On the same day, in a large city in southern Gruns, in a hotel in Lyonis.
Zack had looted over twenty gold coins from the adventurers in the cave, which meant he could finally afford a double room with two beds—he definitely didn't want to sleep on the floor again like last time.
"Little Zack locked up this lady's legs, so you have to take responsibility for me, you know." Sophia's legs were once again able to move freely, the shackles still clamped over her over-the-knee leather boots, but the chains were gone. Now, they were nothing more than decorative anklets on her boots. However, her strength was still limited by the shackles, held to the level of a weak human woman. This time, Sophia wasn't wearing her blood wings, but had hung them on the hotel's coat rack, dressing herself in tight leather clothing.
Zack had spent all of last night trying things out, barely sleeping, and finally figured out the five "play commands." "Frog jump" would make the shackles join and lock together, just like yesterday, so she could only hop forward. "Turtle crawl" would leave only about a ten-centimeter chain, so she could only shuffle forward in tiny steps. "Good dog" was the original chain length, about thirty to forty centimeters—the kind Sophia had worn at first. "Rooster run" would make the chain extend to a full meter; and as for the current state with no chain, that was "good slave"—as the name suggests, a well-behaved slave doesn't even need a chain.
Ever since he learned from the wraith that Sophia couldn't break free or cast spells, and after he'd seen her left foot chopped off with his own eyes, Zack's view of Sophia had changed. Deep inside, he even developed a bit of masculine courage, realizing Sophia could be hurt, that she too needed protection. He and Sophia agreed that in the hotel she could remain in the "good slave" state—that is, with no chain. But whenever they left, or whenever Zack wanted to sleep and couldn't keep a constant eye on her, it had to revert to "good dog."
Zack didn't know the shackles limited Sophia's strength. The current state—no chains, just two silver bands on her boots—still left him very uneasy.
Now Zack was desperately tired and didn't want to say a word to Sophia.
"Little Zack, what a wimp! Tired already?" Sophia kicked the sprawled Zack lying on the bed. "It's morning! The perfect time to have fun!"
Zack lay on the bed, thinking: You slept all night, I spent the whole night testing command words, my mouth dry as sand, and you're just happy now the chains are gone… But me? I want to sleep! And you're a vampire, yet in the morning you don't sleep but want to have fun—isn't that weird?
"Damn Zack!" Seeing Zack unresponsive, Sophia kicked him again.
"I'm too tired. Let me sleep a bit. Frog jump." Zack uttered the command and immediately collapsed to sleep.
With a snap, Sophia's legs were locked together; she could no longer kick Zack.
"Hey, hey, hey! Zack, you bastard! How dare you treat this lady so rudely! When I get to Silania, I'll have you drawn and quartered!!" Sophia yelled, but Zack, deep in sleep, couldn't hear a thing. Sophia's intestines were already rolling over and over in agony. She had no choice but to keep teasing Zack to distract herself. The moment her focus lapsed, the violent cramping in her gut made her feel like she would "let loose" at any second.
About an hour later, Sophia, grimacing with stomach pain, hopped to Zack's bedside, holding a bowl of water in her mouth. Her two fangs clamped the bowl just like levers.
With a splash, a bowlful of water poured over Zack's head.
"Aaaagh! What the hell?" Zack leapt up, drenched in cold water.
"Little Zack, you tied me up and just went to sleep? That's so irresponsible!" Sophia glared at the bleary, groggy Zack.
"You damn vampire! You won't even let me sleep?" Zack was angry, but at least he was sure Sophia couldn't read his thoughts now.
"Zack, don't be so mean. I am a lady, after all!" Zack looked at this girl, who was a head taller and far more mature in both looks and figure than him, and just shook his head helplessly.
"Zack, hurry up and undo my shackles!"
"Alright, alright. Good slave." The shackles separated, once again becoming two rings around Sophia's boots.
Sophia walked to the table, picked up another glass of water with her fangs, and brought it to Zack.
"Zack, drink this."
Zack took the glass and eyed the little bit of green liquid inside. "This isn't poison, is it?"
"You idiot! If I wanted to kill you, one kick would be enough—why would I need poison?"
Zack eyed Sophia, unconvinced.
"Fine, don't drink it then, you idiot. Kindness wasted on a bat's lungs."
"Don't be mad. Fine, I'll drink it." Zack gulped the glass down in one go.
Surprisingly delicious?
Zack suddenly felt full of energy, no longer tired at all.
"What… What did you just give me?"
"Idiot, idiot—say thank you, you rude thing!" Sophia glared at him.
"Alright, thank you, Lady Dominax!"
"Hmph, that's better!" Sophia smiled, satisfied. "That's a revitalizing blood essence I just synthesized from my own blood through my fangs. It's stronger than any human tea or coffee, with no side effects. One glass equals a full night's sleep—your fatigue will vanish even if you don't rest. Now Zack won't be tired anymore."
"There's… really something that magical?" Zack stared at the empty glass in disbelief.
"Zack, as long as you keep me entertained, you'll have wealth and glory, anything you want!" Sophia smiled at Zack, then added: "If you make me happy, I might make you a count under me when we get to Silania."
A… count? Wouldn't that mean endless money and countless beauties?
"Zack, let's go for a walk!"
"Yes, Lady Dominax. Good dog." The chain appeared again, connecting Sophia's two shackles.
"Hmph, so timid. I'm not going to eat people in broad daylight."
"Just to be safe…" said Zack.
"If you're that worried, you might as well gag me too!" Sophia was furious, motioning with her mouth toward the ball gag.
"Alright, forgive me."
"Just make sure to remove the wedge from the keyhole on the gag and lock my mouth well, so I can't bite anyone."
"Is… is that alright?"
"It's fine! You've got a master key—what are you worried about?!" Sophia was even more annoyed—she had secretly hoped Zack would say, "Ah, I trust you, my lady, I won't gag you!" or something similar. Instead, the blockhead just did exactly as told, removed the wedge, and stuffed the ball gag into her beautiful mouth. Sophia's expression as the gag went in was pure fury, as if she'd bite him the next second. Zack, for his part, had no idea what he'd done wrong.
"Mmph mmph!" Sophia cursed Zack through the gag, feeling her precious blood had been utterly wasted on this blockhead.
"What is it now?" Zack looked at Sophia as blankly as ever.
Sophia, shackled and gagged, walked over to her bundle of clothes and jewelry, nodded at it.
Zack checked and saw her pointing at a purple veil and scarf inside. They were noblewomen's veils from Etta. To Silania's east lay the Turk Empire, full of Turkish flavor. While the Turk Empire had some territory in eastern Rosenland, its faith and culture were Etta's, and Silania was heavily influenced by Turkish culture, including the use of Etta-style veils and headscarves by women. Originally, Silania resisted anything Etta, and Sophia's father had once impaled an entire Turkish army with blood magic. Sophia had inherited her father's ruthlessness toward enemies, but as a woman, she had no objection to beautiful clothes and jewelry from enemies.
With the veil and scarf in place, Sophia pointed to a gold mask—clearly meant to go with the veil. Zack picked up the golden mask, clipped it to the veil, fixing everything in place. The veil was semi-transparent, so the ball gag was faintly visible beneath, adding an exotic allure. Sophia now looked every bit like a noblewoman from the deserts of Etta—or, if you noticed the gag, a Silanian beauty enslaved in a Turkish harem.
"Mmph!" Sophia pointed to another strip of purple silk. Zack guessed this went over the eyes, so he fetched the silk and attached it to the mask, covering Sophia's eyes. For human women, this did little to block vision, but it helped keep their eyes from being seen—a common style in Etta.
"Mmph mmph!" Sophia blinked hard. Zack thought for a moment and said, "You want me to blindfold you too?"
Sophia was furious—she wanted a mirror, you idiot! Now too exasperated to even shake her head, she just grunted in anger. Zack, missing the point, found some black fabric in her bundle, untied the eye-veil, blindfolded Sophia, then put the veil back on. From the outside, you'd never know this was a beautiful Rosenland woman enslaved by camel-riding Ettans.
Now blindfolded, Sophia had to rely on her hearing to "see." Color was gone from her world, but she could "see" every detail within three meters, and just barely see details ten meters ahead. She could clearly "see" Zack's flagpole standing tall and proud in front of her—"So useless," she thought, forgetting how sensitive she herself was to stimulation. She laughed behind the gag, but the laugh came out, "Mmph mmph!"
"My lady, is there anything you need?"
"Mmph mmph!" Sophia meant: No, you idiot!
This time, Zack did get it right; he fetched her blood wings and draped them over her. Taking Sophia's arm through the wings, he led her downstairs.
Lyonis' streets were bustling. Zack treated himself to a feast with his looted coins—the first decent meal in days. He asked Sophia if she wanted anything, but her stomach ached too much to eat. If she wasn't bound, if she could undress freely, she wouldn't be suffering so much!
As Zack finished eating, the men at the next table were talking: "Hey, did you hear? The city council put out a bounty. Sounds like there's a vampire problem in the east quarter, and they're hiring any witch hunter, paladin, mage, or witcher to solve it—fifty gold coins, they say."
"Mmph? Mmph mmph!"
Sophia, hearing this, struggled and signaled to Zack.
"You want… to help the vampire, or hunt them?"
"Mmph mmph!"
"…I don't get it. Nod for help, shake your head for hunt."
"Mmph mmph!" Sophia shook her head.
"You're… really strange, wanting to hunt your own kind…"
"Mmph!"
"But how are we going to hunt it?"
"Mmph!" Sophia stood up, heading for the door. Zack hurried after her, worried she'd stumble or bump into someone—especially in this rough crowd.
"Mmph mmph mmph!" Sophia, outside, realized her hearing wasn't enough to navigate—let alone find the east quarter.
"Mmph mmph mmph mmph mmph!" Sophia made a series of muffled sounds, signaling Zack to remove her gag.
So Zack found a secluded spot and used the master key—a small gold rectangle that transformed to fit any lock—to unlock her gag. No sooner was the gag off (even before her blindfold), Sophia said, "Go ask those guys about the vampire's location!"
Without waiting for Zack to untie her blindfold, Sophia strode back to the tavern.
"Hey, you two!" The men at the table were startled to see a woman dressed Ettan-style address them—Etta women didn't speak to men other than their husbands.
"Madam, what can—"
"Where's the east quarter? I want to check out that vampire!"
"Madam… forgive me, but as a woman…"
Sophia realized the issue, so she said, "My husband is a vampire hunter!" She jerked her head toward the just-entering, utterly confused Zack.
"My God, a vampire hunter! Cheers for the vampire hunter!" The tavern heard Sophia's declaration and shouted, "Cheers for the vampire hunter!"
Zack had no idea what was going on, but soon he and Sophia were led by city officials to the abandoned house in the east quarter rumored to be home to a vampire.
"The vampire comes out at night, so be careful, Mr. Vampire Hunter!" With that, the crowd dispersed.
"Lady Dominax… we…"
"You're a vampire hunter now. Of course you're going to slay the vampire." Sophia's eyes were still covered, but her mouth, behind the veil, could speak.
"Then, should I take off your shackles—?"
"No, you need to keep my legs restrained, remember? I'm your good dog." Sophia was still angry about being shackled that morning.
"Ah, Lady Dominax, please don't mock me…"
Suddenly a chill swept in.
"Zack, draw Moonlight or you'll die." Sophia heard ultrasonic waves, and though blindfolded, her eyes showed disdain. "Just a lowly mongrel."
Zack's legs went weak. "Lady Dominax, I'm sorry! I won't shackle you next time."
"No, you have to. I'm dangerous, I seduce humans, I could hurt innocents. I'm a wicked vampire, you know. Zack, draw Moonlight now or it'll be too late."
"O… okay…" Zack, terrified, drew Moonlight, gripping the sword and cowering.
A shadow flickered, and a dark figure appeared behind Sophia, wrapping its right arm around her: "Woman, you're unlucky tonight."
"Is your mongrel nose really so useless?" Sophia's voice was something Zack had never heard before. The tone alone was enough to frighten any ordinary person out of their wits—even Zack, who thought he knew her, froze on the spot.
The vampire was stunned too, its arm slowly releasing Sophia: "Woman, are you… highborn?"
"I am not a mongrel," Sophia said, her voice deadly.
Indeed, to Sophia, both highborn and lowborn vampires were mongrels.
"I… I'm sorry, madam." The vampire backed away. "And… this man?"
"You mongrels always ask so many questions. How rude."
"I'm sorry, madam."
"What have you done here? Why are the humans hunting you?"
"Just… normal feeding."
"Oh? Normal feeding?" Sophia said nothing more, but her tone was full of menace.
"I… I was working as muscle for humans, they paid me…"
"Hm?"
"With money… and women."
"Listen, mongrel."
"Yes… madam…"
"That man is a vampire hunter here to kill you."
"I see… but why are you with the hunter…" Zack noticed vampires never called them "vampire hunters," just "hunters." Only Sophia used the full term.
"For no reason."
"Are you here to kill me?"
"Yes."
The vampire, despite its terror, cared more for its own life. It didn't dare attack Sophia, but suddenly lunged at Zack.
"Aaaah! No!" Zack swung Moonlight in panic—the blade, with a master's touch, automatically severed the vampire's hand.
"Ahhh, holy power!" The vampire grabbed its stump, glaring at Zack.
This vampire, greedy, lustful, and cowardly, was much like Zack, except Zack had a sense of justice and this one had no redeeming qualities at all. Seeing Moonlight, the vampire was terrified, gambling everything on one last move: he leapt back to Sophia, claws to her beautiful throat. "Hunter, drop your weapon! Or I kill this woman with you!"
"Mongrel, do you know what happens now?" Sophia's eyes, under the blindfold, turned blood red.
"I… even if I die, I won't let you go unharmed!"
"Zack, are you a coward? What about your oath?" For the first time, Sophia didn't call him "little Zack" but used his real name.
Zack used to worry nothing about Sophia. But after learning she couldn't use magic, couldn't read minds, and her foot had been cut off, he'd grown increasingly concerned. Now he knew Sophia was truly in danger. Remembering his vow, he steeled himself and lashed out with Moonlight, which transformed into a whip, striking the vampire's face at lightning speed.
The vampire's head exploded.
The vampire collapsed lifeless to the ground.
Sophia, still in shackles and high heels, stepped on the vampire's chest and said coldly, "You know, my favorite thing since childhood is watching mongrels howl before they die."
Zack just stood there, speechless.
After a moment, Sophia broke the silence and reverted to the familiar Sophia Zack knew: "Zack, how brave! Hero saving the beauty!"
"You… you were faking, weren't you? You could've handled him, right?" Zack wiped his forehead.
"No. This lady, bound head to toe by the great vampire hunter Zack, wearing a magic-inhibiting collar and strength-limiting shackles, had no way to fight back." Sophia thought, since Zack already knew she couldn't read minds or use magic, she might as well admit her legs were weakened by the shackles.
"You're… not lying?"
"Don't you believe me?" Sophia, from under the veil, looked at Zack. "Truth is, I was very mad about being chained up, but when you killed that mongrel, you made me happy again. I forgive you, Zack. Now gag me and let's collect the reward. But Zack, you'd better keep protecting me like you did today."
With that, Sophia opened her pretty mouth. Zack hesitated for a second.
"You really are an idiot." Sophia rolled her veiled eyes at him. "Listen up: I only let you tie me up for fun, for a laugh, so you could show off. Normally, I'd never let anyone do such things, but as a bored immortal, I'm always looking for fun, and showing off gives me quite a thrill."
"Uh… so?"
"Heh. Since you, idiot, found out I can't use magic now…" Sophia's tone turned icy again.
"Gulp." Zack swallowed.
"Then I'll just adjust my expectations for our little games." Her words left Zack baffled; Sophia's original intent was to flaunt her power, to amuse herself by letting him ride her, to endure things she normally would never tolerate. After all, as a bored immortal, she went out just to seek entertainment, and showing off was pure pleasure for her.
"Listen," Sophia said icily, her voice enough to make Zack's legs go weak, even though her blindfolded eyes weren't even looking at him. "You are to seriously treat me as your mistress from now on, obey me. If you ever dare to give me orders again, or disobey my commands, I'll kill you. Understand?"
Zack was so frightened by her words that his legs nearly gave out; even without her looking at him, he felt unable to move, let alone speak a word.
When she saw Zack frozen, Sophia used her shackled knee to lightly bump his crotch. Her tone lost the icy edge, but wasn't gentle either: "Useless. Just now you were the hero saving the beauty, and now look at you—hurry up and gag your mistress!"
Finally, Sophia's slightly mocking, disdainful tone eased Zack's terror. He carefully put the gag back in her mouth, covering it again with the veil.
Afterward, Zack went to claim the bounty, hailed by the townsfolk as Lyonis' great vampire hunter, the heroic Zack—when in fact all he'd really done was stand up and swing Moonlight's automatic strike at Sophia's encouragement. Anyone could have done it. He knew that, and also realized Sophia had told him the truth—he really did have to take up the responsibility of protecting her now, since he was the one who put her in shackles. On the other hand, he also needed to show her more respect; he definitely didn't want to get kicked or bitten to death by Sophia.