Chapter 370: I Like It When You

「Gag… cough cough cough! 」

Elizabeth spat out Herbert's finger from her mouth and glared at him with a resentful look.

What are you doing?

She stuck out her tongue at Herbert and complained: «Cough, spit, spit! What was that for all of a sudden? »

She didn't find Herbert's action offensive or unacceptable—she was just slightly annoyed by the lack of warning before he acted.

He didn't even say hello—he just jumped right in.

You scared me half to death!

I wasn't ready!

«Nothing. I just suddenly wanted to test your limits. » Herbert withdrew his hand and smiled slightly.

Test?

«Hmph! »

Elizabeth snorted coldly, glancing sideways at him and sneering: «So you're going to test me with your fingers? Don't you have any other way? »

What are you pretending?

What are you playing at?

Now you're putting on airs?

«Hmph, stop talking nonsense. If you're going to test, do it now. »

Elizabeth didn't rise; she remained kneeling on the ground, her mouth open with an almost eager anticipation.

«Ahh—»

Facing this vampire lady who, with perfect self-awareness, had lifted her own hand to pull her mouth open and stuck out her tongue like she was waiting for a COVID test, Herbert's lips twitched.

Her eagerness threw him off completely.

«Uh… cough. »

He hesitated inside, then sighed helplessly: «No, uh—cough! Now isn't the time for this. We'll talk about it later…»

Though the invitation was truly tempting and your movements were quite seductive, this really isn't the time for this.

«Hm? »

Elizabeth gave Herbert a suspicious look, confirmed he was genuinely refusing—not playing hard to get—then tilted her head oddly and asked: «What's going on? »

Not in the mood?

Feeling down today?

The vampire lady expressed concern.

«Didn't you notice? » Herbert asked pointedly.

Don't you feel something's strange here?

«Notice what? »

But Elizabeth completely failed to grasp the implication of his question, tilting her head: «Herbert, you're acting weird today—why do you always say half and hide half? »

Herbert watched her utterly oblivious to the strangeness of the scene, and inwardly shook his head.

«Didn't notice? Hmm. »

Though a bit disappointing, it was exactly what he expected.

You can't expect everyone to be like Fu Leimei—able to sense anomalies and leave on their own.

After all, not everyone has the same brain… uh, wisdom.

«Don't focus on so many details. »

Herbert didn't explicitly point it out; instead, he extended his hand and smiled: «My beautiful lady, would you care to dance with me? »

Huh?

Elizabeth, dazed, placed her hand in Herbert's palm and asked, thoroughly confused: «Of course I'd love to, but…»

Before she could finish, he yanked her up from the ground and pulled her straight into his arms.

«No more 'buts.' Watch your feet. » Herbert laughed heartily as he spun her close against his body.

Elizabeth was spun into a wide circle, letting out a flustered cry: «Hey hey hey—»

The two stumbled through the spiritual realm, dancing awkwardly.

Their steps were chaotic, like two beginners just learning to coordinate limbs, their four legs tangled together.

Due to her height, whenever they collided, Herbert lifted her up like a kitten by the scruff.

«Hey! Slow down, slow—hey! Put me down! » The kitten, seized by the nape of the neck, hissed.

The scene looked ridiculous, but both were actually skilled dancers.

Especially Elizabeth—she was even better than Herbert at dancing; her upbringing had placed extraordinary emphasis on etiquette and dance.

But the styles of dance Herbert and Elizabeth excelled in were different, resulting in their steps being utterly chaotic—practically a disaster.

They kept stepping on each other's feet—or being stepped on.

Though they were nowhere near «elegant» at this moment, they felt a vivid, vibrant life force.

In an unseen space, within a hidden spiritual world.

They danced, shouted, laughed.

«Hahaha! Throw me higher! »

«Alright! »

Their coordination gradually grew smoother—she was tossed high, then caught steadily.

Though Elizabeth didn't know why they'd suddenly started dancing, she began to enjoy the process.

Compared to today's noble dances, the ancient court dance Elizabeth knew differed very little.

After shaking off the initial chaos, her steps grew smoother and smoother, her coordination with Herbert becoming increasingly perfect.

At this point, they stopped communicating through words.

In the sync of their bodies, in the friction of their chests brushing together, in the crisp alternation of their steps, they felt each other.

A fleeting heartbeat during a close embrace, a single glance when their eyes met, a motion born of unspoken understanding.

It was as if they had entered another realm, no longer needing words to understand each other's feelings.

Elisa longed desperately for this dance to go on forever, to preserve this state of hearts pressed together.

But every dance must end.

When the dance ended, they finally stopped, collapsing onto the ground together.

"Haah… hahah."

The Vampire Young Lady lay sprawled in Herbert's arms, breathing freely, her head tilted to rest against his chest, listening to the strong beat within.

Thump-thump, thump-thump.

"Hehe~"

Elisa didn't know why Herbert had suddenly invited her to dance, but she was happy now.

She hadn't danced in a very, very long time.

Since becoming a vampire, she had never danced again.

This dance made her feel as if she had come back to life, as if she had awakened from a centuries-long gloomy nightmare.

It felt like merely dozing off in the garden at noon and dreaming a nightmare.

She was still that little Princess, free and loved by her father and mother, who had happened to meet a noble young man who had wandered into the garden.

It was beautiful, it was happy—but also somewhat unreal.

The more perfect it was, the stronger the sense of disconnection Elisa felt.

This unreality, once recognized, grew steadily more intense.

"…"

Elisa fell silent for a moment, propped herself up with her hand against Herbert's chest, and looked down into his eyes.

"Herbert."

"Hmm?"

"Why today, suddenly, are you so gentle with me?"

Her voice was full of tenderness.

Herbert grinned, raised an eyebrow slightly, and winked at her: "Don't you like it?"

"Of course I still like it."

Elisa shook her head and smiled, then hesitantly bit her lip and asked: "Am I dreaming?"

It was so beautiful, like a perfect dream… no, this was a dream.

Under the sharp sting of disconnection, she noticed her current abnormality—realized she was not in reality.

So all of this was merely a bizarre dream.

"No, this isn't your dream—it's mine."

But Herbert denied her thought, smiling: "To you, I am real; everything I do is without falsehood."

Whether the woman before him was a phantom from his own memories or a thread of thought that had entered this mental world made no difference.

His way of treating them would not change.

He smiled at Elisa's phantom: "As long as you want to dance, I'm always ready to dance with you—so long as you stop stepping on my feet."

The slightly melancholy Elisa burst into laughter, giving him a look: "What nonsense! You've been stepping on my feet the whole time!"

"Have I?"

"Yes, you have!"

They locked eyes, then both laughed happily.

"Then I'll look forward to it a little."

Elisa leaned down again, settling back onto Herbert's chest, whispering: "Herbert, I'm truly happy that you can be so gentle with me."

Some say vampires are creatures who can laugh amid blood and tears, yet suffer unbearably when faced with sunlight and love.

But… who doesn't long for love?

Everyone hopes to be loved, to receive love, to possess the one they love.

"…"

After expressing her gratitude, Elisa hesitated, biting her lip uncertainly.

She took a deep breath and finally made up her mind.

The Vampire Young Lady pushed herself up again, then leaned down, pressing her mouth to Herbert's ear, whispering as if afraid someone might hear:

"Gentleness is good, I like it—but, um, a little roughness wouldn't be bad either."

Having voiced her secret thought, she dropped her reserve and blurted it all out: "If I must say it, I actually prefer you to be a little… rougher with me."

Herbert:?

Miss, shouldn't you mind the occasion?

You were just here pouring out heartfelt thanks, and now you say this?

Your personality… is truly delightful.

But was this preference of hers awakened by Herbert—or had it always been there?

Only the Vampire Young Lady herself knew the true answer.

"You… tsk, you ran away."

Herbert had been about to reply, but after finishing her confession, Eliza fled in panic and vanished from the space on her own accord.

……

"Ha!"

The vampire lying in the black iron coffin suddenly flung her eyes open and sat up at once—smashing her forehead hard against the lid.

Thud!

"Ah—hiss!"

Eliza painfully rubbed her own forehead, her eyes brimming with tears as she hissed in a breath of cold air: "Ow ow ow ow…"

Under the massive impact, most of what she had remembered from the dream vanished; she only vaguely recalled that she seemed to have had a very warm, very happy beautiful dream.

It seemed she had been dancing with Herbert in the dream?

And also…

"No, wait, I think I said something outrageous in the dream? What on earth was it?"

The young vampire lady pondered for a moment, then dismissively curled her lip: "Ah well, it was just a dream anyway."

"Nothing worth fussing over."

……

"You cowardly vampire—got the nerve to say it all, but not the nerve to stick around, huh?"

"Just you wait until I have the time later… heh heh, I'll definitely give you what you're asking for." Herbert muttered, then laughed along with himself.

Although the process differed somewhat from what he had imagined, the result was the same—the phantom had vanished.

Herbert did not know what the others had faced in the trial of 【Silence and Cacophony】, nor how they had broken through.

Each person had their own way of handling it; he had his own solution.

Not to guard his original heart and stubbornly treat the phantoms as nothing.

But to embrace the phantoms, and let them discover the problem themselves, rather than having him be the one to point it out.

Still, he did not know whether his approach was correct, but he believed it was the one that suited him best.

If it were only his own dream, then he would gladly sink into it here.

And if it were a dream shared by all of them, then he hoped everyone could have a beautiful dream.

"The next one should be Swanny, right?" Herbert mused to himself.

He did not know what pattern governed the appearance of these phantoms, but from the looks of it now, they seemed to be arranged according to the floors of the Penitence House.

And if it followed this order, then the next would be Swanny, and only after that the devil, the succubus, the angel…

As Herbert thought this, a vague feeling stirred in his heart that something seemed off.

If it really were this simple, then this trial would pose him no difficulty at all.

He had already conquered them all once in reality—how could he possibly fail in a dream?

After the attempts of the previous three, Herbert had already reached a conclusion—failure was impossible.

Me, against monster girls?

The advantage is mine!

"That's it? This is the Secret-Keeper's hardest trial? Nothing to it."

And just as Herbert nodded smugly, feeling the outcome was decided, he suddenly heard a peculiar soft sound.

Shhh-shhh-shhh…

"Hm?"

Hearing the sound, Herbert's expression shifted slightly.

Wait, no way, right?

He slowly raised his head, looked toward the source of the sound, and sure enough saw someone who should not have been here—the Bishop of Ashes.

That can't be right!!?

"Why are you here too?"

Herbert looked at the Bishop of Ashes, whose body was hidden beneath a voluminous long robe, his expression twitching slightly as he could not help but complain inwardly.

He had imagined many things—he had imagined that the upcoming monster girls would appear out of order, breaking the pattern; he had even imagined he might run into the young Teresa, whom he had barely made a move on yet…

But he had never imagined that the Bishop of Ashes would also appear.

Buddy, did you set the difficulty wrong on this game?

This is attack, this is defense, this is Ashina Genichiro. JPG

Just as Herbert was complaining that the game's difficulty was absurd, a seven-colored rune-marked serpent tail flashed past beneath the long robe, and his expression changed at once.

Hm!!?

His gaze sharpened, like a keen hunter in the desert, and he stared fixedly at that serpent tail, slowly nodding: "…But then again."

The Bishop of Ashes, not bad.

Herbert grudgingly accepted the other's appearance, but there was still one problem that needed solving.

Right now…

How was he to make her realize something was off?

I haven't even conquered her yet!

(End of Chapter)