My Horny Stepmom Turns Me into Her Vampire Slave-Chapter 22: Innatus

"N-No... no... no..."

Mia’s faint, trembling whispers only deepen the paralyzing terror gripping Chris as he stares at the primordial vampire, far larger than the ones just destroyed.

"These creatures... shouldn’t even hunt in packs... and now they not only do, they even have a pack leader... what the hell is going on...?"

"I told you not to strain yourself trying to talk."

Then Chris gently lays her on the ground and raises his katana toward the creature.

"C-Chris... what the hell are you doing...? R-Run...!"

"No way! I’m not leaving you here at the mercy of that monster!"

"D-Don’t be foolish... you have no chance against a primordial vampire... you’ll die for sure!"

"If our time has really come, then we’ll die together."

"S-Stupid... this isn’t the time to play the hero! T-Think about yourself while you still can!"

"Just before those monsters arrived, I said I would give my life for you. It wasn’t something I said lightly, and I have no intention of taking my words back at the first sign of trouble."

Mia says nothing.

Partly because his words send a sharp pang through her heart, partly to save her strength and hope her body recovers enough to help Chris.

She tries to stand up, but fails the moment she realizes she can barely move her fingers.

The enormous vampire is now only a few meters away, but Chris moves first and throws himself at it, trying to keep it as far from Mia as possible.

Chris leaps at it and slashes at the creature’s neck, but with a single swipe the monster knocks him away as if brushing off an annoying fly.

Grievously wounded in the chest by the vampire’s claws, he slams into the ground again and again.

The repeated impacts fracture his femur and several ribs, but the bones and wounds heal within a few seconds.

Meanwhile the primordial vampire keeps advancing toward Mia, completely ignoring Chris.

She watches it helplessly, in shock.

That monster... it’s targeting me. This isn’t normal... beasts like that should act only on the instinct to kill, and yet it’s as if it’s following an order. Has someone managed to tame them and make them smarter...? No, primordial vampires are extinct, I’m certain of it. Could they be some kind of imitation? This situation keeps getting more absurd...

The primordial vampire raises its claw above Mia. It is about to bring it down on her when it suddenly stops as Chris’s blood blade pierces its neck.

Yes, I did it! I did it!

But he doesn’t even have time to celebrate before realizing with growing terror that the creature’s neck is far too tough — and he far too weak. The blade sinks into the thick flesh just enough for a few thin lines of blood to appear, and nothing more.

To make matters worse, the katana gets stuck, and Chris tries in vain to pull it out.

A growl of annoyance more than pain escapes the creature. It grabs Chris by the legs and slams him into the ground once, twice, three times.

And then again and again.

With every impact, bones shatter and blood bursts from wounds all over his body.

But that’s not all. The force of its grip on his ankles is so crushing that they shatter into fragments.

Finally it throws him aside like a discarded garbage sack — but not before raking its claws violently across his back.

Chris lies motionless in a pool of blood.

Since the regenerative power of vampires focuses on the most severe injuries, the internal damage and some of the broken bones heal — but no more.

There is not a single drop of Sanguis energy left in him, so he can no longer regenerate the remaining wounds.

His vision blurs and he grows weaker by the second from blood loss.

T-This can’t end like this... it’s not fair...

The primordial vampire turns back to Mia and lifts her by one of the twin ponytails hanging at the sides of her head.

It stares for a moment at the Tear of Azkarith and grins.

It draws back its claw, preparing to pierce her chest — but it is stopped by a stone hurled straight into its eye.

The creature lets out a savage growl of pain. It releases its grip, letting Mia fall to the ground, and clutches its crushed eye.

A few meters away, Chris somehow manages to stand.

The deep gashes on his back continue to bleed, and his still-broken bones limit his movements.

He tries to shape a new blood katana, but he no longer has the energy to do so.

He clenches his fists and raises them in front of his face — the only weapons he has left.

"G-Get away, Chris... get away... GET AWAY!"

Mia’s weak, sobbing cries reach him, but he ignores them.

"F-Fight, you damn monster! I-I’m not afraid of you... come on!"

For the first time, the enormous primordial vampire turns its attention from Mia to Chris.

The crushed eye has already fully regenerated.

But Chris’s shout was only a diversion to draw the vampire’s attention to himself and buy Mia precious time.

He is exhausted and knows he doesn’t even have the strength to throw a proper punch.

The creature focuses on him and prepares to attack.

I-I have to... I have to fight to protect Mia! That’s the duty of a brother... t-there’s no way I’m letting her die... no way... no way... NO WAY!

The vampire’s claws crash down toward him, but a moment before they tear open his chest... clang!

The claw strikes something incredibly solid that suddenly appears between them.

A semi-transparent armor of dark red bones covers Chris from head to toe.

The creature’s blow doesn’t even scratch it.

The primordial vampire stands stunned — but Chris is no less shocked.

W-What the hell is this thing...? It doesn’t look like the usual energy Mia and Isabelle release when they fight. But whatever it is, one thing is certain — I’ve never felt this strong in my life!

The moment the skeletal armor appears around him, the wounds and broken bones heal instantly.

Not only that — he feels completely reinvigorated, full of energy.

Chris tries to shape his blood weapon as he usually does, but this time something different happens.

Instead of a katana, a long, sharpened bone forms in his fist like a rapier.

The creature staggers backward a few steps while snarling at him, then charges with all the strength and ferocity it possesses.

An aura of Sanguis energy swirls around its claws, concentrated there to maximize its offensive power.

But now it is no match for Chris.

He outspeeds it and pierces its skull from side to side with the sharp bone rapier, killing it instantly.

The heavy carcass of the primordial vampire collapses to the ground with a dull thud.

The bone armor disappears, and Chris wastes no time rushing to Mia.

She is still conscious, though she can barely keep her eyes open.

She smiles weakly at him.

"I-Innatus..." she murmurs before losing consciousness in his arms.