97 Episode 5: Town of Immortal Persons ② (1/2)

End, your growth rate is quite fast.

Senri said, looking at me with sincere eyes. It sounds as if she's in a bad mood, but I already know that she's not.

Senri Sylvis is a former Knight of the End, and is very kind to his friends. So I had no choice but to nod at her.

But this [Descend] is overly undead proof. It's dangerous to go outside. I'll go check out the situation. ...... Stay calm.

”...... All right, Senri. Be careful.

Senri glanced at me worriedly as he left the room. I leaned my back against the wall of the room, where there was as little sunlight as possible.

My hearing lost track of Senri's footsteps.

My sense of smell is much more acute than my other senses, probably due to my cannibalistic abilities. Tracking her would be easy.

But I shouldn't do anything that would undermine her trust. Trust is hard to earn, but quick to lose. And it's not like there's nothing I can do in my room.

I waited for a while, and when I was sure Senri wasn't coming back, I slowly closed my eyes. I focused my attention on the image of burrowing into myself.

I'm aiming for the memories and knowledge of Holos Kamen that should be inside of me.

I've gotten a lot stronger since I became a lowly vampire. But I needed the Lord's knowledge if I was going to compete with the real vampires.

Senri has a secret.

Senri doesn't really want me to get stronger. She taught me the basics of fighting. But she never taught me how to apply it.

Of course, I didn't ask her, but Senri looked about the same age as me, but she was an experienced demise knight who had risen to the second rank. He must have slaughtered a variety of vampires in the past and knew a little more about how to fight them.

For example, he should have known that he could extend his claws like a sword by putting power into them, and that he could increase his regenerative ability by controlling the power of his blood. Even if she didn't know how to do it, she must have seen it happen. But Senri didn't tell me that.

Looking back, Senri didn't even tell me that I was classified as an Ancestor until I asked her.

I don't think there was any malice in that. I think she just wanted me to have a peaceful life. And in order to do that, she's trying to remove all obstacles in my way, even at her own peril.

I appreciate the sentiment. But I can't go on like this. Senri's disappearance was very unfortunate for me.

And I'm sure the disaster that's about to befall me will be beyond her control.

Senri has a secret. And of course - I have one too.

I hadn't told Senri that Holos Kamen was inside.

This is both a concern and a strength. It was the Lord's knowledge that saved me from Sable's clutches after the battle with Lynel.

I guess my strong survival instincts dug up my dormant knowledge - now I can do the same thing if I want to. And with a little more memory retrieval, I'll be able to control the Bones like Lord did.

Of course I don't intend to control the dead. But the knowledge of the d*mned could be a way to protect myself.

As I pushed everything out of my mind and concentrated, my consciousness sank.

I was standing with my feet on the ground, but I felt as if I were floating in the air.

I could vaguely feel a mass of power moving in the center of me.

It's blood. We suck blood. The Lord modified bloodsucking to create carth steel. We're monsters of blood.

As an undead created by the lord, I know. There is Holos Kamen.

There's a connection between me and him. Sure, he's in me. But his presence is subtle. I don't know where he is.

Apparently the Lord's knowledge is more tightly sealed than I thought. Is it because I'm a coward, or is his knowledge just that dangerous? I tried to find at least a hint, but I couldn't seem to dig it out overnight.

He desperately searched for a way.

Maybe if he tried to die, he might be able to dig something up again. But it's too late for that.

It's foolish to take action after the fact.

It was a miracle I made it back from Sable. If Senri had arrived a little later, he might have died, and there was no guarantee that he would survive the next time something like that happened.

And what's more - the next time it might be the other way around. If I didn't have enough power or knowledge, and something happened to Senri, I wouldn't be able to die.

Perhaps it was because I was concentrating too hard, but a dull pain rushed through my head. Even so, I mindlessly searched for the bottom.

I feel something tingling inside my body. It's the vampire instinct I've always suppressed. My head heats up and my fangs tingle.

And something floats in the darkness.

Maybe it's just a fantasy. I can't tell.

But what appeared as if oozing out of the darkness was a human skeleton. Kuro robes, gaping eye sockets. Somehow I knew it belonged to Lord.

He's dying. His entire bony body was riddled with holes like insects, and he looked like he was about to collapse.