Chapter 9 : Confrontation

Chapter 9: Confrontation

In Roberland, the existence of cities was nothing short of a blessing.

For in Roberland, where more demonic beasts and bandits roamed than on any other continent, the only place where one could live with some degree of safety was within a city.

That was why, no matter how terrifying or unjust a lord might be, most citizens obeyed and sought happiness within their small lives.

Kushan City was built with a triple-layered structure.

Within the tall and solid inner walls lay the bustling commercial district.

Beyond that, inside the outer walls fenced with wooden palisades, there were rows of workshops producing all sorts of goods. Past the outer walls, vast farmlands stretched out, protected by scattered outposts.

Among the many villages in the rural region stood Rueira Village.

The people here, too, had led weary lives due to the recently raised tax rates, but they were still somewhat happy.

After all, in Roberland, not being devoured by demonic beasts, not being beheaded by bandits, and not starving even if barely—that alone was a tremendous blessing.

That was why the children of Rueira Village ran about with lively energy.

Today was no different.

Dane, the youngest son of Mr. Line, who raised goats, ten years old, went out to the stream and fields with his friends today as well.

It wasn’t just to play—they went gathering various herbs and mushrooms to help out with their tight household finances. But to the children, that was no different from playing.

And today, they were lucky.

“Wow! It’s sweet!”

“It’s really sweet!”

“Stop eating so much!”

“There’s plenty anyway!”

“Cough, cough! My throat still burns from breathing in so much smoke while chasing the bees away.”

The four children carried a large basket together as they crossed a meadow overflowing with flowers.

Inside the basket was a large honeycomb, filled to the brim.

Golden honey dripped and sloshed from the honeycomb.

This was Golden Honey, a specialty of Kushan City.

Golden Bees that lived in this region gathered the sap of the Everyellow Tree, which bloomed with pale yellow leaves all year round, to make it.

The price was quite high, so if they brought this back, they wouldn’t get scolded for slacking off for a while.

Not to mention, they’d be able to enjoy honey-coated treats for some time.

The four children hummed songs as they crossed the field, glowing under the blazing sunset.

Just as they crested the hill…

“Kyaaaaaaah!”

A scream rang out.

“Huh…?”

“W-what’s happening?!”

A horrific sight spread out beneath the hill.

Soldiers clad in gleaming armor and armed with spears and swords had surrounded Rueira Village. Like in a hunting drive, they pushed the villagers into corners and stabbed at them.

The children froze stiff.

“Dad?”

“Mom!!?”

They could see familiar figures screaming and fleeing in desperation.

Terrified screams. Crimson blood spattered so far it could be seen from afar.

The children, almost without realizing it, began to step toward the village. In the distance, they could see their mothers and fathers screaming.

“There! Kids over there!”

“Don’t let a single one escape!”

Unfortunately, the soldiers spotted the children inching toward the village.

“Eek!”

“W-we have to run!”

“Let me go! My mom’s over there!”

“You idiot! You’ll die!”

Only then did the children come to their senses. Panicked, they turned back and fled over the hill—but there was no way little legs could outrun grown soldiers.

“Don’t let them get away! Catch them!”

The soldiers charged after them with a roar.

In moments, the looming shadows of the soldiers fell over the children.

“Kyaaah!”

Sensing their doom, the children collapsed on the spot, screaming—

Thwip! Thwip! Thwip!

Arrows came whistling from somewhere.

“Ghk!”

“Gahk!”

“W-what the—?! Guhk!”

One, two, three.

In an instant, the swiftly flying arrows pierced through the soldiers’ throats.

Against those ghostlike shafts that found every gap, even their gleaming armor was useless.

Thud.

The three soldiers collapsed almost at the same time.

“Kyaaa!”

The children, faces spattered with blood, froze in terror all over again.

“Are you all right?”

A large, warm hand came to rest on their heads.

A man armed with bow and quiver looked down at the children with sorrowful eyes.

“W-who are you?”

“Rivera Pietro.”

“Ri… Rivera? Huh? You’re the baron?”

“Yes. We’ll talk more later. For now, follow me. We need to get out of here.”

“N-no! My mom’s over there!!”

“…I’m sorry.”

The man—Rivera Pietro—pulled the struggling children into his arms, then cast one sweeping glance at the hellscape that was once Rueira Village.

‘Count. You’ve really gone too far. Even assassinating a few of your men couldn’t stop you…’

That morning, he remembered, a young girl had come seeking him out.

Seah of the Ransen Family.

Through trading information, they had formed a quiet, mutual alliance.

And today, she had made an unbelievable proposal.

‘The Ransen Family will strike at the Count? And you want me to join you?’

At the time, Rivera had avoided giving her a direct answer, though in truth, his heart was heavy with doubt.

‘Impossible. Ransen… once they were the city’s hope, but now they’re a shadow of what they were. Sad as it is.’

Even if Ransen returned to their former glory, defeating Count Kxias would be nearly impossible. Much less now, when they’d fallen so low…

‘To attack the Count—what a hopeless thought. Rescuing just a few children is all I can manage…’

The House of Pietro had stood guard over this land for countless years, long before Count Kxias ever arrived.

To the citizens, he was called a baron and held a fair amount of influence, but he could never dare to compare with the Count.

He sensed the catastrophe drawing near.

‘Ransen. In this Roberland, it was rare to find a man who understood honor… I just hope he doesn’t throw his life away on something so reckless.’

Rivera clutched the children tightly in his arms and dashed across the fields.

From between his clenched lips, a thin trickle of blood dripped down.

He could not stop what was happening… but that did not make his fury any less.

*         *         *

Rattle, rattle, rattle.

Carts from Rueira Village rolled in a line toward the Lord’s Keep of Kushan City.

“Here is today’s quota. We brought a bit extra. One hundred and sixteen bodies in total—eight more than the required hundred and eight.”

“Well done.”

The vampires waiting beyond the gates lifted the covering cloth to check the condition of the corpses.

A suffocating wave of deathly qi surged forth, so dense that even the surrounding mana seemed to vanish. The vampires nodded in satisfaction.

They lifted the heavy carts with ease and carried them up to the very top floor of the Lord’s Keep.

The fortress, built in three tiers like a layered cake, had a broad and flat rooftop where one could look straight up at the sky.

That was where the work was performed.

By laying the corpses beneath the full moon and letting them dry for days under its light, perfect sacrifices would be prepared.

“The Count is coming up.”

At one vampire’s low whisper, all the others halted their movements and bowed deeply.

Thump— Thump—

Count Kxias ascended, his footsteps exuding oppressive weight.

He glanced over his vassals, then waved dismissively, as though even their presence annoyed him.

“I’ll take care of the rest. Go down. These are precious sacrifices—best not risk tainting them.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Still bowed, the vampires retreated quickly, careful never to turn their backs on him.

“Hmmm—!”

The Count let out a pleased hum as he looked over the carts filled with corpses.

Deathly qi, thicker and more potent than ever before, seeped upward in curling streams.

“Everything is ready. Tomorrow, the Ransen brats enter the palace, don’t they? At last… the long-awaited moment is almost here.”

The Count bared his sharp fangs in a wide smile, inspecting the carts one by one.

Though Nagi—one of his most capable subordinates—was dead, though the citizens’ lives were in ruin, though rebels were beginning to stir, he cared nothing for any of it.

As long as he could offer up Ransen and his noble-blooded followers as sacrifices, he would transcend—not merely above humans, but even above vampires—into a far greater being.

“Fools, blind to the truth of this world… How merciful of me, to grant them a glimpse of it, even as sacrifices.”

On the day he had drunk Delkash’s true blood and been reborn as a Vampire Lord, Count Kxias had learned the hidden truth of this world.

The plan he had prepared since that day was finally bearing fruit.

With a satisfied smile, he bent down to inspect the last cart.

At that very moment—

Flash!

Kwoooom!

A blaze of light, then a gale of wind.

From amidst the corpses, a dark-blue Aura Blade surged forth.

It lunged straight for Count Kxias’ throat.

*         *         *

“If you use the corpses, you can do it. That way, you’ll be able to face the Count.”

Seah. That clever girl had finally found the method.

“Ah, right—you said the corpses were under some kind of sorcery? The deathly qi is so dense that you can’t even feel mana in its vicinity.”

“Exactly. I think they amplify the deathly qi by pre-setting a magic circle and killing people inside it.”

“Then, if I hide among them, he won’t notice me…? No matter how sharp the Count’s senses are, not with deathly qi that strong.”

Nod.

At my question, Seah nodded, then spread open the map.

“According to the information, today Rueira Village will be attacked. Once the villagers are killed and the corpses are loaded into carts, slip in then. Pretend to be a corpse and stay still—they’ll deliver you straight to the Count.”

And so, I was now crammed inside a cart of corpses.

The reality was far more harrowing than I had imagined.

All kinds of thoughts assaulted me.

A limp hand drooped onto my face.

I thought—perhaps this hand once stroked their child’s head.

Wide-open eyes stared blankly.

The emotions lingering in them—were they resentment, or worry? I could not tell.

A bent foot was hooked across my stomach.

The calluses told of a life of hard labor…

Some were too young, some were too old…

People who should never have died were now dead, tangled together with me inside the cart.

I…

I had not saved them.

Instead, I was using them.

My heart churned with turmoil, and I closed my eyes.

My hand rested on my sword hilt.

I thought of only one man.

Count Kxias.

I would kill him.

I would kill him without fail.

Repeating that vow over and over, I endured the long, suffocating time. Until finally, the moment came.

“To grant them even as sacrifices a glimpse of truth—how merciful I am.”

That disgusting voice crept closer, step by step.

He’s here.

I stirred my Aura Core and began to stoke my aura.

One step closer.

One step closer.

At last, as Count Kxias’ shadow fell across the corpses—

I unleashed the searing aura I had built up and swung my sword.

Shhhrrrak!

Beneath the full moon’s glow, the dark-blue blaze of Iron Heart erupted.

I had thought it a strike so sudden that no one could anticipate it—

Claaang!

—but the sword aimed at his neck was caught by Count Kxias’ right arm.

It was the King’s Sword of Banroa, forged from Starsilver, a metal that was the natural nemesis of vampires. The blade sank deep into his flesh, yet it could not cut through the bone.

Sssshhhhhh!

The Starsilver seared the Count’s arm, spewing white steam as it burned.

Through the rising, billowing vapor, his crimson eyes glared down at me.

“Oh-ho. Ransen, isn’t it? What brings you here without so much as a word?”

Not a trace of surprise, not a flicker of pain—he greeted me as calmly as if nothing had happened.

Yes. I had known this would not be easy.

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