The Culprit Behind the Attack
The mastermind behind the attack—THWACK! Harnok drove the spine of the holy scripture firmly into the second bat’s skull, imprinting the Lord’s word upon it. He then turned his triumphant gaze upon the final remaining bat.
“Kyaak! Kyaaak—!” The creature stared back at him, its gums bared wide. It was so overcome with joy at the imminent delivery of the Lord’s word that it could scarcely contain itself. So great was its ecstasy that it forgot it could fly, instead flapping its wings against the floor while its entire body trembled.
“Hiiik! Hiiiik!” The bat looked as though it might even shed tears of joy.
Just as Harnok raised the scripture higher to ensure the final bat received the word with absolute certainty—
Thud!
…Clearly, the bat had been so moved by the fact that the Lord’s word would be “engraved” upon it that it could no longer endure the overwhelming emotion. Otherwise, there was no reason it would have fainted so completely. Its tongue lolled out as its head fell back limply.
Harnok stared at the unconscious bat for a moment, then brought his middle finger and thumb together in his signature pose.
“Kyaaak!”
Recognizing that stance, Sister Celine screamed inwardly and rushed between the bat and Harnok.
“W-wait, waitwaitwait—just a moment—!”
Harnok tilted his head at the nun who had suddenly intervened.
“What is it, Sister? Are you concerned the bat might be feigning death? Should we not verify?”
‘If you flick its forehead, it won’t be feigning death—it’ll be dead for real!!’
The pose Harnok had taken was the so-called “forehead flick.” Celine could not even bear to imagine what would happen if that flick—not a flick—landed on the bat’s head.
Suppressing the words that threatened to burst from her heart, Celine managed to speak.
“Th-that bat is a familiar!”
Harnok’s eyes sharpened further at her words. He nodded as though he understood.
“I see! I understand what you mean!”
‘Thank goodness… Even he isn’t the kind of person who only thinks about evangelism…’
Celine let out a sigh of relief at Harnok’s response.
“Because it is a familiar that received a wicked command, we must deliver the Lord’s word with even greater certainty! Understood! Then I shall prepare to recite the Lord’s Prayer at once!”
……Hearing what followed, Celine nearly slammed her face into the floor. If the bat were to hear Harnok recite the Lord’s Prayer, it would likely be unable to contain its overwhelming emotion and explode—quite literally.
Celine barely managed to steady herself before shouting, her face flushed crimson.
“That’s not it! If we don’t leave it alone, we won’t be able to find out who sent this familiar—!”
Harnok’s dark eyes widened.
“I see! You mean that since the one who issued the wicked command still remains, we must also deliver the Lord’s gracious word to that being!”
Celine collapsed to the floor. Fortunately, she fell backward, so she only ended up sitting down hard.
‘Such remarkable foresight! Now I finally understand why they dispatched you here!’ The words echoed in her ears before fading away like a distant reverberation.
“Ha… hahaha……”
The nun was too busy laughing to keep herself from bursting into tears.
“Sister, do you have any idea what kind of being ordered this attack?”
“Hmm……”
In response to the village chief’s question, the nun only furrowed her brow without answering. Sensing that she needed more time, the chief fell silent and returned to stand with the other villagers.
The wooden building used as the village hall was appropriately empty. It contained almost no furnishings. After Harnok and Celine had dealt with the attack, the remaining villagers—including the chief—had gathered here to determine who had sent the assault through the only clue left: the bat.
Those gathered were either known for their intelligence or their strength within the village. Beside the nun, Harnok glared at the unconscious bat with a terrifying intensity, while the chief and others remained to observe in case of any unexpected developments.
After the commotion, dawn was beginning to break, so the others had returned home exhausted. The attack had targeted people rather than buildings, and Celine had healed all the injuries, so there was little for the villagers to worry about. ……Harnok’s thorough “engraving” of the Lord’s word into the familiars had also played a significant role. The moment sunlight touched them, the familiars dissolved into smoke and scattered. That was why all the windows in the hall had been covered—lest the last remaining clue vanish in the light.
After carefully examining the bat, Sister Celine nodded.
“Chief Ferdo.”
“Oh! Have you found something?!”
At her quiet call, the gathered villagers widened their eyes despite their fatigue and looked at her. Celine spoke gravely, her golden eyes steady.
“Harnok, could you open this bat’s mouth wide for me?”
Harnok easily pried open the bat’s jaws with a casual motion. Its sharp fangs came into view.
“This is only my guess, but… fangs this abnormally sharp, two pairs of eyes… and the fact that the bats attacked the villagers rather than the buildings, focusing on causing bleeding… The one who ordered this attack is most likely……”
Chief Ferdo’s heart raced at her words.
“Wh-what do you mean…?”
Celine’s pink lips parted. There was no trace of hesitation in her golden eyes. Her expression was utterly serious.
“A vampire.”
“A v-vampire…?!”
The chief’s shock quickly spread to the others. The villagers repeated the name over and over, staring at one another in disbelief.
After stroking his beard in stunned silence, Chief Ferdo licked his dry lips.
“A-are you saying such a terrifying being attacked our village…?”
“It’s only a guess, but… why are you so surprised? Given this location, isn’t it constantly exposed to many threats?”
Chief Ferdo shook his head at Sister Celine’s question.
“Even though this is the farthest edge of the frontier, the main threats we face are orcs, trolls, or kobolds. Ogres, which are rarely seen even once every few years elsewhere, attack here two or three times a year. But a vampire? Those beings rose during the Great War, didn’t they? We’ve never seen one here. If any exist, they would be beyond that place!”
Though he did not specify, Celine understood exactly where he meant. Beyond the village lay the structures the Archdemon had erected like thorns… or perhaps even deeper, the place the Archdemon had used as its true stronghold.
“Understood!”
Harnok’s low voice suddenly rang out, snapping Celine from her thoughts.
“In short, it means the one who sent these familiars is still out there!”
Chief Ferdo and the villagers’ faces gradually turned pale. It meant the vampire might attack again.
But Harnok had not finished. He spread his massive palm and slammed it down on the hall floor with a resounding THUD. The murmuring villagers’ attention instantly focused on him, as did Celine’s.
Harnok nodded firmly and continued.
“The vampire knows where we are, but we do not know exactly where the vampire is! In this situation, there is only one appropriate course of action!!”
Sister Celine’s eyes slowly widened.
“Surely not……!”
Harnok turned to her. A triumphant smile spread across the barbarian’s face as he looked at her.
“We strike first—”
“—and deliver the Lord’s gracious word so that the vampire may wash away its wicked heart—!”