Chapter 5: The annihilation of a kingdom.

The voice came from the underground, Van!

「I understand. 」

『Skill Announcement: Enhanced Hearing LV 6 become LV 7』

Van moves the piles of rubbles and glasses aside, searching for the so-called secret entrance leading the way to the underground. Even though a shard of glass made him bleed, it quickly healed. YUP, he really is a Dracula.

Draculas are different from Vampires is what Van said. Though there wasn’t really a difference like if elves said forest elves and dark elves is an entity different from them. If I were to list their difference based on the survivor that I saw earlier, it was very subtle. The difference between Draculas and the Vampires is perhaps only their form. While vampires can turn into a bat, Dracula doesn’t but they can have a pair of bat-like wings.

The vampires only fly when they become a bat, they are agile and flexible but not powerful. Dracula can fly even without the wing, they also not agile or flexible but are dominating whether in raw power or magic.

But both Vampires and the Dracs are living together in this kingdom. Van also mentions that perhaps the one underground is his half-sister, a vampire.

「Rass, I found the entrance. How is the girl’s condition? 」

When Van mentions it, I concentrate to hear the feeble voice.

No good, the voice is getting even weaker that I have trouble hearing.

Van replies with a nod and rushes downstairs.

The underground is a maze created by his ancestor to confuse enemy to run in a circle even Van has trouble with this maze. But there is me here!

Inside his pocket, I guide him the direction toward where the voice that I heard.

I rush him to run even faster since the voice is fading.

Each time the voice gets smaller, I concentrate on increasing the Enhance Hearing effect.

By the time I realized it, both Enhance Hearing and Concentrate skill has grown until level 8.

「-he-help...」

There! Van, it’s from behind the right room!

*creek-- *sound door opening.

Eh?! That’s no white hair, oppositely of Van hair color, the girl’s hair is as dark as the darkness of the night. Is it really Van’s--

「LOREINE!!!」

Oh, so her name is Loreine~

「-b-brother... you are here. They said... you have died.」

「No, I’m didn’t die yet. Wait, drink this. 」

Van pulls out the unicorn carcass and feeds it to Loreine.

As she sucks the unicorn dry, she regains her energy and just for a moment there, her eyes reflect a bright scarlet light. Though her hair and face are different, I am sure that she is Van’s half sister.

「Loreine, where is uncle? Why is he not with you? 」

The moment Van ask her the question, she automatically frowns and her eyes became watery.

Waiting for so long, this girl still hasn't replied to Van. I become nervous and feel goosebumps all over my body when Van repeats the same question again.

「Loreine. Where is uncle? Why is he not here with you? 」

「T-the UNION, they... 」

Somehow I don’t want her to finish her sentence but Van getting impatient waiting for her to reply.

「They did what?! 」

「They have taken him away! Uncle sacrificed himself so that I could hide safely in this labyrinth. I am powerless as you know, brother! I can’t—sob—I can’t do anything and just watch them take him away! –hic- I, I am to blame... It is all my fault... If I was stronger, this wouldn’t happen. 」

She cries and choked in tears as she explains everything to Van. When I watch her crying, my heart wrench as the girl look younger than my previous self and she is a bishoujo. Eh? Have I owned a heart? Sigh, if I am human right now, I will surely comfort the girl by hugging her and pat her back but this brother of her just look at her without concern.

「Enough crying. Since you have regained your energy, let’s move on. 」

「...yes, brother... 」

A pair of bat wings appeared behind the back of Van’s and his sister and they started to fly towards the palace while I’m still in Van’s pocket.

.........

The siblings are being quiet throughout the flight to the palace which makes me feel awkward. I tilt my head upward and use telepathy with Van.

Umm… Van, would you please introduce me to your sister?

「Was there a need? 」

Well, isn’t it normal to greet my friend family member?

「There wasn’t such a custom in our kingdom. 」

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Is that so, but, I am a human. So, will you please?

「... –sigh-, alright. 」

Hey, why did you have to sigh over something like that?! It’s rude!

「Loreine, this one inside my pocket is Rass. She is my friend and my savior. 」

「Eh?? That thing inside your pocket is alive???? I thought it was a toy. But brother, are you joking? That thing is just a grass, right? It is my first to see a grass monster, so I doubt its ability to save you. Are you saying the truth, right now? 」

This girl, unlike her appearance, she is quite noisy eh?

「Now you understand why I, sigh... 」

Did you say something, Van?

「Nothing important. 」

Really? Okay, then. Let me try telepathy with Loreine for a second.

Testing one, testing two... Hello there, I’m Rass.

「Wow, you even can do telepathy! How strong is your mind, little grass? 」

Yeah, the two is similar... Very much similar.

Please call me Rass, Loreine-chan.

「Oh, forgive me. To actually not say the named monster’s name is extremely rude of me. Pleased to meet you, Rass. Thank you for saving my brother. 」

Your welcome, it really was nothing. I just run chores for him while he does the real job in the reality. Though he says I am his savior, I don’t feel the exact same and actually, it was opposite. He is my savior.

「Oh~」

「Both of you, enough the greeting. We have arrived. 」

Van cut our conversation and the three of us landed on the palace roof safely.

「Rass, do you see or hear the survivor? 」

I do hear them and apparently from their way of talking, one of them is a UNION and the survivor has the one who called Prince Sulvian.

「That is the crown prince. Loreine, give me your blessing. 」

「Yes! Ancestor, With My Blood as Offering, Grant Van Invulnerable Blessing. 」

As soon as Van’s request for a blessing, Loreine cut her wrist. Yawch...  Then, Van’s body slightly emitted dim silver color.

-sa sa- *quick*

I didn’t even have the time to react when Van suddenly accelerates without warning. If it wasn’t for the fact that it’s emergency, I would have scolded him automatically. Since Loreine is weak, she hides behind the roof while peeking at us.

In no time, Van reaches the palace hall and he immediately hides behind one of the pillars. He is waiting for a chance to land a sneak attack. Meanwhile, I’m eavesdropping the UNION and the prince conversation.

「This is the end, Prince Sulvian. It was very unlikely for your father to return because... Our leader has killed him! 」

「I never hope he returns. I myself will do my best to protect my kingdom. 」

「Kukukuku, how noble of you. BUT WHAT CAN YOU PROTECT WHEN NOTHING EVEN EXIST! HAHAHAHAHA!!! 」

Urgh, watching this bishounen provoked by the villain make me want to punch that stupid villain!

「Rass, is the UNION off guard? 」

No, not yet. He seems like he does but he gives off a weird vibe which scares me. Ugh, though he doesn’t look like he noticed us, he is actually very cautious.

Many thanks to Observe-chan, I can understand what is going on at the scene.

「Tch, you are really making me impatient, Prince Sulvian. WHERE IS THE MONACLE OF SOLITUDE?! WHERE DID YOU PEOPLE HIDE IT?! 」

「Even if I die, I will never tell you! 」

「Then, you better of die!! HYAAAAAHHH 」

Van, NOW!!

.........

I closed my eyes without noticing... What happened? ... I peek an eye then I saw Van blocking the UNION’s broadsword just by using his left wrist.

「WHO ARE YOU?!! 」

「No need to know who I am, you are about to die anyway! 」

----saasaa--- The enemy retreat by sliding back two meters away from Van.

「Could it be, you are the king?! NO WAY! OUR LEADER HAS KILLED YOU! 」

「Whether I am the king or not, IT’S NONE OF YOUR CONCERN! 」

Van accelerates forward with his right hand wielding a sword.

Don’t even bother asking me how he got the sword; even I don’t know where he pulled it out from.

「Urgh, Damn it. ARE YOU OR ARE YOU NOT THE KING?!! 」

「Your people have made a move on my kingdom, you don’t have the right to ask who I am! 」

-FTANG! - *sound the sword clashing

Clang—the man broadsword darted off on the floor.

Slash---

「ARGH!! 」

「Hmph. Now you know what pain feels like? You have made my people feel even more excruciating pain than that! YOU WILL NOW TASTE WHAT THEY HAD EXPERIENCED! 」

「Wait! Don’t you want to know where you vassal is? I know where he is, just let me live. 」

「Silence, no more nonsense coming from you. 」

「I KNOW WHERE THE LEADER TOOK THE DOUGLASS MINOR!! 」

Van’s sword halt in mid air after the man mention a name. His eyes became cold and he gives out a terrifying aura.

He grasps hold of the man neck and chokes him as he holds him in the mid air.

「Urk--- 」

「Speak or I will have you taste something even worse than death!! 」

「South—mountain... after the—urk... elves town. 200 miles away from the town... There is a temple. Th-that is where the headquarter is. 」

「Hmph. You UNIONS ARE WORTHLESS. 」

-fwsh—

Van ended the man’s life within a second without giving a second thought. The man told the truth because he felt threaten by Van’s aura. Even I that have fear nullity somehow felt goosebumps all over my body. I know that the man tells the truth because of the pure blood blessing was given by Van.

It let me read someone’s mind. But if the mind of the person is stronger than me, like Van, apparently I can’t read it and sometimes, they can even confuse me by creating fake thinking in their mind. Sigh, only horrible people would do that -sob-.

Regardless of his concern about the Douglass Minor which I guess is his uncle, Van greets the Prince and few bishoujo behind him.

The prince is extremely good-looking with his blue-silver hair and golden eye. He is also as tall as Van. He is a jaw-dropping handsome man, my saliva would be flowing if I have a jaw.

But these people are serious cheating.

「Duke of Minor greet his king, Prince Sulvian, Queen Ivory, Queen Dowager Manora and Madam of Court, Ma’am Lina. 」

The bishoujos behind the prince, according to Van way of speaking, they are even older than I am. If the draculas and vampires are like the legend, they probably are thousand years at least. What a cheat.

「We, the royalty has been saved by you. Many thanks, duke of Minor. 」

「It is my duty to serve the royalty. 」

「It was but now, the kingdom itself is over. We probably have to hide elsewhere now. 」

「The people may have died but there still some survivor left. Prince Sulvian please ascends the throne. Our kingdom still need his king.」

「Even if I ascend the throne, there is no way to revive this kingdom. Duke of Minor, I’m sorry to disappoint you but... The kingdom of Asmodios may have to end here. 」

「No way... 」

Uh... Somehow, the conversation becomes so serious. Van...