WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

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Chapter 420: Elder, Ain, Yeiling, and Human - 7

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As the Progenitor's concubine, I was something of a celebrity.

Vampires recognized me as though it were only natural, and even among the humans walking the streets, a third of them nearly blurted out the word concubine just from seeing my face. Half of them even came over to speak to me directly.

"Excuse me, are you...!"

Being the Progenitor's concubine was not something I needed to hide, and Tyrkanzyaka was far too significant a figure in the duchy for me to conceal my connection to her. Instead, I declared it proudly.

"Yes. I'm the Progenitor's concubine. That's me."

The people surrounding me gasped.

"Ooh...! I knew it somehow!"

"You have the face of a concubine!"

"I don't really believe it, but there's no way you'd try to swindle the Progenitor!"

What was the face of a concubine supposed to be? And what did they mean, swindle? Anyone listening would think I was some trash who sucked up all the sweet parts and then threw women away. I didn't look that bad, did I?

"Excuse me, but how old are you?"

"Shh. That's a secret. Tyr and I agreed not to count our ages in front of each other... Don't ask why. You'll be arrested for blasphemy."

"Where did you first meet the Progenitor?"

"When I entered an endlessly dark, cold underground place in search of treasure, I happened to meet her there. No, was it fate? The Progenitor was treasure to me as well."

"What's the secret behind the taste of blood that captivated even the Progenitor?"

"That goes beyond privacy. It's a state secret. I'd like to keep it to myself."

More and more people gathered around me. Their irrepressible curiosity poured toward me. Rather than avoiding their gazes, I enjoyed them as I walked down the street.

The crowd gradually grew, and even indifferent passersby became curious and peeked over. Before long, a procession large enough to fill the street had formed.

The humans living in the Fog Duchy, where little ever changed, thirsted for interesting news. The concubine the Progenitor had brought home was especially juicy gossip. It was a romance between the Progenitor, who stood higher than the sky, and an ordinary human.

"What do you find cutest about the Progenitor..."

"Enough."

Thud. Thud.

Footsteps rang out with unusual clarity through the noisy street. The humans who had gathered like clouds flinched and turned toward the sound. Then they hurriedly lowered their heads and eyes.

"C-Count Erte!"

An Ain. A noble vampire, an Elder's thrall who inherited their strength and authority.

Their age and strength varied wildly depending on when they had become a thrall. One thing was certain, though. Even skilled humans would struggle to oppose them.

"You foolish livestock. Do not obstruct the path of the Progenitor's concubine."

Ain had also been replaced many times over the years. Through survival of the fittest, only the stronger individuals remained. Count Erte was one such example.

Blood flowing across the ground crawled up the humans' ankles. Red spiderwebs spread over their skin. A moment later, the humans surrounding me were all pulled away at once, as though tied to strings.

Count Erte used Cabilah's blood threads to seize countless humans and move them in a single motion.

It was hard to call it overwhelmingly powerful, but this level of finesse was an art that had reached the pinnacle of bloodcraft.

The humans seemed accustomed to being moved by force like this, only letting out a few cries. That did not mean they liked it, and disgruntled muttering lingered in the air.

Ignoring them, Count Erte, Valdamir's loyal servant and the great Ain who managed the Castle of the Full Moon, parted the crowd and approached me. The woman in an old-fashioned suit and hat bowed her head.

"Concubine, why are you walking the streets without an escort?"

"Wait, is concubine my official position? Why do you call me that?"

"You are the Progenitor's concubine, so I call you concubine."

"Then what does that make you, bowing your head to a concubine?"

"An Ain is an Elder's thrall. Compared to you, the Progenitor's concubine, I am lower in rank."

To Count Erte, that was simply common sense. Ten of me together could not defeat that one Ain, yet she treated me with respect for one reason alone: I was Tyr's concubine.

"Where are you headed? Erte von Blood, faithful servant of Valdamir, shall escort you."

"I'm thinking of going to the Castle of the Full Moon eventually... I only came out to look around the streets for a while."

"I shall escort you. Please enjoy your outing for as long as you wish."

Tch. I had wanted to take my time looking around alone, but the vampires wouldn't let me. Lungken had been the same, and now even an Ain? Yeilings would probably be no different. I wouldn't get to walk around comfortably by myself anywhere in this land.

"Do I really need an escort?"

"The presence of an escort does not necessarily mean you are in danger. It is the respect vampires offer to the Progenitor, and a way to demonstrate your authority."

"It doesn't mean I'm not in danger either, does it?"

"...I shall guide you."

Two Yeilings appeared out of nowhere and began directing the people. The humans, apparently used to this sort of thing, moved according to their instructions. The street quickly became quiet again, and under Count Erte's watchful attention, I began a dull little tour.

I had expected it, but I couldn't even pretend to be ordinary while I was Tyr's concubine. There was no one around and nothing to do, so I became bored. As I glanced at Count Erte following half a step behind me, I suddenly realized something.

Count Erte? I had heard that name somewhere before. Where was it?

Ah.

"Come to think of it, a Yeiling named Finlay once ended up in Tantalus."

Count Erte, who had been walking ahead, froze.

Was she surprised to hear the name of her subordinate out of nowhere? No. Vampires didn't feel that much affection. The moment I mentioned Finlay's name, she had reached an ominous conclusion.

Finlay, who had been searching for the Progenitor, visited Tantalus. Now Finlay was gone. Somewhere on the journey between Tantalus and the Fog Duchy, Finlay had suffered an unexpected accident.

And that accident could only have happened with the Progenitor's tacit approval or intent.

Under the Progenitor's authority, vampires were immortal.

"I cannot begin to imagine what discourtesy my inadequate Yeiling may have committed."

"Finlay wanted to start a war. Finlay hoped the Progenitor would return to the duchy as soon as possible. Then... Finlay crossed the line."

"Ah. That idiot actually went and caused trouble..."

Count Erte felt humiliated. It wasn't because she feared blame might spread to her when Finlay's crime was investigated. She was purely furious that a Yeiling, practically one of her own limbs, had behaved so disrespectfully.

"If you permit me, may I ask what discourtesy was committed?"

"It seems Tyr entrusted Finlay with making her heart beat for her while she was conducting various experiments with her own heart. Then, while Tyr was temporarily entrusting her body to Finlay and sleeping..."

"W-wait...!"

It was more brazen than she had imagined. So outrageous that even the extermination of three generations wouldn't be enough punishment. Count Erte clutched her chest in agony at a betrayal that went beyond disloyalty.

"...I will report this crime myself, then go and take my own life."

"Is there any need to mention it? Tyr has buried it somewhere deep in her memories for now. Wouldn't bringing it up again only upset her?"

"Then I will inform Valdamir and ask for my life to be taken!"

"Why are you being so extreme? If Valdamir keeps a thrall's thrall quiet, it can all be treated as though nothing happened. Wouldn't that be best for both Tyr and Valdamir?"

I was suggesting that we hide the truth despite knowing it. It was utterly disloyal, yet it would leave the best possible outcome. Count Erte, who had been so ashamed, wavered for a moment at my words.

Taking advantage of that opening, I asked what I had been curious about.

"By the way, I have a question. Do thralls ever make decisions on their own without their master's command?"

"...There are times when they misinterpret an order and run wild."

Count Erte answered as though making excuses, then added,

"But as you said, Finlay's will is no different from my own. Finlay received my blood, obeyed what my blood commanded, and resonated with my blood."

It was difficult to say Yeilings were different from Ain. Yeilings who received an Ain's blood grew angry when the Ain grew angry and felt sorrow when the Ain felt sorrow. The blood flowing through their bodies, and the power it carried, moved their emotions. As that process repeated, a thrall's beliefs and even personality came to resemble their master.

Emotions were ultimately physical reactions, after all.

There was a reason thralls were so extremely described as part of their master's body.

"You said Finlay wanted war. Which means?"

"Struggle against the Celestial God is the duchy's destiny."

"And?"

"...The duchy has been too peaceful lately. Strength that cannot be used has no meaning. In contrast, the Sanctum has been weakened by a string of misfortunes. Its ambitious conversion of the savage lands failed, and while attempting to mediate the conflict between the Empire and the Arcane Federation, it was shunned by both. If we are to act, now is the time."

It was certainly a good time for war. That didn't make it a reason to start one. Let's see what she was thinking.

'Strength that cannot be used has no meaning. Now that an Elder has died, before the Fog Duchy falls further behind... We must use this strength.'

She was in a hurry? How strange.

Anyone became impatient when they were being pursued. But it was a somewhat unusual thought for a vampire. For vampires who had lived a thousand years, death was a distant matter. That was why they couldn't help but take everything slowly and calmly.

Count Erte was an Ain too. A vampire for whom death was distant. Yet the reason she had come to think this way was...

I spoke as though confirming it.

"You said it was generally impossible for a thrall to make decisions alone without their master's command, right?"

"That is correct."

"That would apply to you as well, wouldn't it? Not as a master, but as a thrall."

After I quietly said that, Count Erte straightened as though she had received a revelation. With eyes filled with reverence, she stared into empty space. Then she glanced at me and walked ahead.

"Follow me."

Without a word, I followed Count Erte.

The streets surrounding the Castle of the Full Moon. Even in the duchy's capital, where darkness always lay over everything, there were especially many shadowed places. Count Erte knew these alleys well, and among them were places reserved solely for vampires.

As though entranced, Count Erte parted a curtain of darkness and entered. Beyond it was a simply furnished but practical office.

There, waiting for me despite being busy with countless affairs, was Crimson Duke Valdamir.

"You've been quite busy, concubine. Almost as busy as I am."

Footnotes:

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