Fang Cheng's Rejected Feelings

As a virgin, his dying wish was merely to touch a pair of breasts, with no other excessive thoughts.

It was, by all accounts, a completely harmless and heartbreakingly humble little request.

Kanzaki Rin nodded with tears in her eyes, then grabbed the custom-made, extended silver sword and thrust it hard into Fang Cheng's chest.

Fang Cheng dodged to the side in a panic, rolling away to put some distance between them. "What the hell? You women are so heartless, trying to kill your teammate right after taking down a boss?"

Kanzaki Rin pointed her sword at him, fuming. "Do you think this kind of trick is funny? You still want to touch my breasts? Why don't you just go die?!"

She had genuinely thought Fang Cheng was dying just a moment ago and had been frantic with worry, only to realize she'd been played by this bastard and made a fool of.

Fang Cheng stood up, brushing the dust off his clothes. "I was just joking to lighten the mood. Besides, what's wrong with touching them? Isn't that the whole point of them existing?"

Kanzaki Rin was momentarily speechless, unable to find a way to refute his twisted logic.

Fang Cheng continued, "I even politely asked for your consent, unlike you—you're the one who's impolite. You drafted me into service last time without asking, and I didn't even hold that against you. Of course, even if you had asked, I wouldn't have agreed; men value their chastity, too..."

Fang Cheng stopped mid-sentence because Kanzaki Rin's expression was growing colder and her gaze more dangerous. If he kept talking, he feared she might not be able to resist lunging at him with her sword.

Having just worked together to take down the boss, another internal conflict wouldn't be ideal.

Fang Cheng walked over to Kuroishi Yuto's corpse, plunged his hand into the chest cavity, and felt for the heart.

Nothing was more important than looting a corpse. Hadn't Fang Cheng traveled all this way with Kanzaki Rin to risk his life for exactly this?

As his fingers touched the heart, a surge of heat flowed into his body.

Fang Cheng thought to himself that he hadn't felt anything when touching the heart earlier; it seemed he had to kill the person first.

He wasn't sure if he had to be the one to land the killing blow himself.

As the heat surged in, several lines of text appeared in Fang Cheng's field of vision.

[Energy absorbing...]
[Life +1]
[Short-Range Dash +1]
[Steel Blood +1]
[Life (Fragment 1/3) +1]
[Blood of Madness (Fragment 1/5) +2]

Seeing the notification, Fang Cheng was first startled, then hit with the thrill of winning a jackpot.

Kuroishi Yuto was indeed a vampire who had devoured his own kind; the loot from his corpse far exceeded that of Yagawa Ryoka.

Yagawa Ryoka's heart had granted Fang Cheng one complete ability, "Advanced Olfaction," while the rest were just fragments that did nothing to boost his combat power.

Kuroishi Yuto's heart, however, provided two complete abilities, one resurrection charge, one Life Fragment, and two Blood of Madness fragments.

To kill Kuroishi Yuto earlier, Fang Cheng had let Kanzaki Rin run her sword through his heart, consuming one resurrection charge and dropping the number in his eyes to 1.

Now, after looting the corpse, the number in his eyes had returned to 2. He had two Life Fragments; one more would fuse into another resurrection charge.

Of course, the most important thing was the "Steel Blood" ability.

This was the ability that had caused both him and Kanzaki Rin so much suffering in the form of red crystals. Now, it was deeply imprinted on Fang Cheng like an instinct, showing him exactly how to use it.

Seeing Fang Cheng's look of irrepressible joy after looting Kuroishi Yuto's corpse, Kanzaki Rin couldn't help but frown.

She was now certain that Fang Cheng could survive without needing to drink blood or devour his own kind.

But did he have some sort of special fetish for corpses? Why did he look so excited every time he touched one?

Fortunately, Fang Cheng pulled his hand out of the corpse quickly. If he had kept going, Kanzaki Rin probably would have sent him to see a psychiatrist.

"It seems you really aren't afraid of silver weapons."

Kanzaki Rin glanced at Fang Cheng's chest. The fatal wound had completely healed, leaving his skin smooth and taut, with no trace of injury.

She looked down at the silver sword in her hand.

Because her dagger had been too short when dealing with Yagawa Ryoka, Kanzaki Rin had specifically commissioned this extended silver sword, had it blessed by an onmyoji from the Countermeasure Department, and soaked in holy water by a priest.

The effect was excellent; it had taken down Kuroishi Yuto, a vampire who had devoured his own kind, in a single strike.

Yet, it had absolutely no effect on Fang Cheng.

"I suppose my immunity to silver weapons is just stronger than most."

Fang Cheng made up a flimsy excuse. He had previously hesitated about whether to draw a line between himself and the vampires and just pass himself off as a superpowered individual.

But after reading the files Kanzaki Rin had given him, he had completely abandoned that idea and become more determined to pose as a vampire.

While this world did have natural-born superpowered individuals, the most powerful among them could only manage something like moving paper with their minds.

Including Kanzaki Rin, all superpowered individuals were cultivated by the government, and every single one of them had a detailed file.

If a non-government-cultivated individual like Fang Cheng, who possessed an immortal body, were to suddenly appear, his value would be self-evident—at least thousands of times more important than a vampire.

Fang Cheng wasn't afraid of being dissected, but his freedom would certainly be severely restricted, and he didn't trust the integrity of the Area 11 government.

So, it was better to pose as a vampire; even if his identity were exposed, it wouldn't attract too much attention.

Seeing that Fang Cheng refused to tell the truth, Kanzaki Rin didn't press him. Their cooperation was deepening, and she didn't want to ruin this hard-won situation.

The facts proved that their cooperation was highly beneficial; they had already eliminated a second vampire.

Neither of them could have stood a chance against Kuroishi Yuto alone.

Kanzaki Rin's long-taut nerves finally relaxed, and a faint smile even appeared on her face.

She felt as if she could already see the merit points beckoning to her.

But Kanzaki Rin's expression soon froze, for she saw the shredded sedan and the wrecked Rapid Condensation Machine.

"It's over, I'm going to have to pay for this."

Kanzaki Rin muttered to herself.

Fang Cheng asked curiously, "Didn't you buy these?"

Kanzaki Rin shot him a glance. "Do you think these things can be bought just with money?"

Not to mention the two Rapid Condensation Machines, the Small Desktop Laser Device wasn't even available on the open market; it was specialized military equipment.

Kanzaki Rin had only managed to borrow it from the Countermeasure Department thanks to Yagawa Ryoka's previous contributions, and she would be held liable for any damages.

Fortunately, only one was broken; if all the equipment had been destroyed, she would have suffered a massive financial blow.

Fang Cheng waved his hand dismissively. "Money is just an external possession. You can't take it with you when you're born, and you can't take it with you when you die. Being safe and sound is what matters most."

Kanzaki Rin glared at him. "Then will you help me pay for it?"

Fang Cheng thought for a moment and nodded. "Sure!"

Kanzaki Rin looked surprised. This miser was actually willing to pay?

Fang Cheng rummaged through his tattered pocket, pulled out a fifty-cent coin, and solemnly pressed it into Kanzaki Rin's hand. "This is my meal money for the day. I'm entrusting it to you; don't let my intentions go to waste."

Kanzaki Rin crumpled Fang Cheng's "intentions" into a ball and pelted him with it. "Get lost!"

She then clutched her head and crouched on the ground. "Ugh... I shouldn't have counted on a bastard like you!"

Her head was throbbing now. They had clearly won against the enemy, so why was her heart bleeding?

Fang Cheng picked up the fifty-cent coin and stuffed it back into his pocket. He said to Kanzaki Rin, "Are you tired? Do you want me to carry you back?"

Kanzaki Rin replied sullenly, "No!"

"Then carry me back; I'm exhausted."

As soon as Fang Cheng finished speaking, he collapsed onto Kanzaki Rin.