Wood muttered to himself, carrying Jormungand Cat through the incredibly tense Dance Floor, walking toward the room where Old Man was located.
The Criminals' hearts, which had been in suspense, sank even further as he walked further and further away—
—I'm reminding you, if I come out and find that any Hostage has died on the Dance Floor, you will all die! And—you will die extremely miserably!
Before entering the room, Wood stopped specifically to threaten the Criminals.
The Criminals nodded one after another—he was all alone, slender in build and weak in stature, holding the Black Cat in his left arm and a Mobile Phone in his right hand, but when his gaze fell upon them, they felt a terror comparable to the scorching fires of Hell searing their very souls.
(They must obey his orders!)
Those who refuse to obey him will surely die! They will die a miserable death!
(Who.. who.. who on earth is he!)
（..）
.. You all seem to be quite afraid of me?
Sensing the fear of the Criminals, Wood asked hypocritically.
The Criminals did not dare to respond, their lips tightly clenched as they blinked frantically.
Is this the courage of those who call themselves Vampire Followers?
After the exaggerated mockery, Wood used the mobile phone in his hand to push open the ajar door and entered the room that had become a slaughterhouse.
..
The floors, walls, ceilings, tables, chairs.. blood and flesh scraps were everywhere, some of which had already dried and turned black. Beside the pools of blood that had not yet fully dried, more than ten Teenagers who had voluntarily followed the Vampire and the Ogre were prostrating on the ground like dogs, licking with their tongues.
Upon discovering Wood had entered the room, they, possessed by a madness of faith, let out screams that blended terror with greed.
Delicious! Delicious blood food!
A pure fragrance! A pure fragrance unlike any other!
“Master! Please kiss his neck immediately! That peerless, sweet delicacy!”
Come! Fall into the joy of eternal night with us!
—Shut up!
A commanding order, heavy with intimidation, rang out from deep within the room, followed by the sharp whistle of a whip cutting through the air.
The restless Followers immediately fell silent at Wood's arrival, bowing low with their foreheads pressed against the ground.
Wood looked toward the source of the voice and saw several tall, model-like Vampires and Ogres dressed in black robes. They were gathered around a sofa covered in blood, sitting in the center of the sofa was a heavily made-up Blonde Vampire, who was the leader conducting the video call with him.
“You are—"
I have finally met you!
The Blonde Vampire stood up, leading the male and female Vampires and Ogres surrounding the sofa toward Wood, knelt on one knee before him.
In the name of Goddess Lilith, we come to welcome our King!
King?
Wood was surprised and looked down at Jormungand Cat. "Are you the 'King' they are talking about?"
I certainly don't want to be the King of these smelly things!
Jormungand Cat turned his head and bared his teeth in anger: "Meow~ Meow-ugh~ (Get lost! You idiots!)"
Your Majesty!
The Blonde Vampire continued his confession: "Goddess Lilith left an Oracle; once you accept us and become our King, you will possess all our rights and interests—you can command us to do anything! Or—"
Wait a moment.
Wood interrupted the Blonde Vampire's speech: "Who exactly are you talking to?"
The Goddess's chosen new King for us, of course—Wood.
The Blonde Vampire looked up, a humble and submissive smile hanging on his Hollywood-star-quality face.
Me? Becoming your King?
Yes.
Since Lilith has already chosen me as your King, why did you speak to me in such a threatening tone during the video call just now! And why did you force me to stay on video the entire time?!
Only in this way would you take our invitation seriously and come in person.
The Blonde Vampire's English pronunciation was strange; it was neither a common American accent nor a British one.
Wood couldn't help but heighten his vigilance: "Just what is your origin! Why did you kidnap Old Man and the entire Bar!"
“To see you, our—"
I don't want to be your King!
Wood impatiently interrupted the Blonde Vampire: "Release Old Man and the Bar Hostage immediately!"
If you acknowledge that you are our King, we will carry out your orders without condition—
And if I refuse?
Then we will have no choice but to—
The Blonde Vampire rose slowly, the accompanying Vampires and Ogres also stood up one after another—the eyes of the creatures were filled with greed, staring at Wood with avarice.
To us, you are both the King chosen for us by Goddess Lilith and the Holy Food bestowed upon us by Goddess Lilith. If you refuse to become our King, we will have no choice but to devour you, to possess your Holy Body and your Holy Blood.
“..”
Wood felt a chill run down his spine.
“—Can you accept us?”
The Blonde Vampire asked with an overwhelming sense of pressure, while the Vampires and Ogres standing behind him had already bared their fangs.
The Teenager who had voluntarily become a follower of the Vampires and Cannibals also slowly closed in around Wood.
In the inner room, separated from the site of the peace talks by only a half-open door, the screams of Old Man echoed once again.
—Aaaah! Aaaah!
Papa, with just one command from you, I will devour them all immediately.
Jormungand Cat raised his furry head and looked at Wood coquettishly.
(I.. I..)
Wood's heart was pounding.
He knew he had to make a decision as soon as possible, but—
[Or, does Papa want to continue being that gentle, ordinary Mister Good Man?]
（..）
Papa, you actually realized long ago that you are not an ordinary human, yet you refuse to acknowledge your true nature, insisting on hiding your true self beneath a mask of incompetence.
（..）
[As long as Papa gives the word, Jormungand will help Papa kill everything that stands in Papa's way, including that guy who calls himself Master—well, Papa seems quite satisfied with him for now, so I won't touch him for the time being—]
(Don't be like this!)
Wood broke into a cold sweat from the Jormungand Cat's words, finally realizing in this moment that the other party was the invincible Midgard Serpent from Norse Mythology.
Papa—
—Have you thought it over?
The Blonde Vampire urged Wood loudly, taking a step closer to say, "Goddess Lilith has issued an Oracle. Although you possess incredibly powerful strength, you hide your true self behind a mask of incompetence—if you refuse to become our King, we will have no choice but to follow the Goddess's command and use methods that might be somewhat excessively brutal and bloody for humans to tear off your mask! To reveal the truth hidden beneath the mask!"
What do you mean by this? Don't you know—
We know, we know everything.
The Blonde Vampire extended his hands, which were tipped with beast-like sharp claws, attempting to touch Wood's face: "Our mission is—ah!"
The effortless, frivolous tone turned into a scream halfway through. There were two reasons for the scream: one was his left hand, which had been bitten off by the Jormungand Cat, the other was his right hand, which had rapidly acidified and emitted thick smoke upon touching Wood's face.
“—What kind of Monster are you, anyway!”
The Blonde Vampire was struck with terror.
The Vampire and the Ogres behind him shouted in unison, "By the Goddess's command, execute Plan B!"
Second Plan?
Wood showed pure curiosity.
Before the words had even faded, the Vampires had already charged toward Wood shrouded in darkness, while the Ogres, brandishing sharp blades, swarmed Wood, hacking at him frantically like monsters from a B-movie.
The Vampire Followers rushed out of the room and toward the Dance Floor where the Hostage was being held—
Screams from the Hostage erupted from the Dance Floor immediately.
No! Don't kill us!
—Help! Help!
God! Help me—help—
“..”
A scream drifted into the room, Wood, who was under siege, suddenly—
“Jormungand! I permit you—"
[Understood!]
Jormungand Cat laughed joyfully and jumped down from Wood's arms; before his black form even hit the ground, he had transformed into an eerie creature that was neither cat nor cat, neither snake nor snake, covered in multicolored black scales.
It greedily scanned its surroundings, its thick and massive body naturally coiling around Wood, it opened its enormous mouth, revealing rows of sharp, jagged teeth.
[It's a pity Lilith isn't here! If it were Lilith, perhaps he could satisfy my eternal hunger! Hehehe!]
A cat claiming to be Jormungand?!
The Blonde Vampire did not believe that Jormungand Cat was the real Jormungand, sneered contemptuously, "Come on, let us—"
[Start the pleasant feast, right?]