Looking back, I realized I had unconsciously thought of Eleonora as someone I needed to protect.
Her blood is valuable and will have uses in the future, but for now, she’s still weaker than me, so I believed it was necessary to watch over her.
Since the first negotiation with Kanak, I became even more desperate to protect her. Eleonora had come the deepest into my inner circle. Unlike the vampires of the Duchy, who had mixed motives, she stood beside me purely of her own will. I was afraid to lose that unique sanctuary, so I kept her hidden in a cage.
However, the fragile girl I thought was like a canary broke free of the cage and took flight, not to seek freedom, but to protect the cage.
I had to stop the battered girl, but I couldn’t ignore her plea not to be a burden.
In this moment, she desperately flaps her broken wings, proving that she is no longer someone who needs protection.
“Why, scared?”
Ludrik’s expression crumpled at my blatant mockery. Just moments ago, I was the one anxious, but the tide had turned in an instant.
When Eleonora had mentioned that it was possible to escape if attacked by vampires while she slept, it was no empty boast.
Even while limping and wracked with pain from broken bones, she held onto the dagger she gripped tightly. She was far from in perfect condition, but with the silver dagger in her possession, even the vampires hesitated to charge. After a couple of them were cut down recklessly, their caution only increased.
Of course, there were definitely stronger vampires among them than Eleonora right now. No matter how much vampires fear silver weapons, just one dagger in the hands of a battered girl didn’t present a massive threat.
But none dared to take the lead.
In a pinch, they could charge with the intent to stab just one of them; it might be enough to overpower Eleonora before I had a chance to help her. Yet, the vampires only exchanged glances, unwilling to risk their lives for the fight.
If Ludrik had charged himself, Eleonora wouldn’t have been able to hold out and would have crumbled. But now, since I was marking him thoroughly, he couldn’t touch her.
As a result, Ludrik’s plan to pressure me into worrying about defenseless Eleonora completely backfired.
With my feet unbound, I directed Ludrik’s movements, taking care of the minions that threatened Eleonora, while it was actually Ludrik who found himself tied down.
‘Even if they watch, I’m killing them all anyway.’
Seeing Eleonora standing her ground and understanding that whoever took the initiative would die by my hand made them glance at each other, but I had no intention of sparing them.
These scum, who only exist to fill numbers when I go hunting.
No, these guys don’t even go hunting, so they have no value at all. How dare they try to kill me by taking a hostage?
Thinking like that, I realized I had underestimated them. In the end, these lowly beings thought they could fight against me.
I should have just killed them cleanly from the beginning. This is definitely my fault.
I’m paying the price for leaving weeds to grow, as I didn’t pull them out when they first started. Now, I’m in a situation where I have to sweat it out and take care of them.
Truly, unnecessary resources should have been disposed of before it was too late.
“Every one of you, from the leader to the subordinates, are useless.”
In that moment, I threw in a cheap taunt, and if something had pricked Ludrik’s pride, a subtle opening appeared in his movement.
It’s downright humiliating that I have to struggle against someone swayed by this nonsense. If only my body would cooperate a little more.
Still, even a cheap opportunity is still an opportunity. I took a step at an angle, sliding in to press forward.
Finally, my fist brushed against Ludrik’s face.
The sensation of his cheekbone breaking. As he reflexively raised his arm to cover his face, I kicked into his exposed side.
“Ugh!”
Ludrik flew into the nearby vampire beside Eleonora. I didn’t relinquish my advantage and followed closely to keep up the pressure.
While Ludrik tried to protect his heart and neck at all costs, he had to sacrifice other defenses to do so.
Once he began to compromise, Ludrik was forced into increasingly unreasonable trades, and as his wounds increased, they started to exceed his healing capacity.
But that wasn’t enough.
A bit more. If only I could move a little faster.
I whipped my battered body into action. I had recovered to a level that could be called basic first aid, but as the battle dragged on, the burden was still on me.
But with the need to end this quickly, I lacked the lethal blow. No matter how hard I tried, my current state limited direct combat.
My usual close-combat strategy relies on an overwhelming regenerative ability compared to ordinary vampires.
As long as my head doesn’t get chopped off or my heart pierced, it doesn’t matter if my bones break or my limbs get severed; that’s a clear advantage.
But now, I was in one of the two worst-case scenarios I wanted to avoid. If I hesitated while trying to protect my heart, Eleonora would have lost her neck. There was no choice here, but the pain in my bones couldn’t be denied.
In any case, my fighting style, which excels in a war of attrition by forcing mutual bleeding and recovering through regeneration, was practically sealed now that I was in a vulnerable position regarding my heart.
A regenerative power I could neither abuse nor overly rely on.
Clearly diminished strength and reaction speed compared to normal.
So where can the remaining variable lie?
‘…Dark magic.’
Though I usually used it only for simple illusions or basic close-quarters combat like now, there’s nothing quite like magic for playing a decisive role when physical abilities are limited.
‘How can I use it?’
If I were at full capacity, I’d be confident I could overwhelm Ludrik purely with my physical abilities. Still, my current body felt as heavy as a water-soaked sponge, and no amount of whipping could bring it to the desired speed.
This was not about willpower. If my heart’s wound opened again, I wouldn’t be able to rise again.
Lacking speed meant shallow attacks. Even if I gritted my teeth and aimed for a decisive blow, Ludrik somehow managed to react, resulting in merely shallow wounds.
This kind of prolonged fight was not to my liking.
‘If speed is lacking, then I’ll use range.’
I’d never tried or learned this before, but now seemed like the right time.
The Progenitor of Vampires is the embodiment of the Dark Elemental. Martine told me that once I had a basic understanding, I could use magic just by thinking about it.
No complex rituals necessary. It suffices if I could slice through instead of just grazing. I could expand the range like an extension of my hand.
Right now, I could do it. Hadn’t I invested most of my free time in magic practice?
Back when I crammed the basics in the Duchy, I struggled to grasp unfamiliar concepts, but now it’s different. After countless repetitions using dark magic, I finally have a faint understanding of how it feels.
I thrust my fist out. It went wide.
Anticipated response. I quickly unfurled my fist into a palm and struck horizontally.
“Whoa!”
Ludrik leaned back, trying to kick me just as I aimed for his throat.
Originally, my fingertips were supposed to graze his neck. I should have been prepared for his counterattack, but—
‘Now!’
Something black, resembling ink, silently extended off my fingertips.
Previously, the distance had been just out of reach.
But suddenly, two knuckle lengths became an extension, and I finally cleaved halfway through Ludrik’s neck.
“@#$!!!”
Blood erupted like a fountain. In disbelief, Ludrik’s eyes turned to horror and shock, but his severed neck could barely produce a scream.
“By the way, I’m curious.”
I gripped Ludrik’s neck like a vice. Since half of it was still attached, he wasn’t quite dead yet; his resistance was almost nonexistent.
I won.
Though the finish was anticlimactic, I had no intention of relinquishing the victory I held in my hands.
The world of competition is cruel.
The winner takes all. So as the winner, I must feed.
“Some vampires are still part human. I wonder what they taste like?”
Startled, the dying Ludrik and the vampires who momentarily froze upon witnessing their leader’s defeat turned their gaze towards me in unison.
Well, thinking about it, weren’t they all originally human anyway? Just a little sip of vampire blood led them to this transformation.
So, aside from the Progenitor’s True Blood, they’re ultimately still human beneath? In fact, wouldn’t the ratio of humans be higher?
“Yeah, recycling is a virtue of civilization.”
If I’m going to dispose of resources, I might as well use them this way.
Yup, that sounds right. This idiot who doesn’t know how to utilize his own abilities is still pretty strong.
While it may not have a pleasant smell, if I were to evaluate its nutritional value, there should definitely be some there. The price for peeking over my fence will be paid with this.
“Haah.”
I pressed down on Ludrik’s drooping head as if sealing the lid and sank my fangs into the neck between his shoulder and throat.
Since I had no other option, I took a chance and made my bite, but it was causing blood to gush uncontrollably.
Honestly, this isn’t a good state for eating. Even if I close the lid, it’s overflowing uncontrollably.
What a waste. But there’s no help for it; I have to drink quickly before it overflows.
I sucked in waves of blood surging upwards from below, competing with the gaping neck for dominance.
With each gulp, my throat would jolt, and Ludrik’s essence would diminish in volume.
As the glugging sounds echoed eerily through the forest, for some reason, no one moved.
It felt like time had stopped in the woods. Only Eleonora approached me, gasping for breath, while Ludrik’s subordinates showed no inclination to flee.
Well, I don’t mind if they want to stay.
“Haah.”
I tossed the hollowed-out corpse to the ground and wiped my mouth with my hand. It was an unconscious act, but my hands were already covered in blood, only making it messier.
I couldn’t help but grimace. I licked my tongue over my lips, but it was still all sticky.
… Forget it, just forget it.
By the way, as for Ludrik… hmm, is his nutritional value not lacking?
“…The taste is absolutely awful.”
I didn’t know until I put it in my mouth, but the scent wafting through my nasal passages was annoyingly bothersome.
It’s not undrinkable if I hold my breath, but honestly, it’s worse than wild boar’s blood. I finished it because it would be a waste to toss it, but it turns out that it’s true what they say about not eating one’s kin.
There’s always a reason for the things you shouldn’t do. So from now on, I’ll only partake in cannibalism in cases of real necessity.
With that newly learned lesson etched into my heart, I set to work on uprooting more weeds.
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