Chapter 36 - Money Problem Solved
"These two are surprisingly hardworking," I commented with genuine admiration.
With the guard and the remaining vampire helping us, clearing out the underground vault became ridiculously easy.
They simply carried crate after crate over as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
I watched another pile of elixirs being neatly stacked together before nodding in satisfaction.
"I simply couldn’t let your refined blood go to waste." I said it with complete righteousness.
Ysvéra slowly turned toward me and her expression was completely blank.
"Do you know how insulting that sentence is?"
"No."
A crimson magic circle appeared above her palm.
Unlike the previous ones, this one expanded rapidly until it covered nearly half the room.
Ancient runes rotated along its edge.
The next moment, every crate containing elixirs began floating into the air.
One after another, they disappeared into the crimson circle, they vanished into her treasury.
"Ah..." I watched the scene with sparkling eyes.
’My future suddenly looks much brighter.’
Ysvéra glanced at me.
"You are smiling like a bandit."
"I prefer the term fortune seeker."
The enormous storage room had become almost empty.
Only broken machines and shattered debris remained.
"Alright."
I pointed toward the two vampires.
"Have them act as though they lost all memory of tonight. Actually, if you can erase their memories altogether, that would be even better and we are leaving them behind."
Then I looked toward the guard.
"Oh, and before we leave, call the authorities."
The guard immediately stood straight.
"What should I report?"
"Tell them your mansion was was attacked and you found this."
The guard respectfully bowed.
"As you command."
Ysvéra gave both vampires a few additional instructions.
Their expressions remained completely devoted.
Without another word, the guard walked away to carry out the order.
Before leaving the chamber, Ysvéra raised her hand once more.
Every drop of blood scattered throughout the underground complex floated into the air.
The rivers of blood.
Everything gathered toward her before disappearing into her body.
Her complexion became noticeably healthier.
Leaving the empty place behind, we returned to the prison section.
The unconscious prisoners remained locked inside their cages.
I quickly broke the locks one after another.
None of them looked to be in good condition.
Fortunately, all of them were still breathing.
I grabbed two clean pieces of cloth lying nearby and wrapped one around my face.
Then I tossed the other toward Ysvéra.
"Wear this."
She caught it.
"You expect me to hide my face?"
"I don’t want trouble later."
She stared at me for several seconds.
Moments later, only her crimson eyes remained visible.
Yes, crimson. Her transformation was undone after she became lost to me in the True Bond.
"Can you wake them using your blood manipulation?" I asked.
She sighed.
With a simple wave of her hand, crimson energy flowed through the unconscious prisoners.
One after another, they slowly opened their eyes.
Confusion quickly turned into panic.
"W-Where are we?!"
"Monsters!"
"We’re going to die!"
The prison immediately descended into chaos.
"Calm down!"
I raised my voice.
"The vampires are gone, you’re safe now."
It took several minutes before everyone finally settled down enough to listen.
"Thank you! Thank you so much for saving our lives!" That gratitude stirred a warm feeling within me.
After making sure none of them were too weak to walk, I led them out of the underground passage.
The cool night air greeted us once we reached the surface.
"Stay here, the authorities are already on their way."
Almost as if on cue, police sirens echoed in the distance.
Blue and red lights approached the estate.
’Perfect timing.’
Without waiting to be questioned, Ysvéra and I quietly slipped away through the darkness.
A few minutes later, I was back on my motorcycle and Ysvéra sat behind me in complete silence.
Through our bond, I could clearly feel her emotions.
Annoyance, embarrassment and frustration.
"You want something?"
She immediately snapped.
"I need clothes, you bastard!"
I blinked.
"My current outfit is nothing but condensed blood and illusion and maintaining it consumes energy."
"You are right, let’s get you clothes."
I had completely forgotten that even vampires needed actual clothes.
Blood magic wasn’t a substitute for a wardrobe.
I started the motorcycle.
As we disappeared into the streets of Warsaw, I couldn’t help smiling.
Tomorrow’s headlines were going to be spectacular.
For now, though my most important mission was far simpler.
I had to take an ancient vampire shopping.
***
Currently, Ysvéra and I were sitting beneath the shade of a large tree.
My eyes were bloodshot.
Not from fighting, but from shopping.
Somehow, what was supposed to be a quick stop for a few outfits had lasted the entire night.
The sky had already begun to brighten.
Morning had arrived before either of us realized it.
Ysvéra now wore a simple red dress that looked perfectly ordinary at first glance.
The dress hugged her figure elegantly without being overly extravagant, and even while deliberately suppressing her presence, she still attracted occasional glances from passersby.
She reminded me of a breathtaking village beauty who had wandered into a bustling city for the first time.
Fortunately, before we entered the shopping district, I had insisted that she use illusion to alter both our appearances.
Neither of us looked exactly like ourselves anymore.
Just average enough to disappear into a crowd.
Beside me rested my backpack. Next to it sat a much larger shopping bag.
Actually, several shopping bags.
All of them belonged to Ysvéra.
I glanced at her.
She looked noticeably happier than last night.
She did not smile but she looked content.
’How does buying clothes change someone’s mood this much?’
After all, she was a Vampire.
Unfortunately, while her mood had improved considerably.
Mine had not.
I opened my banking application.
Balance: 0.00
"..."
Literally three zero.
At this point, I couldn’t even afford a return ticket.
Thankfully, that wasn’t actually a problem.
I still had one final source of money.
The International Credits Bank account Jane had opened for me.
Since that account was connected to the Continental, I had no intention of keeping it any longer than necessary.
I logged into the online portal.
Transferred every remaining Credit into my personal bank account.
Then, I called someone through my smartwatch.
There was no reason to leave unnecessary traces behind.
The call connected after only a few seconds.
"Hello. International Credits Bank Customer Service. How may we assist you today?"
"I would like to erase my account." I smiled.
But to Ysvéra, Evren’s smile looked quite evil.