We stayed at the inn for several days more after that. It was difficult having to work around my weakness to sunlight, but I was able to quickly handle the jobs I was being given. Without being able to feed directly from Leo, I was left to settle for just cuddling him for the brief periods our sleep cycles overlapped. My body had fallen in temperature from the lack of human blood. Despite that, he never complained, and even complimented me on the feeling a few times.

I got to know Lily a bit more as well, though I still didn’t like the thought of leaving her alone with Leo for his times awake. She would sometimes give me old dresses of hers or sell them to me for cheap. Wearing them was embarrassing, but Leo would call me cute if I wore them around him, so I made sure to.

Aside from doing my best to make him happy, I felt anxious about his back. Neither of us felt comfortable approaching the topic, but there was obviously some lingering effect from Edward’s attack. The black char on his skin had bled away at least a day ago, but the scars were still there. While I was desperate to feed on him again, I’d stared at his back more than enough times to know something was wrong. The cuts he had were fairly deep and long, but the scars almost looked like they were shrinking in size.

There was a light tap on my shoulder and I spun around full force. Lily recoiled back with a small laugh and held out a plate for me. I shook my head for having been distracted and took it out to a patron at the far end. When I walked back, Lily was busy cleaning a mug behind the counter again.

“You seem tense. Thinking about Leo again?” She asked with a small smirk.

“I am always thinking of him.” I replied proudly.

“He’s been out of bed and moving for a day or two now, you don’t need to worry so much. You’re only halfway through your shift as well, so try to just stay focused on—”

A sudden noise drew our attention as two rowdy men stood up from their table on the far end of the bar. I could tell from their clothes they were probably hunters like Leo, but the fact they were carrying furs on them indoors meant they must be trading.

I guess without me and Leo catching animals there might be a few more of them out there for these guys to catch. Fighting in public like this is completely embarrassing behavior though. Leo would never do something like this at least. Maybe if I get them to calm down I can take a break and go watch him sleep a little!

They both barely seemed to notice me until I was right next to them. Even then, they were more concerned with shouting at each other over prices than they were at recognizing me. I put my hand on one of their shoulders and the hunter swung his arm towards my face. Acting fast, I gripped him by the wrist and slammed him down into the table. A deafening silence fell over the inn from the sound of the crack.

I let him go and he slipped onto the floor, clutching at his face and pinching his bleeding nose shut. My gaze shifted towards the other hunter. He gave a rude snort of disgust and hurried out of the establishment. The one I’d forced to the floor took far longer to get moving, but I made sure he didn’t try anything on his exit. Once they were both gone, I looked back and noticed a crowd of eyes watching me. Most of them snapped away, but Lily was watching me with worry.

“Well damn, I didn’t think you’d be able to handle that yourself. Did you really need to break the guy’s nose over a noise problem?”

“He tried to hit me, why wouldn’t I hit back?”

“Most people probably don’t expect a girl like you to be able to dish out that kind of damage, Senna.” Lily replied with a shake of her head. “Ah, speaking of which, looks like one of their drinks must have spilled on you. Do you want to step into the back and dry it off? Hopefully it won’t stain.”

I give her a nod and head into the back room. There’s a dry hand towel folded and ready to go in a drawer, which I take out and starting rubbing over the fabric of my dress. My fingers squeeze against the cloth, but I intentionally don’t put much pressure on the actual scrubbing. My mind wanders back to the feeling of catching the man’s arm just a moment ago.

Lifting the towel up to my face, I grab it from both ends and tug. My eyes glance back to the door for a second and almost immediately I hear a ripping sound. The towel was torn in half by just an instant of careless strength.

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“Dammit, how can I explain this?” I whispered to myself.

Maybe that wasn’t an abnormal amount of strength? Lily already believes I’m just naturally strong, maybe she can believe I got over zealous and tore it in half. I thought to myself before using one of the halves to continue rubbing the wet spot. Having to actually deal with dresses and humans feels dangerous. Being able to hold back my strength is easy most of the time, but when I’m upset I might accidentally kill someone. Would it be possible for me to hurt Leo like that at some point? Maybe if I just asked him to become like me, I would have to worry about it.

The door to the back swung up and I flinched, unaware I had stopped cleaning up my dress a full minute ago. Lily stood in the doorway and waved me back to the inn. I had to set down the two strips of cloth on the box I had been resting on and moved closer to her. She bent over to be at eye level with me and whispered.

“You guys don’t know any nobles... do you?” she asked me.

My eyes went wide and I looked away, taking a second to steel myself before answering. “I may know one or two... why?”

“There’s some strange looking man here that was asking about you and Leo. He’s wearing some really nice clothes under a thick coat, so I think he’s trying to hide his wealth while he’s here but I don’t know for sure.” Lily asked before straightening her back again. “If he starts giving you trouble, just ask for me, alright? Just because you’re not rich doesn’t mean you’re not human! Don’t let him treat you any different if he gets handsy.”

“R-Right...”

After stepping out of the way, me and Lily walked out behind the bar. She pointed me in the right direction and I spotted the figure right away. Their hood was hanging over their head, even indoors. I briefly considered moving to get my dagger from upstairs, but thought better of it. Giving Lily one last look back, I moved towards their table, but didn’t sit down. A wave of relaxation passed over me as they lifted their face.

“Dammit, Simon... you should have just told her your name. Glad to see you’re alive at least. Leo was worried about you, but we obviously couldn’t head back to the Ainz estate yet.” I told him, leaving out that I was the one who insisted we not go.

“I don’t want to put anyone here at risk for when they come after me.” He muttered. “Take a seat, I want to talk with you and I don’t have much time.”

Pulling up a chair, I sat down opposite him at the small table. His posture was entirely different to the last time I saw him. It was more fragile, like he was worried he might get attacked at any second. Even though he was wearing gloves, I could tell from the little part of his face I could see that his skin was pale.

Even if he’s been converted like I thought, he shouldn’t be that pale. Has he not fed at all since then? I can’t imagine how starving he must feel right now, especially when surrounded by humans.

“What is it you want? I should warn you right now that I’m not willing to risk Leo’s life taking on your family again.” I warned him in a quiet voice.

“That’s fine, I don’t really expect you to go seeking danger, I more came to warn you. After learning where they are, and providing evidence, I’ve gotten the church to send for reinforcements into this area. They’ll be hunting the vampires down in this area, specifically the ones you mentioned attacked your family.” He said, gripping his wrist. “Since they won’t discriminate between you and them, I would advise you lay low for a while.”

“They’ll kill the Godwins?” I asked with slight hesitation. “Fine, once again you’re making things more complicated for me and for Leo. Just leave us be and everything will be alright. I noticed a distinct lack of your family’s name there, though.”

“Don’t think I want them to remain alive. They have some kind of strange power, the grandfather at the very least. I’ve never seen something like it before, and I won’t throw away lives from the church just to find out.” He said dejectedly. “Couldn’t even finish them off myself, I wasn’t prepared enough going in, even having you two to help me. At least I’ll die tonight knowing their lineage is over, no matter what happens to me.”

“Well then, I hope you enjoy your last sunset.”

I stood up to leave, but his hand shot out towards mine. Before I could react, he already had his fingers on my wrist and pulled me back to the table. Lily glanced in our direction, but only for a second. Simon’s fingers were cold and thin, like he’d just crawled out of a grave. When I took my seat again, he tucked them into his lap and cleared his throat.

“Sorry, but just warning you isn’t all I came for. I was hoping that, considering all you’ve done so far, you wouldn’t mind... finishing me off.”

“What?” I asked, taken aback by the request. “Just go crawl off somewhere until you can die on your own, or wait until your holy warriors arrive. Stop dragging me and Leo into your business whenever you feel like it.”

He stared me down for a while, eventually shaking his head. “I want to talk to Leo. You’re obviously being defensive because he’s not here. Even if you do fancy him, you can’t be so irresponsible as to let your feelings—"

I slammed my fists down and stood up. The noise drew attention from the other patrons, and I had to take a few deep breaths to calm down from his insult. With a wave of my hand, I gestured for him to follow me back upstairs. He did so, giving a brief nod to the other guests as an apology on my behalf.

How dare he call my feelings just fancy? The immortal blood must’ve gone to his thick head, confusing soulmates for childish crushes. I suppose he got what he wanted, because I certainly feel like murdering him now. Hopefully Leo doesn’t mind getting woken up over this nonsense.

On the way to my room, I told Lily the man wanted to visit Leo to try and help him, but that he wouldn’t be staying. She was worried after another outburst from me, but didn’t say anything about it, thankfully. She reminded me of my mother in a few ways, though certainly more of the positive aspects than negative ones. We made our way up the stairs, but I stopped him before opening the door.

“Listen, you wait outside first and let me wake him up. I don’t want you near him in case you have something wrong with you like Edward and try to kill him in his sleep.”

“I don’t—" He started to reply before rubbing the bridge of his nose. “No, you’re right, can’t take any risks like that here. Do what you have to, just please act fast.”

Turning back to the door, I entered the room and shut it behind me. Even in the dark, I could see Leo’s peacefully sleeping face clearly. Unlike the nights when we first came, when his expression would twist and look pained at night, he’s gotten far more relaxed. Having to wake him up and lose precious sleeping time was another reason I should murder Simon.