Volume 3 Chapter 15 Owl’s Tale I
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
Thick marble pillars stood tall, creating a cool ambiance with the white curtains fluttering in the breeze.
At one corner of the veranda, there was a simple cooking space, set up so that fruits and thin slices carved from whole roasted pigs could be arranged on plates and offered to the nobles as they relaxed and conversed.
Having lived in poverty for so long, the notion that one could snack whenever the stomach rumbled was a revelation hard to hide.
Yet, upon reflection, Kian must have lived such a life in his younger days.
Those days felt like a distant dream.
He didn’t wish to return to that time, but he did yearn for that standard of living.
But that would only be after he had succeeded as an adventurer.
As he crossed the courtyard towards the west wing, Liam suddenly stopped dead in his tracks.
The west wing was a building reached by climbing several flights of stairs with flickering torches, but in front of those stairs stood a solitary guard, casting a long shadow.
Or rather, it was Owl.
As always, he was clad in armor adorned with numerous owl feathers, and from behind his glasses, he fixed his gaze intently on this direction.
Liam’s face clearly showed his discomfort.
”…Lord Owl, how do you do? Are you heading to Ramsey on a mission now?”
”Yes, but I can’t just ignore a friend who comes visiting from afar without paying my respects.”
Owl approached slowly, arms spread wide.
As he drew near, the distinctive scent of Azrael’s perfume wafted through the air.
”Liam, I will guide Kian from here on. Please return to your duties.”
”But, Lord Owl is forbidden to enter within 2 hundred meters of Her Excellency, except in emergencies?”
”Correct, but I can at least guide him within the west wing. I also have some personal matters to discuss with Kian.”
Owl then slightly narrowed his eyes and glanced at Kian.
His sightless white eyes were not focused on Kian’s face, but on the ‘glasses’ tucked into his breast pocket.
(Speaking of which, Owl was looking at the person inside the ‘glasses’ during the battle with Oswald. If I asked him, maybe he could tell me information about the person the ‘glasses’ is hiding.)
”Liam. This is as far as I need you to guide me. I wanted to talk to Mr. Owl privately.”
”Is that so? If you say so, I’ll get back to work…”
”I’m not going to fight with Mr. Owl. Don’t worry about it.”
”No, I’m not worried about that, but Lord Owl is, as you know…”
”I understand.”
Kian nodded.
”It’s okay, Liam. Just go back to work. Thanks for the guidance so far.”
”…Understood.”
Liam looked around hesitantly, but eventually said that and stepped back.
As he left, Kian and Owl were alone in the shade in front of the West Wing stairs.
Kian looked up at Owl.
”So, what’s that about?”
”The Bloodsucking Kind’s movements have been getting more active lately. Have you noticed?”
”It’s even a hot topic at the Adventurer’s Guild. They’re saying that Bloodsucking Kind monsters are appearing in Guild-owned Dungeons and they’re having to deal with them.”
”That’s a bad sign. This is the same ecological shift that was seen when the ‘Thorn Demon’ returned 80 years ago.”
”Eighty years ago…. Does Mr. Owl know about the ‘Thorn Demon’?”
”Of course. I came back to this borderland because I sensed the ‘Thorn Demon’s’ magic power. You, Kian, must already know that I’m a vampire with ties to that thorn, right?”
”No, I didn’t know. Mr. Owl was a ‘Thorn Demon’s’──Blood Servant, was that it?”
He remembers the ‘glasses’ saying that Owl was ‘a Blood Servant who ate their parents and became a vampire’.
Owl nodded quietly.
”It seems I first came into existence as a Blood Servant of the original Thorn Demon. That said, in the beginning, I was nothing more than a creature driven by instinct, mindlessly gathering blood and magic power. My memories from that time are hazy at best. The first time I truly became aware of myself—when I recognized that I was me—was long ago. I don’t recall the details clearly, but it was certainly well over eighty years ago.”
”This is the first I’ve heard of it. And quite the surprising revelation, too. I never imagined your connection to the Thorn Demon ran so deep. …Though, I have to admit, my knowledge of the Thorn Demon is all secondhand, so I can’t help but feel a little detached from it all.”
”The fact that I am not a pureblood vampire is something I’ve come to see as a blessing. After all, I despise those monsters—the ones who twisted me into what I am and kept me under their control.”
Not a pure vampire.
Indeed, Owl has the appearance of a blade called Cain with red-purple wings, and abilities like controlling the Bloodsucking Kind, but he generates most of his magic power himself.
He has a lot of cells in his body that produce magic power.
He must have been some kind of powerful monster before he became a vampire.
The fact that he tears off Owl’s feathers and uses them for his armor might be a reflection of his memories from that time… at the cellular level.
(Being able to produce magic power means that even if he uses Absorb Essence to draw magic power from others, he won’t be able to fully drain them. His own cells resist magically, scattering the magic before he can claim it as his own.)
This also means he can’t use the powerful vampire charm that gives pleasure to the target during the blood-drawing process.
It seems likely that he won’t be able to use the vampire’s greatest strength, which is to consume the target’s magic.
”…Mr. Owl seems to have been using the Mist Form and the Bloodsucking Kind’s servant transformation techniques, but how do you actually use them? The servant transformation of the Bloodsucking Kind seems particularly difficult due to physical traits.”
”It’s because I devoured a ‘Thorn Demon’ from generations ago and gained their ability. The vampire techniques she used, apart from those originating from bloodsucking, can generally be applied. …What do you think about that?”
”No, I was just asking out of curiosity. The reason you usually take on a human disguise are probably because you’re using transformation techniques derived from Mist Form, right?”
”Yes. If I had to guess… Kian, you still can’t transform yet, can you? It’s quite useful, so I’d recommend learning it sooner rather than later.”
As Owl said this, he raised a hand to his face, covering it completely. Slowly, his long fingers traced downward.
When they passed, the face left behind was no longer Owl’s dubious one, but the delicate, lovely features of Maribel.
His physique remained unchanged, which made for an oddly unbalanced sight.
Wearing the face of the young golden-haired princess, Owl continued speaking—his voice now a perfect match for hers, clear and beautiful.
”To get back on topic, Bloodsucking Kind creatures in various regions are in a stir. The servants under my control are the same. Their lack of reason makes their instinctual senses extremely sharp. They might be anticipating the return of the ‘Thorn Demon.’ Kian, you should be extra cautious.”
”Thank you for the advice. But the ‘Thorn Demon’ hasn’t revived yet, has it?”
”No. However, there are signs.”
As Owl reverted back to the original ‘glasses’ face, he solemnly stated this.
During the transition, his voice warped weirdly, nearly making him burst out laughing, but the atmosphere was too serious for that, so he suppressed it with all his might.
While he thought transformation was a powerful ability, he also felt it could serve as a fun trick for entertainment.
”According to my friend, the Thorn Demon is said to be a being that those who seek knowledge of vampirism turn into after touching upon forbidden things. To be specific, 80 years ago, it is rumored that someone obtained a book on vampirism in the manor house in the Labyrinth of Roses, located in the east of East End.”
”That manor house is said to have belonged to the Cain clan, as recorded in the capital city’s archives. I, and many others, consider them the progenitors of the Cain species. As I recall, after the Night Clan perished, the manor house passed through the hands of various individuals. Anyone who seeks to possess that vampire’s ruins is generally up to no good. It wouldn’t be surprising if such knowledge lay dormant there. ──Her Excellency is putting it up for auction, you see. I’ll make a personal investigation when the opportunity arises. Thanks for the intel, Kian.”
”No…”
(Come to think of it… based on everything Serena told me, there’s a chance Owl might be the one they call the ‘Azrael’s Death Sword User.’ I should try to probe him about it—subtly.)
After a few seconds of silence, Kian began speaking.
”Are you aware of the contents of the message I delivered to Her Excellency today?”
”No. …Embarrassingly, it seems I’ve fallen out of favor with Maribel for some reason. Because of that, I’m not even allowed in the salon. It’s cruel treatment, considering I risked my life fighting Oswald.”
”The message reported that a faction of the mercenary group ‘Storm Herd’ in the mountainous village northeast of East End had hired Ms. Natasha for some shady research. It is likely that negotiations for the handover of the ‘Storm Herd’ and Ms. Natasha will take place soon.”
”Hmm”
Owl widened his eyes and let out a gasp.
He stroked his chin and continued,
”Those Wolfman mercenaries… They’ve always been up to no good. It would be a good idea to carry out some sort of purge and bring them under our control…but my opinion won’t reach Maribel. It’s a shame.”
”Has Mr. Owl known anything about the ‘Storm Herd’ for a while now?”
”To some extent. It’s the kind of thing one could pick up if they were in trade. I heard that right now, the herd is scattered and weakened.”
”────”
If Owl was the ‘User of Azrael’s Death Sword,’ it seemed he could have dropped a hint about having killed Serena’s brother in this conversation, but he wore a poker face and kept his mouth shut.
Could he really not be the one who killed Serena’s brother?
It would have been fine to ask directly, but if things escalated into a fight, that could lead to trouble.
Even though it was morning and Owl wouldn’t be able to fully display his abilities, the absence of Natra and Rufna, along with the magic sword being out of commission, didn’t help.
It would be best to back off now.
”Is that all you wanted to ask me?”
”…No, there’s one more thing.”
After some hesitation, Kian decided to move on to the next question.
It was, of course, about the person inside the ‘glasses.’
(‘Glasses’, since you won’t tell me, I’ll just ask Owl. Don’t hold it against me.)
He spoke to himself in his mind, but received no response from ‘glasses.’
Gazing into Owl’s eyes, Kian continued.
”During the battle with Oswald, did Mr. Owl see my ‘glasses’ transform into a beautiful blonde girl?”
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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