Chapter 70
Charlotte vanished into the darkness beyond. She neither showed any intent to kill nor drew her weapon. Instead, she ran silently, almost gliding across the ground with a posture so low that seemed she was merging with the earth itself.
Left alone, Ian scratched the bridge of his nose. Even though he heightened his senses to track her presence, she was already gone without a trace.
Certainly, she seems more suited to be an assassin than a warrior. I have no idea why she hates it.
While pondering, Ian bit into a piece of dried meat. He had fully adapted to Charlotte's odd behaviors over the past few days. Though still incomprehensible to him, he chose to let her be. After all, she showed no malice toward him; if anything, it seemed like she was trying to gain his favor. This was preferable to someone who was constantly on the lookout to deceive.
Even so, to go hunting alone at this hour...
He was reminded of a friend who once complained about their cat constantly leaving dead insects by their bedside. Not that Charlotte would be hunting insects, but the thought made him chuckle.
Clang!
Suddenly, a sharp, loud noise pierced the quiet of the night. Ian, who had been leaning casually against his travel bag, sat up. He looked toward the direction of the sound but saw nothing. It was happening beyond his field of vision.
Crack! Boom!
The unsettling noises continued, moving rapidly from one place to another. Ian's gaze followed the direction of the sounds. Far away, the shadow of barren tree branches quivered, and birds of the night, startled by the commotion, took flight in a frenzy. Ian's view was eventually obstructed by the wagon parked near the campfire.
...Is she really okay on her own? I hope we don't find ourselves in a situation where we have a loss of manpower.
As these thoughts crossed his mind, Ian grabbed the sheath of his sword just as the noises abruptly stopped. The silence that followed felt oppressively heavy. Soon, the sound of limping footsteps and something being dragged approached from behind the wagon, accompanied by the scent of blood. Ian frowned as Charlotte's figure slowly emerged.
"...I'm a bit late."
Despite her casual tone, a long cut stretched from her ear to her jaw, the blood from the wound matting her fur and beginning to clot. One of her arm guards was missing, revealing scratched wounds beneath. The magic stones on her armor flickered dimly, indicating her near-exhausted magical energy. Yet, Ian did not comment on her condition first.
"...Hmm?"
What caught his eye was the corpse she dragged by the hair. The body had silver hair stained with blood and a slender, almost bare form. It was a familiar silhouette.
"This was the woman following us. She was up to something strange. Tried to run, so I chased her down and killed her."
Charlotte casually threw the body in front of him. A dagger was buried so deep into the back of the corpse's head that only the hilt was visible. The face, revealed among the disheveled silver hair, had a dagger blade protruding from the forehead.
"Thesaya...." Ian murmured with narrowed eyes.
As Charlotte casually wiped the blood off her face and sat down beside him, she asked, "Did you know her?"
"Yes. She's a demon, as you can see."
"A demon...?! She was a demon?" Charlotte's orange eyes widened.
Ian nodded, "A vampire fairy. I saved her from being captured in Agel Lan. She tried to bite my neck then."
"...Then, she followed us all the way from the western border to here?"
"It seems so. She said we'd meet again."
Ian recalled the rumors he'd heard from Miguel in Agel Lan about a creature that sucked the blood of hounds. He had doubted it then.
To think she'd followed us all the way to the North without giving up.
Charlotte growled in satisfaction, "Then, I've eliminated a threat you've been unaware of for so long. And she was a demon, no less."
"Yes. Now you see how dangerous your actions were."
"It was nothing. I'll be fine by tomorrow night."
Who else but a warrior would boast like that?
With a scoff, Ian pulled out cloth and bandages from his bag. As he began to wrap Charlotte's face, her eyes narrowed in discomfort.
"Don't go off on your own again. It would be a loss for me if you died."
Charlotte previously stiffened, quickly averted her gaze at his added remark.
"Th, there's no way that will happen. Strange as that woman was, she was no match for me. It wasn't difficult to avoid killing her."
"That's because you didn't kill her."
"What...?" Charlotte turned to him sharply, disbelief in her eyes.
Ian, tightening the bandages further, glanced down at the body of Thesaya, noticing the dagger blade protruding from her forehead was slowly retracting.
"Vampires don't die that easily. They can be decapitated or bisected and still live."
As Ian finished bandaging her, he moved on to wrap Charlotte's arm, continuing, "Demons, in general, are incredibly tough to kill. If you pulled out the dagger and brought it, you'd have been ambushed on the way."
"That's..." Charlotte's eyes fluttered nervously.
Facing a demon was a first for her, a forgivable oversight, though she didn't see it that way. For Ian, however, it was more of a fortunate event.
"At least it's easier now. Subdue her body. I'll teach you how to kill a demon."
It was an opportunity to kill Thesaya directly, which would likely yield a significant amount of experience points and possibly complete a quest he had never received before. Of course, he planned to exchange a few words first. Following through with such diligence, a bit of teasing was necessary for satisfaction.
"...Alright." Despite her sullenness, Charlotte nodded.
Ian kicked Thesaya's body to flip it completely over. Charlotte, manipulating her bandaged arms, pressed her knee into Thesaya's back and twisted her arms behind her. The size difference made it seem almost like an adult bullying a child.
"This brat, her nail grows longer. But that'll be useless now."
"She'll use her own blood as a weapon too. Don't let your guard down."
"Understood. Don't worry. She'll barely twitch." Charlotte growled.
Now, she's listening well, Ian thought as he swiftly pulled the dagger from Thesaya's head.
Swoosh—
The blood on the dagger's blade flowed into Thesaya's wound.
The puncture wound from the back of her head to her face closed swiftly. Simultaneously, her dull eyes regained their sparkle. Thesaya blinked as if awakening from a deep sleep and turned her head sideways as she felt the hands binding her.
"Let go and try again. This blood tastes like that of a worthless beast."
“Let go of me and fight again. You beast with tasteless blood.” Her voice was clear but had a hint of anger.
Charlotte sneered, "Quite the mouth from a dead bat. Try escaping then."
Charlotte's grip tightened, staining the bandages red.
Thesaya struggled fiercely, "If I had just a bit more strength, this wouldn't be happening—"
Thump.
Thesaya's rant was abruptly cut off as the dagger that had been in her head was now planted in the ground before her. She looked up, meeting the cold, indifferent gaze of Ian.
"It's been a while, Ian." Her voice softened, a sly smile spreading across her face.
Her beauty seemed meticulously crafted, appealing yet unable to sway Ian's heart.
"It has been. Thesaya."
"Did I ever teach you my name...?"
"I don't recall ever teaching you mine, either."
"Your name is infamous, whether one wishes to hear it or not. Anyway, it's good to see you. Shall we get rid of this beast first? I actually have something important to tell you."
"I like this position just fine. Your persistence is impressive, to have followed me this far."
"Your scent could be tracked across the continent. Plus, following you tends to result in a steady supply of food."
So that was it. Ian smirked.
After all, he had traversed a bloody path. Just scavenging from the remnants of those he killed would stave off hunger.
After examining her hair and face, Ian finally said, "You seem a bit thin for that."
"There were reasons. As I mentioned, I've been wanting to talk to you about it. But fear made it difficult to approach. Now that we're here..."
Thesaya smiled wanly, "How about we sit down and talk? The smell of this beast is nauseating. I've been eating rabbits and squirrels lately, so the mere scent of beast blood is enough to make me sick."
Sit down and talk? My ass! Ian scoffed dismissively, drawing his dagger and fixing his gaze on Charlotte.
"Watch closely. You can't kill a vampire with something as plain as this."
With a crunch, the dagger plunged into Thesaya's shoulder, eliciting a scream from her.
Ignoring her cries, Ian continued, "This? It merely incapacitates them temporarily or causes enough pain to prevent any mischief. Of course, this doesn't mean they're immortal. There are plenty of ways to kill them."
Thesaya gasped for breath, her eyes wide with disbelief, while Charlotte nodded solemnly in agreement.
Ian went on, "The simplest method is to use a weapon laced with silver to sever the head or pierce the heart. But silver weapons are hard to come by and rarely needed. So usually..."
Flames erupted from Ian's grasp. "You either burn them until their blood boils away or use holy power to melt their brain or heart."
"...Wait, Ian? Can we talk for a moment? Please?" Thesaya pleaded, having realized the truth in Ian's words.
Discarding the flames into a nearby snowdrift, Ian picked up the Sword of Judgement.
"Burning takes too long, so it’ll be simpler to kill with holy power right now."
"Ian, please. Just a moment. Please." Thesaya's voice grew desperate, and her composure shattered.
Charlotte grabbed Thesaya's arms with one hand.
Whispering into her ear, she taunted, "You've taught me something valuable, you wretched thing. I'll remember this when hunting your kind next time."
"Shut up, you beast. I have no kin. Ian, please, I beg you. I didn't come to kill you. Initially, yes, but not after seeing what you've accomplished. I realized I could never kill you with my power. I decided to just scavenge what's left behind—Agh!" Thesaya screamed again as Charlotte twisted the dagger into her shoulder.
Thesaya's voice was fraught with desperation, "I mean it, Ian! Please, save me. I never intended to kill you. I can't die here. I just can't!"
"Such clichéd last words, Thesaya." Ian interrupted, drawing the Sword of Judgement slowly.
"Thesa. Call me Thesa. You can call me that." Thesaya forced a smile, struggling in vain to escape Charlotte's grip.
Her nails lengthened and shortened, claws sprouted and retracted in futile resistance. Blood bubbled and spurted from her shoulder.
"I have something important to say. Please, listen to me, Ian. Please."
Ian looked down at her desperate red eyes, almost drained of strength. Compared to their encounters in the game, she was significantly weaker. There would be no substantial rewards or experience points this time. However, there were other vampires from Lu Sard's clan to compensate.
In the game, Thesaya had devoured most of them, leaving few for Ian to fight. But this time, if he acted before Thesaya killed them, he could weaken her while gaining more experience points and loot. Killing Thesaya now would allow him to deal with the vampires without a time constraint.
"It's a shame you couldn't finish drinking my blood, Thesa."
"It's not a lie! Please, just listen to me for a moment. Please!"
"Farewell." Ian raised his sword.
Thesaya cried out, tears of blood streaming down her face, "I won't run or resist. Just listen to me, please! A request, no, a commission! That's it! I have a commission for you!"
As he raised his sword, he paused.
A commission?
His eyes narrowed as he considered.
"You're a mercenary, Ian. You have to at least hear out a commission, don't you? Even if the client isn't human?" Thesaya implored, her face smeared with blood.
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