Nozomanu Fushi no Boukensha (LN) - Volume 12 - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Meanwhile, the Apprentices... Part 3

At the third village along their journey, they followed a similar routine as they had in the previous two, with Dorothea purchasing various plants and ores from the children. Her negotiations with the mayor went smoothly—unlike the first village—with the only problem being an inconsistency in the final sale price because of a lack of information on the mayor’s part. He was actually quite grateful when Dorothea pointed it out, because the price he had initially given was cheaper than her suggested offer.

While Rina’s frugal side had surfaced upon hearing the mayor propose such a low price and she had seen no reason not to make the best of the opportunity, Dorothea had explained that doing so would be shortsighted. Although it would have resulted in a larger profit for that single transaction, Dorothea’s dishonesty could have been exposed when other traveling merchants stopped by later on, or if any of the villagers saw the price of goods in a larger town, which would have left them feeling resentful toward her.

According to Dorothea, it was best to deal in good faith as much as possible and build relationships based on mutual trust in order to avoid any of that.

Rina found herself agreeing, recalling that although Rentt wasn’t a merchant himself, the adventuring knowledge he’d shared with her had contained similar advice: “When traveling to remote areas, you shouldn’t take advantage of the locals’ ignorance for a onetime gain—like trying to cheat them out of a gold coin just for hunting a few goblins, for example.”

That advice applied to merchants and villages too—in fact, when it came to dealing with other people in general, the foundations were the same no matter what, Rina thought. She had learned a lot from helping Dorothea with her sales.

As for the merchant herself, she had spotted a particular plant among the materials she’d purchased from the children, and that had sparked an idea—one that she began putting serious thought into. Upon asking the children where they’d harvested that plant, they had happily agreed to show her and began leading the way into the forest.

“This way!”

The forests in this region were relatively free of monsters, and most of the ones that could be found there were of the slow variety. Nevertheless, the woods were still no place for children to be wandering around alone. Since the villagers had been uncomfortable with the idea of Rina being the children’s only guard, they had needed to ask one of the village’s hunters to tag along in order to be allowed to go at all.

To a regular person, an adventurer’s strength might as well have made them a monster, even if that adventurer was only an Iron-class like Rina. Generally speaking, even if a village was confident in its ability to put up a fight against any threats, no amount of effort put in by even their strongest residents would ever put them above roughly the level of an experienced Iron-class adventurer. So while having such an individual act as a bodyguard would entirely guarantee the safety of her charges in a region like this one, that did not mean the villagers would actually trust an adventurer—hence the village hunter who was accompanying them. And although the hunter—a man by the name of Zein—probably wouldn’t contribute much in a fight, he was more familiar with the area and thus could act as a guide. All in all, having him along was beneficial to everyone involved.

“Really, though, is this grass that valuable?” Zein asked as they walked through the forest. “We see it growing here and there around these parts, but never really give it a second thought.”

“Until just a short while ago, it was worthless,” Dorothea explained. “But ever since they discovered it could be used in a new type of monster repellent, there’s been a steep increase in price. The alchemist guilds are keeping the production method close to their chests, of course, but there’s no mistaking that this grass is now a valuable commodity—especially since I hear the new repellent’s the most effective one yet. It’s been big news in merchant circles—though the final product is expensive enough that someone like me doesn’t have the leeway to use it much of the time.”

“No kidding! Just goes to show that news doesn’t really get out here to the sticks. First I’m hearing of any of this.”

“It really was very recent. Apparently, the inventor was actually an alchemist from Maalt, though their name hasn’t been publicly revealed. Use of the repellent’s been spreading through the Lelmudan Empire, and it’s only just beginning to catch on in Yaaran, so it’s no wonder you didn’t know. Feel free to spread the news around—this area’s basically in the same region as Maalt after all.”

As Rina listened to their conversation, she suddenly recalled a certain alchemist with strong ties to both Maalt and the Lelmudan Empire. Not too long ago, she had seen that very alchemist sprinkling some sort of green liquid onto the samples of Rentt’s skin that she’d been cultivating on her work table.

“Look, Rina. Isn’t it fascinating? They’re shivering and trying to escape.”

Rentt’s cells—which apparently remained alive even when separated from him—were capable of movement, and would reassimilate if they came into contact with him again. This was the case with Rina’s too, ever since her monster-ification at least, and it was also a property of vampires in general. However, unlike her cells and that of other vampires, which crumbled and turned into an ashlike substance if separated from the body for too long and in small amounts, Rentt’s remained alive for long periods of time.

According to Lorraine, that made them fascinating subjects for experimentation. Since they were far too unique for the results they produced to be applied more generally, though, she had also used Rina’s cells, and those of the local monsters too.

During the particular experiment that Rina was recalling, Rentt’s cells had wriggled around on Lorraine’s work desk, trying to escape from the green liquid. If she remembered correctly, Lorraine had also said...

“I think I could develop a monster repellent using this...”

That meant the alchemist whom Dorothea was talking about was...

But then that would mean that Lorraine had greatly affected the economies of multiple nations all by herself.

Rina hardly dared believe it, but she knew her guess was probably the right one. She resolved to throw any more thought about the matter out of the metaphorical window. Lorraine and Rentt were ridiculous like that—there was just no point thinking too hard about it.

“We’re here!” said one of the children in a voice that rang out through the forest.

Evidently, they had arrived at their destination.

“Incredible...” Dorothea breathed. “The ground’s covered in afto grass.”

Afto grass was the name of the plant used in the new monster repellent. Rina recognized it—she had seen large amounts of it growing in the flowerpots in a certain alchemist’s room. It had distinctive green blades that opened up like a flower, with vertical veins running down their length.

Upon getting a little closer, the grass’s characteristic scent hit Rina’s nose, and she wrinkled it in slight distaste. Dorothea, Zein, and the children didn’t seem to mind it though—indeed, they seemed to like it.

“What a pleasant scent,” Dorothea remarked. “You wouldn’t imagine that this repelled monsters at all.”

Ah, Rina thought. I guess I’d count as something a person would want to keep away, huh?

That depressed her a little, but she was quick to make her peace with it. She just took it as proof that the effect worked. Recalling that this area had a low monster population, she wondered if that was because of all the afto grass that grew around here warding them away.

“Right, I suppose we should start harvesting,” Dorothea said to the children as she rolled her sleeves up and began plucking grass. “I’ll buy up what you gather, everyone, so let’s get to work.”

Zein looked like he was wondering what he should do, so Rina provided him with a suggestion.

“While they’re busy with that, let’s keep watch.”

Even though the area rarely saw any monsters, there were still ordinary animals around. A wild boar was just as much of a threat to the children.

Zein gave Rina a nod, and the pair took positions and began keeping an eye on their surroundings.

◆◇◆◇◆

The afto grass harvesting was proceeding smoothly.

That being said, it was less of a “harvest” and more of a “selective picking.” Rather than wiping the whole area clear of the plant, they were leaving spaces between the clumps they plucked and making sure not to take too much.

Even Rina knew why they were doing it that way—Rentt had made sure to instill in her the importance of moderation when it came to harvesting jobs. Plants that were valuable, vital to the balance of vegetation in the area and so on, grew in certain places for a reason. If they were picked clean, it would result in all sorts of problems. Additionally, it was shortsighted on the part of the adventurer, since it could mean that the next time they took the same job, the plants would be nowhere to be found.

“A smart adventurer knows several different harvest locations and rotates between them, taking care not to pick too much so that what’s left can grow back to the usual amount reasonably quickly.”

And while Rina had wondered whether she should explain that to Dorothea and the children when they had begun picking the grass...

“You can’t take too much, okay, Miss Dorothea?”

“Yeah! Otherwise it won’t grow anymore!”

...the children seemed to have that part well in hand already.

“Gathering herbs is a simple enough job that we let the kids help too,” Zein said, noticing that Rina was impressed. “In case you were wondering where they learned that stuff. Well, part of why they learned so well is that they want to show off their knowledge to others too, so...” Zein smiled wryly.

Rina looked over to the children and saw that he was right—as they taught Dorothea what they knew, they seemed very pleased with themselves. The merchant appeared to recognize that too, because she took deliberate care to feed their motivation rather than take the wind out of their sails.

“That’s a good point,” Dorothea said, rubbing the children’s heads affectionately. “I didn’t know that. Thank you.”

“This is something I’ve thought for a while now,” Rina said to Zein, “but people who make an honest living from their own hard work are amazing, whether they’re adults or children. Even after I became an adventurer, it took me a long time to understand the worth of that.”

The hunter looked surprised. “Really? I was actually going to say that I was impressed by you.”

When Rina tilted her head in confusion, he continued, “I mean, you knew the proper way to walk through a forest—and not just that, but also how to keep your own footsteps silent, how to avoid tiring yourself out when traversing areas thick with roots, which plants are useful or edible when you’re feeling a little thirsty or hungry... We get other adventurers coming by sometimes, but not many have that kind of knowledge. Maalt’s adventurers in general do tend to be pretty learned, but I’d still say you’re one of the best I’ve seen. You could switch over to being a hunter today and still do well for yourself.”

Rina felt a little embarrassed to be complimented so directly, though one of things that Zein had said had piqued her interest. “You said ‘Maalt’s adventurer’s in general,’” she remarked. “Does that mean you’ve seen adventurers in other regions, then?”

“I have indeed. When I was younger, I lived in a village farther west, near the royal capital. Thanks to that, I dealt with a lot of adventurers from there coming out on jobs, but, well...they weren’t the easiest people to be around, if you catch my meaning. Sure, their skills were the real deal, but they didn’t know a lick about the ways of folk like me who live off of the forests and mountains. Had a lot of rough times because of that.”

Rina was somewhat surprised. Since she’d originally moved to Maalt because she couldn’t cut it in the royal capital, she had just assumed that adventurers hailing from the latter location had to be both strong and multitalented. Surely they wouldn’t be able to make a living otherwise.

However, it seemed that wasn’t necessarily true. From what Zein was saying they were definitely strong, but that strength didn’t necessarily come part and parcel with knowledge or skills.

In all fairness, Rina hadn’t had much contact with adventurers in the royal capital at all before she had gone to Maalt, so she hadn’t known what the actual state of things was. While it might have been a different story if she’d been able to form a fixed party with others and go from there...nobody had wanted her back then, which was part of why she’d given up and gone to Maalt.

In Rina’s opinion, that decision had paid off. She’d learned a lot, and she suspected that if she had stayed in the royal capital or gone anywhere else, chances were high that she’d be a corpse on the side of the road by now.

She hadn’t expected to end up as a monster, naturally, but that was its own can of worms. It beat dying any day, though, and her new body was extremely convenient; as matters stood, she had no problems with the whole “being a monster” thing at all. She did want to go back to being human again one day, but it wasn’t a burning desire or anything—if she found out that it was impossible, she wouldn’t mind just shrugging and giving up.

“Well, the royal capital is the big city,” she said. “Adventurer or not, it’s probably pretty rare for people from there to know much about country life.”

In fact, a lot of aspiring adventurers in the royal capital—whether graduates from swordsmanship schools or alumni from the Academy—were young men and women from well-to-do families. Rina herself was a daughter of nobility, and when she had first become an adventurer there she hadn’t known the first thing about village life.

“I suppose that’s just how it is,” Zein agreed. “On the other hand, while Maalt’s a proper town, it’s still out here in the countryside. It makes sense that there’d be folk with the right knowledge there, even if they don’t know as much as you. Makes them easy to hire, which makes life here just that much nicer.”

Evidently, adventurers from Maalt had a good reputation. While part of that was no doubt due to the efforts of Guildmaster Wolf, the lessons Rentt had imparted to the town’s rookies over the years must have had quite the impact as well.

Rentt and Lorraine are just the type of people who make everything around them easier by simply existing, Rina thought sagely.

Suddenly, she sensed a presence in the area, and her thoughts turned away from the casual conversation she’d been having.

“Hmm...” she murmured. “Looks like they finally decided to show up...”

Zein gave her a questioning look.

“There’s a...monster approaching us,” Rina explained. “I’ll go deal with it. Could I ask you to stay here and continue keeping watch?”

“Eh? Really...? Wouldn’t it be better if I came along?”

Despite Zein’s offer, Rina knew she couldn’t ask a simple village hunter to go that far—and it wasn’t necessary for him to do so anyway. In fact, his presence would actually cause problems.

“No, it’s fine,” she said. “Protecting Dorothea and the children is our priority. But since monsters are my area of expertise, you should be the one to stay with them.”

Zein considered that for a moment before saying, “Got it. Leave it to me—I’ll keep everyone safe.”

“I’m counting on you,” Rina said. Then, she said off at a relaxed stroll toward the presences she could sense in the distance.

◆◇◆◇◆

After progressing some distance into the forest, Rina suddenly stepped into a clearing. The area was circular, open, and ringed by tall trees, evoking memories of a colosseum she’d once seen.

Standing in the clearing was a single, clearly suspicious woman, clad in robes that gave her the appearance of a mage.

“So you noticed my little signal,” she said upon seeing Rina. Her voice was quiet and sultry, and what little of her face wasn’t concealed by her hood revealed bloodred lips, curved in the shape of a crescent moon.

Rina did her best to feign ignorance so as to not give anything away. “You let me notice you on purpose?” she asked.

“Indeed. I saw from your fight against Guster that you possess a considerable amount of skill for an Iron-classer. The ease with which you dispatched your enemies in pitch darkness obviously wasn’t just the result of your magical item. Without good senses and battle instinct, you couldn’t possibly have pulled that off. So I suspected that if I were to unleash my bloodlust here, you would come.”

Ah. So that’s what she thinks I did, Rina thought. While Rina’s night vision was far better now than it had been when she had been human, allowing her to see just as well as she would have during the day, it was different enough that it had still required training to get used to. Even if she’d had a magical item that allowed her to see in the dark, using it would have also required practice.

Magical items and tools meant mana expenditure, among other things—all factors one had to keep track of on top of everything else going on. And without good battle instincts, it was difficult to time their usage well.

From what this stranger was saying, she evidently believed that Rina had been able to defeat Guster and his companions because she possessed a magical item that let her see in the dark—which was kind of half right, from a certain perspective.

That wasn’t the only thing Rina had gleaned from the stranger’s words, however. “You’re after Dorothea too, aren’t you?” she asked.

“Naturally,” the woman said. “I need her to return home as soon as possible. I don’t suppose you’d be willing to convince her for me?”

“I’m afraid not. What connection do you have with Guster, anyway? According to him, his employer was a young man...”

It was possible that the woman could have disguised herself as a man when hiring Guster, but Rina doubted that was the case. She was simply too...feminine—the type of person who carried herself in such a way that even if she were to cross-dress, most would still only be able to see her as a woman.

The stranger proved Rina’s suspicion with a shake of her head. “That wasn’t me,” she said. “Dieg was the one who hired Guster.”

“Dieg?”

“Yes. The son of a distinguished merchant family from Mystera. Though, as he’s their second son, he won’t be inheriting the company barring exceptional circumstances. Incidentally, there were talks of him marrying little Dorothea two years ago. Her father’s company is also extremely influential in Mystera. Were you aware of that? In any case, the point is that Dieg was this close to obtaining Dorothea’s father’s company.”

“Even assuming I believe you...Dorothea’s nothing more than a traveling merchant right now. You won’t gain anything from going after her.”

“That’s not an issue—not as long as she gives up on all that, returns to Mystera, and marries Dieg. While she’s gained a little brother during these past two years she’s been gone, he’s still very young, of course. If something...unfortunate were to happen to her father, the fate of the company would naturally fall into the hands of Dieg.”

“And by ‘something unfortunate,’ you mean...?”

“Well, who can say? Whatever it is though, I’m sure it’ll be an accident. Something life-threatening, perhaps. Fate plays the most unexpected tricks on us sometimes, doesn’t it?” The woman chuckled lightly. The implication in her words was as clear as day: she was going to cause that “accident” to occur on purpose.

“Do you think I’m just going to stand by and let you do that?” Rina asked.

“Are you saying you’ll stop me?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying. Do you think I can’t?”

“Hmm...I wonder. I think I’ll go with ‘no, I don’t think you can.’”

“What makes you so confident?”

“Well, where do you think Dieg and Guster are right now? And have you spared any thought for why I might have lured you here?”

With that revelation, the woman’s lips curled into a grin.

◆◇◆◇◆

“Why, if it isn’t Dorothea... Hello. It’s been a while.”

In the clearing where afto grass grew, a man familiar to Dorothea greeted her in an exaggerated fashion. His refined bearing and demeanor betrayed his privileged upbringing, and the shrewd look he wore suggested he was used to being quite competent in what he did.

“Dieg...?” Dorothea asked. “Don’t tell me you were the one who’s been targeting me...”

Standing beside Dieg was Guster, the bandit whom Rina had defeated—and who should have been in the custody of the guards they’d handed him over to. Currently, Guster was holding one of the children hostage with a knife to the neck—which was why Zein the hunter had yet to make a move. The situation was a complete standoff.

Given the circumstances, it was immediately apparent who Guster’s mysterious employer was. While Dorothea had never even considered Dieg as a possibility, thinking back, everything did line up. He had plenty of motivation.

He wants to inherit the Merrow Company.

If he injured Dorothea in just the right way, she would be forced to retire from the traveling merchant life and return home, after which she would have to marry. And the most likely candidate for her partner would be none other than Dieg. After all, he was a talented businessman, and Dorothea’s father held him in high regard—which was exactly why there had been talks of them marrying two years prior.

In the end, Dorothea had fled Mystera, and the story had ended there...or so she had thought.

Evidently, it had not ended for Dieg.

“‘Targeted’?” Dieg said. “What a hurtful way to phrase it. All I want is for you to come home...and your hand in marriage. Oh, don’t worry—I won’t force anything unpleasant on you. We can simply grow the Merrow Company together. Doesn’t that sound wonderful? This might not be apparent, but I have quite a high opinion of you. No ordinary person would discard her life as an heiress where she wanted for nothing in exchange for a completely fresh start as a traveling merchant. With a spirit as strong as yours, you’re capable of anything you put your mind to...which is why you should join hands with me.”

“If I’d been inclined to do that, I would have done it two years ago. And besides, who would ever say yes to an obvious threat like that?”

“Hmm. I see. Then perhaps I should show you the strength of my commitment. Guster, let’s give Dorothea some time to think. Every minute that passes, please cut off one of that child’s fingers.”

Guster grunted an affirmation. He looked unwell.

“Wha— Stop!” Dorothea yelled. “Don’t! What happened to you?! You were never the sort of person who’d do something like that!”

“And just what do you know about m— Ngh...” Dieg clutched his head in his hands, interrupting his own furious tirade. “No, you’re...right? What am I...?”

In that moment, Zein the hunter, sensing that everyone was distracted, nocked an arrow to his bow and drew it back, aiming for Guster.

However, the bandit was faster. He pulled a dagger from his belt and threw it at Zein.

◆◇◆◇◆

When Rina didn’t reply, only sheathed her sword, the woman’s grin grew wider.

“It seems like you understand that you’re going to die here. Rest assured, however—you have my word that Dorothea won’t be meeting the same fate. She has to be kept alive, after all. Although...I suppose if we have to hurt her a little in the process, so be it!”

The woman punctuated her words by launching a blade of wind from her hand: silent magic, a considerably difficult skill. And while the spell itself was of the weak variety, it still possessed enough potency to kill a person.

Since the spell also wasn’t particularly large, Rina evaded it by leaping to the side.

“Oh, you are as good as I thought,” the woman praised Rina. “Still, I wonder how long you’ll be able to keep that up?!”

One after the other, the woman cast spells at Rina. Most mages usually needed to take short intervals for rest in between continuous casting to avoid fatigue, but apparently she lacked that particular flaw. No doubt part of that was because the spells she was making use of weren’t particularly demanding in terms of physical stamina and mana.

Nevertheless, their lethality was not in doubt.

The woman weaved her spells with dexterity, gradually cutting off Rina’s escape routes. Close dodges became nicks and scratches—and then finally a blade of wind scored a large gash across Rina’s leg.

“Ah!” Rina cried out and stumbled to the ground. The woman didn’t miss the opportunity, using it to close the distance. She drew the dagger at her waist and held it aloft over Rina.

“Farewell,” she said. “That was rather fun.”

Before she could bring the blade down, however, Rina swiftly drew her sword from its sheath and thrust it at her.

“Ngh! You—!”

The woman was obviously surprised that Rina had dared to counterattack despite knowing there were hostages. Unable to dodge in time, the sword sank deep into the woman’s abdomen, dealing what was clearly a mortal wound. Her expression distorted in pain, and she glared at Rina hatefully.

While the wound was fatal, she was not dead yet. Rina gripped her sword, ready to make the wound bigger, when...

“Don’t get cocky!” the woman screamed, slamming a kick into Rina that sent her flying back several meters through the air.

The blow had so much physical strength behind it that it seemed impossible that it had come from a female mage. Still, Rina was able to land safely on her feet instead of being sent tumbling across the ground. She felt a brief moment of gratitude for the training she had undergone with Isaac and the other Latuule family servants. Without it, she likely would have slammed into a tree and crumpled then and there.

When Rina looked back over, she saw that the woman—who now sported a large gash on her stomach—was breathing raggedly, her face twisted in a look of fury.

“Now you’ve done it!” she screamed. “I won’t hesitate to kill the little heiress if it comes to that, you know!”

Since the woman’s companions—Dieg, her employer, and Guster—were with Dorothea and the others right now, she was obviously threatening to have them killed in front of Rina, regardless of whether they were hostages or not.

Nevertheless, Rina’s expression remained passive in the face of the threat. Instead, she simply asked a question.

“I’m just asking in case, but...”

“What?!”

Rina tilted her head inquisitively to the side in a very cute gesture for a young girl to make. “You don’t know do you?”

“What?” the woman replied confusedly.

“Oh, good,” Rina said, not providing an explanation. “I was a little worried. Right, it’s my turn now...”

She dashed forward across the ground, sword held in a steady grip as she closed in on the woman. One clean swing and the sword met its mark, cleaving the woman’s head from her shoulders...until the headless body snatched up the decapitated head and jumped a good distance backward.

Then, the body placed the head back into its original position—whereupon the neck wound cleanly healed itself.

As Rina watched on, not relaxing her guard, the woman smiled victoriously.

“Do you get it now?” she asked. “I’m not human. No matter how many times you kill me, it doesn’t matter. You don’t have a chance of winning.”

“Is that what you think...? I see.”

Rina gave a short nod, then launched back into her offensive. Head, arms, legs—Rina severed the woman’s appendages from her body countless times, and countless times the woman regenerated her wounds.

To someone who didn’t know any better, it looked as though there was no end to the woman’s regenerative ability. Perhaps, their hopes crushed by how futile it seemed, they would have given up on the effort partway through.

Rina, however, did know better. She couldn’t not know.

Eventually, the end finally came.

“H-Huh? Why? Why isn’t it healing?! H-Heal, damn it! Heal!” The woman stared at her own left arm, her expression rapidly going pale.

It wasn’t reattaching to her body.

Although Rina didn’t know what kind of life the woman had led, she suspected that she hadn’t experienced anything like what was happening to her now.

Most people, upon realizing that their opponent was a monster who wouldn’t die even when beheaded, would choose to give up or run. Alternatively, someone with powers like these could use the moment when their foe was basking in their supposed victory to attack them from behind, or even pretend to be dead in order to escape the situation. All in all, such advantages meant that they would always have the upper hand.

However, this time, the woman had been unlucky enough to run into Rina.

“What’s wrong?” Rina asked, smiling.

“M-My body! It won’t heal!” The look on the woman’s face was one of despair. “Why?! Th-This has never happened before!”

“I guess that means you’ve never really been in a fight like this, huh?”

“Wh-What...? What do you...?”

“Simple. Our ability to regenerate isn’t limitless. The more fatal wounds we suffer, the more our reserves are eaten up. And once we run out, that’s it: no more healing. It’ll come back with time and rest, though.”

As she spoke, Rina’s own injuries were regenerating. There was already no trace left of the large gash that had been across her leg earlier.

Comprehension finally dawned on the woman’s face. “You...you’re a vampire too...?”

“Honestly? I couldn’t tell you. Well...not that it really matters to you anymore.”

“Huh?” The woman’s head flew from her neck, her expression still confused. A moment later, she began to scream. “No! No! I don’t want to die! I don’t want to die! I...! I...!”

Evidently, she had recognized the fact that her head was no longer capable of reattaching itself to her body.

Rina pinned the headless body to the ground with her sword, then caught the woman’s head and set it down. “So, what made you take control of Dieg and do all of this?” she asked.

Vampires had the ability to bend people to their will. Aside from the method Rina had used on Guster, they were also capable of using a charm ability to brainwash their targets.

And that was exactly what she suspected this woman of having done to Dieg.

◆◇◆◇◆

“I...already told you,” the woman said. “I wanted to make Dieg the company director.”

It was clear from her face that she was still hiding something. That wasn’t a slight against her acting ability—it was just that it was difficult to remain composed when your headless body was pinned to the ground and all you could move was your face. Looking panicked in such a situation was inevitable.

As if to prove that point...

“While I don’t think you’re lying to me, that’s the means rather than the end, isn’t it?”

Faced with Rina’s unrelenting questioning, the woman appeared to give up. “Fine!” she said resentfully. “But you already know, don’t you? You’re a vampire too! You know how hard it is for us to survive! I had to do what I did!”

For a vampire, putting on a human face and effortlessly maintaining their life in human society like Rina, Rentt, and Isaac and the others did was far from an easy feat. Usually, vampires were found quickly and exterminated on the spot.

The fact that so much more deliberate effort was put into the eradication of vampires compared to ordinary monsters was a testament to how dangerous they were. After all, if left alone, they would stroll through society looking the same as anyone else until they sank their fangs into your neck and made you one of them, continuously increasing their numbers. To top it off, their main source of food was humans, and they could live forever. Anyone who thought it was a good idea to leave beings like that alone could quite reasonably be accused of insanity.

From the opposite perspective, however, that made it exceedingly difficult for vampires to live anywhere. It meant that even if they didn’t attack humans and lived a secretive life with the help of a blood donor, vampire hunters would still come knocking at their door.

In all likelihood, there wasn’t a vampire in existence who wasn’t sick of the whole situation.

And in regards to the headless woman currently present, there was another outstanding issue—which Rina proceeded to point out.

“You’re a stray, right?”

“A...‘stray’?”

The woman looked unfamiliar with the term—which in and of itself made the answer clear.

She was a so-called stray vampire, something that Rina had been almost fully confident in ever since the woman had demonstrated that she hadn’t been able to sense Rina’s control over Guster.

As for what had tipped her off, it was the fact that a vampire’s servants possessed that vampire’s unique mark—one that only other members of their species could recognize. In the case of renowned vampires, this mark represented them and the coven or house that served under them. Isaac had taught Rina how to apply the mark of the Latuule family—that is, the coven led by Laura—and had given her permission to use it.

Rina had asked if it was okay to do such a thing while Laura was asleep, but Isaac had assured her that his master had entrusted him with the right to do so. He had also said that he was fairly certain Laura would not have denied Rentt or Rina permission to use the mark either.

That being said, applying the mark took a decent amount of practice, which Rentt hadn’t gone through. Rina, however, had learned it alongside the rest of her training.

And she had applied it to Guster—though the currently headless woman hadn’t noticed it.

Isaac had explained to Rina the possibility of such a thing: namely, the possibility of “stray” vampires.

“Among vampires, a stray is one of us who doesn’t belong to a coven, house, family, or similar group,” Rina explained. “Some vampires create progeny on a whim, but then abandon them to their own devices instead of fulfilling the duties of a progenitor. Most of those progeny don’t end up living for long. They’re ignorant of everything a vampire should learn, and the only thing they can do is fumble around in the dark as they try and figure it out for themselves.”

“Fine. So I don’t have a vampire family or anything like that,” the woman said. She was pouting, and her expression seemed slightly sad. “But so what? What’s your point?”

“That’s why you took control of Dieg, isn’t it?” Rina asked. “You wanted to make him the company director, then use that as cover to live under his protection.”

All in all, the situation wasn’t particularly complicated. The woman had stirred up all of this trouble because she had wanted to secure herself a place to belong. It didn’t even necessarily have to be Dieg; as long as they had the influence to serve as cover and protection, anyone would have suited her needs just fine. It was probably only a matter of chance that she’d picked Dieg—and perhaps he had been susceptible to her control too.

“I did,” the woman agreed listlessly. “What’s so wrong about that? It’s the only way I can survive. I’m sick of living on the run. No matter where I go, no matter how quiet and careful I am, in the end...”

Evidently, the woman had lived through her own share of harsh trials. Nevertheless, that wasn’t an excuse for what she’d done—even if it was likely true that she’d had no other recourse.

Not for the first time, Rina felt confronted by the reality of how difficult it was to live as a monster in the human world. It wasn’t a new revelation to her by any means, but perhaps she now understood it more deeply than before. After all, Rina had been fortunate enough to have protection from the very beginning. If things had lined up slightly differently, however, she could easily have ended up just like this woman—and so could have Rentt.

It was simply a matter of luck.

Rina found herself feeling the slightest twinges of sympathy. The only problem now was what to do.

“Okay,” she said. “I understand your situation now. There’s nothing more I want to ask. So...”

Rina trailed off, but the woman’s imagination must have filled in the next words for her. “W-Wait!” she screamed tearfully. She looked terrified. “Don’t kill me! I don’t want to die... I don’t want to die!”

While part of Rina wondered—perhaps inappropriately, given the circumstances—just how exactly a severed head was managing to scream, the rest of her was deliberating over what to do. The easiest option would just be to kill her, but then that would leave no evidence that a vampire had even been here, since they disintegrated into nothing upon death.

Should she spare her and bring her under her control...?

That was as far as Rina’s thought process got before a presence suddenly appeared behind her.

“Are you perhaps in need of assistance?”

◆◇◆◇◆

For a moment, Rina was shocked—she hadn’t sensed anyone in the immediate area at all. When she realized that she recognized the voice, however, she turned around, relieved to see who was standing there.

“Isaac,” she said. “Don’t scare me like that...”

“My apologies. That wasn’t my intention, but I suppose I was a little abrupt, wasn’t I?”

Indeed, standing behind her was none other than Isaac, the butler of the Latuule family. As always, his expression was pleasant and composed—which, given the circumstances, Rina thought, might have been somewhat inappropriate in and of itself. After all, he had just caught her in the midst of smiling as she talked to a severed head whose body she had pinned to the ground with her sword—as perfect a description as you could get for the word “lunatic.”

Then again, perhaps for Isaac things like that were just an everyday occurrence.

“That aside, you seem to be in need of assistance,” he said, approaching Rina and the severed head—and looking entirely unruffled by both. “That was why I showed up, at least. I hope I’m not inconveniencing you.”

“While I really want to ask how you knew I needed help, there’s probably no point in bothering...” Rina muttered. “Yes, I could use some advice. I don’t know what to do about—ah, let me explain what happened first.”

Though she suspected that Isaac had a good idea about pretty much everything, Rina gave a general account of the whole situation from the top.

When she finished, Isaac nodded. “In that case, why don’t I take her in?” he suggested. “After she confesses to her crimes, I can provide her with a safe place to live where she will be watched over.”

“Is that all right? She’s done some pretty bad things...”

Even just this single incident had resulted in the deaths of all of Guster’s companions. It was easy to guess that the woman could not exactly say she’d never killed a person before. Then again, it also seemed as though she’d really had no other choice in order to survive, which was the thing that made Rina unable to make up her mind.

Isaac smiled wryly. “When it comes to sins such as those, I haven’t lived a virtuous enough life to pass judgment on others. At the very least, however, I can say that she possesses a far more principled personality than stray vampires usually do. I imagine she won’t be a problem after a little discipline has been instilled in her.”

Isaac evidently surmised that Rina was skeptical of the stray vampire’s claim, because he continued. “Generally speaking, once a person becomes a stray vampire, they lose control over their hunger after a few days and go on an indiscriminate hunt. They can wipe out an entire village in the span of a week in their search for human blood. Naturally, that makes them prone to discovery and extermination. This lady, however, seems to have survived quite a long time despite being a stray.” Isaac turned to the decapitated head. “Pardon my rudeness, miss, but may I ask how old you are?”

“A...bit over seventy...” the woman answered obediently.

“Oh my. Surviving for so long without being found is in itself quite an achievement.” Isaac turned back to Rina. “She must have kept her bloodthirst in check as much as she was able, consumed as little blood as she could manage, and lived life like any other ordinary human. Otherwise the vampire hunters would have had the last laugh. But then, I don’t have to explain any of this to you, do I, Rina?”

“Yeah...” Rina murmured.

Even though they hadn’t really talked much, the face of the vampire hunter Nive Maris—an unhinged individual of the highest order, even among adventurers—quickly came to Rina’s mind. If she’d had someone like that after her, there was no way she would be making it as far as seventy years old. Even ten days seemed like a lot to ask.

“In short, this lady is an extraordinary individual, Rina,” Isaac continued. “I imagine that if she had remained a human, she would have lived a life of great integrity. Given how this affair has played out, I understand if you find yourself unable to forgive her, but I nevertheless consider her to be of a rare kind. If the Latuule family takes her in and provides her with a quiet life, the idea of being reckless and attacking people won’t even occur to her.” He turned to the severed head as though to emphasize his point. “Isn’t that right?”

Rina suspected that only Isaac’s master and people like Rentt would be able to turn the man down when faced with the kind of pressure he exuded at times like these. And sure enough...

“O-Of course,” the woman’s head agreed. She looked uncomfortable, and cold sweat was trickling down her brow. “But...is that really going to be okay? I don’t want to die...but I can’t say I wouldn’t understand if you had to kill me either...”

“Well, I’m quite certain that I have more sins on my conscience than you do on yours,” Isaac said. “I’d invite karmic retribution if I didn’t at least give you a second chance. In any case, it’s also true that we simply can’t have you disintegrating into nothing here. Without your testimony that you were controlling Dieg, he’ll feel wretchedly guilty. Won’t he, Rina?”

“Yeah,” Rina agreed. She turned to the decapitated head. “Even in the worst case, I was thinking of becoming your progenitor and bringing you under my control that way...”

Who a vampire’s progenitor was could be changed—and Isaac and the others had taught Rina how to do it.

“Well, I can’t say that I would recommend doing that with a vampire who’s lived as long as her,” Isaac said. “Since it involves a battle of ego and mind, there’s a chance you might have lost.”

“Oh, is that why you decided to show up?” Rina asked.

“It is indeed. Now then...for the time being, I suppose I shall become her progenitor instead. First, let’s get her head reattached.”

After picking the woman’s head up, Isaac pulled Rina’s sword free from the headless body and handed it back to her. Then, he placed the head back in its original position and Splintered, wrapping her body in his darkness.

A few seconds passed, and then the woman’s injuries were all healed.

Rina was impressed; she hadn’t known that you could heal another vampire’s wounds like that. While regular healing magic did work on vampires, any that derived from divinity would purify them instead. She had been wondering what vampires did when missing body parts, but evidently there were methods of fixing that which she wasn’t aware of.

“I-I’m healed!” the woman exclaimed happily. Tears were rolling down her cheeks. “My body... I’m... Thank you!”

She must really not have wanted to die, Rina thought absentmindedly, before immediately realizing how obvious that was. Evidently, becoming a monster had dulled her own sense of the value of life and death.

That probably wasn’t a good thing. She resolved to be more serious about that topic in the future.

“Oh, it’s nothing worth thanking me for,” Isaac said. “I will, however, be expecting you to do the work demanded of you. Will that be acceptable?”

The woman nodded, readily agreeing to Isaac’s reminder. “Of course! If you can really provide me with a place where I can live, then...”

“You may rest assured in that regard. I will be taking you to the safest place in the entire world for vampires. Now, there are a number of things I need to fill you in on...”

Before Isaac could continue, however, the woman interrupted him, looking worried. “Um, first...is everything okay where Dieg and Guster are? Shouldn’t we...?”

Evidently, her assumption was that the two were currently causing trouble for Dorothea and the others.

Isaac turned to Rina. “What do you think?” he asked. His expression, however, made it clear that he already knew.

“It won’t be a problem,” Rina replied. Her own expression was entirely unfazed.

◆◇◆◇◆

When Guster threw the dagger at Zein, the last of Dorothea’s hope flickered out. As a hunter, Zein was hardly an unskilled combatant, but the bandit’s movements had just been so much faster. The dagger flew straight toward Zein’s neck—

Clang!

—but the very next moment, she heard the sound of the dagger being deflected from its course.

“Guh!” Guster grunted in pain and sank to the ground as the arrow Zein had fired met its mark.

“Wh-What’s the meaning of this?” Dieg hissed, clearly just as confused as Dorothea was.

All Dorothea had managed to see was that something shadowy had deflected the dagger headed for Zein, and that Guster’s body had locked up before he could fully step out of the arrow’s path. But while both were exceedingly strange occurrences, as far as she was concerned they were both unmistakably strokes of good fortune.

Guster looked to be completely out cold, and Dieg didn’t seem to have any means of fighting. The bandit’s child hostage, freed from his captor, ran over to hide behind Dorothea and Zein. The hunter kept a nocked arrow trained on Dieg—a silent warning to stay put.

The tables had been completely turned.

“Dieg,” Dorothea said. “It’s over. Give it up.”

“I...can’t,” he told her. “I need to...marry you and...become the director...of...”

Before he could continue any further, he stiffened and collapsed as though all the energy had left his body. Dorothea looked at Zein, wondering if he had fired an arrow and she had just missed it somehow, but the hunter shook his head. He was just as taken aback as she was.

“For the moment, I’ll check if he’s really out cold,” Dorothea said, approaching Dieg. “Keep your guard up.” Examining Dieg’s face revealed that he was clearly unconscious: the whites of his eyes were showing. What was the meaning of this?

Just as her confusion was coming to a head, however...

“Dorothea!” called a voice.

She turned, and there was Rina, accompanied by two people she had never seen before.

Though Dorothea was still wondering what in the world was going on, she breathed a sigh of relief. With Rina here, they’d be fine...even if Guster woke up.

◆◇◆◇◆

“Is that true...?” Even after hearing the story from Rina, she still found it difficult to accept. “But then, that means Dieg...”

“It is,” Rina confirmed. “This person...well, this vampire was controlling him. He’s not actually a bad person, right?”

“He isn’t,” Dorothea agreed. “Back when I was still in Mystera, he had a reputation as a capable and kind young man. He wouldn’t have been able to inherit his family’s company because he had an older brother, but everyone was convinced he’d find success regardless of whether he continued to support his brother or tried to establish a business of his own. That’s why there were talks of him marrying me and taking over my father’s company.”

Rina hummed in interest. “So if you hadn’t become a traveling merchant, you would have been happy to marry him?”

Dorothea was silent for a few moments. “Always direct, aren’t you? Well...I suppose I would have been. After meeting him and talking, I thought we’d be able to do quite well together. Still, my urge to try making it on my own was just that much stronger. I did feel guilty for leaving though.”

“I guess things just didn’t line up right, huh?”

“That’s just how it is sometimes—especially with life and marriage. That aside...is Dieg all right? After someone’s been dominated by a vampire, don’t they become undead too?”

Dorothea’s question was answered by none other than the young man whom Rina had called her tutor. Apparently he had been handling a commission in the area by chance when he had crossed paths with her. Isaac, as he had named himself, moved in a way that showed no sign of weakness and had an air of elegance about him at all times.

In Dorothea’s mind, he fit her mental image of a vampire much better than the woman with her arms bound behind her back, but that was a rather rude thing to think, so she brushed the idea away.

“That only happens in cases where a vampire bites a person and injects them with some of their own blood,” Isaac explained. “There are no signs of any such wounds on Dieg, so he should be fine. Since he passed out, as you so kindly informed us, and that was likely around the time we defeated Amapola—that is this lady’s name—it would line up with the usual reaction most people have after being released from a vampire’s charm. Someone who had become one of the vampire’s undead servants would have remained conscious.”

In short, if Dieg had actually become undead, he would have been capable of acting independently of his master Amapola. A simple charm effect, however, would result in a temporary loss of consciousness once lifted and a full recovery when the victim woke up.

Case in point—after a short while, Dieg’s eyes blinked open. “Ugh...where...am... Dorothea? Is that you...? What did I...?” He looked unable to comprehend the situation at first, but evidently his memories gradually returned along with his consciousness. “Dorothea...I’m sorry. I know this is difficult to believe, but it appears that my senses took leave of me at some point... I never wanted for any of this to happen...”

“It’s fine,” Dorothea said, sighing. “I know. More importantly, are you hurt anywhere? Your father and brother would be terribly cross with me if anything happened to you.”

Dieg let out a weak chuckle. “I rather think they’d disown me instead, given all that’s happened...but what’s done is done. I just wish I knew what could possibly have driven me to do all this...” The young man looked lost.

“Actually...” Dorothea began.

Dieg’s eyes remained wide throughout her entire account of the situation. When she was finished, he nodded in acceptance. “So that’s the whole story...” he murmured. “Certainly it did all begin after I met Amapola. It felt as though I was gradually losing myself.” He turned to the vampire in question. “Amapola—why did you do it?”

Despite the fact that he had been enslaved, the young man’s expression did not appear resentful when he asked his question. If anything, it was a little bit sad.

A similar look flashed across Amapola’s face for a moment, but she did not answer.

Silence reigned for several moments before Isaac broke it. “Regardless, it’s clear what happened now. I intend to bring her to a town large enough to handle such matters and have her crimes properly judged there. Does everybody find that acceptable?”

Everyone present agreed, and with that settled, they returned with the children to the nearby village.

◆◇◆◇◆

Once they reached the village, it was time to decide their next course of action.

That being said, it was already the final stop in Dorothea’s journey. Her original plan had been to make a gradual return, stopping in outpost towns and such to sell the goods she’d purchased in the villages she’d visited along the way, and there was no need to deviate significantly from that. Amapola’s presence meant that they now had to head to a decently sized provincial town nearby that wasn’t on Dorothea’s planned agenda, but that was it.

They could have simply returned straight to Maalt, but this way was faster—and besides, the provincial town had been Isaac’s original destination in the first place. As such, he accompanied them on the trip, but this didn’t seem to bother Dorothea at all. In fact, since Rina kept praising Isaac’s strength, she thought of it as gaining another bodyguard. Dorothea even offered Isaac payment for this, but he turned it down, stating that her allowing him to ride upon her wagon for free would be payment enough. She suspected that he just didn’t want for coin in the first place.

They arrived at their destination in good time, whereupon they promptly handed Amapola and Guster over to the guards and explained the circumstances. Rina noticed the guards begin to move a little oddly after Isaac gave them a certain look...but she figured that was a topic best left untouched. She had a good idea of what he’d done anyway.

A brisk trial occurred that very day. Amapola was taken away to be executed, and her ashes were handed over the day after as proof. As for Guster, he was sentenced to manual labor in the mines.

Normally, such matters would never have proceeded so quickly...but it was not hard to guess that Isaac had played a hand in that.

Dorothea and Dieg, who had both been detained for a day to give their statements, had been shocked to find out that the execution had already happened. Still, it wasn’t impossible for trials to go that fast, so they simply chalked it up to the fact that Amapola was a vampire. After all, if vampires weren’t dealt with swiftly, they were often quick to escape and increase in number.

“So this...is Amapola...” Dieg murmured, studying the jar of ashes.

“How did you meet her, anyway?” Dorothea asked.

“Well, my memories are vague...but I think I crossed paths with her as she was running away from something in a back alley. She looked to be in distress, so I invited her into my home for a meal.”

“What, so you were hitting on her?”

“No! I wasn’t... Well, I suppose it does sound like that doesn’t it? Regardless, everything afterward is hazy.”

“That must have been when she took control of you. Still, it’s good that this all concluded without either of us getting hurt.”

“Maybe not in a physical sense, but...I’m certainly going to be disowned. How am I going to live from here on out?”

“You don’t know for sure that you’ll be disowned. Save the thinking for after you explain the situation to your father. And if you do get chased out...you can deal with that when it happens.”

“You’re awfully optimistic, aren’t you? I should learn from your example...”

While the pair were busy with their conversation, Isaac spoke to Rina, who was at the edge of their group. “Now then, it’s time I made my departure,” he said. “Convey my regards to everyone else, won’t you? I wish you the best on the rest of your commission.”

After a moment of consideration, Rina asked, “What happened to Amapola in the end?”

“She was ‘executed,’ of course.”

The tone of Isaac’s voice made it obvious that he was lying—he had probably smuggled her away somehow and arranged matters to make it look like she was actually dead. He must have decided that was the safest option, given the possibility of vampire hunters picking up Amapola’s trail. Even Nive would have to give up if her quarry was executed and reduced to ash, most of which had been buried in the earth.

Then again, Rina wouldn’t put it past Nive to dig the ash up, sniff it, and declare that it didn’t smell like a proper vampire. Nevertheless, she had faith that Isaac had taken such fanaticism into account. She doubted there was any cause for concern.

After a brief while, Isaac made his departure. Shortly afterward, when Dorothea finally realized that he was no longer with their group, she asked Rina where he’d gone.

“He had something urgent to take care of, so he left,” Rina explained. “He told me to tell you that he was sorry, and that he sends you his regards.”

Dorothea and Dieg both accepted that readily, likely because they recognized how deep into their conversation they had been. They apologized for not noticing, and just like that they set off back to Maalt.

Their journey was peaceful and quiet, and they didn’t encounter a single problem. Dieg wasn’t going to be putting any more sinister plots into motion, and Amapola wasn’t around either. The journey was so trouble-free, in fact, that Dorothea seemed to take it rather badly.

“I...really went through a lot, didn’t I...?”

Apparently, this was the most peaceful trip she’d had in the entirety of her two years as a traveling merchant. Still, she didn’t appear to think that the hardship she had gone through had been pointless. According to her, “It was a good experience in the end.”

When they arrived in Maalt, a pair of unexpected individuals were waiting for them at the guild.

“Father?!” Dorothea and Dieg cried out simultaneously.

Indeed, it was their fathers—the directors of the Merrow and Esol Companies. The look in Dorothea and Dieg’s eyes was clearly asking why they were there.

“Dieg,” his father began. “I noticed that you were getting involved in some rather odd business, so I came to stop you. As it seemed to involve young Dorothea being in danger, I informed Rudo, and he decided to come along too.” Rudo was Dorothea’s father, while Dieg’s father was named Jude.

Dieg’s face went pale upon hearing his father’s words, but nevertheless, he proceeded to explain the situation to the two men. After he had finished, they both looked noticeably surprised.

“He’s never been one to tell extravagant lies,” Jude eventually said to Rudo. “So I’m inclined to believe him. But I must still offer my deepest apologies for the fact that he exposed your daughter to danger. I will be sure to punish—”

Rudo interrupted with a shake of his head. “No, there will be no need for that. I doubt anybody would have been able to resist the vampire’s control, much less simple merchants like us. Punishment should not be a concern. And in a sense...it seems that my daughter has grown as a result of young Dieg’s actions.” He turned to his daughter and smiled. “Dorothea. You’ve gotten much hardier since the last time we saw each other.”

“That’s what you say to the daughter you haven’t seen in two years?” Dorothea said incredulously. “Not...that I suppose I mind.” She turned to Dieg’s father. “Uncle Jude, I have no wish for your son to be punished. He might have been the cause of much hardship for me over the past two years, but all of it allowed me to learn just how difficult the path of a traveling merchant can be.”

Jude looked uncertain. “But...are you certain about that?”

“Um, Father,” Dieg said. He looked as though he were summoning up his courage to speak.

“Yes...?”

“Regarding my punishment...please dismiss me from the company.”

“What? But why? Both Rudo and Dorothea are saying they’ve forgiven you. While it would be shameful not to accept any consequences, of course, we all know that you weren’t in control of yourself. There’s no need to go as far as dismissing you.”

“No, there is. This was all the result of my own naivety and careless actions. So...please—and I’ve just thought of something else.”

“Oh? And that is?”

“Like Dorothea, I would like to start from the beginning as a merchant, with nothing but my own skill. To see how far I can go.” Dieg glanced at the young woman in question.

Dorothea’s eyes widened. “Dieg...are you sure?”

“Yes. Besides, if I stayed in the Esol Company, someone would eventually use these events as a pretext to slander us. My dismissal would be the best thing for the company. Fortunately, I have an amazingly talented brother. They’ll do just fine without me.”

“I see... In that case, I suppose it would be all right. Say, Dieg—why not join up with me, then?”

“I—what?”

“I know you said you wanted to start over from the beginning, but it’s not easy being a traveling merchant. How does joining me and learning the basics from your senior sound?”

“No—well, you have a point, but...are you certain? After all the danger I put you through...”

“Someone else forced you to do all of that. Besides, two years ago I thought running a business with you sounded fun...and I still do.”

“If you say so, Dorothea, then...I humbly accept.” Dieg turned to Rudo and Jude. “It seems my path has been decided, Father. Director Rudo, forgive my impertinence, but may I ask for your permission in this matter?”

Rudo’s expression passed through a myriad of emotions. It couldn’t have been an easy decision, giving his blessing to his only daughter to set off on a journey alone with a man. Still, that man in question had almost been betrothed to her once, and there was a certain air about the two of them that made it feel like everything would turn out all right.

“I...suppose that’s fine,” Rudo finally said. “It appears that the future we dreamed of two years ago is back on track to come true, Jude.”

“Fate is a strange mistress indeed,” the other director agreed before addressing his son. “Well, Dieg, if that is what you have decided, then you have my blessing. Come, we shall return to Mystera and make the proper arrangements.”

After briefly discussing the matter further, everything was settled. Dorothea granted Rina the final approval to report the commission as successfully completed to the guild, and the young adventurer promptly did so.

“Thank you. I don’t know what I would have done without you,” Dorothea told her. “Truly. I shudder to think what might have happened to me. I’ll likely be in Maalt again in the future, so I’d like to commission you again when the time comes. When it does, I’ll be in your care.”

“Likewise,” Rina replied. “A lot happened, but it was fun, and I learned a lot from you about being a traveling merchant. I don’t think next will be anywhere near as hectic as this commission was, so I’ll make sure to give you a discount!”

With that final joke, the two young women parted ways.

◆◇◆◇◆

Now that Rina had more or less taken care of all the necessary things, she set off on her final task: reporting to the Latuule estate.

“Welcome, Rina. May I presume that you’ve put everything in order?”

As always, the one who greeted her at the entrance was none other than Isaac. She wanted to know exactly how he had gotten here, since she and the others had left first after parting ways with him, but he was the sort of person that made pondering such questions a waste of time. Instead, Rina discarded the thought.

“Yes!” Rina said. “Pretty much everything worked out peacefully with no loose ends. All thanks to you, Isaac.”

Dorothea and Dieg had set out to be traveling merchants together with the blessing of both of their parents—definitely a smooth conclusion to events as far as Rina was concerned. And since Dorothea would no longer have to face excessive danger or hardship during her travels, she had nothing to worry about in that regard either.

That wasn’t to say the young merchant wouldn’t face any hardship at all, of course, but that was unavoidable given her profession and far better than having someone actively out to get her. Rina earnestly prayed that Dorothea and Dieg would one day be able to establish their own company and find success.

“Oh, no, not at all,” Isaac demurred. “You owe it to your own efforts, Rina. Moreover, now that you’ve completed a commission on your own, you finally understand, don’t you? Just how much you’ve grown, I mean.”

Rina realized from his words that he’d been able to tell how insecure she had been feeling about her own strength as of late. “I do, yes,” she said. “I’m sorry for worrying you. It was just that everyone around me was so amazing that it made me feel like I wasn’t much in comparison.”

“I believe you’re not giving yourself enough credit there, but I do understand how one could come to that conclusion after being around Rentt and Lorraine. Still, you must also realize that the difference between their experience and yours is great. Rentt has over a decade of diligent training over you, and Lorraine is an expert who received an education specifically for individuals gifted in magic. It is no surprise that you would be unable to stand shoulder to shoulder with them in such a short amount of time.”

“When you say it out loud like that, it makes so much sense... I guess I just didn’t really think of it that way. I suppose my impatience was getting to me. During the job, I realized how much stronger I’d gotten compared to my past self, and I feel like I can see things for what they are a bit better now. I still have a lot to improve...but I think I’ve definitely made progress too.”

“Should I take that to mean that you are glad that you went?”

“Definitely—and on top of everything, I got to meet Dorothea. I think I’ll take more solo commissions from here on out, just every now and then—at least until Raiz and Lola recover enough to do regular adventuring work again.”

Although Rina’s two party members still hadn’t healed from their injuries, they had come far enough along that they’d probably be able to start working again soon. The day when they would be able to accept commissions as a full three-member party wasn’t far off. Rina wanted to be fully confident in herself before that time came.

“Be careful not to overdo it,” Isaac cautioned. “But that does sound like a good plan.”

“I’ll be careful,” Rina agreed. “Oh, come to think of it, what happened to Amapola?”

“Ah! Right. Come on out, Amapola.”

A shadowy silhouette formed at Isaac’s side, quickly morphing into the shape of a person. After a few seconds, Amapola was standing there.

“You summoned me, Master Isaac?”

Instead of the robe Rina had last seen her wearing, she was clad in the maid attire worn mostly by the other female servants of the Latuule family. Evidently, she had been well and truly hired on. Furthermore...

“That was Splintering just now, wasn’t it?” Rina asked. “You already know how to do that?”

Rina’s surprise was understandable—Amapola hadn’t been capable of that when they’d fought not long ago. If she had been able to Splinter, the fight would have proved much more difficult. Her inability had also served as proof for her being a stray vampire. Yet now, she had pulled it off without a problem.

“She has spent a long time as a vampire,” Isaac explained. “Essentially, she already had the foundations down. After some trial and error, she proved to be a quick learner. If we continue with her training, I daresay her strength will improve quite rapidly. Of course, such is the duty of a Latuule family servant.”

Although Isaac was unreserved with his praise, Amapola’s expression looked slightly sick.

Her training must be really rough, Rina thought. “Hang in there, Amapola,” she encouraged.

The woman nodded, still looking ill. “I’ll try...”

“Come to think of it,” Rina said, a thought suddenly occurring to her. “Why did you target Dieg anyway? I mean, I know you wanted to control someone influential to secure a safe place that you could live, but surely it would have been easier to dominate Dorothea, right?”

“You...can say some pretty horrific things, despite looking like you wouldn’t even hurt a fly.” Amapola sounded astonished, but her expression quickly turned into acceptance—she had probably just remembered exactly how badly Rina had beaten her. “Our charm ability is highly effective on people with darkness in their hearts, but weak against those without. Because of his talented older brother, Dieg had always had an inferiority complex. By amplifying that, it was a simple matter to take control of him. Dorothea, however, didn’t have much in the way of those emotions within her.”

That makes sense, Rina thought. When she’d first met Dorothea, the traveling merchant had been quite wary, but the more they had talked, the more that had faded to reveal the optimistic and straightforward young woman beneath. It was news to her that such people were hard to control...but she still thought that Isaac could manage it.

That kind of thing was probably where the difference in a vampire’s ability really shone through.

“Was that the only reason?” Rina asked.

Amapola considered the question for a moment. “Well...I suppose some small part of me wanted to cheer Dieg on. He gave me food and shelter when I was running from a vampire hunter, so I wanted to help him achieve his desires. Looking back, though, I realize that I went too far...to say nothing of the methods I used. Desperation has a tendency to undermine all sorts of plans and intentions...”

The woman’s eyes were focused somewhere far away as she spoke. She must have felt terribly cornered by the desperation she spoke of.

“Are you going to live here from now on?” Rina asked.

“Yes, as a servant of the Latuule family. I still haven’t met the mistress, though...”

“Well, she is asleep. I’m sure she’ll wake up sooner or later...right?” Rina directed that last part at Isaac.

The man nodded. “Naturally. However, only Mistress Laura herself knows whether that will be tomorrow, in a month, in ten years, or a hundred.”

Rina thought that was a little too long, personally—but then again, that was probably just how vampires were.