My stepsisters are sexy demons, and I must protect them-Chapter 88: Velshekar’s scheme

«You are seriously asking me if I believe in the supernatural and in dark powers beyond human comprehension? I didn’t agree to meet with you to talk about witchcraft and children’s fairy tales. I would rather focus on business, Miss Levreshka Hawkley,» Nikolai Orlova comments.

He is a Russian man in his seventies—the most powerful and dangerous boss of the Russian mafia.

The woman he is addressing is a breathtaking beauty in her thirties, with long silver hair and bangs just above her icy blue eyes.

She is now known as Levreshka Hawkley.

But in truth, she is Velshekar, inside the body of the vampire Levreshka Dulcar.

She introduced herself as the widow of the late John Hawkley—the alias Velshekar once used as the boss of New York’s criminal underworld, before Shin Tendo destroyed that body months ago.

They are sitting in the lavish living room of Nikolai Orlova’s immense villa, located in the remote port city of Vladivostok, in eastern Russia.

Velshekar is seated on a luxurious sofa, while Nikolai sits across from her.

Standing right behind Velshekar are Lurek—her right-hand man, who in human form looks like a two-meter-tall mountain of muscle—and a woman named Clarissa, with a stern and professional air, long burgundy hair tied in a bun, glasses, and classic secretary attire, holding a tablet.

All around them, dozens of Nikolai’s henchmen keep their guns aimed at the three.

«It may sound strange and out of place to you, but my question is perfectly relevant to the reason for my visit,» Velshekar replies coldly, her unsettling gaze fixed on his eyes.

Her answer clearly irritates Nikolai.

«I agreed to meet you only out of respect for your late husband John Hawkley. But I won’t waste another second discussing these kinds of topics with you. I postponed a very important meeting just to be here, thinking you wanted to resume talks about the profitable partnership that John and I maintained for nearly a decade—cut short by his premature death. But clearly, from a woman one can’t expect such things. Be grateful you are his wife. If not, I would’ve already ordered my men to kill you!» Nikolai snaps, slamming his fist violently against the table.

Levreshka grins darkly.

«Then what are you waiting for? Why don’t you tell your men to open fire?»

Nikolai grits his teeth.

«A waste of time... and completely insane. Poor John must be turning in his grave, knowing his foolish wife is tarnishing the good name of the Hawkley family and destroying what he built with years of hard work and sacrifice!»

Then, Nikolai lifts his hand slightly.

«I’m only doing this to honor John’s memory. Not because you asked me.»

Nikolai signals with his hand.

The men surrounding them pull the trigger.

«Clarissa, you know what to do,» Velshekar murmurs.

Clarissa nods slightly.

«Yes, boss.»

—BANG! BANG! BANG!

A hail of bullets explodes toward Velshekar and her two companions, but...

«W-What kind of trick is this?!» Nikolai exclaims, eyes wide as he jumps to his feet.

Just before the bullets could hit, a wall of stone rose around the three like a cylinder.

The bullets got stuck in the rocky surface, barely scratching it.

As soon as the shooting stops, the stone wall instantly crumbles into sand, forming a ring around them.

«Using my magic against powerless earthlings... what a waste of energy,» Clarissa comments with disdain.

«No trick and no deception,» Velshekar mutters with a satisfied air, turning to Nikolai. «This is pure, simple magic. Elemental magic, to be precise. My trusted Clarissa is an elemental mage, and you’ve just seen what she can do with your own eyes.»

«This is... this is absolutely insane! We’re not in a fantasy novel—things like this shouldn’t exist in the real world... it must be a dream, or a hallucination... there’s no other explanation...» Nikolai mumbles, too shocked to accept what he just saw.

Velshekar stands up and walks slowly toward Nikolai, who trembles like a leaf—just like his men.

The two now stand face to face.

«If what you just saw seemed incredible and unimaginable to you, know that it’s nothing compared to what I want to offer you in exchange for renewing the alliance between the Orlova and Hawkley families,» Velshekar whispers, using the seductive and irresistible voice granted by her control over Levreshka’s body—a vampire known not only for her power and mastery of a mighty Innatus, but also for her beauty and sensuality.

«T-The power you want to offer me...?» Nikolai stammers.

He shakes his head frantically.

«No, I refuse to accept that any of this is real. There must be some rational explanation! I didn’t make it to seventy-two just to be fooled by some overly elaborate magic trick!»

Velshekar stares deep into his eyes.

«You’re really stubborn...»

Then, she places her hand on the one Nikolai is using to grip a pistol.

She guides the barrel of the gun against her own belly.

«W-What the hell are you doing?!» Nikolai shouts.

But Velshekar ignores him.

Her fingers slide along the grip, reach the trigger, and...

—BANG!

The bullet rips through the vampire’s stomach, leaving a large hole from side to side, and blood begins to gush out in a torrent.

«A-Are you insane?!» Nikolai snaps.

But as his gaze drops to the wound, he freezes completely.

The large hole closes up within seconds, right before his eyes.

And when his gaze rises back to hers, pure terror strikes him—her once blue eyes now glow with a bright, burning red.

«Do you believe me now, Mr. Orlova? This is the power I came to offer you and your men—the power of a vampire,» Velshekar states.

«A vampire... Until a minute ago, I would’ve called you a lunatic. But after what you just showed me, I can only admit my ignorance and beg your forgiveness for doubting you, Miss Levreshka Hawkley.»

Nikolai sits down again, his hands trembling from both fear and the excitement stirred by her promise.

Velshekar does the same, returning to her seat.

«Now that your mind is finally ready to receive my words, we can begin negotiations, Mr. Orlova.»

♡♡♡

«Boss, are you sure it’s a good idea to do this? Talking to simple earthlings about N’Raeth, the races that inhabit it, and the forces that rule it... not to mention the proposal to turn them into vampires...» Clarissa mutters.

After nearly three hours of meeting with Nikolai Orlova, they have left the port town of Vladivostok and are heading toward the airstrip where their private jet awaits.

«With Nikolai’s men included, what’s our total?» Velshekar asks, ignoring her words.

Clarissa immediately checks her tablet.

«Including the 12,000 from Yakuza boss Daigo Arakawa, the 70,000 from the Chinese triads, and the 7,000 under Nikolai Orlova, we’re close to 90,000,» Clarissa replies, though the doubt in her voice is unmistakable.

Velshekar doesn’t miss her hesitation.

«Something bothering you, Clarissa?»

«You know that trying to turn that many humans into vampires takes an enormous amount of time and resources—and the result doesn’t justify the cost. Statistically, if even a hundred out of ninety thousand survive the mutation, it’s considered a success. And even then, their powers as artificial vampires would be quite weak—almost useless, I’d say,» Clarissa counters with the cold, calculating tone of a secretary.

«As always, you’re completely right about everything, my dear Clarissa. But you see... I prefer to focus not on the losses, but on the outcome. The lives of ninety thousand useless humans and months of preparation are a trivial price—even if the result is just a hundred artificial vampires. Besides, we’re only a third of the way through our meetings. I’m confident the number of test subjects will increase significantly. Anyway, who’s next on the schedule?»

Again, Clarissa checks Velshekar’s agenda on the tablet.

«In three days, you’ll meet Santiago Cordesol—the famous restaurateur and one of the top traffickers for the South American cartels. And in sixteen days, the most powerful boss of the Italian mafia—Salvatore Caspada.»

«Salvatore Caspada...» Velshekar grins. «Yes, I remember him... a tough one, I’ll give him that—a real patriot. I already dealt with him back when I was John Hawkley, but he refused to collaborate with me twice, out of sheer Italian pride. He had no intention of submitting to a foreign boss. In fact, I find it incredible that he agreed to negotiate again—especially with the wife of the man he already refused twice. Could it be the irresistible charm of this body? Maybe the rumor that Italians are suckers for beauty isn’t just a stereotype. I should’ve taken over a body this... persuasive a long time ago.»

Then, without warning, Velshekar bursts into a long, amused laugh.

«What exactly do you find so funny?» Clarissa asks, her tone mildly impertinent.

A tone Velshekar would normally punish harshly—but with Clarissa, such liberties are allowed.

Ever since she entered Velshekar’s service—long before her arrival on Earth—Clarissa has always been the organizational brain behind his rise to power.

They say behind every great man there’s a great woman.

In this case, that woman is Clarissa: impeccable, precise, punctual, strict when necessary, and always objective.

She never hesitates to reprimand or challenge her boss’s decisions when needed, and thanks to the high regard Velshekar holds for her, he always accepts even her harshest critiques without resentment.

Velshekar shakes his head, still smiling darkly.

«I was just thinking how stupid humans are... All it took was the promise of a little power to have them crawling at my feet...»

Clarissa frowns.

«I’d like to remind you that I’m human too!»

«You know I only mean the humans from Earth, not from N’Raeth...» Velshekar mutters.

«Then I’d ask you to call them earthlings. I don’t appreciate being compared to that scum!» Clarissa snaps, even more irritated.

Velshekar lowers his gaze, almost offended by the rebuke.

«You’re right. I’m sorry...»

This 𝓬ontent is taken from fre𝒆webnove(l).𝐜𝐨𝗺