The same day before Razel and Cid left, the headmaster finished talking to some teachers.
After a while they left, new footsteps were heard and the door was opened.
Two men walked in.
No, the correct thing would be to say young adults.
Students to be precise.
But they were not normal students. They were targets for capture.
The one on the right was taller than his companion. He was a muscular boy with tanned skin, rebellious and wild appearance, black slicked back hair with golden sides on the sides and light brown eyes.
He was the son of a count, Bellange von Fraser was his name.
The one standing next to him was a boy much shorter than Bellange.
His body was toned, though slender, his hair was ashen gray and reached to his shoulders, with a braid behind his head. His eyes were a cold blue-green and as expressionless as his handsome face.
He was the heir of a margrave, Lambert von Attley, a future sword saint.
Months ago, they, along with Prince Regulux von Bryes, humiliated Eli and fought a duel against a nobody.
They ended up losing and punished by his family.
That prince was demoted to the fourth prince and lost power as political influence.
Lambert asked the headmaster.
"Good morning headmaster, what do you need us for?"
"Umm, it's good to see you two. I'll be quick since you have to get back to class."
The headmaster pulled out two letters.
"Please open them."
They both reached over and took the letters with their names on them.
Lambert's cold, expressionless eyes twitched slightly while Bellange cried out in excitement.
"Headmaster, is this true!
"Yes. The imperial palace wrote to their families."
Bellange's father was an official in the palace, his territory was entrusted to him by his wife.
While Lambert's father was a margrave who looked after his side of the border. He had a position as a minister, but did not even go to the meetings.
Because of Eli's event, Bellange's father knew about this and asked the prime minister to send his son to regain his lost honor.
Instead Lambert's father, Margrave Bernard, used his influence as minister to send his son without consulting him.
He cared more about the welfare and pride of his family than the safety of his son.
Lambert did not hate him, he respected him for it. That's why this seemed right to him.
"I understand, but we don't have tickets to go. How do we do it then?"
"You're not going by train, you're going with a certain person. Umm... there were circumstances and they will be your bodyguards since you will be escorts."
"Whose escorts? Bellange asked intrigued."
"A sword saint will accompany you. The palace will send him at once as soon as he arrives in the night."
"No rest, eh?"
"That person needs no rest. He regards it as a weakness."
Lambert nodded at that.
"Well young people, I'll talk to your teachers so you won't have any problems. You are dismissed."
"Thank you."
When they both left, the headmaster sighed.
"Sending children to do the work of adults, this country is going from bad to worse. Especially for the margrave. Despite saying it's for the good of his house, he seems to care more about his lost pride than the welfare of his son. At this rate, that child was squirming even more than he already is."
The headmaster knew Lambert was a boy with a twisted personality. But there was nothing he could do. only pray that he would change.
◇◇◇
The night came, Lambert and Bellange arrived at the port.
A large ship was waiting for them.
Apparently air traffic was stopped for the time being.
The palace itself was responsible for it.
It only allowed this ship to go and return instantly.
Lambert watched in the distance, as a small ship approached them, on that ship was a person much more important than them.
◇◇◇
"They will arrive today won't they?"
It was Friday morning.
Two days had passed since Razel and Cid left.
Eli and Lily were walking down the corridor after finishing their breakfast.
Classes had not yet started since the school campus will be used at night to observe the red moon.
Therefore, classes will be short and at a later time.
They were happy since they could have fun even while they were there.
Their hands were clasped together. They looked like two little girls playing happily.
Suddenly, Eli's smile was erased by a person.
That person was a very handsome boy she hadn't seen for months.
In fact, they weren't even in the same classroom.
His hair was golden blond and emerald green eyes.
Every feature of his face was very beautiful.
This boy was Regulux, the main target of capture.
He was walking calmly around.
His face made a bad expression when he encountered two girls who according to the plot should not be together.
He was about to turn around when Eli called out to him.
"Prince Regulux, I'd like a few minutes of your time if it's no bother."
Eli sounded polite. Lily watched her with an expression she didn't know what to make of.
Regulux wanted to run away, but Eli called him back.
"Please, it won't take him long. Besides, it's something you need to hear."
With those words, Regulux turned away with a grim face. Eli smiled at Lily and led the prince to a place where no one would hear them.
◇◇◇
What is it that you want Elize!!?"
Regulux asked in a displeased tone.
Eli stared at him and took a breath.
Then, she bowed her head in thanks.
Regulux didn't understand that at all.
"I want to thank you for what you did."
"...?"
"I... honestly, I hated you for what you did."
"You made fun of not only me. You mocked my situation and my mother. Such shame is something that only the torture and murder of your kin could wash away."
Regulux was startled to hear Eli's true feelings.
But then she calmed him down.
"But... something happened."
"When no one was there to help me. Some people came; his half-brother and...."
Eli lifted her face and showed a charming smile.
"A girl I never imagined would become so important to me. Someone I can not only call as my best friend, she also became my cute little sister."
"And finally. The man who wiped the darkness from my heart. The one who is not only the man I love, my childhood friend. He is also the one who will be my husband and future duke of an indebted territory which he paid with fair money."
"I got all this because of what you did. For that, I thank you for having freed me from that burden."
Eli thanked Regulux from the bottom of her heart.
At first, when she was down. A shadow was reflected in her eyes. But that shadow disappeared when Razel released her from her pain. Now she only showed light those same pained eyes.
"I hope she can regain what she has lost. I wish it from the bottom of my heart. Also, if you want we can chat like civilized people, we can even be friends. That's all I was going to say, if you'll excuse me, have a nice day Prince Regulux."
"..."
Regulux watched Eli walk away and head straight for Lily.
The two interlocked arms and he listened to their conversation.
"Did something happen?"
"No. I just cleared up what I had in store. Let's go find a good place for tonight and book it."
Before Regulux's eyes, two good friends were walking happily.
But for him.
"D-Don't fuck with me!"
It was the opposite.
"What the hell is going on here!"
The reason for Regulux's discomfort was not only because of what happened but for another reason...
"This is not how it was supposed to be in the game!"
It was because he was a reincarnated as Razel.
"Thanks to that weird background character, I lost everything! I'm no longer the third prince nor do I have any influence!"
He bit his nails.
"If it weren't for my mother, I'd be in depression right now. To top it all off, it's thanks to her avoiding meetings between Lily and the others that romantic events are now non-existent."
Deep down, I was scared. It was a fear similar to when Razel woke up in this world.
"Lily is important to me when she is declared the saint and I turn the white knight. The others are important too. But thanks to that guy, it's all gone wrong. Relatively wrong! An event is happening right now that wasn't in the game!"
Regulux looked at the red moon that was very visible during the day.
"Hopefully Lambert and Bellange can take care of her before she wakes up. It will be very bad if the demon king finds her before then."
◇
It was midday.
We arrived at the station of the Granville duchy.
Also known as the lawless city.
The entire territory was sealed in a circular wall.
There were parts that were not as they were residences for people attached to the Granville family.
A huge entrance guarded by men wearing black clothes that covered their faces and eyes were inspecting us.
"What brings you to the duchy?"
A guy acting as a civil servant was asking us separate questions.
Like the others, he was covered in black.
Only very few were without black clothes.
"Fun. I would like to buy things you can't buy in the capital."
I was telling the guy who was signing a document with my ID.
"Deposit some of your blood here."
He handed me a needle and a small glass cup.
I pricked my finger. It hurt momentarily, and then I let the drops of blood fall.
Once the little glass was full. He put a label with my name on it and then another man dressed in black placed it on a metal tray with others.
"Ready. You can come and go as you please."
"Th-Thank you."
I was a little shocked because that was weird.
But it wasn't that it scared me since I knew the identity of these guys.
They were vampires.
A very cliché element in Japanese teenage games.
But here they were a little different than usual.
Vampires can't withstand sunlight. Only progenitors can withstand it. That was what the game said.
The difference with normal vampires is that these vampires use "blood magic". A very rare type of magic that only vampires can use.
It is something like Cid, who possesses alchemical water magic.
Blood magic in the game allowed the vampire queen to create multiple things and attacks that were very difficult to dodge.
If you had 1000 HP, she would lower that entire life bar.
If you had 1000 MP, she drained that by sucking your blood.
If your ATK was 2000, hers was 4000 thanks to her buffs she used.
She was really a tough enemy to kill.
But Lily's magic was very effective against them.
That's why in the game, the vampire queen targeted her every time.
Going back to where I was.
I ran into Cid. He told me that all that was weird and we could go inside now.
We walked along with the knights and others to a large door.
It opened. And a sign we spotted in the distance.
South zone, colorless district.
It reminded me of the poor countries in my previous life that I saw on the news.
Poverty and starvation like destroyed or dust-covered houses was evident.
A fence with guards on the sides divided between our route and the people who looked at us with their lifeless eyes.
Children and women in torn rags.
Their bones were marked on their bodies.
Some played with joy despite clearly hearing the sounds of hunger.
Others simply lay on the ground to die like dogs.
Suddenly, Cid stopped.
I looked at him and asked.
"What's the matter?"
He was looking in one direction. It was a totally destroyed house.
His gaze returned to the front and he said. "Nothing is wrong."
I was behind him. But Cid's unfriendly look seemed to indicate that he disliked being here.
Why did you accompany me then?
◇
We came to two doors.
One said it led to the red district and the other to the black district.
I asked him which one we should go to.
But thanks to a conversation from some guys, we knew which one not to go to.
"Hey, did you know that the 9-tailed beauty will be sold today?"
"Really? Aaah, what a hassle. I wanted to see her, just once."
"It's a pity there are no women like her. My wife annoys me a lot, I wish I had a mistress like that beauty."
"Is it true what they say? That her beauty is so dazzling that it takes your breath away."
"You should see for yourself. Every penny you have you'll save just for her. Too bad it costs about a billion crystalia to buy her."
"Haha, the owner is a scoundrel. That price is impossible to pay even for a duke. You'd have to sell very expensive items for years. Or steal a lot of taxes from the palace."
"The red light district is definitely a place that makes you happy when you enter, and sorry when you leave."
Thanks to that, I know where not to enter.
I was curious about it, though.
A dazzling beauty?
Does she have huge breasts?
I'd like to see her. But I already have several large-breasted girlfriends waiting for me at home. I must not be greedy.
We entered the tunnel.
It was dark.
After a while of walking, we came out.
In front of me was a large shopping area.
But the products were terrible.
People.
Weird animals.
Beastkin.
Weapons.
Drugs.
Different items were being sold.
I was a little repulsed to see this.
One guy tried to sell us something.
I curiously approached to see what it was, I could buy an exotic animal as a pet.
But I was horrified by what I saw.
They were two human girls.
For girls, and without sounding like a degenerate.
They were very beautiful and their thighs were visible.
But the chains around their necks made me think they were pets.
Their names were written on their clothes.
The one on the right was Claudia and the one on the left was Sophia.
I told the guy no thanks.
He looked annoyed, yanking the chain, as if to a dog. The girls were walking straight to some cages where other people were.
I felt a churning in my stomach.
As I came out, I wanted to vomit, Cid saw me and handed me a handkerchief.
Then he said to me.
"This place is the lawless city. Hell on earth for many and paradise for few."
"I wanted you to see this place since, Razel, I know you don't come here to buy something."
I looked at Cid as he seemed to guess what I came for.
"Razel, you..."
I understood why you came.
"You came because you wanted to put an end to this place, didn't you?"
(Noooooo!)
(What the hell are you talking about?)
(I came to kick a vampire's ass, not to save people.)
(No, by defeating the vampire queen, I'm saving people and the world.)
(Eeeh, let's tell him yes.)
"It's like you say."
A little white lie does nothing wrong.
Cid smiled. It was creepy to have a man smile at me.
"I'm glad he did. You really are a great person, my friend."
No, I'm not. But I'm so horrible that I can enjoy a lie.
"It's like you say, Cid-kun. Just like with Eli. I don't enjoy horrible things like this. That's why I came on this day, to put an end to this place."
Although I have no idea about it, well, by killing the queen and king of the vampires. This place will go into crisis.
I will tell Cid to move the palace to attack this place.
There you go. A seamless improvised plan.
Now, let's rest until tonight.
◇◇◇
The black tower.
A large tower located in the center of the lawless city.
This tower was the symbol of terror for the inhabitants.
Not only them, the empire itself feared them as well.
In the past, a sword saint came to this place.
His head was sent to the palace. Since then they have not made any movement until now.
It is more than 1000 meters long. With a circumference of 500 meters for internal space.
The windows are built to deflect the daylight, but during the night, the lunar rays come in.
This place consists of 100 floors.
That was because it was built that way in the game.
It was a vertical spiral-shaped dungeon.
At the top. In a room as dark as night, a shadow looked out of the window that did not reflect the light.
"They are insects indeed. They don't know that their days are numbered."
That shadow was that of a man.
He was very tall, wearing a black robe with a red cloak that indicated he was a nobleman of very high status.
His skin was white, as if he was anemic because of how pale it was.
He wore shoes that looked like heels. Black pants and white shirt of fine silk.
His hair was as red as blood. It reached his back, he had two pierced ears with black inverted crosses.
His eyes were the same as the color of his hair. But his gaze was cold, as if what he saw in front of him was garbage.
This man was a villain of the game, the king of the night, absolute ruler of the vampires.
Gerhardt Bagrada der Bloodfoe.
Gerhardt approached his lunch.
They were children dressed in fine clothes.
His hands moved to see who he would choose first.
But he was stopped by what he heard.
"Please protect us, oh goddess Alexia. May your love for us guard us from evil."
Gerhardt stopped. Instead, he approached the girl.
The girl looked into those intense, glowing red eyes with no sign of any affection for life.
"Why do you pray?" Gerhardt asked.
The girl fearfully said.
"B-Because... in spite of everything that happens. Only the goddess and the other gods can save us."
Gerhardt stood up.
"Goddess? You speak of the existence known as ´god´ to you."
His expressionless face suddenly showed a sinister smile on those red lips.
"That's the most absurd thing I've ever heard!"
His pale hands grabbed the girl by the neck.
His black nails were long, burying themselves in her neck without piercing the skin.
He lifted the girl as high as he could and said.
"Where is your god? There is no god! There is no such existence!"
"The only gods you should worship! It's us, the vampires. The progenitors to be precise!"
"They're the ones responsible for creating everything, not that crap you call god!"
"Where is this god, tell me!"
Gerhardt's hand moved to the neck of a child, with just a graze of his fingernails.
A large amount of blood spurted out by the bucketload.
"You see, there is no god! If there was one, I would have killed him long ago with my own hands for taking my mother from me!"
Gerhardt's fingers moved and began to cut the jugulars of all the children.
-"Observe how life and death is nothing to me! Being an existence that has lived for almost 500 years, I know better than anyone that this god does not exist!"
"To my dear god, whom I hate and despise so much!"
"Punish me! Come on! Do it! Do it!"
There were no children left alive, only the girl in his hand.
Gerhardt's wild expression returned to normal after a while.
"Oh no, I lost my temper again."
He threw the girl to the ground. She was still praying to a locket symbolizing the goddess Alexia.
Gerhardt ignored her, and went straight to the center of the room which was illuminated by a glowing red light.
A large coffin was there.
A large fish tank with blood in tubes led straight to the coffin.
Inside, a mummy was drinking blood.
Gerhardt, looking like a child watching his sick mother. He approached and caressed the coffin.
"Mother, don't worry. Soon you will come back to life and then. We will get back what was taken from us that day."
He was smiling as his hands touched the coffin.
"Tonight, when you come back to life. The plan will be carried out thanks to the blood moon."
"As my father said, it's the only way to revive you."
"I... prepared a great feast for you this day. A bloody feast just for you."
"This place will become a big jug of blood that I can drink your fill."
"Aah~, mother, I long to see you already."