The gift of darkness

I feel like since I arrived at the North Pole someone put a death flag on my head.

I was already mentally prepared for the chaos that the heroines would cause in the future, but I never thought I would suddenly be dragged by a big boss.

What kind of magic did this old man use to bring me to this place?

Even I know that manipulating space is not an easy thing in this world.

My thoughts were interrupted by the old man's cold voice asking for my name.

A strange need to talk to him came over me out of nowhere, but when I was about to open my mouth the system alerts woke me up.

And when I thought I had regained lucidity, my mind again became disordered and the impulse to speak returned, only to be stopped by the system.

This cycle repeated itself countless times until my mind almost collapsed and finally went blank.

Noticing the sudden change in me, the old man showed a slight smile as if he had expected it a long time ago.

- As expected, someone of your level can easily get rid of my psychological manipulation. Sorry for my bad manners, but it is normal among the strong to greet with some harmless temptations.

You call that harmless!!

This damn old man, if it weren't for the help of the system, I would have fallen into his trap.

I have no idea what he wants, but it seems he confused me with someone else and I can't let him discover my true identity.

As the system told me, the best policy to survive in this situation is to keep quiet.

It seems that the old man did not notice my nervousness and all his attention is on the girl accompanying him.

The atmosphere fell silent again while both parties remained thoughtful.

I don't know how much time passed, but it felt like an eternity.

He seemed to be pondering something and finally gave a sigh, as if he had come to a conclusion.

His serious expression changed to one of reluctance.

With a wave of his cane he dragged the girl in front of me and spoke again.

- I have long forgotten my name, but my acquaintances call me the collector. I'm here today about of the man you killed in the grove near the train station, the hunter.

What is this geezer talking about? When I killed a man with that code name, all I did was rescue an injured woman.

Damn, since Anneth was called to the hospital I knew that the matter was not that simple.

But why did a super boss have to come out to deal with me?

- Unlike him, who enjoys catching noblewomen and mentally breaking them, my hobby is a little more refined. I am drawn to the unique features of female bodies and am dedicated to preserving them in my collection.

Those aren't refined hobbies, they're just a couple of old perverts. That explains why the girl I rescued was only wearing her underwear when I found her.

He seems happy to share his tastes with someone else, but it just makes me feel disgusted.

He got up from his seat and placed his hands that no longer looked human but rather the wrinkled roots of a tree on the girl's shoulders.

With one simple movement, he ripped off the dress she was wearing, leaving her completely naked.

He then hit the ground with his staff, summoning a light breeze around the girl, completely removing the dirt from her body.

Furthermore, the messy hair that covered her face changed to a tidy look and is now combed into a pair of pigtails that make her look very pretty.

The girl who once seemed like a vagabond has transformed into a beautiful young girl.

And her face previously hidden by her bangs was revealed.

She has delicate features like a doll's and her heterochromatic eyes shine like a pair of dazzling jewels in the middle of the night.

It's a pity that she maintains a blank emotionless expression, making it impossible to guess her thoughts.

The skin on her body is white and milky. And I couldn't help but think that it must feel really good to the touch.

She has no signs of malnutrition, but on the contrary looks very healthy. Which is totally discordant with her previous appearance.

Her legs are long and slender, but her thighs and butt are somewhat plump and her immature chest already has a slight curvature.

Under normal circumstances she would be a great temptation to men, but I have no particular desire for her.

She gives me an uncomfortable feeling, a type of biological rejection towards a being that should not exist.

Not to mention that the old man already puts a lot of pressure on me and I barely have time to appreciate her.

- I used a large part of my collection to make this doll: the soft skin of a virgin elf, the left eye of an ancient dragon, the right eye of a high-ranking fairy, the muscles of a legendary amazon, the bones of a lich, the mouth cords of a mermaid, half the organs of the ancient saint of the kingdom, half the organs of a demon princess, the hair of...

The old man continued citing a long list of human parts as if they were high-end products and the more he talks, the bigger his smile becomes.

Making me understand how evil the existence in front of me is.

My stomach turns just hearing it, how many innocent women died at his hands to satisfy his twisted desires.

- Sorry, I got a little excited. This girl is a gift from my master as a token of peace between us. We don't care about the death of the hunter, someone as weak as him can be replaced at any time.

It's becoming difficult to maintain my facade, the darkness of the man in front of me is beyond my comprehension.

I want to refuse this gift but I will die if I do.

The system's instructions are very clear, I have to grit my teeth and keep quiet.

- You don't have to worry about our revenge, my master is very interested in you and has sent me personally to demonstrate his sincerity.

With the end of his words, the girl approached me and she placed one of my hands on hers.

Her gaze showed some light for the first time, I can feel that she is not malicious. She looks like a newborn puppy looking at her mother.

Then she put her mouth on one of my fingers and bit hard enough to open a wound. My blood flowed like a torrent and was swallowed by her.

Countless bright lines appeared on her skin, flowing towards the ground and forming what seems like a magical circle with us as the center.

It seems to drink my blood activated some kind of ritual magic. Curiously, the system did not issue any alert in this regard.

- You didn't even hesitate to accept the pact, what a reckless boy. Well, this concludes my work. But remember, this doll is still incomplete, you must find suitable souls to feed her or she will devour yours.

Saying goodbye with cryptic words, the old man disappeared from the subway, leaving me alone with the mysterious doll.

The system alerts just calmed down which made me calm down.

I wanted to find a way to go back but I was once again overcome by a feeling of drowsiness that made me fall asleep.