As the high-pitched voice of the girl echoed, the mountain fell into silence as if in reaction.
A moment later, the wind passed through, and Ivy turned uncomfortably away from Nox and Nana, who were unfazed even upon hearing the word “vampire.”
“…A vampire? One of the top-tier species alongside dragons? Humans trembling in fear?”
Blushing embarrassingly, she began to wave her arms aimlessly. Watching her, Nox scratched the back of his head.
“Well, yeah, I kind of wanted to be surprised, but…”
Despite talking about fear, he lacked the gravitas. Thinking disrespectful thoughts like Jenny was more otherworldly, he knew he was failing.
Regaining his composure, Nox threatened with wind magic and inquired again.
“Well, seems like we can communicate normally. So, tell me, what were you trying to do?”
Ivy, visibly frightened, replied honestly:
“N-Nothing important. I just had business down South and, feeling hungry, I thought I might attack some nearby livestock for a meal…”
Sighing, Nox remarked, “Livestock are not acceptable. That’s why they become targets for extermination.”
“Ugh! Stop nagging! There’s no other way, human-raised livestock have delicious blood!”
“Well, then, buy one with money. Or if you just want blood, negotiating might surprisingly work.”
When preparing meat, blood is drained. If someone is willing to take what will be washed away, there might be a surprising demand-supply alignment.
“I see? …No! I am a demon! Why should I negotiate with humans?!”
For a moment, Ivy almost agreed that it was a good idea, but realizing she was being swept along, she hastily shook her head.
“You want to eat what humans have made, right? Then follow human rules.”
“Ngh…”
Confronted with sound reasoning, she shrank back once again.
Thinking she was dealing with a strange character, Nox regained his composure and asked, “You mentioned ‘bringing a companion,’ are you the only vampire?”
“Yes, I granted them some power, they grew a bit, but those are just spiky bats.”
The typical size of a spiky bat is about the size of a medium-sized dog. The growth was far from minor. It was no wonder adventurers could mistake them for flying dragons in silhouette against the sun.
“I haven’t done anything wrong, can you let this slide?”
While the size was concerning, spiky bats are creatures that eat fruit. They reside in caves or dark corners of the forest, with their habitat rarely overlapping with humans. Unless they settle in groups, they can be considered mostly harmless.
“Well, even if you let them go, they won’t be able to fly for a while, and at that size, they’ll be easily spotted and caught.” Nox crossed his arms.
“I granted them power, they will recover by nightfall.”
Ivy proudly puffed her chest. If she received power from vampires, who are said to be immortal, then indeed, her recovery might be swift.
“In that case, are you alright?”
Nightfall was approaching. The Adventurers’ Guild wouldn’t deliberately search the forest at night due to the risks, and on the contrary, monsters would become more active at night. They should be able to escape skillfully.
“Well then, what about you?”
“Hm?”
The issue at hand is this vampire named Ivy. Vampires, as the name suggests, feed on the blood of living beings, posing a threat to humans and animals. Therefore, even for lower-tier species, extermination upon discovery or reporting to the guild is recommended. However, she is a higher-tier vampire who speaks the same language as humans. Vampires like her appear in legends and fairy tales, beings of disaster level that would cause a region to be locked down upon their mere appearance.
“I will continue heading south as planned. My tasks are not yet complete.”
However, retaliation is only warranted if humans are harmed. It is well understood that attempting to confront them would result in greater harm to humans. Without a just cause, one might be accused of increasing unnecessary casualties.
“…I understand, I won’t attack the livestock.”
On the other hand, despite Ivy being capable of wiping out an entire post station with a swing of her arm without targeting a single livestock, no malice or hostility towards humans was observed. She seemed genuinely passing through, continuing to listen to Nox’s words.
“If you head south, it will be Sarosso, but what are you going there for?”
Still, if Nana’s family was affected, she couldn’t let her proceed further, so he pressed on with the questions. However, Ivy nonchalantly replied, “A meeting!”
There seemed to be no hidden feelings or circumstances that needed to be concealed.
“There have been strange rumors circulating recently.”
“Rumors?”
“Our king’s resurgence—or, no, rebirth? Birth? I don’t know what they call it in human terms, but anyway, there’s a rumor that the long-absent king has reappeared.”
Once again, upon hearing familiar words, Nox furrowed his brows.
“The king who was supposedly defeated by the Acollan king hundreds of years ago?”
“That’s right. While I was still a young one back then and don’t remember much, there are those who knew the king at that time and sense a similar presence.”
Nox and Nana were surprised at the thought of someone living since those times, but now was not the time to delve into it.
“What will you do in the meeting?”
“Amongst the demon race, there are various intentions. Some want to approach proactively, while others want to defeat and take their place before they gain power.”
“And you?”
Thinking she had some plan in mind, Ivy, however, coyly revealed her sharp fangs with a smile.
“Me? I’m going because it sounds interesting! It’s been a while since I attended a meeting!”
At the carefree smile, Nox and Nana could only exchange glances.
