NAPE - 74

“Damn it, it hurts like hell...”

“Wait, I’ll call for help. Anyone...!” Bibi looked around frantically, but Namwon coughed, spitting out a mouthful of blood. Both of them fell silent. Bibi had a premonition that the worst was about to happen.

“I’m... gonna... d-die... here.”

“Don’t say that! You can get treated!” Bibi angrily tried to pull the iron bar out of Namwon’s chest. Namwon grimaced in extreme pain.

“Humans die. Unlike vampires... hah, wound healing is very... slow.”

“But...”

“Hey. You gotta... make... m-me... a... vampire...” Namwon uttered indistinct words in a hoarse voice, then coughed up blood once more before dropping his head. He remained motionless for a long time.

“...Namwon?” Bibi blinked in disbelief. She had never imagined Namwon dying. She knew he was human, but she hadn’t expected him to leave someday.

No, this can’t be happening. She wanted to try spicy food with him later... She wanted to ask about his family after this was over.

“Don’t sleep. I’ll take you to the hospital.”

“...”

“Namwon... No...” Clear tears welled up in Bibi’s eyes, anticipating the end of a human life. She knelt and shook his shoulder, but Namwon weakly slumped to the side. Blood continued to seep from his impaled chest.

Bibi held her breath. Feeling hunger in this situation was no different from a hyena eating rotten meat, or a monster feeling sexual desire for a corpse. If she felt even a little bit of hunger... she felt she wouldn’t be able to forgive herself.

Bibi sobbed and put her hand under Namwon’s nose. Ah! He was still breathing. It was so faint, on the verge of stopping, but... he wasn’t dead yet. It was time to make a decision. Would she let him go as a human, or...

Bibi closed her eyes tightly, then resolutely steeled herself. She lifted Namwon’s wrist to her mouth and bit into it. As her fangs pierced the skin, blood oozed out.

Bibi did not swallow a single drop of his blood. Instead, she flowed the mysterious power residing within her, the vampire’s unique secret, born since ancient times, into his mouth. The venom from her fangs traveled down Namwon’s wrist, spreading throughout his body.

“Ugh...” A faint groan escaped Namwon’s lips. Thankfully, the transferred venom seemed to be working. His breathing had returned to normal, but Namwon had not yet regained consciousness. He hadn’t even transformed into a vampire yet. Perhaps it was still because of the iron bar piercing his chest. If she left him like this, he might die before transforming.

Bibi hesitated, then tore a piece of Namwon’s sleeve and put it in his mouth.

“It’s going to hurt. But endure it.” She gathered her resolve, grabbed the iron spike embedded in Namwon’s chest, and pulled it backward.

“Ugh, ughhh!” Even unconscious, Namwon twisted his body as if in pain. The sound of his teeth grinding could be heard.

“Just a little more.” Bibi pulled harder. With a cry of pain, the iron bar finally came out completely. Blood gushed like a fountain from his gaping chest. Bibi hastily took off her jacket and pressed it firmly against his wound. If the bleeding stopped, the wound would slowly heal, probably.

But... it was too early to be careless. If a large amount of blood was lost, the transformation into a vampire would slow down, and he could die.

Seeing Namwon’s corpse-white complexion, Bibi quickly got up and dragged over a hound pinned under concrete debris. The hound was severely injured in its legs and face, practically dead.

Bibi opened Namwon’s mouth and held the hound’s neck to it. Since his fangs hadn’t grown yet, she kindly tore the hound’s neck with her hand to make it bleed.

Crimson blood flowed into Namwon’s open mouth. Even in his unconscious state, he swallowed the blood readily. Bibi felt somewhat relieved at the sight.

Like newborns seeking their mother’s milk, drinking blood was a vampire’s instinct. On the threshold of death, Namwon was given a new life. No one knew if he would resent it or be happy about it. Whatever his reaction, Bibi would endure it with him, as his new creator.

“Wait here. I’ll bring Doyoon.” The immediate crisis was averted, so now she had to find Doyoon. He was a strong pureblood vampire and a hunter, so he probably hadn’t suffered as badly as Namwon. But... she didn’t know what the Trainer might have done to him. The Trainer was cunning as well as seemingly omnipotent.

Bibi quickly walked through the collapsed building debris, looking around, then suddenly stopped. In front of the basement stairs, between the debris of a headless angel statue, a large man’s silhouette was visible.

Was it the Trainer, or Doyoon?

Slowly. Very slowly, she muffled her footsteps and approached. Her heart pounded. It felt as if her heart was leaping out of her mouth.

With each step, the silhouette became clearer. A round head, broad shoulders, a straight posture... Ah, it was Doyoon. Doyoon was safe!

Her chest fluttered with ecstasy, as if she had found light in the darkness. Bibi was about to rush to him when an unpleasant sensation startled her.

Looking down, a rough, scarred hand gripped her ankle. Her heart sank to the floor.

“Bibi.” The man’s voice, which had formed her law and her entire world, was clearly audible. She understood now why Doyoon had tried to prevent her contact with the Trainer.

Despite denying and betraying him, the deeply ingrained subservience controlled her entire body. It controlled Bibi now like an instinct. Fear surged, overwhelming her. Her whole body trembled. Even her eyelashes fluttered.

“Release me... release me, Bibi,” the Trainer said.

“...”

“What are you staring at? Hurry and get me out!”

“...I-I...”

“Have you forgotten the hound’s principles?!”

At the loud roar, her fragile self, which had just begun to solidify, was thrashed in an instant. Bibi flinched, trembling, and shut her mouth.

Her body moved before she could even think. Mechanically, she bent at the waist, grabbed his leg, and pulled. Perhaps it was because she had lost all strength in her body, but no matter how much she strained, she couldn’t pull the Trainer out. His leg, unfortunately, was stuck at an awkward angle.

“I’ll do it.” A large hand covered Bibi’s. She looked up to see Doyoon standing close. As she hesitated and backed away, he twisted the Trainer’s knee.

“Aaaargh!” A painful scream echoed through the basement. Yet Doyoon, unfazed, calmly and coolly broke his leg and pulled him out.

“Bibi. Ugh, h-h... deal with... this one.” The Trainer gasped, commanding Bibi. She opened her mouth blankly, unsure how to respond or react. She clearly wanted to bite him, and she wanted to be angry... but her body, consumed by fear, lost its composure and merely trembled helplessly.

“What are you looking at?! Deal with him!” At the rebuke, Bibi unconsciously stepped backward. In contrast, Doyoon, with a placid face, took a step forward. An silver knife was in his hand.

“You... what are you...!?” Before the Trainer could finish his sentence, Doyoon’s blade moved. Bibi hastily turned her head away.

Slice. Slice. Crack.

The sound of thick leather being cut and the bones within being dismembered was clearly audible in her ears. The scream that came at the height of agony was surprisingly not loud. A hoarse sound, like an electric drill turning on and off repeatedly, mixed with the air and made her shudder.

The warm smell of blood hung heavy beneath her nose. A wave of nausea hit her stomach. Bibi urgently covered her mouth with her palm.

“Done.” Doyoon, who had manipulated the knife skillfully like a butcher, said with satisfaction. Bibi, who had been frozen, stiffly turned her head to look at him askance.

“I told you, I’d shatter your world.” Doyoon smiled faintly. “I just fulfilled my promise.”

“...”

“The rest is your choice.”

“...”

“No matter what you choose, I’ll always be by your side.”

Hearing his plain and calm voice, a sense of stability settled over her, as if she had immersed herself in warm water. Gaining courage, Bibi was finally able to look Doyoon straight in the eye.

He stood like the goddess Dike, who presided over law, holding a sword in one hand and the Trainer’s head in the other. His entire body was covered in blood, and only his uniquely dark eyes gleamed with a bright luster in his crimson face. He was, truly, the Executioner himself.

“Ugh, Vi-Bibi...” As Doyoon’s foot carelessly trampled the dismembered body, the Trainer’s head foamed blood from its mouth. He called out to Bibi, desperately and pitifully, as if pleading. Bibi felt cognitive dissonance at the unfamiliar sight of the one she thought omnipotent.

She slowly walked over, bowed her head, and met his eyes. This was the first time she had seen his face up close, despite spending so many years with him. Bibi found the fear deep within the Trainer’s blue eyes.