Vol 1 Chapter 2 (1/2)

The Vampires Around the Coffin

Waldstein Castle rooftop

Once the exterminators had departed, the only ones left in the majestic castle were the vampire viscount and the japanese Eater

As the sunlight shone on the sun at her back, her eyes fixed on the pool of blood on the roof

[Ah, I thought it strange that there were no people going to and fro in the castle, but to think entry had been restricted all this tiood Saints]

Despite the tension running through the air, the pool of blood continued to form letters at a consistent pace

”Are you really Gerhardt von Waldstein?” shi+zune asked for confirmation The letters re-formed themselves confidently

[Dear lady, you have the wrong man!]

”You just toldit now?”

[It is most unfortunate that you could not respond to this jest in kind, young lady]

This tiainst the wall

[Then… Presumably, what you had thrown at This One earlier was holy water and mercury, and perhaps salt or ashes of burnt wood This One is terribly sorry to inform you that none of these substances will do This One any harm Desiccants, perhaps, but salt and silver are no weaknesses of This One's]

With a sidelong glance at the words floating in the air, shi+zune reached behind her white leather jacket For some odd reason, there were countless knives and forks holstered there like weaponry It would not be surprising if an attack with so like a fruit knife were to be deflected on the rows of cutlery alone

Drawing multiple forks at once, shi+zune threw the out bullets

[Your efforts are wasted, young lady]

Several knives tore through the joking words and drove theh the pool of blood Naturally, they were not driven into the liquid itself--they had been nailed into the rooftop itself

[Hm?]

The the viscount realized so only a moment later The handles of the cutlery were unusually thick, looking ed on tools like chisels

Not a second later, sparks flew froan to boil

[A stun gun of some sort Never did This One expect that these weapons of yours h them]

The words floating in the air addressed shi+zune as though the vampire had been less than affected by the shock The blood pooled on the rooftop slid away fro its boiling short

[Truly unfortunate, but This One is resistant to electric shocks as well And to advise you further before you waste any more of your efforts, this body is also quite resistant to flames]

”Thanks for the tip For aat the pool of blood that itching like an amoeba ”I've already eaten a few va, but I've never seen one that could liquify itself”

Hearing this, the viscount for in the air twisted and bent like thinnew shapes

[Ah, judging from the situation earlier, and your reaction time--which, in This One's humble opinion, surpasses even those of vampires'--This One must presume that you are an Eater [食鬼人], correct? Would this also roups?]

”…Thanks for taking the time to write out the kanji, too”

'Never thought he'd even write out the word ”Eater” in japanese'

shi+zune shrugged aardly, and drew even more knives and forks from her arsenal

[And if you would allow This One to add: it seems you are under the mistaken impression that This One possesses an ability si oneself into liquid for But this is indeed This One's true form, and to extrapolate on this fact, This One cannot take a human form]

Although shi+zune was by nothe viscount's words, she found herself glancing at the letters of blood as she brainstormed her next course of action Thebehind the viscount's claim, she frowned and responded to him

”…Then you don't have a human shape?”

[This is indeed This One's own body in the flesh The very picture of a man in his prime, is it not?]

shi+zune was put on edge by the act of conversing with a silent pool of blood, but her brain continued pu her to quickly adjust to this unfamiliar situation

Taking a moment to observe the full form of the pool of blood, she addressed the letters in the air once more

”I see… You're unusual, but I'm not interested in any of that”

shi+zune spun the table knife she was holding, and decided to play along with the viscount

”Though I a out how you'll taste”

[My word, what boldness for a young lady!]

The letters were laughing

They did not create any sound that suggested this, but the letters were trehtly in a way that told shi+zune that he was chuckling as he spoke Or, to be specific, her brain forcibly understood this

The archaic forh she was speaking to a fellow japanese As she found herself being drawn into the viscount's pace, shi+zune realized that the vampire before her was rather unusual for one of its kind

All kinds of vampires existed in this world

Some could turn wholly invisible Others could synchronize with sand, teleport, create copies of itself, or control fire It was a range of abilities one ht expect to find in a pulp ninja novel, but these powers actually belonged to some of the more unusual vampires she had encountered in the past

And despite the fact that she had personally eaten such vampires, the self-proclaimed viscount before her was somehow different from the others she had faced It was not his abilities or appearance that set him apart, but the obscured-but-present scent of humanity in him

Norhts any consideration But things were different today

The pool of blood did not falter for even ato form more words in midair

[However, This One must say that--]

”Stop talking in the third person Are youher knife once more

It was a rather fantastic scene to behold, but neither party see with one another

[Ah, ht that I had reached soe, but I ae to escape Th--ah, apologies--One(ware[余])(1)]

”Try again”

[Then We(chin [朕])(2)--]

”You're doing that on purpose, aren't you?”

Narrowing her already sharp eyes, shi+zune fixed her grip on the knife she was spinning Noticing this, the viscount hurriedly rearranged himself

[Pardon my rudeness, most beautiful lady! I wasradiance I aression to ]

”Thanks for the co you off that easily”

If the coht have been able to appreciate it But she felt nothing at the co his words as provocation, shi+zune sloent silent

Vampires were her enemy, responsible for her family's death This was the first ti with one of his kind, despite the unconventional medium of their communication

Perhaps the vampire's form, more sliuard

'But vahtered my family They stole my happiness And now, they're my prey'

shi+zune calan to unleash her bloodlust

The viscount, keeping up with the change in atmosphere, formed a new set of words in the air

[Wait a moment! I have neither duty, motivation, nor time to face you today And if you have the power to defeatmy body will enhance your abilities any further]

”That doesn't h for me”

[I ask that you listen to what I have to say I do not drink blood, I do not murder anyone on this island, and I do not impose my will upon those who live here And above all, how could I possibly sink s into a lady's neck with a body like this?]

The viscount's form had indeed aroused shi+zune's curiosity Even if vampires who did not have to drink blood existed, how could this particular being derive any sort of energy?

But even if the viscount was telling the truth, itto shi+zune

”Whether you're good or evil has nothing to do with the fact that I' to devour you”

shi+zune's bloodlust did not abate in the least The pool of blood quietly replied

[Is this because of some duty? For example have you been hired to murder me?]

shi+zune glanced at him and shook her head

”No, this is personal”

[Ah, you do indeed seeeance, I presume?]

shi+zune looked unco back with an irrelevant question

”Why do you go to the trouble of adding in ellipses? And it's not like you even have to write out all your 'Ah's, either”

However, the viscount's response to her rude tone was unchangingly polite

[Ah, excuselady Tothese letters and words feels no different fro Instead of the sensation of a voice escaping my mouth, whatever comes up in my mind becomes these letters of blood you see before you It seems that my brain--ah, perhaps I should call it a soul, inmy words into letters for my convenience They say that if a hulasses that show the world upside-down for three days, his brain would adjust to the neay of sight by the end of that period It works in much the same way for myself]

shi+zune found herself raising an eyebrow at that statement

”A vah”

There was silence

The viscount's form froze in place A quiet wind bleeen him and the quiet shi+zune

After a an to write in a fashi+on thathis words very carefully

[…Hahaha You say that we vampires are soulless creatures? Not an entirely unfounded belief, and in one sense absolutely true] The viscount saidbefore shi+zune could interrupt [How rant you that you e about our abilities and characteristics But have you never thought it strange that each individual could possess abilities and weaknesses so different from the next?]

'Never'

To shi+zune, valuttony, and earlier, vengeance In the early years of her tie alone, she had strived to learn as many weaknesses as she possibly could But by the tile coer cared There were many reasons for her disinterest, but one of theiven vampire's weakness in order to overpower it

At this point, a vaent of efficiency by which she could conclude her battles faster She never made the effort to look into them any more than necessary, nor did she ever intend to do so

But it was not as though the words of the pool of blood before her were entirely uninteresting to her In fact, they aroused her curiosity soquestions of him She never would have been swayed thisher native language again softened her heart

If she was still stuck in the iven the slightest attention to the viscount's claims, nor would she have had the composure to do so

But now, this topic of discussion was not entirely without favour towards her

Being an Eater, who ate the flesh and blood of va about her prey meant she would never be able to properly express the kind of being she was in words

She closed her eyes for a ht, then spun her knife around once more and holstered it behind her jacket

”…Talk I e to entertain me”

[Thank you for your consideration, good lady]

<=>

In the darkness

What kind of vampires were my real parents?

Father would always say, [They were thetheir friends, and I promise you that youbeen born their son] But he never toldspecific about them

Why was I born a vampire? I don't dislike the fact that I am one, but I've alondered

Father taught s about vampires Apparently there are countless varieties around the world, and about half of us don't even need to drink people's blood to live Father is one of them But that was only after he took on that liquid form he has now

I'ularly to survive

Whether it's fro creature, or else I lose er It's not like I' time without blood--rowing further from my body

Soer than others I've heard that some of theh those types usually get hunted down by humans quickly

Father toldblood is not quite so si your very soul Relic,with hu blood as an act of 'taking' Re your life and soul with them] But to be honest, that's not easy In the end, I' on my desire to drink someone's blood

When I sink et the feeling that so drained into the person I' I think if I try to focus on that sensation more and practice, I'll eventually be able to ih I've never actually tried

Turning so, different from me, into the world of vampires… In popular ue Entire villages get turned overnight According to Father, I have the power to do that , I'et to those vampires you see in movies

I can turn any hu the hu, but I honestly don't feel that way

How could you call it evolution when the newer form has so many more weaknesses?

According to Father's knowledge, about 80 of vaht The weakest of them can't so much as twitch while the sun's still up, and apparentlythe day

I can just barelythe day, but that's only indoors I'd probably disintegrate to ashes if sunlight hits nificantly after the rooster's first crow

I hate the sarlic, and I can't stand purified salt or silver I'd probably die if soht be able to revive from my ashes with someone's help, or with centuries' worth of effort, but I'

I can't enter running water I can cross it on shi+ps and airplanes, but I can't go into it physically

A vay apparently leaks out into water It's possible to absorb it back fro stream

That means that I can't shower--I have to bathe Thankfully I don't sweat too et covered with sand or so, I honestly don't knohat to do

I guess about the one thing that I'ain, alh a lot of us are weak against the powers of the believers ield them…

I can do ht expect from a va I can turn into a flock of bats, control fas telekinetically, and hypnotize people with a single look And as for less well-knoers, I can turn into a snake or a swarh I alood reaction

I think I'e, but to be honest, I've never actually tested that or anything

My body is still growing I eat food like hu completely

But I still don't like the fact that I have so many weaknesses Whenever I want to wash my hands I have to pour water into a basin If I putthem in a kiln

And as for sunlight--although I've heard that a lot of hu without it since computers and the internet becaht sound a bit cheesy, but I wish I could play soccer with all the other kidsequipuess that's just an excuse It's painful, not being able to walk under sunlight People ht, but it's not like huht, is it?

Well, getting back on topic… In other words, the balance between reat I don't really mind because I've been this way since the day I was born, but if a human were to turn into a vampire, I'm sure they'd be surprised at all the weaknesses they'll have to live with

In that sense, I'm really jealous of my sister

Ferret is my total opposite She has no vaht She can eat garlic, take showers, and swim in rivers and oceans She tries not to do that in front of h it's not like I mind

She's not affected by silver, and crucifixes go without saying No one's ever tried, but she ht even be able to survive a stake to the heart

But Ferret doesn't have enerate quickly, but she doesn't have any other abilities She can't turn into bats or fog, she can't cos with her mind, and she can't hypnotize people

But, Ferret can go without drinking blood She could if she wanted to, and she could probably control so them, to a certain extent, but… I don't think she'd be able to turn someone

That's hoe're like es of one another Our personalities are different, too

I really love my sister, but sometimes I wonder:

What in the world are we?

Not just vampires I feel like we're abnormal even for our kind

Me, born with most vampiric characteristics, and Ferret, born with no weaknesses Who were our parents? Do our physical powers and strengthsspecial?

I've wondered about this once in a while, but I never brought it up to Father It feels like if I tell hiether now

Iso curious to know Imy own little sister

That's what scares me

The basement of the harbour office

Hearing the footsteps descending the stairs, the vas opened their eyes in unison

'Was I drea?'

Still feeling drowsy, Relic began to put his thoughts in order

Of the girls he had irl heher all kinds of things he never would have said normally

'I never got to drink her blood, but I bet it would have been delicious'

Falling into his

He could hear two sets of footsteps They did not seem to be the torkmen Ferret had threatened earlier

Quietly focusing on the reality before hi the sound of the footsteps to those in his memories

The sounds erprints--they were identical to those of a pair of siblings, like himself and Ferret but with a few differences

The voice that echoed from the staircase confirmed his suspicions

”…See? I told you! Relic and Ferret must be here!”

'Is that Hilda?'

Relic tensed unnecessarily at the sound of his childhood friend's voice He did not hear anything from the second set of footsteps, but Hilda was likely accompanied by her brother Mihail

'How did they find us? We were going to go see them ourselves!'

Relic's heart, nor at nearly human speed Even vampires who did not need to breathe had a heartbeat, because their bodies still needed a supply of nutrients and energy

They were just like humans in that their heartbeat quickened when the were excited Relic's thoughts floundered further as he scra childhood friend

'Argh, this isn't good If Mihail's here too, Ferret's going to go crazy'

Relic wondered if he should open the lid of his coffin to avoid such a situation But,

”Ferre--”

The ht he heard an excitable male voice, Relic heard Ferret's coffin lid sla smacked mercilessly

He had an idea of as going on outside

Hilda's older brother Mihail had probably attempted to leap into Ferret's coffin and had been rewarded with a punch

Mihail comically spun into the wall

”Mihail!”

Naturally, the one calling his name was not Ferret, but Mihail's sister Hilda

'I wish ht to himself, as he listened to Ferret's desperate attee

”You…! I-impudent…!”

Though she lashed out at Mihail, as still rolling on the floor, her girlish voice took away nity from her words

”Your voice is pretty even when you're angry, Ferret”

Although his jaw and back ot up exuberantly and flashed a smile at Ferret

It was clear that Ferret had been holding back when she punched Mihail His neck would have done a 180 if she had gone all-out against him

Whether or not he understood this, Mihail got up and extended a hand to her

”Welcome back, Ferret! You 's going to be all right now!”

”How…”

Ferret trailed off, driven to silence by Mihail's boldness

Relic snickered quietly from inside his coffin as he listened to the commotion outside

'Mihail hasn't changed a bit, huh I guess that's only natural, since it's only been a year'

After a good laugh, Relicup the lid of his coffin

The fluorescent light seeped into his eyes, nearly blinding hiht was suddenly cut off

Relic pushed the lid open all the way The shadow blocking the light greeted him

”Welcome back, Relic!”

Standing before hiirl naht of his childhood friend's face, then laughed sheepishly and responded to her smile with one of his own

”I missed you”

<=>

The outskirts of Rukram City, on the island of Growerth

”Is this really okay?”

Cargilla and the others had retreated fro Val ons

”'Course it is! Listen up, our clients and the ht There shouldn't be a problem here We destroyed the coffin under the sun, so we've done our job”

They had arrived at a small manor in the forest, a little ways froot off the station wagons

The house stood in beautiful harmony with the trees in the forest It was rather s a fa for them

”Is this really going to get us any money?”

”…Nor back the vampire's ashes or the bite mark on the victim's neck would disappear as proof But we should be fine as long as we have that video We have records about their dealing with us, so worst case scenario, we can tell 'em we'll sell their info to the media if they don't pay up”

”That's basically extortion--Gah!”

Val received another punch to the nose for his comment

The series of unusual events seeilla rather rattled Normally he would at least contact the head office, but this time he was driven solely by the desire to leave this island as soon as possible

In fact, he did not even really care about the money--he just wanted to join up with his second-in-command's team and escape Growerth

”I called 'e should be fine But…”

Worrying that the client lar because of his appearance, Cargilla pressed the doorbell

Seconds passed A caucasian couple opened the door

”Oh… You would be Mr Cargilla… from the extermination team?”

The wife asked hesitantly Cargilla forced himself to put on the kind of smile that Val the newbie had never seen before

”Good day,care of your pest problem”

”Oh oodness… Thank you so much!”

The exterminators were led into the parlour They had filled the rooilla had insisted that the others stay outside in the cars, but the couple insisted that they thank every member of the team

Cargilla would have et their thanks and leave, but he was not skilled enough to turn the everyone inside

”I sot to be a trap!” Val whispered until the end, but Cargilla snorted

”It's fine We can leave those bloody letters to the Eater! And even if this couple is working for those letters, this is the ht bomb is all we need”

”But that viscount or whatever was totally fine”

”Uh…”

”I seriously don't like how things are going Don't you think maybe there's a whole swarht?”

The neas illa was here on a mission He couldn't back out now

”I'll keep an eye out And if you're right, we're going to run like hell” Cargilla said, shaking his head

'H-how'd this guy ever become a leader?!' Val wondered, and positioned himself close to the exit

Cargilla had been given leadershi+p because of the vast amount of experience he had But in the end, he only had experience in facing off against small fry He had never been involved in such an unusual situation before