hadn’t come out of the dressing room yet. When she went to check, he was choosing a watch in front of the mirror.

Wearing a navy blue V-neck and a gray coat, he looked more handsome and like a work of art than any celebrity on television. The smooth Adam’s apple revealed by the slightly deep V-neck and his coolly extended collarbone were very pleasing to the eye.

Bibi knew how soft that area would be to touch, and how powerfully his pulse would beat against her palm. Moreover, if she licked it, she could inhale his pleasant scent. However, today... since he hadn’t asked her to save the rabbit, she shouldn’t touch him as she pleased. Ah... but she was worried.

“I’m worried.”

Bibi murmured unintentionally and let out a soft sigh. Doyoon, who was putting on his watch, turned around.

“About what?”

“Doyoon... you look too delicious.”

“...Huh?”

“It looks like someone might take a bite out of you. Can’t you... cover up a little?”

Was it presumptuous to make such a request? Would interfering with her master’s attire make her a bad hunting dog? But she couldn’t help it. Protecting her master from any potential danger was also her duty. Although the relationship had become a bit ambiguous since Doyoon had decisively declared he wasn’t her master anymore.

“You sound like a girlfriend nagging about clothes.”

Doyoon chuckled.

“Then, why don’t you choose my clothes yourself?”

Moreover, instead of firmly pushing her away as usual, he accommodated Bibi’s concern. Afraid he might change his mind, Bibi quickly nodded. She circled the dressing room, taking out all the clothes that looked decent.

Bibi’s taste was for flashy things adorned with lots of sparkling accessories. Unfortunately, Doyoon’s closet didn’t have such clothes. Only monochrome outfits hung densely on the hangers. There were only two or so unique items, white with childish drawings and large letters.

‘Fighting Philosophy’

What if she pinned a bunch of tie clips on the shoulder part of this T-shirt? It would be as flamboyant and stylish as a peacock, wouldn’t it? Bibi combined accessories with the plain T-shirt to create a rather flashy look.

Then, she suddenly remembered the reason she was choosing clothes for Doyoon. What she wanted was for Doyoon not to stand out. So, he shouldn’t wear something so flashy and cool.

Bibi put down the T-shirt decorated with tie clips and watch straps and took out a black turtleneck sweater, handing it to him.

“It would be better if you wore this, Doyoon.”

Was it her imagination? Doyoon let out a sigh of relief.

The university was so large that you could get lost without a map. Passing through the large main gate, she saw a frozen lake and a wide lawn, followed by a general sports field and tennis courts in order. Hearing that there was even a separate concert hall, Bibi couldn’t help but be impressed.

She had never dreamed that humans’ attitude towards learning could be so serious. A university was truly a warehouse of knowledge. Here, you could learn anything you wanted. Belatedly, Bibi felt that Doyoon, who worked here, was amazing.

Doyoon, a professor of philosophy, said he shared his knowledge with students. Bibi really wanted to see Doyoon teaching someone, but it was currently vacation, so instead of classes, he was attending an academic seminar.

Sitting side by side with Doyoon at the very front of a large lecture hall, Bibi listened to a middle-aged woman wearing glasses talk about the symbiosis of humans and machines.

“Aren’t you bored?”

Doyoon whispered to Bibi, suppressing a yawn.

“No, it’s interesting.”

Bibi shook her head with a look that said, “As if.” That was the truth. She had never been curious about the thoughts of machines... but this human was seriously contemplating and presenting about the thinking of inanimate objects.

In fact, Bibi thought there wasn’t much difference between machines and stones. In any case, both didn’t drink water or consume food, turned into tools when held by humans, and seemed to have more in common in that they weren’t alive.

But humans were researching the ‘ego’ of machines. As if machines were living beings...

“Wait, machines also live by consuming electricity. It’s just that the components they consume are different from ours. And if humans are genetic machines, as that woman says, then can’t machines also be considered living beings?”

“I just heard that today, and you’ve already gone that far? You’re better than my students.”

Unexpected praise flew at her for her casually thrown-out conjecture.