Frenzy (1)
"Haa…."
As I stepped out of the labyrinth, the pale light of dawn greeted me, the sun just beginning to climb. For the first time in a thousand years, I drew the crisp outside air deep into my lungs.
A clean, bracing vitality spread through every corner of my body, waking both mind and heart. Even with the seal broken, I had still been trapped for a time inside that stifling maze — and so this cool wind made my newfound freedom feel all the more real.
"Let's never see each other again."
I offered a farewell toward the labyrinth's entrance. The grand structure still stood silent and dark. Even after I left, this demonic realm would remain exactly where it was for all eternity.
A day might come when I faced it again — but not anytime soon. After a thousand years of imprisonment, I had no desire to set foot near this place for at least another thousand.
"…Let's go."
I turned my back on the labyrinth without a shred of regret and spoke to Tina and Alfred, who followed behind me. Tina fiddled with the continental map in her hands and asked,
"Master, are we heading straight for Elmaile?"
"Yeah, probably."
Our first destination was the great city of Elmaile.
Elmaile was the nearest human settlement to the Dungeon of Immortality. To reach the royal capital where Lilianel resided, using the Teleportation Hub there was essential.
The Teleportation Hub — a device that instantaneously transported you to any coordinates you entered. It had been a critical tool for players even in the game, and a thousand years later it would surely still exist somewhere in Elmaile, evolved into a more advanced form.
With the Hub, I could reach the capital in less than a minute.
"Hmm…."
…The problem was whether I would actually be allowed to use it.
The fact that a subjugation force had been sent into the labyrinth made it clear that Elmaile already knew my seal had been broken.
Under those circumstances, the odds of them granting a suspicious wanderer — a vampire, no less — access to the Teleportation Hub were vanishingly low.
By the same logic, even entering the city itself was likely to be a problem. Given the emergency, the checkpoint would almost certainly be running rigorous identity inspections.
Even with a disguise, unless I pulled my fangs and dyed my hair, getting exposed at the checkpoint was all but inevitable.
"…."
Infiltration was an option, but I also needed to conduct various investigations in Elmaile beyond just using the Teleportation Hub. Trying to accomplish everything while hiding from every gaze would be both inconvenient and unlikely to succeed.
…Which left only one method: a frontal assault.
"Alright."
There was no need to overthink it. If I simply seized the city by force, every problem — research, the Teleportation Hub, all of it — would resolve itself.
Besides, they had already sent a subjugation force and declared war on me. This time, I was simply paying them a personal visit to deliver the consequences.
"Tina. Alfred."
I called my servants. The moment their names left my lips, the loyal maid and butler bowed their heads toward me.
"Yes, Master."
"Please give your orders, my lady."
I smiled at them.
"…We'll probably get busy the moment we arrive at the city. Be ready."
"It's huge…."
We reached the great city of Elmaile just as twilight painted the plains in the colors of sunset. With the day's work winding down, the checkpoint was thronged with people.
Adventurers, merchants, farmers — people of every profession stretched out in a long line before the checkpoint, each waiting for their own reasons to enter the territory.
The queue at the gate looked like the wait for a popular amusement park ride. If we honestly took our place at the very end, it would easily take over an hour to get inside.
A tedious wait, without question.
"…."
Looking at the length of the line made me want to sigh, but I had never intended to stand in a queue for a checkpoint I couldn't pass through anyway.
"…Let's go."
Treating the checkpoint line as if it were invisible, I led Tina and Alfred straight toward the city gate.
"Wh-what the hell?"
"Are they cutting in line?"
"Hey, lady! Get in line properly!"
Our behavior was no different from cutting, and complaints poured from the pedestrians who had been waiting their turn. I paid no attention to the surrounding reactions and did not stop walking.
Completely ignoring a line that some people had waited hours for naturally drew countless stares. And among those watching us carefully, someone shouted,
"Wait — aren't those monsters?"
"Monsters? What are you talking about? They're people."
"No, look — the girl and the old man both have fangs sticking out. And that maid's skin is blue."
───Just like a vampire and an undead.
"Oh. You're right."
"That's what I said."
"…."
"…Huh?"
"Wait a second — d-don't tell me, for real…."
…A wave of agitation swept through the crowd. What followed was the screaming of people who had finally grasped our true nature.
"M-MONSTERS!!"
"A vampire and an undead!!"
"Everyone, run!!"
To ordinary NPCs, the existence of monsters and demonkin was nothing short of a catastrophe. For those without any power, encountering a monster often meant death.
"Run! Hurry and run!"
"Drop your bags and go! Just run anywhere!"
The moment they recognized us, people scattered in every direction. The orderly checkpoint line dissolved in an instant. Precious-looking luggage and carts were abandoned pitifully on the ground.
"A vampire and undead? You've got some nerve showing up here."
"Bad luck for you — of all people, you ran into us."
"Hm…?"
But unlike the fleeing merchants and farmers, a few men were actively approaching us.
"Ordinary vampires aren't anything special."
"Looks like a young one. Should be fun to play with."
"…."
…Several adventurers mixed into the crowd were swaggering toward us with sneers on their faces. Drawing their weapons and licking their lips, they looked like predators who had just spotted easy prey.
"Hmm…."
I stared at them with wide eyes.
The only vampire who would appear in this city under these circumstances was me — the Progenitor Vampire. Had these adventurers simply not heard the news?
Or had they not heard a description of my appearance, and so were charging in without realizing who I was?
Or perhaps they assumed the subjugation force had already dealt with me, and had dismissed the possibility of my appearance entirely?
"…Whatever."
Several theories came to mind, but none of them mattered. Whatever they were thinking, the outcome awaiting them would not change.
"We're taking them prisoner! Aim for the legs!"
"You lot handle the undead behind the vampire!"
"Got it!"
"…."
…On cue, the adventurers launched their attack. Their coordination was tight — they looked like comrades who had fought together for a long time.
By eye, they were roughly B-rank. Skilled enough to handle ordinary vampires and undead without much trouble.
What they failed to account for was that we did not fall into the category of "ordinary."
"Move."
I swept my hand toward those charging from all sides. Blade-like crimson edges materialized in midair and sliced across every adventurer's throat at once.
"Guh—!"
"Khahk—!"
The adventurers collapsed mid-charge with short, choked screams. As they hit the ground, the impact separated their heads from their bodies, and the heads rolled across the dirt.
"What a nuisance…."
Not even a skill — just a single basic attack, and the entire group had been disarmed. It was vividly clear that the people of this era had grown far weaker than those of the past.
"Kyaaaaaaah!!"
"The m-monster killed people!!"
"…."
From a distance, the screams of merchants and farmers who had been cheering the adventurers on pierced the sky once more. They had been hoping the adventurers would defeat the monster that was me — unfortunate for them.
"Impossible — she killed over ten adventurers with a single attack…?"
"How is that even possible? Wait — d-don't tell me that girl is the Progenitor Vampire…?!"
"…."
Under the weight of every terrified gaze, I continued toward the city gate. Directly in front of it, at the checkpoint, roughly six soldiers leveled long spears at us.
"Begone, monsters! This is human land!"
"You worthless things must have a death wish!"
"So you want a taste of our spears that badly, do you?!"
The soldiers desperately tried to threaten us and bar our entry into the territory. Outwardly they put on a bold, unbothered front — but their trembling hands betrayed what they truly felt.
…They had probably figured out who I was.
"Tina."
"Yes, Master."
This time, rather than handling it myself, I gave Tina a signal with a tilt of my head. She drew the massive greatsword strapped to her back.
Then she began walking slowly toward the soldiers.
"Wh-what?!"
"D-don't come any closer!"
"…Get lost, humans."
Tina swung her greatsword once. The terrified soldiers were cut clean in half along with their spears. Scarlet blood sprayed outward, painting the checkpoint walls red.
"Good. Well done."
I praised Tina.
No one remained to bar our entry into Elmaile. We had fired a rather spectacular signal flare, so more soldiers would come soon enough — but that was fine.
"…You should have chosen more carefully."
…This was the price for recklessly sending a subjugation force after me.
When you attack someone, you should always keep in mind that you might be attacked — or counterattacked — in return. Elmaile's side had made the mistake of preparing for nothing.
"…."
I led Tina and Alfred through the city gate with light steps. In the distance, soldiers who had noticed the commotion were rushing toward us.
"Over there — monsters have invaded!"
"Stop them at once!"
"…."
I stretched my palm toward the charging soldiers and clenched my fist. Their heads burst all at once, blood exploding out through their iron helmets.
"G-gyaaaaah!!"
"Khuhk!!"
Every soldier collapsed helplessly before they could even reach me. The faces of the citizens along the roadside went deathly pale.
"M-MONSTERS!!"
"The monsters killed the soldiers!!"
The citizens shrieked as if the sky itself were falling and fled in every direction through the territory in a blind panic.
"…How disappointing."
…With every citizen fleeing at the soldiers' deaths, the streets around the gate were left with only us.
There had been a bit of a clash, but we had ultimately succeeded in entering Elmaile. All that remained was to investigate various materials, then take the Teleportation Hub to the royal capital.
"Alfred?"
"Yes, my lady."
"Find the Teleportation Hub immediately. And hold it no matter what until I arrive."
I ordered Alfred to locate the Teleportation Hub somewhere in Elmaile and secure it. If the soldiers anticipated I would use it and deliberately sabotaged the machine beforehand, it would cause all sorts of trouble.
"…Leave it to me."
Alfred bowed his head, then transformed into a bat and soared high into the sky.
No one in this city could defeat him, so I could entrust the task to him with complete confidence.
Now only Tina and I remained.
"Shall we head to the library?"
With Alfred dispatched to the Teleportation Hub, I could effectively use it freely whenever I wished.
Having resolved the issue that had concerned me most, I planned to head with Tina to the library, where old tomes would be stacked high, for research.
There was nothing better than books for recovering a thousand years of lost history, measuring the scale of progress, and gathering all manner of miscellaneous knowledge.
"Let's go, Tina."
"Yes!"
…To reclaim the knowledge of the thousand years I had lost, I set off toward the public library that would likely stand at the heart of the territory.