Chapter 115: No More Arduous Activities
I got home and the house was strangely quiet. Stepping into the living room, I noticed no one was there, but I could hear faint voices coming from deeper within the house.
A strange feeling crawled across my skin. It was the sensation of trouble brewing—a feeling I knew all too well.
’Well, damn. Let’s find out what the fuck is happening.’
I walked deeper into the house and soon realized the voices were coming from the room I shared with my wife, Aleena.
I pushed the door open, and the moment I stepped inside, I saw everyone gathered around the bed. What made my heart race was the unfamiliar face standing among those surrounding it.
"Brother-in-law, you’re back just in time," Maya said with a worried expression. When I looked over at Theodore and Tiriana, neither of them wore their usual smiles.
Lying on the bed was Aleena, fast asleep with a damp towel resting on her forehead. I could sense her breathing clearly, easing my worry a little.
The unfamiliar person was an old male elf with a slightly bent posture and deeply wrinkled skin. I was perplexed by the man’s appearance, as it was the first time I had ever seen an elf this old. Either this elf had lived for thousands of years to age this much, or something had forcefully drained his life essence.
"Young man, you’re her husband, right?" the old man asked in a low voice.
I nodded repeatedly like a chicken pecking at grain.
"Ahh... Young people these days. Your wife is experiencing something we call double pregnancy. Naturally, there shouldn’t be any problem. However, because it happened so quickly, there was only a short interval between her first and second pregnancies, putting a great strain on her body and causing her to faint. But she’s fine now. I’ve stabilized her condition. I would advise the two of you to refrain from any arduous activities, alright?" the old man said in an emotionless tone. Hidden beneath his words, however, was an unmistakable message warning me to abstain from sex.
I understood the hidden meaning perfectly, and my face instantly turned bright red.
"I understand everything you’ve said," I replied with a respectful bow.
"Alright, I’ll be taking my leave, Theodore," the old man said, giving Theodore a nod.
Theodore quickly escorted him out. The respect he showed made it obvious the old man was someone he held in very high regard.
After Theodore left, I walked over to Aleena’s bedside and gently took her hand into my large palms, softly caressing it. Then I glanced at Tiriana, who immediately averted her gaze, pretending she hadn’t noticed me looking at her.
Suddenly, she spoke up.
"Jacob, now that you’re here, I’ll leave Aleena with you and go make some soup for her in case she wakes up," Tiriana said before taking Maya’s hand. Although Maya seemed somewhat reluctant, she followed her out of the room.
Once they were gone, I let out a sigh and sat down beside Aleena on the bed.
The peace didn’t last long.
The door suddenly opened, and Theodore walked back in, this time wearing a grim expression.
"I’d like to have a few words with you, son," he said in a low yet rumbling voice.
I nodded and followed him outside, entering a room in the farthest corner of the house.
The moment we stepped inside, Theodore spoke.
"Jacob, I understand the need to be intimate with your wife, but don’t you think you’re kind of overdoing it?" he asked, giving me a strange look.
’Damn, why is this old geezer looking at me like that?’
"Haa... Well, father-in-law, you can’t really blame me. You see... it’s something both of us wanted, so I can’t take all the blame," I said with a stoic expression while Theodore awkwardly scratched his goatee.
The conversation was becoming weird real fast.
"Alright, alright. I won’t put all the blame on you. When Aleena wakes up, her mother will also have a heart-to-heart talk with her. But as for you, I’d advise the two of you to sleep separately for a few days until she gets better. This room is just as spacious as the others, so you can stay here every night until Aleena recovers," Theodore said, gesturing around the room.
"Alright, no problem. It’s for her own good," I replied, not wanting to argue with Theodore.
In truth, this was also a good way to avoid sleeping with Aleena. That way, if I needed to satisfy my urges, I could simply call Pico over to my room.
"Now that that’s settled, when did you say you were returning to Luladel?" Theodore asked.
"We were supposed to return tomorrow, but since Aleena isn’t in the best condition, we’ll wait until she’s recovered," I replied.
Theodore nodded.
"Very well. I’ll take my leave then. But remember, you’re welcome to stay here as long as you like. Also, I may have sounded a bit harsh, but in truth, I’m happy that you and Aleena are giving me grandchildren," Theodore said with a smile before leaving the room.
I let out a sigh of relief after Theodore was gone. Sitting cross-legged on the bed, I focused my attention on the notification I had received a while ago.
[Ding!]
[You have completed the mission: Learn Blood Arts. You have been awarded a random skill card. Would you like to scratch your card now?]
"Yes! Scratch the card!" I blurted out excitedly. This was the moment I had been waiting for.
Suddenly, the system’s interface expanded before me, and a holographic card appeared with intricate circuit-like runes engraved across its surface. The next moment, the card began to roll, revealing hidden characters that I couldn’t decipher.
[You have received a Super Rare skill: Blood Monger.]
[Skill Description: This skill allows the host to temporarily gain absolute control over any blood for two minutes. During this period, all stats, as well as the Mana Pool, will be doubled. When this skill is activated, the host’s appearance will morph into that of a Blood Monger, the legendary absolute peak of vampire evolution.]
[Drawback: Once this skill’s duration ends, all stats will be halved, and the host will be unable to use Blood Arts or cast Magic for an entire day.]
"Woah... why does it feel like this skill was decided right from the start? How does it make sense that I got this skill immediately after learning Blood Arts?" I muttered, feeling as though the system had played me.
’Anyways, that’s a pretty good skill. I can’t wait to try it out. But it’s also a risky one. If I’m facing a powerful opponent and can’t finish them off before the skill runs out, I’d literally be at their mercy afterward. Still, it makes sense. Even if my current stats are doubled, they’d barely be comparable to a B-Rank adventurer. If my base stats were already at B-Rank, then doubling them would probably put me at A-Rank. However, my current strength is, at best, only D-Rank. None of the people I’ve sparred with ever took me seriously. Old Man Zane, Beatrix, and Theodore... if any of those fights had been life-or-death battles, I’d have died long ago. I really need to take the power-level evaluation test at the Adventurer’s Guild. My Adventurer Card is still showing F-Rank.’
Just as I was lost in thought, the door to my room suddenly opened, and Tiriana walked in carrying a tray with a mug resting on it.
The moment I saw her, my face bloomed into a bright, perverted smile.
"How wonderful. My mother-in-law has graced me with her presence and even brought me some medicinal herbal tea," I said teasingly.
Tiriana’s face instantly flushed red as she nervously glanced behind her.
She walked over and placed the tray on the bedside drawer.
"Don’t say such things. I brought you this tea to help rejuvenate your body," she said, trying to act normal, but her face only grew redder under my lustful gaze as my eyes slowly wandered over her curvy body from head to toe.
"Really? I see... It’s only natural to want me in peak condition so I’ll be able to handle you very well," I chuckled as I picked up the mug and began gulping down its contents.
"Sheesh... Don’t say such things. My husband is around," Tiriana pleaded, silently begging me to stop talking. Her reaction only made my smug smile grow wider.
"Fine. If you don’t want me talking, then allow me to get revenge for what happened back then. You sided with your husband when he complained about me constantly sleeping with my wife. Isn’t your husband just jealous that I’m as healthy as a stallion?" I asked as I set the mug back onto the tray. A small trail of herbal tea trickled down the corner of my mouth.
"N-No, he didn’t mean it like that. He was only worried about our daughter," Tiriana stammered, her cheeks growing even redder.
"It doesn’t matter anyway. Someone left me all pent-up, and I need to calm my boner. Don’t you think you should take responsibility, mother-in-law? I promise I’ll be quick," I said with a smirk as I rose from the bed and slowly walked toward Tiriana, who instinctively took slow steps backward.
’Why am I still staying?’
Even though she wanted to run out of the room, her body refused to move.
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Note: Don’t buy privilege for now. I will announce when to start buying.