Volume 1 Chapter 1 Part3 (2/2)
Liev continued to review the docu to Irina
”Two: Pay attention to make sure that the inhabitants of the city do not become aware of the subject's true identity”
”Only a few people are aware of Nosferatu Even with the national committee and technical officers combined, there are only about one hundred people As far as anyone else is aware, she is just an 'Air Force First Lieutenant' ”
Liev broke off fro around the city?”
Naturally, Dr Mozhaysky nodded
”When raising a dog for an experiment, we have to take it for a walk and let it enjoy itself for its mental health This is no different”
Liev was shocked by the doctor's stateh she was being co, she wore a cold expression as if she were co a sense of discomfort, Liev continued to read aloud
”Three: Monitor and prevent the subject fro In the scenario where it attempts to escape… you are to execute the subject”
Execution was not just a threat Liev bore a feeling of dread as Dr Mozhaysky elaborated with a cold tone
”This is a measure to prevent an information leak In the situation that it escapes, you will be charged and imprisoned, Liev”
If she tried to escape, she was to be killed without question Liev warned the girl, as likely unaware of how callous the Republic was
”Please do not do anything foolish For argument's sake, even if you were to escape from this city, the [Express Company] would pursue you until the ends of the earth”
Irina let out a short breath as if she were exasperated; her fleeting fang peeked out
”I will not run away”
Hearing her voice for the first time, it was clear like pure water that soaked into his heart Liev thought that not only was her appearance similar to a human, but her voice was too
”Next, Liev”
Prompted by Dr Mozhaysky, Liev read out the last iteer will share a roo that, he quickly grew pale
”E-excuse me Am I supposed to live here?”
”That is correct While you were gracefully parachuting through the air, the Express Coe from the communal dormitories to the 'II' room”
”…”
In the face of such an unexpected situation, Liev was at a loss for words
”Isn't that nice? Going from a shared room in the communal dorrade”
”Eh, that's…”
”Rest assured, your roos, not a coffin By the way, the showering room is in the 'V' room
Dr Mozhaysky took Liev's hand forcefully without his consent, giving hi of keys
”Haha…”
Liev had no choice but to laugh If he refused Korovin's proposal, then it would truly be farewell to ”Laika 44”
”Well then, Liev my role in this is over I entrust the rest to Anja”
Not a second after saying that, Dr Mozhaysky pivoted and walked away
”Eh, the doctor's… 'done?' ”
Looking over his shoulder, Dr Mozhaysky replied to a flustered Liev
”I have business involving the main process of the 'Miechita Project' Iflora and fauna Pleasant drea his mustache and left like the wind
Anja briskly made her way before Liev
”Please rest assured I ah she looked young and uncertain, he had no choice but to rely on Anja
”I'm in your care, Anja I was just appointed and still don't understand anything”
”My job is to check the readings of medical data collected Since I normally stay within the laboratory, I'll have you accoh her daily life”
In other words, the tould work together Liev scratched the back of his head, wondering if this would be alright
”Well then, let's proceed with the conversation! Irinyan—”
”Wait a minute”
Irina stopped Anja with a sharp voice
”What is it?”
”What's with that 'Irinyan?' ”
”I was being affectionate,” replied Anja
”There is no need for that”
She turned towards Liev since she had completely shut down Anja
”Does Liev also wish to call me 'Irinyan?'”
You just turned her dohy are you asking me?
Liev stood perplexed as Irina stared at hi aside, he couldn't call her ”Subject” in the middle of town He also couldn't call her ”First Lieutenant Luues of the sa to refute Irina
”I believe that to avoid drawing the suspicions of the other city inhabitants to your true identity, you should be treated just like any other cadet So, from now on, I'll call you by your naazed at Liev Her eyes carried a scarlet sheen in the light Her beauty was beyond hu the hairs to stand on Liev's neck He had trouble breathing, and his body stiffened
”ah…”
”Irina will do so”
With just a feords, the binding unraveled, and Liev could take a short breath—
”Originally, I would not have allowed a huuess it cannot be helped”
”Uh…”
He was breathless again in the face of such an extremely oppressive attitude
However, she just had that sort of doeous dress instead of a uniform, she would easily fit in with royalty or the aristocracy It hadn't necessarily been incorrect to think of her as a ”princess” upon his first impression
”I will call you Liev, is that fine?”
”Yeah Irina”
Anja quickly interrupted
”Nice to meet you, Irinyan!”
Irina, who up until now had displayed an unreadable ape
”… Y-you…?”
”Since I'm not a cadet, our relationshi+p is irrelevant Please call y for a retort
”Do whatever you would like…”
”As you wish~”
Anja nodded with a satisfactory look, before doing a co researcher
”Irinyan will receive standard training as with any other cadet, but since she is weak to sun exposure, it will be after sunset”
”Would she be alright if she got accidentally hit by a bea to ashes” weakness
”It appears that her skin will sting to a certain degree Irinyan, you're able to walk around outside during the day without a parasol, right?”
”That's correct”
Irina confir with a thorny voice riddled with displeasure But Anja, who couldn't read theis, she also weak to heat and she will give show symptoms similar to heat strokes and sunstrokes In short, crew h teh the atmosphere Therefore, if Irinyan can bear it, then huh Liev understood, he couldn't bear to say anything with the subject in front of hi said
Irina snorted her nose in dissatisfaction immediately
”Anja My race also has some points that surpass humans You should know of them if you are such a so-called expert, shouldn't you?”
”Of course!”
Anja held up two fingers towards Liev
”The Nosferatu have two unique characteristics 'Night Vision' to maintain vision in the dark, and 'cold resistance' to dress lightly unperturbed in te”
Anja also added on that in the environment of the northern part of the continent the nuht hours were shorter, and that winter was far longer
”Liev Now you understand, right?”
She said it in a high andproudly at hi equivalent to or even greater than hurab a meal In the coathered, so please go and introduce her”
”'Meal' as in—”
Liev had iined that since she was a Nosferatu Irina would drink blood, and he looked at her mouth However, her s
”What is it?”
”Neveraze
”Does thatmeals?”
”Yes The menu is the same as all of the other cadets For data collection purposes, shehabits as everyone else”
”Is that so?”
Irina stepped closer to Liev, who felt a wave of relief
”You thought it was blood, right?”
”Ehhh!?”
He becaht on the head
”What the hell do you think I aer towards Liev
”W-what do youout
”You think I' creature like a mosquito or tick?!”
”You think that I aht, don't you?!”
”You're ! But, when you put it like that, have you never once sucked blood?”
”Eh… well…”
Irina embarrassedly hid her mouth with her hand Liev hadn't expected this reaction
”No way, you haven't?”
”… I did… a long tio…”
When Irina's muddled her words and hid her eyes, Anja elatedly raised her hand
”Is it that? The ancient rite of passage passed dohere you bite into the neck of a goat on your tenth birthday?”
”…”
Irina scowled at Anja, then spoke to Liev in an ashamed manner
”It couldn't be helped I've only sucked fresh blood once Not just me, but everyone else”
”Bloodsucker is just a name…?”
Anja interjected with a scholar-like expression
”There's a reason that they're called that Bloodsuckers have the potential to inoculate blood mucous membranes firsthand… for exaue or stomach and then transform it into nutrition inside the body Hey, Irinyan, were you not brioat's blood?”
Irina nodded reluctantly
”Indeed, that's correct… but it is not because of sorotesque reason like humans always think”
”Then, you don't bite humans like the Bloodsuckers in folk tales?”
When Liev asked, Irina gave him a scornful look
”Well, of course not If I were to put human blood into my body, ive being treated as s of hostility and contempt towards huret There's no doubt that it was huh war and conflict As Liev had been intihost stories of Nosferatu, she had probably been brought up with lullabies about the stories of huery
However, the advancement into space was completely unrelated to pasttraining
The subject was a girl of a different race
Her existence was as unknown and h he had been thinking of various things, he hadn't said anything
He was just doing this job to fulfill his dreao to space
—With fresh resolve, Liev called out to Irina as brightly as he could
”Well, I'o and eat as soon as possible”
”Alright”
Although Liev had readied himself for an objection, Irina was unexpectedly ulatory hat that she had set aside along the coffin
She concealed her pointed ears, appearing evenwith us?”
Anja shook her head towards Liev's invitation
”I have so Irinyan will probably be tired afterto sleep at 9:00 in thethat you'll be reversing your days and nights, so ood rest and take care of yourself after eating Now then, be careful and see you later!”
Anja cheerfully sent the her behind at the cells
✦✦✦
Part 3
As the sun began to set, the walled city ht Liev and Irina passed through the pungent pine woods, exiting into a well-lit avenue lined with birch trees
”I don't think that you'll try to run away, but please walk near me”
Liev ordered Irina to ithin a short distance of hi, so she had to stay within his sight
”I will not run away, but I will not walk behind a human, so I alk beside you”
Her words were sharp to the point of being refreshi+ng But on the other hand, it would have been scary for her to give a bright cheerful response so her straight forward reply may have been for the better
As Irina passed by, an old tobacconist wearing eyeglasses, who turned their head to look His expression was not that of unease, but more so trance-like They didn't realize she was a vampire but were attracted to her beauty If they kneho this girl hat kind of reaction would they have?
In this restless situation, he headed toward the communal dormitories in the residential district
The city was separated into two districts— the residential district, and the development district; cadets were sent out every day to the development district located at the city's outer circu center, there were also special training facilities, research institutions where technicians worked and so forth, various large and ss scattered about, 80-meter tall watchtoere on the outskirts of the town assigned as parachute training facilities as well asservices
The development district was surrounded by the residential district with standard housing complexes, which were surrounded by schools, hospitals, libraries, marketplaces, and restaurants
As a counterpart to the ”stick” of confidentiality, a ”carrot” had also been properly prepared in the foreneral public such as televisions, washi+ng ardless of the small scale of the city, there was an abundance of leisure establishments such as theatres and football fields, and at the corner of town, there was a man-made lake where one could ice skate
Liev and Irina walked to the residential district without exchanging any words You could see the steeple of the church from above all of the houses The blue, onion-shaped roof with a golden cross on top stood out in the city due to its nificence
”Aah…”
Liev suddenly realized so extremely important and stopped
”What?”
With a reluctant expression on his face, Liev spoke to Irina who had a puzzled look on her face
”To get to the dorh the church ahead, but it'd be dreadfully roundabout…”
Before he was even finished speaking, he was hurled a cold gaze
”Do you think that I am worried about crosses?”
After vampires, Liev wondered whether he had stepped on another landmine
”Then by perchance, is it not a weakness…?”
Irina nodded deeply
”Long ago, to strengthen the authority of the church, ruated”
”Are you really all right…?”
”Truly…”
Not a second after she said that, Irina, without warning, plunged into Liev's boso with her tongue
He fell on his back This was different frohastly chill came from within his body
”Liev”
”W-what is it…”
If one were to receive such a gaze froht, they would be left completely immobile
”Fro each and every tibloodsuckers”
The ht her head closer, the ot as he panicked
”I u-understand…! I understand, so could you back off…?”
”Why are you so frightened? I won't bite”
He was not discomposed because of that, but because of her face; he felt fear fro near which was causing hiet flustered, but it didn't seem that Irina understood
”T-too close…!”
Liev's body had grown hot, and he worried whether his cheeks had already grown red
”I understand I'll move away”
Irina took a step back, crossed her arms, and put her chin up
”Come on, speak”
”N, aah… Well, you know, that you uh…”
After the trean to pull bits of authentic and auous folklore from the bottom of his memory
”… Bite into the napes of necks and use thorny tongues to suck blood”
”Thorny…?”
Irina stuck out her tongue
It wasn't thorny, just a fair pink color
”It's a …”
”Next?”
”… A Bloodsucker can aug their blood… is that not a thing?”
”Impossible Next”
”You cannot 'enter' soranted permission”
”Would you enter at your own convenience?”
”… No, I wouldn't come in
Irina distorted her mouth with evident displeasure
”Besides that?”
”… When lots of round, you want to count them over completely”
”Why would we count it?”
”Well…”
”Next”
”Weakness to garlic”
”It just sus is a true horror[6]”
He couldn't endure the feeling of continuously stepping on landmines However, in order to avoid future slip-ups, he had to clarify as right and wrong
Liev was about to break but still continued on
”The ability to transfor tounable to die unless your head is lopped off or you're staked through the heart”
”Don't be absurd Either one is h to kill me…”
Up until now, Irina's expression had been distinctly cloudy, and now Liev felt a little regretful of how insensitive he had been
”… That's true My bad”
”Humans are the worst Eternal life, immortality, and other such fantasies…”
”Han to look up at a twinkling star in the night's sky,a soliloquy
”… To be born normal, and die norht pink eyes seemed to tremble sorrowfully
”What did you say just now?”
Although he asked to hear what she said, Irina only shook her head
”Nothing At any rate, if I get injured it hurts and I can get sick too”
Liev couldn't shake the feeling that there was so more there, but—
”Next-”
As the conversation continued with an unyielding force, he gave up on pursuing this and reco water and the sea”
”I'e fro no reflection inno shadow”
”Do you have bad eyes?”
Irina pointed towards her feet A shadoas formed by the illumination of an overhead streetlamp
”Ah…”
”Haa…”
Irina becah escape
”I'ends without doubting them I'll be more careful from now on
Liev deeply bowed
Then he heard Irina's disappointed-sounding voice
”… In spite of being a human, you're rather honest and humble”
”Eh?”
When Liev looked up, Irina wore a look of surprise
”No, after all, it's because I misunderstood”
”Correct, but you are not the source of the ”
Irina looked up to the cross of the church
”When the Black Death idespread back during the sixteenth century, the human church treated us as the source of the infection If you can create a target, you can divert the criticisends actually stated that the bloodsuckers had been born out of that age, bloodsucker hunting had been carried out ste from the belief that the ”Cursed Seed” was borne froaze from the cross and focused on Liev
”The nuated by the church, as well as through novels and fil”
Although he was allowed to have individual slip-ups, Liev felt pain in his chest as he was confronted by the err's perpetrated by humankind When he looked into Irina's eyes with pity, the bloodsucking girl looked forward as if avoiding his gaze
”Takehall”
Just as they reached the stone-paved plaza in front of the church the bell rang, it was tian's performance could be heard froh the plaza Irina closed her mouth and made a firm expression as if she didn't want to breathe There was only the regular peaceful routine of a flock of pigeons pecking at bread cruht find the air intolerable and sped up
When they passed through the plaza, Iruna, as strangely silent, pointed to so on the side of the path
”What's that over there?”
In a corner in the grass, there was the statue of a rocket surrounded by clove pink (Dianthus caryophyllus) In the body of the rocket, there was a s was enshrined
”According to the plaque, it's the Parushni?”
”That's…”
Irina, who had questioned Liev, was at a loss for words for a moment, but the truth of the matter couldn't be hidden
”It's the to who flew into space”
It was customary in the Republic to announce successes, but hide the failures, that is to say, there were s launched and sacrificed than as officially announced
For example, in 1957, the Republic had announced that the experi Marui in the ”Parushni II” model However, as aas they penetrated the atmosphere The cabin beca syste it perished from the heat
The truth is that only a sram were aware of this fact, and Irina, who had resided within the deep recesses of the
Irina, with a clouded gaze, glared at thein front of it, she put her hand on her chest and bowed
Liev, who looked at Irina paying her respects froirl would end up dead like the dog welling in his chest
”… No Not this girl…”
Liev shakes his head and gently murmurs
”Even if we have to risk our life…”
Manned flight programs were chock full with some tens of thousands of drops of sweat and tears, but development was a continuous set of failures
Prior to Liev beco a spare, every cadet went to the rocket launch site to observe the launch of a dog Their hearts were big with anticipation that they would see the for far off into space, but i the launch, it blew up into smithereens Liev, who had personally witnessed this hell, was left with the feeling of shock and heartbreak, and for a while afterward, he couldn't stonificent dreay couldn't catch up, and success was extreh the atone out of orbit, then it would be lost in the void of space, and upon re-entry, it ht become a fireball and burn up
In fact, the experiment's success rate was less than fifty percent
Liev and many others were aware of the perils ahead continued to train Now, the girl before hiht as an experiirl chosen?”
Suddenly, he had more questions as soon as that left his mouth Were the numbers of bloodsuckers so small, and had no others passed the inspection/examination?
Liev wanted to ask Irina but stopped at the last moment
'Experiments should be treated as objects'
This callous way of thinking spoken by Lieutenant General Victor in the Director's room had become a common perspective for everyone However, it was not out of cold-heartedness
Rather, it was the opposite, it was a lesson learned from the death of Maly
Maly, which had been chosen as the experi, was adorable and loved by the personnel of the space program Then, a couple of months later, when the 'Purushni II' model launched, the technical operators parted with tears They knew that with the current technology, a safe return was impossible The responsible caretaker, Dr Mozhaysky did everything for Marui, such as giving her water to drink, until right before the start, unwilling to say goodbye until the last ic death, even Korovin and First Secretary Gergiev grieved
Since that event, a line was drawn and experier to be seen as ”coht
Likewise, should I treat Irina as an 'object' like a dog?
Whether he should treat Irina the sa, as an object?
”… No, there is no need to force hts went around in his head a few ti the and ned as Manager to ”let the experi and safely send her off into space” Unlike a dog, not only can Irina hold conversations with humans, but she also harbors bad impressions of theht beco to take part in the training or even plotting to escape Although being kind to her was an outrageous proposition, he had to at least build up a minimal relationshi+p between theer to love He knew the rules, and he knew Irina did as well He was thinking of a complete commitet this frouy Liev just wanted to tell her hoas feeling—he had to make her understand
Thus, if the launch failed, they could s the sadness on their own
That's all
You have to draw a proper line and only hear as much as necessary
Liev decided to take a look at Irina, who had finished paying her respects and looked up at the sky He couldn't see what sort of expression she had on her face from where she stood
✦✦✦
Part 4
Footnotes:
1 TL: The Orthodox Calendar was once primarily used by the Russians, mainly before the Bolshevik Revolution succeeded Afterward, Lenin declared the usage of the Gregorian Calendar, the calendar in which most, if not all, western countries use today↩
2 TL: The Zilant, in basic, is a syion in eastern Russia, west of the Ural Mountains, and it's a dragon-like creature For /wiki/Zilant↩
3 TL: Actually, we ed to find a map of eastern Europe in this story, and found that ”Lilith” Referred to the Baltic region, specifically Estonia and Latvia, maybe even Lithuania↩
4 TLC: It seeested this naeness”, saatari's “Oddity”So, it can be either “Monster”, or “Oddity”↩?
6 TL: Now, originally, this wasn't apart of the RAW, it was so that I left it instead of re it↩