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The office was surprisingly little changed from what it had been. There was a slightly more cluttered feeling to the desk than before, but since Jenis herself wasn’t exactly known for being tidy, it didn’t bother her much.

“Well, I guess nothing special happened,” Jenis said as she glanced around the office of Jeongjae. Jeongjae shrugged his shoulders.

“There’s nothing special. Honestly, if something had happened, I might have felt more at ease.”

“You look unwell. I feel sorry for bothering you when you need rest.”

“No, don’t worry about it. Even if you hadn’t come, I wouldn’t have rested properly. It’s better to catch my breath a bit.”

“Catching your breath… I really do feel sorry about this.”

Jenis said with a sulky expression. Jeongjae blinked in confusion and tilted his head.

“What’s there to feel sorry about in that context?”

“The topic I came to discuss is definitely a bit far from something that allows you to catch your breath. After hearing my story, I’m sure you’ll be busier…”

To be honest, Jeongjae didn’t mind either way. What troubled him most wasn’t usually physical fatigue but mental exhaustion. While he was no natural-born battle maniac like some, at least when he was smashing ‘monsters,’ he could escape the various concerns that tormented him.

“Speak freely. But wait, what’s with all the looking around? Is there something in my room?”

“Well, it’s not that important, but the smell… it’s a bit strange…”

Jenis said with a serious expression, furrowing her brows. Jeongjae chuckled and sat down.

“When a single adult man lives alone for a long time, it’s inevitable that there’s some stink.”

“Oh, no, that’s not it at all! The smell I’m talking about isn’t anything bad related to Professor Makkyo, to be honest, I might even say it’s not unpleasant, rather good… um, n-no. Forget it. What on earth did I just say?”

“I’ll forget it.”

Jeongjae simply accepted Jenis’ suggestion. Seeing her flustered about her own words, it didn’t seem like a good idea to dwell on what she just said.

Jenis covered her slightly flushed face with both hands to cool it down, then cleared her throat. While she was calming her complexion, Jeongjae opened a drawer and pulled out the folder with the blueprints of the battleship she had unexpectedly sent him. Upon seeing the folder in Jeongjae’s hands, Jenis clapped her hands in delight.

“Oh, that! You didn’t leak it to anyone else, did you?”

“Who would dare touch something that looks a bit dangerous just by looking at it? I confirmed on the way here that there were no signs of it being damaged or read.”

“That’s a relief. It’s a top-secret project. The project name is… um… I think it was something stable?”

“Weren’t you supposed to decide on it?”

“Oh, right. Exactly, exactly. Can I take a look at it?”

“Why not?”

Jeongjae casually passed the folder to Jenis. After pulling out the blueprint of the magical ironclad ship she had designed, Jenis checked the empty name field and noted Jeongjae’s handwriting.

“HMS Victory… what does it mean?”

“It’s the flagship of the one who defeated Napoleon. If we end up fighting someone who’s the child of the criminal world’s Napoleon, I thought a ship with such a name would be fitting.”

“Who’s Napoleon? I feel like you’ve mentioned someone like that before. He must be a very important person in your world. Is he like a Demon King?”

“It depends on the perspective. He could be a Demon King, or a war hero…”

“In a world where humans fight other humans, it’s mostly like that. Depending on who’s watching, they’re either a Demon King or a hero.”

“No, there are people who are simply defined as the Demon King even if they’re fighting against humans.”

Jeongjae shook his head, recalling a mustachioed fascist dictator. Jenis seemed intrigued by his words, but soon shook her head, thinking the conversation had veered too far, and put the blueprints back in the folder, sealing it tightly.

“Anyways, I like it. So let’s call the name of the project HMS Victory Project. But this plan will take quite a while to actually be effective. The drawing I’m working on is definitely too big for a small canvas… well, let’s first hear about your story. I want to talk about the experiment.”

Jeongjae had many questions about what Jenis said, but deliberately refrained from probing. Jenis had always been a student with unique and strange traits, but in the last few months, she exuded a completely different vibe, like she had undergone a transformation.

It wasn’t just a matter of whether she had vampire blood or obtained the Great Sage’s staff. The change in Jenis was as immense as the difference between a coiled dragon and a dragon preparing to take flight.

From a glance, it seemed like she was merely adapting to her surroundings. However, Jeongjae realized that Jenis had actually jumped into this battlefield with her own perspective that could even suppress Walter’s designs.

While Walter would be too generous to hold a grudge against allies for such things, his lover was incredibly sensitive and alert to all factors that might threaten her power.

Having already started a subtle emotional battle with the heir of Eramenia, did Jenis realize that her actions could turn her into the most powerful woman in the world?

“Experiment? Right, you mentioned dragon’s blood?”

Jeongjae smiled as he pushed down his worries and questions inside. Jenis flopped down into her chair and nodded.

“I’ll start with the conclusion. The dragon’s blood is no different from the blood of ordinary creatures to the native vampires living on this continent.”

“That’s… not a very special fact.”

“But for vampires of Dracula’s lineage, it’s lethal poison. Yes, an extremely alluring and drool-inducing lethal poison. A very, very terrifying sort of deadly poison.”

“You mean the vampires of Dracula’s lineage, right now…”

“You’re right about what you’re thinking.”

Jenis’ blue eyes locked directly onto Jeongjae’s gaze. The Grand Mage could sense the sacred power and dark mana writhing from beyond her eyes.

She knew her identity. And she also realized that Jeongjae was aware of it.

“I am indeed a member of that clan.”

“Do you know whose daughter you are? Is it something you’ve heard directly?”

“I didn’t have time to meet my father.”

Jenis fiddled with the cane she leaned against the wall as she spoke.

“But it’s a given that my father is the one who drank Dracula’s blood. If my guess is correct, your father likely came over from your world. And for very close reasons regarding Dracula, right?”

“Well, that’s not wrong.”

“The Succubus Queen calls me Jenis Van Helsing. Did you know about this too?”

“Are you speaking of your father… the Abraham Van Helsing who faced Dracula?”

Jenis had also heard that name before. It was briefly mentioned when Jeongjae gathered people and explained the contents of the book ‘Dracula’ from their hometown.

“That’s nice.”

“Nice? What’s nice?”

Jenis suddenly leaned forward, thrusting her face close to Jeongjae. Flustered by the almost nose-to-nose encounter, Jeongjae tilted his head back slightly, and Jenis nodded with a smile that expressed joy.

“If that’s the case, I’m considered a second-generation Earthling, and that fact somehow makes the connection between you and me, which had seemed so distant, much stronger. Yes, more than any ‘woman’ in the world, Professor.”

Hearing Jenis’ words, Jeongjae flinched and pushed his chair back. Jenis simply pulled back, as if she had no intention of devouring him, and shrugged.

“While it’s true I have a soft spot for your father because we’re from the same region… that doesn’t mean the conversation has to go that way.”

“Right, right. I was just joking around. It feels like someone living in the forest has benefited a lot from the information I gave and returned home, making me a bit frustrated…”

This time, Jeongjae completely ignored Jenis’ grievances. He wasn’t in the mood to host such… a delicate and troublesome tightrope walk. Even if he were to want to, it would likely become a game beyond his control.

“The conversation keeps taking strange turns. What I meant to say is… I don’t feel any desire for human blood, animal blood, or any substance that could be called sap, yet… I felt an immense craving for the blood of dragons and their subspecies. And when I drank a bit of wyvern’s blood, I felt the dark mana from the proposal spike to the brink of runaway.”

“Is that a characteristic only of Dracula’s lineage?”

“I conducted experiments to verify that. As the Second Front opens, I received a message from my father and headed south, capturing a vampire belonging to Dracula himself and another vampire who follows Dracula’s orders but fundamentally has no mixed blood of foreign species. It wasn’t an easy task. Capturing a vampire is more difficult than killing one.”

“I understand why it took so long.”

“Right. In fact, it only took me a month. As a result, the experiment was a huge success. The native vampire showed no reaction to the blood of the white dragon that Princess Margaret killed, but the Dracula lineage vampire… lost all reason and went berserk. Unable to control the sudden surge of mana, it completely broke the binding magic and lunged at me.”

“That must have been dangerous.”

“It was somewhat of an expected outcome. Luckily, I had mixed a deadly poison that acts after a certain amount of time has passed in the blood. Otherwise, it would have been quite troublesome to subdue it… The really important part is this, Professor. I have several credible circumstantial evidence that Dracula himself consumed dragon’s blood. Do you understand what I’m implying?”

“Dracula… is in an uncontrollable situation? No, that’s uncertain. The opponent is a vampire lord. Just because the vampire subject lost its reason doesn’t guarantee that the powerful Dracula became the same. Rather, he could have gained immense power yet still retained his sanity, becoming a complete being.”

“That’s a possible speculation. But think about it. Can the mana that he inherently possesses be hidden? You probably have your own sources, too. The dark clouds covering the entire southern region, and the new war that began with lightning. Dracula has gained power beyond what he possessed, and is unable to express it properly. These dark clouds are meant to block the sun and enhance the strength of the vampires, but at the same time, they symbolize the tremendous magic power that Dracula has acquired.”

“I cannot understand why such a powerful being didn’t come to my attention.”

“A being with immense mana, no matter how well they hide it, creates some form of disharmony. It’s common knowledge among experts like us. Using invisibility magic to hide one’s own mana is pouring water into a bottomless well. If Dracula, having gained such a powerful strength, had been using invisibility magic to hide himself, he should have already been caught in your observation.”

Only then did Jeongjae finally understand the meaning behind Jenis’ words.

And he also accurately recognized the implication of her saying, “If I say what I need to say, Jeongjae will be busy.”

The Grand Mage jumped up from his seat.

“Dracula isn’t lurking near my territory. If he were, I would have already found him. In other words, even if I take a brief leave and participate in this war…”

“It’s impossible for Dracula to secretly invade Baron Harriet’s Territory, moving so stealthily that he remains undetected. Yes, you truly are quick to understand.”

“I’ll be back shortly.”

Jeongjae hurriedly donned his combat robe and opened the office door, stomping out. Jenis reached out toward him, surprised by Jeongjae’s lightning-fast movements.

“Ah, wait a moment. Professor? Please calm down for a second…”

However, it seemed Jeongjae’s ears registered none of her voice, as he swiftly resolved a dilemma that had been troubling him thanks to Jenis’ information.

With no other choice, Jenis decided to follow Jeongjae. Before leaving his office, she took one last look around, sniffing the air.

“Still smells strange… Could it possibly be my own trace? Is the scent I left behind still lingering from long ago?”

It wasn’t unreasonable for Jenis to have such thoughts. The smell that made her feel uneasy was the lingering echo of the mental magic left behind by a vampire very close to her, the Demon King.

“Well, it’s probably nothing. I’ll be waiting, Professor!”

The Great Sage dashed out, calling out. The Demon King’s spell was so subtle that even she only sensed it vaguely, unable to clearly recognize its true nature.

 

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