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"And yeah, that happened…"
As they made their way to Matsuo's Clan, Frank explained to his friends what happened in the library, which he had kept hidden until they walked out of school.
He obviously omitted the part where Kireina kissed him though, as he knew Harumi and Erika would make a big fuss about it.
And perhaps Matsuo too, he was a bit jealous of him being more popular with girls…
"W-What?!" Erika asked. "No way! Did Noah try to… to… You know, what happens in the Yaoi manga?!" The werewolf girl's tail wagged around excitedly as she imagined weird things, all while eating a WcDonald's hamburger, which they picked up on the way to the clan.
"What?! No he didn't do that!" Frank said while looking disgusted. "He did it in a creepy way, not in a seductive way! And I don't swing that way either…! He also has a wife!"
"Hmm…" Harumi nodded while blushing a bit. "Frank-kun and Noah-sensei… I never thought that… Wow."
"H-Harumi? What are you even imagining?" Frank felt violated by whatever Harumi was imagining.
"A-Ah! N-Nothing…" Harumi woke up from the daze. "Ahem! Anyway, that's not really good… Um, that means Noah-sensei is targeting you somehow? And Kireina… she protected you."
"Wait, is she even strong enough to intimidate that monster?!" Matsuo asked. "I thought Kireina was just a normal girl?"
"She's not normal at all, haven't you seen the huge limousines she comes with every day? She also has two maids tailing behind her most of the time," Erika laughed. "I knew she was involved into some sketchy stuff; nobody is this filthy rich in this city without being involved into the underworld one way or another."
"But not only she is involved, she's strong enough to make Noah-sensei step back?!" Asked Harumi. "That's huge news… We should try talking with her then. Perhaps try to recruit her into the Clan Alliance of Tokyo?"
"Good idea, but I hope she doesn't act hostile…" Matsuo said. "What do you think Frank?"
"I would honestly not try doing that for now, she's… kind of weird," said Frank. "She helped me but… I don't know. I still have my doubts…"
He didn't tell them about the jewel either, as he knew they would panic and try to open his stomach to take it out or something.
And what's more, as the jewel stayed in his stomach, he felt a strange, yet warm flow of energy entering his body.
Out of nowhere, his Mana Regeneration Speed had tripled, and he felt his Mana flowing constantly everywhere around his body, slowly reinforcing it.
"Just what was that jewel?" He thought. "It's really making me stronger? It's regenerating my Mana super quickly and even making my body stronger over time? Kireina… Just what are your intentions, really?"
"We're home, alright I'll go report what happened to the Elders first," Matsuo said. "You can stay here or do something in the meantime."
As they entered the territory and were greeted by the guards, they saw Matsuo walk away towards the large golden pagoda at the center of the villa.
"Nom, nom…" Erika continued eating her burger until she finished it on three bites, and then drank the soda until it was empty. "Phew! It was a nice snack to recharge energies. But I'll need something larger later."
"Seriously, you never stop eating and somehow you don't even gain weight…" Harumi said. "I really envy your metabolism, Erika."
"Well aren't you similar? It's not like Vampires ever get fat either…" Erika laughed. "Unless you were fat before the transformation."
"I-I was born as a Dhampir so no…" Harumi muttered. "My mom was a vampire and my father a human though, and as a Dhampir, that means I do have some of the human's weaknesses. If I eat too much without exercising I can indeed get a bit fatty…"
"Your father? I haven't seen him," said Frank. "I had no idea your mom was married with a human man, but I guess it makes sense seeing you're a Dhampir."
"A-Ah, no… I… I'm adopted," Harumi said.
"Huh? Oh…" Frank was left slightly speechless. "S-Sorry, I didn't know…"
"It's fine," Harumi shrugged. "It's not something I really talk about, nor does it matter to me. Mom adopted me when I was a toddler anyway, so since I have memory that I've been with her."
"I see… That's nice," Frank said. "Your bond with your mom was so strong I couldn't have ever guessed you weren't related by blood…"
"Technically we are now, she fed me her blood when I was a child, strengthening my vampiric abilities," Harumi said. "And now I share her bloodline as well."
"Oh, so that's how it works, huh?" Frank wondered. "That's interesting."
"Yeah be careful or she'll bite you and turn you into her loyal servant, hehe~" Erika giggled, making Frank grow redder.
"I-I would never do that to Frank!" Harumi said angrily.
"I know I am nobody to privy on this, but I was wondering if you remember anything before that?" Wondered Frank.
"Hmm…" Harumi wondered. "A bit, memories are blurry though, but I remember that… My parents were being persecuted by someone. And then I was brought somewhere else by that person, left inside some sort of cell alone… I instinctively ate rats to survive for days, until mom found me. I-It wasn't nice… I… well, it's been so long."
"Oh… I'm really sorry…" Frank felt surprised to hear more about Harumi's past. "I-I shouldn't had even asked…"
"N-No, it's fine Frank," Harumi smiled at him. "I trust you. I've told this to my friends before… Erika and even Matsuo know this as well."
"Yep! But you know? There's NOTHING wrong with eating rats when you're a kid," Erika said. "I used to do it all the time! Werewolves love rat hunting."
"You're not making things better by saying that…" Harumi made a disgusted face.
"Making things better? I was just saying, girl!" Laughed Erika. "Oh! The dork's back! Hey! Did you report the news to the grandpas?"
"T-The grandpas? They're called Elders, Erika!" Matsuo sighed. "And yes I did. I also got permission to resume missions! So let's go see what we can pick up, Frank."
"Sure!"
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