“Master, why did you become a vampire?”
Kahn heard Luna’s voice through his fading consciousness. He couldn’t tell if it was real or just a hallucination.
“To master the dark arts,”
his lips barely moved.
“Then why did you bite me?”
“At first, I intended to use you as a sacrifice to become the immortal king.”
“The immortal king? Why didn’t you become that?”
“As long as I avoid sunlight, there’s not much difference between an immortal king and a vampire.”
“Then why did you bite me?”
Luna asked again.
“…I feared eternal loneliness.”
“What?”
“Until you came, loneliness was like a friend to me. But as you stayed by my side, loneliness slowly turned into fear. So I made you my kin to be my companion.”
“Why didn’t you tell me that?”
Luna shouted.
“If I had, would you have accepted it?”
“Of course not! If you had told me, I wouldn’t have let it happen! I would have insisted we live out our lives as humans together!”
“…But then I couldn’t have mastered the dark arts.”
“Who cares! The pursuit is valuable because it’s limited. If you live forever, you’ll get bored and lose interest in magic! It’s because we have limited time that the pursuit of knowledge is meaningful!”
“…Hah.”
Kahn’s lips curved into a slight smile. It was the first time Luna had seen her master smile.
“You may be right,”
Kahn’s body was gradually turning to ash, but his expression was peaceful.
“I feared one more thing. That you might leave me someday. Lately, you seemed so happy, and I realized it was because you had connections outside. I didn’t want to lose you.”
Luna gasped. She thought her master had no interest in her, but he had been watching her closely all along.
“You bought me, so of course, I’d stay with you! I would have listened to you if you had just said that!”
“I see… I bought something more valuable than I thought…”
Kahn’s body completely disintegrated.
“Yes, I was something very valuable,”
Luna whispered, staring at Kahn’s ashes.
He was her teacher in magic, a clumsy father figure, and the man who turned her into a vampire.
She held back the urge to condemn Rath and the others. It was clear they had acted out of concern for her. Besides, Luna herself, who studied necromancy, knew well that vampires were a threat.
(Even so…)
Luna’s feelings of helplessness left her unable to move.
“So, what will you do now?”
After a while, Luciana asked Rath.
She was questioning how to handle Luna.
Though Luna had become a vampire, she was also of the Asra people and had reached the level of an immortal king.
This was evident as the light of the ‘Sun Mirror’ had no effect on Luna’s body.
“Luna, do you resent me?”
Rath asked, ignoring Luciana’s question.
Luna still stood before Kahn’s ashes.
“No, I don’t resent you. You came to help me, didn’t you? I could never resent you for that,”
Luna smiled faintly at Rath.
“I see. Then come with me.”
“Huh?”
Luciana exclaimed.
“Rath-sama, this isn’t the same as keeping a pet. Luna is now an immortal king, a powerful creature. She needs human blood to survive. We can’t bring her to the palace.”
Luciana pointed out harshly.
“She can have my blood. That should solve the problem,”
Rath declared arrogantly.
“…Are you serious?”
Luciana stared at Rath.
“Of course. If I can’t handle one vampire, what kind of king would I be?”
“…King?”
Luna looked at Rath and the others in confusion.
“Rath is a prince? And Luciana, you’re a mage?”
The three of them exchanged glances.
“Yes, I serve Rath-sama. He isn’t king yet, but he will be soon. The current king is ill and doesn’t have much time. As the eldest son, this simple-minded prince will inherit the throne,”
Luciana explained with a sigh.
“Rath is a prince?”
Luna was surprised.
“Do you have a problem with that?”
Rath was offended.
“No, but… I don’t need blood. I’ll go back to the slaver’s house and…”
Luna thought she couldn’t stay in this country anymore. She didn’t know how to face Rath and the others. It would be better to go somewhere no one knew she was a vampire and live quietly.
“No,”
Luciana said firmly.
“We can’t leave a vampire unattended. You can create more kin by drinking blood. Vampires aren’t meant to coexist with humans. But I can’t fight you either. At least come with us. Rath-sama generously offers his blood.”
Luciana winked at Luna.
“Just come,”
Rath grabbed Luna’s hand.
“You have nothing to worry about.”
Luna couldn’t pull her hand away.
Luna was introduced to others as Rath’s new personal maid. Not many found it strange.
Rath was known as an eccentric prince, and his peculiar behavior was nothing new.
“It’s thanks to my good reputation,”
Rath laughed.
He was alone with Luna in his room, which was about half the size of Kahn’s mansion, with a high ceiling and luxurious furnishings.
“Isn’t it because of your bad reputation?”
Luna found it odd she was allowed into the palace so easily.
“The outcome is good, so my actions were good. Simple as that,”
Rath said, biting into a fruit on the table.
It was a pale green fruit, making a pleasant sound when bitten, revealing white flesh.
“Eat if you can,”
“Why?”
Luna wasn’t hungry.
“If you eat a lot, it’ll turn into blood. If you eat, you might not need blood. From now on, I’ll eat a lot to give you my blood.”
Rath continued eating fruit after fruit.
“Tell me if you want something specific. I’ll have it prepared.”
Luna had no appetite.
“Nothing in particular.”
“I see,”
Rath didn’t seem to mind.
In the next room, Killian and Luciana were watching them through a special mirror, holding their breath.
Rath knew they were monitoring, but the siblings were prepared to kill Luna if necessary.
Luna was given a long chair instead of a bed. Rath offered his bed, suggesting he’d sleep on the chair, but Luna refused.
The chair was much better than the bed she used at Kahn’s mansion, and she had no trouble sleeping.
But—Luna felt thirsty.
She hadn’t felt hungry while awake, but after waking up late at night, she felt a terrible thirst.
She bit into the remaining fruit, but it didn’t quench her thirst.
Her eyes went to Rath’s defenseless neck.
It looked incredibly alluring.
Luna slowly moved towards Rath’s bed.
In the next room, Killian drew his sword, ready to intervene.
Luciana gripped her staff.
“Thirsty for blood?”
Rath said, sitting up. Luna stepped back in surprise.
“No, I…”
Luna was dazed, but she remembered clearly what she was about to do, and fear gripped her.
“I promised. Avoid the neck, it’s too noticeable. You can bite my arm,”
Rath offered his left arm, which was not his dominant hand.
TLNOTE : While waiting, I implore you dear readers to read other masterpiece novels that also written by the same author :
- When the Monster Meat I Ate Led Me to the Throne (LN)
- Who killed the Hero?
- The Wicked Princess and 12 Eyes – The Strongest Squires and the Legendary Evil Woman, the Second Time in Her Life
- The Exiled Merchant Saves the World with the Power of Gold (translated by my friend meerkat)
- The Last Magic (translated by my friend narwhal)
Also check out my friend Localizermeerkat for more LN translations!
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