Chapter 13

I guess that’s one less thing to worry about. The vampire still has my hand. Despite the overwhelming cold, my wrist burns so intensely that it feels like it’s being pressed under a soldering iron. The laughter abruptly stops, and all emotion vanishes from the vampire’s eyes. “Well, I guess I can tell you. My name is Zarpahn. Zarpahn Drago Fahni. I am a descendent of the great Vampire Lord. I don’t normally associate with humans—what an honor for you!” Fahni… Anyone associated with the Church will have heard this name. It belongs to some of the highest-ranking vampires in existence. I don’t exactly feel honored, but if he is who he claims to be, I can see where he gets his confidence. His fiery eyes shine the color of blood. In them, I can sense madness and an uncontrollable desire to fight. “Lord of vampires… What is your goal?” The vampire Zarpahn looks at me quizzically, his eyes narrowing. “…Hmm? What was that? Why would I tell that to you?” …Evidently, he isn’t quite that stupid. These strange things have been happening precisely when Toudou is in the forest… The timing is too good to be accidental. The transmission to Amelia is still connected. If I can figure out his goal, it will be easier for us to decide how to proceed. I remain silent. Zarpahn stares at me for a while and then finally takes a breath and starts talking. “…Ah, I guess I could tell you. You probably don’t want to die totally in the dark.” Amelia… He is that stupid! His grip on my wrist is strong. I ignore the pain, not making a sound. I’ll be able to heal it with holy energy later. Zarpahn watches me with a bored expression. He sighs. “The hero. I’m looking for the hero. Heard of him?” “…” Is this guy…serious? The hero is exposed—this really couldn’t be much worse. The only good fortune we have left is that Toudou hasn’t encountered the demon himself. I wait in silence for him to continue. Unaware of my motives, Zarpahn speaks freely. “Our lord sensed the hero’s existence, although his exact location is still unknown. As a future candidate for positions of leadership, I was given the honor of this mission to check the state of affairs in the human world, you see.” “…” “Now, you might feel completely out of place in all of this. But being of noble blood, I feel a bit out of place myself in these woods filled with low-ranking monsters.” “…” “He said that he sent me on this mission to allow me to contribute to his cause, but what could he be thinking sending me here…? There’s no way the Holy Warrior would come to a place with such low-level creatures. Only humans like yourself would spend their time wandering around in here.” “…” “Are you the one who killed the monsters I brought along? You’re not at my level, but you must have considerable fighting ability. Causing me a lot of trouble, though. Forget about the dragon—do you know how much work it was to bring that lion all the way here? I should kill you for that.” Then Zarpahn moves closer to peer into my eyes, scowling at me. “Why so quiet all of a sudden? Being sent out here to the middle of nowhere, I’ve got time on my hands. They gave me orders not to make any big public disturbances, but I can take time for a chat. Why don’t you keep me company?” Amelia…this guy is really stupid. Going on and on in a conversation with your enemy is proof of your foolishness. If I were in his place, I definitely wouldn’t be talking this much. But I guess he might not be thinking of me as an enemy just yet. “Sure, I get where you’re coming from. I just have one question: The lord you talk about—is it Kranos?” “…Huh? You’re—” There is a slight change in the vampire’s composure at my question. He doesn’t answer, but his reaction is a reply in itself. With my arm still firmly in his grip, it’s my turn to talk. “Zarpahn, you’re a powerful vampire. I acknowledge that you are a descendent of the Vampire Lord.” “…What are y—?” He is powerful—one of the most powerful of all vampires. Toudou is no match for him. However, he does not exceed my expectations. The only thing I wasn’t expecting about this battle is the timing. It would have been better if it could have waited until Gregorio arrived, but there’s no use thinking about that now. “And your king has keen insight, to have dispatched one of his followers to these woods, where it’s highly likely that the hero would visit. But you, the one he dispatched, lack awareness. You’re negligent. You need to be more devoted to your mission.” “…What the hell are you talking about?” This is business. Carelessness can’t be tolerated. I wouldn’t tolerate it even from myself. With my free hand, I slowly remove my mask, revealing my face to him. My lips bend into a smile as I look down at the vampire in front of me. “My name is Ares Crown. The hero that your lord is searching for…is me.” Right away, I cast a prism, and the forest is flooded with white light. The flash of light hits Zarpahn’s face, and he flinches. It’s a good thing this vampire is so stupid. I won’t allow him to escape. He looks away from me and at the shining, pale illumination that cuts through the trees, forming a wall around us. My dropped mace and the thrown knives serve as mediums for the prism. All of them being blessed, they are ideal for constructing a boundary. I look at the vampire. He still holds tightly to my wrist. “Vampires are different from humans in that it’s more difficult for you to level up. We judge your ability by dividing you up into stages, and by my estimation, you’re about a stage three. An average demon. Could be defeated by a party with levels in the seventies or high sixties.” He faces me once more. The look in his eyes is more like elation than murderous intent. I don’t make conversation mid-battle without good reason. It’s important to destroy one’s target as quickly as possible. After this amount of time, the prism is now fully formed. An added effect of the prism is that it will gradually restrict his special abilities. That’s why I keep talking—to buy more time. I face him squarely as I continue. “Besides the usual skills like Darkness, your skills are Form Black Fog, Form Animal, Blood Manipulation, and Energy Drain. You have various other powers, like sucking blood and manifesting minions, but when opposing your kind in battle, what’s important are those four skills. Vampires in the higher stages possess other unique abilities, but you’re not quite there yet, are you?” I notice his eye twitch. He starts to take me more seriously—becomes more cautious. This guy has information…but I have to make sure I kill him here. I suppose I don’t have time for an interrogation. “The most irritating thing about fighting your kind isn’t your strength—it’s your mobility. If you transform into a fog and run off, you’re difficult to catch. That’s why before I go to kill a vampire, I lay a prism to prevent its escape. The prism has the added bonus of limiting the abilities of followers of darkness. The preparation does take time, though, so I was a little on edge until I locked it down just now.” Incidentally, it’s possible this vampire may be able to use displacement magic—that might explain why he appeared so suddenly. If you lay a barrier, even if your opponent can use displacement magic, they’ll only be able to use it within the area of the boundary. Particularly since Toudou is headed in this direction, although I can’t stop him from coming here, I also can’t allow him to reach the enemy without at least a prism separating them. Zarpahn’s expression changes from joy to rage. For the first time since we met, he sees me as a threat. The air of the forest around us becomes thick with murderous intent, but the chill from earlier has already dissipated. The boundary is working effectively. “Zarpahn, from the look of you, you have talent but no real battle experience. Am I right? An experienced vampire wouldn’t be so careless with an opponent wielding a mace and wouldn’t stand around talking. You should remember that. Although it won’t do you much good, because I have no intention of letting you out of here alive.” “?!” Zarpahn, now on edge, hastily releases my right hand. Then with one hand, he drags his nails across his opposite palm. Black blood, unlike that of humans, oozes from the scratches. This is Blood Manipulation, a type of psychokinesis that uses a person’s own blood. But nothing happens—it doesn’t work. “I said boundaries have the effect of limiting your power, didn’t I?” Although, since I only just set the boundary, he might still have been able to get some use out of it. I don’t tell him that, of course. If he knew, there might be a chance for him to escape, which would make more work for me. I put my mask back on, securing it in place. I can sense Toudou’s party approaching—they’re only a few minutes away. This isn’t a significant enemy, but it still might be tricky to kill him in such a short amount of time. Without saying a word, Zarpahn’s body cracks and starts to expand. His thin arms swell, and his eyes emit a dark light. He demonstrated before that he has a talent for hand-to-hand combat. There are some vampires that fight using only their special abilities, but he’s not one of them. Shaking out the hand he had been holding down, I start to overwrite my buffs. I mean no insult to Amelia, but I can cast stronger buffs than she can without using up my holy energy. “Full Strength, Full Agility, Full Vitality, Full Sense,” I cast in succession. Zarpahn’s body vanishes, and the earth cracks as he rushes into it. But with my senses heightened from the buffs, I can track his movements. I catch his arm as it comes at me from behind. A shock from the impact goes through my body and into the ground, cracking it again. But I’ve completely stopped the blow. The black-blood’s breathing is rough, like a beast. For an instant, he doesn’t move. Maybe he’s surprised I was able to stop him? It’s fortunate for me that this enemy ended up being a follower of darkness—that means I can use eradication techniques on him. Now I’ll let him suffer God’s judgment. “Photon Order.” A dazzling burst pierces the eye. The wave of light, imbued with holy power, envelops the vampire’s skeletal body. Under the pressure of the light, his body is blown away like a scrap of paper, hitting the prism wall and collapsing on the ground. Normally, this light of judgment would purify and exterminate a demon of his rank in one blow. I observe Zarpahn, collapsed on the ground. Strangely, he’s survived the attack. Black smoke rises from his body, which has somehow retained its shape. Although this isn’t the outcome I’d hoped for, I knew it was a possibility. Hiding my surprise, I approach Zarpahn, saying, “Photon Blade.” A vague sensation springs from the palm of my hand. What forms is a sword of light—a sword of judgment that is only effective against followers of darkness. I take the sword of light, which is particularly effective against vampires, and thrust it into his heart. The sword disappears. Zarpahn suddenly jolts to life and takes a swipe at me with his long nails. I move back to avoid it. “Damn… You have divine protection, huh?” My sword of light had been obstructed by some kind of barrier. There is a powerful protection barrier that only a handful of demons possess. This shield is the primary reason only a hero and those with the blood of a hero can defeat the Demon Lord and other high-ranking demons. It is the divine protection of the evil god who opposes the God of Order—the God of Darkness, Lucief Arept. It has the power to nullify the majority of damage received. Zarpahn slowly gets to his feet. Although his black clothes are frayed and there are small scratches on his body, he has no major wounds. Under ordinary circumstances, that hit would have killed him three times over. He raises his face to look at mine. Now his expression shows no rage or murderous intent but instead a crooked, joyous smile. He laughs. “Ah-ha…ha-ha-ha-ha! You—you surprised me… I wasn’t expecting to battle the hero…” The protection of an evil God… That’s an extremely tough obstacle. I never thought a demon of this level would be granted divine protection. If I let him go, he’ll only become a greater threat. I need to exterminate him while he’s still easy to kill. Perhaps pleased that his divine protection remains intact, Zarpahn seems to have relaxed. “And how lucky. You…you don’t have the protection of the God of War, do you?” “I wouldn’t call yourself lucky.” In the moment his guard is down, I throw my fist into his abdomen. My right fist digs into his exposed stomach, and I feel the shock of the blow in my hand. At the moment of impact, I speak the prayer again. “Photon Order.” “?!” Once again, light shoots out from my fist. This time, rather than covering a wide range, the hit is concentrated in one spot. Something makes a popping sound as Zarpahn is thrown back again. His body slides across the ground until it collides with the prism. I hear him coughing violently. “You know, if you didn’t have the protection of Lucief, this would have been over in a moment. Thanks to the prism, I have the time to finish the job.” I’d like to take the battle elsewhere, but it’s impossible to move the prism. I check that my mask is secure and put on my hood to hide my silver hair in case they catch sight of it. There aren’t many people with silver hair. Crushing the ground beneath me with the heel of my shoe, I wave away the dust, waiting for him to stand. It’ll be faster to break his spirit than his body. Zarpahn gets unsteadily to his feet. Vampires have high regeneration ability, but the prism renders that null. And while he may not take much damage, he should still feel pain. I can still see energy burning in his eyes. Light-based attacks are hardly effective against opponents with divine protection. I’m using my mace as a medium for the prism, so I can’t use it in battle. Instead, I take out a narrow, stake-like dagger from my belt. It’s a short silver blade, blessed and made for throwing like a knife. It’s a sub-weapon, but that’s better than no weapon at all. I just need to make sure that Toudou and the party don’t get dragged into this. “Remove your protective barrier, Zarpahn. Make this easier for me.” “Enough with the bullshit. You are strong, but you’re a human and I’m a vampire. I’m the stronger of the two of us.” “That’s the general consensus.” I swipe the dagger in a quick, slanted motion at my side. A silver slash mark runs across the trunk of the tree next to me, and the tree slides off its stump, collapsing on the ground and sending up a great cloud of dust. I leap into it to conceal myself. My blood runs hot through my body, and I see my surroundings with clarity. Locating me, Zarpahn swings his arm in my direction. I slow down to avoid him, putting up an arm to protect myself. With my other arm, I thrust the dagger at him. I hear it scrape against something, but it doesn’t pierce him. I must have just grazed his skin. As he recoils, I take his legs out from under him, and he falls to the ground. I change my grip on the dagger and take out a second. One for each hand. Aiming for his heart, I come down at him with the daggers using the full weight of my body. There’s a flash of light, fierce like lightning, and just as the blade cuts into his flesh, I use the dagger as a medium for my prayer. “Photon Order.” I had braced myself, but the shock of the strike lifts me off the ground for a moment. As the light burns through the black of night, I’m certain I can see agony in the vampire’s face. He’s taking damage, and the prism won’t allow him to regenerate. His arm twitches and then shoots out at me like an arrow. I fall back, but his nails just manage to graze my cheek. I first feel a burn and then a delayed tinge of pain. I see drops of fresh blood fly into the air. Paying them no mind, I step forward and stomp down on his stomach with all my strength. He lets out a dull groan as he recoils. Unable to avoid the brunt of the hit, he takes some damage. I wipe the blood from my cheek with my finger while the vampire looks up at me with vacant eyes. “I’ll keep you company until you’re dead,” I say, looking down at him. His lips curl into a defiant smile. “Heh… Eh-heh… We…we’ll see—how long—you can last…” “I’m a healer.” “…What?” I put a finger to the cut on my cheek and say a prayer. It emits a pale-green light, and in a split second, the cut has vanished entirely. At the sight of this, the color of Zarpahn’s eyes changes. He shakes. “This is crazy… You’re a monster—” “I’m not the monster here, vampire.” He has only a little left in him. I look down at Zarpahn. His arm twitches. Toudou is almost here. Before he reaches us, I need to weaken Zarpahn as much as possible. I aim the tips of the daggers at his eyes. He lets out a stifled scream. Vampires have high endurance to pain, but only because of their formidable regenerative ability, which is currently nullified. His body stiffens at the threat of more pain. I slash down at Zarpahn from above. Even if the approach lacks precision, my attack power is still a threat. I only barely graze Zarpahn’s right eye, but he holds it and howls like a beast. It echoes through the woods around us. He slowly rises. Still holding his right eye, he drags his feet as he walks. Coming at me, running solely on adrenaline at an incredible speed, he takes another swipe at me. I slip to the side to avoid him and catch his swing with my dagger. Having used buffs for strength and endurance, I have the upper hand. Zarpahn struggles to keep his balance, and I jump at him with a kick. He flies into the boundary and falls to the ground. Then I kick his head repeatedly as hard as I can. I’m not concerned about the repellent force of his protective barrier—I’m certain that, little by little, the damage is accumulating. I stomp on his body. Kick him. I absolutely have to kill him. Zarpahn, collapsed on the ground, starts dragging himself toward my mace. The mace is the cornerstone. If you look closely, you can tell it’s the point of origin for the entire prism. Crossing my arms, I’m deliberately silent as I watch him. “This… Without this…,” he mutters deliriously. He reaches for the mace, but when he touches it, he’s instantly thrown backward with great force. There is no way for a follower of darkness to safely touch the medium of an active prism. Burned by the blaze of the boundary, Zarpahn groans bitterly. I crouch down next to him. Is he so weak that he can barely move from this amount of damage? He hardly seems like the descendant of a great bloodline. But I guess if I can kill now what might have become a great demon in the future, that’s no bad thing. “Had enough yet, vampire?” “Not yet—I haven’t lost yet. Not yet. Not yet, not yet, not yet—when my strength, when it returns…” I can’t tell if he’s looking at me or not, and the sanity has gone out of his eyes. If he won’t dissolve his protective barrier, I’ll have to batter him until he’s dead. I pick Zarpahn up by the hair and hit him hard. He spins and slams into the ground, making a crater in the dirt. His eyes widen in pain, and blood runs out of his mouth. It occurs to me that if I could cast photon order from inside his mouth, it would probably inflict a lot of damage. I force his jaw open, and just as I’m about to put my dagger in—I sense their arrival. It’s been a few days since I’ve actually seen them. I stand up and kick Zarpahn in the gut. I check that my mask is on properly and turn to face them. There amid the burned and broken trees is the hero’s party. The sight of them is a little nostalgic somehow. Toudou stands at the front, having the appearance of someone both courageous and naive. His smooth black hair is so different from the vampire’s wild mane. Our eyes meet. He doesn’t seem to realize who I am. Seeing him should fill me with anger, but when I look at him now, I don’t feel much at all. His gaze is sharp. He takes ragged breaths and holds the holy sword at his side. He carries no shield. I can see Limis and Aria behind him. It’s likely they took so long to get here because they were preparing for battle. Glacia is nowhere to be seen. “What—what’s…going on…here…?” Toudou’s gaze goes from me to Zarpahn, in a heap on the ground. When the hero sees him, his shoulders start shaking, and his face grows stiff. This time, it doesn’t concern me. Because this is completely different from the situation with Glacia. I’m not worried Toudou will get in the way here. Toudou should understand. Being under the divine protection of the God of Order, Toudou should know far better than me the evil presence of a black-blood, the power of this follower of darkness that masquerades as a human. There is a clear difference between Glacia and this follower of darkness—Glacia is only a monster. It would have been ideal if I could have finished things up before Toudou’s arrival, but fortunately, I have a prism set. For a demon of Zarpahn’s power, I’m not concerned about him breaking the barrier from the inside. The worst-case scenario has been avoided, and now this may serve as a learning experience for Toudou, who has never seen a demon before. I just need to make sure that Toudou and the others stay outside the boundary. Toudou approaches nervously, his legs shaking as he walks. I try to disguise my voice as I call out to him. “Don’t move from there. I’ve laid a prism.” There are various types of prisms, but the type I’ve set here is a boundary of holy ground, particularly effective against followers of darkness. It is ineffective against anything else, and it creates no physical barrier. It would be quite a lot of trouble if Toudou entered into it. Hearing my words, Toudou stops and takes a few paces back. Okay, everything is all right… He understands. Gripping the dagger tightly in my hand, I walk toward Toudou. I don’t let my guard down around Zarpahn, of course, even as he lies facedown on the ground. You can’t afford to be negligent when dealing with a black-blood. I stop about two meters in front of Toudou. If I get too close, I might put them on their guard. “This forest is currently on lockdown due to the confirmed appearance of a demon. Why have you come here?” “Um… Well, we were just…,” Toudou stutters, faltering at my demand for an explanation. Seeing them now, it doesn’t look like they came here to level up. It looks like they came to find the demon. I guess it might not have been a good move to have the village headman warn them about it. But really, what was I supposed to do? I need to know where they’re going. It really is lucky that Amelia got in contact with Glacia before the set time and that we acted as quickly as we did. I gesture to Zarpahn. He crawls along the ground, observing me and lying in wait for an opportunity. His will still isn’t broken. Given the chance, he would probably throw himself at me. I try to intimidate him with a look, try to constrain him with murderous intent, but it’s pointless. That’s how vampires are—they are wicked, powerful, cruel, and cunning. “Never mind. We’re in the middle of battle now. It’s dangerous here. Leave this place immediately and camp until daybreak. At sunrise, you should leave this forest at once.” I don’t know if it’s his sense of justice or just stubbornness, but even after my instructions, Toudou persists. He’s always such a pain in the ass. “No, I—” “Judging by your appearance, you may very well be a good fighter. But I don’t need any assistance. This is my—” I stop, sensing movement behind me. Could the vampire have seen this conversation as his opportunity? Even without seeing him, I can tell from the smell, the sound, and the feel of the wind exactly what he’s doing. Toudou’s eyes go wide as he shouts, “Look out—!” I turn around, ducking as I take a step forward. Zarpahn comes at me from above, his sharp nails swinging, but I’ve moved just out of his reach. One mistake the vampire made was being so overconfident that he didn’t come prepared with a weapon. You should have backup for times when your abilities are blocked. He could kill most ordinary humans with his physical strength alone, but when that fails him, things will inevitably go south. Not only is this a mistake, it’s also evidence of his lack of battle experience. I throw a punch at his stomach, where he’s defenseless. My fist strikes his protective barrier. It’s really an unusual feeling to hit someone but feel you haven’t damaged their flesh or broken any bones. But I feel the impact. My arm springs back, and his skeletal figure slams into the ground. I advance and kick him in his head. My senses are a little out of order from the nonstop attacking, but I can feel he isn’t taking damage. Also, if he were experienced in battle, he’d be coming right back at me with counterattacks. Toudou stares at me in shock as I batter Zarpahn. “Demons are tough. Even more so when they have this rare protective boundary. It takes time to defeat them. I don’t need any help—this is my job. Please don’t get in the way. Don’t do anything at all. Do me a favor and leave here quietly. Please.” “Wha—?” All I need is time to finish this—nothing else. Don’t go causing unnecessary trouble, Toudou. Just think of your own safety. For the love of God. Toudou is at a loss for words. Aria watches Zarpahn with a grim expression before calling out to Toudou. “Sir Nao, it appears I made a mistake. I think it’s time for us to leave this place. The battle seems nearly over…” “She’s right, Nao,” says Limis. “If this guy says we’re not needed, then let’s go back to the camp.” That’s right. Go back. Listen to your companions! Zarpahn rolls away to put some distance between us. I don’t chase him. His already bloodless, pallid appearance has grown only more haggard. He looks like a ghost. He totters to his feet, holding his head and wincing in pain. “I—I who have the protection of—of the God of Darkness… How could I lose…to the likes of a human? It’s impossible!” A pitch-black light gathers around his tightly clenched fist. He is invoking the omen of Darkness. Casting this borrows the power of the God of Darkness, an evil god equal in rank to the God of Order. Unlike a vampire’s other skills, this one is more difficult to obstruct. The dark light takes the form of one short arrow. It comes flying at me at high speed. However, the size and the speed of this arrow are greatly reduced compared to the one he shot earlier. Pretty soon, he probably won’t be able to produce them at all. He should know by now that he already lost the moment I cast the prism. I pray silently. I pray for order in the evil. For the arrow of darkness to be turned to an arrow of light. In response to my prayer, one by one, countless white lights form around me. The lights take the shape of arrows, and each is several times the length of Zarpahn’s single bolt. Without any signal, the arrows turn to their target and fly. The first collides head-on with Zarpahn’s dark arrow and easily dissolves it. Then the dozens remaining rain down on Zarpahn’s body. He doesn’t have enough time to avoid or repel them. Just before he is swallowed up completely in the light, I can see the dumbfounded expression on his face. Arrows of light can’t pass through a demon’s protective boundary. When the light of the arrows dies out, what’s left is a cowering vampire. There is no damage to his body, but there certainly is to his mind. His spirit has been broken. “Do you understand, Zarpahn? It’s time to give in,” I say in a tone of rebuke. “I’m not without mercy. Remove your protective barrier.” “No yet…not yet. Ah-ha…ha-ha-ha… I—I can’t lose. Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!” Zarpahn gets to his feet, a crazed smile on his face. He just doesn’t know when to quit. He pulls his arm back, winding up to throw. He must have picked something up when he was on the ground. The vampire uses all his remaining strength to send a rock the size of a fist flying at me. I use the dagger in my hand to repel it. The impact makes a dull sound, and the rock is sent flying outside the prism. “Ah…!” gasps Limis as the stone flies past. Zarpahn’s eyes slowly move to her. Shit—we slipped up. “Get out of here immediately!” “So this prism…is not a physical barrier,” says Zarpahn. I move forward. Wasting no time, I thrust a dagger at Zarpahn’s right eye. He flies backward like a leaf, but I don’t really feel like I’ve done damage. Did he jump backward on his own to reduce the impact? He is starting to gain confidence—this is not a good development. Preparing himself to land while he flies backward through the air, Zarpahn catches himself on his hands and feet. His gaze is not directed at me but instead at the hero’s party still standing nearby. He grabs a clump of dirt. This is what I mean when I say it’s easiest to work alone. While his physical strength isn’t a threat to me, it is to Toudou and the others. Toudou and Aria at least have armor, but Limis could be fatally wounded by a hit from him. I change my approach. Stepping forward, I put myself directly between Zarpahn and the party. “Get out of here now!” He pulls his hand back again and prepares. You can dodge a rock, but scattered clumps of flying dirt aren’t so easy. In order to reduce his accuracy even a little, I pull off my cloak and throw it into the air to obstruct his vision. He chuckles. “Heh-heh-heh, it’s tough being a hero, isn’t it?” I won’t be able to avoid taking the hit. The cloak swells up and is blown away, and to me, what follows happens in slow motion. The dirt spreads and hits my body like bullets. The impacts are dull. A cloud of dust rises, but I don’t close my eyes. It’s only dirt—it causes no pain or damage. I maintain my stance. Looking like he intends to continue his storm of dirt, Zarpahn dives onto the ground. He could still challenge me to close combat, but I wonder if he has the guts? Does he really think that if he just finds the right moment, he could win this thing? That’s pretty arrogant. I meet his eyes. He licks his lips and smiles an awful, crooked smile. That’s fine—I’ll be your opponent. Zarpahn is bent low to the ground. Is he aiming for my jaw? As he attacks from below with his sharp nails, I bend back to dodge him. He swings at me several more times in succession, and I continue stepping back to avoid him. His arm is too short—his reach and mine aren’t comparable. Zarpahn’s efforts are in vain. I’ve restricted his abilities, and I’m greater than him in experience and physical ability. Even if he did find an opportunity to attack, he can’t get the upper hand. I wear chain mail under my priest’s robes, and attacks of his level won’t get through that. I come at Zarpahn with my dagger in a storm of attacks. The moment the silver blade strikes Zarpahn’s arm, it’s deflected by his protective barrier. For a brief moment, the protection is interrupted. Not missing the chance, I slash his throat with the blade. Zarpahn flails as the hit sends him rolling. When he comes to a stop, coughing violently, I hold him down with my foot and turn my palm toward him. He’s not getting any more chances to talk. If Toudou and the others won’t run, then I need to kill Zarpahn quickly. “Photon Order.” I direct the light straight down to crush him. The holy beam cuts through the darkness, and for an instant, the area around us becomes bright as day. The illumination subsides. I can tell he hasn’t taken much damage. What I need is a gap in his protective barrier. In one fluid motion, I switch to an underhand grip on my dagger and press my weight down on him, thrusting the blade into his mouth. His eyes widen in shock. His bloodred irises constrict. I use the dagger to transmit the holy technique. “Photon Order.” “?!” The light explodes in his mouth. A groan of agony rises from the back of his throat. But it isn’t enough. He’s taking damage but not enough to kill him. He frantically tries to close his mouth and hits me in the stomach, trying to get me off him. The silver blade scrapes against the surface of his teeth. With all my strength, I thrust the blade to the back of his throat and cast it again. “Photon Order.” Photon Order. Photon Order. Photon Order. Photon Order. The light explodes in his throat continuously. I can see his soundless scream of pain, and his body convulses with each hit. Dammit, just die already! Die! Die! I need him to die before he inflicts any damage on the hero! As a vampire loses its life force, its body starts turning to ash. The fact that he still retains his form is proof he isn’t dying yet. I strike with the holy light ten times, but Zarpahn takes only a moderate amount of damage. “Shit… The dagger doesn’t have enough power.” Most demons with divine protection are the highest rank. Knowing that I’m at a disadvantage in strength and abilities, usually I’ll make careful preparations for the battle. I never have random encounters with them, like in this case. Not to mention, this is my first time fighting using only a sub-weapon. It’s not a bad dagger, but it falls short in comparison with my mace, which has a number of blessings that boost its power. I use my left hand to hit Zarpahn hard in the head. It feels like punching a stone wall. Dammit, if only I had the divine blessing of the God of War that Toudou has, I could break his protective barrier in one hit. Even if he doesn’t take much damage from the punches, it should still keep him disoriented. I don’t want to give him any opportunities to act. My fist starts bleeding, but I don’t let up. I keep going, and little by little, the damage accumulates. Amelia’s voice comes in over the transmission. “Ares, are you all right?” “Yeah, I’m fine. This stubborn bastard just won’t die!” “…Are you sure you’re all right?” “I’m fine!” I have no other way of handling this. I knew it wouldn’t be quick. I just keep throwing punches, saying nothing. More and more bruises cover Zarpahn’s face. He fights back fiercely, but I somehow manage to hold him down. I don’t even know how many times I’ve struck him when, suddenly, I hear a voice that turns my stomach. The one that always spells trouble for me. “Hey! H-here, take this…!” Toudou’s voice. I knew he was still there. I warned him to leave, but as long as I gave Zarpahn no time to act, I figured it wouldn’t really be a problem for Toudou to just loiter there. I look up and see him standing in a different spot. I can clearly feel my face contort. He’s right next to my mace. He leans toward it. His fingertips touch it. “Don’t—!” I cry. No, Toudou! I didn’t drop it; I put it there on purpose! But I’m too late. The moment Toudou lifts the mace, the atmosphere changes. Once the medium is moved, the prism disappears. It takes time for a prism to form but only a moment for it to dissolve. Zarpahn’s body, pinned under my knee, suddenly starts shaking wildly. Toudou lifts the mace with two hands, staggering at its weight, and throws it toward me. As it lands at my side, Zarpahn vanishes out from under me. I told you not to do anything! I can see Toudou stiffen. He understands his actions changed something. The evil presence swims through the air like smoke and materializes a few meters away from me. “Form Black Fog.” One of this vampire’s abilities is to transfigure himself into a fog. Standing there is a powerful vampire with access to all his abilities. Other than his torn black clothes and his hair clinging to his face with sweat, he looks just as he did when I first encountered him. All the work I’ve done on him is erased in a second as he is restored by his natural recovery ability. You’ve got to be kidding me… “Ah-ha-ha… Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!” The vampire that had been cowering in fear until just a moment ago now bursts into sneering laughter. I immediately pick up my knife and throw it. Zarpahn uses the nail of his index finger to make a shallow cut in his palm. Using his psychokinetic ability, he forms the blood from the cut into a thin veil that catches my knife, wrapping around it. Could I lay another prism? It would take time, and with my weapons used as mediums, I would be defenseless against his skills until it formed. The blood wriggles through the air, wrapping around another of the knives I’d used for the boundary, pulling it out of the ground. I needed four mediums to lay that prism. Unfortunately, I no longer have enough to do it again. He’s got me backed into a corner. Zarpahn laughs again, narrowing his eyes at me scornfully. I pick up my mace beside me and slowly lift it. I’ve recovered my primary weapon, but that isn’t much of a consolation. “I thought for a moment there I might die,” admits Zarpahn. “You are going to die,” I blurt out. Shit—I’ve failed. Zarpahn’s mobility is far superior to mine. He’ll be able to escape now. I turn to look at Toudou. Without the barrier separating them, he now feels the full power of the black-blood, and his eyes widen in fear as he steps back. That coward! Aria moves to shield Limis and draws her sword, readying herself for combat, but her swordsmanship won’t last ten seconds against an opponent like this. Zarpahn snickers. “Heh-heh-heh… How difficult it must be to have such foolish companions…” “…Have to give you that one,” I say, although they aren’t my companions anymore. When even the enemy points it out, I can’t argue. I rethink my approach. Now that things have come this far, the worst possible outcome is for Toudou to be killed. I no longer have any chance of defeating the vampire. If he uses displacement magic, he’ll be able to escape, and there’s no way for me to catch him. It’s impossible. The vampire has information now. I wanted to avoid letting him take back any intel, but fortunately, I bluffed and told him I was the hero. With how easily I beat him down on my own, I doubt he suspects I was lying, and it’s even less likely he would suspect that the fool who just sabotaged me is the real hero. I breathe a sigh and press a hand to my forehead, glaring at Zarpahn. “It can’t be helped—I’ll allow you to escape. Tuck your tail between your legs and get out of here, vampire.” “…Huh? What the hell are you saying?” The knife that he held with his blood disappears. Did he use displacement magic to send it somewhere else? Then the blood swirls around in the air, taking the shape of a narrow blade. Zarpahn smiles stiffly. He’s acting calm, but he’s clearly angry. “I’ve got my power back. Why don’t we go for a second round?” “…Well…if you want to that badly…I don’t really mind…” I take another breath and raise my mace. I have no motivation to continue this fight. If he’s about to lose, he can easily run away using his displacement magic, and I wouldn’t be able to stop him. So why is he taking this so seriously all of a sudden? “…You’re surprisingly relaxed, considering that I just regained all my power…” “Yeah, yeah.” I sigh as I jump forward to close the distance between us. At the same time, I cast a holy technique on my mace that will make it more effective against his protective barrier. Different than the dagger, my mace is the manifestation of my faith itself. Using it to attack him directly with the power of light is much more effective than using photon order. Zarpahn looks surprised as I come at him but immediately uses the blood knife to fend off my mace. The blessing of Lucief doesn’t seem to apply to the blood itself, and the blood doesn’t have much power on its own. As I strike with my mace, the evil power in the blood knife is dispelled, returning it to nothing more than a pool of blood. It’s the same for the sword of blood he grips in his hand. How careless. I drive my mace resolutely into his torso. His flesh and bones creak in resistance. Now that I’m using my mace, the attacks inflict significantly more damage than before. The spikes dig into his skin, tearing the flesh and spraying blood. I take a step forward as Zarpahn flies backward. I swing my mace down at the earth, feeling the massive difference in the impact of the mace versus the dagger. Just the blade alone wasn’t enough—I needed the power of the mace. The hit inflicted damage, but that’s guaranteed to be undone by the vampire’s natural recovery ability. The scattered drops of blood build themselves into a thin wall. Paying it no mind, I keep attacking with my mace. My first swing dissolves the wall, the second scrapes the vampire’s body and tears his skin, and the third cuts into his flesh. Zarpahn cries out in pain. For some reason, he shows no sign of transforming his body to fog. Is this guy stupid? Or is he just fooling around here? “Don’t want to run away?” I ask, my thoughts slipping out of my mouth. He raises his hand to strike, but I beat him to it and hit again with my mace. Even if he has regained his full power, he’s still a follower of darkness. He’s no match for a crusader specially trained to fight his kind. The only reason I haven’t killed him already is that his protection from the evil god is so strong. His physical abilities certainly are high for a vampire, but they’re still inferior to mine—particularly with my class-one buffs—and a vampire’s defensive power is somewhat low to begin with. If you add in my attack power, that closes the gap even more. I keep attacking, using the momentum of one attack to lead into the next. It’s chipping away at him little by little. Regardless of the fact that he could transform into smoke and escape at any time, for some reason, he doesn’t even try to dodge. Maybe his strategy is to use Form Black Fog to disappear the moment before I do him in, just to piss me off. If that’s what he’s doing, he really is a despicable creature. His once well-groomed appearance is now horribly battered. Light flickers in his crimson eyes, shining with energy. “Energy Drain,” he says, using his ability to absorb the life of other living things. When it reaches my body, it’s deflected by the holy light that protects me. It dissolves. Waves of the deflected attack hit the sparsely growing grass around us and cause it to wither. If an ordinary person or a swordmaster without divine protection were to take a hit from that, it might not be possible to restore their energy. On the other hand, against a high-level priest, skills like Energy Drain are ineffective. I go at him in a storm of attacks, hitting him like a sandbag, and finally throw him back. He lands several meters away, and a stream of black fog comes from his body as it repairs itself. As Zarpahn kneels on the ground, tears form in his eyes from a fit of violent coughing. His black clothes are covered in holes and stained with blood. “Cough, cough… Wh-what…? What are y-you?” Without answering, I close the distance between us and swing my mace again. This time, just before I make contact with his body, it turns to fog to avoid the blow. If you’re gonna run away, hurry up and do it. I have a ton of other things to do and no time to mess around. The fog flies high into the trees and returns to human form atop a branch. His breathing is ragged as he suppresses the coughing. I’m certain that his wounds are slowly healing themselves. “Pant, pant… You—you…monster…” How disrespectful. Shouldering my mace, I look up toward Zarpahn. If you’re going to run, do it now. I don’t have time for this! Toudou stands rooted in place as if paralyzed, staring at us. There’s a grinding pain in my stomach from the stress of his presence. Will you please just go somewhere safe? When Zarpahn’s wounds are about 90 percent healed, his whole body begins to shake. Black fur grows out of his pale skin, and shadows protrude from his back. This is Form Animal, another special ability of vampires that allows them to transform freely into bestial forms. It’s common for them to transform into wolves and bats, and this time, I would guess he’s choosing a bat form. Maybe he intends to fly away and escape. I guess it doesn’t matter whether he gets away by magic or by flight—I may be higher level than him, but I don’t have wings. I stand still, waiting for the transformation to complete itself. As I expected, he takes the form of a bat—a gigantic bat that looks like it was cut out of the darkness. About the size of an ox, it cries out in a shrill, high-pitched call. Then it swoops down on me. Thinking he planned to run away, I stand staring in surprise at this spectacle. It flies with complicated maneuvers and at a speed far greater than that of a wild bat. When it reaches me, I knock it down with my mace. A miserable cry echoes through the woods. The vampire was much stronger in human form. Why did he take the much less powerful form of a bat if he intended to attack? What is this—some kind of bonus stage? Vampires can’t continue to change forms for an extended period of time. If he isn’t able to return to human form, it will be impossible for him to use Form Black Fog to escape. Still unsure of his motives, I stamp a foot down on his wings to stop him from moving and throw my mace into the small skull. It serves to relieve a little of my stress. I hit him several times over. He attempts to return to human form, but I continue swinging the mace. When he finally regains his proper shape, his head is swollen and indented. The next time I bring my mace down, I swing straight through the air. So he transformed into fog… Making no attempt at escape in spite of his pain, coming back at me to keep on fighting—is this guy some kind of masochist? The fog returns to human form a short distance away. The damage to his body hasn’t recovered. For him to stand around making conversation during battle, he has to be an idiot, but I ask him anyway, “…What are you trying to do here?” “It can’t be… It can’t, it can’t, there is no way that I—Zarpahn Drago Fahni—under the protection of the God of Darkness—no way I could lose to a human, a human without a scratch on him…” I can’t tell if he actually heard my question or if he’s just talking to himself. But hold on… Is it possible I might be able to kill him now? I reevaluate the situation. I think I may be able to manipulate his pride. This guy is a fool—I was sure he would run away, but he didn’t. If I can kill him, I should go ahead and do it. Choosing my words carefully, I call out to him. “…Zarpahn Drago Fahni—come at me with everything you’ve got. If you have pride in the noble blood that runs through your veins, then let’s settle this fairly.” Zarpahn looks at me vacantly. “That’s…that’s exactly—what I want. Ah-ha—ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha… There’s no way—no way I could lose…” There’s no energy in his voice. He trembles, from either nervousness or excitement, and his movements have become unnatural. Even so, he turns to me with resolve. I can kill him. I’m certain I’ll be able to kill him! This unexpected development gives me a surge of energy. I’ll kill him before he changes his mind about it. I don’t want to leave any problems for later. Zarpahn snaps his fingers with a click, and a multitude of dark arrows springs forth into the air around me. So this is the true nature of his ability? I offer up a silent prayer, creating arrows of light in the same number as the dark. I still have much more holy energy I can use. The dark arrows shoot toward me, and the light arrows rush to meet them. This begins the attack, and I lower myself and kick off the ground. Zarpahn does the same, and producing two new blood swords, he rushes forward. The arrows of light and darkness collide, and the sounds of their impact echo through the night of the woods. I study the blood swords. It’s likely these are more powerful than the one before, so I doubt I’ll be able to destroy them with a swing of my mace. But this isn’t a problem. If I can’t get rid of them with my mace, there are plenty of other ways to accomplish it. What the hell is it that makes this vampire think he has a chance of winning, I wonder? Or is it that he’s already given up? As we draw near, he thrusts the blood swords forward, and they stretch out toward me. I predicted he would do this—it’s a basic tactic most vampires use. If you’ve never seen it before, it might catch you off guard. If you’re ready for it, it’s easy to evade. I jump forward to dodge the blood swords as they stretch toward me and then kick the vampire in the jaw as I fly past. I feel the dull thud of contact. Why doesn’t he transform into the fog? When I land, I drop my mace and upturn my palms toward his exposed abdomen. Zarpahn’s arms grow, just reaching my shoulders, and he digs into them with his nails. The strength of his grip presses down on me, but the chain mail under my clothes keeps his nails from reaching my skin. “Photon Order.” The light that shoots from the palms of my hands blows Zarpahn back. I pick up my mace and follow him. I swing my weapon around, using centrifugal force to gain momentum, and put my full power into an attack. As I sweep down at him, Zarpahn uses his arms to fortify himself and defend against the attack. Bad move. His body isn’t strong enough to withstand the blow, so he’s a fool to try to take the damage. Zarpahn is forcefully repelled, his body thrown into the trees. I pursue him. Leaning forward, my aim fixed on the vampire’s head, I swing my mace. I ignore the blood that splatters from the hit. Now only half-conscious, Zarpahn is getting sluggish. Whether you’re a human or a black-blood, the brain is your command center. After about ten blows to his head, the vampire transforms into black fog. It seemed like a reflex—he must have acted on survival instinct. That tells me that it won’t take much more to kill him. This is further confirmed when the fog changes back to human form a short distance away. His head is covered with blood, and he looks half-dead. But his consciousness has returned to him. I swing my mace through the air a few times to shake off the blood. “What’s wrong, Zarpahn? You still haven’t landed a hit on me. Don’t hold back. Show me what you can really do.” The young vampire staggers forward. He suddenly lifts his head, and a glint in his eye catches my attention. They’re the eyes of someone driven by fear, not of a hopeless man on the brink of death. Demons that get this look tend to cause trouble. I take a fleeting glance at Toudou, who stands watching us in a trance. Why didn’t he get out of here when I told him to? I guess it doesn’t matter. Now there’s no time to think about Limis and Aria—I just need to make sure to save Toudou. At that moment, Zarpahn lets out a low groan, like that of a dead man crawling out from the depths of hell. “Ahhh… Ahhh… I…I lost…” For a second, I don’t believe my ears. Did he just admit that he lost? This arrogant demon is acknowledging his defeat? No freaking way. I remain on high alert, checking my surroundings. I recall that this opponent has a pattern of acting at unexpected moments. Zarpahn continues grumbling. “You…monster… Ahhh, ah-ha-ha, ha… This time…I lose. I’ll admit it. Ah-ha—ha-ha-ha-ha… Right now, I…I’m no match. No match for you, hero…!!” Is he going to run? As the words come out of his mouth, I notice that he takes a step toward me. He doesn’t seem to intend to attack or to run away—I can’t figure out what he means to do. Zarpahn keeps moving toward me, although he looks like he might collapse at any moment. I take one step forward as well. My opponent’s body is covered in wounds, but he’s not so far gone that I could kill him in one hit. If I was to go on the offensive once more and hit him ten or twenty times, that would probably do him in. There’s a glimmer in his eyes. A deep, dark, glaring light—I feel somehow repulsed by it. Any member of humanity seeing those eyes would know this creature to be an enemy of God. Then Zarpahn smiles weakly. “Hero… Next time, I won’t lose. I will kill you. I stake my life on that.” “Will there even be a next time?” “There…will.” Why does he sound so sure of that…? Something about this doesn’t feel right, but I ignore the feeling for now. I strengthen my grip on my mace, and at that moment—the demon in front of me begins to swell up. Or rather, not the demon himself but something inside him. The source of his evil power. “Ah-ha—ah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!” A warning bell goes off in my head. I move quickly, acting on instinct. I step forward and raise my mace high overhead. Swinging at Zarpahn, still laughing like he’s lost his mind, I send him flying and say a prayer. For an instant, the ground shakes, the air trembles, and the sky is stained with darkness. My brain is jolted by the tremendous, thundering roar, a sound like the world is being destroyed. My body feels like it might be thrown by the shock, and I just manage to keep my footing. A stormy wind tears off my mask and breaks it in half, and I knock away the tree branches that come flying at me. It’s then that I actually understand what happened. That bastard—he self-destructed! I regret that last attack now, but it’s too late. I grit my teeth and endure the storm. After a minute, it finally subsides. I check the state of things around me. There is nothing. No remains of the dead flame lion and none of the trees that were knocked down. The ground is all torn up, and just about everything has vanished from the vicinity. The tops of the taller trees look like they’ve been completely shaved off, and Zarpahn…is nowhere to be seen. No sign of him whatsoever. It makes sense—he himself was the origin of the explosion. No matter how strong the protection of the God of Darkness may be, no one can withstand an explosion from the inside. The semicircular barrier of light that I cast at the last second is spread out over the sky. It faintly blinks and then goes out completely. It’s one of the highest-ranking defensive techniques. Its duration is short, but it’s a high-level technique with strong defensive capability. Even so, it wasn’t able to withstand the shock of the explosion completely. My blood runs cold when I think what would have happened if it hadn’t been there at all. “Ares?! Ares!” shouts Amelia. “Yeah… Yeah, I’m alive. I’m okay.” Amelia is…all right? I convulse in a coughing fit but manage to answer her. Self-destruction magic… I’d heard this sort of technique existed within the dark arts, but this is the first time I’ve actually seen it. Not many people want to use magic that guarantees their own death. Zarpahn meant those last words—he wanted to win until his last moment. I sense no enemies in the area around me. Trying to regulate my breathing, I lightly clench the palm of my hand and move my body to check for damage. I’m unharmed. I raise my hand to touch my face. The mask is gone. I don’t even know where it was blown off to. That can’t be helped. I quiet my mind and report to Amelia. “The threat is gone. Amelia, can you come here?” “Yes, straightaway… And what about Toudou’s party?” “…They’re alive. Toudou is fine, of course, and Limis and Aria are safe.” While I wait for Amelia to arrive, I go and check on them. Toudou is lying facedown on the ground. I kneel down next to him and check his pulse, just to be sure. His heart is beating. He’s unconscious, possibly having fainted from the shock and the noise. His only external wounds are some abrasions. He didn’t bring his shield, but it’s a good thing he wore his armor. There’s a big bump on his head, but that can be easily healed. Aria and Limis have also fainted from the shock, but they have no major injuries. Everyone is all right, and the enemy is gone. In the end, everything turned out okay, but I have to say—it’s a miracle that it did. The forest has finally returned to silence. I breathe it in. I feel a sudden onset of fatigue and sit down right there on the forest floor. Physically, I could keep going, but I’m mentally exhausted. We can’t forget what happened here. This was the party’s first level-up field. There’s still a long road ahead to making Toudou the strongest hero he can be. While I sit and wait for Amelia, I wrestle with the unanswerable question of how to best guide Toudou on the path forward.