Chapter 278: Clues on how to get home.
"What did you say...?" Ruby spoke in disbelief, she really didn't believe what she heard.
Today was a normal day for Ruby. She came to her office and started doing her usual things.
Finding out about certain people, blackmailing some politicians who might know information about certain 'gods', or politicians who knew information about what was happening at Nightingale.
Of course, she didn't forget to dedicate herself to her research either, and what research was that?
Hunters and their means of turning humans into vampire hybrids.
A normal day like any other, until she got a call from Esther.
"I said your husband called the goddess of beauty Bitch."
"..." A moment of silence fell over the place.
Soon, Ruby takes a deep breath.
Sigh…
'He really did it…'
"And…? What was her reaction?" There's no use crying over spilled milk, so she decided right away to find out what the goddess's reaction was.
Depending on the reaction, she may or may not need to make plans against the goddess.
"She just smiled and walked away." Esther spoke in a simple and easy to understand manner.
"...What the fuck?" Ruby did not expect this result.
"Yes, I was surprised too, but she didn't seem to be offended by what Victor said." Esther leans back in her chair and continues:
"Is it like she doesn't care about Victor's insults?"
Rumble, Rumble.
Hearing the sound of thunder, Ruby glanced at the door and saw that Victor was leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.
Sigh...
Ruby sighs again when she realizes that Victor didn't care about what he just did.
But... She had to be honest with herself a little, she was a little glad he did it.
'Who does that thot think she is to go after my Darling?' Although that was her thinking, she knew the consequences of angering the goddess Aphrodite.
"Anyway, why was the goddess at the bar?"
"Oh, she wanted information about a witch."
"...Oh? A goddess looking for information about a witch?"
"Yes, this is new to me too, and this witch seems to be very important for her to come to me, an underground witch."
"...I wonder what's going on..." Ruby touched her chin.
"If I can guess, I think the witch offended her in some way?" Esther tried to deduce Aphrodite's thoughts.
"If that was it, she would have used her connections to the gods, so she wouldn't have gone specifically for you."
"... Well, I tried." Esther shrugged as if she had no choice.
"Hmm, tell me about the goddess's request."
"The witch she is looking for is in Greece, she is a witch who has committed a crime."
"...What crime?"
"She stole a divine artifact."
"...Divine artifact..." Ruby opened her eyes wide, "Is this witch stupid? She asked to be marked by the gods."
"Indeed."
"One thing I don't understand, if she's looking for this witch, then the artifact that was stolen was from the Greeks?"
"Yes." Esther confirmed.
"What is the artifact that was stolen?"
"The Hammer of Hephaestus."
"... Wha-..."
"...Yes, I think because of that, she doesn't want to involve the other gods in this matter."
"...." Seeing that Ruby didn't answer further, Esther looked at her cell phone and saw that she was still on the call.
"Ruby…?"
Ruby wakes up from stupor, "Give me a second." She looks at Victor:
"Bring that hammer, Darling."
"Umu? Which hammer?"
"That hammer you took from the wolves."
"Oh, give me a second."
Rumble, Rumble.
Victor disappears and appears again, holding a big hammer in his hand.
Ruby pushes the documents away from the table and asks Victor, "Put them on the table, please."
"Okay."
Victor puts the hammer on the table, and Ruby takes several pictures of the hammer and sends them to Esther.
"Esther, look at the pictures I sent you."
"Fine...Give me a second."
Esther puts the call on speakerphone and searches for the images Ruby sent.
Seeing the images Ruby sent, Esther opened her eyes wide:
"...What the fuck Ruby, how do you have this in your hands!?"
"It wasn't me, it was my husband who took it... The leader of a pack of wild wolves was using this hammer."
"Huh.....? How the fuck is a wolf using a god's tool? It's impossible!"
"What do you mean?"
"You may not know it, but only beings that have divine energy can use a divine artifact."
"...Wait, was the leader of the wolves a demigod?"
"Hmm, if he's a demigod, he was too weak." This time it was Victor who spoke.
"...I don't think so." Ruby spoke up when she heard what Victor said.
Victor seems to think a little and says, "I remember that the wolf said something like; 'It's not strong like the real thing, but whatever'."
"It's not as strong as the real thing..." Esther seemed to think, and then her face filled with disbelief.
"Has someone managed to create a copy of a divine artifact?"
"... Is it possible?" Ruby asked with narrowed eyes.
"... I don't know, this goes far beyond my area of expertise..."
"But one thing I'm sure of, Aphrodite was quite annoyed when she talked about this witch."
"...." A silence fell on the place until Victor spoke.
"Is it possible that this witch is making multiple copies of the divine artifact and selling it?" Victor had this doubt in his head.
"..." The two women remained silent while they seemed to be thinking about this possibility.
"Esther?" As Ruby didn't have much knowledge in this area, she asked Esther to see if she knew anything.
"...To be honest, I don't know... The very thought of copying a divine artifact is beyond my comprehension. I would even understand if it was the witch queen who was doing it. After all, she can be considered a goddess with how strong she is... But some random witch? I find it very difficult."
"Hmm, let's think about it that way." Victor began to speak:
"If there was a witch who could copy a god's artifact, and that copied artifact could be used by any supernatural being... What would happen?"
"The economy involving the purchase and exchange of weapons created by the witches would go to shit." Esther spoke.
"The 'pride' of the Olympian gods would be hurt." Ruby spoke up.
"If Zeus knew about this fact, he would use all his resources to hunt this witch." Esther continued.
"Basically, it would cause a big mess for the Olympian gods." The two finished talking at the same time.
"...I think that's reason enough for Aphrodite to intervene..."
"Don't get it wrong, Victor." Esther started to speak.
"The gods are selfish beings, and they only act when it's for their own benefit... Oh." Esther opened her mouth in shock.
"A goddess like Aphrodite wouldn't sit around watching someone capable of creating copies of 'ownerless' divine artifacts." Victor flashed a small smile.
"Probably, she wants to get this person for herself, huh?" Ruby continued Victor's reasoning.
"Yes, keeping someone capable of creating copies of divine artifacts nearby is useful in case a war breaks out." Esther agrees with their thinking.
"..." A silence fell around them, and suddenly that silence was broken by Esther.
"This is a chance."
"... What do you mean?" Ruby asked.
"Depending on the method this woman uses to copy artifacts, we may use her to copy a transport artifact used by the gods."
"...I don't understand what you're getting at." Ruby frowned.
"I'm saying we capture this witch before the goddess and make her copy a divine transport artifact, like Hermes' shoe, or Sun WuKong's cloud."
"These divine items are capable of crossing worlds."
"...." Victor and Ruby opened their eyes wide.
"You're saying..."
"Yes, you can go back to Nightingale if all goes well."
Rumble, Rumble.
"Wait, Darling!" Ruby quickly called out to Victor, who looked like he was going to disappear at any moment.
"Hmm?" Victor, who was about to leave, stopped.
"Don't be impatient."
"Oh..." He held back his desire and continued to listen to the girls.
Ruby continues when she sees that Victor has calmed down a bit, "Even if we capture this witch, how are we going to get in touch with these divine artifacts?"
"I do not know."
"...." The two fell silent and stared at Ruby's cell phone with a dry look.
Esther clarified, "Like I said, it's a gamble since it all depends on what methods this witch uses to copy a divine artifact."
"If she needs the divine artifact herself to make a copy, you'll have to steal it from a god."
"But if she just copies the divine artifact with a glance or some unknown magic, you just need to show her the divine artifact."
"It's a gamble... A shot in the dark."
"...."
"I will go to Greece." Victor suddenly spoke up.
"Darling..." Ruby looked at Victor.
"As the witch said, it's a gamble, I will go to that place, and I will investigate the witch. If I succeed, we can go home, but if I fail..."
"Well, I don't know..." Victor's face wasn't pretty now, his face was completely dark.
Seeing Victor's state, Ruby made a decision, "I'll go too-."
"No, you won't."
"...." Ruby pouted.
"I want you to do something here."
Victor points to the hammer on the table, "As far as I know, you haven't gotten any results from studying this in the past; take this to Esther so she can have a look."
"That's a good idea. Even though it's a copy, it's still a copy of a divine artifact, I'm quite interested."
"But..." Ruby wanted to protest.
"When I get back from Greece, I will start training with you."
"Ugh." She didn't want to.
Victor's smile grew as he leaned closer to Ruby's ear, "If you train with me…-" He started to say what kind of reward he was going to give her.
Ruby's entire face went completely red when she heard what Victor said.
"L-Lewd..." She pushed Victor away, and turned away, then continued:
"F-Fine, if you want to train with me so badly, I have no choice."
"I will train with you!"
"..." Victor showed a small smile when he saw Ruby's attitude.
"Esther, send me the requested information for that annoying goddess."
"Yes, yes. You only call my name when you need something from me." She started muttering how cruel Victor was.
"Done. And I sent everything."
Victor received a message on his cell phone, and that message contained information on everything Aphrodite asked Esther for and the possible location of the witch.
"Good job, Witch."
"Yes, yes." Esther rolled her eyes behind her cell phone.
[Kaguya, how is the girls training?] Victor started talking to his Maid.
[They're doing well, but there's still a long way to go...] Kaguya mutters at the end.
[But they're already as strong as a 200-year-old vampire.] She could be sure of that.
[And I'm as strong as an adult vampire.] She spoke in a proud tone.
[Good job, Kaguya. I know it's sudden, but I want you to order the Maids to always accompany my wife.]
[Will you leave, master...?] She asked carefully.
[Yes, and you will go with me.] Victor thought that Kaguya's power would be quite useful to infiltrate, and having a Maid like Kaguya near him is always a welcome thing.
[...I'm going quickly, give me a second.]
"...?" Victor was confused for a few seconds when he heard Kaguya's excited voice. Even though she spoke in the same neutral tone, he could easily tell that she was excited.
"I'll be back in less than a week." Victor approached Ruby, and held her by the waist:
"Stay safe, okay?" He spoke in a gentle tone.
"You too..." She spoke in a warm tone, very different from the usual, and slowly, she brought her face closer to Victor's.
Knowing what she wanted, Victor brought his face closer as well.
And then a couple's kiss happens.
The kiss lasts a few seconds, until Ruby stops kissing Victor, and says:
"Don't set fire to Greece."
"Hahaha~, don't worry, I'll use the power of ice."
"That's not what I meant..." Ruby sighed.
[I'm here, master.]
Victor's smile grew, and he caressed Ruby's face:
"Take care, my wife, I'll definitely be back in a week. It's a promise." He had to say that when he sensed Ruby's feelings of insecurity through their connection.
"... Be careful."
"I will."
Rumble, Rumble.
Victor disappears, leaving behind a trail of lightning.
"...." A silence fell over the place, and Ruby kept looking at the door where Victor had left.
"...Could you have turned off your cell phone?"
"..." Ruby looked coldly at her cell phone and spoke in her usual tone of voice, "Why didn't you hang up then?"
"Curiosity~."
Ruby narrows her eyes, "You better stop playing, or I swear I'll give your little fox medicine so he can never use his instrument on you again."
".... I'm sorry." Esther humbly backed off.
"It's good that you understand." Ruby spoke with a snort.
"Anyway, come to my house, I won't take the hammer to The Lost Club." Ruby takes out her cell phone and sits down in a chair.
"Why?"
She crossed her legs and picked up a glass that contained a red liquid, took a sip, and after taking a sip of the liquid, she says:
"I'm lazy."
"....." A silence fell on the place.
"... Well, that's a good reason." Esther could relate to Ruby's feelings, considering that if it wasn't extremely necessary, she'd rather not leave the house.
Esther gets up from her chair, and grabs a coat, "I'm going to your house, and I'll take some trusted Witches."
"...Are you sure about that?" Ruby narrowed her eyes.
"Yes, they are reliable. After all, I did to them the same thing you did to me." Esther spoke in an ironic voice.
'It's like they say, Karma is a bitch, she always comes back to bite your ass.'
"Oh..." Ruby understood now what Esther meant by trusting.
"If they betray me, they will die, a very advantageous contract for me. And they will be useful in this kind of research."
"Fine, just be careful, I don't want any information leaked."
"I know." Esther hangs up the phone
"... Sigh." Ruby takes a long breath and looks at the ceiling.
"Six months..." She really didn't expect it to go this long without seeing her family.
Like Victor, Ruby missed her childhood friends, her sisters, and her mother. …
She had never been away from girls for so long.
And in that time that passed, she had no choice but to lean completely on Victor.
Just as Victor needed her, she needed Victor.
'Luckily, the bloodlust of Victor hasn't been activated yet…' Ruby worries about how long her blood will be able to quench Victor's bloodlust.
'He's already starting to show signs of emotional and physical breakdown.' Ruby feared that if it took 2 years, or even longer, and Victor didn't drink Violet's or Sasha's blood…
He would go completely mad.
'I think letting him focus on training was a good idea…'
Ruby starts to think about various things, but soon she feels a little headache.
Sigh…
She sighs again as she gets up and walks over to the couch.
'I'll get some rest' She closes her eyes and tries not to think about anything…
And slowly, she falls into the world of unconsciousness.
