Chapter 399: I Like It When You're Rough With Me (Please Subscribe)

“Huh… cough, cough, cough!”

Elizabeth spat out Herbert’s finger from her mouth, glaring at him with a wounded 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 his action offensive or unacceptable—she was just slightly annoyed by the lack of warning.

No notice, just jumped right in.

You scared me half to death!

I wasn’t ready!

“Nothing. Just suddenly wanted to test your limits.” Herbert withdrew his hand and smiled faintly.

Test?

“Hmph!”

Elizabeth snorted, glancing sideways at him and sneering: “So you test me with your fingers? No other way?”

What are you pretending?

Why are you acting like this?

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, mouth slightly open, looking almost eager.

“Ah—”

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

Her eagerness threw him off guard.

“Uh… cough.”

He hesitated inside, then sighed helplessly: “No, uh—cough! Now isn’t the time for this. Later…”

Though the invitation was tempting and your movements were seductive, this really isn’t the moment.

“Hm?”

Elizabeth gave Herbert a suspicious look, confirmed he was genuinely refusing—not playing hard to get—and tilted her head curiously: “What’s going on?”

Not in the mood?

Bad day?

The vampire lady showed concern.

“Don’t you notice?” Herbert asked pointedly.

Don’t you feel something’s off here?

“Notice what?”

Elizabeth, completely oblivious to the implication, tilted her head: “Herbert, you’re acting strange today—why do you always say half and hide half?”

Herbert watched her utterly fail to recognize how bizarre the scene was, and inwardly shook his head.

“Didn’t notice? Hmm.”

Though a bit disappointing, it was expected.

You can’t expect everyone to be like Freyme, who notices anomalies and leaves on their own.

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

“Don’t focus on the details.”

Herbert didn’t spell 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 like 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, spinning her close against his body.

Elizabeth was whirled into a wide circle, letting out a flustered cry: “Hey hey hey—”

The two stumbled through the spiritual realm, dancing clumsily.

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

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

“Hey! Slow down, slow—hey! Put me down!” The kitten, seized by the nape, hissed.

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

Especially Elizabeth—she was even better than Herbert. Her royal education had placed extraordinary emphasis on etiquette and dance.

But their preferred dance styles differed, causing their steps to clash wildly—pure disaster.

They kept stepping on each other’s feet, or being stepped on.

Though far from graceful, they radiated vibrant, living energy.

In this unseen space, within the hidden spiritual realm.

They danced, shouted, laughed.

“Hahaha! Throw me higher!”

“Alright!”

Their coordination grew smoother; she was tossed high and caught steadily.

Though Elizabeth didn’t understand why they suddenly started dancing, she began to enjoy it.

Compared to today’s noble dances, the ancient court dance she knew was hardly different.

After shaking off the initial chaos, her steps grew silkier, her harmony with Herbert perfecting.

At this point, they stopped speaking.

Through bodily coordination, the friction of their chests, the crisp rhythm of their steps, they felt each other.

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

As if entering another realm—no words needed to know each other’s feelings.

Elizabeth desperately wished this dance would never end, that they could remain forever in this heart-to-heart state.

But all dances must end.

When the unknown number of dances finally ceased, they collapsed onto the ground.

“Haah… hah.”

The vampire lady lay sprawled in Herbert’s arms, breathing deeply, her head resting on his chest, listening to the strong heartbeat within.

Thump, thump.

“Hehe~”

Elizabeth didn’t know why Herbert had suddenly invited her to dance, but she was happy.

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

Since becoming a vampire, she had never danced again.

This dance made her feel reborn—as if she had awakened from a centuries-long gloomy nightmare.

As if she’d merely dozed off in the garden at noon and dreamed a bad dream.

She was still the little princess, cherished by her king and queen, freely living, who once met a noble boy wandering into the garden.

Beautiful. Happy. But… unreal.

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

Once she realized this unreality, it intensified.

“… ”

Elizabeth fell silent, propped herself up with her hand on Herbert’s chest, and looked down into his eyes.

“Herbert.”

“Hmm?”

“Why are you suddenly so gentle with me today?”

Her voice was full of tenderness.

Herbert grinned, raised an eyebrow, and winked at her: “Don’t like it?”

“Of course I like it.”

Elizabeth shook her head with a smile, then bit her lip slightly, asking: “Am I dreaming?”

It was so perfect—like a dream… no, it was a dream.

Under the sharp sting of disconnection, she noticed her own anomaly—realized she wasn’t in reality.

So all this was just a ridiculous 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 genuine.”

Whether the woman before him was a phantom from his memory or a fragment of thought entering this spiritual realm made no difference.

His way of treating her wouldn’t change.

He smiled at Elizabeth’s phantom: “As long as you want to dance, I’m always ready—just as long as you stop stepping on my feet.”

Elizabeth, who had just felt a touch of sadness, burst into laughter, rolling her eyes at him: “What nonsense! You’ve been stepping on my feet the whole time!”

“Have I?”

“Yes!”

The two exchanged glances, then both laughed happily.

“Then I’ll look forward to it a little.”

Elisa leaned down again, settling back onto Herbert’s chest, and whispered, “Herbert, I’m truly happy that you can be so gentle with me.”

Some say vampires are creatures who can laugh easily 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 love, to possess the one they adore.

“…”

After thanking him, Elisa hesitated, biting her lip uncertainly.

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

The vampire lady lifted her body again, then leaned down, pressing her lips to Herbert’s ear, speaking softly as if afraid someone might hear:

“Gentleness is nice, I like it—but, um, a little roughness isn’t bad either.”

Having voiced her secret thought, she dropped her reserve and blurted it all out: “If I have to be honest, I actually prefer it when you’re a little… rougher with me.”

Herbert: ?

Miss, shouldn’t you be mindful of the occasion?

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

Your personality… truly delights me.

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

Only the vampire lady herself likely knew the true answer.

“You… tsk, you ran away.”

Herbert had meant to reply, but after her confession, Elisa fled in panic, vanishing directly from the space.

…

“Ha!”

The vampire inside the black iron coffin suddenly opened her eyes and sat up—crashing her forehead hard against the lid.

Thud!

“Ow—ssss!”

Elisa rubbed her forehead in pain, gasping through tear-filled eyes: “Ow ow ow ow…”

Under the force of the impact, most of the dream’s memories vanished, leaving only a faint impression of having had a warm, blissful dream.

Had she been dancing with Herbert in the dream?

And…

“No, did I say something terrible in the dream? What was it again?”

The vampire lady thought for a moment, then shrugged dismissively: “Whatever. It was just a dream.”

“Not worth worrying about.”

…

“You cowardly vampire—you had the nerve to say it, but not the nerve to wait?”

“I’ll get to you later… heh heh, I’ll make sure to fully satisfy your request,” Herbert muttered, then chuckled to himself.

Though the process differed from what he’d expected, the outcome was the same—the illusion had vanished.

Herbert didn’t know what others faced in the trial of [Silence and Noise], nor how they broke through it.

Each person has their own way of responding; he had his own solution.

It wasn’t about clinging to his true self and ignoring the illusions as if they were nothing.

It was about embracing the illusions and letting them discover the truth for themselves, rather than him pointing it out directly.

He didn’t know if his approach was right, but he believed it was the most suitable for him.

If this were merely his own dream, he’d gladly drown in it.

But if it was a shared dream, he wished everyone could have a beautiful one.

"Next should be Svan Ni, right?" Herbert mused to himself.

He didn’t know the pattern behind the illusions’ appearance, but it seemed they followed the floors of the Monastery of Silence.

If that order held, then after Svan Ni would come the Devil, the Succubus, the Angel…

As Herbert thought this, a faint unease stirred in his chest.

If it were truly this simple, then this trial held no challenge for him at all.

He’d already won them over in reality—how could he fail in a dream?

After witnessing the previous three attempts, Herbert had reached a conclusion—it was impossible to fail.

Me versus monster girls?

Advantage: me!

“That’s it? This is the Monastery’s hardest trial? Pathetic.”

Just as Herbert nodded smugly, convinced victory was assured, he suddenly heard a peculiar soft sound.

Shhh-shhh-shhh…

“Hmm?”

Hearing the sound, Herbert’s expression shifted slightly.

Wait… no way.

He slowly raised his head, gazing toward the source—and there, unmistakably, stood someone who shouldn’t be here: Ash Bishop.

No way!!?

“Why are you even here?”

Herbert stared at the Ash Bishop, whose body was hidden beneath a flowing robe, his face twitching slightly as he internally groaned.

He’d imagined all sorts of things—the monster girls appearing out of order, even encountering the still-unconquered girl Teresa…

But he never imagined Ash Bishop would show up.

Friend, did you mess up the difficulty settings?

This is offense, this is defense, this is Weimingxianyilang .JPG

As Herbert complained about the absurd difficulty, a flash of iridescent scaled serpent tail slipped beneath the robe—and his expression changed instantly.

Huh!!?

His gaze sharpened like a desert hunter’s, fixed on the tail as he slowly nodded: “…Then again.”

Ash Bishop… not bad.

Herbert reluctantly accepted the man’s presence, but another problem remained.

Right now…

How could he make her realize something was wrong?

I haven’t even conquered her yet!

(End of Chapter)