Yustelein remained silent for a long time in response to the accusation that they had already disturbed the order of the world.
I held my breath, rolling my eyes to catch every minor reaction. From now on, it was crucial to see what kind of response would come back and how to deal with it.
To create even the slightest chance close to zero, I considered every possible scenario.
If Yustelein was friendly, if they were hostile. If it seemed possible to persuade them through conversation or impossible. Or if it escalated into a fight, how much of the Elder Dragon’s blood could I possibly take?
At this moment, there were no other options. It all depended on how sincere they were about the order and balance of the world.
[If we assume your words are correct.]
Assumption. So they still refuse to acknowledge it, huh?
Still, they seemed more genuinely concerned about order and balance than I initially thought.
[What does that have to do with your request to drive away the light spirits?]
“Because that’s the way to restore the balance that was broken two thousand years ago.”
My logic was straightforward.
Two thousand years ago, Yustelein had whimsically removed the heaviest weight vampires had on the balance of power in the world. Now, they needed to support the vampires again, as they had taken away their strength. That was all there was to it.
[Indeed. Was that the meaning?]
I slowly nodded. I never imagined a day would come when I felt so frustrated by my inability to read a dragon’s expression.
But just as I began to think maybe it wasn’t a terrible reaction…
[It’s not a perfect solution, but it’s interesting.]
“Then…”
[However, I refuse. It would be simple to remove an intruder from my dwelling, but if I were to descend to the surface myself, it would have various consequences. Ultimately, the only way I could grant your request would be to empower you through my blood, and I have no obligation to go that far.]
“…Is it really impossible?”
[For a being from the surface, blood magic is excessive. My essence can be a panacea for the ordinary, but granting the essence of life itself to a dark spirit through blood would be excessively dangerous. Rather than restoring the balance that was broken, it would lead to an even more extreme tilt.]
The pressure that had been weighing down on my shoulders disappeared, but I still couldn’t stand upright.
I had failed. I anticipated that the possibility of this outcome was profoundly high, but when the verdict actually fell, my heart sank.
[Now go back. You provided a rather decent amusement for the first time in a while—]
“No. I’m sorry, but I cannot do that.”
So this is how it ends.
Hearing about Ophelia’s demise from Martini, I had thought it was a truly foolish act. Little did I know, I would end up doing something just as foolish.
[…Stop with the idle thoughts. This is your last chance.]
A strong weight bore down on my shoulders again. But this time, I endured without collapsing.
One step, then another, I advanced. This level of pressure was nothing compared to the lives I bore on my shoulders.
A primal fear gripped my ankles, yet I challenged the greatest and oldest life in this world with a pathetic proclamation.
“Even if I die now, I cannot stop.”
Using blood magic, I manipulated the blood within my body. I wasn’t shooting it outward as a bullet but using it to force my flesh to move.
The sensation of being crushed flat. But even the essence of the Elder Dragon couldn’t interfere with my unique power over blood; my body creaked but moved somewhat as I wished.
[Are you truly making such a foolish choice?]
Without warning, flames erupted from my body.
It was hot. I almost screamed from the unimaginable heat, but I forced myself to endure. Even so, I did not stop advancing.
I swung my fist with all my might. In the next moment, I was sent tumbling to the ground.
My whole body throbbed. I adjusted the broken rib that had dug into my insides to fit it back with my flesh.
Having finally extinguished the flames clinging to my body, I wobbled upright and looked up at Yustelein, who had just spared my life even though they could have killed me a thousand times over.
I stepped from suspicion to certainty. I dressed my hunch as confidence and boldly asked.
“You mentioned that observing the model garden is merely a form of amusement, but there are still constraints, aren’t there?”
Yustelein’s eyes narrowed in a way that I could recognize instantly.
It was the first glimpse of a transcendent’s displeasure. However, that response was nothing less than an affirmation of my question.
“Could it be that the great being is not bestowing mercy upon me but rather has no choice but to?”
[…I thought this time might be a bit different. Truly, the dark spirits are all so rude.]
All right. I still had more to try.
Since giving up wasn’t even an option, it was half a gamble to see how far I could push this, but I found a glimmer of hope in the outcome.
From the beginning, there had been an odd sense of unease.
Without asking, Yustelein babbled about the model garden of the surface and how they wouldn’t ruin their own amusement, presenting various reasons for why they had to maintain the order and balance of the world. That was the first instance.
When I pointed out that they had already disrupted the balance, they still tried to avoid acknowledgment by using the term “assumption.” That was the second.
And the third instance was when they returned my proposal with a reaction.
If Yustelein had simply said, “So what? I just don’t want to help,” I would have found it easier to accept. If everything were merely a game for the Elder Dragon, then there would be no need for them to have logic or reasons to reject my outrageous request.
But Yustelein clung to reason until the end.
The limitations of being able to intervene in the surface world. And the excessive power contained within blood magic.
Yustelein sought justifiable reasons to refuse my request. Ultimately, the reason they turned me down was, “This could lead to a more extreme imbalance rather than restoring the past balance.”
Perhaps for Yustelein, there might be reasons they needed to obsess overly about the order and balance of the surface. It made me think of one possibility.
‘What if Yustelein is upholding order and balance not as amusement but as a duty?’
When that thought crossed my mind, Ophelia’s death also began to appear differently.
It wasn’t necessarily that Ophelia had left a wound on the overwhelmingly strong Yustelein due to their carelessness.
Maybe Yustelein had known all along. If they carelessly killed Ophelia, it would cause significant changes to the power dynamics on the surface.
If that were the case, Yustelein might have fought Ophelia in a state where they couldn’t fully display their abilities.
If Ophelia’s cause of death wasn’t directly from Yustelein but from having exhausted herself in the fight, it wouldn’t be entirely unreasonable. It was well within the realm of possibility for her to seek a worthy adversary after becoming weary of boredom and rising to godhood.
“So was I wrong?”
Yustelein did not deny it, and the seed of possibility turned into certainty.
Seeing Yustelein laboriously invent justifications for why they shouldn’t grant my request indicated that there might be some flexibility regarding the constraints based on whether they could accept it or not. They must be aware that killing me would also disturb the order and balance of the surface.
If that were the case, I had an opportunity. If they wouldn’t willingly provide me with the blood, I would seize it by force. Hunting, drinking, and taking—that is the essence of being a vampire.
I forcibly circulated the blood throughout my body. I brushed aside the Elder Dragon’s murderous intent, accompanied by physical power, and moved my body.
This time, the temperature dropped noticeably, and the surrounding atmosphere began to freeze, as if trying to encase me in a gigantic block of ice.
I shattered it before everything froze. Just as I was about to charge towards Yustelein, the rising ground blocked my way. I swung my fist at the rock wall separating us.
My right arm’s muscles tore apart, and the tendons in my wrist snapped. Even so, the wall didn’t give way.
What I needed to be most cautious of was self-destruction. I couldn’t waste any blood.
Instead of breaking it, I decided to leap over it. Thanks to having become rather adept at climbing, I reached the top of the rising rock wall in less than ten seconds.
And in that instant…
Kwahhhh!!!
Like it was waiting for this moment, a thunderbolt struck, engulfing my body in a furious blaze at the highest point.
“Ugh…”
It hurt. It was hot. My skin felt wrong. I couldn’t breathe. I didn’t even need to breathe, but I felt stifled.
But… I won’t fall apart from this. I’ve suffered worse pains time and time again.
Scraping away the charred skin, I leapt off the rock wall to face the Elder Dragon with black scales once more.
Reading a dragon’s expression was a clumsy endeavor. However, I could clearly perceive that the emotion dancing in those golden eyes was surprise.
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