Dracula sat in his coffin, still sweating.
"…That was a dream?"
He held his forehead, thinking for a moment, and then decided to summon the prime suspect.
"System. System! Get your ass out here!"
[Host, I am not some pet dog you can summon and dismiss at will. I may be your auxiliary companion, but I have my dignity too!]
Dracula calmly began counting, "I'll count to three. Three."
He suddenly clenched his fist and punched the air.
Boom—his punch struck something invisible with a heavy thud.
[W-Wait! What about one and two?! Give me time to react! Why do you never follow the proper order?!]
"Cut the crap," Dracula said as flames flickered around his fist.
"Two and three are too much work. A man only needs to remember 'one' to survive."
[Alright, alright! I give up! What do you want to ask? Just say it.]
Dracula squinted. "Hey, I dreamed I ran into a blond creep who claimed to be the Dracula of this world. You know anything about that?"
[Of course. I sent you to his Throne of Heroes.]
The system sounded very pleased with itself.
Flames ignited again on Dracula's fist.
[W-Wait!! Host, what are you planning to do?! Listen, listen! There's a reason for this!]
Dracula ground his teeth. "Talk."
[Ahem. Here's the thing: the authorities in this world are pretty strict. No ID, no entry. So, I negotiated a deal with them. We used one of your local counterparts and merged him with you—essentially, you 'devoured' him. That way, you now have a legitimate 'identity' to stay here. Plus, absorbing him comes with benefits.]
Dracula silently opened his status window:
Host Name: Dracula (Gabriel Belmont)
Level: ???
Strength: ???
Agility: ???
Magic: ???
Endurance: ???
Luck: E- (deservedly low, given the host's luck)
Abilities: ???
Dracula pointed at the screen and roared:
"Tell me—where the hell are the benefits?! Devouring that pervert just made me feel gross!"
[Hmm…]
The system went quiet for a moment, then suddenly exclaimed:
[Host, look—your luck stat has changed!]
Dracula checked again.
Indeed—his Luck had gone from E to E-.
"…"
Dracula jumped out of his coffin, furious.
"IT GOT WORSE?!"
[W-Well, you have to understand… Even I didn't know the local you also happened to be a spear-wielding maniac…]
The system tried to comfort him.
[Look, his Noble Phantasm and Mystic Code have been absorbed into your skillset. You can use them anytime.]
"…And what good is that to a guy who can't even remember what his own powers are?"
Dracula's eyes were dead and hollow.
"Forget it. I'm too lazy to argue with you. Do what you want. I'm heading out."
He leaned against the coffin, freshened up lazily, and shuffled to the throne hall.
Just then, Kagarino Kirie pushed open the doors. Her morning and evening greetings had become a daily ritual.
"Ah, good morning, Lord Dracula," Kirie said with a curtsy, expression as cold as ever.
"Although you still look half-dead, at least you're not oversleeping. That means I won't have to resort to pouring hot water on your face today."
"Morning, Kirie. You're as beautiful as always, and just as sharp-tongued."
Dracula greeted her lazily.
He gave her outfit a quick glance. Despite her usual poker face, it was clear she'd put effort into her look today. Ever since the day Dracula saved her, she had been paying more and more attention to her appearance.
"Well, since you're awake, breakfast is ready. Please follow me to the dining hall."
With that, Kirie turned and walked out.
Dracula followed her into the dining room, where a breakfast for two was already laid out neatly on the table.
Since Dracula still considered Kirie a vampire, he figured drinking blood would cause unnecessary trouble. So in his usual lazy fashion, he simply shared his own blood with her, turning Kirie into a vampire like himself—immune to the traditional weaknesses of vampires and capable of surviving without consuming blood. This kind of vampire is commonly known as a True Ancestor.
However, what puzzled Dracula was that even after becoming a True Ancestor, Kirie still experienced discomfort around crosses blessed by holy magic. She never said exactly what kind of discomfort it was.
Dracula and Kirie sat side by side at the dining table. Dracula picked up a knife and fork, skewered a piece of fried egg, and was about to take a bite when he noticed Kirie wasn't moving—just staring straight at him.
"What's wrong?" Dracula looked at himself awkwardly. "Is something off?"
"No, no, please eat, Lord Dracula. Otherwise, if breakfast gets cold, Kirie might start to dislike you."
Kirie propped her face up with both hands, still staring expressionlessly at him.
"Oh… uh…" Dracula put the egg in his mouth and began chewing.
"How is it?" Kirie asked with curiosity.
"Not bad." Dracula chewed and swallowed. "You should eat too, Kirie."
Kirie picked up her knife and fork and began eating. Dracula snuck a glance at her and noticed that even though her expression remained blank, her cheeks were slightly red, and she looked quite pleased.
[Heh, my dear host, you sure are lucky with the ladies.]
The system suddenly chimed in teasingly while Dracula and Kirie silently ate their breakfast.
"Whether I'm lucky or not is none of your damn business," Dracula snapped back mentally, still chewing.
[On the contrary! If you fall in love and grow more fond of this beautiful world, you'll be even more motivated to save it. And that's good for my mission too, you know.]
The system replied.
"Alright, alright. So, what are you here for? Don't tell me you just popped up to mess with me."
[Nope. I came to let you know—]
The system paused dramatically.
[The city inspectors of this world are coming to check your place.]