The First Memory (7)
The magitech train heading toward Frida.
Esid still looked like he couldn't believe it.
He had ridden with his mother before, but now, thanks to being a half-breed retainer, it was his turn again.
The feeling was very strange.
"Is this so strange...?"
"Don't talk to me. It hurts my pride."
What on earth happened at the ball?
How did a mere assistant end up with the Ceylon family's emblem?
"...You're not selling your body in some back alleys, are you? Or did you catch the weakness of some big shot?"
"...No, that's not it."
"Then what is it?"
"Well... somehow I ended up with a connection."
A connection?
Who would casually hand over the emblem?
"Who is that? Tell me the name."
"Faye Ceylon-nim."
"What...? How did you...?"
She hated humans by nature, had a strong pride, and even among vampires she avoided most things.
Lucia also acknowledged her ability to deceive humans.
"I don't know... I don't really understand either."
I only pretended to survive, so saying it out loud felt a bit embarrassing.
More importantly, shouldn't you tell me now?
"Ah, yeah. I should..."
Why was Gunter the target today?
When to strike?
There were still many things I hadn't heard.
"I know that the ball a while ago was a kind of social gathering."
"Yeah."
"If that's the main social gathering for ordinary nobles, there's also one for new nobles."
To quickly expand their territory and establish their position, there were many events they had to attend.
Moreover, in Gunter's case, since he rose through wealth and ability rather than noble blood, his schedule was even busier.
"That's what I'm aiming for."
Everyone was in a frenzy.
It was the last day of the new social gathering.
"And those who hold their positions with bloodline rather than ability don't welcome guys like Gunter very much."
Nectar was a world based on the survival of the fittest.
If Esid added magical cleanup, the other vampires who were waiting for the opportunity would quietly fill his empty spot without anyone noticing, even if it caused some commotion for a moment.
"Can you do it?"
"...Yes."
Since there was an investment in Seowoo, I wouldn't accept it half-heartedly.
***
When I first walked the streets of Frida, there was some unknown pressure, but the second time, there wasn't.
Unlike last time, now that I was a vampire, maybe that's why.
Esid's potion effect was definitely amazing.
The power that would have worn off long ago was still sustained.
Seowoo's shadow entered Esid's body, and through telepathy, he was telling the direction of the street.
'Left here. Right, turn right, go straight.'
'Yes.'
She said she wouldn't interfere in the fight, and since then, she only spoke to tell the way, nothing else.
'We're here. Do you know the face? If I follow and arrive home, I'll work on it.'
'...Understood.'
Smaller than the large ballroom from last time, but a grand building welcomed him.
"Huu..."
It was tense.
My dry throat went down.
I knew it was something I had to do, but standing right in front of the door, the trembling didn't stop easily.
There was fear, but the feeling of committing a crime without emotion stirred my conscience more.
At that moment, my extremely sensitive senses caught Gunter's voice.
"Gunter-ssi, it's nice to see you today."
"Haha! Me too. I hope we can maintain a good relationship from now on."
Seowoo, leaning against the entrance, confirmed the two people emerging from the entrance.
A big guy reminiscent of Bold and his voice.
It matched my memory.
Seowoo followed Gunter from a distance.
I thought if I used a carriage, but luckily the distance wasn't that far, so I timed it with walking.
Gunter, perhaps because he had a big harvest at the social gathering, was buying bread with steam rising, maintaining a faint smile throughout.
When he turned into a small path in the outskirts of the city, dense with small forest, his mansion appeared.
My steps stopped abruptly.
"Haa... I don't know why there are so many rats these days."
Seowoo hurriedly hid behind a tree.
The sound of cold wind muffled the presence.
"Come out, you bastard."
Gunter, turning around, carefully placed the bread bag on the floor.
"..."
But despite his words, no response came.
"...Hah, even if I don't come out?"
Thud, thud.
Seowoo felt the approaching footsteps, preparing to reach out with his pounding heart.
But soon, his steps stopped.
The cry of a stranger burst out.
"S-Sorry! I was trying to beg... but I missed the timing to come out...!"
In front of Gunter was a man kneeling, rubbing his hands.
Gunter looked down pitifully and gave a twisted smile.
"Yeah? Money's good. If you survive even if you endure this, I'll give you as much as you want."
"Yeah...?"
Crack!
Gunter kicked the defenseless man who was begging.
Crack!
The rib bones shattered, and the lungs burst with the heart.
The vampire who flew to the nearby tree and fell was already dead with a burst heart.
"Where do you think a low-class brat like you crawling in... I'll have to go to the security guard tomorrow and settle this."
Seowoo felt a chill from the ruthless cruelty without mercy.
Seeing him wield violence more than necessary, it felt like something dormant was waking up.
The stimulus entering the brain through the spinal nerves spread like a chain reaction, touching forgotten memories.
In the distant, far memory, Yuria's last appearance welcoming at the entrance flashed.
"..."
Yuria's body with bruises.
The sound of her dying breath on her knees.
The warmth transmitted through her cheeks.
The past forgotten was filling the blanks.
'So, you want me to find the memories. So you can understand. Even if I say it a hundred times, explanation is not enough.'
'If you see the vampire who killed Jung Suyeon, will you stay quiet?'
'Yuria is like Jung Suyeon to me. If I pass by the enemy without a word, that's not right.'
At that time, I think I finally understood what the boy said.
"Ah."
The emotions of the past were invading the present.
At the bottom of the memory.
The vengeful spirit that burned even after evaporating the memories.
They lived in the same space, same time.
Promised to look at the night sky together while drawing the future of tomorrow.
Yuria's face vividly came to mind.
Her foolish smile, her expression still vivid as she always worried about herself.
She was thought dead, but she returned as a Number.
This was no different from desecrating a corpse.
The fact that he had been to the threshold of death in her hands also didn't disappear.
...This is something I have to do for you who couldn't have peace until the end.
'Even if you don't remember.'
Honoring your soul today doesn't change.
"What? Was there something else?"
Gunter, who was about to pick up the bag, flinched at the casual words that slipped out.
Seowoo slowly revealed himself in front of him.
His red eyes were filled with unfamiliar killing intent.
"You bastard, is the next one a bounty hunter? No particular grudge, but it seems difficult to act like a noble... "
"...I have something to ask."
"I'm tired, so get out. If you leave now, I'll pretend I didn't see."
"You killed Yuria?"
Seowoo asked without regard to Gunter's words.
"These days, kids don't know how precious life is."
Gunter, looking quite angry, approached with a distorted expression.
The distance where their faces were clearly visible, the height difference from the height difference.
Gunter looking down as if familiar, Seowoo looking up without blinking.
Gunter, recognizing Seowoo's face, frowned.
"What? Just looking at it, it seems like the guy who gave me a shoulder punch a few days ago."
"...Answer the question."
"Ugh, fine. I don't want to be hated by high-class people for nothing, and I'm sorry for the words I said then. If you have something on your mind, forget it."
Even if it was annoying, it was a vampire met in a public place.
Gunter, who quickly understood and turned as if conceding.
But.
Tap.
Seowoo grabbing his shoulder.
Gunter tried to ignore and shake it off, but the hand grabbing his shoulder didn't move.
"...This is crossing a line."
"Answer."
A vein bulged on Gunter's forehead.
A nobody like him bringing up old things, there was a limit to enduring it.
"Are you talking about the girl from the lab?"
"Yes."
"Yeah, I see, it was a pathetic thing, so I fixed it for you. It was a great hand feel. If it was a blood vessel, I should have hit it with a stick. That's the only thing I couldn't do."
Gunter gave a cheap laugh and rubbed his hands in the air.
"Yeah, that's enough."
There was no change in the question I asked out of curiosity.
The slightest hesitation turned into anger and sharpened the blade of emotion.
Now, just to tie up the short and long-standing enmity.
"Die."
Seowoo's hand split Gunter's body.