Chapter 436: The Trial That Defies Fate - 1
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 436: The Trial That Defies Fate - 1
The night is so long and dark, it hides many truths within its veil of silence. It would be difficult to explain everything that happened, but to put it simply: I was the creator who remade Tyr's body, and its master.
…At least, for a few hours.
I’ve said it time and again, but I'm an ordinary human. No matter that her senses and emotions had returned, Tyr was still a vampire. She, who could command her own blood at will, never tired, even after several nights. In contrast, I, a mere human, would be dozing off in my seat after just one all-nighter. No matter how beautiful the woman before me, I couldn't overcome my need for sleep and food.
I declared my surrender several times, but that’s only possible when the victor accepts it. Utterly spent from repeated bouts of exhaustion, I lay on the bed as if dead.
"Hu."
"N-No, Tyr… I'm done for. Just leave me and go on ahead."
"Did I ask anything of you? I was merely speaking to you."
Tyr pouted, then giggled and poked me.
"Hu."
"Yes…"
"Heehee. I just felt like calling your name."
"Please don't… I'm tired."
"My, my. To think you'd be so exhausted after just a short time together."
Short time? I couldn't measure it exactly, but I felt like at least three days had passed. Of course, I’d passed out and taken breaks, but that was essential maintenance time. Without it, I would have died.
"You seem to have plenty of energy…"
"I'm confident in a battle of attrition, you see. Hehe. Then again, this must have been a forced march for a human."
"But you're human now, too, Tyr. I even restored your senses, so why aren't you tired…?"
Perhaps it was because fatigue is largely a matter of the body and muscles. Bloodcraft was still a part of Tyr's body. For Tyr, who could command every last drop of her blood, there was neither fatigue nor injury.
"It is amusing to see you in such a weak state, but… are you going to lie there forever?"
"I'm going to die. Humans don't have to be bled dry to die, you know. Seriously, find something else to do."
"What else is there to do…?"
Just as Tyr began to whine, the sound of footsteps echoed from the other side of the door. As if by agreement, Tyr and I fell silent.
It was unmistakably the presence of a person. Someone was deliberately making their presence known as they approached the Progenitor’s private quarters. Tyr frowned for a moment at the unfamiliar presence, but an intruder would not have made a sound. And in this castle, where countless vampires resided, only an Elder could approach without being stopped.
Realizing this, Tyr focused her senses beyond the door.
She no longer had the power to sense blood. Instead, Tyr filled the hallway with darkness. The presence remained unfazed by the encroaching shadows. It stopped its soft footsteps and bowed toward the darkness that filled the corridor.
"Progenitor. It is I, Erzsebet. I have returned after carrying out the task you commanded."
It was Countess Erzsebet. The Elder who had greeted Tyr at the Twilight Citadel before being ordered to Claudia to retrieve Lyre Nightingale.
Oh, wait a minute. If that Elder is here now, that means…
"Yes. Continue your report."
"I have brought Lyre Nightingale as you ordered. I pray you uncover all her sins and punish her accordingly."
This was the signal that the Duchy's long-awaited trial was about to begin.
Finally. The hottest issue in the Duchy. Things are about to get noisy.
'Did the Progenitor truly spend the night with her consort…? Could it be that our Progenitor, who was so young and innocent, has rediscovered the carnal desires I myself have forgotten over a near-eternity?'
…Or maybe this is the second hottest issue? It seemed the Duchy had already been thrown into quite a commotion without my knowledge.
Hiding a storm of complex emotions, Erzsebet bowed toward the door.
"Then, I shall disturb you no further and take my leave. I pray you have a pleasant time with your consort."
Countess Erzsebet, the Progenitor's head handmaiden, the one who had taught the ways of the nobility to a child who had nothing but power. Having served the Progenitor for hundreds of years, she departed with a heart full of confusion at her master's transformation.
I knew this because of my mind-reading, but Tyr, oblivious to the inner thoughts of vampires, spoke nonchalantly.
"…Hu, even Erzsebet said so."
"I'm resting now. I'm on strike. If you touch me again, it's abuse, so don't you dare ask me to do anything."
"You truly need to train. To be this exhausted after such a short time. I shall have to speak to Valdamir later."
"Sheesh… For a human, I held out for a really long time."
I may be the King of Humans, but that title meant nothing when my opponent was a vampire. I sighed and buried my face in the pillow.
In any case, something to do had finally arrived. The two Elders who had left on a mission had returned with the prime suspect. Tyr announced that she would interrogate Lyre in a public setting, and the news spread to every vampire in the castle.
It just so happened that many vampires were already in the Plenilune Castle for the Night Ebb Tide. They could not miss such a momentous event, one in which the Progenitor herself was taking part. With little else to do but wait, they naturally gathered in the great hall of the castle.
A red carpet was spread out like a pool of blood. The chandeliers hanging from the high ceiling were not for illumination, but cast only a faint glow meant purely for atmosphere. The antique paintings and decorations, as if in a museum, were taxidermied in frozen time. As were the vampires, who were of a similar age.
Leaving only a path for the Progenitor's procession, they stood in motionless attendance, evoking the same feeling as looking at a still-life painting. Without any command, they had formed perfect lines like statues, awaiting their Progenitor.
As if accustomed to the sight, Tyr showed no hesitation as she proceeded toward the throne. As her consort, I followed behind her. I took my seat at the place of honor right beside the throne, where everyone was in plain view.
A mere consort, seated above all the others. Yet, even upon witnessing a sight that should have turned the world upside down, the vampires' expressions did not stir. Their bodies were under their complete control, and they all knew there was no need to display emotion in a public forum.
But I could read their thoughts.
'Consort.'
'The center of all this change.'
'There was a rumor he is the King of Humans.'
'All the Beast Kings I have met until now have shunned vampires. The King of Humans, too?'
'No, the King of Humans is a being of rampant rumor. It is too soon to say for sure.'
'Perhaps… it is not that the Progenitor changed and then took a consort, but that he changed the Progenitor and became her consort.'
Had the vampire castle ever been so filled with such a whirlwind of intentions and thoughts? I could guarantee that today held the record—past, present, and future.
From the moment she sat on the throne to when she looked down upon those before her, Tyr's every action was excruciatingly slow. Before, it had seemed like she was simply sluggish, but seated on the throne, every movement felt like the leisure of an absolute ruler. In the silence, stillness, and darkness, Tyr slowly looked down at a vampire kneeling before her.
"Lyre Nightingale. Is that you?"
Lyre Nightingale, kneeling demurely, looked much the same as when she had left the Duchy. She wore a nurse's uniform with an apron over it. The ampoules on her garter belt, likely used in Claudia, were all empty, and the bag containing her surgical tools was slightly worn.
Lyre Nightingale bowed with the appropriate amount of respect.
"Hello, Progenitor. It is a pleasure to meet you for the first time. My name is Lyre Nightingale."
It was a perfectly human greeting. If the Progenitor were to walk into a village and approach a child, this is likely the greeting she would receive.
She at least respected Tyr, even if her speech and etiquette differed from the other vampires.
'I heard she fled the Duchy the moment I returned, so I thought she disliked or feared me…'
Seeing Lyre for the first time, Tyr tilted her head at the unexpectedly docile reaction. In any case, if the other party was compliant, all the better. Tyr turned to Erzsebet.
"You have done well, Erzsebet. But where is Dogo?"
As if expecting the question, Erzsebet bowed deeply and replied.
"There was a slight altercation in the Village of Clouds, so he is currently recuperating to mend his body."
"Recuperating? Dogo?"
"Indeed. Had I not witnessed the power of the boy who wields the sword of sky and earth, I would not have believed it myself… but his strike was truly one that shook the heavens."
"Shei. I sent you both thinking something like this might happen, but I never thought even Shei would be foolish enough to pick a fight with the two of you…"
If you put it like that, what does that make the Regressor? The Regressor wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but picking a fight wasn't always a sign of foolishness.
Shaking her head, Tyr said, "Yes. Who knows what strange tricks Shei might have used. What happened to him?"
"He was injured by Dogo's counterattack. His wounds were light compared to Dogo's, but he is no vampire. I considered ending his life then and there, but saw no need and stopped myself. Had he interfered with the mission, I would have eliminated him immediately, but Lyre Nightingale also obediently followed the Progenitor's command."
"That is sufficient. Tell Dogo he has done well."
"As you wish."
Even Elders could be injured. The threshold was incredibly high, but if a powerful enough force tore through their body, they needed time to restore their damaged insides.
…However, the best way for an Elder to recover is to be by the Progenitor's side. The fact that Dogo chose to recuperate elsewhere meant he, too, had noticed the change in Tyr. Whether it was out of consideration for Tyr or an aversion to her, I couldn't be sure.
Knowing Dogo, who wouldn't even speak to women, it was likely the latter. In any case, Tyr dismissed it as unimportant and rose from her seat. The gazes of the vampires converged on her. Though one might be intimidated by their cold stares, Tyr accepted their reverence as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"To all who have gathered here today to welcome my return and the Night Ebb Tide. I wish to take this opportunity to speak on a grave matter."
After her opening words, Tyr slowly scanned the assembly and continued.
"All of you have looked after this nation well in my absence… However, one thing has occurred that we vampires cannot simply overlook. Some of you may know, and some may not. But after today, everyone in the Duchy will."
Tyr murmured gravely.
"Luscynia has been annihilated."
Were there more vampires who knew than who didn't, or were the ones gathered here today particularly sensitive to such news? It was clear that the majority of the vampires present were already aware. They showed little reaction to the news of Luscynia's death.
"And his original blood has been inherited by another vampire. This was done without permission from me, the original master of that blood. Today, we will determine the truth of this matter. And we will send the original blood to where it rightfully belongs."
Her words meant this would be the place to decide whether to kill or spare Lyre, and if she were to be killed, who would become the next Elder. For the vampires, this was a trial they had to witness, as one of them could potentially become the master of the original blood…
Wait a minute. Why is everyone looking at me? If you're going to look at someone, look at those two!
'The master of the original blood has already been decided, I see.'
'If the blood were given to an Ain or a Yeiling, it would disrupt the hierarchy and the bloodlines.'
'The Progenitor, too… must wish to grant it to her consort.'
You people. Is that the best you can come up with, with your vampire-like coolness? That this whole trial is just a play with a predetermined ending?! Seriously, this is why cold-blooded vampires are…!
'Whether she is guilty or not has yet to be decided. But if we are to reclaim the original blood… it would be best if it went to Hu…'
How did she know?
Just because they couldn't feel emotions didn't mean they couldn't understand. Vampires were once human, they lived alongside humans, and they had observed them for a sufficiently long time.
This didn't feel like a trial for the Doctor Sage. The Doctor Sage herself was an afterthought; all the attention was focused on Tyr and me. It even felt like a foregone conclusion that Lyre would be killed and I would take her blood.
But I wondered if that was truly how it would play out.
"Lyre Nightingale."
"Yes, Progenitor."
"I will ask you directly. Did you bring about Luscynia's death?"
With my mind-reading, I knew better than anyone that Lyre was not the culprit. I wondered how the truth would reveal itself.
Having been asked a solemn question by the Progenitor, Lyre closed her eyes, composed herself, and then spoke.
"Yes, Progenitor. I killed him."
…Huh?