漫画大王

Chapter 15

“The Hound of Irine is a lycanthrope.”

“...If my remaining common sense is correct, they’re creatures that have the habit of periodically turning into monsters, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

To be honest, even Eleris, a high-ranking vampire, didn’t seem like an ideal spy. Although she could endure sunlight, it was clearly still a struggle for her.

But still, at least Eleris could endure the sunlight. How could a lycanthrope, which went berserk when the full moon rose, work as a spy in the middle of Gradium? How hadn’t he been caught until now?

Wasn’t Sarkegar the only guy who was actually fit to be a spy?

“...Isn’t that too disadvantageous for a spy, then?”

“Yes... but the Hound volunteered... Becoming a spy is considered a dangerous mission, hence there were very few people who wanted to do it. They had no choice but to accept...”

Was he the type of person who had a bad temper but was stupidly loyal?

This mission was about infiltrating the enemy’s heartland, so it was natural that no demon had wanted to participate in such a dangerous mission. Nonetheless, a lycanthrope had volunteered.

“I’ve heard that when the full moon rises, the Hound hides in the sewers near the Bronze Gate Bridge.”

‘The Bronze Gate Bridge. Hmm.’

Like I said, this place was basically just like Seoul.

If my memory served me correctly, the Bronze Gate Bridge was equivalent to the Banpo Bridge.

Essentially, what that meant was that as the transformation drew near, the Hound of Irine hid inside the sewers under the Banpo Bridge.

“The Hound lived in the area around the Bronze Gate Bridge, and because of that, their clothes grew dirty as well. As a result, some people thought that the Hound was homeless, and was just a beggar living underneath the bridge. That was how the Hound unintentionally got money from some passerbys.”

“So the Hound didn’t start out as a beggar?”

“No. But it turned out it paid well, so the Hound just decided to be a beggar there permanently.”

“Oh...”

‘Wow, doesn\'t he have any pride? Also, I don’t know if it’s because this is the imperial capital, but the people here seem awfully kind, to be giving money to such beggars so easily.’

I didn’t know if he was living life on easy mode or hard mode; what a strange guy.

Eleris hesitated, then continued.

“As a result, fights sometimes broke out between beggars for the right to begging spots, and since the Hound of Irine was a natural lycanthrope and quite adept at fighting, no one was a match for them in a brawl. Since the beggars didn’t have many places to go, they would interact with each other frequently, and eventually developed close relationships, fighting with each other one day but sharing a drink the day after. And before they knew it, they formed a group... it seems.”

‘Heh.’

It was literally just like beggars near Banpo Bridge. Getting into fights, and then if the guy you fought with yesterday brings a bottle of soju the next day, you’re like, “Alright, alright, I was too harsh yesterday, wasn’t I? Ah well, I guess I was.” And as they shared one or two bottles, they ended up becoming close friends.

And now, it had grown so much that it became unmanageable, eventually morphing into a gang of beggars.

“... Although I don’t know who he is, he sure seems skilled at socializing.”

“Yes... And we also receive a lot of help from the Hound...”

It seemed like Eleris’s business made no profits at all, and Sarkegar probably needed a lot of money to fund his spying activities among the nobles. Both of them certainly needed a lot of financial support, and this Hound of Irine guy was their helper.

“The Hound of Irine... It surely is a fitting name.”

Especially since he could transform as well.

“The Hound personally wants to be called the Wolf of Irine, but no one really does that.”

That was a bit sad.

In any case, it was good for me. All I had to do was avoid implying that I’d given up on reviving the Demon Realm to Sarkegar, and the Hound of Irine seemed to have a sense of loyalty despite his oddness, and was a team player who was willing to help the other two.

Eleris, too, didn’t seem to have any malicious intent toward me for now.

“Please get some rest, Your Highness. I will arrange a meeting with them in the near future.”

“Oh... Aren’t you going to sleep too?”

This bed was probably Eleris’s.

She said that she would, and then decided to lie down next to me. A vampire who slept at night... It was kind of amusing to think about.

“Is it okay with you, Your Highness? If you’re uncomfortable, I can sleep on the floor.”

“Uh... um, sure. Yeah, I’m fine.”

It was fine, but not fine at all. Too fine to the point where it shouldn’t be fine, maybe?

No other cheat code could guarantee more happiness than this.

‘This is what I’m talking about. I don’t need any cheats, screw them!’

And then morning came.

Yawn.

I woke up to the sight of a vampire who used the morning sun coming in through the window as an alarm clock.

***

In the midst of the chaos, I woke up abruptly and looked at Eleris, her hair all messed up.

“... You don’t have blackout curtains or anything?”

“I... I get a lot of sleep... so if I don’t do this, I can’t wake up...” she said in a raspy voice as she moved out of the sun’s range.

I knew Eleris was a unique vampire, but using sunlight as an alarm clock was unimaginable. Wouldn’t it kill her if she couldn’t wake up?

A vampire who lived in a place with plenty of sunlight and good ventilation. I understood that she was a high-tier vampire and was able to survive sunlight, but it was still pretty outrageous.

“Why don’t you just live in a spare room at Count Pontius’s mansion?”

“It isn’t efficient for spies to operate in the same area. If one gets caught, the others will all be caught as well.”

Eleris sighed and proceeded to change her clothes.

‘... Please don’t do this to me. I’m a seventeen-year-old that’s full of energy!’

“Haven’t you ever felt that it was unfair to live like this while another lives as a noble?” I asked.

“Well, I dislike places with too many eyes. I personally think Sarkegar’s life is harder than mine.”

Ah, I see what she meant. After all, Sarkegar was probably always stressed out and never got a moment of peace. On the other hand, Eleris’s only enemy in this place was the sun.

“Nevertheless, I feel uncomfortable that you’re going to have to continue to live in a place like this. I feel bad about it. I think it would be better if you stayed in Sarkegar’s mansion, Your Highness. This place lacks most of the necessities for life.”

As a man with a fully-grown beard on the inside, I didn’t want to say it, but I had to...

“Well, actually, I want to stay here...”

“...?”

Who would have thought that a day would come when I would throw a childish tantrum once again?

I could tell, even without meeting him, that he was definitely a pain to deal with. I mean, that wasn’t the only reason I wanted to stay, but...

***

Insects feed differently when they are adults compared to when they are larvae. For example, mosquito larvae are wrigglers that live in water, while the adults fly around. Therefore, not only did what they eat differ, but their ecology was also completely different. With such different means of feeding between adults and larvae, they do not have to compete for food.

Basically, I felt like I had become an insect.

It was because of Eleris, who was watching me eat breakfast with an expression that conveyed a distinct lack of appetite of her own. It seemed like she felt content just watching me eat, however.

I was feeling curious about the most irrelevant things.

“Just out of curiosity, how often do you feed on blood?”

“Hmm... If we have to be specific, about once a week is enough.”

“Does it have to be human blood?”

“It doesn’t necessarily have to be that way, but we prefer blood infused with mana. We can use pigs or chickens as well, but that would require quite a large quantity, because the blood of lower beings usually contains relatively less mana.”

Blood was blood, but it needed to be rich in mana. I guess she meant creatures that were close to humanoid when she mentioned life with a high mana concentration. Still, once a week was extremely efficient. They were definitely higher beings than humans. If we were to equate it to humans, it would be like hunting a deer for its blood and not needing to eat for a week. Of course, the type of blood would matter, though.

“If a vampire bites someone, doesn’t that person become a vampire as well?”

“Wild vampires often can’t control themselves, but that’s not the case for me. As I mentioned, I try not to unnecessarily expand our kind, Your Highness.”

“And... Do the people who are bitten by vampires die?”

“It’s not necessarily a good thing to leave corpses. I drink just enough to keep them barely alive. That’s why I need to feed on multiple sources. But I’m skilled in magic, and can control my feeding so that it doesn’t harm the victim’s health.”

As expected, Eleris was a peaceful, kind vampire. There actually might be such a thing as a good devil.

“So, is this done mostly at night...?”

Eleris smiled mischievously.

“It doesn’t have to be at night. I mainly target customers who come to my store. Well, it’s more like a gentle punishment for those who get on my nerves...”

Whenever an obnoxious customer came in, she used a charm spell and then fed on them.

... Come to think of it, that was actually insanely frightening.

“Mr. Swinten from the shop next door often comes over to hit on me, and that’s when I enjoy a delicious meal. I’m grateful to him. There are certain things a married man just can’t ask for, if you know what I mean.”

“Ah... I see.”

“I dislike men with no dignity.”

‘Getting used to living like a human wasn’t the problem for you, was it?’

It seemed like the nearby merchants might have unknowingly been the source of blood for Eleris. This beautiful vampire seemed to have a way of luring them in to offer their necks willingly.

She seemed kind, but was ultimately frightening.

“From listening to you, it seems you’ve lost not only your memories, but a considerable amount of knowledge as well.”

“Ah... is that so?”

“Yes. I’ve heard that people usually only lose their memories in cases like these, but in your case...”

Eleris tilted her head inquisitively. She seemed to feel a certain discomfort from the lack of basic knowledge I had about the Demon Realm in general.

“It almost feels like you’ve become an entirely different person... or something.”

Ah. I wondered if she’d caught on. But come to think of it, it was true.

Most main characters in these isekai stories preferred not to reveal the fact that they had been transported into that world from somewhere else. But why was that? Why couldn’t you just be honest about it? It wasn’t like it was intentional. Besides, in Eleris’s case, she might even have felt relief if I told her that I was actually a completely different person.

Nevertheless, it was a bit reckless to take unnecessary risks when I’d already gained some trust. So, I posed a question instead of giving an answer.

“What kind of person was I?” I asked Eleris.

I was quite skilled at making excuses and sidetracking conversations.

Whenever my editor kept pushing me to send them the manuscript, I’d reply, “Ah, that’s right, my apologies. If only that guy hadn’t asked me to have a drink with him yesterday. If it weren’t for him, I would have sent it already. Ugh, even I’m starting to get angry all of a sudden.” I often made ridiculous excuses like this back then.

Eleris responded to my question by hesitating and crossing her arms.

‘That attitude, that thoughtful attitude!’

A sudden feeling came over me.

“Th-that... Well, you were an, uh, outstanding prince. Yes, that’s right! Every demon respected... respected you! Yes...”

This world had incorporated ideas from the “virtual game system” genre, but was it somehow also mixed in with the “mangnani[1]” genre as well?!

1. Mangnani Genre - A type of isekai novel genre where it turns out that the figure the main character spawned into was a complete douchebag. ?