Vampire (1)
“Hmm, is that so? You truly have no connection to those ‘Oath of Heaven-Defiance’ bastards?”
“That is correct, Lord Wirak. I was traveling from the eastern city of Tilak and happened to arrive here in Ajantu.”
I calmly spun my lies.
“Then what was with your lack of activity over the past few days?”
“I suppose the hardships caught up with me, because I suddenly fell ill and shut myself up in my lodging. I stayed inside the entire time, but since I was as quiet as a dead mouse, I think the innkeeper misunderstood something.”
Naturally, a vampire’s subordination did not work on me.
The moment I became a vampire, the instinct to obey the higher vampire before me—Wirak, the one who had infected me—was engraved into me, but I could ignore it well enough. ‘But for now, let’s play along. This is a chance to gather information on them.’ At first, I had wondered what would happen to me now, but this was actually a good opportunity to slip in among the vampires who ruled this city.
“Tch, fine. You, follow me for now.”
When Wirak gained nothing from me, he clicked his tongue once and threw himself out the window.
I hurriedly chased after him.
-Race: Vampire (Thinblood)
-Common Traits: 「Mind Hub」, 「Mirror-Clear Still Water」 -Individual Traits: 「Clan of Blood (Thinblood 孱血)」, 「Acceleration」, 「Regeneration」 -Special Notes: Having inherited the bloodline of ‘Brokoslak,’ his body has mutated into that of a vampire. When not exposed to sunlight, his physical abilities increase explosively. Due to the influence of 「Mind Hub」, his mind is not subordinated to his blood. ‘My physical abilities have improved. At this level, I might be stronger than the guy I killed in Barkollak.’ It seemed that the state I had already strengthened myself to had been included in the stats that rose when I became a vampire.
Following behind Wirak, I drew a thread of blood from the tip of my fingernail and tried sharpening it. ‘Oooh, as expected.’ The skill I had gained upon becoming a vampire, 「Clan of Blood (Thinblood 孱血)」, allowed me to use exactly the same abilities as the vampire from Barkollak.
Enhanced physical abilities, weaponizing blood, bloodsucking—abilities belonging to the lowest rank of vampire. ‘What rank is that guy, then? And what’s Brokoslak?’ As I watched Wirak walking ahead, he glanced back at me once, then nodded as if rather satisfied.
“To think you can already handle it to that degree when you’ve only just inherited the blood. You seem to have some talent.”
He had looked displeased earlier, but seeing that I might be useful seemed to have softened him a bit.
“And judging by how well you’re keeping up, your physical abilities are above average too. Looks like I didn’t draw a complete dud. At the very least, you’re better than that Paulin bastard who died this time.”
It seemed the name of the vampire I killed in Barkollak had been Paulin.
Ignoring the useless information for the most part, I naturally spoke to Wirak.
“Thank you, Lord Wirak. By the way, may I ask where we’re going right now?”
“You’ll know once you follow.”
Apparently, he had become too annoyed to explain every little thing.
We ran over the buildings in the city and entered the wealthy district near the city center, where luxurious mansions stood in rows.
“This way.”
As though we had reached our destination, Wirak stopped in front of the largest and most splendid-looking mansion among them.
Creeeak—
And soon, with a small noise, the iron gate at the front entrance opened.
“You have arrived, Lord Wirak.”
Inside the gate, a pale-faced middle-aged man in butler’s attire was waiting, and he bent at the waist in a perfect right angle.
“Yes. I need to have a meal. Prepare the usual.”
“And this person is…?”
“Ah—he’s a Thinblood I newly made this time. Assign someone to him and show him around.”
When the butler looked at me and asked, Wirak answered roughly as if it was bothersome, then moved into the building.
“Then please follow me.”
“Ah, yes.”
“Please speak comfortably. I am merely a Servant.”
Apparently, Servants were of a lower rank than me, a Thinblood.
When I entered the mansion interior after the middle-aged butler, one of the butlers standing inside approached.
“From here on, this fellow will guide you. Hayden, this person has inherited the blood this time, so make sure there is nothing that inconveniences him.”
“Understood, Head Butler.”
The middle-aged head butler bowed to me again, then disappeared deeper inside.
And with Hayden guiding me through the splendid interior, I asked him various things I had been curious about.
“This is the Ajantu branch of the ‘Brokoslak Clan.’ Lord Wirak is one of only three Purebloods in this city.”
Among those three, it seemed Wirak was in a position where he was responsible for all the vampires in this city.
Aside from that, we exchanged questions and answers as they came to mind, and before I knew it, we had arrived in front of a room.
“From today onward, you may use this room. If you need anything, please ring the bell inside.”
Hayden bowed and withdrew without so much as the sound of footsteps.
Click—
“Wow…”
When I opened the door, the interior of the splendid room dazzled my eyes.
From the table and sofa to the bed, everything felt like the height of luxury.
My reflection appeared in the beautiful mirror on the wall.
A cold, handsome man with a pale impression and sharp features.
I had always prided myself on being rather decent-looking, but after becoming a vampire, I had become an undeniably pretty man. ‘This might not be bad… More importantly, vampires here are reflected in mirrors.’ Flop—
I threw myself onto the bed and lay down.
I had woken up in the middle of sleeping, and there was still quite a while before dawn, but perhaps because I had become a vampire, I did not feel sleepy.
I closed my eyes and organized the new information I had obtained.
I was told that my education as a vampire would soon be handled by a senior Thinblood, and for now, Hayden had mostly taught me the basics.
Vampires were fundamentally nocturnal, acting at night and sleeping when the sun was up.
It made sense, since low-grade bloodsuckers below Servants would burn in the sun like in the movies, and even high-ranking vampires had restrictions placed on their power, so they did not go out much while the sun was up.
“Ah… The kids will be worried if I disappear without a word.”
They said I could go out freely once my education was finished, so I had no choice but to endure it for a few days.
Knock, knock—
“This is Hayden. May I enter?”
I did not know how long I had been lying there when I heard a knock at the door, followed by Hayden’s voice.
“Uh, come in.”
Hayden opened the door and entered, holding a tray in one hand. On it was a wineglass filled with red liquid. ‘That’s probably… not real wine, is it?’ “Some time has passed since you inherited the blood, so I thought you would be getting hungry and prepared this.”
“No, I’m not that hungry yet… huh?”
Until just now, I had truly been fine, but the moment I smelled the blood Hayden had brought, an abrupt, intense thirst seized me.
As I was feeling flustered, Hayden offered me the wineglass.
“It is freshly drawn blood. Please drink.”
As the blood drew closer, my body began to react violently.
My fangs pushed out on their own, my gaze would not leave the wineglass, and my whole body trembled. ‘…Is this a withdrawal symptom? If it’s this bad, vampires really wouldn’t be able to endure the impulse to drink blood, would they?’ Of course, I was an exception.
I could not help my body’s reflexive reactions, but since I could control the impulse with 「Mind Hub」, there would be no incident of me escaping my own control and drinking blood as I pleased. ‘Still, I should drink it for now, right?’ If I did not drink, it would invite needless suspicion, and it was not yet time.
I reached out with a trembling hand and picked up the wineglass.
The fragrant scent of blood reached me. ‘As expected, it would be dangerous to just drink it normally.’ I must not come to find blood delicious.
As I brought the glass to my lips, I cut off the sense of smell and taste connected to Heinz.
Gulp, gulp… The more I drank the blood whose taste I could not feel, the more my body calmed down.
My mind became clear as though I had drunk a stimulant, and I felt like I could handle my power more smoothly.
“And in a little while, Lady Rosilica, a Thinblood, will be visiting. She said proper education will begin tomorrow, but she wished to at least exchange a simple greeting.”
At Hayden’s words as he accepted the emptied wineglass, I lightly nodded.
It was something I had to do anyway, so the sooner it was done, the better.
After waiting briefly like that, I was soon able to exchange greetings with another vampire.
“Hello? Nice to meet you, newbie~. You can call me Rosilica. What’s your name?”
“Nice to meet you. I am Heinz.”
“Don’t be so stiff. You can speak comfortably~. We’re both Thinbloods, aren’t we? Among those of the same rank, we’re equal to each other.”
Rosilica’s first impression was that of a lively beauty.
A radiant appearance, a cheerful smile, and a sociable manner.
Up until our first greeting, I even felt a favorable impression of her, but that sentiment did not last very long.
“So, what I like most is the blood of handsome men, you see? The more muscle they have, the better. Come to think of it, you’re exactly my type. If you were still human, I would have sucked you dry to the very last drop. Kyahahahat~.”
This was just a crazy woman.
“Hey, Rosilica. Enough about your taste in blood. Could you tell me about the ranks? I only just became a vampire, so I don’t know anything.”
“Aww~ Fine. Come to think of it, you haven’t drunk much blood yet, so I guess it can’t be helped. Later, once you develop your preferences, let’s hold a tasting where we recommend things to each other.”
I absolutely did not want to get close to her, but for now, I had no choice.
“Our rank is the fourth. After Holy Blood, Trueblood, and Pureblood. Below us there are only Servants and Slaves, so we’re basically at the bottom. Those kids aren’t even treated as vampires~.”
After hearing her explanation, I learned that Servants referred to attendants like the servants in this mansion, while Slaves was a general term for mindless bloodsucking monsters. ‘It was lucky that I became a Thinblood, then.’ It was probably because, right as one had died, I had seemed useful.
“If you had to compare it~ Thinbloods are the knight class. Purebloods could be called nobles. Truebloods are royalty, the leadership of the Clan. As for Holy Blood… they’re simply objects of faith.”
“Faith?”
“Our progenitor and the one we must obey absolutely. The supreme being of the beginning.”
Rosilica murmured with reverence, then soon let out a smirk.
“Not that bottom-feeders like us will ever get to see them even once in our lives.”
As I conversed with Rosilica, I realized that dawn had already begun breaking outside.
There were thick curtains drawn over the window, but I could tell to some extent.
“Oh my, it’s already this late. It’s gotten late today, so let’s continue your education tomorrow. It’s time for me to sleep now. They say beauties are sleepyheads, don’t they~?”
Rosilica gave me a wink, then left the room. ‘Late, she says…’ I sighed at the brief sense of dissonance.
Come to think of it, as the day brightened, I felt as though I had become slightly tired. ‘I’ll have to get used to it.’ *** For the next few days, I proceeded with my education by talking with Rosilica and moving my body directly.
Fortunately, on the second day, I was able to obtain permission to go out under the pretext that I had luggage left behind at my lodging. ‘Actually, I only brought it up tentatively, but I didn’t expect them to think so little of it.’ When I mentioned it to Rosilica, who was in charge of my education, her reaction was extremely straightforward.
“Just go and come back now.”
“Huh? Aren’t I not allowed to leave until my education is over?”
“No, well~ I don’t know about other places, but here you don’t need to worry about it.”
According to her, that rule existed to protect newcomers who had only just become vampires, and since Ajantu was already under their control, it did not particularly matter.
Given the nature of vampires, who absolutely obeyed those of higher rank, rebellion was something they could not even dream of, so there was no need to make an issue of it either.
Thanks to that, I was able to slip outside in the evening, gather my things, and go to greet the siblings.
“Mister!”
“Mister! Where did you go, coming back only now? We went to your lodging, but you weren’t in your room. We were worried!”
When I went to see them, the siblings immediately threw themselves into my arms.
That lasted only briefly before Diana sniffed, flinched, and carefully looked up at me.
Seeing the expression on her face, as though she had a lot she wanted to say, I gave a bitter smile and separated myself from the siblings.
“Well, that’s what happened. Still, I’ll make sure no harm comes to you, so don’t worry.”
Squeeze—
I tried to pull away, but Diana instead hugged me even more tightly and whispered in my ear.
“I’m not worried. Um, mister? If you need blood, you can drink mine. N-not too much, though. Just… a little bit?”
Seeing her furtively glance at Aaron as she spoke in a small voice, I could not hold back my laughter and gave her a flick on the forehead.
“Ow! Ugh… What are you doing!”
“That’s my line. What are you saying? Enough. Take this money and live off it for now. I’ll contact you again later.”
Although I had become part of the city’s leadership, it was still better for these children to leave this place.
It might be one thing if it were another Thinblood, but if Wirak, a Pureblood, decided to devour these siblings, I, as someone of lower rank, would not be able to protect them. ‘As long as I can call Hans, my options will increase. Until then, let’s stay quiet like this.’ After parting with the siblings, I returned to the mansion and continued my education with Rosilica.
How to handle the energy used by vampires, “blood mana.”
“What? Is this really your first time? Why are you so good at it!”
Perhaps thanks to my high mental strength, or perhaps because of Hans’s experience handling dark mana, I was able to quickly get used to using the energy.
And the things I had to be careful of as a vampire.
“Garlic? It doesn’t matter~ Why would it? Water? I like hot springs. There’s one in the basement of the mansion too.”
It seemed vampires in this world did not have many weaknesses.
They became weaker in sunlight, and wounds inflicted by silver weapons did not heal easily—that was about it.
Even those were not absolute.
“Those can be overcome somehow. The only thing we truly need to be careful of is divine power. It’s our natural opposite, after all.”
In that way, I gradually built up my knowledge as a vampire.