Mistaken for a Masked Monster - Chapter 28

WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 28: O Vulgar Slaughter, O Craven Survival. (6)

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After the fierce battle in the corridor,

a cold silence descended.

“...”

I stood where I was.

Before me lay a grotesque caterpillar-like figure.

It was the director, who had fought me to the death only moments ago.

With all four limbs gone, they writhed on the floor.

“Eugh, eeeeh...”

Had their mind finally broken?

Their red eyes had lost focus.

Drool streamed from their mouth.

‘Well... they won't be recovering.’

They were a complete mess.

Their limbs had been severed, their entire body was covered in burns, and every tooth had been shattered.

Most of those injuries had been caused by fragments of the Stake.

Even if they drank blood later, they wouldn't recover.

They'd have to spend the rest of their life in that state.

‘Though the New Kingdom might execute them first for failing to protect the Farm...’

That wasn't my concern.

Leaving them alive was already the height of my patience.

“You bastard.”

I'd found their workshop.

I'd only taken a glance, but even that made my stomach churn.

It was hard to recognize those shapes as human. They must have played with them thoroughly.

They had been displayed as the director's “works.”

What was even more horrifying was that every one of them was barely still alive.

“...”

I could hear it.

The faint sound of wind.

Blood bubbling in their airways, breaths barely forced out.

Surely, it could only mean one thing.

Please kill me.

Unable to react, I crouched down and pressed a hand to my brow.

‘Wouldn't it be better if this bastard just died?’

The urge rose within me for a moment.

Then a certain voice caught at my sleeve.

-Muro.

-I want you to always believe, Muro.

Well.

-That anyone can live again.

Whose stubbornness had rubbed off on me?

I forced down my killing intent.

Right. No person had the right to kill another person.

After taking a deep breath, I finished what remained.

I picked up a fragment of the Stake I'd dropped.

‘...Yeah, this should be enough.’

Squeeze.

Grabbing the director by the hair, I pressed the Stake against both their eyes.

I melted their pupils so they would never see again.

I couldn't kill them, but I could punish them.

They didn't even twitch from the pain.

Once I was done, I threw the director back onto the floor.

“Haah... This is rough. Really rough.”

Only then did I finally catch my breath.

I'd overdone it.

I should've remembered that I had the fragile body of someone with overall E-rank stats.

My lungs burned as though they'd been scorched, and my eyes swam, perhaps because I'd abused the bug too much.

I sat there until the nausea faded.

“Tsk, that hurts.”

My fist throbbed.

Had I cracked a bone?

That was the price of letting my emotions get the better of me, unlike myself.

Flexing my hand, I wiped the sweat from my forehead.

“Phew... Still, does this mean the occupation of the Farm is over?”

The control room had been secured.

Carmilla should've handled everything outside as well.

Only the small fry remained, so Carmilla would've taken care of them easily.

‘Carmilla... I wonder if she's okay.’

Speak of the devil.

The moment I began to worry, a figure peeked around the end of the corridor.

“Viktor.”

Her silver hair was slightly disheveled.

Her red eyes looked a little weary.

When our eyes met, the girl's expression brightened.

Carmilla ran over and looked me over.

“Are you all right? You look quite exhausted...”

“I'm fine. What about the situation outside?”

“I've just finished taking care of it.”

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“What are you saying? Didn't Viktor do all the hard work alone?”

“It would've been impossible without Your Highness.”

After our brief exchange, I cautiously asked Carmilla,

“Are you all right?”

“...There is no problem.”

Contrary to her answer, her gaze had darkened.

Her feelings must have been complicated.

She had just witnessed the peace her father had hoped to protect fail to come to pass, then shatter beyond recognition.

The hope of harmony with humans had been defeated, and she had no power to stop it.

“...”

How could I possibly understand that helplessness?

All I could do was carefully pat Carmilla's head.

“Viktor...?”

“You did admirably. Your Highness did your best.”

“What is this all of a sudden? Do you think I am a child?”

“Of course not. I was simply impressed.”

“...I clearly told you not to pat my head, yet you do it all the time.”

She complained, but she didn't refuse my touch.

Without a word, I patted her head a few more times.

The troubled mood eased a little.

“So, what is next?”

She asked what came next.

The occupation of the Farm was complete.

The vampires stationed throughout the facility had also been subdued.

“First... shall we rescue the survivors?”

I pushed myself to my feet.

Every muscle in my body ached, but there was no time to rest.

The night we'd been given was short.

“Let's move.”

“Very well.”

After that,

we arrived at a large warehouse.

“I think this is it.”

“...Good heavens.”

Inside, people were locked away in individual compartments.

The conditions were terrible.

Iron cages, each only roughly 3.3 square meters in size, were stacked tightly above and below one another.

The place was filled with humans like a chicken coop.

Their limbs were restrained while thick hoses drew their blood.

“Your Highness.”

“I understand.”

At my call, Carmilla stepped forward.

Bloodcraft formed at her slender fingertips.

Clap!

When she clapped her hands, the flow through the hoses stopped.

The blood collection devices operating throughout the Farm came to a halt.

Before long, the restraints on the people came undone.

“Everyone.”

“...”

I stood at the center of that human chicken coop.

All around me were unfocused eyes, with even hope faded from them.

I reached out to each of them and opened their doors.

“You have been rescued.”

Clank, click.

There must have been at least a hundred people.

Perhaps because they'd been imprisoned for so long, they struggled even to move.

At times like that, our capable princess lent them a hand.

“Stand still.”

“Eek, eeek... V-vampire!”

“Stand still.”

“...”

One person was terrified.

Their limbs had stiffened, leaving them unable even to run away.

Carmilla placed a finger against the man's forehead.

“Ugh, ngh...?!”

“It will sting.”

Bloodcraft.

She forcibly accelerated the blood flow throughout his body, loosening his stiffened limbs.

It was delicate control, the kind even long-lived vampires found difficult.

As expected, Carmilla possessed an innate talent for Bloodcraft.

“Uh, uhh...?”

The man's condition improved.

He wasn't fully recovered, but he could at least walk with a limp.

The others were the same.

One cage door after another opened.

Some stepped out on their own, while others received Carmilla's help.

“I-I got out...?”

“What happened to the other vampires...?”

“Are we going to die? Don't tell me they're disposing of us?”

“That masked person looks human, like us...”

“I definitely heard them say we'd been rescued earlier...”

The crowd milled about in confusion.

As expected, everyone was confused.

Was it too hard to accept all at once?

They'd been drowning in despair until just moments ago.

“Everyone.”

On top of that, Carmilla was with us.

A girl who shared the same race as the vampires that had tormented them so horribly.

It would be hard to trust us at first glance.

“It is all over. We came here to rescue you.”

Everyone was terrified.

So I stepped forward.

I needed to reassure them.

“All the bad vampires have been dealt with.”

I repeatedly mentioned what would put them at ease.

What mattered here was making them feel protected.

That meant I had to make up a few things.

“We are vampire hunters from the Slayers. We operate in secret across the continent's underworld, helping people like you who have become caught up in terrible incidents.”

“Th-the Slayers...?”

“Yes. We are an organization that has carried on the legacy of ancient vampire hunters. We handle vampire-related incidents and accidents. Today, we identified the location of this [Farm] and were deployed to carry out a mission. That mission was to dismantle the facility and rescue the survivors here.”

“An organization? A rescue...?”

“That is correct.”

People found comfort in something larger than themselves.

They'd feel much safer believing a vast organization had come to help them than believing just the two of us had stormed the place.

“You are safe now.”

““...””

The people's expressions gradually changed.

Their minds and bodies were exhausted. Yet an organization had supposedly appeared to rescue them.

An ordinary person would have no choice but to rely on it in a situation like this.

“I am Garulik, a unit commander of the Slayers. I will take responsibility for your rescue and safe return home.”

I made it clear that I held a high rank within the organization.

At the same time, I treated those I'd rescued with the utmost respect.