WeTried Translations

Translator: Hydrogen B

Editor: Hydrogen B

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Chapter 431: Heaven-Defying Trial - 1

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The night was so long and dark that it hid all kinds of truths behind its curtain of silence. It would be difficult to explain everything that happened, but to put it simply, I was the creator who remade Tyr's body, and her master.

...For only a few hours, though.

I've said it over and over, but I'm an ordinary human. No matter how much sensation had returned to Tyr and how many emotions she had regained, she was still a vampire. She could control her own blood as she pleased and did not tire even after several nights. Meanwhile, an ordinary human like me would doze off sitting up after staying awake all night. No matter how beautiful the woman in front of me was, I couldn't overcome my need for sleep and food.

I declared surrender several times, but that was only possible when the victor accepted it. Exhausted again and again until I was completely spent, I lay on the bed like a corpse.

"Hyu."

"N-no, Tyr... I'm done. Leave me behind and go on without me."

"Did I make you do anything? I only spoke to you for a moment."

Tyr pouted, then smiled and poked me.

"Hyu."

"Yes..."

"Hehe. I just wanted to call you."

"Don't call me when I'm tired..."

"Goodness. To be so overwhelmed after spending only a little time together."

A little? I hadn't timed it exactly, but it felt like at least three days had passed. Of course, I'd passed out and rested in between, but that was necessary maintenance time. Without it, I would have died.

"You're so relaxed..."

"I'm confident in a long battle. Hehe. Though I suppose it was a forced march for a human."

"You're human now too. I even restored your senses, so why don't you get tired...?"

Perhaps it was because physical and muscular fatigue made up such a large part of exhaustion. Bloodcraft still existed within Tyr's body. For Tyr, who controlled every drop of her blood, there would be neither fatigue nor injury.

"Watching you look so weak is enjoyable too, but... are you going to keep lying still?"

"I'll die. Humans don't only die when all their blood gets drained. Seriously, find something else to do."

"What else is there for me to do...?"

Just as Tyr began to whine, footsteps sounded in the distance. Tyr and I fell silent as though we had agreed beforehand.

Someone was clearly approaching. They were deliberately making their presence known as they approached the Progenitor's private quarters. Tyr frowned at the unfamiliar presence, but an intruder would not have made a sound in the first place. And in this castle, where countless vampires resided, only an Elder could approach without being stopped.

Tyr appeared to realize that as well and focused her senses beyond the door.

She could no longer sense blood. Instead, Tyr filled the corridor with darkness. The approaching presence did not falter as the darkness drew closer. It came to a gentle stop, then bowed toward the darkness filling the corridor.

"Progenitor. Your humble servant, Erjebeut, has returned after carrying out the task you commanded."

It was Countess Erjebeut. The Elder who had greeted Tyr at the Twilight Fortress, then left for Claudia under orders to bring back Lir Nightingale.

Wait. If that Elder was here now...

"Good. Continue."

"As commanded, I have brought Lir Nightingale. Please uncover every one of her sins and punish her."

It was a sign that the trial the Fog Duchy had waited so long for would finally take place.

It was finally here. The hottest issue in the Duchy. Things were about to get noisy.

'Could it be that the Progenitor truly spent the night with her consort...? Surely not. Even I have forgotten carnal desire over the ages, yet the Progenitor, who was once so young and pure...?'

...No, was this the second hottest issue? It seemed the Duchy had already become terribly noisy before I even realized it.

Concealing deeply tangled feelings within herself, Erjebeut bowed toward the door.

"Then your humble servant shall withdraw without further disturbing you. Please enjoy your time with your consort."

Countess Erjebeut was the Progenitor's head handmaiden, the one who had taught nobility to a child who possessed nothing but strength. Having served the Progenitor for centuries, she withdrew with confusion in her heart over the Progenitor's change.

I knew because of mind-reading, but Tyr, who had no way of knowing a vampire's thoughts, spoke calmly.

"...Hyu, even Erjebeut says so."

"I'm going to rest now. I'm on strike. If you touch me any more, it'll be abuse, so don't make me do anything."

"You truly need to train. How long has it been for you to become this exhausted? I'll tell Valdamir later."

"Tch... I've endured a lot for a human."

I was the King of Humanity, in my own way, but that meant nothing when my opponent was a vampire. Lamenting my fate, I buried my face in the pillow.

In any case, there was work to do. The two Elders who had departed on their missions had returned with the most likely suspect. Tyr announced that she would question Lir in public, and the news spread to every vampire in the castle.

The vampires had entered the Castle of the Full Moon for the night ebb. They could not miss an important matter in which the Progenitor herself would intervene. They had not had much to do besides wait in the first place, so they naturally gathered in the hall of the Castle of the Full Moon.

A red carpet lay across the floor like a pool of blood. The chandeliers hanging from the high ceiling gave off only a dim light meant to create atmosphere, not to illuminate the room. Antique paintings and decorations stood preserved in frozen time, like a museum exhibit. So did the vampires, whose ages were not far off from those objects.

They stood still, leaving only a path for the Progenitor's procession. Looking at them evoked the same feeling as viewing a still-life painting. No one had ordered them to do so, yet they stood in ranks like sculptures as they waited for the Progenitor.

Apparently familiar with the sight, Tyr proceeded toward the throne without the slightest hesitation. I, Tyr's consort, entered behind her. I took my seat beside the throne, in the place of honor where I could see everyone at a glance.

Some random consort stood above everyone's heads. Yet even at the sight of something that could turn the sky upside down, the vampires' expressions did not move at all. Each vampire fully controlled their own body, and all of them understood that there was no need to show emotion in public.

But I read them.

'The consort.'

'The center of all these changes.'

'They say he is the King of Humanity.'

'Every Beast King we have met so far has avoided vampires. Is the King of Humanity the same?'

'No. The King of Humanity is only an existence surrounded by unsubstantiated rumors. It is too early to conclude anything.'

'Perhaps... he did not become the consort because the Progenitor changed. Perhaps he became her consort after changing the Progenitor.'

When had so many different intentions and thoughts ever surged through a vampire castle? I could guarantee that there had never been more than today. Not in the past, nor even in the future.

From the moment she sat on the throne to the moment she looked down at those before her, every action Tyr took was unbearably slow. Until now, it had simply seemed that she moved sluggishly, but once she sat upon the throne, every movement felt like the unhurried ease of an absolute being. Amid silence, stillness, and darkness, Tyr slowly looked down at the vampire kneeling on one knee before her.

"Lir Nightingale. Is that correct?"

Kneeling demurely, Lir Nightingale looked much the same as when she left the Duchy. Her outfit was based on a nurse's uniform, with an apron over it. The ampoules attached to her garter belt, likely used in Claudia, were all empty, and the bag holding her surgical tools was a little dirty.

Lir Nightingale offered the necessary degree of respect.

"Hello, Progenitor. It is an honor to meet you for the first time. My name is Lir Nightingale."

It was an entirely human greeting. If the Progenitor went out to a village and approached a child, she would probably receive this sort of greeting.

At the very least, Lir respected Tyr. Her manner of speaking and etiquette differed from the other vampires, but still.

'I thought she avoided or feared me because she left the Duchy as soon as I returned...'

Meeting Lir for the first time, Tyr tilted her head at the gentler response than expected. Still, if the other party was being cooperative, that was good enough. Tyr turned to Erjebeut.

"You have done well, Erjebeut. But where is Dogo?"

Erjebeut bowed deeply at the expected question.

"There was a small clash in Cloud Village, so they are recuperating to restore their body."

"Recuperating? Dogo?"

"Yes. Even your humble servant would not have believed it had I not witnessed the strength of the boy who wields the swords of heaven and earth... That strike truly shook heaven and earth."

"Shei, then. That is why I sent the two of you, in case something happened, but I didn't think even Shei would do something so foolish as pick a fight with both of you..."

What did that make the regressor, then? The regressor wasn't especially clever, but she didn't necessarily pick a fight because she was foolish.

Tyr shook her head.

"Yes. If it was Shei, he may have used another strange trick. What happened to Shei?"

"He was injured by Dogo's counterattack. His injuries were minor compared to Dogo's, but he is not a vampire. Dogo intended to end his life on the spot, but it did not seem necessary, so your humble servant stopped Dogo. Had he interfered with the mission, I would have executed him immediately, but Lir Nightingale accepted the Progenitor's command without resistance."

"That is enough. Tell Dogo that they have done well too."

"As you command."

Even Elders could be injured. The threshold was absurdly high, but when a tremendous force tore through their body, they needed time to restore their damaged insides.

...But the best way for an Elder to restore their body was to remain near the Progenitor. Dogo insisting on recuperation elsewhere must mean Dogo had noticed Tyr's change. I didn't know whether Dogo was being considerate of Tyr or avoiding her.

For Dogo, who would not even speak with women, it might have been the latter. In any case, Tyr did not make much of it and rose from her seat. Every vampire's gaze gathered on her. Most people would shrink beneath those cold eyes, but Tyr received their reverence as naturally as breathing.

"To all those gathered here to welcome my return and the night ebb, I wish to use this occasion to speak of an important matter."

Having begun, Tyr slowly looked around the room and continued.

"All of you have governed the country well while I was away... Yet there is one matter that even we vampires cannot simply overlook. Some of you may know, while others may not. From today onward, everyone in the Duchy will know."

Tyr spoke heavily.

"Luscinia has perished completely."

Had more vampires known than not, or were the vampires gathered here particularly sensitive to current affairs? At least, it was certain that most of the vampires present already knew. They showed little reaction even to the news of Luscinia's death.

"And one vampire inherited his true blood. This happened without permission from me, the true blood's original owner. Today, we will determine right and wrong, and send the true blood where it belongs."

Would Lir live or die, and if she died, who would become the next Elder? That was what this gathering would decide. Perhaps someone here could become the owner of the true blood, so from the vampires' perspective, it was a trial they had to watch...

Wait. Why was everyone looking at me? If they were going to look at anyone, they should be looking at those two!

'The next owner of the true blood has already been chosen.'

'Giving the true blood to an Ain or a Yeiling would disrupt the hierarchy and blood relations.'

'The Progenitor... surely wishes to bestow it upon her consort.'

You people. Was that all you could come up with after thinking with vampire composure? That this entire trial was a play whose ending had already been decided?! Honestly, this was why cold-blooded vampires...!

'It has not yet been decided whether Lir is guilty or not. But if the true blood is to be taken back anyway... It would be best to give it to Hyu...'

How did they know?

Not being able to feel emotion did not mean vampires could not understand it. Vampires had once been human, lived alongside humans, and observed humans for more than enough time.

This didn't feel like the Healer Sage's trial anymore. The Healer Sage herself had been pushed aside while everyone's attention focused on Tyr and me. It even felt as though Lir's death and my taking her blood had already become a foregone conclusion.

But would it really go that way?

"Lir Nightingale."

"Yes, Progenitor."

"I will ask directly. Did you cause Luscinia's death?"

As someone with mind-reading, I knew better than anyone that Lir was not the culprit. How would the truth reveal itself?

Having received the Progenitor's solemn question, Lir closed her eyes, gathered herself, and answered.

"Yes, Progenitor. I killed him."

...Huh?

Footnotes:

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