The Undead King of the Palace of Darkness

“The Death Knights are capable of sensing the negative energy emitted by the undead. The range can be increased if we focus, but it’s usually not very wide nor is the accuracy very high. That’s why… if we keep a low profile and don’t stay put in one place, there is a good chance we won’t get caught.”

Another day came to an end. As usual, I unearthed myself from the ground, greeted Senri, who was waiting for me, and exchanged information as we prepared to leave.

The knowledge I gleaned from Senri was priceless. The books in the Lord’s library were written by humans and had no information regarding the abilities of Death Knights.

I suppose it is not common knowledge. The Lord might have been privy to it, but he did not bother to share with me.

You need to know your enemy in order to protect yourself. And I was dangerously ignorant.

Maybe we should have conversed this way from the very beginning.

Now with the blood lust having calmed down after receiving a bit of Senri’s blood, I realized just how close I came to being consumed by madness .

Had I been sane, I would never have told Senri that I was going to rob Roux’s grave, and I would have known that it was not a distance I could cover on foot and make it back before the sun rose.

Unbeknownst to myself, I had gradually lost my mind. Senri’s kindness saved me, but I was in a really precarious situation.

“So… how wide is the range exactly?”

Senri gave the question some thought before shaking her head.

“… I’m not sure. If one focuses, they should be able to cover a medium sized town, probably. It’s mandatory for the Death Knights to check a town for the presence of undead before entering and after leaving it and three times a day, during the morning, afternoon and night.

“What about your Master?”

“… Master… is special. He could detect the presence of undead from Engey to where we are now if he put his mind to it.”

It was almost incredible. We are quite far from the town of Engey. We have been walking through the night for at least twenty days now.

Although we may have not made a lot of progress since we were not in the best of conditions, the distance between us and Engey is not as simple as the size of one of two towns.

As I was left dumbfounded at his ridiculous strength, Senri spoke softly .

“Rest easy. Normally, no one does that. The wider the range the more the power of blessing consumed. And as the range increases, so are your chances of detecting other undead you aren’t looking for and become unable to discern the one you want.”

“ Other undead… are there a lot of those?”

“… Yeah. There are those artificially created by necromancers and ones that are created by nature.”

She sounded the same but somehow, it felt more free than usual.

Senri is on my side. She is trying to understand me. At the very least, there is no doubt that we have gotten a little closer.

A Vampire and a Death Knight. Although there is no changing the fact that we are still on opposing sides, she does not look like someone who could pull off an act convincingly.

She teaches me ways to live a secure life. I do not think I need to worry about her suddenly attacking me. That is, as long as I do not become the enemy of mankind.

“Then, I guess we better head for a town.”

“… We need to get some essentials. I didn’t bring anything with me since I hurried to your side … although these clothes don’t get filthy easily, I still need a change of clothes.”

Senri has been in the same set of clothes the whole time we have been together. She seems to be taking baths when I am not with her, so her clothes look fairly clean. However, we are too poorly equipped for a long life on the run.

My belongings are what I scavenged from the ruins of the Lord’s castle, so it is nowhere near enough. My cloak was already in tatters. Although my body can regenerate, I cannot say the same for my clothes.

I need a watch as well. Later, if possible, I want to take in the sights of the town. Well, I suppose that would be too greedy.

“The Death Knights are few in number. We are always understaffed and we move in groups. Not to mention, we have our fair share of enemies. You’d be hard pressed to find us… in small towns.”

“What about vampire hunters?”

The Death Knights cannot be the only enemies of the undead.

Senri’s face clouded over. After I stared at her fixedly, she answered hesitantly.

“They… can be found anywhere. But… they basically don’t make a move unless they receive a commission. Since stray vampires won’t really bring them any money.”

“I see…”

I suppose vampires are no more than game to them. Rather formidable game that does not yield any meat upon death as vampires turn to dust.

To be more precise, the relationship between a vampire and vampire hunter is one that of a bounty and bounty hunter.

Putting aside whether or not I would want to befriend them, I find them a whole lot easier to understand than Senri, who is driven by compassion.

I could see the pity on Senri’s face. I wonder if that was because she worried that I might be taken aback by the revelation.

It was needless worrying on her part. I am well aware that I am no longer human.

I am not going to be shocked all over again upon hearing how I am perceived.

“That’s… a relief.”

“… Yeah.”

I had resigned myself to never getting an ally. Senri becoming my ally has been a godsend.

I could feel the power surging within me. The bite marks on my arm were no more. The heat that had smoldered in the recesses of my mind had disappeared without a trace and so had the Lord, who had loomed over me like the Grim Reaper. It almost felt like I had been reborn.

We are going to leave the woods behind and venture past the meadows. Before that, I have something I need to propose to Senri. I turned towards Senri, who was gathering her things and draping mud over the remains of the bonfire.

It is alright. I must… believe in her. That is the best possible course of action for me.

I took a deep breath and looked into her purple eyes.

“Senri… there may be people after us… so I think it’s better to move as fast as possible. Could you suppress your power of blessing and get on my back?”

☠☠ ☠

I could accelerate to unbelievable speeds with a just single thrust. The wind pushed against my whole body but I still levitated a few dozen meters above ground.

There is no doubt that I am faster than a horse drawn carriage now.

There were no obstacles in my path, in the meadows that stretched as far as the eye could see. I noticed a pack of strange black beasts and glowing eyes, but I simply moved past them.

A pair of supple arms were wrapped around my neck and held on to me tightly.

I could feel Senri’s heartbeat, as she was practically stuck to me. That brought me back to earth a little.

Her soft body pressed against my back and her warm breath tickled my ear.

The sweet fragrance of her blood. It made my body tremble with desire.

She is something like a living, breathing fruit to a vampire. If any vampire were to see me now, it would be so envious that it would not be able to control its blood lust.

Senri suppressed her power of blessing so as to not cause me harm and clung on to me as she continued to speak.

“Vampires have far surpassed humans in their physical abilities and endurance. They don’t feel much fatigue either. Vampires… are said to be the first stage of the ultimate kind of undead a necromancer envisions.”

“Will I… eventually become one too?”

“You would… have to kill thousands of people.”

“Well, never mind then.”

I am not interested in power… which is not true. However, if that would lead to making more enemies, then I would rather not bother.

Even as a vampire, I have far better physical abilities than humans and a near immortal body. I do not desire for more.

If I could be allowed to live a life safely in hiding, I would not mind continuing to live as a lesser vampire than transform into a vampire that is more powerful but has just as many weaknesses as strengths.

I could even go out in the sun for a short time.

“The Death Knights… have been conducting research on vampires for a very long time. A vampire that is unable to quench its thirst, will end up drinking its own blood, eventually lose its mind, rip out its own heart… and die.”

“…”

“But normally… vampires can’t control their blood lust till it gets to that point. They would choose to drink human blood rather than drink their own any day. All the more true… if there were a human nearby. That… is the curse. End, you’re probably the only vampire to have resisted the urge for that long.”

How dreadful. But it does not matter anymore. The situation will not repeat itself. Even if I attempt something like that, Senri would give up her blood before I lose my mind. Not to mention, I would be unable to resist from giving into her allure in a state of near insanity.

The surrounding scenery shifted at a dizzying pace. I made sure to not let any impact reach Senri as I moved my arms and legs.

Suddenly, I heard Senri mutter something unsettling.

“… Maybe… Master… would try to help you too, if he knew about this.”

That is impossible. Impossible, Senri. I reined in my emotions and gulped down the words that wished to escape my mouth.

Epée, Epée the Destroyer, is a Death Knight through and through.

Unlike Senri, he is not naive and has lived through countless tragedies and created many legends till date.

Senri should know him better than me.

He is one hundred percent on the side of humans. And the fact that I have a human mind, would in no way loosen his grip on the sword.

Also… there is something only Epée is aware of.

That I am not as harmless to humans as Senri believes me to be.

I, who possess a human mind, memories, emotions, capable of suppressing my urges when necessary and let reason govern my actions could possibly be more dangerous than an average undead.

If Epée were to learn that Senri’s mind cannot be changed, then he might try to kill me even at the cost of making an enemy out of her. And his conduct would only be proper as a Death Knight.

I cannot just stand around and watch Senri lean back towards Epée’s sentiments.

However, wise as she is, I am sure she is aware that Epée would never go easy on me.

I changed the topic of conversation.

“Come to think of it, it was written in Horus’ notes that it feels good when a vampire feeds on someone. Is that true…?”

“…”

“Well, I’d be glad if it at least doesn’t hurt. How did it feel when I drank from your fingers? Did that also feel good?”

Senri stayed silent for a minute and seeing me patiently await an answer, she spoke in a trembling voice with what looked like resignation.

“… Just… a little.”

☠☠ ☠

Finally, I spotted a path. It was not exactly a proper path but rather one made by carriages passing through. I reckon we would reach a village or town if we follow it. I made sure to keep track of the direction, so there should be no worry of us ending up back in Engey.

Senri, who was getting accustomed to being carried on my back, cried out.

“End, look…”

“… A light.”

Far off in the distance, a little further from the beaten path, a light could be seen. A bonfire. Straining my eyes, I could make out several carriages in the vicinity of the fire.

I wonder if they are merchants. As I thought, we should not be too far away from a town.

Naturally, as a pair of suspicious people who can leap through the night air, we cannot join the merchant group and we also needed to find a watering hole before the day broke out. But something troubled me.

About a mile away from the merchants were a pack of black beasts that resembled panthers. It was clear that they were looking in the direction of the carriages.

There were several people guarding the carriages. Even if the pack were to attack, they should be able to fight them off. Any beast that needs a pack to survive, should not be that strong.

However—

“Do you mind a detour?”

“… Go ahead.”

Senri’s arms tightened around me.

It may be a little too obvious, but I need to score more points with her.

Even if it ends up being a miscalculation on my part, I stand to lose nothing by adding on to reasons for why I should be allowed to live. There is also the chance that their pelts could go for a good sum.

I smiled and turned towards the direction of the pack.