Blood Awakening: The Strongest Hybrid and His Vampire Bride

Chapter 766: One Day Before the Final Battle

The stolen transports finally entered Volkov-controlled waters shortly before sunrise.

By then, the excitement of taking the harbour had already disappeared. Nikolai stood near the bow while several smaller vessels approached to escort them towards the private docks, watching the lights of S-City gradually emerge through the morning haze.

‘We did it!’

They had succeeded in snatching two transports and a few other items, along with the full tragectory of the islands’ movements in the next few days.

What’s more, the engineers they saved accepted his offer of employment. ‘Though I had to add the clause to move their families out of S-City till everything ended.’ Yet somehow, Nikolai didn’t feel victorious.

‘Three days…’

His gaze drifted towards the fading Blood Moon.

The blood-red sphere remained visible despite the growing sunlight, crawling from the horizon above the city like an eye that refused to close.

Three days before their stolen route might become useless.

Perhaps less before the Blood Moon erupted again. Not only did they face the danger of that ominous moonlight, but also the ever-changing movements of the Nosferatu, who moved as if they could see the future at times.

And somewhere between those two deadlines, Nikolai needed to decide who would accompany him into what could easily become their final battle.

“Haa…”

He rubbed the back of his neck.

At least there was one thing he could do before burying himself beneath another mountain of work.

Go home.

“Let’s head back.”

***

The mansion felt strangely quiet when Nikolai returned.

Most of the servants had already heard about the harbour attack, yet nobody rushed towards him with reports or questions. Sarah had apparently warned everyone that unless the building was burning down…

…Their Patriarch was not to be disturbed for at least six hours.

‘What a brilliant woman… but I am sure she’s been avoiding me a little lately.’

Nikolai barely made it through the family wing before hearing hurried footsteps.

“Nikolai!”

He turned just as a small white-haired figure slammed into his chest.

“Oof…”

Nikita wrapped both arms around his waist and buried her face beneath his chin, pressing herself against him with enough force that a normal man would’ve struggled to remain standing.

Her familiar scent immediately surrounded him.

The calming, sweet warmth reminded him that he was finally home, no longer out in the cold like a mangy dog, allowing his shoulders to finally droop and relax.

“I’m back.”

“You stink.”

Yet despite her complaints, she dug her nose into his chest, taking deep breaths as if she loved this musky scent of sweat and masculinity.

“…That’s the first thing you say?”

“Mmmhm…”

Before Nikolai could respond, another pair of arms wrapped around him from behind. And a pair of soft breasts pressed against his back with a swish of golden hair slipping across his shoulder.

A second later, Selene’s fangs gently pricked his neck the moment her lips touched the side of his neck.

“Welcome home, darling.”

She didn’t shout or act dramatic like Nikita and instead offered a soft, quiet welcome, along with her huge tits to increase the comfort tenfold.

Nikolai reached behind and caught her hand.

“Mhm.”

Selene clung to his body tightly for several seconds before her fingers moved beneath his shirt, slowly tracing the muscles of his stomach as though checking for wounds.

“Are you alright? There’s nothing wrong, right? What about any injuries?!”

“Nothing serious.”

“Oh good, I was worried you might be hurt…”

‘…she’s grabbing my cock though…’

Nikita immediately pulled back and frowned, her eyes dropping to the hand inside his pants, then back to Selene’s shameless face buried in Nikolai’s neck.

“Oi.”

“????” Selene seemed to be truly in her own world as she nibbled Nikolai’s neck, her fangs sinking ever so slightly deeper, just enough to get a taste of his sweet, intoxicating blood. “Mmmmn…”

“Leech! Remove your hands! He’s just got home… why are you molesting him!”

Nikita’s tail fluffed up as it swished through the air faster and faster. She clearly didn’t mind this kind of act normally, but tonight Nikolai couldn’t help but feel that she seemed rather protective of him.

“Mmmph… I love this taste… baby…. Whaaa?!”

Selene only finished a few mouthfuls before Nikita’s lean muscles tightened and she dragged the vampire from Nikolai’s back. Thud! The vampire’s plump ass slammed into the distant pillar before she slid to the floor in a daze.

The movement was so fast and brutal that Nikolai could only nod in respect.

“I know you love him as much as we all do. But fucking hell… Can’t you see how exhausted he is, Selene!?”

“Ah…. Eh?”

The blonde vampire sat against the pillar, her eyes shifting between the pair before she nodded while shifting her eyes averting Nikita’s fierce gaze.

Pah!

“Waaaa!?” This time it was Nikita who jumped in the air from Nikolai’s swift slap to her ass.

“Don’t be so harsh on her… It’s my fault for not saying no, okay?”

Nikita immediately covered her ass with both hands before turning towards him with wide golden eyes.

“You bastard!”

Her tail puffed up even further, but Nikolai could already see the anger disappearing from her face.

Selene, meanwhile, remained slumped against the pillar while rubbing the back of her head. The blonde vampire looked more embarrassed than injured, although the faint blood around her lips proved she’d gotten exactly what she wanted before being launched across the corridor.

Nikolai sighed and pulled Nikita against his chest.

“I know you’re worried.”

The little werewolf stopped struggling almost immediately.

His palm moved through her messy white hair while her cheek pressed against his chest again, this time without the earlier aggression.

“I just…”

Her voice softened.

“You keep leaving… and each time you come back wounded or with another woman and in horrible shape…” Her eyes became watery, soft streams of tears falling down her cheeks like the rain of doubt in his chest. “C-Can’t we help? We can fight too… we’re strong! We’re not weak damsels!”

Nikolai’s expression changed.

For all the ridiculousness surrounding their reunion, he understood what she meant.

Though they were present at the outpost, he once again took things into his own hands to avoid any accidents and pushed them away. He could easily count on them. This was something he couldn’t forget even when he tried to.

‘I’ve been too hasty… I’m not facing this alone!’

Even when Nikolai returned home, it sometimes felt as though he was already preparing to leave again.

“I know.”

Nikita tightened her arms around him.

“But this should be the last time.”

She raised her head.

“You said that before.”

“…Yeah.”

He couldn’t argue.

‘But I swear, once this ends…

I’ll leave the patriarchy to my father and enjoy a long, long holiday with you all.’

Selene finally rose from the floor and approached more carefully this time, rubbing her backside while glaring at Nikita. Yet when she reached them, there was no argument, as if the two were just acting a moment before to make him listen.

She simply rested one hand against Nikolai’s arm.

“We know you have to go.”

Her red eyes lowered.

“That doesn’t mean we have to like it.”

Nikolai looked between them before releasing a slow breath.

“Don’t take it too hard, baby. We know why you push us away… only a dumb bitch wouldn’t see how much you love and cherish us and our children.”

“I’ll tell everyone what happened after I sleep for a little while.”

Nikita frowned.

“A little? You better not show up for six hours, or I’m going to shove a dildo the same size as your cock up your ass!”

“Hahahahaha. I want to see that!” Selene broke out into a rare full on belly shaking laugh.

“….”

Nikolai was about to drag both of them towards the bedroom when another scent reached him from farther down the corridor—the familiar scent of warm milk and honey… with an elegant, calming floral aroma.

“What?” Nikita asked, noticing him stop.

Nikolai’s gaze moved towards the end of the hallway.

“Kumiko.”

A few moments later, the familiar fox woman appeared from around the corner.

She moved slowly and carefully with delicate steps.

Not because she was injured or in pain, but because both arms carefully supported the tiny bundle against her chest.

Nikolai’s entire mood changed.

“Kumi…”

Kumiko raised her eyes.

Her long hair remained slightly messy, while the black markings that had appeared across the right side of her body after Hikari’s birth were partially visible beneath her loose nightgown.

There was something different about her now.

The pressure of an Ancestor remained faintly hidden beneath her skin, completely at odds with the soft woman carrying their daughter.

“You’re finally home.

What a troublesome Papa you are.”

There wasn’t a trace of anger or complain in her voice; she just stroked the sleeping fox’s cheek and grinned at him.

He released Nikita and approached carefully.

“Sorry.”

“For what?”

“For not coming sooner.”

Kumiko shook her head, letting Hikari rest against his large forearm. “Fufu, she’s so tiny compared to your arm.” Then leaned closer to his ear. “Don’t be. You were just doing your duty as the man of our household, right?”

Nikolai stopped in front of her and lowered his gaze.

Hikari slept peacefully inside the soft blanket.

Her tiny fox ears twitched every few seconds, while several strands of golden hair carrying faint silver tips peeked from beneath the cloth.

Nikolai couldn’t stop smiling.

‘She’s so fucking small…’

He had fought monsters larger than houses.

Broken through walls.

Killed creatures that could tear humans apart with their bare hands.

Yet touching his daughter somehow required more concentration than any of them.

“Can I?”

Kumiko’s expression softened.

“She’s your daughter.”

Nikolai carefully slipped his arms beneath the bundle. Yet the moment Hikari shifted, he felt more stress, danger or worry than anything else in his life. Even now, after four children, this little ball of fluff was more important to him than even facing Alucard.

Kumiko giggled while teasing him. “Relax, honey.”

“She’s moving.”

“Babies do that quite a lot… You should’ve tried holding her inside you for nine months!”

“I know babies move.”

“Then why are you panicking?”

“…”

Nikolai ignored them.

The moment her tiny body pressed against him, the strange tension running through his muscles disappeared. Her scent was different from anyone else in the family, and yet it was such a scent that even if he smelt it a thousand miles away.

He felt confident in his ability to find her.

That strange black blood inside Hikari remained quiet now, stabilised by Kumiko’s golden blood and whatever mutation had occurred during her birth.

Nikolai lowered his face.

One of Hikari’s eyes opened.

Gold.

Tiny specks of light shifted inside the iris.

Then the other opened.

Black, almost impossibly dark, filled with faint silver flecks like stars hidden inside a night sky.

Nikolai stopped breathing for a moment.

“…Beautiful.”

Kumiko watched him instead of the baby, her lips curving deeper with each action and change in his face.

“Mhm.”

Hikari stared at him without crying.

Her tiny hand slowly emerged from the blanket before grabbing one of the fingers resting near her chest. “Ah… so that’s what it is…” And just like that, with her simple gesture, all the stress, exhaustion and fears vanished.

His word became Hikari alone.

‘Three days…’

His file faded slightly as he hugged Hikari tightly against his chest, her little nose touching the scruff of his neck as she breathed slowly, falling back into a light sleep.

“What happened?”

Nikolai hesitated at first, because he didn’t want to bring Alucard into this moment. To bring the outside issue home… But hiding things from his wives had already caused enough problems.

“We found the route to the island.”

The three women immediately became stiff, their eyes sharper and shoulders trembling ever so slightly, waiting for his next words as if scared to speak themselves.

“The Nosferatu already prepared tomorrow’s navigation data. We copied everything before bringing the ships back.”

“And?” Nikita asked.

“We have roughly three days before it becomes unreliable.”

Kumiko immediately stepped closer to him, leaning her head on his shoulder before she sighed into his ear. The sudden gust of hot air caught him off guard, but the next moment he heard her request.

“Please, just spend one day with us. With your family before you go.”

Nikolai closed his eyes.

The sudden warmth of three women and his daughter enveloped him like a delightful heater, helping calm his mind.

Then, with a simple nod, he put the thoughts of Alucard away.

‘A day for family… I can do that.’