Unfortunately, Lycoris found no more success with the guards on her way back.
Even when she tried sounding overly saccharine, putting on her best impression of an excited Fawaris, the guards simply shied away from her, in some cases physically turning away for whatever reason…
When she asked Athena if other members of the custodial staff would be any more likely to talk to her, she shook her head sadly.
At least she’d met an assortment of guards and would be able to tell if they’d been replaced by doppelgangers, but her sour mood made the looming self-flagellatory meal of plain animal blood even less appealing than usual. At least it served to keep her sane, a reminder that she was enduring this to… some end.
Originally, she wanted to take Lilianna’s place, slay her or otherwise remove her from any position of power or control, and collapse her empire from within.
But that’d been a naive, childish delusion. Even the Exaltare wasn’t so powerful that she could single-handedly bring ruin to their entire society. After all, they managed to survive a calamity like Lilith. Lycoris would have to go back to the drawing board for a plan to defeat the vampires, whatever it’d even end up being…
Lycoris had even accepted that even if she somehow could reclaim her human form, she’d pass on it, telling herself it wouldn’t solve anything. In reality, she just couldn’t imagine breaking off her relationship with her mom.
All of this left her feeling adrift and aimless, isolated. It was quite reminiscent of when she had been relieved of her knightly duties.
And yet, in spite of her problems and current sour mood, Lycoris was finally happy. Or at least, content. Any time she closed her eyes, she could envision the warmth that came from being together with her mother instead of feeling terrified, afraid, alone, or powerless. That was something she couldn’t have possibly envisioned before.
All that said, she really wished she could find out if Princess Fawaris and the Order of the Goddess’ Rays were faring well, or find some way to de-bramble Mizar.
She wanted to find Elham’s remains and give him a proper burial.
She wanted to find and thank the strange hooded ferryman that helped them cross the bay to the island where they sought refuge from the Plainstriders chasing them… Though they had to fight off a village full of surface-dwelling Piscin after… Which led to an underground tunnel into Geolle territory, and ultimately brought them to the underside of the Vampire Empire.
She wanted to see the strangely friendly and humane Sylvan adventurers that’d first introduced them to Tatyana and warn them about what sort of person she really was.
Speaking of, she dearly wanted to drain the blood from that abhorrent woman’s body, drop by drop, watching her writhe as the life gradually flowed out of her and horror dawned on her that she was finally receiving the comeuppance she—
“Princess Lycoris? Hellooo~?”
“Ah? Uh, hm? What is it, Athena?”
Lycoris blinked back to attention, realizing that her heart had started pounding on the walls of her chest.
Along with her mounting dissatisfaction with animal blood, she’d found herself struggling more and more with the impulse to tear that harlot limb from limb any time she thought of her. Not that she could do anything about it. Lycoris hadn’t heard anything at all about Tatyana since her betrayal. Maybe she was already dead.
The two matters felt worryingly related. Or perhaps it was a mistaken correlation, or they stemmed from a similar source of frustration…
“Do vampires go crazy if they don’t drink human blood…?” She accidentally muttered aloud.
Athena chuckled quietly, giving her a pitying look. “If you hate the taste so much, you don’t have to keep forcing yourself. Her Majesty would be quite displeased to hear that you’re suffering mentally because of this whole human-obsession…”
“No! No, that’s… not an option. It’s just… I thought I’d start getting used to it by now, but if anything it feels like it’s gotten worse lately.”
“Mmm…” Athena put a finger to her lips thoughtfully, casting her gaze toward the elevator ceiling. “Well, Your Highness is drinking unsweetened animal blood, so it’s no surprise the taste is starting to grate. Most commoners go their whole lives without a truly quality meal though.”
“So my mental fortitude is simply lacking then…”
Lycoris sighed, fiddling with the buttons on her vest as she began mentally chastising herself. It shouldn’t be hard if it’s the standard! Was it because she was part of the Exaltare’s lineage? Or was it because she’d already had a sinful taste of what awaited her if she gave in?
“Well, like I said… it’s unsweetened. That’s basically one step away from raw blood…”
“Isn’t all blood raw?”
When she looked up at the maid, posing her innocent question, the blue-haired woman looked as though she’d been slapped in the face by a wet sponge. Or several.
With a wry chuckle, Athena scrunched her eyebrows together.
“That’s quite an adorab— errr… Unique question, Princess. All blood is processed and treated accordingly, to prevent pathogens from spreading and to improve the flavor and quality. Even human blood, to some extent. After that, it’s either mixed with additives or left to ripen, depending.”
“Wait, so vampires never just… bite down on someone’s neck and go to town?”
“Great Ancestors! Just what in the world have you been reading!? And how!? That’s not— no, Lycoris. We’re not barbarians, that’s incredibly unsanitary! Plus, you could end up with a ghoul on your hands if you aren’t careful!”
A “supposed lesser creature” as her mother had put it when Lycoris once asked. Lilianna explained that the resulting ghoul was only a vampire in the most technical sense—never considered one socially—and at best equated to a common thin-blooded civilian.
Something about that explanation didn’t sit particularly well with the Princess, however. Why had Lycoris been so different, ending up a “proper” zeroth-generation Aphtangloa like her mother?
“D… Don’t worry about it. I didn’t realize it was such a taboo topic.”
“Ahaha, Your Highness is truly a mysterious and wonderfully innocent girl. So wise and composed, yet so very…”
When Athena choked back the next word, Lycoris glared up at her.
“So very what?”
“Er… N-Naive. Please forgive my indescredulous thoughts, Princess! You may sever my arm and use it as a back scratcher to teach me a lesson!”
The elevator came to a stop with a light thump, and the doors opened with the usual cutesy jingle.
“We’ve been over this Athena, no death or mutilation. I want my maidservant to stay intact.”
Lycoris pouted as she marched out of the elevator, the pair of guards standing before the gilded doors to the Elysian Sanctum offering her a crisp salute. It was the same pair that’d been there when she left just before noon—Charles and Percival.
“Welcome back, Your Highness!”
“Did you enjoy your walk?”
“It did me some good to stretch my legs, but sadly that is all I can say for it. Has Mother returned yet, Sir Charles?”
The guard to the left seemed startled to be called by name, fumbling over himself as he cleared his throat. All guards in the palace had the same attire on, but their difference in height and subtle nuances in how they stood—posture, arm position, and how they gripped their ceremonial glaives—was still enough to distinguish between individuals.
Especially given her remarkably eidetic memory.
“N-No, Princess Lycoris. I’m afraid she hasn’t returned yet. Shall I send someone to check her schedule?” He cast a glance toward Athena, standing at attention behind the little princess.
“No need, I was merely curious.” Lycoris held up her hand. “Thank you for your service.”
“But of course!”
Even though she wished they’d be slightly more willing to open up to her, it was hard to deny the satisfaction that came with everyone obeying her so unquestioningly. It was a far cry from having to shout at the rookies to stay focused during formation drills.
Though, they seemed no less nervous. Had that been why her and Mizar’s “siege” gone so effortlessly?
As she stepped through the opened doors, she sensed Athena hanging back, rather than following right in her shadow as normal. Turning around, she saw the maid waving with a raised hand.
“Apologies, Your Highness, but there’s something I need to take care of real quick. I’ll be back to serve your meal within ten minutes, I promise! Else you may boil me alive!”
“R… Right. Very well, I can wait.”
Lycoris decided to spare her the indignity of a scolding in front of the two guards, and returned to her room alone.
Once inside, she pulled the locket from under her blouse and tightly grasped it as she walked past the wine case, stopping right in front of the curtains. Her arms and legs were already trembling, but if there was one thing that Lycoris had always hated more than anything else, even before—especially before—it was feeling like she was the weak link.
She tugged the curtains back with her eyes squinted shut, and opened them to look out at the peaks of the other buildings far below. The sense of vertigo returned as she fought to keep her vision from spinning. The moment she thought of being on the other side of the window, falling through the sky, her legs began quivering and her heart rate accelerated as she tumbled backwards.
She couldn’t even bring herself to stand back up and go pull the curtains shut, turning around and crawling toward her bed instead.
“I… know Mama said… ‘safe exposure is the best way to overcome fears,’ but…”
After pulling herself up onto the bed, she began mumbling privately to the locket, as she did whenever she was “alone” with him.
“I know you’d believe in me regardless, you’d probably say something like ‘My amazing Lycoris can do it! She can do anything, just look at how skilled I ended up at swordsmanship’ or whatever… Even though that had all been your own natural talent and practice.”
She sighed and flopped backwards on the bed, dangling her legs as she held Mizar above her, slowly stroking the side of the locket as her trembling arms caused the bramble inside to rattle about.
“…I know. I won’t give up that easily. You don’t need to worry about me, so just focus on getting better. Hehehe… haahh, what am I even doing?”
Feeling a little better—and slightly embarrassed—after speaking to her cherished companion, Lycoris hopped back up to her feet and glanced towards the window. With Mizar at her side, she knew she’d be able to overcome anything.
They’d come this far together, after all.
＊ ＊ ＊
Lycoris slumped forward over the study desk that had been brought to her room a few months back, cheek pressed against the cold lacquered black wood as the room slowly rotated about.
Athena tenderly rubbed her back, her other hand pressed against her cheek in concern. She had walked in to find Lycoris splayed out on the floor, in a decidedly undignified and mortifying position.
Naturally, Athena had rushed over and gently shaken her back to her senses, and guided—really more like carried—her over to the desk and sat her down.
“I’ll be alright… I just… need a moment.”
“Are you sure, Your Highness? You were unconscious right beside the drink cabinet. Were you—”
“No, it’s not because I was thirsty. I was… training.”
“Training, Your Highness?”
Lycoris turned her head to look up at Athena from her resting pose. “… … …To overcome my fear of heights.”
“Ahhh… I see.”
Athena gave her an understanding smile, before rather pointedly getting up to close the window’s curtains.
After returning, she gestured to the pair of boxes resting on the table beside Lycoris. One was small and rectangular, the other larger and more square-shaped; both were bundled up in deep blue paper, and wrapped with reflective gold tape.
“Her Majesty ordered I pick these up from the palace kitchen and her office. I was going to apologize for being so late, but…”
“I managed to keep myself busy, it’s fine.”
“That’s certainly one way to put it.”
Lycoris slowly lifted her head off the table, examining the pair of gifts.
“These must be what Mom was talking about last night… But there’s two.” Lycoris frowned. “Is one of them supposed to be for tomorrow?”
“Mmm, I think they’re both meant to be opened today. Otherwise Her Majesty wouldn’t have ordered me to bring them both! Why not start with the smaller one?”
Athena held up the smaller box, offering it to Lycoris like a ceremonial treasure almost. She also threw in a little wink, which only made Lycoris more suspect.
“Why? …Also, would it not be best to wait for Mom to return? It doesn’t feel right to open these without her.”
“Wellll… Mm. One of them is sort of time sensitive… but you’re not wrong… Are you certain you’re willing to wait, Your Highness?”
“Of course.”
“You aren’t champing at the bit to see what they are?”
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
“Not really…”
It wasn’t like she’d ever received presents before now. Even just looking at the nicely wrapped up gifts and knowing they were hers brought the girl a simple sort of satisfaction.
Plus, she’d been under the impression that the gifts were as much for the giver to enjoy giving as they were for the recipient to delight over receiving.
Athena picked up the larger box as Lycoris smiled at them.
“In that case, I’ll put this one on ice to keep it fresh. Then I’ll pour you your meal.”
“Oh, right.”
Lycoris pursed her lips bitterly.
＊ ＊ ＊
Gathered around the long conference table were an eclectic group of vampires.
At the head, with an irritated frown on her face, was naturally the Exaltare.
To her immediate left was her executioner, Lesath, who had an impassive expression as always.
On her other side was the stenographer, though his job was looked down upon by most of the members gathered around, seen as “pointless busy work for the frail of blood.” Regardless of the dissenting opinions, Her Majesty always ensured his presence at these sorts meetings to maintain a smooth flow of information to the necessary parties.
Various other important staffers and courtiers were in attendance, though their presence was either superficial or to gather intel for more important members of the Seven. The most critical attendees were the three men standing in front of the whiteboard, clad in their mythril kevlar and plate mail of thrice-tempered ceramic elbinaut.
These three individuals had been chosen as the leaders of the Geolle Investigation Taskforce. And their teamwork thus far had been… lacking, to put it mildly.
The seventh son of Duke Sefer, the young Carlisto “Firebrand” Sefer, slammed his gloved hand on the table, his messy bright orange curls falling over his brow as he leaned forward.
“The facts simply don’t line up! The ‘reports’ that the squad brought back claim that Mayor Bleek had been in charge of smuggling ores across the bay into Human territory, but that’s impossible! None of the geolle we apprehended—all of whom readily admitted they worked as his close aides—confessed any knowledge of what was happening! Such a large-scale operation would be impossible for a single man… or, rock, whatever, to accomplish in secret!”
“Need we remind you,” a stuffy, drawling voice spoke up from the table, “that the Geolle are uniquely resilient against mental manipulation and interrogation.”
The second soldier overseeing the operation, Douglas Mano, gently pushed Carlisto back and stepped forward.
“We accounted for this, yes. Even now we have individuals investigating the underground city, but almost too conveniently, every single illicit shipment had already been evacuated before we arrived. As though whoever was framing the mayor had already long gotten what they were there for. To say nothing of eye-witness accounts from unsuspecting residents claiming that there was no odd behavior on Bleek’s behalf.”
“If anything, he’s an outspoken critic of the civil unrest plaguing their people,” Carlisto added.
“All of that should be in the documents we sent to your terminals already.”
Douglas forced himself to remain composed as some of those around the table touched the tablets in front of them for the first time. Everything they said thus far was clearly outlined in the report they had mailed to the meeting staff. Carlisto should have brought that up first and foremost, rather than waste everyone’s time repeating it out loud.
He wondered why the Exaltare had purposefully stuck the three soldiers together, when they had little in the way of cohesion; similarly, the staff in attendance all seemed so… indifferent, her worst of all—not that he’d ever say so out loud. Even thinking such a thing was dangerous enough before the mind-reader.
…Perhaps that rumored power of hers was the very reason why she had yet to even glance at the tablet before her.
“If any insurrectionists are still out there plotting against Your Majesty, it's clear they caught wind of our coming and absconded before we could make our move. I posit that, rude as it may sound, there is a mole among your courtiers, Exaltare.”
The third soldier spoke from behind, with his arms crossed and shoulder-length seafoam-green hair all but flowing in an imaginary breeze. He may have been Cedric’s second cousin, but Malteus Idra was hardly second place when it came to filling Douglas with the urge to do whatever it took to avoid being in his company at any given moment.
The Exaltare offered no response, save for tilting her head to the side.
On command, Lesath opened a manila envelope and withdrew a set of documents, which she laid beside the untouched tablet before Lilliana.
“What are those?” asked Douglas.
A slight smile curled at the edge of Malteus’ lips. “Forgive me, Your Majesty. It seems as though you are a step ahead of us.”
Without even looking down, the irate ruler brushed aside the top five pages, drumming her fingers on the sixth buried in the middle.
The way her eyes never left the three men across the table was… unsettling, to put it mildly.
“It seems as though we have been taken for a fool.”
The slight hint of delight on the Idra soldier’s face vanished as her words washed over him like a bucket of ice water.
She slid the paper forward onto the table for the entire gathering to read, and moments later gasps spread throughout the room.
It was a list of luxury gems, alchemical reagents, pelts from underground beasts, and other miscellaneous goods being traded to Malteus Idra’s personal estate in exchange for his silence.
The man’s face paled, shock and confusion spreading across it as he began stammering.
“What is the meaning of this!?”
“I knew you were a snake, Malteus!”
“Wait! W-Wait, wait wait… I…”
The other two immediately turned to glare at him, stopping just short of drawing blades.
He scrambled, looking past the two of them, at the figure sitting silently beside the Exaltare. Everyone attending knew that none could stop Her Majesty’s left hand, if ordered to bring death.
“I was the one who submitted these as evidence! Why would I implicate myself!?”
“Indeed, we wonder the same.” A cruel smile curled on the Exaltare’s lips. “Baladrian.”
As she spoke his name, one of the men around the table stood up and adjusted his glasses, slicking his bright red hair back as he lifted his tablet.
“Her Majesty requested an audit of Count Idra’s holdings, and over the course of the investigation it was found that all the items listed here were in fact sent through secondary buyers and back-channels to his estate. A formal search of the premises has yet to be carried out, pending the Exaltare and High Court’s approval.”
Murmurs spread across the table as Malteus clenched his fist, blood trickling down his lip as his fangs bit down in suppressed fury.
“Damn it, where the hell did— Listen, I…” He forced out a calming breath, speaking deliberately, “I have no idea where any of that could have come from. I have no doubt that Your Majesty is aware I had no opportunity to broker such an exchange. I…”
He looked at Carlisto, letting his shoulders slump.
“Originally, that paper had Carlisto’s name on it. I assumed that he was responsible for both this unrest and the recent turmoil in Her Majesty’s abode.”
“You snake!”
As befit his epithet, the fiery-haired man was on him in a second, gripping Malteus’s uniform by the collar as he hefted him up.
“Give me one reason why I shouldn’t cut your head from your shoulders this instant!”
“…It’s as you said, something isn’t adding up.”
Having revealed his hand, Malteus looked relieved in spite of his position.
“The Idra were seeking to capitalize on this, further pressuring Sefer after the recent blunder in our abode, hm?” Lilianna unhappily drawled. “That is quite the accusation to implicate thine own family of, young Malteus.”
“I wouldn’t go that far, Your Majesty,” Douglas interjected, standing in front of the other two as Malteus continued to dangle on tip-toe. “True, he may have seen that and blithely thought it to be an opportune moment—but more likely he saw it as a damning smoking gun. If it was planted by the Idra, why change it at the last hour to throw their own under the bus?”
Both of the other two looked surprised that Douglas was speaking on Malteus’ behalf.
Strangely, Lilianna nodded. For the first time since the conference convened, a smile played across her lips.
“Thou can cease with thine act. We presume thou already knew of this paper.”
Douglas nodded. “I snuck a look at it before Malteus handed it over. It’s as he said.”
“When thy team investigated the scene, did the land reveal any secrets through your Recollective Calculus?”
Douglas shivered, wondering just how far ahead Her Majesty had seen in the instant the puzzle pieces had gathered in her mind.
“No. The magic was muddled, the images completely smeared. I’ve never seen anything like it. It was as though someone taken the ambient mana and moulded it like clay. Or, wiped it clean, might be more accurate…”
Troubled whispers spread across the conference table, but Lilianna seemed nonplussed—save for the return of her foul grimace.
“Sloppy work, to simply wipe the scene clean rather than create a new one. That implies our little Wizard was in a hurry, or an utter amateur,” she mused.
“Our… Wizard, Your Majesty?”
Carlisto had dropped Malteus, both of them joining Douglas as the entire table’s eyes fell upon their sovereign.
Lilianna inclined her head slowly. “Indeed. Now that we have properly unveiled our precious flower to the world, it is perhaps safe to reveal another piece of information. The first assault on our palace seven months prior was carried out by a Hero.”
“WHAT!?”
Everyone present tensed up, a frigid heat filling the air as anxiety and anger swelled.
Understandable, given that every time in history a heroic figure appeared, humanity always rallied around them and threatened to push back their borders.
“They were… dealt with. We can assure you of this.”
Sighs of relief spread about. Just as there were heroes who shook the world, there were plenty that amounted to nothing. It didn’t make them any less of a threat, however, given this one had managed to make it undetected all the way to the Exaltare’s very seat of power.
Malteus clasped a hand to his face. “Ancestors, you nearly gave me a heart attack. …Er, apologies, Your Majesty.”
“Hmm. We think you are all far too lax after hearing that. Perhaps an extracurricular history lesson is in order.”
“Your meaning, Exaltare?” Carlisto tilted his head.
“A Hero is like a weed. It spreads its seeds on the cold wind everywhere it travels, quickly digging its roots into the soil and sucking up the local nutrients. And it never moves alone, always gathering up a party of like-minded or desperate souls. What we dealt with was the Hero, but the rest remain at large. This…”
She tapped her finger on the piece of paper.
“And the visual errors with Recollective Calculus point to two things. First, there are multiple agents still in play. Most likely…” She closed her eyes, as though recalling an old memory. “A Rook—or some other roguish archetype—and a Wizard, as we already mentioned. They know our methods for investigating crime scenes, have information on the state of our family squabbles, seek to sow further seeds of discord, and are attempting to ‘uplift’ the Geolle to destabilize our empire.”
She scoffed, putting heavy emphasis as she air quoted uplift.
The topic seemed to have brought out something in her, as the Exaltare seemed simultaneously annoyed, furious, and almost nostalgic.
“Then… You mean to say we nearly fell for their scheme?” Carlisto quavered in fury.
“Damned humans! They think they know how to pull our strings better than us? The Idra!? I’ll tear their limbs away and watch them crawl in the dirt like the worms they are!”
“Now that you understand whomst our foe is, perhaps the three of you shall cease pointing blades inward, hm?”
Lilianna’s icy words immediately calmed their boiling hatred.
Apart from the stenographer typing away, silence fell upon the conference room.
“…Apologies, Count Idra.”
“I as well. I should have gone to you first with those papers.”
“You can make amends on your own time,” the Exaltare hissed. She turned her attention to the entire table, “It should go without saying that unity is paramount. We trust the three chosen by this committee to truly work together now, and expect that all present shall set aside personal grievances. As an added precaution, we shall seize the holdings of all members present in the interim, to investigate their origins and ideally catch this Rook by their tail. Naturally, they shall be returned at a suitable time.”
“Y-Yes… Your Majesty!”
Malteus' face soured, but he reluctantly agreed alongside the rest of the table. Nobody in their right mind would dissent, given the situation facing them.
Carlisto didn’t seem any more pleased, but nodded with a tired sigh.
“Then until any new information comes in, we shall retire to our chambers. To think such dross would waste High Moonsend—our daughter’s birthday—on this.”
As the Exaltare aired her grievances to a captive audience, she stood up and began walking toward the exit…
Until one of the staffer’s phones began ringing.
And then another.
And then Douglas’ joined the chorus. As he fished it out of his armor, he saw it was from his lieutenant back in the underground city of Den-Ghel.
“Douglas speaking. This better be urg—”
‘Commander! Thank the Ancestors the call went through. It’s an emergency! There was a massive earthquake, part of the city’s been buried in rubble.’
“Were we attacked!?”
‘We’re uncertain, but a large amount of our task force was caught up in it, alongside several civilians.’
“Investigate the cause at once! Find out if it was the work of an individual or a group!”
‘Sir…’ the voice on the other end of the line hesitated. ‘That may prove difficult…’
“Explain.”
‘The Geolle are claiming that it was our presence that upset their Mother Terra, that we’re the reason their tremor safeguards failed.’
“Then get them under control! We can’t risk a riot when there’s a…”
He froze, looking around the room and eventually settling his gaze on the furious, unpleasant scowl of the Exaltare.
‘Sir?’
“The ones responsible are still at large. Check for signs of magic, don’t let anyone destroy the evidence! If you find any non-geolle you don’t recognize, apprehend them at once!”
‘Sir!’
He hung up the call and nodded at the other two, both of whom looked eager to rush out of the room.
Douglas never could have predicted that he’d be avid to work alongside a member of the Idra. Especially someone as smarmy as Malteus. And yet here they were.
“Your Majesty, leave this matter to the three of us.”