Although the main bedroom door remained locked to him, Judas was not a man to accept total defeat. He had wailed and complained outside the door for ten minutes straight.

Eventually, the blockade cracked. The three wives inside decided they needed peace more than they needed to punish him completely.

They opened the door just wide enough to shove Summer through before slamming it shut again.

Why they chose the vampire was a mystery to him. Perhaps because she was the newest addition, or maybe she had drawn the short straw among the women.

Judas did not care about the politics behind the decision. He simply hated sleeping alone. Having a warm body beside him was a necessity for his peace of mind, regardless of which wife it was.

They lay together on the narrow guest mattress in the side room. The space was tight, forcing their bodies to press against one another. Summer did not seem to mind the lack of luxury.

Her hands were already wandering under the blanket, pale fingers tracing dangerous circles near his groin.

Despite the physical intimacy, Judas felt a cold knot of caution in his chest. He glanced at the floating blue numbers invisible to everyone but him.

Affection: 25

Considering she had already drunk his blood and engaged in oral play, the number refused to climb significantly. Compared to the rapid devotion of Nina, Ezra, and Luna, this progress was frustratingly slow.

This stagnation forced his hand. He could not share information about the System or the new features he had just unlocked. Not yet.

If her loyalty could waver, his secrets could be sold. Trust had to be earned, and she was barely passing the entrance exam.

"Husband, what are you thinking?" Summer whispered. Her voice was low, her breath tickling the sensitive skin of his neck.

Judas turned his head on the pillow. He looked deep into her crimson eyes, searching for something behind the red iris. The dark thought at the forefront of his mind tumbled out before he could filter it.

"I hate betrayals."

The hand on his groin stopped moving. Summer frowned, her smooth forehead wrinkling in confusion.

"What?"

A sharp notification pinged in his peripheral vision.

Affection: 25 -> 24

'Oh, fuck it,' Judas cursed silently. That was not what he intended to say. It was too heavy, too dark for a moment of cuddling.

"Nothing," he lied quickly, shifting his arm to pull her tighter against his chest. He needed to shut this conversation down before the score dropped another point. "Tomorrow, both of us will explore the Willow Mountains. We need to be rested. Sleep now."

He pulled the duvet up to their chins, effectively ending the interaction.

Inside the vampire's mind, a second conversation brewed in the silence.

'Bitch, don't you think he is super wary of you?' Zephriya's voice echoed in Summer's skull.

Summer closed her eyes, listening to the steady heartbeat of the man beside her. 'It seems so,' she replied. 'Well, aren't we doing the same to him?'

'True,' the spirit conceded.

* *

The morning sun had barely crested the horizon, painting the sky in hues of bruised purple and soft orange. Outside the wooden house, Summer leaned against the porch railing.

A smirk played on her lips.

'Abyss whore, do you see this?' Summer projected her thoughts inward, her tone dripping with triumph. 'He chose me. Just me. Those three clingy girls are left behind while I get a private tour. It seems my performance last night made quite the impression.'

Inside her mind, Zephriya scoffed. The sound was like dry leaves scraping together. 'Do not get ahead of yourself, leech. He is a man. Men think with their lower halves. You manipulated his lust, not his heart. There is a difference.'

Summer rolled her eyes, ignoring the princess's cynicism. She smoothed the fabric of her combat dress over her hips. It did not matter how she won his favor, only that she had. Access to Judas meant access to his secrets, and eventually, total control over her own fate.

Inside the house, the atmosphere was far less competitive but equally tense. Judas stood by the dining table, looking at the three women. Nina, Ezra, and Luna gathered around him, their expressions a mix of confusion and reluctance.

"I have to get her loyalty," Judas explained, keeping his voice low. "I need to make sure she will never betray me. She is strong, but she is a wild card. If my secrets were leaked, our lives would turn dangerous overnight. I need time alone with her to break down her walls."

Nina crossed her arms, her bottom lip jutting out in a pout. "Then why do you think we will never betray you? Why does she get the special treatment?"

Judas reached out and pinched her cheek gently. "How can my puppy betray me? You are part of my soul now."

Nina fought a smile but failed, her face flushing pink.

"Scoundrel," Luna scoffed, though her pointy ears turned red. She adjusted the strap of her leather armor. "You just want to flirt with the vampire without us watching."

Judas laughed, the sound warm and genuine. "Maybe a little. But mostly it is strategy."

Ezra stepped forward. She placed a hand on his chest, her dark eyes serious. "Just be careful, Judas. And remember that we need to improve our strength too. We do not want to be a burden to you. We want to fight by your side properly."

"That is for sure," he agreed solemnly. "And you will."

He pulled them into a group hug, kissing each forehead in turn. Then, he stepped back, glancing toward the door as he sensed Summer walking to the gate.

"It is time to go to a secret place…" He said, winking at the three women who wore confused expressions.

"Wha—" they didn't get a chance to ask anything, as with a mere thought, he activated the Couple Space.

The air around the three women shimmered, and in a blink, they vanished from the room. They were now safe within the dimensional pocket anchored to his soul, able to rest or train in the space while he traveled.

Judas took a deep breath, composed his features, and walked out the front door.

Summer leaned against the gate as he emerged. She glanced past him at the closed door, her eyebrows raising in concern.

"Are you really sure to leave them alone here?" she asked. "It seems dangerous to leave three defenseless women without their lord."

Judas walked up to her. "What else? This is a honeymoon trip for both of us. They understand that I need to focus on my new wife."

He brought his hand down, landing a sharp, stinging spank on her ass.

Affection: 24 -> 29

'So she loves it.' He gave her a few more spanks, but the number didn't increase.

'Tsk.'

Summer first had a surprised expression which quickly turned to a smirk as she leaned into him, moving her hands to his ass, her fingers curling to clench a handful of flesh there.

"Then I will treasure this…" she purred, licking her lips provocatively. Her red eyes gleamed with hunger.

Judas felt a spike of heat in his gut. If he did not have plans for today, he might have dragged her right there onto the porch. He grinned, grabbed her hand, and led her away from the house toward the tree line.

They walked in silence for a few minutes, the house disappearing behind the foliage.

Suddenly, a strange sensation prickled in his mind. It was Summer.

'It is strange,' Summer's internal voice wondered. 'Their presence simply disappeared. I could hear their hearts beating inside, and then… nothing. Silence.'

Judas's breath caught in his lungs. He kept his pace steady, forcing his face to remain neutral.

'What kind of treasure did he use for that?' Summer continued to speculate. 'A treasure which hides even the flow of blood might be Rare or above quality. Maybe even Unique.'

'That is impossible,' Zephriya's raspy voice answered in the mental void. 'If he had such a treasure, I would have sensed the magical fluctuation. His most valuable treasure is that sword at his waist.'

'Whatever,' Summer thought, dismissing the mystery. 'If he is not worried, then they are safe. He would not leave them to die. Now, my aim should be to get his trust completely. I need to be indispensable.'

'You have already sucked his dick,' Zephriya sneered. 'What is next? Ass?'

'Shut up,' Summer snapped internally. She glanced up at Judas, a flash of guilt crossing her face.

Judas pretended to be absorbed in clearing a vine from their path, though there was a grin on his face which made her groan in frustration.

"Can you please not always spy on me?" she complained.

"You guys are just loud."

They pushed deeper into the woods. The trees here were large, their roots twisting like snakes across the forest floor. The canopy was thick, blocking out most of the morning light and casting the world in a gloomy, green twilight.

This was the outer area of the Willow Mountains, yet the gloomy aura here was surprising.

Judas frowned. Why did he feel like the density of the trees had increased today?

Strangely, there were no monsters in the outer area. This wasn't usually the case. The outer area typically hosted the most low-level Initiate monsters.

Summer also had doubts on her face.

'Where did all those monsters go? It's almost like someone hunted this place clear.'

Suddenly both Judas and Summer turned to each other.

"Someone else is hunting here!" both said in unison.

Was it a human, or another monster?

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