Epilogue: The Storyteller Doth Depart!

Juna Riebeluka was lost deep in the woods.

She could not return to the city. The police must be on the lookout for her by now.

But if, perhaps, she wandered through the forest, a miracle would occur once more.

After all, she had proven the existence of vampires today.

She thought to herself. How had things come to this?

Tears of frustration slid down her face. What was she missing? Why wouldn’t ‘he’ appear before her?”

“…”

And she reminisced. Countless times she remembered.

Once, on this island, she had been beset by a monster—a werewolf—and was about to be torn to pieces in his jaws.

But at that moment, a blue-haired werewolf had appeared, taken down the other werewolf, and rescued her.

She had been terrified. But the blue-haired werewolf had said to her,

“Sorry, Miss. This guy’s an outlander. I’ll give him a good beating later, so don’t worry. Just wanted you to know that not all werewolves are like this jacka.s.s.”

Though he had the face of a wolf, he had grinned with a hint of innocence. He smiled.

A superhuman creature—a special being—had smiled at her.

At that moment, Juna Riebeluka fell in love.

It was a special love, she knew. That powerful desire twisted her love.

“…Who are you calling ‘twisted’?”

Excuse me. …In any event, her overpowering love for the werewolf led Juna to visit the island countless times in search of him. If, perhaps, she grew influential as a reporter—if she became famous—wouldn’t he one day see her on television and come to meet her? For that hope alone Juna worked desperately, using every trick in the book to rise through the ranks. Her pursuit of the vampire legends was but a means to an end.

But no matter how long she waited, she could not meet him.

And so Juna began to think—

If she could recreate the situation from before, perhaps she could see him again.

But what were the chances of being a.s.saulted by a werewolf again?

She had been attacked by human delinquents, but she escaped by simply shooting them with the gun she was hiding. Their bodies must still be buried somewhere on the island.

Though no one found out, that was her first murder. And through that act, she came to a sudden realization.

That she just had to become the werewolf.

If she became the werewolf and attacked young women, much like herself at that time, that man would appear—she was certain.

“That’s right. I’m still certain. He just hasn’t appeared yet because something’s different from then. …But he is watching over me. He even put a boulder over well with the corpse for me!”

Juna had realized the presence of an invisible accomplice.

That man must be the accomplice, she reasoned.

It would not be long. She had no time to waste.

But Juna made a mistake. She was too rash—she killed someone on the spur of the moment. She killed the girl out of jealousy.

“That’s right. I was jealous. How could a little b.i.t.c.h from the countryside be friends with special creatures like vampires? It’s unfair! I worked hard to meet that man again, but he still hasn’t come to me!”

Ultimately, Juna Riebeluka was left to wander the woods.

“Come to think of it… who are you? Why are you talking into my thoughts?”

As she asked, I showed myself.

“We’ve never met before, have we? Heh heh. This is amazing. You’re amazing. Most people are surprised when they realize that I’m talking into their heads.”

“Are you a vampire, too?”

“Good to see you’re quick on the uptake.”

I clapped my hands together. Juna was slightly disappointed. Again. Another inhuman creature who wasn’t the man she was looking for.

“So you can read my thoughts. Are you the one who told the other crew members about me?”

In that case, this man was her enemy, Juna thought cautiously. I decided to give her a dismal piece of information.

“Let me give you a dismal piece of information. It doesn’t matter how big of a commotion you make—that blue-haired werewolf won’t come to you today.”

“Wha-“

“I looked into some things myself, and it turns out that the werewolf’s out of town right now. He’s on a business trip in Southern Germany.”

Thank goodness. He hasn’t abandoned me after all! Juna thought, delighted.

…You really are incredible. Although I have met killers who thought like you.

“Thank you! You’re on my side, aren’t you? I need your help—get me off this island—“

“You sound determined. But you don’t need to go that far. There’s a much easier way to meet that man.”

“…Really?! There is?!”

“Of course. But I need a small bit of your blood in exchange. I’d like to suck your blood—just enough to leave you standing.”

Instead of answering, Juna stuck out her slender white neck toward me.

I feel a little bad. But a promise is a promise. I’ll let you meet him.

But before that, my friend made a little deal with the mayor.

Before I give you your dream of the werewolf, I’m going to show you a few h.e.l.ls.

Don’t worry. It’ll end quickly.

I’m just going to give you four dying people’s worth of pain and suffering and terror—one for each victim.

It adds up to about ten hours.

But I’ll compress it to three seconds before I carve it into your mind.

<=>

Before dawn. The harbor.

A corner of the harbor was bathed in the warm glow of the brightening sky.

Mirald returned from his ‘refueling’. Dorrikey spoke.

“Did you leave her in front of the police station as I told you to?”

“Of course. Her blood was so good that I drank more than I intended, but she just ended up with a bit of anemia. Of course, I can’t say her mind is in a particularly stable state. But since it’s not broken, she won’t be found criminally not responsible.”

“…I’m surprised.”

“I did give her ten hours’ worth of agony in three seconds. I thought she’d lost it, but that’s when I used her memories to recreate in her head her meeting with the man of her dreams. Her mind came right back to life. …In any case, I’m going to have a word with Mr. Gerhardt and let her meet the werewolf in reality next time. In prison.”

Mirald seemed to take amus.e.m.e.nt in Juna’s thoughts. But Dorrikey did not share his enthusiasm.

“Of course… were there any problems?”

“Ah, right. You know that device she had? The one that made it look like she carved out the victim’s heart, dropped the victim into the well, and then tore out her throat?”

“…You mean the device that makes me curse all the time I wasted trying to deduce the truth of the well murder?” Dorrikey twitched. Mirald nodded.

“The one who made that device wasn’t her or Dimguil. There was someone in the shadows, egging her on. Someone other than Dimguil. And as a matter of fact, this is distantly connected to me.” Mirald said matter-of-factly. Dorrikey found himself grimacing.

“What do you mean by that.”

“Well, remember that man from the soirée? James Sutherland?”

“The one who mistook you for someone else.”

“I thought he was surprisingly well-prepared for a wannabe Hunter. So I took a deeper look into his head. And as it turns out, the voice of the human who told him about my soirée matches exactly with that of the one who gave Juna her device.”

“…”

“I smell a rat. At first I thought Doubs might be pulling a prank, but even he doesn’t take his jokes to lethal levels.”

“My word… it seems we’ll have even more to discuss at the Organization meeting.”

Dorrikey sighed. Then, he decided to focus for now on the happy fact that the case on Growerth had been resolved. He observed a moment of silence for the women who were murdered.

For some time they were quiet, but Dorrikey eventually grew bored of waiting for the ferry and turned to Mirald.

“I’m surprised you have so many memories of murders.”

“Well, I did sense them in person. …Hey. Don’t make that face. At least, don’t start calling me a lowlife in your head. You know as well as I do that until I met you and Mr. Gerhardt, humans were just objects to me. Objects to observe.”

“I don’t see much of a difference in your att.i.tude now(was he really at the limits of his thirst earlier?).”

“…”

“(Why’re you shutting up. Don’t tell me you were lying to me because you wanted to make the situation more interesting. Right? Don’t tell me… you knew about Dimguil and Juna Riebeluka’s plans from the beginning? Dimguil was probably planning to turn Hilda personally to see if Relic felt the emotion of having something taken away from him. Could you possibly have known it from the start? You were tailing the TV crew, after all).”

“…”

From a distance, they looked like two men sitting in silence.

In that silence, Dorrikey posed an important question.

“(Were you, perhaps, planning the same thing as Dimguil? Looking to see how Relic von Waldstein would react to despair? Could it be that you, a self-proclaimed storyteller, only got involved with a push from Hawking because you felt a twinge of guilt?)”

“…”

“(Please tell me that you at least have a conscience)!”

After yet more seconds of silence, Mirald finally broke out into a grin and clapped his hands together.

“Incredible. That’s an ace detective for you! You are right on the money.”

Nothing came up in Dorrikey’s mind, but the detective took Mirald’s hand and caught him in a shoulder throw, dropping him into the sea.

“You lowlife! There are some lines that shouldn’t be crossed! Repent and die!”

“Incredible, Dorrikey! This is the first time you threw me before I even read your intentions!”

“Shut up! I’m calling Damp this instant to call George the Deep Deep Deep Blue. Wait right there!”

“Wait, I’m immune to running water, but it’s going to be sunrise soooooo—“

Watson watched from afar as she happily munched on some meat.

A silver-haired girl chewing on raw meat.

It was the very image of peace on Growerth.

<=>

In a dream.

In his deep sleep, Relic recalled a conversation he had with his father several months earlier.

[Your musings on power are too complicated, Relic. Think of power simply as coin to buy you more possibilities. To possess more power is merely to possess a wider range of choices. For example, let us suppose that you are in a situation where you must choose between the life of your beloved and the lives of a hundred people.]

Relic had been mulling over the meaning of his power at the time.

As he muttered that he did not want his power, Gerhardt had not scolded him. Instead, he offered advice in plain font.

[It matters not what form your power is in. Whether it be physical strength, wisdom, connections, or, to take things further, luck or divine blessing. In any case, with power, you could potentially create a third option to that s.a.d.i.s.tic choice. That is what power is.]

“Are you saying that someone who makes a choice between the two options is weak?”

Gerhardt had rejected the notion.

[Not at all. If one chooses between two possibilities, yet more possibilities open up afterwards. Whether to flee from the consequences of on’e decision, or to change one’s mind—or, if one’s heart is strong enough, to overcome the consequences. Though it is a power of sorts to stick with logical utilitarianism, I would prefer to choose that method only when all others have been exhausted.]

[Power and weakness are things that others judge after an a.s.sessment of the results of your actions. It is not wise to wantonly claim, ‘I am strong because I made this choice’. If you have such time, you should rather commend others who have shown courage.]

Relic opened his eyes.

Remembering at his father’s words a certain courageous mayor.

<=>

Waldstein Castle.

When Relic opened his eyes on his throne, he heard the same sounds as usual.

“Urgh… one day, I’ll make sure to pay back Mr. Stalf for this humiliation…” Mage grumbled. The female freeloader offered him words of comfort.

“It must’ve been tough on you, Mage. But don’t worry. I’m sure better things are on the way!”

“Ah, thank you. It feels like things are looking brighter already.”

As Mage chuckled, the other freeloaders began whispering.

“Wish the riajuu(1)’d just fallen off the building and died.” “Hope his Lear Jet explodes.” “Or better yet, hope he turns out like King Lear.” “Wait. But don’t you feel bad for the youngest daughter?” “Well, then the third daughter can join the crew and help us stamp out the riajuu.” “Excellent.” “Die, Mage.” “Take a left straight!” “HEY!”

A familiar din of voices filled the castle. Relic smiled in relief.

Then—

“Hey, Relic.”

A soft voice tickled his ears.

“Hilda…”

Tensing slightly, he turned to the girl standing beside his throne.

Two slightly long fangs glinted between her smiling lips. When Relic looked at them, he was seized by complicated emotions.

Hilda Dietrich had become a vampire.

At some point before her heart was carved out by Juna, Dimguil seemed to have transformed into a bat and bitten her on the ankle.

After her revival, Relic had gone to her house before dawn to explain the situation.

Her father had lashed out fist-first; her mother had burst into tears. But they seemed to have been prepared for such a day, as they gave permission for Hilda to live with Relic in the castle—for the time being, she needed to adjust to her new life as a vampire.

However, the fact that Relic had not turned Hilda himself seemed to worry her parents to no end.

It was true that, if Hilda were to be turned, Relic had wanted to turn her himself. But at this point, Relic was simply happy that she was still alive.

The freeloaders had worried, “Well, turning someone’s just like reproduction in human terms. If someone else turned his girl, I wouldn’t be surprised if he went full-out murder on the guy”. But Relic was not particularly affected in that way.

However, Dimguil’s ‘curse’ was stronger than expected. Even if Relic tried to turn her into a flock of bats with his own powers, a mysterious power interfered with his efforts. Not only that, Hilda’s heart was occasionally subjugated again, throwing her into a death-like state. There were many unanswered questions about the curse.

In any case, Relic had consulted Doctor and Professor in the castle bas.e.m.e.nt, seeking a way to free her from the curse.

“It will be too dangerous to contact Dimguil in person… Now, I’ve heard that the k.u.man.o.be Clan of j.a.pan holds some clue to changing turned vampires back into humans. However, the Clan is veiled in secrecy—I cannot tell you much more, I’m afraid.”

And so, Relic was making plans to head to j.a.pan.

“If you’re looking for a way… then I’ll go with you.” Hilda had said when Relic told her his plans. “I have human records, so I should get a visa.”

Hilda sounded like she was planning a vacation. Relic warned her that it might be dangerous, but—

“But I was turned and had my heart carved out right here on Growerth, Relic.” She had replied with a smile.

Relic thought, perhaps Hilda was pushing herself very hard.

Perhaps she wanted to burst into tears, but was forcing herself to be cheerful.

Unable to ask her outright, he wallowed alone in guilt.

Even still, he thought to himself that he truly loved her.

Not knowing that Hilda was also thinking the very same thoughts,

The awkward young couple approached one another at a snail’s pace.

“Say, Hilda?”

They had been dating for years, but the distance between them was still not yet closed.

“Yes, Relic?”

Of course, perhaps that was a good pace for a pair of immortal vampires.

“I might not be strong enough to protect you. But I promise, I’ll get stronger! So… well, could I keep being in love with you from now on?”

Though he had no idea what the future held in store, there was one thing certain about them—

“Relic?”

“Y, yes?”

“If you ask me something that obvious again… I think I might like you a little less.”

“…Sorry.”

—They were, for now, happy.

<=>

Night. The backyard of the ruined church.

“d.a.m.n it, old man. What’re you gonna do ‘bout a grave when you kick the bucket in a few decades?”

“I don’t need one. Even if there is an afterlife, I don’t need anyone coming to visit my grave.”

“Then how ‘bout that empty can over there? Perfect for an old b.a.s.t.a.r.d like you.”

“Why not? A grave is like a mirror. It’s a way for the visitor to get business done with the memory of the dead. A can must be just about right for the way you think of me.”

“Tch. f.u.c.king geezer. All I have to say to my memories of you are complaints.”

“Fine by me, you little punk. I’ll have a listen at your complaints, if that makes you feel any better.”

Remembering the past, the mayor stood alone at a certain grave.

The gravestone was in a corner of the church’s yard. On its simple surface was simply written, ‘Lorenz’.

Though it was not particularly high-quality, it was well-maintained.

Watt stood there and mumbled as though to a listener.

“s.h.i.t. Being mayor’s still a f.u.c.king pain in the a.s.s. All I ever do is clean up after idiots.”

Of course, nothing but the wind responded. Yet Watt continued.

“To be honest, I’d be happier working hard for everyone who voted for me and spitting at the ones who didn’t. But I have no way of figuring that out. So I just have to be good to everyone.”

He crouched in front of the gravestone, remembering his conversations with the grave’s occupant. He spoke to the dead man in his memories.

“…S’right. I’m still a good-for-nothing-dumba.s.s, you old b.a.s.t.a.r.d.”

Though he was part-vampire, he neither saw nor believed in ghosts.

“I gotta go visit the victims’ families tomorrow to give ‘em official reports. So if there really is an afterlife out there… cheer ‘em up for me there, will you?”

But Watt solemnly faced the gravestone like a mirror, bowing his head to the Lorenz in his memories.

“…Thanks, Lorenz.”

Pouring the old man’s favorite beer over the grave, Watt placed the half-emptied can in front of the grave.

“Thanks for taking the time to talk to a b.a.s.t.a.r.d like me all those years ago.”

It was a face he never showed anyone. Words he never let anyone hear.

Leaving the church, Watt headed for the car parked in front of the building to head back to the city hall.

But at that moment, he spotted a colorful fog in the direction of the mountains, far beyond the car.

‘What’s that idiot doing over there?’

He turned, surprised by the jester’s presence—

And saw the Waldstein Castle maids, standing in a line and bowing deeply to him.

The maids and the jester departed quietly. An empty laugh escaped Watt’s lips.

“…Heh. They’re all soft, the lot of ‘em. Don’t you think so, Count?”

Stars were appearing in the sky. The man who prided himself on being a petty villain looked up, then headed for the lair known as City Hall.

Believing that, as long as he continued to eat away at the heavyweights, he would one day become the existence he always dreamed of.

The mayor who prided himself on his pettiness continued today to eat away at bigger fish.

(1) Internet slang for someone who is focused on real life as opposed to fandom and the internet.

The Rest of the Story

Two vampires were on a grand, elegant, and rather anachronistic carriage as they made their way through a dark forest.

“If I may make a suggestion, Master Dimguil.”

“What is it?”

Wiping clean the camera he ended up stealing from ZZZ Network, Dimguil lent an ear to his va.s.sal.

“Though Relic von Waldstein is of low birth, his power may prove to be incredibly useful. We must bring him into our midst before he thinks to contact other Clans.”

It was a logical suggestion. But Dimguil glanced at Pamela’s lips and mumbled, “I suppose you’ve begun to fancy him”.

“Wh, wha—?! N, no, Master Dimguil!!”

“There is no need to try and hide it, Pamela. Of course. I suppose he was quite handsome. And there are no vampires around your age in our Clan, so it’s understandable that you developed an interest in him. But what to do? His heart is already set on someone—although, as I’m the one who turned her, I can’t guarantee what will happen in the future.”

“I suppose his connection to that human is quite powerful… wait, no! No, Master Dimguil! I do not—“

“You are a poor liar, Pamela. In any case, I’m glad to see that you are over the shock of having been eaten.”

“~~~~~~!”

The conversation continued, and eventually Dimguil returned to cleaning his camera.

Pamela turned to the window, recalling the face of the boy engraved onto her eyes. Even knowing that her love could never be, she quietly let her thoughts wander to him.

They had yet to realize.

That the Sunfold Clan had been attacked and annihilated by a mysterious girl.

That their base of operations had been taken over by a certain group, which the girl was a part of.

Not knowing that they were, essentially, the last survivors of the Sulfold Clan—

Not knowing that, from the moment they encountered the mysterious group, a great change that would shake the world of vampires would begin—

The Vampire Killers quietly departed into the darkness of night.

-To be continued-