“I’m afraid it would have been better if you hadn’t been caught… If that were the case, your father would have been mine, and the Yuridina Clan would have been yours. But because of that damned old man…”
[Ceria, that day…]
Delphine wore a perplexed expression that day.
It was not like her. Wasn’t Delphine always cold and solemn?
The realization came like a revelation around this time.
She knew, my sister.
“But don’t worry too much. It’s not too late even now. You are my daughter and the niece of a vampire, so if you just become aware of your power…”
So that’s why she couldn’t tell me.
Even if it meant enduring the truth of that day and my resentment.
“Wh-what…?”
Whether it was crying or anger.
The voice colored with an unknown emotion trembled precariously. Ceria’s face had long been distorted beyond recognition.
Crying, laughing, despairing, raging, hating, resenting.
Among all the emotions accumulated on her face, only one thing shone through.
A single tear rolled down.
“Come, my daughter. Could you lend me a bit of your blood? Since you drank from the dragon’s blood, surely it could be used for me…?”
Thud!
With a sharp sensation stabbing at her solar plexus, the silver-haired woman had to wear a foolish expression. The disbelief in her eyes slowly turned towards her abdomen.
There, a fist was embedded.
None other than her daughter’s fist.
There was no time for the woman to express her doubts.
Bang!
The woman’s body flew as if propelled by a cannon, raising a cloud of dust and crashing far away. The force was so fearsome that several trees splintered and fell.
And one shadow dashed through the scattered remnants.
A few tears left traces like afterimages. The mournful scream was released without knowing who it was aimed at.
“What have you done…?!”
There was no need for a sword.
It hadn’t been long since she awoke from her rampage. The current Ceria was in a state more akin to an animal than a rational human.
Above all, she didn’t even need to worry about wielding a weapon.
Her whole body was practically a weapon. Surrendering herself to the anger blindly could make her physique a more threatening weapon than any sword.
The silver-haired woman was just starting to regain her footing, staggering.
Having sustained serious injuries, and allowing such an unexpected blow.
Even ordinary monsters would have to prepare for death with wounds like these. Yet the fact that she still had the strength to rise meant that her body was also on a different scale of durability.
Though it was a story unrelated to Ceria.
Ceria’s own body was comparable to metal in terms of robustness. No matter how strong the opponent was, she wouldn’t have to worry about losing in hand-to-hand combat.
A heavy shockwave erupted.
It seemed unbelievable that it was merely the result of two women colliding. Several more trees splintered, and Ceria, who had now mounted the silver-haired woman, immediately unleashed a punch.
Smack!
With the sound of skin splitting, the woman’s neck snapped to the side. A stream of blood flowed down alongside her mouth.
It was a testament that Ceria was striking with all her might.
A series of resentful voices spilled from the girl.
“Wh-what have you done… what on earth have you done…?! Do you know what it feels like to lose a mother?! No, you must understand! What have you done to my sister… no, to our clan?!”
“…Ceria.”
It was an unexpectedly calm tone.
The woman, softly calling her daughter’s name, slowly turned her head back to the front. The gaze with which she looked up at Ceria was laden with undeniable affection.
It was a disgusting love.
For the first time, Ceria realized that love could be revolting.
“You still pretend to be human.”
“I am human!”
“No, you are my daughter.”
With a faint smile, the woman put on a gentle expression once more.
Ceria thought about smashing that face with her fist.
“You are just like me. Don’t you remember what you did?”
“I, what did I…?!”
“The blood on your clothes.”
Ceria’s breath halted, spewing hate without pause.
Her blue eyes silently looked down at her clothes. There were several bloodstains clearly present, implying the undeniable truth.
Finally, the fog clouding Ceria’s brain began to lift. Memories of her rampage, which she had forgotten until now.
The silver-haired woman smiled brightly.
“Is that, indeed, your blood? It doesn’t seem like it to me…”
Ceria’s body began to tremble again.
Memories, memories, memories.
Blood gushed out. Ceria was laughing. As if the pain of others meant nothing to her.
The only thought filling her mind was one.
“I need to have Senior Ian.”
“Ugh, ah, ugh…”
“Does this still make you feel human? What, in fact, is the difference between you and me?”
Thud.
The woman’s hand firmly grasped Ceria’s shoulder, but there was no resistance. It seemed as though the woman understood Ceria’s heart, adding a compassionate voice.
“Blood can never lie.”
Thud, thud.
Like a parent congratulating an adult child, the woman’s hand patted Ceria’s shoulder a couple of times.
“…Indeed, you are my daughter, Ceria.”
Ahh, ugh, huff.
Ceria could not return any words except her moans. She was only repeating hyperventilating breaths with eyes filled with despair.
Even when the woman slowly pulled her upper body towards her.
The white fangs, hidden between her lips, revealed themselves. Preparing to bite her daughter’s nape and siphon her blood.
Slowly, slowly.
Even as Ceria trembled, the woman’s fangs drew closer. Just as the woman’s breath was about to reach Ceria’s nape.
Thud, and.
An axe blade buried itself in the woman’s forehead.
“…Ceria.”
With the sound of the woman’s body collapsing behind her, the man could only let out a deep sigh.
It was Ian.
He walked over and grasped the still trembling Ceria’s nape. Then, as if dragging her, he pulled Ceria off her mother’s body.
Ceria had yet to regain her senses.
“It’s not your fault.”
Ian said this quietly as he knelt down. The pain of inevitable sorrow shone in the man’s eyes, unable to hide it.
“You were just being used. The mistakes you made…”
“It was my fault.”
It was a confession that burst forth like a sob.
Like it was a signal, clear dew began to overflow from Ceria’s eyes. It was an emotional torrent Ian had not witnessed in a long time.
“I-I am a monster… I fell in love… beyond my station…”
“A monster?”
“Because I’m the daughter of a monster.”
How could she dare to open her mouth before lamenting while shedding tears?
Ian hesitated briefly, at a loss for words.
He wanted to offer some form of comfort.
But sadly, the world did not leave the two of them at peace.
Kugugugung!
It was a violent tremor.
This was already the second time; the ground shook unexpectedly, unleashing an intense tremor. The intensity was several times stronger than before.
The epicenter was clear.
The center of the forest, likely the place where the great witch and the vampire were battling.
It was certainly not a positive sign.
To begin with, the great witch had been slightly outmatched against the vampire. If the battle was still ongoing, the great witch was likely losing.
Moreover, the extent of the damage to the core of the barrier was unknown.
The problem did not end there.
Staggering, staggering.
Ian let out a deep sigh at the sense of something rising behind him and slowly turned around.
There stood the silver-haired woman, with an axe embedded in her forehead, bracing her wobbly legs. Blood gushed from the forcibly pulled axe.
The woman, bleeding profusely, looked anything but normal.
Her body had begun to sprout hair. Her ears elongated, her eyes became thinner and fiercer, and her arms and legs developed abnormally.
A beast.
Yes, this was the true appearance of a mage.
Those positioned on the boundary between human and monster through a contract with an evil god.
Ian muttered as though fed up.
“I’m busy. We should get moving.”
“That won’t do, son-in-law.”
The giggly voice was bothersome. The excessively high pitch felt like needles pricking at his eardrums.
Though it would be the same for her; she was wounded as well.
The man, licking his lips, slowly began to rise. If he didn’t finish this quickly, the great witch might be in danger.
He had to finish it as fast as possible.
Just as he reached that conclusion.
Bang, and blood splattered along with a groan.
“Guh, ugh…?!”
Naturally, the sound that escaped Ian’s lips was not his own.
A blue beam traced a path past him. The glare penetrated the arm of a monster that took the shape of a bat.
Ian’s eyes widened as he stared at the point where the beam had been fired.
“Senior Ian, hurry and go!”
“…Princess.”
It was such an unexpected figure that Ian could only utter a dumbfounded sound.
What could this mean?
For the princess to appear at a time like this?
It was nearly impossible considering her usual demeanor.
But the reality reflected in the man’s retina was all too clear.
“Senior Elsi has already departed to the center of the forest! Most of the core of the barrier has been destroyed and I can handle the rest! So please, go and deal with the vampire!”
“However…”
“Hurry!”
With grit.
Only then did Ian come to his senses after hearing those words.
The princess’s will was far more unwavering than he could have imagined. There was no point in adding hesitation or worry at this point; it wouldn’t sway her.
Only one worry remained.
Ceria.
Ian’s eyes lingered on his junior, but time was already running short.
Bang!
The earth shook once more, and Ian had no choice but to make a decision.
He had to go.
The princess was gritting her teeth and shouting.
“I am of dragon’s blood! I have no intention of remaining a burden forever!”
Though he hesitated for a moment, Ian had only one possible path to choose.
He grit his teeth and took a step forward. Just before kicking off the ground, his wistful gaze turned toward the princess.
“Please take care of Ceria. And make sure to survive.”
“Of course…!”
That was the end.
Bang, another discharge rang out. Ian turned his back on that sound and began to sprint with all his might.
Forward, and further forward.
Surely, a ‘vampire’ would be waiting up ahead.
The final battle lay before him.
The last combat that the man had distilled to his very last means.
