Day 2 of Basement Life
Right after opening my eyes, I felt her gaze on me.
"…Hello."
Carsella, who had pulled up a chair beside my bed and was sitting there, smiled softly.
"Good morning, Flora."
Still groggy from sleep, I looked at her with slightly dazed eyes.
"…How long have you been sitting there?"
"Since right after you fell asleep."
"…You didn't sleep?"
"I didn't want to miss even a second of this adorable sight."
Way too much pressure first thing in the morning.
I averted my gaze and propped myself up to sit.
"Was everything comfortable? Was the blanket too rough, or the air too cold…? If anything bothered you, I'll replace it with something new right away."
"It's fine. It was really comfy."
I meant it. Even I, who knew nothing about bedding, could tell it was top-quality stuff.
Carsella reached out her hand.
I could have sat up on my own just fine, but I couldn't betray those expectant eyes. In the end, I took her hand and let her help me fully sit up in bed.
"You haven't had a proper meal yet, have you?"
"…Now that you mention it, yeah."
I recalled how on the first day, she'd offered me blood, but I'd refused.
"Do you… have an aversion to drinking blood, by any chance?"
She asked cautiously.
"Yeah, a pretty strong one."
"…I see. Would it be okay if I asked why?"
I answered honestly.
"It tastes bad."
A brief silence fell.
Carsella blinked blankly, as if needing time to process, then let out a sigh of relief.
"If that's the reason, then it's truly a relief."
"A relief?"
"I was worried it might be a moral aversion to consuming blood, or some trauma. That kind would be really troublesome. Your body would crave it, but your mind would reject it."
"Ah…."
Yeah, that would have been a serious problem. In that light, it really was a relief. It was just picky eating, after all.
"But refusing blood for too long isn't good for your body either."
"Yeah, probably… Well, should I just pinch my nose and choke it down?"
"There's a better way."
"What way?"
"I'll mix a little blood into regular meals and prepare them for you. The efficiency might be a bit lower, but considering your condition, that would be much better."
"Is that possible?"
"Of course. It's a common method for Child Vampires who are picky eaters."
Guess there are picky vampire kids out there after all.
"Then please do that."
"Seeing that relieved look on your face puts my mind at ease too."
Carsella smiled softly and stroked my head.
It felt strangely comforting, so I just quietly accepted it.
"Wait just a moment. I'll have breakfast brought in right away."
A short while later, breakfast was served in the underground basement.
Steaming beef soup, freshly baked warm and soft bread, and a massive steak dripping with juices.
"This is a seriously proper meal."
"It's my little sister's first meal—I couldn't prepare anything half-hearted, could I?"
One bite, two bites.
I ate cautiously, but there was no weird fishy aftertaste.
It was just plain delicious.
"How is it?"
"It's good. This really has blood mixed in?"
"Yes, just a tiny amount."
"I can't taste it at all."
"That's the point."
She sounded kinda proud of herself.
Carsella lifted her own glass, then naturally moved from across from me to sit right beside me. Did she really need to sit this close? I thought, but didn't point it out.
I glanced at Carsella's glass—it was filled with a red liquid.
"This is my share."
"You're drinking it straight."
"I'm used to it."
She casually set down her glass and dabbed at the corners of my mouth with a napkin.
"…I didn't spill anything."
"There was just a tiny bit of moisture from the soup's steam."
"You just wanted to do this, didn't you?"
"Yes."
Carsella admitted it without hesitation, then let out a small sigh.
"It's a complicated feeling. I'm proud that my little sister's table manners are perfect, but it means I've lost the precious chance to dote on a messy eater."
"Why regret something like that…."
"I'm very disappointed."
Her straightforward sincerity left me speechless.
My mouth felt a little dry, so I reached for some water. The glass in front of me was already empty.
Without thinking, I grabbed the nearest other glass and gulped it down.
Gulp.
"…?!"
"F-Flora?"
…It's, it's delicious!
The liquid I'd chugged mindlessly was insanely good.
Rich, sweet, coating my tongue perfectly.
I tilted the glass back and drained it frantically.
"Whoa, what is this? So damn tasty."
I blurted out the truth before I could even think about manners.
"…Hehe."
Only then did I properly look at the glass in my hand.
Carsella's glass of blood.
"…Ah."
"I'm glad it suits your taste."
"This is… blood?"
I hurriedly set the glass down.
"…Sorry. I drank someone else's without asking."
"No need to worry. It's not that precious, so if you want more, feel free."
"…Okay."
The meal continued.
Even after accidentally downing a glass of blood, my hunger hadn't faded. I polished off the regular food too, but my body craved more nutrients.
"Don't be too embarrassed. It's perfectly normal."
"The amount I ate wasn't normal."
"Your body is experiencing a proper meal for the first time, isn't it? I took care of you steadily, but you must have been severely malnourished. Eat as much as your body wants now—don't hold back."
Thanks to that, I kept sipping from glasses of blood-mixed drinks while we talked.
"So, Carsella."
"Yes."
"When can I leave this place?"
Carsella's hand paused for a moment.
The atmosphere grew quiet.
"…Do you really want to go out that badly?"
"Yes."
I answered firmly.
This life wasn't all bad.
But no one could live like this forever.
Since a hero was destined to appear someday, I couldn't just pretend not to know.
The hero would eventually conquer the entire demon world.
That included me—and Carsella, of course.
"…If that's your wish, I won't insist otherwise."
It was an unexpectedly compliant response.
"You said you're not the Vampire Lord yet, right?"
"That's right. Our mother, the current head of the Alberich family and the Vampire Lord, is still alive and well."
"Mother."
Carsella's mother.
She didn't appear in the game.
She was already dead by then, and the setting collection glossed over her without much detail.
[She was utterly indifferent toward her children.]
That was all the info I had.
"But if you're not even the head yet, is it okay to just take me out on your own?"
"Unless Flora sinks her fangs into Mother's neck, I doubt she'd say a word first."
"…Wow."
That level of neglect?
I was stunned for a moment.
Carsella's expression as she said it was serene.
Like explaining a fact she'd known forever. A deep resignation so familiar it barely qualified as a wound anymore.
"Then I guess we don't need special permission."
"At least for something like 'Can I let Flora out of the basement?', I doubt Mother would step in personally."
I hesitated briefly, then spoke up.
"By the time the hero appears… she's already dead."
Carsella's eyes blinked slowly.
"…I see."
The silence lasted longer than usual. But she soon slowly regained her smile.
"That alone doesn't pinpoint the timeline, though. If Mother dies of natural causes, we have at least thousands of years left."
"Thousands of years…?"
"No one comes to mind who could even assassinate her."
How far back in time did I drop, exactly?
"…Doesn't that shock you?"
"It'd be a lie to say it doesn't shock me at all."
Carsella smiled faintly.
"But it's not entirely surprising. Nothing lasts forever, after all."
Calm, yet strangely lonely. I couldn't pry further.
A moment later, Carsella continued as if wrapping up the topic.
"Anyway, to let you go outside, there's a far more important issue than Mother's permission."
"The seal, right."
"Yes."
She explained calmly.
"Several friends helped create the seal. Most won't be a problem, but… Elisiel might be tricky."
"Elisiel?"
"Do you know her?"
I had to.
The great archmage of the demon world, Elisiel Barentia.
She didn't appear directly in the game. One of those NPCs who only showed up in records and artifacts. Every artifact she left behind had cheat-level performance, earning her endless praise from players.
"I know she vanished into seclusion centuries before the hero appears."
"Elisiel did?"
Carsella's eyes widened slightly in surprise.
"That's unexpected. She's not the type to seclude herself."
"I don't know why. It just said she disappeared for some reason."
"Hmm…."
Carsella didn't seem to have any guesses either.
"We'll look into that later. Right now, her future seclusion isn't the priority."
"Elisiel can unseal me?"
"Yes, since she designed the core of the seal."
Exciting.
"But I'm not sure she'll cooperate."
"…What?"
"She's the one who opposed sealing you the most."
In a way, the most normal reaction.
"If she sees me now, won't she change her mind? I can talk properly, walk around."
"True, she's a kind-hearted friend, so she'd probably be overjoyed for you and help out. I worried for nothing."
Eh, I'm not so sure…?
I didn't say it out loud.
Clop-clop, clop-clop.
Inside the carriage racing toward Alberich Mansion, Elisiel Barentia looked down at the letter in her hand once more.
"…Still gives me chills even on a reread."
[Due to Flora Alberich's condition having completely improved, requesting Elisiel Barentia's cooperation in unsealing. - Carsella Alberich]
"Improved? That Flora Alberich?"
Elisiel let out a hollow laugh.
Flora Alberich, of all people?
She couldn't get better. The very idea was laughable.
"I knew her obsession with her sister was unnatural… Sigh, hallucinations now too."
That was why she'd abandoned her ongoing experiment and rushed to Alberich Mansion.
Not because she believed the letter, but out of worry for Carsella.
Elisiel traced the last line of the letter with her finger.
[P.S. Flora talked to me.]
Her expression softened as she gazed at those words.
"As if, Carsella."
Her voice mixed pity and sympathy.
"Flora Alberich has no soul…."