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“…Ugh…”

Some time after parting ways with Zeno-kun, I was crouched in an alleyway off the main street.
I ate properly. The sashimi of a fish called Zerabia had a firm texture and rich flavor, it was excellent. And yet, even after eating, the hunger won’t go away.
I even drank the water I was served. And still, my throat is terribly dry.

…What my body is craving is blood, isn’t it.

It’s been about a week since I was reborn as a vampire. The fact that I haven’t consumed a single drop of human blood during that time is probably the cause of this hunger.
Even if I could overcome a vampire’s weaknesses like sunlight and running water through resistance abilities, this one seems impossible to deal with.

“What am I supposed to do…”

The solution is simple. I just need to drink blood.
I know that. I do know.

…That would make me a pervert, though.

If I went up to someone on the street and said, “I’m sorry, but could you let me suck a little blood?” that would be completely out of line.
They’d definitely run away. If someone said that to me, I’d report them.

“Maybe becoming a vampire was a mistake…”

The signs had been showing even during my travels with Zeno-kun. The urge—something that could only be called a bloodlust impulse—had surfaced repeatedly.
At those times, drinking water or eating would calm it down. But now, there’s no sign of it subsiding at all.

…I guess I can’t keep fooling my hunger forever.

The reason eating and drinking suppressed the bloodlust was probably because satisfying other desires temporarily distracted me from it.
Now that trick has reached its limit, I found myself in extreme lust for blood.

“Kuh… ugh…!”

…Analyzing the situation calmly doesn’t improve it, does it.

It wasn’t just hunger or thirst anymore. A headache had set in, and my vision was blurring. I felt chills.
It resembled a cold with a high fever, but there’s one sensation that’s clearly different.

“My fangs… they’re throbbing…!”

The clearly pointed canines, far longer than humans, my charm point as a reborn vampire.
While my whole body complained of cold, only that spot feels intensely hot and unpleasant. There’s a dull, festering discomfort, like a scraped wound.

…I have to get a grip.

The fact that I managed to flee into an alley is about the only good thing here.
If I’d stayed somewhere crowded, I might have grabbed the nearest person and bitten them. That’s how suddenly the thirst came.
I thought I could endure a little longer, but it seems I’m near my limit. Even so, I don’t intend to become a monster who attacks people.

…You’re not supposed to cause trouble for others.

I may be as lazy as they come, and I may have the grand dream of leeching off someone and living a carefree life, but that all depends on the other person accepting me.
I don’t want to force my weight onto someone who doesn’t want it, or cause trouble.

“Sucking my own blood… wouldn’t solve it, would it…”

I remember all the details of my skills. I know it’s not something that can be resolved like that.
I don’t even have to bite and suck directly. Thanks to having a certain level of skill, I don’t need to consume large amounts. Just a small intake is enough. But it can’t be my own blood.
It has to be someone else’s blood. Only that will satisfy it. That’s what this bloodlust is.
For someone like me, who has almost completely overcome typical vampire weaknesses like running water and sunlight, this is probably the one clear weakness that remains.
Of course, healing magic won’t fix it either. This isn’t illness, injury, or impurity. This is a condition as natural as breathing for a vampire. You don’t call stopping your breath “Healing.”

“Ah, this is bad… it’s getting dark in front of me…”

The fortunate part is that the impulse doesn’t feel like it’s stripping away my self-control. I’m fully conscious, and everything is simply fading to black.
At this rate, I won’t go berserk. I’ll just lose consciousness, without causing trouble for anyone.

“Ahh… sleepy…”

Come to think of it, I haven’t taken my nap yet…
Even in a back alley, the sea breeze still feels pleasant. The scent drifting through carries a certain comfort.
Curling up as if to escape hunger, I decide to sleep.

…I’d just sleep and forget about it.

I’m good at sleeping. I would even say it’s my special skill.
I slowly let go, directing my consciousness toward sleep. Now that I think about it, the loli grampa did say that if my attachment with blood grows too strong, I’d die…

I feel quite bad to die one week after being born, no, after being given the chance to reincarnate… By the time I was thinking that, my consciousness had already begun to melt away, and even that sense of apology quickly stopped mattering.