NAPE - 84

“But we have all been summoned by him today. If there is a successor, we have no choice.”

“Wait, then isn’t that a good thing? Weren’t we all implicitly worried about being summarily executed by the Executioner without judgment?”

Amidst the confusion, the chairman slammed his gavel again, calling for silence. The agitated vampires finally regained their composure. The air was heated.

“First, by a majority vote, Henry Bilskavil Tudor is acquitted. However, the discussion regarding vampire assimilation into human society...”

As he was summarizing the voting results, someone seated at the very end of the table shrieked and stood up. The vampire at the end frantically rushed forward with a phone in hand and handed it to the chairman.

“Look at this!”

The chairman and the elders seated around him stared at the phone screen. A video was playing, showing dozens of naked vampires randomly attacking and biting humans in front of Big Ben.

“It’s not just London; they seem to be running wild in the middle of Seoul too. The videos are spreading rapidly in real-time!”

“We need to stop them quickly...”

“It’ll be hard to stop. It’s already impossible to control thousands of humans uploading simultaneously...”

As everyone scrambled, Doyoon remained calm. Only he fully grasped the implications of the situation. London and Seoul. It was clear that hunting dogs, having escaped their trainer’s control, were crawling out from the shadows and running rampant.

“It seems change is inevitable.”

Everyone looked at Doyoon with bewildered eyes. Doyoon smiled smoothly. The stagnant vampire society, festering for centuries, would finally face new changes after hundreds of years.

“All packed, passport checked. Good, good...”

While the Elder Council meeting was in full swing, Namwon sat in the driver’s seat of a parked car in front of the Tudor mansion’s main gate, checking his backpack one item at a time. He had done enough sightseeing over the past week, so he had no lingering regrets about leaving England. Not only that, his tongue itched to get back to Korea as soon as possible and eat rice with kimchi stew.

“But seriously, when you go back to Korea, are you really going to try something spicy?”

Suddenly remembering, he turned to Bibi, who was sitting in the back, and asked. Bibi, who had been staring blankly at the sky, slowly nodded.

“Yeah. But not too spicy.”

“Okay. Let’s start with something small and mild.”

“Like what?”

“Ambulance Tteokbokki should do.”

Namwon grinned slyly, a mischievous look on his face.

“Suspicious...”

“What’s suspicious? I’ll perfectly match your level... Oh, Senior’s coming out.”

Namwon spotted Doyoon emerging from the main gate and waved. Doyoon took off his crow mask, tossed it to River, and waved goodbye. Isabel and Richard were nowhere in sight.

As soon as Doyoon got into the passenger seat, Namwon started the engine and quickly pressed the accelerator. The car left the Tudor estate without hesitation.

“Bibi, when did you come out?”

Doyoon, lost in thought for a moment, turned to Bibi in the back seat.

“A while ago. I came out because I was sleepy.”

Today, Bibi not only attended the Elder Council with Doyoon but also bravely cast her vote. She was nervous at first but, since everyone wore masks and she sat next to Isabel, she was able to act calmly.

However, the meeting, which she had so boldly attended, was frankly too boring and made her sleepy. Bibi only understood about 30% of the meeting’s content. She ended up leaving quickly after only seeing Doyoon acquitted.

“You did well.”

Doyoon smiled languidly.

“Senior, how did the meeting go?”

“I got half of what I wanted. Due to the chaos in London and Seoul, a re-discussion on vampire assimilation will inevitably proceed. We’ve decided to send special envoys, and the Hunter Association will prioritize dealing with the rampaging hunting dogs and half-blood vampires.”

“You’ll be busy when we get back. But the Association head realized you were up to something behind his back. How did that turn out?”

Doyoon shook his head, as if there was nothing to worry about.

“We talked.”

“Was he very angry?”

“He was, sure. He didn’t seem to know I was a vampire. He just thinks I contacted the military to expand my influence.”

“So we can continue our hunter work then. Who reported us?”

Doyoon paused slightly at Namwon’s question. He intended to be brief. Bibi, who had been quietly listening to the conversation, poked the front seat with her foot, signaling him to tell her.

“It’s not certain yet. There are too many people wary of the Tudor family’s growing power.”

Doyoon said curtly. He glanced at Bibi’s curious expression in the rearview mirror and chuckled, adding,

“Since the Executor has returned, they’ll likely observe the situation for a while.”

Bibi wanted to inquire further about this matter, but her attention was completely drawn to the small box in Doyoon’s hand. A delicious scent had been wafting from it for a while now. She couldn’t resist any longer.

“Doyoon, what’s inside that?”

“Isabel and Richard asked me to give it to you.”

Doyoon said, “Oops,” and handed her the box.

“What is it?”

“Mini apple pies they baked themselves. They said they were sorry they couldn’t see us off.”

Bibi, her eyes wide with delight, took the box and opened the lid. Golden-brown pies were nestled inside like tempting nuggets. Excitement surged. Which one should she pick first? Oh, it didn’t matter which one. She just had to eat the sweet apple filling inside first.

“Hey, if you’re just going to eat the filling and throw away the crust, don’t eat it at all.”

Namwon said sternly, looking at Bibi in the rearview mirror.

“Why? Pie crust doesn’t taste good.”

“You shouldn’t be so picky with food.”

“I only want the filling.”

“You have to eat it together. Have you thought about how upset the person who made it would be if you threw away the crust?”

At Namwon’s sharp criticism, Bibi pouted sullenly. Seeing her expression, Doyoon held out his palm.

“Give me the pie crust.”

“Why?”

“I’ll eat it for you.”

“Really?”

Seeing Doyoon nod, Bibi quickly peeled off only the pie crust and placed it on his palm. Doyoon, without hesitation, chewed the dry pie crumbs like dried squid.

“Senior, what about me?”

Namwon subtly asked.

“What ‘about you’? Eat it yourself.”

“You’re really too harsh on me. If you think about it, I became a vampire because of you, so treat me better.”

“Hah... Do you want me to eat your pie crust?”

“No, introduce me to some women. There are so many pretty vampires out there. Now that I’m a vampire too, can’t I be ambitious?”

“But will they like you? Even if you’ve become a vampire, some truths are unchanging.”

Listening to the two bicker, Bibi picked out only the apple filling, then, satisfied, leaned against the window and dozed off. Namwon and Doyoon, seeing her in the rearview mirror, turned down the music and fell silent. A tender quiet filled the car.

“Many things will change from now on. You’ll have a lot more to do.”

Isabel’s voice drifted through her mind in her sleep.

“Are you ready? It might be better to live freely than to take on heavy roles like Executor. That’s been my experience. Think carefully.”

Of course, she had thought about it enough. On her way back to London to meet Doyoon again, a question suddenly occurred to her.

Why did Adam eat the forbidden fruit that Eve offered him? He must have known its meaning. Not only would he be abandoned by God, but he would also face death after being expelled from paradise.

Yet Adam ate it. To be with Eve.

Bibi could understand Adam’s feelings. She knew that her birth, being from both a rebellious and an Executor family, would cause a great stir in the vampire world. It would not only be troublesome but would also lead to complex and sharply conflicting struggles.

But Bibi wanted to choose Doyoon’s side, even if it meant enduring all of it. Doyoon was her fallen sky, and she wanted to be his sky too.

Bibi was no longer a hunting dog. She, who had been alone, now had her beloved, a friend, and a subordinate by her side. It was something she could never have imagined when she lost her mother and rotted away in a cold basement.

Knowing who she was now, she was confident she could always handle his desire to bite her. The two had exchanged blood and willingly embraced being each other’s complete possession. That was why immortality held no fear for her.

Under the warm sunlight, Bibi felt satiated for the first time, enjoying a peaceful and comfortable sleep.

<END OF MAIN STORY>