Since it was already almost night when I returned to the orphanage, we went straight to dinner after Alice healed me with her magic. While eating, I shared my adventures at the academy with the children. It wasn’t anything grand, just tales of my experiences, duels, and sparring sessions. Though not particularly thrilling, the children found my stories quite exciting. It wasn’t every day they heard tales from beyond our little village of Flui, after all.
While eating, I discreetly glanced at Sister Lily’s and Alice’s domination requirements.
—
You’ve captured the interest of Lily. You can now proceed to dominate her.
Name: Lily
Race: Human
Requirements to dominate Lily:
1. Donate anonymously to the orphanage (Completed!)
2. Visit the orphanage once a week for eight times (1/8)
3. Unlock
4. Unlock
….
—
—
You’ve captured the interest of Alice. You can now proceed to dominate her.
Name: Alice
Race: Human-Vampire Hybrid
Requirements to dominate Alice:
1. Make Alice say her true feelings three times (0/3)
2. Unlock
3. Unlock
4. Unlock
….
—
My progress with Sister Lily had advanced slightly. And it was my first time seeing Alice’s requirement list, revealing her as a half-vampire. So she’s a half-vampire, huh? I wasn’t sure how primordial vampires differed from half-vampires, but I assumed half-vampires weren’t weakened by sunlight, considering Alice spent most of her time outdoors.
After dinner, we headed straight to bed. Despite the late hour, the children still gathered in my room eagerly, eager to hear stories about life beyond the village. Their excitement was contagious, and it warmed my heart to see them so enthusiastic. It made me imagine what it would be like to have children of my own someday.
However, their excitement was short-lived as Alice strode into the room, her hand on her hip.
“Alright, kids, it’s late. Time to head back to your own rooms and get some sleep,” she instructed firmly.
“Ehhh~ But we want to hear more stories from Big Bro!” the children protested.
“Sorry, but your Big Bro Leon has school tomorrow. He needs his rest,” Alice explained. “If you want him to have more stories to share, you’ll let him get some sleep.”
“Okay…”
With disappointed expressions, the children reluctantly bid me goodnight and returned to their own rooms.
Alice watched as the children obediently returned to their rooms, and after a moment of silence, she sighed in exasperation. “These kids really know how to make a fuss just because you’re back…”
“It’s only natural,” I replied. “But I’m surprised to see them following your orders so readily.”
“Well, ever since Sister Eli passed away, there hasn’t been anyone to keep them in line and maintain order. So, I took on her role.”
Sister Eli was the elderly woman who used to run the orphanage. When I turned fifteen, she passed away from natural causes. She was the one who kept us all in check, even resorting to spanking misbehaving kids. I wasn’t immune to her discipline either; I got my fair share of spankings. Ah, those were the days. Maybe I’ll visit her grave tomorrow before school.
“You sounded like their mother for a second there,” I remarked to her.
“You messing with me?” she retorted, her hand still on her hip as she glared at me.
“No, I meant it as a compliment,” I replied earnestly.
With that settled, she eased herself down onto my bed beside me. The moonlight streamed through the window, casting a romantic glow over us. It felt surreal to have her here, alone with me in my bed. This was perhaps the first time we had been alone together in a room.
Alice was different from the woman I once knew as my childhood friend. My past life had left me with deep-seated trauma, causing me to avoid anything related to childhood friends. I was wary, fearing that she too might betray me someday. That’s why, initially, I didn’t give her the time of day.
Now, though, I was grateful that I had saved her that day. Alice had actually been kidnapped and nearly sold to some sicko who had a thing for children. Thankfully, I managed to rescue her. Despite the trauma she had endured, she couldn’t recall a thing. It was like her brain had shielded her from experiencing PTSD. That’s when we grew so close.
Alice was nothing like that woman. She wouldn’t betray me like she did. Well, she didn’t really betray me. It was just how I felt, but she didn’t actually betray me. Still, the trauma from that experience lingered, and I dreaded going through it again. Nowadays, though, the memories I had tried so hard to bury were resurfacing, dredging up painful emotions I’d hoped to forget.
While I remained silent, Alice promptly rested her head on my shoulder, catching me off guard. It was a rare display of affection from her. Alice had never been one to show such tenderness. She was always more likely to berate, punch, or shout at me. A real spitfire, she was. I often jokingly referred to her as a cavewoman who hadn’t quite grasped the concept of acting like a lady. As a kid, she’d been a tomboy through and through, and it seemed not much had changed. Now, she was a stunning beauty with curves in all the right places, like an hourglass. Her ample bosom and shapely thighs were hard to ignore, even though her personality remained the same.
But I didn’t mind. There was something refreshing about her, in my opinion.
As she nestled closer, I caught a whiff of soap on her skin. Had she showered before coming here?
“Hey,” she spoke up, breaking the silence.
“Yeah?” I responded.
“Do you already… have a lover?” she asked, sounding somewhat nervous.
Honestly, I could have just lied and told her I didn’t have a lover. But then, I couldn’t shake the feeling that it would only lead to trouble down the line. What if she found out I was lying? She’d feel betrayed, just like I did back then.
I also asked the same thing from my childhood friend back on Earth. By that time, I had already spilled my guts to her, confessing my feelings and making it crystal clear that if she was already hooked up with someone else, I’d step aside without any fuss. But then, she fed me a line, claiming she and the guy she was into weren’t an item yet. It was a load of crap. The very next day, I found out the truth: she and her crush were already an item, keeping it a secret from everyone at school, including me. The only reason they finally came clean was because my childhood friend couldn’t bear to keep lying to me. The betrayal hit me like a ton of bricks, filling me with seething anger. All I could do was stand there and watch her cozy up to the guy she’d fallen for. She picked him, and I got left in the dust.
But it still cuts deep that she had to lie to my face like that.
After feeling betrayed, it was like the world around me started spinning faster and faster. Before I knew it, I had transformed into someone unrecognizable. I became the kind of guy who picked fights on the streets, got into brawls left and right. I even picked up smoking cigarettes. I started dating women, having sex with them, then ditching them once I got what I wanted. I had numerous flings with women who were only interested in a good time in bed and nothing more. The betrayal had changed me so much that everyone could see it.
Despite my childhood friend’s attempts to reach out to me, her words fell on deaf ears. To me, everything she said felt like a lie, so I chose to shut her out.
The only person who had any chance of turning me back was my sister. She saw the drastic change in me and tried to steer me back on track. But before she could succeed, she tragically took her own life by hanging. Her death shattered me to my core. After her funeral, I sought vengeance on those who had wronged her, but before I could finish, I met my end in a fatal traffic accident.
I got reincarnated here, then…
If I told Alice that I don’t have someone yet, it could lead to complications down the line. I didn’t want that. So, I decided to be honest with her.
“I have,” I finally admitted after a long silence.
She withdrew her head from my shoulder and muttered, “I see…” She then got up from the bed. “Well, that’s to be expected. I mean, you’re very handsome, Leon…” she began to walk towards the door. But I grabbed her hand, pulling her back to me, and embraced her from behind.
At that moment, she finally broke into loud sobs. It was the first time I had heard her cry like that.
“It’s so unfair, Leon…” she choked out between sobs. “You’re so unfair… Without me even realizing it, you’ve grown into an adult… so unfair…”
I could only hold her tightly from behind and listen to her crying.
