After about ten minutes, Phaga finally managed to calm Ellen down and ended with a joke. "Come on, I'm a vampire. Even if I end up in pieces, I'll crawl off somewhere to heal—and before long, I'll spread my wings again."
"Nonsense! Who curses themselves like that?"
Ellen didn't seem cheered up by his words. Instead, she gave Phaga a light punch, then pretended to flick her hair as she slipped out of his arms.
Her pretty face flushed. Clutching her small hands in front of her, she opened one eye and coughed. "Let's eat first. We still have school later!"
"It's all your fault for wasting my time."
Phaga couldn't help but laugh, shaking his head helplessly. "Yes, yes, my fault."
Before long, the two finished breakfast, their forks tapping softly on the table.
They went to the entryway, where Phaga fixed his appearance in the mirror and changed his shoes.
Ellen suddenly noticed something, so she stood on tiptoe to smooth the back of Phaga's collar, patting his shirt twice to flatten the wrinkles.
Hmm, a perfect boyfriend was born... Cough, no, no—a family member!
Ellen slapped her flushed cheeks twice, the crisp sound making Phaga glance back in confusion, unaware of the shy look she was hiding.
She quickly unlocked the door, stepped outside, and darted off—so fast she was almost about to trigger a [Roaming Hunt].
"Hey, wait! We're not even late yet. What's the rush?"
Seeing her speed up, Phaga hurried to chase after her.
...
About twenty minutes later, they arrived at school together.
Here, there were no Ethereal and no Proxies. Everyone's outside identities were hidden—only students remained.
It felt as if they'd stepped into ordinary life. The pressure of study weighed heavy as mountains, yet next to the fleeting brush of life and death, it could be blown away by a light breeze.
Walking in, both Phaga and Ellen felt a bit of relief. Their hearts eased too.
So much so that... when Ruby strolled right up to their seats with a plush shark tail tied to her waist, neither of them noticed.
"Hey, you two!"
Ruby swayed her hips, flicking the fluffy shark tail left and right, playfully patting both their backs under the astonished gaze of the class. "Your legendary Shark Investigator has arrived!"
"Huh?"
Phaga and Ellen both turned instinctively at the light tap on their backs.
There stood Ruby, hands on her hips, looking full of energy—though her shark tail drooped so low it nearly brushed the floor.
"Look! My new shark tail! Cute, right? I'm gonna play shark all day today!"
When the two turned their attention to her, Ruby spun around, swaying her hips as the plush tail followed her movements. It even had a bit of the same natural rhythm as Ellen's own tail when idle.
"Look, Phaga! It's almost like Ellen's, isn't it?"
"Not even close."
Resting his chin on one hand, Phaga gave a small smile. "Looks like a stuffed toy."
"What do you mean? You're just looking at it through your eight-inch-thick filter!"
Ruby puffed her cheeks in protest, grumbling that Phaga was playing favorites.
But Phaga just raised a brow at Ellen and nodded toward Ruby.
Ellen sighed.
No helping it—if Phaga wasn't going to deal with Ruby, she'd have to.
She lowered her gaze to Ruby's shark tail and asked curiously, "Didn't you just order that yesterday? How'd it get here so fast?"
"Paid extra!" Ruby lifted her chin proudly. "Just a tiny tip, nothing major!"
"A tiny tip? That must've been expensive."
Ellen tilted her head. She'd never ordered rush shipping, but she could easily imagine overnight delivery wasn't cheap.
"It wasn't that bad!"
As she spoke, Ruby suddenly crouched down like a thief and whispered in Ellen's ear, "Some sucker paid for it."
Ellen blinked. Something about Ruby's grin didn't sit right. "Sucker? What sucker—"
"Shh! Let me show you a magic trick. It's called..."
Before finishing, Ruby shoved her left hand into her sleeve.
When it came back out, she held a clear plastic bag filled with a dozen printed photos.
She'd even asked the photo shop owner to add a touch of romantic cyber magic to the already beautiful shots.
"The magic trick is called... Vampire Face-Off!"
Ruby shouted and dashed off before Ellen could even grab her skirt. In the blink of an eye, she was beside Phaga.
With one hand on his shoulder, she proudly showed him the printed photos—capturing the tender moment when Ellen and Phaga kissed.
Ruby leaned close with a teasing smile, swaying her hips so the shark tail brushed Phaga's back. "Hey, sucker, want the photos? Only eighty thousand dennies! A breathtaking Lady Shark, yours to admire!"
"I... uh..."
Phaga froze, palms rubbing nervously on his thighs as his gaze darted about.
But his eyes kept returning to the clear bag.
Inside wasn't just a stack of photos—it was a cup of intoxicating wine.
When shared with the right person, even a single drop could make one drunk.
Seeing his reaction, Ruby flicked her fingers.
Whoosh!
The photos fanned open, their glossy corners catching the light.
Phaga swallowed hard.
At that moment, he knew he'd made a mistake.
Not because there was only one such "cup" in Ruby's hands—there were at least a dozen.
And because yesterday, he hadn't bothered to buy Ruby off for the price of twenty hotpot meals.
Now, judging by her sly grin, there was no telling how she'd skin a vampire alive.
"Phaga~~ For just eighty thousand Dennies, you can take home the gorgeous Lady Shark's exclusive photos..."
Ruby whispered in his ear, thinking her tone seductive.
Phaga blinked, staring blankly for a moment.
Eighty thousand?
He sighed inwardly.
Fine. Let's make it a hundred. The kid could use the money.
Without another word, he took the sealed envelope, slipped it into his wallet, then pulled out a savings card and placed it in Ruby's hand.
"There's a hundred thousand Dennies on it. Keep the change."
"Hehe, awesome!"
Hearing the amount, Ruby squealed in delight, bouncing away.
"Woohoo!"
Her cheerful voice echoed as she hopped off, only to veer toward the restroom, probably too excited for her own good.
Ellen watched her go until she was out of sight, then turned back with a helpless look. "By the way, why do you always happen to have a savings card with exactly a hundred thousand on it?"
She remembered that when Phaga used to buy blood, the slang for the usual amount was "a hundred-thousand's worth."
"It's just a habit. I always keep one on hand," he replied. "It used to be sixty thousand, but since last year's city elections, the price of blood's gone up to a hundred thousand for some reason."
Ellen nodded softly. "Oh."
A faint ache tugged at her heart.
It was the inertia of pain, perhaps.
In the past, he'd always carried sixty thousand dennies—enough to buy blood when he was alone.
Now that she was with him, he didn't need to anymore, yet he still kept a card tucked quietly away.
Ellen said nothing further.
She could smooth the wrinkles from his collar, but not the ones in his heart.
Still, that inertia had to end someday.
A blade that stays lodged too long in the heart—only heaven knows how deep the scar will go.
...
The day passed in the blink of an eye.
Ellen scratched her hair in frustration and slumped over her desk.
She had to admit—when it came to cheering people up, she couldn't compete with Ruby.
Maybe I should ask Ruby for advice?
The thought crossed her mind, but she quickly shook her head.
No way. How could I ever pull off her natural airheaded charm?
Still... that's better than being completely hopeless, isn't it?
She puffed her cheeks, thinking for a long while, but came up with nothing. Defeated, she laid her head back down on the desk.
Suddenly, someone nudged her shoulder.
Ellen looked up.
Phaga smiled gently and tilted his head. "Time to go home, Little Fish Snack."