#Episode 30
Todd clicked his tongue. He didn’t want to reveal the method to break the holy relic so soon, but he had no choice.
Todd sat facing Vasha with a serious expression. It might have been amusing to see someone who only reached Vasha’s chest acting so serious, but the intense aura radiating from Todd made Vasha’s body stiffen involuntarily.
“Van Drake is a vampire’s natural enemy. You know this, right?”
“Yeah.”
Pressured by Todd’s aura, Vasha nodded nervously.
A natural enemy is a predator. Just as the snake is a predator to the frog, vampires are predators to humans.
However, sometimes large bullfrogs eat snakes.
Van Drake was like that bullfrog.
“Then why is Van Drake the natural enemy of vampires? Is it simply because they hunts vampires? Or is it because they’re stronger than them? Because they has high resistance to mental spells?”
Todd’s question made Vasha recall a dream she had.
The homunculus Hudel, made from Van Drake’s blood.
Hudel had fought countless battles with vampires since he was fifteen.
The reason Hudel could ultimately defeat the vampires in such dire situations was…
“…because Van Drake’s blood is deadly poison to vampires.”
“Correct.”
If a vampire bites Van Drake and drinks their blood, the vampire dies.
Vasha knew this from her dream, but it was common knowledge among the vampires of this world.
However, fifteen years from now, when it is widely known that Van Drake is completely extinct, the vampires would recklessly drink Hudel’s blood. And that would become the decisive factor in reversing their fate.
“When Van Drake’s blood is mixed with vampire blood, the magical toxicity in the vampire blood disappears and it turns into a red crystal.”
Todd touched the tips of his index fingers and then brought his thumbs together to form a shape resembling a crystal.
“Now, here’s a question. Would this crystal be recognized as a vampire or not?”
Faced with the sudden quiz, Vasha pondered deeply. After a while, she hesitantly answered with an uncertain voice.
“Even though the toxicity is gone, it’s still vampire blood, so… wouldn’t it be recognized as a vampire?”
Todd nodded.
“Correct. The holy relic will try to purify that crystal.”
“But didn’t you say the toxicity is gone?”
Todd smiled, acknowledging Vasha’s accurate observation. Instead of giving an immediate answer, Todd continued to probe Vasha.
“Then what do you think will happen?”
“Holy relics absorb magical toxicity, or ‘magi,’ to get contaminated, but if there’s no magi to absorb…”
Vasha thought hard, gripping the purple strands of hair that had fallen over her shoulders, shaking them in her hands as she pondered. Then, she suddenly realized something and opened her eyes wide.
“Maybe the holy power will just be drained without causing contamination?”
“That’s right. A holy relic is just an ordinary object blessed with holy power. If the holy power disappears, it’s nothing special. Of course, high-grade sacred relics won’t lose their power that easily, but such items wouldn’t be taken out of the main church in Lamphas.”
It was impossible for nobles to possess items that even high-ranking clergy found difficult to carry. This was sufficient for dealing with someone like Albert or whatever his name was.
“How do you know all this?”
“I told you, I took heir training.”
“I know you took heir training. But, originally, didn’t the previous Van Drake use such methods? Why would a vampire hunter need to neutralize holy relics?”
Vasha, who was completely clueless, tilted her head in confusion. Todd couldn’t help but laugh. He had asked his father the same question when he learned this method.
“Nowadays, there are no more vampire hunters, but in the past, there were many besides the Van Drake. There were some decent ones, but most were amateurs who would often carry a bunch of holy relics, alerting the vampires.”
Sometimes, there were vampires who could detect holy power remarkably well. If such a person interfered while hunting such vampires, that day’s hunt was as good as ruined.
“Anyway, rather than being helpful, they were just a nuisance, so our ancestors came up with countermeasures.”
“Hmm…”
It was an unsettling and uncomfortable story for a vampire to hear.
Despite the fact that vampires engage in cannibalism, they did have a sense of kinship. It was not pleasant to hear about effective methods for hunting their own kind.
Vasha was curious about how the previous Van Drake obtained the vampire blood to make the crystals, but she decided not to ask.
While Vasha was swallowing numerous questions, Todd jumped off his chair with a lighthearted tone.
“Anyway, since we brought it up, let’s make it right away.”
“What, now?”
“There’s no reason to delay.”
Todd then fumbled around the back of his trousers. In his hand, there was an old dagger, the origin of which was unclear.
Vasha, startled, asked.
“Where did you get that?”
“I borrowed it. It’s a tough world out there.”
Todd replied nonchalantly as he rummaged through the items in the room.
He had gotten the dagger a few days ago by hitting some thugs on the back of the head with a brick, but he had no intention of telling Vasha that.
Todd continued searching the room for useful items.
He examined a wooden cup, which he usually used for drinking water, turning it over and over. After a moment, he placed the wooden cup and the dagger on the table.
Vasha involuntarily backed away. Her back hit the back of the chair, leaving her with nowhere else to retreat. With a reluctant voice, Vasha asked.
“What are you going to do with that?”
“I told you, I need your blood. Pour it in here. Gush, gush.”
“Gush, gush…”
Vasha’s face crumpled in frustration. Despite the old handle, the blade looked sharp enough to make blood gush out the moment it touched her skin.
Vasha’s face reflected on the blade lying on the table. Seeing her own expression, as if she would rather be buried alive, made her look even more distressed.
***
It wasn’t a situation where she could refuse. In the end, Vasha had no choice but to provide enough blood to fill half a cup. Since the wound from an ordinary blade, not a silver weapon, healed quickly, she had to endure the process several times.
“Ugh, it hurts.”
“Stop whining. What kind of vampire makes such a fuss?”
“Even vampires feel pain! If it’s an unavoidable situation, I can bear it, but it doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt!”
Clutching her bleeding left hand with her right, Vasha cried out in frustration.
Todd clicked his tongue in exasperation. He quickly wiped Vasha’s blood from the dagger with a cloth and then immediately swung it towards his own palm.
“Ah! Ah!”
It was Todd who got cut, but the screams came from Vasha. Startled by Vasha’s sudden reaction, Todd asked, while blood dripped from his palm.
“Why are you screaming?”
“It looks painful! Give a warning before you stab! Let me turn my head or at least close my eyes!”
Vasha squeezed her eyes shut and turned her head away sharply.
What kind of vampire makes such a fuss over a wound? Todd was at a loss for words at this unexpected situation.
“You…”
“Don’t waste the blood! Collect it quickly!”
Seeing the blood dripping to the floor, Vasha panicked.
As Vasha made a fuss, Todd ended up keeping his words to himself and let his own blood drip into the cup containing Vasha’s blood.
As soon as Todd’s blood mixed with Vasha’s, the thickly pooled blood began to coagulate.
Todd grumbled, trying to stop the bleeding from his palm.
“You saw me fall off a cliff before. This is nothing compared to the wounds I had then. And you think this small cut looks painful?”
“Well…”
Vasha mumbled, not finding the right words to respond to Todd’s pointed remark.
Compared to Todd’s condition back then, the wound on his palm now was just a scratch. Still, the sight of the wound was unbearable, making her wince.
What made it different from then to now?
