13 Unsurprisingly, Hikigaya Hachiman Worries About His Decision

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[Hikigaya Hachiman's POV]

"Vampires can regenerate as many times as they want as long as they still have their hearts, can't they?"

"Yes, in some cases, some can even survive without one. It depends on how powerful they are. Why the sudden interest though?"

"Does turning a sickly person into a Vampire cure them from their ailment?"

Instead of answering me, Kiss-Shot gave me a sidelong glance. I could see it from the corner of my eyes. I dared not face her. Her silence was proof she knew what I was thinking and I was slightly embarrassed. I realized what I was doing but couldn't help it. I was not a saint or a hero, but not doing anything despite having the capability didn't sit well with me.

"When you turned me into a Vampire, what did you do?"

"I inject my blood and some of my essence into you."

I wanted to know what essence was but held myself back in favor of talking about the more pressing matter.

"You won't turn someone into a Vampire without your essence, I presume?"

"It will be correct."

"Then, what does the blood do in a human's body?"

"Depending on the amount of blood injected, it can vary from enhancing their overall physique to giving them unique abilities."

"I see…"

The world seemed to be in my favor as the information provided was the way I had hoped it to be. It was honestly too good to be true, so I couldn't help but turn to look at Kiss-Shot. Then, I met her knowing look. I had guessed a long time ago that she was aware of Sakura's condition, but seeing her look still made me smile wryly.

"I am not going to stop what you are going to do but suggest you not do it. I intervened with nature once and it didn't end well," Kiss-Shot advised wisely. "I believe you are not going to have a thrall soon, but I also won't recommend you do that. Once you save one, you can't help but save another one."

The mood turned somber, causing the boar meat that Kiss-Shot had deliciously cooked to become tasteless. Her words made me think: so what if Sakura died? I was sure I wouldn't be affected much if not at all. It would be sobering but I wouldn't mourn. We were practically strangers as we had only met twice, so I wasn't emotionally attached yet.

Minding my business and overlooking her problem seemed to be the wisest decision I could make. Sakura, as hurt as she was, had accepted her fate. She was doing her very best to enjoy her last days on earth. She had let go of every hope, waiting for her day to come. If I suddenly gave her hope, what would happen to her? What would happen to the girl who got another chance after making peace with her mortality?

There were a lot of things that she might do, but I couldn't tell which one she would do. What I knew for sure was she still wanted to be saved, though, she didn't hope anyone to. It was buried deeply in her eyes, but I could see it. For me, that was enough. She had enough reasons to continue to live, so what I might do to her might be the best thing to ever happen to her.

What was it for me to gain? A sense of self-satisfaction from doing what others couldn't do.

"It seems you have made a decision," Kiss-Shot muttered softly. "I won't stop you, but I will warn you: beware of the consequence. Not everything we deem right turns right."

A smirk rose to my face as I replied, "As a heartless bastard, I don't care about it. I will do things that can satisfy my selfishness—consequence be damned."

Kiss-Shot nodded her head in understanding and resumed eating. We resumed talking not long after but avoided talking about the subject. When the dinner was finished, we found ourselves in our tent. I was thinking about how I was going to do it and asking her opinion about it. Typical of her, her best advice was 'Just do it.'

I sighed helplessly before deciding to go with a direct approach. Then, I asked her about how to perform the procedure.

"You have done well doing things that Vampires do so far. Everything should come naturally. You just have to think about 'feast' before sinking your teeth into your target's neck. To inject your blood, you will feel this slight itch at the tip of your teeth. Then, you will naturally know how to push your blood out of them."

"Where should I bite?"

"You will be able to see the correct artery to bite on with your eyes. Just trust your instinct."

"Then, how much do I need just enough to kill her cancer?"

Kiss-Shot cupped her chin in contemplation before bluntly answering, "I don't know. I only know how much needed to destroy a body, but not cure it." Noticing my pensive look, she shook her head. "If I have to wager, it should be around a tenth of the blood you suck. So, if you accidentally inject too much, just suck more."

I accepted Kiss-Shot's advice and didn't ask for more. I might drain Sakura more than I needed to, but fatigue in the morning should be a cheap price to pay for her cure. I got out of the tent and was pleasantly surprised to find Sakura sitting before the fire while emptily gazing at it. One thing led to another and now I found myself sinking my teeth into her neck.

"Ah…Hachiman-kun…"

I would have been weirded out by Sakura's sensual moan if I wasn't too busy relishing the taste of her blood. Kiss-Shot was right: fresh blood tasted differently. I could somehow tell the blood was spoiled—probably because of her illness—but it still tasted better than the blood in the bags that we had consumed. There was something unique about fresh blood which I couldn't explain. The closest description I could make was it was refreshing.

The itch at the tip of my teeth woke me up from my entrance. I frantically estimated how much blood I had sucked before injecting my blood a tenth of the amount into Sakura's vein. At this point, she had already lost her consciousness but would still shiver from time to time. I pulled my teeth out and watched in silent fascination and relief as the holes in her neck rapidly closed.

Lifting the unconscious Sakura, I carried her back to the camp. Thankfully, her parents had already gone to sleep, so I only had Kiss-Shot waiting for me with a quirked eyebrow. I nodded at her and she immediately lost her frown. Reaching Sakura's tent, I opened it and carefully laid her down. I watched in relief as her chest heaved up and down lively.

"You can stare at my chest the entire day if you want to. You don't have to be a sex offender," Kiss-Shot remarked behind me.

"I was just trying to make sure she is alive," I replied exasperatedly.

"Sure sure."

Ignoring her dismissive response, I asked her about another important thing, "Is she going to remember what happened?"

"Well, as long as you hypnotized her before doing the deed, she wouldn't remember a single thing." My silence was all it needed for her to look at me in amusement. "You didn't do that, did you?"

"You didn't tell me how to hypnotize her."

"Well, it's the same way you summoned those bunnies in the morning." She waved her hand nonchalantly. "Either way, don't worry. She would most likely think that what happened was a dream and you just have to gaslight her when she thinks otherwise."

Another sigh escaped out of my mouth and then I proceeded to call it a day. Closing Sakura's tent, I got into our tent and slept with Kiss-Shot. When I woke up in the morning, I felt even more refreshed than the day before. Fresh blood did do wonders for my body.

After doing our routine of applying sunscreen and changing clothes, we got out of our tent. Sakura and her family seemed to have just returned from cleaning themselves in the river. The family greeted us amicably and I couldn't ignore the weird glances Sakura occasionally sent me. She would also touch her neck sometimes as she talked with me, making me worry if she remembered vividly about last night.

I did my absolute best to not seem concerned and it worked. She told me about how tired she was last night that she didn't even remember how she got into her tent. She also mentioned about a pleasant dream, but she cut herself off as her face suddenly flushed. I didn't pry into the matter and opted to help Kiss-Shot who was preparing for breakfast.

"It has been a pleasant experience with both of you. Thank you for letting us join you. We must have been a bother."

"It has also been a pleasant experience for us and, no, you weren't a bother. It was fun having more people to camp with."

We were bowing to each other after finishing our breakfast and packing up. Our camping had come to an end, so we had to part ways as the Yamauchi family parked their car somewhere away from our pick-up point. Sakura told her parents to go first before coming up to me. She hesitated for quite some time before leaning slightly to the front with a flushed face.

"You don't mind me messaging you, right?"

"Sure."

I watched as the weird girl sighed in relief before bidding her farewell cheerfully. Immediately, my arm was snatched by the somewhat irate Kiss-Shot.

I don't understand women.

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Honorary Mention:

Venerable Immortal Gwiber

Venerable Immortal P. Felipe