Chapter 22 : Study In Crimson (2)

They say all hunters are a bit eccentric, but the one I met this time was an exceptional lunatic.

Eleonora.

Also known as the Inquisitor.

She wasn’t exactly a top-performing hunter in the field, but she had another strength.

“Hmm. It only tastes salty. Well, I suppose that’s expected—it’s human skin, after all.”

Eleonora actually licked my body.

Not only that, but she suddenly slipped her hand inside my clothes and started groping me.

“It’s soft. You’ve got a bit of lean muscle, but still, flesh is flesh.”

“Wh-What exactly do you think you’re doing?”

“Oh, don’t worry. The pain’s only bad at the beginning. Like a first time, you know? Not that I really understand what that’s like.”

Her voice was soft, like a comforting song, but her expression was filled with ecstasy.

Her excitement was impossible to hide.

“I’m a hunter who studies vampires.”

“Y-You mean, you research them?”

“Yes. Know your enemy and you’ll never be defeated. I believe understanding vampire ecology is the first step toward victory.”

She wasn’t wrong.

To hunt vampires, you had to understand them.

From my past hunts, I’d learned that the theoretical lessons taught at the academy weren’t all that different from what I already knew.

I needed more detailed information—and it seemed that Eleonora had taken on that role within the guild.

“But… why me?”

“Because you’re a vampire’s thrall, Aiden. That means you share certain traits with them, right?”

“…That’s true.”

“So far, you’re the first thrall I’ve seen with free will. Usually, stronger vampires can manipulate someone’s blood flow the moment they make contact and kill them instantly. Makes research tricky.”

“Ah…”

“So, you see, this is my first time being able to touch someone like this without worry. Hehe.”

With a creepy giggle, Eleonora began unbuttoning my shirt.

“Don’t worry, Aiden. This is all for research. You understand, as a vampire hunter, right?”

With her logic sounding so reasonable, I couldn’t bring myself to argue.

Reluctantly, I nodded.

“Great! Let’s head to the workshop!”

Eleonora led me away.

“Wait, is this really a workshop?”

I frowned.

She called it a workshop, but this was clearly a torture chamber.

My eyes were drawn to an iron maiden set against the wall—the same one Jursach had been locked in the other day.

“That thing… no way.”

“Yes, that’s right. This is the workshop. It’s also an interrogation room used to extract information from vampires. Why else would I be called the Inquisitor?”

Ah.

Inquisitor Eleonora.

A vampire researcher and interrogator.

Suddenly, I regretted my decision.

Had I crossed a river I could never return from?

Stripped to the waist and lying on the surgical table, I felt like I was going to lose my mind, but since it was all “for the sake of research,” I couldn’t exactly refuse.

“W-Well then… please be gentle.”

With that same unsettling smile, Eleonora drew a dagger and lightly cut the tip of my finger.

She licked the blood that dripped out and tilted her head in curiosity.

“Hmm. Not exactly delicious.”

“Well, it is blood.”

“Exactly! It’s just blood! That’s what’s so fascinating!”

“Have you ever tasted vampire blood?”

“Of course. I drank Jursak’s blood not too long ago.”

Eleonora glanced at my finger, which was already healing rapidly, and gave a faint smile.

“You can use blood magic, right?”

“Yes, to some extent.”

“Good. Let’s try it.”

A deep and thorough study began.

Through the process, I got a better grasp of Eleonora’s nature.

She was a scholar to the core and didn’t care at all about physical damage to herself.

“Alright, Aiden. Could you cast blood magic on my hand?”

“W-Would that be okay?”

“Don’t worry. I just won’t be able to hold a spoon for a while.”

“Isn’t that a problem?”

“You can live without eating, but I’ll die if I can’t study vampires. Now, go.”

Smack!

My blood magic struck her palm.

I’d adjusted the force, so it wasn’t a deep wound, but Eleonora didn’t even flinch.

Instead, she smiled with intrigue.

“Blood magic! It’s just amazing. The Guildmaster’s magic is fascinating too, of course, but the vampires’ unique magic system that uses blood as a medium—it’s so captivating, don’t you think?”

“I… hadn’t really thought about it that way.”

From then on, we went down the list of experiments one by one.

Not only did we test healing and enhanced senses, but also how much impurity blood magic could handle, and how different the manipulation strength was between animal and human blood.

Eleonora’s curiosity was endless, and every time I returned from a hunt, I had to spend all night with her.

“Eleonora.”

“Call me Elli.”

“Elli… why do you study vampires?”

During a short break, I asked her. She smiled faintly and answered,

“Well… who knows?”

She gently pressed a finger against my lips.

“If you cooperate with the experiments, I’ll tell you.”

“I’d like to know when these experiments will end.”

“Now that’s a good question. I have no intention of ever letting you go, Aiden. A true vampire’s thrall!

And a cooperative one at that. Hehe.”

A vampire…

Yeah, I guess even to a seasoned vampire researcher, my body no longer looked human.

When I gave a bitter smile, Eleonora blinked a few times.

“Hmm. Did I say something hurtful?”

“No. You were right. I am a vampire, and that won’t change.”

“Come to think of it… how did you become a vampire in the first place, Aiden?”

So I told her about what had happened in Stormgate.

After hearing the whole story, Eleonora’s expression turned somber.

She placed a hand gently over my chest.

“I’m sorry. I got too excited and said something careless. It’s not that I don’t see you as human. We’re having so much fun together, aren’t we?”

Truthfully, her “experiments” weren’t exactly fun, and it was definitely not “playing,” but I figured it was best to just nod quietly here.

“Alright. Since you’ve told me about your past, I’ll tell you about mine.”

“041.”

“My parents were vampires.”

“…What?”

I gasped, eyes wide in shock.

She didn’t say she was just a vampire’s thrall—she said she was a vampire herself.

“So, I was basically adopted. I think my parents planned to raise a human child to send into human society as a spy. I spent my childhood without even realizing the people raising me were vampires.”

“Raised by vampires…”

“Don’t worry, it wasn’t that bad. Actually, it was pretty comfortable. Of course, when my parents who didn’t understand human cuisine served bizarre meals, that was a bit rough—but I got used to it over time.”

Eleonora pointed to a bowl on the table.

It contained something completely unidentifiable.

At a glance, it looked like someone had shoved a bunch of random ingredients into their mouth and then spit them back out.

Was that even considered food?

Her sense of taste must’ve been broken since childhood.

“After that, my story isn’t so different from other hunters. Hunters raided our house and ‘rescued’ me. I didn’t even realize I was being rescued, but after I came to the Guild and learned the details, I understood. Humans usually live with humans, and vampires with vampires. Though, of course, there are exceptions.”

Eleonora gently stroked my cheek with a fond expression.

“Anyway, that’s why I started researching vampires. Seeing how my parents raised a human child as a spy, I realized I needed to understand vampires too. It’s a bit embarrassing, but most of the textbooks in the training center? I wrote them.”

“That’s… impressive.”

“Aiden, you really don’t have to flatter me.”

“I’m not.”

I shook my head.

Hearing about Eleonora’s past reignited my own determination.

She wanted to understand vampires because she’d been raised by them.

Then maybe my younger sister, Lili—considering I’m a true vampire—felt the same way.

“Elli, let’s continue the experiments. I’m motivated now.”

I said it with renewed resolve.

Eleonora’s dull eyes suddenly sparkled with life.

“Yes! I knew you’d be the only one who understood me, Aiden! Let’s keep going!”

Eleonora turned around and picked up a massive metal rod.

For the record, it was glowing red-hot from the fire.

“Now it’s time for the burn-healing experiment!”

“…Elli, can I take back what I just said?”

“No.”

She gave me a twisted smile.

“Aiden, can I ask you just one thing?”

“What is it?”

“If you’re going to die… please do it in front of me.”

“….”

“I’m serious.”

With that, Eleonora pressed the red-hot iron onto my arm.

Truly, not a single hunter was sane.