My objective is survival. I would do anything to increase my odds even just a little.

Why else would I waltz into enemy territory to get the Night Crystal that I so desperately need?

Unbelievable. Even if they had set the time of meeting at night during the working hours of the tavern which is favourable to me and displayed that they meant no harm, they are professionals that hunt dark beings for a living.

I have come across my fair share of powerful opponents. I am not conceited enough to think I would be able to go head-to-head with them just because I had a bit more blood.

“… So, you planned it all.”

The Keeper frowned and his voice betrayed no emotion.

Albertus whipped around and looked ready to pounce as she glared at the owner of the voice from earlier.

Senri stood behind the Keeper and Albertus.

Her head was buried deep into the hood of her robe and she had on the fake pair of glasses as disguise. Her piercing gaze and the sword that served as proof that she was part of the Death Knights, were pointed at the Keeper.

Although not a perfect plan, I had her sneak into the tavern before the sun had set.

Quite likely long before the Keeper or Albertus made it here.

I wanted her to witness the transaction between me and the Vampire Hunter. If things had settled without any incident, she had no plans to reveal herself.

However, I was certain that they would attack me. They had me for a while when things were going smoothly but grudges always ran deep.

Senri looked eerily pale.

The reason could be anger or because I acted a little wilful and drank too much blood.

I ended up spewing a lot of embarrassing things, but it did not look like she minded.

In spite of being at the other end of the sword of a second-class knight, whose strength I cannot even compare to, the pair still had not lost their fighting spirit.

Albertus snarled at her.

“You fooled us huh, you lecherous bitch!”

“Alba, stop it. She is not our target.”

The Keeper shrugged lightly. But the look in his eyes was just as cold as his dangerous partner’s.

He still held the crucifix sword in his hand.

As far as I know, Vampire Hunters are no match to the Death Knights. And yet, what is giving them this composure?

I had thought that they would retreat the moment Senri entered the picture. Unless they have something else up their sleeve.

“Well well… Destroyer’s gem. Aren’t you taking things a little too far? Do you even know what you’re doing? That vampire may still be a lesser… but I heard it is a singular specimen, ‘Ancestor’, created by Horus Carmon. I don’t get it. I should think a Death Knight would understand the danger it poses.”

“…”

‘Ancestor’. I have never heard that term before. Nor did I come across it in books.

However, considering that Senri has not interjected, I suppose it was common knowledge in their circles.

The Keeper ran his fingers along his sword as he continued at large.

“We have no idea about the reason behind its creation. It needs to be exterminated before it completely turns into a monster. Kekek another ancestor could leave several casualties in its wake. Not that it’s a matter of concern to me.”

“He… hasn’t fed on anyone else but me. He’s still rational. And perhaps, he always will be.”

“That’s–”

That brought a change in the Keeper’s expression.

His face deep with a frown, he sighed deeply and spitted out.

“This certainly makes things difficult. If that’s its singularity, then it makes that vampire… the worst among the ancestors we’ve witnessed so far. It could inflict evil upon the entire world. Leave it to a second-class necromancer to create such a thing. Senri Silvis, if it manages to propagate that singularity, it could gain immense power. Are you… raising the most dangerous vampire ever?”

Senri’s face expressed strong doubts for an instant.

Our eyes meet. However, I keep quiet. I have nothing to say.

I have no idea what an ancestor is or what he means by me being dangerous. But I believe in her.

The silence lasted a few seconds. Senri frowned and spoke in a controlled manner.

“… Leave. I… will watch over him.”

“… Kekek… Our negotiations have failed I see… that’s unfortunate. Alba–”

The Keeper did not look the least unperturbed hearing Senri’s response.

He barked a curt order to his partner by his side.

“ Seize that pitiful Vampire’s Bride. I wanted to go as easy on her as possible, but… just make sure she’s alive.”

“I refuse. I shall kill that vampire!!”

“… Don’t kid around. Would you have me, a mere human take on a Death Knight? Just do what I told you. If you catch her quickly, you can help me with the hunt.”

Unbelievable. Do these people intend to fight Senri?

This is completely not what I had expected to happen. Even under restrictions, Senri is much stronger than me and she does not possess any obvious weaknesses like me.

Albertus lifted up the huge table with one hand and easily flung it in Senri’s direction.

Considering she could do that with her small body, her power could possibly rival mine. I wonder if there is a trick to it.

Nevertheless, this is not the time to stand lost in thought. Almost the same time, the Keeper made his way over to me.

He raised the crucifix sword over his head.

“Keep your wits about you, vampire.”

“?!”

He was not that swift, but it gave me a very bad feeling.

I retreated to the back and easily evaded the blow. Droplets scattered around. The colorless, transparent liquid is akin to strong poison to me.

A crucifix is not that fatal a weapon against vampires. However, it has the power to make one feel sick and weak upon coming in contact with it. More so when the Keeper’s sword is made of silver and has been splashed with holy water.

I doubt I would be able to heal as quickly if I were to take a blow. I may even be rendered unable to move.

It was my first time facing off against a Vampire Hunter. I do not have the luxury to worry about Senri now.

I pulled back, picked up a table and flung it with all my strength, just as Albertus had done.

I am brimming with power. And I am in great shape. The Keeper clicked his tongue and slid to the side to avoid it.

Apparently, he is no match for me in terms of endurance, physical strength or regenerative ability. In return for all that, I have a ton of weaknesses.

I have attained my objective. All I need to do is get out of here. I kept an eye out for his attacks as I retreated. On the other side, Albertus had taken to all fours and lunged at Senri like a beast.

I do not need to worry. Senri is more than capable of fending her off.

For now, I need to shake off this man in front of me. The Keeper relentlessly pursued me as I pulled back.

“Sorry you had to come all this way to drop off the night crystal.”

“Don’t worry, you’ll be paying for it… with your life!”

The crucifix sword is thrown at me. Upon closer inspection, two more similar looking swords hung from his hip.

The inside of his cloak was filled with strange weapons I had never before seen but they gave me a very unpleasant feeling.

I evaded the sword. The long sword pierced the wall and shook badly from the impact. However, I cannot try to take it in hand. I would lose my strength as soon as I touch it.

This puts me at a disadvantage. The man before me does not look like the type to pursue someone with all his strength. That looked to be more his partner, Albertus’ job.

I am overwhelming him in terms of strength, but it would be dangerous to get any closer without knowing all of his tricks.

I exit the tavern. The Keeper chases after me. There were a lot of curious onlookers gathered outside the tavern. Seeing me rush out, they screamed and scattered everywhere.

A hostage… I should not take any. I doubt hostages would work on them and Senri would never forgive me.

Six, small, silver crucifixes, came spinning towards me. They looked almost like boomerangs. They really are innovative huh…. I evaded them half exasperated and half impressed. It was simple given the heightened senses and enhanced physical abilities of a vampire.

“What an impressive trick…”

“… Right?”

Another crucifix sword came flying at me. It is pointless no matter how many times you repeat it.

The moment I tried to avoid it, pain suddenly shot across my whole body.

My hands froze in place, but I somehow managed to whip out the machete at the last minute and knock down the crucifix sword. The Keeper was closing in on me.

That is when I realized I was caught in a loose web of dark thread. I bear with the pain, force my body to move and release myself from it.

Silver threads. They were dyed black so that even a vampire with night vision might fail to notice it. There is no puzzle as to when it was set up.

The Keeper’s hands pulled back. The threads became taut and the six crucifixes that were thrown earlier came at me from behind.

“Shit!”

I promptly wheeled around and used the Blood Ruler to knock down the crucifix attached to the thread.

At the same time, the Keeper came at me brandishing his crucifix sword.

He is strong. He certainly would not win any battles but he was accustomed to it. Had Albertus been at his side, I would have stood no chance.

I ignored my body screaming in pain and cried out.

“Don’t patronize me!”

“!!”

I kicked off the ground.

I am much stronger now than I was at the time of my training with Senri. The ground fractured and the earth shook. It broke the Keeper’s stance.

He looked dumbfounded as his eyes met mine. Reflected in his cloudy eyes was a monster with red eyes. I sneered.

— Time to retreat.

I do not think I can handle them. If I think about it calmly, they are hunters who specialize in killing vampires. I should not have to face them as a lesser vampire.

I took a big step back, which exasperated the Keeper. He reached into his cloak and retrieved a ball the size of a fist.

He stepped back and sent it hurtling towards the ground.

White powder dispersed through the air.

A smokescreen? That only works in my favor.

My body was instantly taken over by intense nausea and pain.

I slid to the ground in spite of myself and hurriedly got back to my feet. My head spun around. I dashed out and made it past the cloud of white powder.

My naked palm was red and swollen. I felt like passing out. Tears would not stop flowing.

This acrid smell… finely ground garlic I see. On top of which, there also seemed to be a smattering of silver powder mixed in there.

I cannot believe they are being so mean to a helpless, little vampire.

I do not feel weak. Looks like powdered garlic and silver are not capable of taking away my strength. I would like nothing more than to wash it all away, but if I carelessly jump into a river, I will die.

I need to look for a roof to jump onto. Given my physical abilities, I can jump over from one roof to the other to get away from here. The moment I crouched ready to kick off, I heard the high-pitched shriek of a shot being fired.

I felt intense heat at the side of my torso and pain shot across my body. The bullet had made a hole in the wall before me.

I placed a hand over the wound and applied pressure. White smoke arose from it. Silver bullet. Luckily, all it did was graze me.

I looked back. The Keeper had a huge revolver leveled at me. I wonder what kind of training he has gone through to be able to accurately aim at me in this darkness.

“Ugh… damn you! I hate you!”

“The feeling is mutual.”

That was not surprising.

The Keeper pulled the trigger. I bore with the pain and evaded the bullet that came hurtling towards me.

The number of bullets are limited, and given a vampire’s dynamic visual acuity and reflexes, it is rather easy to evade them.

Had I been unhurt, I could even split them in half using my machete.

Maybe the Keeper had discerned that I still had energy left in me to fight back, he put down the revolver and uttered disappointed.

“Do you intend to leave behind the princess, your bride, vampire!”

“Of course… I am.”

If I put my utmost effort to make it out of here, I doubt they would chase after me.

Senri will be alright. The original plan was to run away the moment a fight broke out.

We have already set a place to rendezvous later.

I jumped up on the roof still dizzy. Although I had made it out of the cloud of white powder, I still felt dizzy. It has been quite a while since I was in this much pain.

However, it still did not compare to the solar penalty, but that does not mean I want to go through this again.

“I doubt we’ll meet again. Goodbye.”

“End. I’ve committed your name to memory. Next time… you won’t escape.”

The sword he sent flying landed within an inch of my feet. I ran away with my tail between my legs.