Alucard, still completely out of it, decided the situation wasn't worth the effort of thinking.
So instead, he snuggled deeper into his "pillow," closed his eyes in contentment, and ignored the annoyed muttering of the black-haired one nearby.
Warm… soft… comfortable…
Perfect.
A few seconds later, something felt… off.
His pillow was getting warmer.
Way warmer.
Alucard frowned slightly and cracked open his eye.
Only to find a woman with golden hair above him.
Cassie was sitting right where his "pillow" had been.
"…Hey," Alucard muttered, voice still heavy with sleep. "Move. That's my pillow."
Without hesitation, he pulled the "pillow" closer to himself.
A very un-pillow-like sound followed.
A sharp, startled—
"YEEP—?!"
Alucard blinked.
That didn't sound right.
Before his brain could catch up, someone grabbed him by the collar and yanked him upright with surprising force—
SMACK!
The slap echoed through the cavern.
Alucard's head snapped to the side.
And just like that, the fog in his mind shattered.
---
His vision cleared.
His thoughts aligned.
Reality returned.
And standing in front of him…
Was Nephis.
Holding him up.
Looking very unimpressed.
Alucard stared at her for a second before frowning.
"Hey—what was that for?" he complained, rubbing his cheek.
Then… he looked around.
And everything clicked into place.
First mistake.
He had called Sunny a woman.
And commented on his chest.
…That was bad.
But survivable.
Sunny would probably just threaten to stab him later. Nothing unusual.
Second mistake.
Much worse.
There were no pillows.
At all.
Slowly… very slowly… Alucard turned his head.
Cassie was sitting nearby, her face completely covered, shoulders slightly trembling.
Oh.
Oh no.
Alucard froze.
Then immediately shot to his feet and began apologizing at rapid speed.
"I'm so sorry—I wasn't thinking straight—I was completely out of it—I didn't mean anything by it—it won't happen again—"
"Please stop…" Cassie said quietly, her voice soft and very embarrassed.
Alucard instantly shut up.
"…Right. Sorry."
(Idk if anyone remembers but someone commented before on how Alucard cucked mordret by taking Sei from him and I said he actually will cuck him twice and well here we are anyways back to your regularly scheduled chapter)
---
He turned his head toward the others.
Sunny, Kai, and Caster were all looking at him.
Disappointed.
Judging.
Silent.
…Well, mostly.
If you looked closely, Caster was giving him a subtle thumbs up.
That bastard.
Alucard sighed, but a faint smile still tugged at his lips.
Then Nephis spoke again, her tone calm—but firm.
"Now that whatever that was is over," she said, crossing her arms slightly, "I think you owe us some answers. What happened? How did you lose your eye? And how did we end up back here?"
Her gaze sharpened.
"You have a lot to explain."
Such a warm way to thank someone who just saved your lives, Alucard thought dryly.
Still, he forced a lazy expression onto his face, pretending to still be a little delirious.
"Oh? What do you mean, Memphis?" he said casually. "I still have my eye. Seeeee?"
He pointed dramatically at his one remaining eye.
…It did not work.
Not even a little.
"Alucard," Nephis said flatly, "do you know what happened or not?"
A pause.
"Answer the question. You're putting everyone at risk by holding secrets."
Alucard's jaw tightened slightly.
Already regretting saving this damned sun-blessed bitch…
But he exhaled slowly, forcing himself to calm down.
Then he smiled.
"Nothing happened," he said lightly. "I don't know how we got here, and I don't know what happened to my eye."
He kept his gaze steady—almost daring her to call him out.
To look at Kai.
To confirm the lie.
Nephis simply stared at him for a moment.
Then… she sighed.
And turned away.
"Thanks for everything," she said over her shoulder, her tone distant.
Alucard didn't respond.
Didn't care much, either.
He was already imagining Caster cutting her head clean off.
That thought alone brought a small smile to his face.
Fortunately, the others were far less… confrontational.
Effie walked over and gave him a solid pat on the back.
"Damn, when did you get so tall?" she said with a grin. "Careful—one more growth spurt and you might actually catch up to me."
Alucard blinked.
Wait…
He was taller.
Looking around, he realized he now stood roughly eye-to-eye with Caster.
Around 6'1… maybe 6'2.
Alucard smiled.
Finally.
No longer under six feet.
A true victory.
Effie, however, quickly reminded him of something else.
"Oh—and you might want to put some armor on," she added casually. "That little cloth thing you've got going on? Yeah… it's not doing much."
Alucard looked down.
…Oh.
Right.
That was… a problem.
Without wasting a second, he summoned blood and shaped it into simple clothing—a dark red robe that draped over his body.
It wasn't anything special, but it worked.
He could always have Gluttony absorb it later.
Still… it felt wasteful.
That alone was easily a bathtub's worth of blood.
And most of what he had left now was fallen rank.
…I really need to restock, he thought with a faint frown.
Eventually, things settled down.
The group returned to idle conversation.
It was… nice.
Surprisingly nice.
Enough to make the pain of dragging them all out of that hell feel… somewhat worth it.
Night came again.
This time, Alucard and Sunny were on watch.
Though realistically, only one of them needed to stay awake.
After a while, once everyone else had fallen asleep, Sunny spoke.
"So," he said quietly, "mind explaining what actually happened?"
Alucard glanced at him, smiling faintly.
"Oh? And how do you know I was lying?"
Sunny didn't hesitate.
"The way you talk," he said simply. "You're a terrible liar."
Alucard let out a quiet chuckle.
"Ah… I doubt I'm worse than you."
Sunny didn't react.
Didn't smile.
Didn't blink.
"Don't change the subject," he said. "I know you were awake."
A pause.
"I saw the blood covering the hole's entrance. That was yours. And I remember what you said before—about the purple mist in your dream."
His gaze sharpened.
"And guess what? The only entrance is now covered in that same mist."
Alucard smirked and gave a slow, mocking clap with one hand.
"Wow. Very clever, Sunny. I expected nothing less."
Sunny's glare sharpened.
"Answer the question."
Alucard's smile widened.
"Funny," he said. "Coming from you of all people."
Sunny frowned slightly.
"I mean… how many secrets are you keeping from me?" Alucard continued. "And yet you expect full honesty?"
Sunny hesitated—just for a moment.
"…I keep secrets," he admitted. "But nothing that would endanger your life."
Alucard tilted his head.
"And mine won't endanger yours either," he said calmly. "The problem's already dealt with. The only one who got hurt… is me."
They stared at each other in silence.
A quiet standoff.
Then—
Alucard's grin widened, almost feral.
"How about this?" he said. "I answer one question of yours… and you answer one of mine."
Sunny narrowed his eyes, thinking it over.
"…Fine," he said eventually. "That's fair."
Alucard stood up.
Sunny blinked.
"Where are you going?"
Alucard glanced at him—then toward Nephis' sleeping form.
"Sorry, Sunny," he said lightly, "but I'm not falling for something that obvious."
He walked over and crouched beside Nephis.
Her eyes were already open.
Watching him.
Of course they were.
Alucard smirked slightly.
"You don't mind, do you?" he said softly. "I'll bring him back in one piece."
A pause.
His smile sharpened just a little.
"I don't bite… much."