The pain lingered. However, I shall press on as long as I am able.

Pain and undead do not go together.

Thanks to my previous life experiences, I quickly gathered my wits and made it out of the smokescreen, but originally, the undead can barely feel pain, nausea or dizziness.

If such an undead’s weaknesses were suddenly targeted, it could be rendered motionless for a moment.

What dreadful tactics! Anybody else would have been killed.

Not to mention, I did not get to land any attack on the Keeper.

Feeling a profound sense of defeat, I move from roof to roof as quietly as possible and manage to reach the inn we were staying at.

I doubt he would come after me right away. However, I am strapped for time. I would like nothing more than to take a shower to thoroughly wash off all the powder on me, but I have no other choice but to give up. My life is more important.

I was put through the ringer, but I got what I needed.

Night Crystal. I do not doubt its authenticity.

I have no idea how the Keeper managed to track me down, but if I conceal my negative energy, it makes me no different from a normal human.

It is within grasp. I can live a peaceful life, it is possible.

I shall hide myself in a town far away. As long as I have the night crystal, I can freely move around town and try out all kinds of food. For the time being, I can kick back and relax, drinking a bit of blood every now and then.

I entered Senri’s room and picked up our stuff that had been packed and ready.

Pain still lingered in my body, but I felt much better than before. I suppose the powder dusted off me as I jumped from one roof to another. I do not think… there is a risk to my life. It is rather fortunate that vampires do not need to breathe. Had I happened to breathe in a lot of that powder, it may have felt like my organs on fire.

I touched the window. The meeting spot is near the exit of the town.

The one who got back to the inn first was supposed to pick up our stuff. Meaning, Senri has not managed to shake them off yet.

That girl called Albertus… had strength that certainly rivaled mine, but I doubt that would be enough to beat Senri.

Knowing Senri, I do not need to worry. It is possible that she is holding back so she does not end up killing anyone.

I dusted off my hands that were red and swollen in an effort to distract myself.

— at that moment, the sky suddenly shone bright.

The atmosphere turned electrical and I heard crashing sounds from afar. The sight felt familiar.

It was the same light that Senri had unleashed at the dragon during the battle against the Lord.

The light faded away in an instant, leaving behind darkness. But to think Senri was pushed to use that move that was powerful enough to reduce the mansion to dust, things must not be going too well.

I jumped out the window and looked in the direction the light had appeared. I only hesitated for a second.

I… should not go to her aid.

Senri is strong. She is capable of handling the girl by herself, and even if the Keeper were to join in, it still should not pose that much of a threat to her. If anything, I might only be a nuisance if I go to her. Her power of blessing is no more than poison to me.

I weaved across the people who had appeared onto the streets, alarmed by the light and noise, and made it into the alleyway.

I broke into a run towards the rendezvous spot we had settled on.

☠☠ ☠

Senri had requested me not to kill them. She did not regard vampire hunters as the bad guys.

The Death Knights are few in number. The world needed Vampire Hunters. And I, who looked up to the Death Knights, am of the same opinion as well.

The undead are meant to be purged from existence. I am nothing more than a pathetic monster, who fights against his fate due to selfish reasons.

I wish they would not attack me, but I do not resent them for it. As long as they do not go for my head or pose that much of a danger to me, I will not try to kill them.

Resentment begets resentment. If so, it is better to treat them with kindness and humor them.

After all, I have… plenty of enemies. So many that killing one or two would not make much of a difference. Although the chances are slim, perhaps there will come a day when I no longer need to worry for my safety.

I neared the gate and hid myself between two buildings and waited for Senri. I sharpened my senses and tried to pick up any traces of the Keeper zeroing in on me.

The silent town at night somehow filled me with sorrow.

Come to think of it, I could not take a look around this town either. I spent all my time looking after Senri, and not to mention my promise to her that I would not step out.

I do not mind as much since I was happy to nurse her, but will there ever come a time when I will be able to freely take a stroll around town? I only wish for something simple like shopping or to go on a walk….

The wind blew. Suddenly, a sweet odor wafted through the air which jerked my head up.

It was from afar, but it was Senri’s scent. I sniffed around trying to pinpoint the direction it came from. I squinted in the darkness.

Thank goodness… she is fine. Well, I did believe she would be….

At that instant, I was caught by a strange sense of foreboding. I deliberated for a minute. I reprimanded my leg that still hurt and broke into a run.

Senri’s blood is sweet. And her body that houses all that blood, her skin, her hair and all of her smells like the finest fruit in the world.

However, I still should not be able to sense it all this distance away.

Despite all the weight I was carrying, my speed did not drop. Someone who happened to be on the street, got startled at me whizzing past and hurriedly made way for me to pass through.

And not long after, my eyes found Senri.

“Senri…!”

“En…d…”

Senri was terribly wounded. She was awfully unsteady on her feet, however, her feeble looking right hand still had an iron grip on her sword.

The power of blessing around her body looked much weaker than usual.

Her body was covered in blood. It was not from someone else. It was the scent of Senri’s blood that I knew all too well.

Her beautiful silver hair was dyed red with blood and she was bleeding out of her stomach that she was applying pressure to with her left hand.

The sweet smell made me forget my pain and shook me violently. Her violet eyes caught a faint sight of me and as if the thread holding her up had snapped, she collapsed to the ground.

I leaped out in an effort to catch her. The moment our bodies touched, intense pain shot through my whole body. Her hair brushed past my cheeks and burned them.

I muffled a scream that I almost unwittingly let escape and gently laid her down.

Faint smoke arose from my body where it had come in contact with her. Although it was not as bad as when I was shot with the silver bullet, my body was sounding the warning signal.

Positive energy. The spontaneous veil of positive energy around Senri’s body had filled my abyss.

She had taken it down during our travels, but with her unconscious, her body had cloaked itself in it. I suppose this is her normal state. Perhaps her body had instinctively activated it upon sensing danger to her life.

I closed my eyes and honed my senses. I focused on my abyss.

The death energy that I possess is quite strong. Even for Senri, it should take quite some time to bring it to zero with the power of blessing she is unconsciously radiating. And the smoke from earlier had already disappeared. I cannot be killed that easily.

However, that does not mean I do not feel any pain. I pick up Senri’s sword which scorches my palm, but I somehow manage to put it back into its sheath.

We have no time to lose. I would like to treat her wounds, but they had already hurt her pretty bad. There is no doubt they are on their way over here.

There is no time to wait for her to regain consciousness and have her take down her shield.

Should I leave her here? The Keeper never ordered Albertus to kill Senri. I am sure they would treat her wounds. And surely Albertus would not deal the final blow to someone who is unconscious.

I took in a deep breath.

No– I cannot do that. She was fighting for my sake. I should fight for hers.

Above all, if I lose her, my chances of survival would lower greatly. I would end up alone.

I could even bear with solitude, but the next time we meet might not be on friendly terms.

I trust Senri, but Epée who I happened upon in town, is an undeniable monster.

I called out to Senri whose body lay limp.

“Don’t… worry.”

First things first, we need to make it out of here. When gathering the necessary supplies, we also stocked up on medicine.

I could treat her after we put some distance between us and them. Senri recovers exceptionally fast when she is enveloped by the power of blessing.

She would soon regain consciousness.

I put my arm around her, bit on my tongue at the pain that shot through me, and held her up. Steam arose from my arm and body.

Almost as if I was holding fire that had some weight to it. The pain was not that intense, but the never-ending pain brought back memories of solar penalty.

But this is still much better. I would choose to be killed by Senri over getting purged by the Sun any day. The positive energy flowed into my jet black soul, but considering the rate at which it was being filled up, I need not worry.

As I descend into the abyss at a much faster pace.

Her head had already stopped bleeding, but the wound on her stomach still left a trail of blood as it slowly trickled onto the ground.

What was waste… no, it was not. I should stop her bleeding soon… as Senri was already quite anemic since I had just fed on her. She would bleed to death at this rate.

The Keeper and Albertus will soon be here. I feel bad that this would put a strain on her body, but I doubt I can defeat Albertus who reduced Senri to this state.

I bore with the pain and ran as fast as I could. Senri moaned, still unconscious and I made sure I held onto her tightly so I did not drop her.

The guard at the gate took a look at us and his eyes opened wide. However, I have no time to go through the necessary procedures to leave town. So, I crouched and shot myself up. I easily jumped over the gate that was more than five meters high and landed on the other side.

My arms and my body were screaming in pain. Maybe Senri was fighting for her life, for the power of blessing around her got stronger and it scorched my body.

Bring… it on. I shall survive. Together we shall survive.

This pain is nothing compared to death I have experienced once before.

I steeled my resolve once again and bolted into the darkness.

☠☠ ☠

The tavern had been reduced to an unrecognizable state. The tables that had been flung across, had struck the wall and had made cracks. It would take some time for them to reopen shop.

Particularly devastating was the huge gaping hole that was where the ceiling originally was.

There were no traces worthy of mention around the hole.

She must have used her power of blessing for purely destructive purposes. It is a skill unique to the Death Knights.

A Death Knight’s strength is centered around their power of blessing. The energy whose form they can freely manipulate is much more versatile, prompt and powerful than magic that can make similar miracles happen.

Standing on debris, Albertus looked up as she bared her teeth at the hole in the ceiling.

“So it got away.”

“… likewise, I see.”

“Kekeke… quite the vampire that one. Seems to be… accustomed to pain.”

The Keeper frowned as he let out a muffled laugh.

It certainly did not appear to be the novice that it was. The tactics employed by vampire hunters that attack every weakness of a vampire should spell certain death to a stray vampire.

Their body should freeze in response to the pain they have never experienced before. And when they are rendered immobile, their quick reflexes would be of no use.

However, it still managed to escape. The outcome would have been different if Albertus had been there, all the same, it will not happen a second time.

The most dreadful thing about a vampire is its intelligence and… ability to learn. We had an overwhelming advantage during the first face off, but the second time, the opponent would already be privy to our tactics.

Of course, the opponent is a lesser vampire. It is no match to a Keeper… but,

“ You’ve put us in a pinch by letting the bride slip away. How are you going to explain this to that monster?”

Epée the Destroyer. The best among the best of Death Knights who has annihilated countless first-class vampires. Someone that a mere lesser vampire should steer clear off and can never hold a candle against.

Albertus turned away from the sighing Keeper.

“… she flew up in the air. But I made a hole in her stomach. Next time, I will end her.”

“That defeats the purpose though… if you hurt her that badly, it should take some time for her to recover. We will run them down before that… before we make our client mad.”

“I will definitely not lose… if the moon gets fuller.”

Albertus’ golden eyes shone brightly.

Her slender body swelled up, tearing apart the black clothes she wore, reducing them to shreds.

The transformation only took a few seconds. Standing there, was a huge black dog. Black, gigantic, a dog as intelligent as man.

“So you need a new set of clothes again. How many times have I told you to transform after taking them off?”

Albertus howled almost threateningly at the exasperated Keeper.

Her eyes burned bright with resentment towards vampires.