Free Web NovelChapter 10: The Burden of Huge Expectations
"It’s been four days since Yuki went into a coma. Are you seriously still crying about it?" the System asked casually, its text box floating in front of her.
"Just shut up! What if he dies? It... it would be all my fault," Vee sobbed, her tears continuing to fall.
"There was literally nothing you could have done about it, so stop beating yourself up."
"If I had just transformed sooner, maybe I could have been much more helpful," Vee muttered, staring down at her new hands.
"And what exactly could you have done to help in that situation?" the System countered dryly.
"I... I could have done something!"
"Oh, for the love of—Yuki isn’t dead, and he isn’t going to die. His core survivability and vitals are perfectly stable. So just wait until he wakes up and give him more blood."
"Oh... okay," Vee blinked, wiping her eyes. "So... do I let him feed directly from my neck, or should I cut my palm and drain it into his mouth?"
"Do whatever you feel is more comfortable," the System replied.
Dejected, Vee started nervously twitching and fiddling with her long fingers. "Umm... System? Do you think Yuki is actually going to like my new form?" she asked, her long rabbit ears flopping over her shoulders anxiously.
"Why wouldn’t he?"
"I don’t know! Maybe he doesn’t like rabbit women, or tall women... Do you think I’m too big?" Vee asked, looking down at herself.
"Too big? Is there anything small about you?"
"Oh..."
"I’m just messing with you. Relax, everything will be fine."
"Thanks," Vee said, finally cracking a small, relieved smile.
"..., Just try not to suffocate Yuki between those breasts of yours," the System added completely out of nowhere. "Because there’s big, there’s large, there’s huge, and then there’s your definition of huge. Also, try to keep your perverted thoughts inside your head and keep your hands to yourself. We are in a very bad place for you two to start exploring each other."
"I—what?! It’s not like that!" Vee stammered out, her pale skin instantly turning a bright, blushing red.
"Goodbye, Vee," the System said casually, disappearing from her sight before she could scream at it.
Vee spent the morning cleaning up the cave they were staying in and hunting for low-level essence cores to give to Yuki the moment he woke up. She didn’t manage to harvest much, but it was far better than nothing.
Periodically, the System would check in on her to see how she was doing and to remind her exactly how terrible her cooking and butchering skills were.
[If you cut any more meat off that carcass, you will be eating roasted bone.]
"I know that! So shut up and let me focus," Vee snapped, thoroughly annoyed.
"You need to turn the meat faster so it doesn’t burn, but slow enough to actually cook it through." A soft groggy voice said.
"Just let me—Yuki?!" Vee’s words cut off as she snapped her head back toward the makeshift bed.
"It’s me..." Yuki murmured, his voice incredibly groggy, his eyes still heavy with fatigue and sleep.
Vee stood up with blinding speed and rushed over to him. She gently cupped his face in her hands, her heart hammering with deep concern as she checked him over for any lasting damage. "You look fine... Is there anything hurting you?"
"No..." Yuki mumbled, staring up at her blankly. "Were you always that tall? Or am I just tripping?"
"Um, no. I finally unlocked and changed my avatar to the bunny-girl package," Vee explained nervously, shifting her weight from side to side.
"Ooh, I see," Yuki slurred his words slightly, a lazy smile spreading across his face. "You’re very beautiful... Can I touch your ears?"
Vee’s face instantly flushed a deep pink from embarrassment. She certainly hadn’t expected Yuki to be so smooth right after waking up, let alone have such a calm, positive reaction to her new form.
"Yeah... you can," Vee murmured, her eyes lighting up.
Completely forgetting that she was supposed to immediately give Yuki her blood to heal him, Vee sat down beside him and simply melted as Yuki began softly playing with her long, fluffy rabbit ears.
Yuki kept stroking them, completely enchanted by the soft texture, utterly unbothered by the fact that he had almost died a few days prior. But then again, he was a blissfully relaxed idiot who rarely let reality get in the way of a good time.
[Hey, are you two idiots going to stop flirting, eat the food, and actually get moving? We don’t have all day, you know,] the System interrupted, breaking the spell.
"Oh, right!" Vee coughed nervously, quickly getting back to work to hide her embarrassment.
Yuki followed closely behind her, helping her pack up their gear, though his eyes remained glued to her new body with a strange, quiet fascination. Once everything was packed, the duo stepped back out to continue their journey through the unforgiving demon mountains.
For hours, the only sound echoing through the silent forest was the heavy crunching of their snow boots. Yuki was strangely quiet, not asking a single question or humming a tune like he usually did. It was an incredibly bizarre sight.
Vee occasionally glanced back at him, her anxiety spiking. ’Why isn’t he saying anything? Is it because his clothing shop is on cooldown? Is he cold in those torn clothes? Wait, no, he’s wearing the replacements he bought,’ Vee thought to herself, growing more anxious by the minute.
The heavy silence finally became too much to bear. "Yuki?" she called out.
"Yes?" he replied, turning to her with a soft, calm expression instead of his usual bright, goofy smile.
"Are you okay? Do you need anything?"
"No, I’m fine," Yuki said, offering her a warm, genuine, but visibly tired smile.
"Umm, okay. If you need anything at all, don’t hesitate to ask me. Okay?"
"I won’t."
"K."
Vee turned back around and continued walking, though her chest tightened with concern over his unusual behavior.
’System, is there something wrong with Yuki?’
[No. All of his vitals are completely stable. He is simply experiencing slight cognitive fatigue from the massive blood loss.]
’But I gave him my blood when he woke up—’
[Don’t worry about it. His vampire physiology converts your blood into raw energy to slowly regenerate his own supply. It is going to take a while for him to be fully recovered.]
"I see," Vee muttered, letting out a heavy sigh.
As night began to fall over the demon mountains, the temperature plummeted, forcing them to seek shelter. Luckily, they managed to find a lush, hidden spring cave. Unlike the frozen wilderness outside, this cave was incredibly warm and cozy, illuminated by beautiful glowing flora and bioluminescent mushrooms. Tucked away securely in the back was a pristine, natural thermal pool.
"Yuki, I’m going to take a bath. Will you be alright by yourself for a bit?" Vee asked nervously, testing the water.
"Yeah. I’m just setting up some basic traps to ward off any predators from entering the cave," Yuki replied smoothly. "I’ll cook us up some food after, so go ahead and wash up."
"Alright," Vee said, wading into the pool.
Yuki slowly turned his head to watch her. As he stared at her exposed skin glistening under the cave’s colorful lights, his breathing suddenly became rasped and heavy. His mind began to completely blank out, driven entirely by a primal, dormant hunger.
Vee sank into the warm water, letting out a blissful sigh as her frozen muscles finally began to thaw after days of walking through the snow.
But just as she was about to fully submerge herself, a sudden, suffocating predatory pressure erupted behind her. Before her familiar instincts could even register the danger, Yuki’s heavy, armored tail lashed out from the shadows, wrapping tightly around her thigh. An instant later, his burning skin was pressed flush against her back.
"Yuki?! What are you doing?!" Vee gasped, startled by his sudden, aggressive presence.
Yuki didn’t say a word. The only response Vee received was the feeling of his soft, yet unyieldingly strong hands wrapping firmly around her waist, locking her in place.
"What is happening with you—"
Before Vee could finish her question, she felt the radiating heat of Yuki’s face press firmly against the exposed crook of her neck. A split second later, his sharp fangs bit down with a soft, possessive nip.
An uncontrolled, breathless moan escaped Vee’s lips the moment Yuki’s teeth pierced her skin.
