After being disappointed by the wonders of the Forbidden Forest three times in a row, Charlotte and I were finally completely exhausted.
Our divine bodies might have been incredibly powerful, but mentally, we were still ordinary humans from Earth who desperately needed a break.
“Ryuu… I’m really tired,” Charlotte complained with a heavy sigh.
She sat with her legs stretched out on a large rock, massaging her sore ankles.
Her silver hair had become slightly messy from the forest wind.
“I didn’t expect finding an empty plot of land in an Isekai would be more troublesome than looking for an affordable place to rent back on Earth.”
I chuckled softly and wiped the faint sweat from her forehead with my fingertip.
“Be patient, sweetheart. The landscaping in this new world is a little unpredictable. Since it’s getting late, let’s find a cave to use as a temporary shelter. We can continue mapping the area tomorrow morning.”
Charlotte nodded in resignation.
Fortunately, not far from the crater left behind by the giant worm, my vampire instincts detected a small stone cave that appeared relatively clean and safe.
After making sure the inside was warm enough, I guided Charlotte inside and helped her sit against a stone wall cushioned by dry moss.
Suddenly, Charlotte’s stomach growled loudly in the silence of the cave.
Her beautiful face immediately turned bright red with embarrassment.
“Order received. Your food is now being processed,” I said casually as I stood up, trying to ease her embarrassment.
“Wait here for a moment. I can hear running water somewhere nearby. I’ll go catch some fish for dinner.”
“Don’t take too long, Ryuu. I’m scared of being alone here,” Charlotte whispered.
She briefly grabbed the edge of my sleeve before reluctantly letting go.
“I’ll be back in less than five minutes,” I replied confidently, giving her a reassuring smile before stepping out of the cave and into the growing darkness of the forest.
Meanwhile, Charlotte remained alone at the entrance of the cave, resting her chin in her hands with a bored expression.
The exhaustion and drowsiness had begun to weigh heavily on her eyes.
But just as she was about to close them, a beautiful streak of purple light suddenly drifted right in front of her nose.
Charlotte jolted upright, her eyes widening instantly.
A gigantic butterfly was fluttering gracefully in front of her.
Its wings were transparent like crystal, radiating a beautiful rainbow colored magical glow that illuminated the darkness of the forest.
“Wow… you’re beautiful,” Charlotte whispered in awe.
The fatigue in her body suddenly vanished, replaced by overwhelming curiosity.
Like a child who had just discovered a brand new toy, Charlotte instinctively stood up.
Her feet began moving on their own.
Slowly, she followed the glowing butterfly as it flew deeper into the dense forest, seemingly tempting her to follow it beyond the ancient rows of pine trees.
On the other side of the forest, I was standing beside a small stream.
Relying on my sharp vision and enhanced vampire reflexes, the movement of the fish beneath the crystal clear water appeared incredibly slow to me. You are reading on novelping dot com, the official source.
In the blink of an eye, I plunged my right hand into the water.
My sharp claws pierced straight through the body of my target before the fish even had a chance to swim away.
Whoosh!
I lifted two large river fish from the water.
“Okay, two fish. That’s enough for my wife’s dinner,” I muttered in satisfaction as I carried them in one hand.
I immediately turned around and hurried back toward the cave where we were resting.
However, the moment I stepped inside the stone cave, my vampire heart seemed to stop beating.
Empty.
The only thing left was the pile of dry moss where Charlotte had been sitting.
My wife was gone.
“Charlotte?!”
Panic immediately seized me.
I hurriedly activated my red star vision, searching the air for any remaining traces of Charlotte’s essence.
A terrible sense of fear began creeping into my chest as I imagined her being silently attacked by a monster while I was away.
I clenched my fists so tightly that the veins in my pale arms bulged.
“Aaaaaaaahhh!!”
Charlotte’s piercing scream suddenly shattered the silence of the night from somewhere beyond the rocky cliffs on the western side of the forest.
The sound sent every drop of blood in my body boiling with panic.
Without thinking twice, I activated the absolute speed of my vampire body.
My body shot forward like a black shadow tearing through the darkness of the forest at lightning speed.
I crashed through bushes and leaped over massive rocks, desperately racing toward the source of the scream.
Don’t you dare touch my wife, bastard!
I was ready to destroy the very logic of existence itself if anything had dared to hurt Charlotte, my wife.
Whoosh!
I leaped through the final row of pine trees and landed in a battle ready stance, filled with fury.
My fangs were exposed, and my eyes burned with brilliant red light as I stared straight ahead.
“Charlotte! Are you okay?!”
The words died in my throat.
My intimidating battle stance suddenly froze as I stared at the scene before me.
There was no blood.
At the edge of a hidden rocky cliff, Charlotte was standing there perfectly safe, her hands clasped together in front of her chest.
Her beautiful face held no trace of fear.
Instead, she wore an expression of pure amazement, with tears almost welling up in her eyes from sheer happiness.
The glowing butterfly from earlier was calmly resting on the shoulder of her elf body.
“Ryuu! Come here, quick! Look at this!” Charlotte shouted again.
This time, her voice was filled with excitement and joy as she pointed toward the scenery below the cliff.
I slowly lowered my hands and retracted my fangs before releasing an incredibly long sigh of relief.
My chest finally felt lighter.
I walked toward her and leaned over the edge of the cliff to look down into the hidden valley.
The moment I saw it, I froze as well.
Spread out beneath us was an extraordinarily beautiful secret area.
An ancient river with crystal clear water flowed peacefully through the valley, cutting across a lush green meadow that was completely free of sharp rocks or filthy mud.
Right beside the river stood a gigantic tree with an enormous canopy and wide branches that provided abundant shade, as though it had been created specifically to serve as a natural roof against the heat and rain.
The atmosphere inside the hidden valley was quiet, cool, and completely free of any dangerous monster aura.
It was absolutely perfect.
A hidden utopia in the middle of the harsh Isekai world.
Charlotte turned toward me.
Her pair of glowing red eyes looked at me with genuine peace, without a trace of the false smile she had once been forced to wear.
“Ryuu… this place is perfect. There’s a river, a huge tree for shade, it’s quiet, and it’s beautiful… I want us to live here.”
I stared at her beautiful profile, illuminated by the soft glow of the night butterfly.
The panic I had felt moments ago had completely disappeared, replaced by a pure warmth spreading through my chest.
I smiled warmly and tightly held her delicate fingers, which fit perfectly within my hand.
“An excellent choice, my Empress,” I replied softly, my voice filled with sincere commitment.
“Our adventure to find a home ends tonight. Beneath that tree… let’s build our new home together.”
Charlotte lowered her head and rested her forehead against my cold shoulder, smiling with pure happiness.
At last, our aimless search for a safe place to call home had finally found its answer in this new world.
To be continued.