Chapter 6:《The Full Moon from a Thousand Years Ago》- (5)
(I)
—”Bring out the vampire!”
—”Kill the monster who murdered the princess!”
The night sky was dark, but the torches lit by the people illuminated the surroundings brightly. Watching the flames and the fury burning within the crowd, Vellius Varius, the hero, smiled.
“Good, let the fire burn hotter.”
It was a satisfying sight. Regardless of class, everyone in the Avilia Kingdom was united in their hatred for the vampire, Elzerba.
The vampire of disaster, as foretold by the papal state Serion.
The vile monster who murdered a nation’s princess.
The image of Elzerba, once celebrated for leading the charge against demonic forces, had now been completely erased from the people’s memories. To them, she was nothing more than a sinister monster threatening their land.
…In all of Avilia, not a single soul remained who would side with Elzerba.
“How simple.”
Varius looked down on the furious crowd with contempt.
The common folk were easy to manipulate.
They were always angry about their own lives, constantly seeking something to direct their rage at.
For them, Elzerba was the perfect target—a monster to vent their fury upon, all under the noble cause of avenging the princess and protecting the kingdom.
The people didn’t bother hiding their intense feelings towards the gray-haired vampire girl, Elzerba.
The truth was, this entire situation was orchestrated by Varius himself.
‘Fools.’
…The plan, which had taken three months, was a resounding success.
Turning Elzerba, who was once seen as a hero, into the enemy of all.
Planting seeds of hatred in the people’s hearts.
Isolating her completely.
Everything he’d originally planned had come to fruition, without a single misstep. In fact, the results had far surpassed his expectations.
—”Elzerba, you look good like this.”
The motivation? It stemmed from a mix of humiliation and anger he’d never felt before.
Since being appointed as a hero, Varius had always been showered with admiration and respect. Everyone looked up to him, and women fought among themselves to win his favor.
He led a life of luxury and envy.
In such a life, the women around Varius felt dull, unappealing, and unworthy of his interest.
Then, one day, a girl appeared before him who completely captivated him. The beautiful vampire girl with ash-gray hair, Elzerba.
She effortlessly defeated the demons with overwhelming strength and necromancy, even taking down the Demon King himself. She wasn’t just beautiful—she was powerful. The only woman who didn’t fawn over him.
He immediately wanted her.
—”Marry me, Elzerba!”
He bought a lovely ring and proposed on the spot. There was no way she’d reject him. After all, he was the hero everyone adored. Surely, she harbored some hidden affection for him.
“Sorry, I think our relationship is fine as it is.”
—”What?”
But the vampire’s response was a firm rejection.
Varius was baffled.
How could anyone possibly refuse his proposal?
Then, shame and anger quickly followed—how could she, of all people, reject a hero like him?
In a fit of rage, he lashed out with violence, only to be subdued by Elzerba herself. Her strength far exceeded his own. She was, after all, a Necromancer Lord far beyond him.
‘Elzerba…’
Never before had a woman refused him, never had one defied his plans. Despite the rejection, Varius’s obsession with Elzerba only grew stronger.
That’s when he conceived a plan: to isolate her. If he could make everyone hate her and leave her all alone, then, at the moment she was most vulnerable, he could extend his hand, and surely even Elzerba would have no choice but to accept him.
He thought it was a good plan and set it in motion right away.
To the people, he spread rumors of a prophecy from Serion, claiming Elzerba was the disaster that would bring ruin to Avilia.
—”Elzerba…? That can’t be true.”
—”What do you mean? She’s a monster at her core! If the goddess Astira gave a warning, there must be something to it.”
The people, who deeply believed in the goddess of the heavens and earth, Astira, were easily swayed by the idea that the prophecy warned of Elzerba.
Their opinion of her began to crumble.
But spreading a prophecy alone wasn’t enough to sway his comrades. He needed another approach for them.
—”Lilianel, Lucia, Rex! Ugh…!”
—”V-Varius? What happened? Are you hurt?”
—”Elzerba proposed to me, and when I refused, she attacked me. She even threatened to resurrect the Demon King.”
—”That vampire dared! I’ll handle this—”
—”No, Lilianel. She probably acted in the heat of the moment. Please, just pretend you don’t know.”
—”Varius, you’re too kind. But I can’t forgive Elzerba for using violence.”
‘…Got them.’
His comrades, who trusted him implicitly, believed the lie without question—that it was Elzerba who had proposed and resorted to violence when refused.
Thus, the whispers against Elzerba started. Out of her sight, her reputation sank even lower. Now, all that was left was for her to be shaken by the changing attitudes around her, and for Varius to swoop in as her savior.
—”Tina, what’s for dinner tonight?”
—”I’m not sure, but I’ll make whatever you like!”
—”Anything’s fine. Let’s take a walk after eating.”
‘What…?’
To his surprise, despite noticing the growing isolation around her, Elzerba remained unbothered. If anything, she seemed happier, like a cat reveling in solitude.
‘Elzerba, is that how you want to play…?’
His obsession grew stronger. Varius realized that to break her, he’d need to push harder. He needed a more drastic approach to bring her to her knees.
…And then, an unexpected opportunity presented itself.
—”V-Varius, something terrible has happened.”
—”What’s wrong, Lilianel?”
—”Elzerba seems to have caught wind of the rumors.”
—”Elzerba…?”
—”And Sophie is starting an official investigation tomorrow.”
—”The princess…?”
After hearing Lilianel’s report, Varius furrowed his brows.
This was bad. If the princess, who wielded the greatest power in the kingdom, started an investigation, it would surely be exposed that Varius had been spreading false rumors. If that happened, the worst-case scenario could see him stripped of his title as the “Hero.”
He had to act before the investigation could begin.
—”Varius, take this….”
—”An apple?”
Lilianel handed him a blue apple. It bore a distinct bite mark, as though someone had taken a bite and left it unfinished.
And from the bite mark, the most prominent of all were the deep indentations left by fangs.
…It was the bite of a vampire. There was only one vampire within the palace—Elzerba. It was clear that these were her bite marks.
And Varius immediately understood why Lilianel had handed him this apple, marked with Elzerba’s fangs.
He stared at Lilianel with a shocked expression.
—”Lilianel, you….”
—”Yes, that’s right.”
The beautiful elf nodded.
—”To stop the investigation into you and push Elzerba to the brink, this is the only way.”
…Framing Elzerba for the assassination of the princess.
—”Are you sure about this?”
Varius asked, realizing that she was willing to kill a long-time friend for his sake. He didn’t have to wait even a second for her answer.
—”Yes, for you.”
—”Lilianel….”
Ah, how could he not be moved? Even though she knew he desired someone else—Elzerba—here she was, offering her devotion. At this moment, Lilianel seemed more beautiful than any woman in the world.
—”Lilianel.”
—”Varius….”
Under the moonlight, they cautiously kissed. One with true love in their heart, the other with a goal in mind, but the taste was sweet for both.
And that night, they killed the princess.
***************************
The bite marks from the apple were carved into the princess’s neck, making it look like Elzerba had done it. Now, the vampire had no choice but to be framed for the murder.
Soon, she would face the furious outrage of the people, who would rise up once they learned that their beloved princess had been killed.
It wouldn’t be long before Elzerba was driven to the point of no return. To ensure that, however, a direct confrontation with her would be unavoidable.
…Elzerba was a terrifying force who ended a ten-year war singlehandedly. As much as Varius hated to admit it, neither the strength of the Avilia Kingdom nor his power as the Hero would be enough to overwhelm her.
They needed reinforcements capable of unleashing their full power against a vampire.
—”Lilianel, just follow my lead from now on.”
—”Understood. Leave everything to me.”
After giving Lilianel a secret mission, Varius used his connections to quickly summon the most powerful individuals from across the continent.
The title “Vampire of Disaster” and the accusation of “Murdering the Princess” caught their attention, and they eagerly agreed to Varius’ request. Within just a few hours, they arrived at the Avilia Kingdom using the “Teleportation Hub.”
Finally, it was time to rally the soldiers and citizens.
—”The fearless vampire has slain Princess Sophie!”
—”Rise up, people of Avilia!”
—”Hunt down the ungrateful vampire who has betrayed our kindness!”
—”Uwaaahhh!!”
The incitement was easy.
In less than a few hours, tens of thousands of people had gathered outside the royal palace where Elzerba resided.
At the front were the knights and soldiers of the Avilia Kingdom, while the citizens, holding torches, stood behind them.
At the very front stood Varius and his comrades, along with the most renowned figures of the continent that he had summoned.
—”The calamity-level vampire! I’m so excited I might lose my mind. You think our charms will work?”
Among them was a group of skilled exorcists from the city of “Tenma,” known for hunting monsters. The one who spoke was a young man named Jax, known as the youngest genius in his field, standing to Varius’s right.
—”But to think she’s being hunted after taking down the demons herself… isn’t that kind of tragic?”
—”…Don’t be foolish.”
A sharp voice interrupted Jax from Varius’s left. A blonde-haired woman glared at him.
“All monsters must be eradicated. That is the will of Astira.”
The woman, who carried a giant hammer on her shoulder, wore a black saintess robe. She was known as the “Fallen Angel,” Saintess Marina Vergarde. She then closed her eyes and offered a quiet prayer to the heavens.
—”Great celestial god Astira, I pray for your blessing. Grant us the strength to slay this cunning vampire.”
—”Grant us strength.”
Hundreds of holy knights, led by her, echoed her prayer.
“Impressive.”
Seeing this, Varius grinned in satisfaction.
They had the elite holy knights and exorcists, the best in hunting monsters.
No matter how powerful Elzerba was, she could not win against the overwhelming forces that had spent their entire lives hunting such creatures.
—”Elzerba, I will avenge Princess Sophie.”
—”Damn undead, I’ll repay you for what you did to us.”
Even Varius’s comrades and the Avilia knights were burning with determination.
With this perfect lineup of anti-vampire forces and overflowing resolve, victory was within reach.
Soon, he would have the pleasure of seeing Elzerba, defeated and humiliated, begging for her life, only for him to magnanimously spare her and make her his.
His smile remained plastered on his face at the thought of such a future.
‘It’d be nice if she just surrendered.’
Of course, it would be better if Elzerba saw their overwhelming forces and surrendered without a fight. It would save a lot of effort and minimize casualties.
—”She’s coming!”
…While waiting for the infiltration team’s signal, a shadow finally emerged from the entrance of the building. All eyes eagerly turned to the entrance.
—”Is it the infiltration team?”
—”Did they capture her?”
Everyone focused their gaze on the entrance, filled with anticipation. However, instead of the infiltration team, only two figures—a man and a woman—walked out.
—”What’s that…?”
—”A maid and a butler…?”
The ones who stepped out were a maid drenched in blood and an old butler. The maid carried a massive sword on her back, and the butler wore dark gloves exuding ominous power.
“Heh.”
The pale-skinned maid smirked and tossed something toward them.
—”Aaahhhh!!”
—”It’s a… head!!”
It was the severed head of one of the infiltration knights. The soldiers of Avilia stirred at the sight of his bulging eyes.
…Varius knew who had killed them. The figures standing at the entrance were familiar.
—”A zombie maid and a vampire butler….”
They were none other than Elzerba’s loyal servants, the zombie maid Tina and the vampire butler Alfred. Their appearance meant that the infiltration had failed.
“So many have gathered.”
“…!!”
And from deep within the building, a cold voice echoed. A figure stepped out of the shadows cast by the full moon. It was the very person Varius had been so obsessed with.
“So many reckless people have gathered.”
The Necromancer Lord.
A figure greater than even the Hero, the one who had singlehandedly defeated the Demon King.
“…I hope you’re all prepared for this.”
The crimson eyes of the vampire, Elzerba, glowed in the darkness.
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