After visiting the sick, I was organizing the last reward I received from the underground journey.
Or rather, instead of organizing...
**[Black Pudding of ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) Mixed Magic]**
**[Blood Stew of Mixed Magic]**
...it would be more accurate to say that I was cooking.
“...Gulp. Master? When will it be ready?”
“Not yet. Hold on a little longer.”
“Haaa...”
The one breathing excitedly in anticipation of the meal was my servant, **Ariella**, a member of the **Noble of the Night** race.
Once, she had built a formidable force powerful enough to annihilate our unit. However, after being defeated by our battalion, she lost all her accumulated power and servants.
She’d been quite useful even in her weakened state, but it was time for her to become a little more effective.
**[Blood of Mixed Magic from a Glutton]**
Creatures like her grow stronger by absorbing blood.
The current dish I was preparing used the blood of one of those **Gluttons**. The sheer size of that creature meant it had a significant amount of blood stored within its shadow.
The mixture of magic from various monsters wasn’t of the highest quality, but...
“It smells delicious.”
...it had a rich density of magical energy.
In fact, I'd thought for some time that Ariella needed to grow stronger. I even considered cooking the **Pope’s** blood when I defeated him, though I didn’t, fearing the risk of failure with such a high-quality ingredient.
This blood, however, was manageable enough to cook.
Due to my "Vampiric Chef" ability, Ariella had lost a significant portion of her powers, but enough time had passed. With my orders, she’d fought and consumed quite a bit of enemy blood in combat. Plus, I’d been preparing monster blood-based meals three times a day.
Her **Vampire Knights** might not match the numbers and strength of the past, but her own abilities had recovered considerably.
Moreover, she was close to ascending to **Baron** rank.
**[Course meal completed.]**
**[Theme – Rich Scent of Blood]**
“It’s ready. Don’t leave a drop.”
“Thank you for the feast!”
Using the immense amount of **Glutton's** blood, I had poured all my effort into crafting this meal. It was a feast of blood dishes, so plentiful that the table could barely support their weight.
The result of consuming every last bit of it:
**[Your servant has met the conditions for evolution.]**
**[Would you like to proceed with evolution?]**
"Heh. Just as planned."
The message appeared before me, confirming my expectations.
“I thought the experience bar was nearly full and just needed a final push.”
The phrase on the screen made me think, “This feels like something out of PoXmon.”
“Pardon?” Ariella asked.
“It’s nothing.”
In PoXmon, if you chose not to evolve, it was usually to keep a cute appearance, wasn’t it?
I glanced at my servant. Ariella, now bloated from the meal, was lying down, looking content.
"...Not that she’s cute or anything now."
Seeing no reason to halt her evolution, I clicked the system prompt to approve it.
**[Your servant progresses to the next stage.]**
In that instant—
Boom!
The vampire, who had been lounging in contentment, suddenly erupted in a burst of dark shadows.
---
A deep hum resonated...
Just moments ago, Ariella had been lying down without a care. Now, shadows radiated from her body, continuously spreading, filling the entire room in seconds.
“What... is this?”
A moment ago, this had been a regular building. Now, I found myself in a shadowy, unknown space.
"Is this like the **Shadow Veil**?"
The darkness felt like being cast into the vast emptiness of space. The only visible thing in the pitch-black void was...
In the center of that space, a ruby-like object glowed ominously in red.
Or, rather, it wasn’t a ruby.
It was the blood-red eye of my servant, **Ariella**.
Since taking her as my servant, the system assured me that she couldn’t resist my orders. She had proven useful, too.
Yet, in moments like these, I was reminded of a truth I often forgot.
‘A true monster of another world...’
According to the **Combat Power Gauge**, her potential ranked among the highest monsters I’d encountered.
Her lazy, bloated appearance was nowhere in sight now. She stood at the center of the darkness, her burning eyes fixed upon me.
‘Even this is just a glimpse of the potential lurking within.’
Gradually, the shadows spread around her, stained crimson. The entire space filled with a thick, blood-like substance, only to be absorbed back into her body.
**[Your servant’s potential has been partially unlocked.]**
**[Karsstein Bloodline Lesser Baron -> Karsstein Bloodline Baron]**
**[Servant Count (1)]**
**[Ariella Karsstein]**
**[Race - Vampire]**
**[Baron of the Karsstein Bloodline]**
**[Commander of the Iron Legion’s Elite Guard]**
**[Her rank as a noble remains low, though her potential has been unlocked to some extent.]**
**[Even as a low-ranking noble, other nobles wouldn’t dare insult her directly!]**
**[Take good care of your servant; with your guidance, they may reach even greater heights.]**
When the crimson shadows dissipated, the room returned to its normal state.
In the middle of it stood Ariella, laughing with satisfaction.
“Truly, it was a magnificent feast, my lord.”
“That so?”
The change was subtle, but the shift in her aura was unmistakable.
My instincts as an **Awakened** warned me that, were she not bound as my servant, she would be a creature capable of killing me with ease.
“Stop grinning. It’s unsettling.”
“Hm... Excuse me?”
“If you’re done eating, it’s time to work.”
“Well... alright.”
Had she not been my servant, she would’ve posed a deadly threat to me.
But then again, what did it matter?
“She’s my servant now, isn’t she?”
‘If it weren’t for...’ Hypothetical excuses like that didn’t hold up in the military.
“Ahem! Well, I’ll go retrieve some of my lost servants, then. And maybe scout for some potential recruits.”
“Fine. Don’t slack off just because no one’s watching.”
“Yes, sir.”
Although the recent battle had further thinned her numbers, the remaining servants had grown stronger.
“Oh, by the way,” she added.
“What is it?”
“Now that I’m a baron, I might be able to create servants with more diverse abilities.”
“Oh?”
Until now, her **Vampire Knights** had been limited to one class. But now...
“It seems possible to create servants capable of wielding the bloodline’s magic, though they’d still be relatively weak.”
“Oh?”
That meant she’d gained the ability to craft specialized troops, potentially more powerful than before.
“And I can also expand the types of creatures I can turn into servants.”
Not only that, but the range of creatures she could convert into servants had widened, no longer limited to species similar to her own, like humans.
“In the future, if I come across any useful monsters, may I consider them for servitude?”
“Not a bad idea.”
The system prompt did say to nurture my servant, after all.
Indeed, she was growing well.
---
After her evolution, Ariella ventured out to expand her servant numbers, while I returned to military duties.
“I think that island is still our best option for a base.”
“You mean the one with the ruined amusement park?”
“Yeah. The engineers think it would be easier to fortify using those structures—”
My military duties were nothing particularly noteworthy, though they did involve strategizing.
When things got complex, I left the detailed planning to those smarter than me, adding input only for big decisions.
“Right. Discuss it, and let me know the final decision.”
“Are you heading out?”
“It’s time for me to make dinner.”
Delegating to capable hands made the decision easy. When discussions got too complex, I simply tuned out, focusing on cooking when mealtime rolled around.
Had this been regular army life, I might’ve been reprimanded, but...
“We’re looking forward to tonight’s dinner!”
“You got it.”
Luckily, the troops were my biggest supporters. After all, I was here to cook, not lead strategy meetings.
---
As I finished preparing dinner, I sat down, lost in thought.
A few heavy-duty refrigerators stood nearby, no longer usable due to the lack of power.
With a touch of curiosity, I walked up, slipped two fingers under one, and lifted it easily.
A huge, commercial-grade fridge floated as lightly as Styrofoam.
“Well... figured as much.”
The strength that would’ve once required two or three soldiers to even budge the thing—now, I could toss it across the room with ease.
Not only me; all the soldiers from our battalion could manage the same feat.
‘We’ve come a long way.’
Our unit had grown significantly since those early days. Luck, skills, and resilience had brought us this far.
And with Ariella’s evolution and my own strength, we were more formidable than ever.
I glanced out the window, watching people bartering nearby, and a sense of pride filled me. Civilization, once utterly shattered, was slowly but surely being rebuilt.
Just then, a familiar chime echoed in my ears.
**[You have seized control of the territory: “Metropolitan City (2)” in ROK.17
.]**
**[While you retain control, you will earn additional occupation points.]**
**[Your guild’s occupied territory has expanded!]**
**[You may now appoint one additional officer.]**
Seeing this unexpected notification, I chuckled.
“Already?”
It hadn’t been long since we arrived, yet the influence of our guild already dominated this area.
Though it was unexpected, it seemed our resources and influence had permeated every corner, from food to currency.
“It’s a sweet bonus I wasn’t expecting.”
---
Just as I was savoring this moment, another notification chimed.
**[Shaman: Youngjun.]**
Guild message.
One word stood out—**Shaman**.
**[Chef: What’s up?]**
Truth be told, it had been a while since I’d heard from **Sergeant Park Tae-jun**, my comrade and one of our unit’s most experienced soldiers.
**[Shaman: Sorry.]**
...Huh?
**[Chef: What do you mean? You’re making me anxious.]**
**[Shaman: I tried my best to hold it back, but I’ve reached my limit. The defenses are breached.]**
Apparently, he hadn’t been able to prevent something after all.
**[Chef: What do you mean, breached?]**
**[Shaman: Fortify your defenses.]**
**[Chef: You’re not making sense. What are you trying to say?]**
Then came a chilling message:
**[Shaman: A monster wave is coming.]**
My mind raced, but before I could respond, I sensed a presence.
‘...?’
Not in front or behind.
**[Shaman: The monster wave is headed your way.]**
As the message obscured my vision, I barely had time to process it.
‘From above...!’
Suddenly, a sharp blade rushed down, aiming right at the top of my head.
