Space-Time Inspector

Harry's initial plan to kick Vivian out didn't pan out. As he'd said before, he was a good guy at heart—he didn't meddle in things he couldn't handle, but when he could help, he couldn't just stand by and do nothing. If he sent Vivian away now, where would she go? She'd end up homeless, living in ruins or cemeteries again, with no food, no job, and no home. The thought of such a pretty girl ending up like that was too much for Harry to bear.

Sure, he thought a vampire with her abilities probably wouldn't end up that badly off... but then again, the vampire he'd met didn't seem like the typical bloodsucker. From what he'd seen, Vivian was stubborn, broke, and oddly fond of humans. None of the stories he'd heard about vampires mentioned them being this... pitiful.

But Harry wasn't about to let Vivian live rent-free. He wasn't that much of a saint, and he had to consider Lily, who was paying rent. So he compromised: Vivian could stay, but she'd owe him rent until she found her wallet (unlikely) or got a job (slightly more likely).

"Is that really okay?" Vivian asked, her eyes wide with disbelief. "It might take me a while to pay you back. My luck with money isn't great..."

Harry's eyebrow twitched. Just how bad was this vampire's life?

"Don't worry about it. Just stay here for now," Harry said, waving his hand. He glanced at Lily, who was still sulking. "It's settled. This is my house, and I make the rules when it comes to renting."

Then he turned to Vivian. "There's a room upstairs. I'll show you. But where's your luggage?"

He should have asked this earlier. Lily had dragged a huge suitcase with her when she moved in. Surely Vivian hadn't fallen so low that all she owned was the clothes on her back?

"Oh, it's outside!" Vivian said, rushing out to grab an old travel bag she'd left by the door. Thankfully, her bad luck with money hadn't extended to her belongings. The bag had been sitting there for hours, but nothing had been stolen.

Harry couldn't help but sigh when he saw the bag. It reminded him of the one his dad used to carry when he traveled for work—a bag that had been passed down from his grandfather.

He was never watching vampire movies again.

Just as Harry was about to help Vivian settle in, a loud growling sound came from beside him. Lily rubbed her stomach awkwardly. "Landlord, can we eat? I'm starving."

Harry looked at the clock. It was already 10 a.m. With all the chaos that morning, he'd completely forgotten about breakfast. The only one who'd eaten was Roll.

"Damn it, even the cat's living better than me," Harry muttered to himself. Then he heard Vivian's excited voice.

"Oh? You provide meals here too? Do I have to pay extra?"

Harry really wanted to tell her that meals weren't usually included, but seeing the hopeful look on her face, he couldn't bring himself to say it. This vampire was just too pitiful!

Since it was already so late, Harry decided to make lunch instead of breakfast. He figured Lily wasn't picky, and Vivian was too broke to complain. He'd just whip up some noodles and call it a day. But before heading to the kitchen, he turned to Vivian. "Vivian, do you... eat normal food? I heard vampires can only drink blood. Regular food doesn't digest well for you."

He felt a chill run down his spine just asking that.

"I'm a bloodline vampire, not some low-level bloodsucker," Vivian said, correcting him seriously. Then she scratched her cheek awkwardly. "Other vampires can only digest blood, but I can eat normal food. It's just... these days, humans and animals have so many weird diseases. If I drink contaminated blood, I'll be sick for days. I even have to check if my targets have health certificates before feeding. Sometimes even the certificates are fake... It's too much trouble. I haven't touched blood in years."

Harry: "..."

But just as he was about to head to the kitchen, a loud ringtone came from the couch. Lily pounced on Harry's ancient Nokia phone and shouted, "Landlord! Phone call! It's a really weird number!"

Harry rushed over and took the phone. He wondered what number could be considered "really weird," but when he saw the caller ID, he froze: 00000012345.

What kind of number was that?

The monotonous ringtone kept blaring, and the strange caller ID was unmistakable. Harry pinched his cheek to make sure he wasn't dreaming. The phone felt like it was getting hotter, and the ringtone seemed to be coming from all directions. His gut told him this call was anything but ordinary.

Almost against his will, Harry pressed the answer button and put the phone to his ear. "Hello?"

A cheerful but slightly frantic female voice came through. "Hello? Hello? Is this Harry Wilson?"

"Uh, yes," Harry said, trying to remember when he'd given out his number. "Who is this?"

"Don't worry about that for now," the woman said loudly. There was a lot of noise in the background, like she was in a construction site. "I'm from... uh, an import-export company. You sent us your resume a few days ago, right? I'm calling to schedule an interview for this afternoon."

An import-export company? Harry was confused. He had sent out a bunch of resumes when he decided to look for a job, but he didn't remember applying to any import-export companies. He wasn't exactly qualified for that kind of work. But now someone was offering him an interview? Was he about to hit the jackpot?

But then he looked at the two non-human tenants in his living room. He'd started job hunting because his rental business wasn't bringing in any money, but now he had tenants...

Well, these tenants weren't exactly reliable. One was a clueless werewolf, and the other was a broke, stubborn vampire. He couldn't count on them to pay rent consistently. Harry realized he couldn't pin his hopes on the rental business anymore.

The woman on the phone sounded impatient. "Hello? Are you still there? I said your interview is this afternoon!"

Harry thought for a moment, then nodded. "Okay, I'll be there."

The woman gave him an address that didn't sound too far away and hung up.

Harry stared at his phone, which showed the call duration as 0 minutes and 0 seconds. He checked the call history.

It was blank. The number 00000012345 had vanished without a trace.