The Principality has a small population relative to its vast territory. Furthermore, humans serve as livestock providing blood. As vampires directly manage all administration, commerce, and military service of the Principality, humans rarely have occasion to leave their places of residence, and even when they do, it is done under the supervision of vampires.
What if there is a human wandering alone without a vampire? It is one of two things. Either a human who has earned a vampire's trust, or a fugitive scheduled for pressing machine execution.
"...Ah. So you're returning from the night ebb harvest?"
The girl who had been milking a cow glanced at Hilde and me as we awkwardly approached. Looking at her, Hilde and I forced awkward smiles. We had cleaned ourselves up as best we could, but it seemed our dishevelment was more apparent than meets the eye after rolling around in the forest for days.
I frantically racked my brain and made up an excuse.
"Yes, yes. We went to the castle because of the night ebb harvest, and got caught in a tsunami and had an accident, you see. So many were injured that there was a shortage of beds, so they told the lightly injured to make their own way back. Here, we even have a temporary pass issued by Count Erte."
I showed the temporary pass (forged) and spoke shamelessly, but unfortunately, the authority of a document didn't carry much weight with an innocent country girl.
"...Wait a moment. I'll... bring you some food."
'No matter how I look at it, they seem like they're running away. I should go to the village and ask Elder Billitear. Being a Yeling, they would know well, right?'
The girl kept glancing back at us and headed toward the village at a quick pace. Leaving the girl who had thrown aside her work and run away, Hilde and I looked at each other once and nodded.
"Looks like it didn't work, huh?"
"Look at her back as she runs. She looks ready to go tell the vampires right away~."
"Let's bolt!"
And then we turned tail and started running. After grabbing the lunchbox and milk she hadn't managed to take, of course.
I shoved the sandwich into my mouth and grumbled to my heart's content.
"They're too closed off! A passing traveler asks for a little help and they think of reporting them as suspicious? Even the Military Nation wasn't this bad!"
"The fewer people live in a place, the more closed off it tends to be~. Humans who go out of their way to come to a place with no people are usually up to something shady~."
"Do we look that shady?"
"It definitely shows that we haven't washed properly after sleeping on the road for days~."
"What. We got caught because of Hilde."
"Hmm?"
I felt a sharp impact on the back of my head. Hilde had flicked her finger and shot a burst of qi at me. I almost threw up half the sandwich I was eating, but barely managed to catch my breath.
"Y-You've gotten a bit rough with your hands lately..."
"If it were just 'me', I would have become a member of that village and lived peacefully for a few months. Who do you think is making 'me' suffer like this?"
"Well, yeah. It is because of me. But you had to leave the Principality anyway, Hilde. If it's just giving you a ride on the way, doesn't it take hardly any effort?"
"If you think so, shall we say bye-bye here? You can live here for~ever, Father."
"How could I survive in this harsh world without you, Hilde? I still need you."
As I desperately tried to humor Hilde, her displeasure softened a little. Hilde put on a stiff expression, pretending to be angry, and said.
"We're slowly getting closer to the border, so we need to make our truly final preparations now. After today, there won't even be time to catch our breath."
"I heard the south of the Principality gets sunlight and has fertile land, so there are many humans. Wouldn't it be easier to hide?"
"But that many more Ains are stationed there. Especially, the Margrave near the Military Nation border, 'Iron Wall' Xerse, is a fierce general who has guarded the Principality's border for over 500 years. Well, no matter how strong he is, he's only an Ain, so it's not like we can't escape, but..."
Hilde sighed and continued.
"...If Tirkanjaka wants to capture you, Father, they would have definitely sent an Elder near the border."
"Probably."
Vampires are powerful. Even if they are merely Ains, I couldn't confidently say that Hilde, who is at the Six Senses Realm, could easily defeat them. However, if there is a weakness to them, it is their small numbers. A vampire's subordinates number thirteen at most. Vampires that can properly wield power are only of three generations: Elder, Ain, and Yeling. Because of this clear upper limit, vampires, despite winning local victories, were inevitably pushed back in the end.
Therefore, the Elders would be guarding the border. Instead of needlessly roaming the land and wasting their strength.
"If they have an Elder on their side. Then a hidden card that 'you' prepared has to appear on 'our' side to balance it out~."
Hilde was implicitly pressuring me to bring out whatever I was hiding. But what could I do when I really didn't have a proper hidden card? Feeling like I had forgotten a gift on an important day, I tried hard to brush it off.
"H, ha. Well, the fact that Tir is chasing me is just a guess. They must be busy with the rebellion, so would they have the mind to chase after someone like me? They might have given up quickly."
"Is that so~? We'll see when the time comes~."
'Perhaps you've made a move to keep the Elders from coming? Though it won't be easy as long as the Red Blood Duke is there~. We'll see when the time comes, right?'
I probably won't know even when the time comes. Because I really don't have one...
Unaware of my rough thoughts and anxious eyes, Hilde stretched leisurely and muttered.
"Ahh. Looks like we're sleeping rough again today. Ugh. Sleeping outside isn't too bad, but I really want to take a wash~."
"Instead of just sleeping rough. Let's try parasitic lodging."
"Parasitic lodging?"
I don't have any hidden cards or anything like that... But at the very least, I need to manage Hilde's condition since she's working so hard for me.
***
"Matilda. Did you find them?"
"No, Village Chief Billitear. When I went back, they were already gone."
"Tsk tsk. They must have been fugitives. Sigh, I told you not to show suspicion so rashly."
"Why? My guess was right. We shouldn't take in fugitives, should we?"
The Yeling of the Blood Leech Clan, and the wise leader of Black Valley Village, Village Chief Billitear, looked at the young girl and clicked her tongue.
"In times like that, it's the best policy to welcome them warmly and treat them first."
"Why? If they're fugitives, we shouldn't let them into the village, right?"
"Now, calm your excitement and fear, and think calmly."
In other lands, vampires might be fearsome and despicable beings like mosquitoes or bedbugs. But in the Principality, a vampire was a reliable elder, a guardian who cared for them, and a teacher who shared wisdom. Village Chief Billitear, wiser and older than anyone, calmly explained to the girl.
"Suppose they were travelers as they said. Then it would be natural to take care of them for a while and let them go on their way. We would show them kindness, and they would repay us."
"But they looked like beggars? They smelled foul even from ten steps away!"
"I can't smell, so I don't know well, but those who worked at the night ebb harvest receive pay. If they worked at the night ebb harvest as they said, they would have had plenty of money. If it's difficult to give them lodging, I could collect the blood tax from them."
Village Chief Billitear also took on the role of collecting the blood tax from the nearby villages. It wasn't systematic, but in the countryside where tight-knit communities were formed, this method was actually more effective. Vampires, who had no emotions and no children, made fairer judgments than anyone else, so there was no corruption or collusion that usually arose in closed environments.
"But they were fugitives, right?"
"Then you should have guided them to the village even more. You could have observed and persuaded them, or fed them until their guard was down and then captured them."
It seemed like a mild judgment unbecoming of a cold-blooded vampire, but fundamentally, the reason vampires took good care of humans was along the same lines. You have to feed humans well and let them live comfortably so they produce better blood for longer. Billitear preached a coldly calculated mildness.
In contrast, the girl, who had yet to learn mildness, asked back as if she couldn't understand.
"They're human scum fugitives, right? What if they steal things or hurt people after we let them into the village?"
"Oh my. So you were acting with the village in mind?"
"Yes!"
It was a childish lie, but Village Chief Billitear had no way of knowing. Of course, whether it was a lie or the truth didn't really matter.
Even if the vampire's mildness stemmed from cold calculation, the Yeling of the Blood Leech Clan, who had led the village's peace and prosperity for nearly two hundred years, was truly respected by the people. Everyone relied on her, and she also repaid everyone.
"Then you should have brought them to me even more, Matilda. If they were such human scum... they might have harmed you the moment you showed a hint of suspicion."
Put coldly, Billitear's advice was the optimal choice calculated by considering all conditions and possible scenarios. But it was also a warm piece of advice for the girl and everyone else.
"M-Me...?"
"Yes. If you understand, don't go around alone from now on. Thank goodness they were cowardly fugitives; what if they had been murderers or starving beasts?"
"I-I hadn't thought of that..."
It is no coincidence that old fairy tales take the form of frightening children. It is the wisdom crafted by adults to instill caution in reckless children. Being fearful makes one live longer, and thus provide blood for a longer time.
Village Chief Billitear, who had warned her seriously while instilling a little fear, leisurely put her pipe back in her mouth.
Looking at the Yeling puffing out acrid smoke, the girl thought.
'If she just kept her mouth shut, she'd only look like my friend...'
The girl looked at the village chief, who appeared no older than her peers. Because they looked similar in age on the outside, she often felt a sense of intimacy, but whenever she saw a face that looked as though it had lived through the entire world like this, she realized the difference between a vampire and herself.
"But why did they run away? They're like fools. They should know that running away recklessly makes them criminals."
Village Chief Billitear answered with the pipe still in her mouth.
"Not all vampires are like our clan. Lord Bakuta is a very easygoing person, and thanks to his power of Gluttony, he can quench his thirst with the blood of beasts, so he demands less of your blood... I'm not trying to disparage other clans, but there are quite a few who waste blood on things they can't even eat."
Village Chief Billitear, who had given a textbook answer, suddenly recalled something and muttered.
"...You said it was a man and a woman together? Tsk, it might be something like that."
"Something like that?"
"There is such a thing. For some reason, couples who are expecting a child or about to have one strangely try to leave this country. The reason is... even at my age, I don't quite know."
Whoo. Smoke mixed with a sigh drifted in the air. Perhaps because she wasn't used to tobacco yet, the sound of the girl coughing could be heard...
"-she said, Father?"
"I don't know. Just grab some food for now."
Beneath the feet of the vampire smoking a mana weed pipe. A dark and cool basement.
Hilde and I, who had sneaked into this place using Earth Magic, were swiping all sorts of supplies here.