Vampire Commotion (2)
If the corpse had been drained of every last drop of blood, it was almost certainly the work of a vampire. The two small puncture wounds on the neck, like mosquito bites, only reinforced that conclusion. It was the mark of fangs, the kind left by a bat-like creature. No other race could completely drain a human body of its blood. Not even mutated bats or mosquitoes could manage such a feat. Vampires alone possessed that ability.
Of course, vampires didn't need to drain every drop. A certain amount was enough to sustain them. But that didn't mean they couldn't. For a vampire, sucking a human dry was easier than an infant nursing at its mother's breast. If the vampire had clamped its fangs into the victim's neck while covering their mouth with a hand, it could have fed in complete silence before disposing of the body with ease.
Even if the victim had trained at the Academy, training and real combat were different matters. A student who had never faced the demon race in war would have struggled to defeat a vampire head-on. They likely hadn't even managed a proper resistance. Especially if ambushed at night. Even a relatively weak vampire would have been overwhelming. If the victim had only suffered severe injuries and barely escaped with their life, they might still be alive. Dying so young was truly tragic.
The body had been discovered in an alley behind the Academy, reduced to a mummified state after being completely drained. That much was certain. Yet Leticia's account contained details that made it difficult to conclude this was purely a vampire's doing.
"Do you understand?"
"…I understand. But it doesn't make much sense."
I nodded at her question, then looked at Leticia with a puzzled expression and added, "I'm not trying to defend them just because half their blood is mixed in, but leaving the body behind doesn't fit a vampire's pattern. Even animals usually take their prey with them after feeding."
Animals didn't abandon a fully consumed carcass in the middle of the road. If the perpetrator hadn't wanted to be discovered, they should have hidden the mummified remains somewhere out of sight after draining the blood. The fact that the body had been left behind was strange. It only made sense if the vampire had intended for the corpse to be found from the very beginning.
Still, it was hard to believe that a vampire capable of breaching the Academy's security—an institution that symbolized the Empire alongside the imperial family—would drain a student's blood and simply flee. The capital's guards and the Academy's security weren't mere decorations.
…Even if this is for the sake of advancing the game, this feels way too forced.
At the very least, someone should have witnessed the escaping vampire. Since a vampire had not only infiltrated the imperial capital but also killed a student, the imperial family wouldn't stay silent. If this came to light, it wouldn't be strange for the entire Empire to be thrown into chaos.
The silver lining was that Leticia had been the first to discover the body. Thanks to that, there had been no issues with covering up the incident. Only the Emperor, Leticia, the Academy's headmaster, and Leo knew the truth. It had been thoroughly concealed so that even nobles of ducal rank or higher wouldn't catch wind of it. After all, there was nothing to gain from the public finding out.
More than that, I was curious about how the deceased student was being handled.
"Even if they distorted the truth and closed the school to put out the immediate fire, what about the empty seat left by the dead student?"
"I've already discussed that with the headmaster. The official story is that the student suddenly received an opportunity to study abroad and left for a neighboring country without time for proper farewells."
"…And people believed that?"
"They did. Unfortunately for the deceased, it seems they weren't particularly studious or popular."
Leticia's casual reply—that there had been no difficulty in manipulating the information—made me shed silent tears for the dead student in my heart. So you were an outcast, huh.
"Even teachers can't take responsibility for every single student."
Killing them once wasn't enough; she had to kill them again. Stop pretending to sympathize with that indifferent expression. That hurts the deceased student more. Though, in the end, it was just a student I didn't even know who had died.
"So, getting back to the point, there are still too many strange things about this incident."
I looked at Leticia with an incredulous expression. "In a way, the Sage from the Hero Party—who supposedly knows more about vampires than I do—is right here, so there's no way they wouldn't recognize a vampire's handiwork. But even from your perspective, doesn't this seem odd?"
"If they wanted to destroy the evidence, they should have taken the body. I find that strange too."
However, Leticia continued, "The autopsy results matched the way vampires feed."
"…Then."
"For reference, we're also investigating the possibility that someone is trying to frame the vampires, but that would complicate things."
"The new Demon King who recently took the throne wants peace."
Naturally, there were humans and demons who didn't want peace—foolishly so. Some had lost too much in the war and were staging armed protests, questioning whether a peace treaty was even necessary. Leo, who had been standing with his arms crossed while listening to our conversation, suddenly interjected.
"You could call them the radical faction. They're troublesome. Instead of peaceful protests, they're using force, so a lot of people are getting hurt. The vampire who killed the student this time is probably one of those radicals who escaped the Demon King's control."
There were still many hidden dungeons. They must have crossed over from the demon realm through one we didn't know about. Leo furrowed one eyebrow and let out a short sigh.
"They really don't know what war is like. Birds in a cage have no idea how horrific that cesspool called war truly is. If those guys had seen the mountains covered in demon and human corpses, their tune would have changed. It's a shame."
"Leo."
"I have to say what needs to be said, Leticia. You should remember this too. Even those called war heroes, and even our Hero Party, are nothing more than slaughterers who climbed over piles of corpses."
Leo's eyes were hollow as he spoke calmly. Then, returning to his usual expressionless face, he gave a weak smile. Even that smile, enhanced by his now more feminine appearance, looked like a painting. But no one present was foolish enough to miss the atmosphere.
"…Leo. This isn't the time for that conversation. Remember that our priority right now is catching the vampire who caused this commotion."
At Leticia's uncomfortable glance toward Leo, I quickly changed the subject. "I'd like to see the scene myself. Is that okay?"
"Huh? The scene?"
"Wait. If it's about catching the vampire, Leticia and I are more than enough. Our original goal was just to check whether we could lift your curse, so you don't need to get involved in this incident…!"
"Fine."
"Leticia!"
Leticia gave her permission while Leo shouted that he couldn't trust me. The situation was descending into complete chaos. Unable to intervene, I simply blinked from a distance.
At that moment, Leticia flashed a sly smile, reached into her desk drawer, and pulled something out.
"On the condition that you wear this around your neck so you don't do anything strange. How about it?"
"…?"
Caught off guard, I examined the object Leticia handed me, my face filling with countless question marks. Is this what I think it is? Ignoring Leo's shock beside me, Leticia spoke with an expectant expression.
"What do you think it is? It's a collar."
"……I wasn't asking because I didn't know. More importantly, you're saying I have to wear this around my neck?"
"Yeah. I thought it was better than a maid outfit or handcuffs. Isn't it?"
"…Even if you give it to me, why does it have to be something a dog or cat would wear? Haah, I've said it multiple times already—I'm not a damn dog."
I wasn't a pet. But if I didn't put this on, it felt like Leticia would never let me leave this place again—not just this time, but for the rest of my life. Her mouth was smiling, but her eyes weren't. Leo, who had also seen Leticia's expression, fell silent instead of remaining shocked. Then, unexpectedly, he spoke up.
"Leticia, even if this guy is a demon, this crosses the line. They're not a slave. There was no such condition in the contract."
Leo, you're still without balls, but you're my ball-less friend…!
Yuri (S)
Guiding the conversation in the player's favor.
"Still, the collar suits them, doesn't it? If it's Leticia's opinion, I agree."
…What the hell. Hey, who asked for your agreement? Why is Yuri (S) activating on its own and causing trouble? Where did the tsundere hero who was protecting me just moments ago go?
Feeling betrayed by Leo's actions, I silently rolled up the collar in my hand. There was such a thing as a man's pride. I couldn't wear this even if it killed me.
"…."
"Charlotte. Are you going to wear it, or not?"
I bit down hard on my lip. The contract had put me in the dominant position. It clearly had. So why did I feel like the subordinate now? The contract terms had been overwhelmingly favorable to me, but this rendered them completely useless. Still, as a man, I had some pride left, so I tried to refuse politely. Unfortunately, I had never possessed the right to refuse in the first place.
With Leticia staring straight at my face, I obediently fastened the collar she had given me around my neck—even though no quest had triggered. Fine. It's not like wearing it will kill me. After putting on the leather collar, I looked up at Leticia. She raised the corners of her mouth in satisfaction.
"See? It suits you well."
How had my situation come to this? I wanted to die. Seriously. Shit.