A few stalls along the riverbank remained open, delaying their closing time.
Thick soup bubbled in copper pots, and grease from the roasting racks occasionally dripped into the charcoal, making a sharp crackling sound.
Shironaka Fueno suddenly stopped walking.
Her gaze landed on a barbecue stall.
“Elder Brother.”
“What is it?”
“Open wide.”
Sophie naturally opened her mouth.
Fueno picked up a skewer of grilled meat drizzled with a deep crimson sauce and held the small piece at the very tip to Sophie’s lips.
Sophie leaned down, bit it off, and chewed a couple of times.
The taste was decent.
The meat was tender, and the sauce was rich. It was mixed with the metallic sweetness of some kind of animal blood; in the past, it would have perfectly suited a vampire’s palate.
“How is it?” Fueno asked.
“Pah, pah, pah.”
“It doesn’t taste good?”
Shironaka Fueno frowned slightly.
Without saying more, she picked up a piece of crispy pastry filled with blood sausage from the stall and held it to Sophie’s mouth.
Sophie leaned down and took another bite.
“And this one?”
“Pah, pah, pah! Don’t give me things that taste like blood. I’ve already changed my habits.”
“...”
The smile on Fueno’s face gradually vanished.
Elder Brother used to love blood-based food.
While this was related to the physical needs of a vampire, Hiso himself had truly enjoyed the flavor. At the Shironaka family’s dining table, their mother would prepare different types of raw blood every day, paired with various meticulously cooked dishes.
Elder Brother always claimed he only ate it to maintain his vampire state, but in reality, every time he encountered a flavor he liked, the frequency of his chopsticks would speed up just a little.
The movement was subtle.
Even Elder Brother himself might not have realized it.
But Fueno remembered.
She remembered everything.
Shironaka Fueno bought a small bowl of richly fragrant blood curd, scooped up a spoonful, and held it to Sophie’s lips.
Sophie obediently ate it.
“How about this?”
“It’s barely acceptable.”
Sophie tasted it seriously and then added:
“It’s just a bit too gamey.”
“...”
Fueno’s expression became grim.
Sophie finally realized something was wrong.
“Little Dino, what’s the matter?”
“It’s nothing.”
Shironaka Fueno calmly set down the empty bowl.
“I just feel that Elder Brother has become a bit of a stranger.”
“Don’t be so dramatic.”
Sophie waved her hand dismissively.
“It’s just a slight change in taste. A person’s body naturally affects their preferences. You can’t tell me you don’t recognize me just because I don’t like eating blood anymore, right?”
“But that means the thousand-plus favorability recipes I meticulously crafted are now completely useless!!!!”
“Then just don’t use those recipes, or make new ones,” Sophie couldn't help but say.
Why on earth did she have something like “favorability recipes” anyway?
Shironaka Fueno looked at Sophie thoughtfully for a moment, then suddenly pulled a slender glass bottle from her sleeve.
The liquid inside was clear and transparent, shimmering with an incredibly pure pale-gold luster under the lamp-glow. It looked no different from ordinary water.
“Elder Brother.”
“Hmm?”
“Please take a sip of this.”
Sophie took the bottle.
She held the glass bottle up and gave it a little shake.
“What is this?”
“A beverage for testing.”
“You’re not trying to dose me with an aphrodisiac again, are you?”
“Does Elder Brother really doubt Dino even in a matter like this?”
Shironaka Fueno lowered her gaze and gently pursed her lips, a perfectly timed look of grievance appearing in her eyes.
Sophie gave a cold laugh. “Little Dino, I watched you grow up.”
“Is that so?” Fueno immediately regained her composure. “In that case—”
“Brother, it’s time to take your medicine.”
“You definitely added something to it! A sister isn’t supposed to poison her brother, you know.”
“I was wrong in the past, but if Brother doesn't take his medicine, aren't you forcing Little Dino to die?”
“How is taking medicine linked to your life and safety?”
Shironaka Fueno didn't bother explaining further, nor did she act polite. Several slender blue silk threads descended from the twilight, instantly binding Sophie’s hands and waist. Before Sophie could struggle, Fueno had already tilted her chin up with one hand while holding the glass bottle in the other, pouring it directly into her mouth.
“Mmph—mmph—”
Gulp.
Gulp.
Gulp.
The sweet, crisp liquid flowed down her throat. Sophie tried to resist, but with her current stats, trying to break free from the Puppet Witch’s grasp was nothing more than an impractical fantasy.
The silk threads merely adjusted their angle slightly, and her body tilted backward uncontrollably. She could only kick her legs in vain as she watched the liquid in the bottle rapidly disappear.
“Gulp... This medicine tastes weird... Gulp... What did you... Gulp... give me to drink?”
【Log: You have consumed [Unknown Liquid Containing Holy Power], restoring a massive amount of HP.】
【Log: [Bloodthirsty Craving (Reversed)] triggered; your survival needs have been replenished.】
Sophie, who had been struggling desperately, suddenly stopped moving after seeing the system log.
Contains holy power, can restore HP, and can even replenish a vampire’s survival needs.
Moreover, this medicine actually tasted quite good. There was no metallic tang or excessive spices; it was smooth upon entry but carried an indescribable warmth, as if even the lingering fatigue deep within her body was being washed away.
Holy water?
Sophie hesitated for a moment, stopped resisting, and even proactively tilted her head back to swallow the remaining liquid in the bottle.
Gulp.
Gulp.
The corner of Shironaka Fueno’s eye twitched. She had originally only intended to force a couple of gulps into her brother, but she hadn't expected Sophie to actually start cooperating.
As the last drop went down, Sophie licked her lips, wanting more. “This is good. Sweet, refreshing, and it feels a bit warm. It tastes way better than the holy water made by the New Moon Sect. Little Dino, where did you get this?”
Shironaka Fueno stared at her fixedly.
“It’s completely different,” Fueno said.
“What?”
“How can it be so completely different!”
Shironaka Fueno huffily took back the empty bottle. “How can you drink this kind of thing with such relish?”
Sophie blinked. “So, what exactly is it?”
“Holy water.”
“Holy water?” Sophie’s eyes widened. “What kind of holy water? It feels much better than the stuff from the New Moon Sect.”
The New Moon Sect’s stock was all refined by Bennis.
As a church that worshiped a Witch, their holy water was of much higher quality than those sects that worshiped True Gods but received no response.
Even so, it couldn't compare to the potion Shironaka Fueno had just given her.
This bottle of medicine even gave her a strange sense of familiarity.
Shironaka Fueno revealed a gentle, sweet, and flawless smile once more.
Faced with her brother’s questioning, she replied—
“Miss Knight’s bathwater.”
Sophie: “...”
A long silence fell over the riverbank.
The evening breeze blew softly past.
Sophie slowly raised her hand and wiped the droplets from her cheek.
Her expression was incredibly calm.
“YOU BRATTY LITTLE SISTER!!!!!”
“You drank it all yourself.”
“...You bastard!!!!”
...
Rate on N.U.
