"So, Karen got expelled from her school, you say? And you want her to stay with me so she'll behave?"
Old Man Tetsu received a phone call from another one of his sons. He frowned as he listened to what his son had to say.
"Yeah, sorry for dumping this onto your lap, Dad. I mean, she's a good girl, but, well…"
Tetsu sighed. "Yeah, I know. I understand. Bad reputation and all." He wished he could tell his son that he didn't have to send his daughter away to him, but his son held an important position in a corporation, and having a delinquent daughter would definitely damage his reputation. "Maybe you should spend more time with your daughter more instead of drowning yourself in works." He chided his son for his inattentiveness.
"I know, Dad… I really want to spend time with her, but…"
"Never mind. Just focus on getting yourself sorted out first. Then, once you're ready, we can have that talk with Karen." Tetsu told his son.
"Dad, I… thanks, Dad. I wish I could be more like you. You made it all too easy."
"Hrmh." Tetsu grunted. "Well, I had it easy since I wasn't a CEO of a big zaibatsu, and I didn't have to return home late at night." Unlike his sons, Tetsu was merely an electrician who received his qualification from vocational school. His situation was vastly different compared to what his sons had to go through. "Take it easy with your job for now. I'll go pick up Karen tomorrow."
"Alright. Thanks again, Dad. I, uh… talk to you again later."
Tetsu put down his phone and sighed again. It seemed that another one of his granddaughters would come over and stay with him.
"What's the matter, grandpa?" Haruka asked as she noticed her grandfather having a serious look on his face.
"It's about your cousin, Karen. She'll be living with us starting tomorrow." Tetsu informed her. Haruka frowned.
"Karen?" From her tone, Tetsu somehow could tell that she wasn't exactly happy with this arrangement.
"What? You don't like her?" Tetsu asked.
"Well… it's not like I hate her or anything. It's just…" Haruka looked down at her feet. "Let's just say we have conflicting interests."
"I remember the two of you got along pretty well when you were kids." Tetsu pointed out.
"That was before she started dyeing her hair and hanging out with bad crowd." Haruka said, crossing her arms. "She's pretty much your textbook example of gyaru girl."
"Gyaru girl? What's that?" Tetsu asked, unfamiliar with the term.
"That's, uh… let's just say they like to stick out in crowd and wear flashy clothes. And they have some kind of bad reputations at the streets." Haruka explained.
"Huh." Tetsu nodded after he learned a new thing here. "I guess that explains why she got expelled." Of course, he didn't want to assume things. Last time he saw her, Karen was polite enough if a little rambunctious. "She's still your cousin, though, so try to get along with her. Or at least don't fight."
Tetsu was aware that conflicts might arise if two people with different personalities got put together in one place, but he hoped that the two of them could still be amiable towards each other despite their differences. The last thing he wanted to happen was to see his granddaughters starting a fight under his roof.
"Got it, grandpa. I'm not planning to start a fight with her anyway." Haruka said. "Oh, by the way, I'm heading out for another patrol tonight. It won't take long."
"Hrmh. Just be careful out there and try to avoid putting yourself into danger." Tetsu told his granddaughter. He was already aware of her being a magical girl. He already accepted it as fact after seeing her power firsthand. He didn't plan to get himself involved in her work, but he would make sure to be there so that she could have someone to confide to. After all, from the look of it, being a magical girl seemed pretty lonely.
"Okay!" Haruka happily hugged her grandfather. He just let out a grunt, but he couldn't stop himself from smiling. After all, he was at his happiest whenever his granddaughters were happy.
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It had been a while since the last time Tetsu took out his Honda CB1100. He usually used the motorbike if he had to travel far. He almost never used the vehicle in the neighborhood, preferring to just walk instead of riding it.
The motorbike itself was a birthday present that one of his sons gave him to replace his old bike. Back then when he was younger, he used to love riding, though now he had gotten older, he didn't use his motorbike as much as he used to.
Tetsu rode his motorbike to pick his granddaughter from the train station. Riding down the streets, Tetsu tried to remember what his granddaughter, Karen, was like. He was told that she was expelled from school due to delinquency and bad behavior, and even her cousin, Haruka, called her someone who got mixed with bad crowd.
Of course, it wasn't his place to judge her. Regardless of everything, Karen is still his granddaughter.
After riding his bike for a while, Tetsu finally arrived at the train station. Parking his bike, he removed his helmet and went ahead to look for his granddaughter. Judging from time, she should've finally arrived.
"Grandpa?"
Tetsu turned his head to the direction of the voice and saw a girl. The first thing he noticed was that she was quite striking, with her wearing quite fashionable clothes. He also couldn't help but notice how revealing her clothes were, with how short her denim shorts were. He could also see her blonde hair tied up into a side-tail. She was also wearing a cropped tank top, revealing her pierced navel.
"Uh, Karen?" Tetsu sounded hesitant as he said her name.
And then the girl went for a big hug.
"It's been a while, grandpa! I miss you so much!"
It was clear that the girl was indeed his granddaughter, Karen. A little bewildered, Tetsu hugged her back. Somehow, she looked vastly different than the last he saw her.
"Hrmh. It's been a while…" Tetsu grunted. "You've… grown."
Karen grinned as she let go of her grandfather. "Hehe, you think so?" She twirled, showing herself off to her. Tetsu just sighed, mentally wishing that she could at least put something decent on herself. "So, is my stuff already there?"
Tetsu nodded. "Already brought the box into your room. It's up to you to unpack." He motioned to where his bike was parked. "Let's get going, then. It's already cloudy up there." He pointed up at the cloudy sky. "Don't want to wait too long until it rains."
"Alright! Oh, before I forget, can you wait a little? I promise I won't take long. I wanna use the bathroom first." Karen gave her grandfather an apologetic look, and he just sighed and made a gesture that indicated that she should make it quick. "I'll be back!"
Tetsu sighed again as he watched his granddaughter run back into the station, presumably to go to the bathroom. Well, at the very least she wasn't too difficult to deal with, and he was hoping that she could get along well with her cousin, Haruka, at home.
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Entering the station, Karen immediately slipped into women's bathroom and saw that there was only one person there besides herself. A young woman was checking herself in the mirror when Karen entered.
Stepping up silently behind the young woman, Karen opened her mouth, revealing a pair of sharp fangs. Then, the young woman felt herself being grabbed from behind, and when she looked back at the mirror, there was no one behind her.
She didn't have enough time to scream as Karen sunk her fangs into the base of her neck.
After drinking a little bit of the young woman's blood, Karen pulled back, licking her lips. The young woman seemed unresponsive.
"You are my thrall now." Karen told the young woman. "I'm not turning you into a vampire, but you are currently under my command. You will live your live normally after this, but if I ever need your help, you will follow all my commands."
The young woman nodded blankly. "Yes, mistress."
"Good." Karen nodded n satisfaction before she looked at the mirror. She frowned when she saw that she had no reflection. "Oh, I almost forgot about this." In an instant, her reflection appeared in the mirror. "Don't want to blow my cover and all that."
Now that she had gotten herself her first thrall, it was time for her to return back to her grandfather. She brought her hand to her thrall's neck, touching her bite mark. The wound then closed up, healing.
"Ten seconds after I leave this bathroom, you will forget everything that happened here. Live your life normally for now. I will get back to you once the time is right." After she said that, Karen left the bathroom. The young woman would recover ten seconds after she left, and she would not remember even a thing.
Leaving the station, Karen returned back to her grandfather, who was waiting for her next to his motorbike. The clouds were getting darker up there, and it was only a matter of time before it started raining.
"Sorry about that, grandpa. Been doing girl's stuff." Karen said cheekily as she accepted a helmet from her grandfather.
"Hrmh. Come on, let's get going." Her grandfather didn't suspect a thing. After the two of them got themselves on the bike, they left the station behind, heading to his house.
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"Welcome back, grandpa!" Haruka greeted her grandfather as he opened the door.
"Hrmh." Tetsu nodded. After he entered, Karen followed suit, and when she looked at her cousin, their eyes met.
For a while, both Haruka and Karen were staring into each other's eyes before Haruka bowed.
"It's been a while, Karen." Haruka greeted her cousin politely.
"Same." Karen shrugged. "So, which room do I get, grandpa?" She asked her grandfather.
"The one upstairs with blue door. Your package's already there." Tetsu told her.
"Neat!" Karen smiled.
"I'll be preparing dinner, then. In the meantime, will both of you wait at the living room for now?" Haruka said before she retreated back to the kitchen. Both Tetsu and Karen stared at the direction of the kitchen.
"She doesn't seem to like me." Karen stated.
"Hrmh…" Tetsu grunted. Well, at the very least, the two of them were amiable enough with each other. "Anyway, let's go to the living room. There is something I'd like to discuss with you about why you're here…" Motioning her to follow him, Tetsu led Karen to the living room so they could have their talk.
Taking their seats on the floor, Tetsu rested his arm on the table. As for Karen, she looked at her surroundings, as if familiarizing herself with the living room.
"So… your father told me about you getting expelled." Tetsu started. He studied his granddaughter's face who seemed to be oddly calm about herself being expelled from school. "He didn't really tell me about why you got expelled, though he thought it would be best for you to stay with me and get yourself enrolled in the high school here together with Haruka."
Karen shrugged. "Well, you know, doing bad girl's stuff." She didn't seem to be ashamed by the fact that she was expelled. "Probably something you shouldn't know about, grandpa."
Tetsu grunted. "I don't know what it's like to be in the big city, but this is a small town, where everyone knows everyone. I agreed to take you in because I don't want your father to get into trouble, so as long as you live under my roof, I expect you to behave yourself. Everyone in this town knows me, and whatever you do will be reflected back on me." He made sure to sound authoritative to his granddaughter so that she could understand her position better.
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Tetsu honestly thought that Karen was the way she was due to her father not spending enough time with her. Her father was a busy man, and due to his inattentiveness, Karen got herself mixed with bad crowd.
"Yeah, I know that. I'll try to behave myself. I promise." Karen said.
"Good. I'll hold onto your words for that." Tetsu nodded. "Next, as for your enrollment, we'll go to Tennozu High School tomorrow. Normally, they won't accept expelled students from other schools, but since it's me, the school's administration is willing to accept you. I already made sure of that." He already made a phone call to the principal before he went to pick Karen up at the train station.
"Whoa, I didn't realize you're such a big deal here in this town, grandpa." Karen seemed honestly astonished by the fact that the school was willing to look another way for his sake.
Tetsu just grunted. It was already a well-known fact that he was a respectable member of the neighborhood, and the school's principal himself was a close friend of his. He might be gruff, though he had many connections throughout the town, thus explaining why he was so respected within the community.
"No man is an island, Karen…" Tetsu told his granddaughter. "It is through our connections with others that we can survive. No one is really self-sufficient because everyone still needs to rely on others to accomplish things." He looked at her. "So, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm all ears. I don't know the things that you have to go through, but… if you want someone to confide to, I'm willing to listen."
"Grandpa…" Karen blinked as she stared at her grandfather. "G-geez, grandpa, when did you become so cool?" She looked a little contemplative. "Well… maybe we can talk about things, but not now." She smiled at the old man before her. "It's a little weird that there's someone who gives a damn about me."
Karen looked down as she rubbed her arm.
"If only dad were like you, then…" She muttered.
"Karen?"
She shook her head. "Never mind. I'm just talking nonsense." She smiled blandly as she got up. "So, um… thanks for the talk, grandpa. Well, I know that I can be a pain in the ass, but I'll try my best to behave and be a good girl."
'Hrmh." Tetsu grunted before he looked at the clock. "Why don't you return to your room and unpack your stuff? We'll call you once dinner's ready."
"Okay! See you later, then!" And so, Karen left the living room. Tetsu stared at the door for a bit before he sighed.
He wasn't sure what was going to happen next. He knew that Karen might get into trouble soon once she got into Tennozu High School. There would be rumors about her spreading among the student body, and they would learn about her being expelled from her last school. Sure, she might be his granddaughter, but he was aware that the dynamics between high-schoolers were vastly different than adults. He could only hope that she didn't end up being ostracized and bullied by other students.
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Karen closed the door behind her and sighed. She was glad that she was able to get up as quickly as possible so that her grandfather wouldn't be able to see her expression. She couldn't bear to lie to her grandfather more than necessary.
Most things about her expulsion were false. In fact, she didn't even attend her school back then when she was in the big city. Her father was so busy that he didn't even realize that his daughter died one night and rose back up as a vampire.
That one night, she met a guy at the street and the next day, she woke up as a vampire, with her sharing a bed with that guy, in a room full with other vampires in an aftermath that could be described as an animalistic orgy. It was a very harrowing experience for her because as soon as she woke up, a group of demon hunters suddenly showed up and slew everyone else, including the one who sired her, and she barely managed to escape.
For a week, Karen had to stay out of sunlight in the dark streets, having to feed on rats and homeless people to survive. Once her condition stabilized, she returned home and realized that her father didn't even realize that she was gone. He was too busy with works that he didn't even notice that his daughter was turned into a damned creature of the night.
"Well, there's no point crying over spilled milk." Karen muttered to herself as she snapped her fingers. Once she did that, her package was opened by itself and its contents flew around inside the room. She had used her vampiric power to magically move her stuff inside her room. "No man is an island, huh?"
She recalled her grandfather's words earlier. In order to survive, one had to rely on others. That was what she did to survive as a vampire, trying to get herself into a vampire clan. By joining a vampire clan, she was able to get fresh supplies of blood. And from there, her strength grew only in such a short amount of time.
It had been one year ever since she was turned, and now Karen had become a Daywalker, a vampire completely immune to sunlight. She was considered an anomaly among vampires, because commonly, a vampire could only become a Daywalker in more than a hundred years, but she somehow achieved it in less than one year. Having amassed enough strength, Karen broke off from the vampire clan and created a coven for herself, where she sired a few vampires, looking to build a clan herself.
"Now, let's slip into something more comfortable…" Karen snapped her fingers, and her body was wrapped in shadowy matter before her clothes were replaced by a skintight leotard that accentuated her figure. "Ah, much better…"
Closing her eyes, Karen focused her mind on another place, and when she reopened her eyes, she was sitting on a throne. She had projected herself into the apartment where the members of her coven were gathering. Now that she had projected herself before her subordinates, they dropped themselves on their knees, showing their respect to their mistress.
"Raoul, Homura, Knudsen… rise." Karen spoke out three names, and three of her subordinates rose back up. The one with bleached hair stepped forth. It looked like among the three, he was the strongest one.
"Mistress Karen, we welcome you to Sakamoto Town." The man greeted her. "Have you already settled in?"
"I'm currently in my grandpa's house." Karen said. "Any further development, Raoul?"
The man with bleached hair, Raoul, looked grim. "Last night, we lost two more of our reconnaissance agents. Like before, we didn't get any clear image of the attacker." He bowed his head apologetically. "This lowly one apologizes for his uselessness."
Karen just waved her hand as she sat lazily on her throne. "No matter. I'll be starting my own investigation anyway. Speaking of which, have you enthralled some of the civilians by now?"
The only female one among the three, nodded. "Yes. They should already cover the entirety of the town which will allow us to bypass the barriers erected around here. Mistress, do you think we should replenish our ranks because we already lost about five members of our coven?"
Karen shook her head. "That won't be necessary for now, Homura. But try to look for anyone who can potentially be turned. I will entrust you with their turning once the time is right."
The female vampire, Homura, bowed her head respectfully to her mistress. "I will not disappoint you, mistress."
"So, what about me? Got any job that I can do?" The last one, a male vampire, spoke out. Unlike the other two, who seemed serious, he seemed pretty casual and easygoing.
"Knudsen, you will be joining me in my investigation." Karen told him. The male vampire, Knudsen, seemed to be pretty stoked by this.
"Awesome!"
"Mistress… there is another concern that I'd like to address…" Raoul then spoke out. "Are you sure you don't wish to enthrall your father in order to make your transfer into the town more convincing?"
Karen shook her head. "There's no need to worry about him. I've had enough thralls who helped me falsify my expulsion and my school record. In my father's eyes and officially, I really was expelled from the school and transferred here in this town." She narrowed her eyes. "And don't ever suggest enthralling my father again. Regardless of his faults, he is still my father."
Raoul bowed his head apologetically. "I beg you a thousand pardons, mistress. I shall not bring up such subject again."
Karen nodded. "Make sure to remember that. Is there anything else you'd like to report?"
Homura then spoke out, "My agents just reported to me that the Catholic Church will be sending its own agent here in Sakamoto Town. As to why, we do not know yet."
"Hmm…" Karen stroked her chin as she mulled over the new information. "Why now? The Great Leyline has existed for many years now, so why do they choose to bring their agent in now instead of before?"
"Perhaps it is due to the fact that the Demon Hunter Association and the Catholic Church have mended their relationship with each other." Raoul chimed in. "Before, the church viewed the association with disdain due to them dabbling in heretical practices and consorting with pagans, but after the new pope was elected, the two groups are probably going to collaborate more. The association views the Great Leyline as something that needs to be secured, and the church goes to collaborate with them as a show of goodwill."
"Is that so?" Karen mused. "Then we must start this investigation as soon as possible before both the Demon Hunter Association and the Catholic Church start joining forces. The last thing that we want to happen is to be ganged up by these posers."
"Neat! So, when can we start?" Knudsen asked eagerly.
"Tomorrow night. I want to spend some time with my grandpa first." Karen said with a huff.
"Aw! Why not tonight?" Knudsen started pouting.
"Behave yourself, Knudsen." Homura reprimanded him sternly. "If mistress wishes to start tomorrow, then you start tomorrow."
"Boo."
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The next day, Tetsu went to Tennozu High School together with Karen for her enrollment. Karen was already in her school uniform, though she somehow found enough time for herself to do some adjustment on her uniform, making the skirt shorter. She also added a few badges on her blazer and she was wearing her ribbon loosely while having her dress shirt slightly unbuttoned, exposing a little bit of her cleavage.
Tetsu decided that he didn't want to comment on that. As long as she behaved herself, he had no trouble with however Karen presented herself.
The enrollment process didn't take long, and when it was time for Tetsu to leave Karen at school. Of course, before he left, he needed to give his granddaughters a few reminders.
"Make sure to not skip any of the classes. Try to not cause trouble. And don't be a delinquent." Tetsu reminded Karen.
"Okay! Well, I'll see you after school, grandpa!"
Tetsu was hugged by Karen before he left the school. Now that was already dealt with, Tetsu decided to continue his walks around the neighborhood. As he walked, he was joined by Saiph the cat. He probably sneaked out when they left the house this morning.
"So… she's your other granddaughter?" Saiph asked the retired electrician as they walked down the street alongside each other.
"Yes, and there are three more." Tetsu nodded.
"She looks troublesome." Saiph pointed out.
Tetsu sighed. "Maybe you're right. But she's still my granddaughter."