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An invitation to a private tea party held by the earl’s family. The knight who brought this invitation to Vandalieu’s house behaved politely, unlike the time when he was approached in the back alley with an offer of protection.
Vandalieu and his companions were very perplexed by this. They were even suspicious that he might try to assassinate Juliana, as well as Natania who knew her true identity, while hosting Vandalieu and Darcia at the tea party.
But the letter said that it was a very private tea party that would be held at the earl’s secondary residence, and that the earl would be most pleased if Vandalieu and his companions could feel free to attend.
Vandalieu summoned Eleanora to consult her, and she had a look at the letter.
“The business with Juliana is probably a part of it, but won’t he be wanting to talk about Aggar and Joseph as well? I mean, the spies saw Aggar and his companions being teleported away,” said Eleanora.
Everyone present was satisfied by this explanation… except one.
“Impossible… We did not leave a single scrap of evidence. And fortunately, we disposed of them just as Vandalieu was talking to the guards. He has an alibi, so why would the earl connect him to the incident?” said Gufadgarn.
Her shock was displayed through her wide-open eyes and her slightly trembling shoulders and lips. It was perhaps her first time displaying so much emotion in front of anyone other than Vandalieu.
“Could it be that the earl has received a Divine Message with orders from the gods?!” she continued. “No, it is even possible that he is working for the Pure-breed Vampire –”
“Gufadgarn, I believe you are overthinking things. It is merely that the incident is completely impossible to explain or understand, so he has simply attributed it to Vanda… Van-sama because it is suspicious,” said Bellmond.
“What?!” Gufadgarn exclaimed in surprise, lost for words.
“Even though he’s guessed the truth, it’s rather rude, isn’t it,” remarked Vandalieu, who was being held in mid-air by Bellmond’s tail.
It was a conclusion made without a shred of reasoning other than the fact that it was suspicious.
“It is astounding… to think that he would fear anything that he is incapable of comprehending to be of Vandalieu’s will without even attempting to determine the truth with his own knowledge. I see that this Earl Isaac Morksi has begun to understand the extent of Vandalieu’s greatness,” said Gufadgarn.
It seemed that her reason for being surprised was different from Vandalieu’s; her impression of the earl was now leaning towards ‘a new disciple of Vandalieu.’
“No, I don’t think that’s the case… Ah, it’s hopeless. She’s not listening anymore,” Eleanora sighed.
“When I’m talking to Gufadgarn-san, I start to understand how difficult it is for gods to make their intentions known to humans through Divine Messages,” said Princess Levia.
“… Gufadgarn is quite easy to understand. I have received a Divine Message from Hihiryushukaka before when I was still alive, and it just sounded like the roaring of a monster that I didn’t recognize. I failed my mission as a result and Ternecia made me stand around doing nothing for a hundred years as punishment; it was terrible,” muttered Isla, looking away.
“The conversation has gotten off-topic,” said Bellmond as she prepared some tea.
“… By the way, Bellmond, I can’t brush your tail if I can’t move both my hands. Or should I groom your tail by licking it?” said Vandalieu.
“Danna-sama, it would be very problematic if I lost control over my hands while preparing tea, which is why I have wrapped your arms up while I do so. And please never use your tongue,” said Bellmond. “Here you are, Darcia-sama.”
Darcia beamed at the heartwarming conversation between master and servant. “Thank you, Bellmond-san,” she said, accepting the cup from Bellmond. “But it really is a little strange. I should be just as mysterious to the earl as Vandalieu. I was talking to Priestess Paula and some others at the Communal Church around the time those people disappeared, so even my alibi is suspicious.”
It would not have been difficult to learn through some investigation that Paula, the priestess of Vida, adored Darcia since her sermon. Assuming the worst, they might have suspected that Paula had provided a false alibi for Darcia.
“I’m new here, but… I think he’d suspect Master more. I mean, it’s hard to describe, but Master is kind of more suspicious than Darcia-san,” said Natania.
She hadn’t been fully tainted by those of Talosheim, so this was the case from her point of view.
“I see. It’s true that Mom only summoned a familiar spirit while I’ve tamed Fang and other monsters, and I’m the one who’s running the food cart. Considering my age, it might be more normal to suspect Mom, but… I’m a Dhampir, after all. How old I appear to be isn’t a good indicator of anything,” said Vandalieu.
Vandalieu looked to be of around ten years of age, and he was actually eleven, but he was developing at the same rate as a Dark Elf – the race of Darcia, his non-Vampire parent. The development of Dark Elves slowed down dramatically after puberty. It wouldn’t have been strange for the earl’s people to suspect that he was actually in his twenties.
“Then it means that the earl feels more fear than suspicion towards Bocchan, and has invited him to his house to question his motives directly under the pretense of having a tea party,” said Saria. “What will you do? I don’t think a ‘commoner’ has the ability to refuse an invitation from the earl…”
She pointed at the letter, whose list of invitees was vague: ‘Vandalieu, Darcia and your companions.’
“I wonder what he means by ‘companions?’” said Rita.
If taken literally, this invitation would include Saria, Gufadgarn and everyone else. But in reality, nobody else knew that they were in the city of Morksi.
“I don’t think he’s realized that we’re connected to Van-sama. We’ve been using Gufadgarn’s teleportation when we come and go from this house, after all,” said Eleanora.
“If the earl was capable of noticing our presence, he would have acted more quickly to deal with the criminal organization that we have taken over to begin with,” said Isla.
It was unlikely that the earl was aware of Eleanora, Isla and Bellmond’s connection to Vandalieu.
“We’re unlikely to have been noticed as well. That time when the spies opened the wooden door and came in, before Natania-san and Juliana-san came here, the Golems in the house quickly noticed them, so we were able to pretend to be suits of armor hanging on the wall,” said Saria.
“We just erased our spirit forms and stood still, though. We were planning to capture them if they tried to go to the basement, but they left right away. They were staring at us a lot, though,” said Rita.
The spies had entered the house on one occasion, but it would have been troublesome down the road if they made the earl’s spies disappear, so they had always planned to just keep watch as long as they didn’t attempt to enter the basement, which contained various things that they could not be allowed to see.
Fortunately, the spies had only entered the house once. They had been captured, and Vandalieu had successfully erased their memories despite risking turning them into vegetables in doing so, so he had not needed to brainwash them.
“Yes, that’s right…” Darcia murmured.
“Darcia-sama, what’s wrong?” asked Saria.
“No, it’s nothing. It’s really nothing,” said Darcia, covering her face and staring at the floor.
Those spies definitely thought Rita and Saria were suits of armor that I would wear…
It seemed that she had received mental damage upon realizing this fact.
Bellmond, having made the same realization, quietly offered her a second cup of black tea.
“Thank you. Let’s continue our discussion,” said Darcia, telling herself that even the earl wouldn’t mention such things at the tea party. “In other words, the ‘companions’ the letter mentions likely refers to Natania-san, Juliana-san and Simon. If it included the children of the orphanage and Priestess Paula, it wouldn’t be a ‘private tea party’ anymore.”
“Maybe he wrote ‘companions’ vaguely because he didn’t want to name Juliana directly?” said Vandalieu.
“Then perhaps he should not have sent an invitation at all,” said Bellmond.
“Didn’t he send the invitation so that we wouldn’t suspect him of attempting to do something to the limbless women of marriageable age left in the house while you’re at the tea party? It would be careless to leave just Fang and the rats on guard outside the house,” said Isla.
Indeed, if they knew that the only people at home were two young women who couldn’t move properly, there might be a thief or two who thought that they could take anything if they could get into the house unnoticed, even with a fearsome guard dog protecting it.
Of course, Rita and Saria would slaughter such robbers with ease. Natania would be able to defend herself, as she was now capable of moving about on her own, and even if they happened to come across Tarea first, it would be simple for her to twist the neck of an ordinary robber.
But it would be troublesome to have too many robbers visit and cause strange rumors about Vandalieu.
“Shall we all go, then? It would be an opportunity to show them Natania’s artificial limbs and have them speak to Simon. As for Juliana… Well, it would be dangerous to leave her behind. Even if the earl doesn’t want to do anything, the spies might come in out of a greed for achievements, and there’s no guarantee that Duke Alcrem’s subordinates aren’t in the city without the earl’s knowledge,” said Vandalieu.
“Eh, we’re taking Juliana as well? Is it really alright to bring her in this state? And I don’t know any of the etiquette of a noble’s tea party, you know?” said Natania.
“It’s alright. I only know a little as well,” Vandalieu assured her.
“… Are you sure about that, Emperor?” asked Juliana.
“I should have learned more about the Orbaume Kingdom’s manners from Iris,” said Vandalieu, looking away as he thought of Iris, the daughter of the Bearheart family of knights in the Sauron Duchy who was now the daughter of Godwin, the king of the Majin nation.
Of course, she was a member of a family of knights and a noble mostly only in name, so she did not know much about the manners of high society either.
“Well, the earl probably knows that we don’t know much about the etiquette, so it’s probably fine. That’s probably why it’s a private tea party,” said Darcia.
“Eleanora only knows of the Amid Empire’s customs, and I only know of the customs of a ruined nation that existed about a hundred thousand years ago. If the earl and his people are very perceptive, they might notice such small differences, which would cause unnecessary misunderstandings,” said Bellmond. “How about asking Chipuras instead? He infiltrated the Orbaume Kingdom’s Commerce Guild, so he would have been invited to events by influential merchants and nobles.”
“I see. Then let’s get to it and –” Vandalieu began.
“Before that, Master, there is one thing I would like to confirm. What is it that she is making?” Bellmond asked, looking at the partially-finished items that were hanging in Tarea’s workshop.
In addition to Natania and Simon’s artificial limbs, there was a sword in an overly-decorated scabbard, as well as an axe, gloves, chain and collar that were equally overly-decorated.
“Oh, these? They’re for your transformation staff, of course… or rather, your transformation equipment,” said Tarea, who had been concentrating on her work rather than taking part in the discussion.
This response erased all the questions in Bellmond’s mind.
“Danna-sama… I asked you to refrain from giving me a transformation staff…!” she whispered.
“Yes, so I tried making things in a shape other than that of a staff. It’s alright, I’ll make it so that you’ll be something other than a magical girl after you transform,” Vandalieu reassured her.
“This is the only time that I cannot feel at ease when you tell me that it will be ‘alright,’ Danna-sama… But, but…!”
“Yes! It’s a sword, and you are even able to see it being handmade –” Eleanora began.
“A new collar and chains, handmade by Vandalieu-sama…!” Isla interrupted. “I cannot imagine not accepting such gifts!”
Bellmond, Eleanora and Isla were resistant to the idea of being magical girls, especially the ‘girl’ part. But as Vandalieu’s servants, it seemed that it was harder for them to refuse items like swords and collars.
“Exactly as planned,” Vandalieu murmured.
It wasn’t as if he were trying to make all of them magical girls. He just wanted them to use superior equipment.
“But you’re so busy; you didn’t have to go out of your way to make these in the middle of your plan to lure out Birkyne and the reincarnated individuals!” Eleanora exclaimed.
“Well, you don’t need to hold back, Eleanora. You can think of it as a commemoration of the fact that you’re calling me ‘Van-sama’ instead of ‘Vandalieu-sama’ now,” Vandalieu told her.
“Commemoration? You should have already known through the Demon King Familiars!” said Eleanora.
“It sounds different when I hear it directly,” said Vandalieu. “There’s one more process needed to complete everything other than Basdia’s axe, so please help me out, everyone. I want to finish the fitting.”
“More importantly, even if as a hasty preparation, should you not learn some etiquette for the earl’s tea party?! You are also going to the orphanage tomorrow afternoon, are you not?!” Bellmond exclaimed, looking worried.
“It’s alright, Bellmond. I’ll do both at the same time. I’ll be learning etiquette from Chipuras,” said Vandalieu as he suddenly split himself into four.
“We’ll be doing the fitting over here. Bellmond, these long gloves and collar are for you,” said one of his clones.
“Eleanora, this sword and collar are for you. You can either hold the sword or hang it at your waist,” said another.
“Isla, this collar and chain is yours. Let’s replace those old ones,” said the third.
It would be best to use one’s physical body for learning etiquette, so Vandalieu left the fitting task to his spirit-form clones.
Unable to disobey, Bellmond and the others went to put on their new items… although Isla was already wearing a ‘depraved’ expression.
Natania’s face turned pale at this sight. “Umm, Darcia-san. Will I have to wear a collar at some point as well?” she asked.
For Beast-kin, collars would not symbolize a teacher-student relationship; they carried heavy significance, symbolizing the relationship between master and servant.
“You don’t have to worry,” Darcia said with a bitter smile. “Vandalieu’s unfortunately become used to people wearing the collars, and Isla-san and the others wanted them. It’s not like he’s making people wear them. And I think your artificial limbs will be enough for transforming.”
“Huh?! These artificial limbs can change shape?!” Natania exclaimed, relieved that she wouldn’t have to wear a collar, but looking at her artificial limbs in surprise.
“Those artificial limbs won’t change shape yet. But the ones I’m making now will. They are a collaboration between myself and Vandalieu-sama… Look forward to it,” said Tarea with a haughty laugh.
Natania’s cheeks stiffened. She became tired just moving her current artificial limbs that were simply made of metal; would she really be able to make full use of such advanced artificial limbs?
I thought this during training as well, but isn’t Master expecting too much of us?! Simon said he’s aiming to be a B-class adventurer, but this is impossible if we aren’t at least as strong as A-class adventurers! Natania screamed internally.
Darcia took her hand. “Now then, we need to learn etiquette from Chipuras-san. It’s not going to be perfect, but it’s better than nothing.”
Naturally, Natania was lacking in the knowledge that would be useful for nobles… In other words, she knew absolutely nothing of the etiquette. On top of that, she would have to learn them while moving her artificial limbs.
“T-this is way harder than my training!” she said.
She ended up breaking five cup handles and five plates, but… these were repaired by Vandalieu’s ‘Golem Creation’ and Darcia’s Demon Eyes of Regeneration, so Chipuras’s etiquette class continued into the evening without a problem.
The next day, a carriage with the Morksi family crest on it arrived in front of Vandalieu’s house and picked up Vandalieu, Darcia, Natania and Juliana.
Incidentally, Vandalieu had informed Simon about the invitation, but Simon had declined, saying that his name hadn’t been written on the invitation.
“No way. An unsightly person like me who’s living in the slums can’t go to a noble’s tea party! I’d probably mess something up and make the earl angry,” Simon had said, causing Natania to glare at him as if he’d betrayed her.
He was likely doing some self-training with Fang and the rats.
The inside of the carriage was extravagant, but it was a little less comfortable to ride in than Sam’s. It arrived at a building on the earl’s property that was separate from the main mansion, and a modest tea party began.
The only invitees were Vandalieu’s group, and the only people present as hosts were Earl Isaac Morksi himself and a few servants. His wives and children were nowhere to be seen, though he apparently had three wives and a number of children.
“I am very grateful that you have accepted my invitation on such short notice, Darcia Zakkart, Vandalieu Zakkart, Natania and –” the earl began.
His tone was more polite than one would expect from a noble speaking to commoners. He seemed to have assumed that Darcia’s surname was Zakkart like Vandalieu’s.
His gaze shifted to Juliana, who was sitting comfortably in her chair, and bewilderment appeared in his eyes.
“Julia…Julia-dono, is it?” he said uncertainly.
Naturally, Isaac knew Juliana, as she was a member of the Alcrem family of dukes and a renowned knight, though she hadn’t exactly been an acquaintance; she was just someone with whom he had exchanged short greetings with at evening parties about once a year.
He knew what Juliana’s face looked like. According to his memory, the person sitting in the chair was unmistakably Juliana Alcrem. If one ignored her severed limbs, swollen abdomen and loose dress, there was no reason to doubt that.
But her expression was hollow, and she didn’t even look at Isaac as he addressed her, despite the fact that she had a slightly limited ability to engage in conversation according to the report from Berard, the Guild Master at the Adventurers’ Guild.
“I’m sorry, my lord. She is in a very unstable state, and I think it may be difficult to converse with her at present,” said Vandalieu.
Isaac nodded in understanding.
He didn’t have a particularly deep knowledge of people’s minds, but considering Juliana’s state, he didn’t think that it would be strange for her to have such symptoms.
“I see. I apologize for inviting her despite her being in such a condition,” he said.
“Not at all. Thank you for your thoughtfulness,” said Vandalieu.
The truth was that Juliana’s soul had already been pseudo-reincarnated into one of the eggs that had been planted into her body.
“In any case… to what business do we owe the pleasure of having been invited here today?” Vandalieu asked.
“… Hmm. I apologize for doing this in such an informal setting, and I realize that it is too late, but I would like to apologize for the terrible actions of the guards employed in my realm and the person who is still my uncle, despite having left the family,” said Isaac, bowing his head to Vandalieu and his companions.
Normally, the act of the earl bowing his head to commoners would be shocking.
Indeed, Natania and the servants were very surprised to see this. Vandalieu was a little surprised as well.
As far as I know, nobles would never bow their heads to commoners. The fact that he’s doing so means that… I’ve put considerable pressure on him, even though I was planning on just staying quiet, Vandalieu thought. I don’t think his receding hairline is my fault, though.
Isaac explained that the guards were treating Aggar as a dangerous criminal and searching for him, and that Joseph would likely be banished from the Morksi region after a thorough investigation of his actions.
“There is no place for him even in any of the lands that neighbor mine, let alone the Commerce Guild. He will either have to live in hiding in a slum somewhere or leave the city and move to another duchy… In any case, he will not live out the rest of his years in comfort,” Isaac said.
It was largely what Vandalieu had expected; Joseph wouldn’t even be given a chance to explain himself, and he would be punished as the mastermind who instigated the crimes of Aggar and his companions… the kidnapping.
Vandalieu felt sorry for Joseph, but according to his sources, Joseph had apparently harassed aspiring young merchants in a similar way, and when he was young, he had even taken advantage of young women in vulnerable positions to make them his mistresses.
Ordinarily, the Guild would protect its members, but it hadn’t been able to do so because of these circumstances.
“To the Commerce Guild, Joseph was a troublesome individual who was forced upon them by the earl’s family. They may have believed that the problems caused by him were the earl’s problem in this case,” Chipuras said through telepathy.
Indeed, that may have been the Guild’s true opinion.
“So, I believe that the harassment that you have experienced should cease –” Isaac began.
“Yes, I will be continuing to do my best in my business with my mother, just as I have up until now,” said Vandalieu, interrupting him.
Just as he had up until now… In other words, he would continue to hunt for meat on his own without relying on wholesale stores and continue operating his food cart in the same back alley in the red-light district.
It wasn’t that Vandalieu held a grudge towards the wholesale stores. It was just that it would be inconvenient to start doing business normally now.
Even if he were told to move from the back alley and do business in the best part of the main road where all of the Guild branches were… the other food carts that had become associated with him wouldn’t be able to come with him. And having the Hellhound Fang on guard next to a food cart on the main road would cause a flood of complaints.
It might also cause new conflicts with the other food carts.
The same applied for the ingredients.
The food cart currently served Rank 3 Orc or Huge Giga bird meat, or even more expensive meat. These were being served on skewers for a cheap price. There were also three kinds of sauce available – herb-flavored, wine-based and walnut.
This was all possible because the food cart acquired and processed ingredients independently. If they were provided by a wholesaler, the skewers’ price would be at least triple.
And when Vandalieu went out hunting for meat, it was also training for Simon, Natania, Fang and the rats. It would be troublesome if it became harder for him to leave the city.
“Hmm, I see… I have heard that there are now more food carts that have become associated with you. Is this your reason?” asked Isaac.
“That is one of the reasons,” Vandalieu replied.
At first, it had just been the food carts doing business on the same back alley as Vandalieu, but now, there were food carts operating in other alleys and bars in the slums that were associated with Vandalieu as well.
These businesses had been selling similar products as the first food carts associated with Vandalieu at similar prices, but in different locations.
However, their business had plummeted after rumors spread that there was a certain alleyway that sold delicious Goblin and Kobold sandwiches at the same price.
That was to be expected. Though Morksi was a city, it wasn’t as large as the large cities of Earth. It had a population of approximately thirty thousand people, and the red-light district and slum quarters were only two small parts of it.
Even a walk of less than twenty minutes would be one of the longer possible walking distances in the city, and it was well worth the walk to be able to eat tasty food for the same price, so there were many customers who visited the food carts that were a part of Vandalieu’s group.
The owners of the food carts and stores that were affected by this had made no attempt to try to figure out the secret behind making Gobu-gobu and edible Kobold meat; they had simply chosen to bear the heart that was Vida’s holy symbol and join Vandalieu’s group as well.
Another big reason for this was because they didn’t want to upset the ‘Starving Wolf’ Michael, who was an influential man in the red-light district. He was different from the thugs before, providing men to patrol the area as long as the owners paid a small space fee. Thanks to them, there had been a heavy decrease in eat-and-running, thieves and robbers; the back alleys were remarkably safer than before.
The owners feared that if they were no longer under such protection, there would be a surge in criminals that were currently being warded off by the men.
The reputation of the men being sent on patrols wasn’t bad, either. For some reason, the manners and appearances of the ‘Starving Wolf’s subordinates were improving day by day.
This was because Michael… Miles, was disciplining his subordinates strictly so they wouldn’t do stupid things and anger Vandalieu.
As a result, the ‘Starving Wolf’s’ influence in the red-light district and slums had grown, and Vandalieu did not see any appeal in leaving the area that was under that influence.
“In other words… everything is going well as it is, so you would rather continue as you are now. Very well. I shall inform the Commerce Guild myself,” said Isaac.
“Thank you very much, my lord,” Vandalieu said sincerely, bowing his head in gratitude.
“Anyway, regarding the Gobu-gobu that some of your food carts are selling, when – no, where did you learn the method of making it from the Ghouls?” Isaac continued, before Vandalieu could even raise his head. “The Ghouls in the Devil’s Nests surrounding this city… or perhaps the Ghouls of the Hartner or Sauron Duchies?”
Vandalieu froze for a few seconds, his head still bowed.
Isaac, who was still staring at the back of Vandalieu’s head, felt so nervous that his stomach hurt.
Until just a few years ago, Ghouls were merely considered to be one of many races of humanoid monsters. But Isaac had realized that Ghouls had left nothing but traces of themselves in the aftermath of the large events that had occurred in recent years.
He had recently come to this realization through pure coincidence. While Berard gave him a report about Juliana and Minotaurs, he had also heard that it had suddenly become impossible to harvest materials and Magic Stones from Ghouls.
Berard had assumed that this was because the Minotaurs had attacked the Ghoul settlements in order to turn them into mothers for their children. But Isaac had a strange feeling, and remembered something.
After inexplicable things happened in the Hartner Duchy and Sauron Duchy, the Ghouls in those duchies had all vanished without any large-scale exterminations having been carried out.
Nobody is paying attention to the fact that the Ghouls disappeared. Their disappearances have been overshadowed by large events like the castle in the Hartner Duchy leaning at an angle and the mysterious transformation of the Scylla territory into a land that is occupied by a horde of Undead. None of the dukes are even attempting to investigate them. Materials taken from Ghouls are replaceable with materials taken from other monsters, after all. But… it is a fact that they have disappeared in an unnatural way. Is it not possible that this boy is involved in their disappearances? Isaac thought.
These thoughts were crazy, on the border of delusions. It had only been several days since this thought occurred to him, and he had not yet conducted any detailed investigations. It was just an idea that he had come up with through intuition, with no evidence supporting it whatsoever.
Despite that, he had asked Vandalieu about it with a suggestive question because he felt that he needed to. If large incidents like the ones in the Hartner and Sauron Duchies were to occur in the city of Morksi… even if the Alcrem Duchy could survive them, he didn’t know whether the city would.
That was why he was trying to draw out an answer by creating this friendly atmosphere and playing the understanding nobleman.
“No, it is not knowledge that was taught to me by the Ghouls from the regions that you mention,” said Vandalieu, straightening up again and looking at Isaac.
“I see. It seems that in recent years, large disasters have struck regions in which Ghouls have disappeared… and the Ghouls near this city have also disappeared recently. Is it a sign of something to come?” said Isaac.
“I see. I am not an adventurer, so I am rather poorly informed on the size of monster populations… but I do not believe that a disaster is guaranteed.”
“… If a large incident were to occur in the city, will you work with me to resolve it?”
“I am but a mere merchant. People have recently begun to call me ‘Food Cart King’ and ‘Genius Tamer,’ but I still lack much experience. I am far from being a great hero. But I will do what little I can for the sake of the city’s people.”
“May I hold you to those words?”
“You and the entire city of Morksi have been very kind to myself and my mother, my lord. It has only been a month since I began living here, but I have grown attached to this place.”
“I see. That is most wonderful…!” said Isaac, collapsing into his chair.
His back was drenched in cold sweat, and his throat was parched.
But the words that he had wanted to hear… the surety of Vandalieu’s promise, had changed his tension into a sense of relief.
Darcia and Natania were released from their tension as well; they both gave sighs of relief.
But Vandalieu himself didn’t think much of the situation.
I feel like the earl’s impression is very different from the actual me for some reason, he thought.
He had been surprised at the fact that the earl had asked about the Ghouls, but to him, the conversation that had followed had been ordinary everyday conversation that was neither a lie nor the whole truth, rather than a negotiation.
The Ghouls that had taught him how to make Gobu-gobu and steamed Kobold meat were Zadiris, Basdia, Vigaro and the other Ghouls who had lived in a Devil’s Nest in the Mirg shield-nation. He hadn’t learned these methods from the Ghouls of the Orbaume Kingdom.
He didn’t know much about the size of monster populations, and at the moment, he wasn’t thinking of doing anything to the city of Morksi or the entire Alcrem Duchy.
The fact that he had also grown attached to the city was also true.
He had felt a little displeasure at the fact that Isaac’s spies had attempted to arrest Aggar after they entered the orphanage rather than before the crime could take place, but even that had disappeared after a day had passed and after actually talking to Isaac directly.
This person is an understanding nobleman. I want to continue a friendly relationship with him.
He had a far simpler personality than Isaac thought.
The rest of the tea party at the earl’s house was uneventful for Vandalieu.
Natania’s artificial limbs became a topic of conversation, but Vandalieu simply told him that they were experimental, and Isaac didn’t ask about them any further.
After that, Isaac spoke more to Darcia than to Vandalieu. It seemed that he wanted to hear about her worship of Vida.
Meanwhile, Vandalieu and Natania enjoyed the tea and snacks provided, but… they were very unique compared to the ones of Earth.
The earl’s family’s milk tea was good, as it had been made with milk that had been freshly squeezed from cows on the paddocks this morning, but… it would take some time to get used to the snacks that consisted of soft bread topped with an incredibly sour fresh cheese and an extremely sweet syrup.
“The fresh cheese made with fresh milk and the syrup that contains a large amount of sugar are probably supposed to represent the earl’s wealth. I think it’s a traditional thing,” said Vandalieu after leaving the tea party as he headed towards the orphanage.
A festival would be held tomorrow to give thanks to Vida and pray for spring to come quickly, so it seemed that the orphanage wanted Vandalieu’s help. This festival hadn’t been held last year, but this was another result of Vandalieu’s donations.
“Vandalieu-sama, is it really necessary to assist them? We were invited by that Matthew and the other children, but there is still the preparation of the food cart to do,” said Chipuras.
But Vandalieu was eager to join in on the preparations. “Chipuras, you might be right, but… I love the scenario of making preparations for an event with friends of my own age.”
Such school activities had been nothing but dreadful for Vandalieu on Earth, but Lambda was different. That was why Vandalieu liked getting involved with making preparations for events.
“And it’s not that much work. It’s troublesome that I can’t use my spirit-form clones or Demon King Familiars, but we’re just decorating the orphanage’s chapel,” said Vandalieu.
There weren’t many decorations to hang up, and the children would help as well, so it wouldn’t take very long.
Vandalieu arrived at the orphanage… and felt a strange feeling, a strange presence. Spirits that he had never seen before were floating about in the surroundings. They were spirits that, up until today, weren’t around the orphanage… or in the city of Morksi at all.
They screamed wordlessly at Vandalieu, warning him of danger.
“… Where are the intruders?” Vandalieu murmured, searching through the memories of the Undead and Golem familiars that he had placed around.
But nobody had entered the orphanage from the outside.
There was no stench of blood or screams, but… despite that, the spirits were restless.
“Ah, you’re here! Hurry up and come in, Vandalieu! Everyone’s waiting for you!” Matthew called out from inside the orphanage’s door.
He looked no different from yesterday. But the spirits were desperately trying to stop Vandalieu from responding.
“… Alright. It’s fine, I’ll do exactly as I prepared,” he told the spirits as he entered the orphanage.
In the orphanage’s chapel, none of the preparations for tomorrow’s festival had been made. Instead, there was the head of the orphanage, the nuns Seris and Vestra, and about half of the orphanage’s children, standing in a line.
“Welcome, Vandalieu-san,” said Seris.
“Thank you for coming. It’s very helpful of you,” said Vestra.
“Onii-chan, my Brian learned a new trick!” said one of the girls.
All of them were smiling at Vandalieu, just as they had done yesterday. Matthew, who was standing next to Vandalieu, was smiling as well.
There were also four unfamiliar people with crimson eyes that Vandalieu did not recognize, as well as one man that he did recognize.
“Welcome, Vandalieu Zakkart, to my house of puppets,” said Birkyne with a bright smile.
“… What do you want?” said Vandalieu.
First, he needed to learn what kind of state Matthew and Sister Seris were in.
Title explanation:
Holy Woman
A Title acquired by those who have performed great deeds, achieved great things and has been recognized by a Church with authority. There are related Titles, such as ‘Saint,’ ‘Holy Person,’ ‘Holy Girl’ and ‘Holy Mother.’
These Titles grant their bearers charisma towards those who worship the same god and associated gods, and can also provide beneficial bonuses for conducting religious activities such as missionary work.
They also make it easier to acquire Skills such as ‘Familiar Spirit Descent’ and ‘Enhanced Attribute Values: Belief.’
Ordinarily, those who already have Titles such as ‘Saint’ and ‘Holy Mother’ cannot acquire another such Title.
But in Darcia’s case, there is no exchange of information between the Orbaume Kingdom and regions such as the area within the Boundary Mountain Range and the Demon Continent. As a result, there are two separate groups of people, one that regards her as a ‘Holy Mother’ and one that regards her as a ‘Holy Woman.’
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NOVEL DISCUSSION
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Randy Rando
“The fresh cheese made with fresh milk and the syrup that contains a large amount of sugar are probably supposed to represent the earl’s wealth. I think it’s a traditional thing,” said Vandalieu after leaving the tea party as he headed towards the orphanage.
I thought that it was aged cheese that was a sign of wealth, not fresh cheese.
Aged cheese shows that you have the resources necessary to store something in a dry place for years and that you have enough milk to be able to store some away while still having enough left over for ordinary consumption.
Fresh cheese shows that you have a cow.
I could also be wrong about all this, or the author might not have known about it. It is only a throwaway line after all, hardly worth spending the time to research what kind of cheese displayed wealth in medieval times.
Zenden1st
oh no
SmerchOleg
So, Showy boy has come to beg Van to have his soul devoured.
Tenma shinigami
So bearkine(won’t bother spelling his name correctly) dares to lay a hand of van-sama’s first same age friend
Toon in Next chapter will be staring vandalieu tasting vampire for lunch
Baldingere
The limbless women of marriageable age… Now I never expected to see “limbless” and “marriageable” together!
Chiu ChunLing
That probably should have been translated as “nubile”. Though “limbless nubile women” still sounds really freaky, but it’s pretty accurate.
Yonko
Birkyne making the same mistake as the evil breaking swords, he’s so dead
MintyMints
Although he hasn’t beaten them to an inch of life, also he probably doesn’t want one of them to die like Iris.
Zauberbiest
lol briky and here i thought u were one of the smarter foes of van
i mean this puppet house is pretty neat,
Blue Berry
Birkyne really doesn’t realize how much he fucked up, right?
KingJake122
smh he has no idea.
Vitor
He does, but he considers himself dead anyway
Calango
I think he really wants to ally himself with Vand, but his personality has reached such a high level of distortion that there is no turning back.
Rollrock
Birkyne has no idea what he had just gotten himself into. Van is somewhere around the power level of a Great Old One, just because the old bloodsucker is thousands of years old doesn’t mean he grew in power each of those years he had spent doing nothing.
DarthJawa
Birkyne has no idea how fucked he is now
polynesianvibez
damn, really? the orphanage? you just screwed with van’s first friend.
thanks for the chapter
MrTrixer
I was afraid of this, it makes sense trying to take control of younger children and have ones influence grow over then until they become adults and starts spreading out in the societies.
I wonder how he will play his cards next..
Thank you for the chapter and the treat! (^_^)/
Reiji
First off, thank you very much for the chapter!!
Next, as I said in my post as a reply to Kazza’s question way back in Chapter 211, the orphans and the orphanage had something to do with the pawns Birkyne was talking about so Yay. Called it.
Lastly, I hope all of you stay safe 💜
Garotinho321
Caracas… Birkyne começou errado.
Tejing
Please post in english.
mexgema
Please consider that not everyone knows how to speak English.
Tejing
Everyone should be able to use google translate (particularly given that they’re reading this site… which is in english). It’s not perfect, but for languages with some common ancestry it’s really not bad. It’s just courteous to take the extra step once yourself rather than expecting every person who reads your comment to replicate that work themselves.
Vitor
In the same way, it’s possible for you yo copy his comments and paste them on Google translate dude, if you really are that interested
Kionzel
Looking at the similarity to english words, Garoth says Birkyne is going to be dead, of a carcass maybe. Don’t be rude about language, criticize ideals if you oppose them, but not ghe means of communication.
Vitor
Caracas is more of an expresion, like :damn… Birkyne just made a mistake
Btex
It’s 2020 time to learn a new language? Or use google translator..
havok038
Birkyne seems to have forgotten what Van did to the other two Pure-breeds in his Evil god of joyful life trinity. Gubamon was targetted because he had been orchestrating the fall of Talosheim to claim heroes for his collection. And Ternecia just happened to be in his way at the time. Hunted because of small hindrances they caused to his plans.
While Birkyne was responsible for chasing down Darcia and Van’s father, the latter of which he had killed.
Yet he insists on calling the orphanage his house of dolls. That’s like telling Van its alright to obliterated his ass. Even the Goddess Incarnate would surely have no mercy for this fool.
Wyverius
Pretty sure Goobermon was the one who had his dad killed.
agimax
But Van has said that he is going to kill him, and he doesn’t particularly like to make a liar of himself.
“「But one day you’ll kill Birkyne and his Vampires… You will destroy them, won’t you?」(Eleanora)
「Of course.」(Vandalieu)
Even if he is a Vampire who had lived for a hundred thousand years, it would probably be easier to defeat him than the people who will resurrect here from Origin with cheat-like abilities. Even if he does possess an evil god’s divine protection, he isn’t an evil god himself, after all.”
-Volume 2 Chapter 45
havok038
Absolutely correct, guys. See? Even I’m considering the three pure-breeds’ contributions to be so forgettable. Birkyne should’ve just run off to the farthest continent and perhaps start afresh. Then again, For those who read the spoilers knows why he can’t.
Wyverius
F5 gang anyone?
Morgan
‘Holy Girl’ in the title explanation should probably ‘Holy Maiden’
Also, Called it! I said it was the orphans and maybe the nun. Next chapter should reveal whether I was right about Birkyne’s fragment too.
Kiriaru
I’ll see about that Morgan, I myself never thought it would be EVERYONE in the orphanage.
Ozarazil
So all of orphans and the sisters were his puppets? That’s… kind of a disappointing event. I mean Birky said the “puppet” infiltrated deep enough into Vandal’s group (Wich I wondered how was that posible while being guided), the orphanage doesn’t have that close of a relationship with Vandal, so they didn’t infiltrate that deep.
Since the kids were being influenced by Vandal, to the point of becoming aspirant tamers, shouldn’t they be guided at this point? Yet Birky still controls them?.
I… think Van might do something drastic. He might kill everyone (turn them into undead later), have Gufadgarn transport him and the vampires to another place and then slaughter them. Well he also might not since if everyone from the orphanage disappears he’ll be the first suspect. Tricky…
Jonathan Hurd
I don’t think Van is capable of killing those he considers friends. He has no problem with undead and considers them just like people, but there is a big difference between reviving recently deceased friends and killing your friends to rule their undead. That’s something Van would never do. A big reason why Van has sought strength this entire time is to prevent harm be calling those he cares about, not to inflict it on them himself. So he will definitely do everything in his power to save the orphanage people.
I will say the people in the orphanage are probably under guidance but that doesn’t necessarily mean brainwashing won’t work. There are a few tricks Birknye can do to have them continue telling him about Van. The first is implant that Birknye is their friend. Then ask them about their new friend Van. They would easily send information not knowing Van and Birknyes relationship. Another is make them think Birknye is Vans friend.
As long as you make sure they think their actions won’t be bringing harm it a fairly easy to make them compliant even under guidance. The only big worry at that point could be them talking about Birknye to Van, but you could probably install a few mental blocks to stop that.
Doom-sama
PRAISE VAN-SAMA, OUR LORD SAVIOR, OUR CHAMPION, OUR DEATH GOD, AS HE DEALS WITH THIS ANNOYING PRICK! THE SACRED MESSAGE OF THE DAY IS:
Error.
Signal lost. Current scene has generated too much intensity and suspense. Please wait while a technician is dispatched at once.
VIOLENT
Damn as i throught it was the orphanage, well we all know that Birkyne won’t survive the encounter.
Neecron
all praise lord yoshi for his translation
Alex-dono
spoilers
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So Birkys puppepets were the people of the orphanage. He said he wanted to make peace with van, this was not the way to do it. Soul break impending. Van does not fogive easily. even though when people who wronged him die and become loyal spirits he still kills them like with gordan and riley. I wonder if it will be the same here
Alex-dono
Though it would be nice if Birky was guided and turned good so that he doesn’t get soul broke by van
HauntingHyena
Firstly, I don’t think it’s spoilers since it’s what just happened in the chapter. Secondly, as Van said, his response to Birkyne will Likely depend on what state the people are in. Thirdly, I think it’s highly likely Brikyne will become a subordinate, before or after death, due to his information network. The whole story has basically been him slowly gaining power and influence unintentionally. He still doesn’t have a true intelligence network and I believe this is the moment where it will change.
Morgan
Wasn’t this comment supposed to be spoilers? You just stated common sense.
DarthGrim
Spoilers aren’t allowed
dkuro
Thanks for the chapter
So I Think Earl Mosky is the best Nobleman we saw so far in the novel. He is not a dick, have an enough good intuition to understand the disaster Vandalieu is capable of and doesn’t have stupid reaction over it and try doing a decent Job.
No other human noblemen seems to have so much qualities so far with their first encounter with Vandalieu.
What more can you ask for ?
Neecron
i was thinking the same thing
Nikwigi
The world would be doomed if this were a cultivation novel..
Tejing
Iris is a noble too, don’t forget.
Absolute Zer0
Well, she is from Knight House.So her household didn’t have much status.
Dr. Steel
Though he has based just about everything on intuition with very very little evidence. But in the end he was right, so what’s it matter
Chiu ChunLing
It’s quite sad that he has to work in the dark because of Dolmad suppressing information about “that Dhampir”. But that might be convenient in this case, it would be unfortunate if he were to have unjust preconceptions about Van.
Renrobt
I have a theory what Birknye wants:
He wants to join Van. To be exact he wants to betray his god and be free of their influance. He was threatened with death even tho he is the god’s last major worshiper, and all the others have been wiped out by Van.
Probably the best way to save himself would be to join Van and go back to Vida. At least from his point of view. And to start negotiating with Van instead of him instantly just wiping the floor with him, he needed the orphans as hostages.
Problem is: Van really doesn’t take well to those attempting to strong arm him. Plus Birknye was on his hit list since day one pretty much and he is one to get revenge on those who wronged him.
Absolute Zer0
Just imagine.
If story started from Heinz’s side then we will be thinking Van is new Demon King that is aiming to destroy the world. It is kinda heartbreaking when i imagine myself seeing Van as big villain.
Alex-dono
yeah but we probably wouldn’t have stuck with the series for this long if he had been from heinz’s side of the story b/c as an enemy heinz is interesting because he is considered just to eveeryone but van and co. but if he were the protagonist he would be boring b/c he seems like a standard power of friendship dense harem type of mc.
Jago
Densuke writing isn’t so simplistic, so probably he could have made interesting, but Van side is certainly more interesting.
Chiu ChunLing
…
I think most of us would have dropped the story around when Heinz didn’t see anything wrong with hunting down a young mother for the crime of giving birth until after seeing her tortured to death by a madman.
And even then, didn’t think anything essentially wrong with the doctrine of Alda, which clearly details him having done the exact same thing to Vida.
Vaher
After reading about the spirits warning vandaliue I just had a thought, remember the spirits that were keeping him company in origin, I wonder if his clone in origin is going to meet them at some point and since the little girl seems to have death affinity it made me think that maybe that’s how she’s going to find out about everything that happened to vandaliue and how her parents killed him
Alex-dono
That sounds like an interesting theory but I think those spirits have already moved on or are nowhere near Meh-kun b/c van died in origin over 10 years ago and the spirits would come and go over the span of the 15 years he was in the laboratory. Also I don’t think meh-kun will hate her parents if she does find out b/c they killed amamiya hiroto not van or banda so she is unlikely to bear any ill will towards them
Jonathan Hurd
They would of probably been able to hold on if they were close to Van for the 15 years and supplied his mana, but without that to anchor them all of them will have passed on or gone insane. Even if they did meet I think it’s a bit hard to cause the child Mei to understand concepts like betrayal, death, and hatred. Especially pointed at her own dad.
I get the feeling the Avalon is definitely going to bring out the truth when he finally turns on Hiroto. Perfect way to disrupt their team unity is reveal a long held secret their commander never told them. Especially since it would put him at odds with his wife who works as logistics and kind of the heart of the Braver organization.
How that reveal will affect Mei? I don’t think too much. I mean she has Banda to turn to and ask about it, and he honestly cares more about Meh Kun than petty revenge or his last life’s death at this point.
VEreality
Those souls would normally fade by now. However there is one thing that might have changed that. If I remember well enough when Van brought himself back to life in Origin there was an explosion of death magic. That thing coulnd’t be contained in his body. We don’t know how that would have affected them. There is a chance they became something akin to wraiths.
As for Avalon… he pretty much already replaced himself with metamorph, someone that is under Van’s control. There are a hundre plus ways in which he can be killed along with his allies and nobody would know that he is gone.
Tejing
I’m afraid you don’t remember right. There wasn’t any explosion of death magic at that time. You’re probably confusing it with what happened with Pluto’s body after her death (that killed Murakami, Doug, Melissa, and Kanako).
VEreality
Ok, explosion was not the best way to describe it(english is not my first language sry). What I wanted to say is that Van, Hiroto at the time, used a lot of death atribut magic. Especialy for his ressurection as an undead. We don’t know how that affected the souls around him. However, we know that all that power was leaking from his body due to the fact that his fearsome appearance was one of the reasons for him being shot on sight.
GashBello
Thank you very much for the chapter! I can’t wait for the end of the Vampire Hunt, well finally Van-sama will destroy the Hihiryushukaka and all these vampire bastards.
Absolute Zer0
Wow! You know name of Evil God Mr. LongName
Morgan
You know evil god longname’s name! You are on par with those who know about times old roman and old zealand.
Absolute Zer0
I hope Birkyne is not dumb as i thought. If not then he and Evil God Mr.longname will die for sure. And super cool battle royale won’t happen…
Vinzenz226
My theory Birkin and his evil God Hihiryushukaka will join vidas side and Hihiryushukaka will maybe undergo a change like Merrebeveil and become a suburdinat God who is a tricktster like lokie because really look at them there are some similarites and also vandalieu can finally say that he also managed to win a evil God over to his site
Jonathan Hurd
Putting aside whether Hiryushaku would want to join Vidas side, I highly doubt he would. Why would Vida and her group accept him? Considering the way he works and the things he’s done… No one would be able to trust him. Welcoming him in would be just giving him the perfect chance to undermine your unity and stab you in the back at a critical moment.
Add in Vans feelings. He is the God of the Vampire who killed his dad and the vampires who have hunted him since birth. Van can be forgiving but there are limits.
Morgan
Hihi-chan won’t join Van cause he’s scared as hell of Van. The second last thing he wants is Birkyne working with Van and the last is meeting Van himself.
Absolute Zer0
Really, now i can’t imagine smart ass guy in black anymore.
Paps
Thanks for the chapter, ooo poor Vampire he will get his ass well handled!!!!
Lord Rin
Heh it’s funny how the Earl’s baseless assumptions are more or less right. Anyways it seems like Aggar and his group have been disposed of according to Van so that he has an alibi. Also Joseph will be banished from the city and none of the surrounding areas will take him so he’ll have to leave the duchy and probably become an unemployed beggar that’ll probably die in the gutter somewhere.
So now some of Van’s people are getting new transforming equipment that isn’t magical girl outfits. What would these be then? Super Sentai outfits? Saint Seiya armors?
Birkyne you dumbass. He personally showed up to meet Van. The guy who he knows even Evil Gods don’t want to fight and he just assumes that Van wouldn’t just attack him regardless of the orphans being hostages. He probably came here to gloat that he’s some amazing evil mastermind and that everything is in the palm of his hand. He’ll probably claim that he’s come to negotiate but really he’ll try to strong-arm Van into unconditionally accepting his demands. Then if he’s really stupid he’ll think that Van is a pushover and think that maybe he really can just kill him. Either way, the orphans are no threat and are useless as hostages since Van is a guider and is also the main body of the demon king and can control DK fragments.
So Darcia has both the “Holy Mother” and “Holy Woman” titles that normally you can only get one of and both provide bonuses for religious work so that means she can probably convert people to Vida’s religion much faster and easier.
Renrobt
Birkyne definitely wants to strong arm Van to work for him, that is for sure. Or at least that was his intention originally, though probably at the moment even he should realize how much of a danger Van is. His attitude and caution for the last few years proves that.
Also the fact that he didn’t go insane just by being in the presence of Van means that he is resistant to the DK fragment’s effect or at least can keep it in check. Or that it is a magic projection and he isn’t actually there in person and that is the only reason the fragment didn’t go berserk the minute he entered the town in which Van presides.
Also I would assume that the effect isn’t doubled due to the 2 titles, rather they just have the same effect, and the stronger one manifests. Her increased charisma towards worshipers of Vida was clear even before the sermon, that is why she was invited to give one.
Mr.Darkness
I liked this chapter very much ^^
I’m surprised that the entire orphanage, not only the children, are Birkyne’s puppets!
Jonathan Hurd
Thank you for the chapter Yoshi and Co.
I do gotta say something that always cracks me up is all the nobles trying to understand Vans moves are basically playing 4th dimensional chess in their heads. They’re trying to read into every answer, motion, and action to extrapolate the hidden meaning or plan behind each of Vans words or movements. Meanwhile Van in his head is simply playing checkers with himself confused why everyone is freaking out, lol.
I will say I know we’re all hyped for an epic fight, but I gotta say I don’t see Birknye being the one. This is not the way he would start a fight against Van. Birknye respects and fears Van to much to initiate the fight face to face in a gentlemanly manner like this. If Birknyes going to fight it will be down and dirty when Van least expects it. I mean Birknye knows am for a fact that two groups are already coming to attack Van. It makes much more sense to watch those two fight Van first. Let him exhaust himself then swoop in for the kill.
This meeting to me screams negotiation. He has the hostages front and center to be shields and decentivize fighting. He’s also kind of laying those cards on the table as an opening show of power. Effectively saying I have their lives do you want to trade? Now the question to me is what Birknye wants to trade them for.
I think Birknye would of been fine with a partnership before, but he lacks the power to aim for that. He could of gone for subordinate and tried to rot the organization from the inside, but if Vans a guider that becomes pointless. So I think Birknye is going to go for a non-aggression pact. Basically ask Van not to kill him in exchange for being tipped off about certain Alda and reincarantor movements.
Tejing
Birkyne intends this meeting to be a negotiation, but it will certainly turn into a fight instead, kinda like what happened with the 15 evil-breaking swords. Van does not respond well to being strongarmed.
Jonathan Hurd
It is definitely true Van does not like this form of intimidation. I will say though there are a few key differences to the 15 evil breaking blades negotiation though. Birknye hasn’t actually hurt the hostages yet. That’s a big plus.
He also is controlling them in some way so Van can’t really act til he knows what has happened to them. Birknye is also not coming to the negotiation table assuming he has the advantage. A big reason why the fifteen evil breaking blades negotiations went so bad was they assumed Van was just a stupid kid who got a unique skill and was playing king. They didn’t understand the strength he wields.
I think the most important part is Birknye has probably very carefully plotted an escape route. Ternicia had that tooth to teleport to a secret base. I’m sure Birknye probably has something similar stowed away.
Kuro-san
Thanks for the chapter!
How do you think resistance skills work? I don’t remember if Densuke-sama has already explained. I have two guesses, I will write them down below.
A) They increase the user’s tolerance. Something like: ‘The user’s tolerance increases by 10% per skill level’.
B) They decrease the opponent’s damage. Something like: ‘The opponent’s damage decreases by 9.9% per skill level.
Does anyone have a third guess?
Entropy
Well considering the level of the resistance of the reincarnator that fought against Vand, I suspect that each boost gives 10% resistance. Say you have level 5 resistance to fire attacks, a 500 point fireball will only deal 250 damage, whereas at level 10 resistance will deal 0 damage no matter how powerful the fireball is. When Vand’s former classmate got hit with poison, disease and death magic, he took no damage since he had level 10 resistances in each ability.
Kuro-san
If level 10 of a resistance skill equals 100% protection, why are there immunity / nullification skill, like Levia’s ‘Flame Nullification’?
Furthermore, you are forgetting the defensive power(tolerance), which could explain the fact that the reincarnator has not taken damage.
EX (Using my version): If a person hit by a fireball, which deals 500 points of damage, has ‘Fire Resistance: Level 10’, they would only need to take 5 points of damage; however, if that person has 5 points, or more, of tolerance against fire, it person would not take damage.
Jonathan Hurd
I feel like you’re on the right path but not quite there. I completely agree with resistance that makes sense from the fight with Gungnir. I will say I don’t believe rank 10 is immunity. Otherwise why did Khuul’s blunt damage resistance evolve into Blunt damage nullification.
Densuke hasn’t really spelled out exactly how much resistances do as far as I can remember. I think part of it is he doesn’t really like to write based in math. It’s a bit to easy to write yourself into a corner and contradict yourself when you start giving things numeric values.
If I had to guess I would say stuff like resistances shave off a certain percent, but that there is probably also an upper limit based on individual. Basically I think someone with Vans power if he pours a billion death attribute magic into a spell the resistance might not be able to halve that spells effects. Now granted even if you did fully halve the spell that’s still 500 million mana you’re taking directly… So not sure if it would make too much difference to have the cap.
For the Gungnirs resistances he had immunity to poison and disease since he saw the undead spread those in an area around himself in Origin. He only had level 5 resistance to Death Attribute since Rodcorte hasn’t interacted with it much.
Entropy
It has been a while since I read Gungnir stats, but I suppose you are right. I do remember he took a death bullet that supposedly would have killed him without the resistance so it might be as you said that resistances allow for attacks to be resisted. Another possibility is that resistances trigger with an attack that you know is coming or during combat whereas nullification is always turned on. I might be a little off, but I imagine we will find out eventually.
Jonathan Hurd
I think resistances are always active since they’re listed in the passive skill field.
I was thinking about it and another form resistance could take is instead of reducing by a percent it could be a flat amount with a certain cap.
So using numbers if I had fire resistance level 1 that could mean that any fire attack I take 10 damage is taken out of it. So if someone threw a tiny fireball at me I’d take no damage touching the flames.
It is possible both systems could also be happening. For instance if damage doesn’t pass a certain threshold it’s just negated. If it does a percent is taken out. Things working this way seems to make some sense if we look at earlier chapters of Vampires getting Sunlight resistance. At a certain point they aren’t hurt by the sun’s rays anymore. So that means that the damage isn’t only being reduced but negated.
Evolving the skill to Nullification could me that you simply take off the cap of how much damage can be negated I’d assume.
Diggydawg
Hmmm… Will Birkyne “bow” or “bow out” before Vandalieu’s power?
Spruce
<3
mexgema
I’m probably greatly overestimating Birkyne’s intelligence here, but here’s what i think he’s gonna do: He’s gonna prostrate himself, beg for Van’s forgiveness, and ask to be his subordinate.
The puppets are there mostly as an insurance that Van wouldn’t kill him the second he saw him, and if it goes badly he could use them as cover to get away to safety.
Again, probably greatly over estimating this guy, but if he wants to live, I can’t see him doing anything else and genuinely, confidently, thinking it would work.
gomezseba37
if Birkyne surrenders that would mean he is very intelligent he has no chance of winning even if his demon king fragment can control thoughts or subconcius actions van is inmune he has control over his own soul so that power wouldnt affect him I really hope they agree on a “I will not do anything to you if you dont do anything to me” type of deal
Entropy
I doubt Birkyne will serve Vand long if at all. Birkyne has the ego of Alda and thinks he can manipulate anyone. He planned to take control of his two allies so I doubt he would willingly serve Vand. He reminds me of those evil gods Vand released, when given the option to serve, he knows that he will eventually make a mistake and Vand will kill him. Besides he is kind of in a no win situation, if he serves Vand, his god will kill him and vice versa the other way. Plus Birkyne is too unstable with his sudden bouts of rage to serve Vand for long. He will eventually lose his mind over something and attack Vand’s friends and Vand will kill him then.
Jonathan Hurd
I think Birknye is ready and willing to serve. I mean the entire philosophy of Hirushakyu is to serve those stronger til you find an opening to take over. The best place to stab the old king from is while standing behind him watching his back. The only problem for him is I don’t think Van really wants or needs him.
Birknye knows he is in a weak position. His network is in shambles, his two strongest allies are dead. The only real thing he has to offer are the brainwashed orphans, which is going to leave a bad taste in Vans mouth, and information on Asagi’s group.
I think what Birknye is going to try and aim for here is a ceasefire. Basically say to Van “look you got Alda and the reincarnators to worry about and I have to rebuild my system. Why don’t we just stay out of each others hair and go about our business. I promise to not hurt anyone of Vidas races and can even help you find them if you want. You don’t kill me.” As a show of good faith he then informs Van about how he has been keeping tabs on Murakami’s group, they’re down Syphilid, and Hajime is also around so expect the attack soon.
I will personally say I think comparing Birknye to Alda is a bit unfair. Birknye at least realizes what he’s doing is evil. He also learns from his mistakes. Finally he has an actual plan. What I always find funny is if you look at human society Alda has pushed for in the Amid Empire and Orbaume Kingdom, the upper echelon are all basically following Hirushakyus teachings to the letter.
Alda has had sole control of humanity for a hundred thousand years and the only message he ever spread was kill they neighbor who is different. At least Hirushakyus killing doesn’t discriminate. You push everyone down equally because everyone can dethrone you. If you succeed you get the top of the pyramid. With Alda if you succeed following him you get to be the top of a mountain of corpses.
Entropy
You are right that Alda and Birkyne are different in terms of their beliefs. Alda has confidence in his ability to reign as a supreme god, or at least he did until Vand showed up, whereas Birkyne thinks he can outmaneuver anyone, again until Vand showed up. I see Birkyne as a chessmaster that comes up with over-complicated plans that either show how smart he is or blow up in his face. In addition when something unexpected happens, Birkyne goes on a temper tantrum, though with his power, he kills a lot of people in his blind rage. Alda has admitted that he might have made a mistake with some of Vida’s races but is unwilling to turn back now. I suppose a more apt comparison for Birkyne would be with the demon king when he fooled the heroes into attacking a fake to take out Zakkart. That plan either worked or blew up in his face. If Alda and company had come to the Vida’s aid, the demon king would have been surrounded with no strong allies. I honestly don’t think Birkyne has much in the way of combat experience and always thinks that his plans will work so I bet Vand will throw a wrench in said plan.
kazamakj
Fight fight fight. Lol I just want to know what Demon King part he will get as a result of beating down Birkyne. Really cannot see a way Van loses at the moment unless he gets ambushed by Rod and Alda at the same time.
Ltshrek
Be like Birkyne confident even though he doesn’t know what he’s dealing with
gomezseba37
Birkyne I think he knows taht he cant beat him in a fight so this plan seems good in my opinion
Jonathan Hurd
I think Birknye has the best idea of what and who he’s dealing with that’s why he came prepared. I think his showing off and exuding confidence isn’t because he’s overconfident to fight but more likely he’s trying to show a strong front for a negotiation. Negotiations only happen between similarly powerful parties. If he appears to weak Van might just decide it’s easier to kill him now and be done with it.
iamleejn
And with Van running the food carts, they’re eating better too!
Telephotoleek69
Finally time to destroy Birkyne
Decaf [Invidia]
Whoo. That was a nice long chapter. Thank you for the hard work.
V4NQU1SH
Wrong move, Birkyne!
Rest in Pieces!
Thanks for the chapter~!
Straingeguy1
I donated just a few days ago, the day before 217 came out, but I don’t appear in the thanks, is there something I’m missing?
Shank Mugen
There’s a huge list of people who have donated before you, so the people getting thanked are the ones who donated a few months back, and your name will appear when it reaches the point where the donation counts towards the chapter queue, as Death Mage is popular, it gets far more donations than what Yoshi and co can translate, so it gets put in queues, the old website had a marker showing how many were in queue, but it only counted till 15 queues iirc, the reason we are getting so many updates is probably because everyone is stuck at home so they probably thought it would be good to clear the giant queue of chapter donations, and will eventually get to your donations
Straingeguy1
Thanks for the heads-up, very informative. I was just worried about whether my money got where it was meant to be, I’m relieved now, even if it was only $5
iamleejn
Based on the Discord, there’s a “backlog” of ~6 funded chapters. It’ll probably be a month or so before your name shows up.
Straingeguy1
Now I am deeply anticipating 6 more chapters
Jonathan Hurd
So are we, lol.
Nox
Thanks for the chapter.
Birkyne delivered himself to the death god and possible angered him as Van wanted to prepare for the holiday. Capital punishment for this offense for Birkyne.
Garotinho321
Realmente… Van estava animado para participar de algo no estilo festival escolar com pessoas da “idade” dele. É mesmo que por uma probabilidade ínfima as pessoas só se aproximaram dele por causa do Birkyne, ele vai ficar putaço.
Tejing
Please post in english.
Babyldr
Ready guys , this is one of the good fights that we haven’t had in a while xD
Nguyen Tran Duong Hoang
Mid-boss? Nah, he is just NPC in a game to gain a few EXP points
Lord Rin
But really is it though? He has absolutely no cards to play. He thinks he can use the orphans as leverage but Van is a guider which Birkyne specifically hoped he wasn’t and Van is also the new Demon King and can influence all other DK fragments like Birkyne’s who have also been used on the orphans to control them. Meanwhile Birkyne is arrogant as hell and thinks he’s some absolute genius that can make people do what he wants. I feel like this will be like the time with the 15 Evil-Breaking Blades where their own arrogance made negotiations break down. The only difference being that this will probably be even more of a curb-stomp battle since Van should be able to influence Birkyne’s DK fragment.
Chiu ChunLing
Birkyne is at least doing better than the 15 EB Swords in terms of leaving a possibility of negotiation for the hostages and bringing a better combat force.
But it’s hopeless anyway cause the whole point of what Van’s been doing is setting a trap for him. At least the EB Swords had the advantage of surprise, even if all they used it for was to dig a nice deep grave. His only viable option was to run as fast and far as possible, and hope Van was too busy to come after him.
Except that his orders from Hihiryushukaka are to kill Van, not run, but certainly not negotiate either. So his fate was already sealed.
Hobbes
Possibility for negotiation?
That flew out the window as soon as he took hostages. Even if by a miracle of miracles, he escaped the oncoming confrontation with some semblance of life, he already incurred a vengeance demon’s wrath. He’d be marked as food for the soul with a permanent stamp.
By threatening violence not at Van, but at those close to him, he already crossed the Rubicon, burned the bridge, and is skipping into battle naked with a sign around his neck that says, “Please end my existence!”
Chiu ChunLing
It flew out the window back when Van promised Eleanora that he’d kill Birkyne. I’m not going to say that’s not Birkyne’s fault…but the same applies to the possibility of Van ever working for the Empire.
All I’m saying is that Birkyne hasn’t actually done anything here that clearly worsens Van’s impression of him, the way the 15 EB Swords did.
He still should have tried sending a polite letter, I’m still kinda amazed that Kanako and now Earl Morksi are the only people to think of that. It still wouldn’t have helped, Birkyne’s done way too many unforgivable things and Van knows way too much about him, but at least there would have been more room for witty repartee.
The thing that Birkyne clearly did worse than the 15 EB Swords is setting up an ambush. No matter how comparatively crude their methods, the EB Swords at least managed to surprise Van. Birkyne is ignoring the fact that Van is expecting him to take the entire city hostage, not just the orphans. To be fair, that is Van’s ‘secret’ plan, but Birkyne should have figured it out when he was contemplating that the reincarnators hunting Van might try to destroy the whole city. He should have wondered “what does Van plan to do if someone is willing to just level the entire city?” And the right way to answer that question would have been to let the reincarnators try it first.
Still, after seeing what Van can really do, what’s he gonna do? His only options would be to run away and try hiding, but he can’t do that forever.
Vrotophthoros1
Oh shieee…..
Lucian
Someone call the the Carpenter’s Guild!About half of the city is about to turn into rubble!(and miraculously,nobody dies)
Bubu
I thought byrkyne’s do better than this? You wasted my expectations on you men.😶😶
Darkhelios
Well… I guess he couldn’t do better than this.
His organisation is already tattered due to Vandalieu and he’s forced to prepare for the upcoming monstrous battle between a God of Death and the little God of Law…
Both of them want him dead and he doesn’t have the required strengh/ability to defeat his foes or to hide. Actually, even if he managed to hide, it wouldn’t do him any good:
Vandalieu is becoming more and more powerful everyday and would likely detect him at one point and, due to his lifespan, Vandalieu would be here for a looooong time…
And regarding Alda, this little god wouldn’t ally himself to Birkyne nor even negociate.
In conclusion, Birkyne was forced to negociate with one side (Vandalieu)… and he had to do it fast.
Entropy
Thanks for the chapter. I found it funny that the earl was able to guess the cause of disasters and that he linked Vand with the ghouls. So what are the orphans? vampires, changelings, zombies, dhampirs, or just kids with a severe case of Stockholm syndrome. I suppose the latter makes the most sense in that Vand would charm them if they were undead and if the kids were raised thinking that they were food for vampires, they would become loyal servants. This does raise a question about why the other two pure bloods did not think of doing this. They went on and on about virgin blood being tastier, so why not ensure a steady supply of food. Well I do know that this is the fight where Birkyne will die, but I wonder if his god will follow him. I don’t have much hope for the fight though, since Birkyne is weaker than his other two pureblood allies in terms of attack and defense powers. Birkyne is more of a strategist so a face to face fight is foolish.
iamleejn
I think it was the last chapter, but it was mentioned that Birkyne was using a Demon King fragment to influence his puppet’s minds.
Tolkien
time to Birkyne be fucked up … ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ OOOOO GOD I need to read more
VEreality
He even made his appearance at the of the chapter. That is so cheesy. This dude wasted years trying to run and hide from Van and now he does this. Welp. Who are we to judge when people are unreasonable. Let’s just hope Van doesn’t destroy the entire city in the epic fight that is about to happen.
Thank you Yoshi-sama! I guess starting next chapter things are going down for real. Chain reaction style!
VEreality
True, but it’s not just Birkyne that is in the city. That cunning basterd must have at least 20 of his vampires ready to cause damage to the city should anything happen. As much as we hate him, this guy always had some well made plan somewhere behind the scene. They never worked because Van is a big ilogical death god that doesn’t follow the script, but those were pretty good plans.
Jonathan Hurd
I don’t know if you’re only goal is just to cause havoc and make a distraction bringing 20 throw away vampires seems like a fine idea. If they succeed whoopie. If not, who cares. Hopefully they make a scene during their deaths.
Seinvolf
Thank u always for ur great work…
^^…
Armorpiercer
later that day
‘Where’s Birkyne?’
‘gone, reduced to atoms’
Triduo
No, no no, that’s not how the script goes…
It’s supposed to go like this :
*Later that day*
Someone : “Where’s Birkyne ?”
Vandalieu : “Who ?”
LmaoLN
No no like this
Later that day
Someone: where’s Birkyne
Vandalieu: What is that? Is it some type of exotic food? Maybe a fancy word?
iamleejn
“Where’s Birkyne?”
“Lunch.”
Triduo
Also working.
Morgan
“But it’s dinner time?”
“No, I ate him for lunch.”
“O_O”
Wsteven7o7
nom nom Nom NOm NOM NOM!!!
Dr. Steel
“Where’s Birkyne?”
“In my belly.”
“Spit him out! Stop eating weird things!”
no1
Thank you for another chapter Yoshi. Leave it to Birkyne to only make an appearance at the end of the chapter. Oh well can’t wait to see their battle in the next chapter, hope it comes soon.
Apokryphos
Oh man, here we go~
Superboy8338
Thanks for the update, I’m glad at least one noble can be considered Van’s ally. Also, unless something happens, I’m pretty sure that Birkyne is going to die.
Crimson Nanashi
out of any possible moves he could have made Birkyne chose one of the worst possible ones to make. I see someone wants to be tortured for all eternity.
Triduo
Noctyrannus : Alright comrades, it’s time to finish the Vampire’s Hunt. ( O_O) <I wonder how much time it will take for Van to assure the security of the orphans, protect them and paint the walls with the blood of Birkyne… )
You seems… Rather eager to see a Vampire getting killed in a Bloodbath ? O_O'
Noctyrannus : There's a rule in the realm of Assassination : "Never use the Children during a mission"
(-O_O)*<And Birkyne just happened to make that mistake in front of an entity with God-like powers. His death will be a painful one !)
Don't you think that he'll try to discuss with Van before being attacked by Van ?
Noctyrannus : Since his first steps, Van lived for revenge. Birkyne's on his list, he won't let him escape alive.
( O_O)
Fair enough…
sbstratos79
Who’s Noctyrannus?
sbstratos79
And who’s Paradoxe?
Triduo
Paradoxe : Actually, it’s just ONE idiot with issues concerning his ability to express his opinion(s). -__- <He's simulating multiple personalities to say what he want to say, even if it's pointless.)
Morgan
I’m guessing Paradoxe is the one who directly addresses that issue given it’s paradoxical nature?
Triduo
Paradoxe : Nah, I’m just the one who likes to be right even if he’s wrong by pointing why someone or something is wrong. ^^
Kiriaru
Okay so Birkyne is a bit more clever than I thought. I must say I am surprised and upset by this turn of events. I never expected it to be everyone in the Orphanage.
Yet here we are, and the cliff is quite perilous. Take care to not go mad.
Triduo
Are you talking about us or Birkyne ? :3
Paradoxe : Birkyne’s already succumbed to madness. There’s no saving him. -__-
Noctyrannus : His Death will be a pleasant one, stay tuned !
Tejing
Well, things are definitely picking up now. Looks like we’re about to have some drama and action with Birkyne. I can’t wait!
Also, Van’s prospects for friendly relations with the ruling class in Morksi seem quite good, though in the Alcrem duchy as a whole, not so much. I wonder how that conflict will play out?
X07Zero
Thank for the chapter ^^