episode_0081

Episode.81 An assassination plan gone wrong and a symphony of blood

“I decided, my choice is…”

I’m worried.

Should you appeal to justice or make a rational choice?

【Is there anything to worry about? I have to go straight to Verdium. You are also very frustrated. The woman you are looking for may not be here.】

She’s right.

“If you’re not sure… wouldn’t it be wiser not to even try?”

Whichever option you choose, both are just one way to save Harin.

In that case, a slightly more stable method would be better.

There is absolutely no running away.

Because there is no change in trying to save her.

Because being betrayed hurts.

I also know that feeling well.

Even though I know the pain, I cannot do anything that would cause the same pain.

“My dear, once you have made your decision, there is no time to hesitate.”

“Okay, let’s go to where Verdium is.”

Ilya nodded as if waiting for my answer and led me to the cave to the west where I heard Verdium was heading.

**********

Ilya arrived at the cave in the west at a fast, seemingly hurried pace.

The inside of the cave was large, but there was unfailingly thick darkness.

As usual, it could be described as a gloomy space with only a single ray of light entering.

I got sick of the background I see quite often.

But this time, there was a sight I saw for the first time.

A colorful tube was visible, directly receiving the only ray of light coming from a small hole on the ceiling of the cave.

The light reached down to the tube and showed the dust flying around without any filtering.

The small sounds of birds and crows coming from a small hole in the ceiling created a dissonant sound that seemed to sound like a symphony.

“… Dad?”

Illya walked toward the place where the beam of light was shooting out, her steps shaking with a somewhat uneasy look on her face.

Woe!

She illuminated the surroundings with her magic.

Then, in that space, I saw Verdium kneeling in front of the coffin and Aluns with his head cut off for some reason.

“Did you come? My lovely daughter and a guest from outside.”

Verdium’s words were full of gloomy emotions, like a person who had already given up.

His devastated face seemed to have no will to live any longer in the world.

“… Don’t lie. Dad has never treated me with affection, right?”

“You might think so. But there was a reason why it had to be that way.”

His personality and way of speaking have become much nicer than when I first met him.

“I can’t do anything with words.”

Illya’s emotions cannot be read.

There were many things I wanted to ask Verdium.

However, due to unspoken pressure, I could not join the conversation.

The atmosphere was a bit awkward to intervene right now.

For now, all we can do is watch the conversation between father and daughter.

“In just a few days, your personality has become relatively more confident than before. There was a time not too long ago when you couldn’t resist me even once. Ilya, is it because of the guest from outside that you changed?”

“It’s none of Dad’s business.”

“The rebellion has arrived. As the body grows, does the mental part also grow?”

“More than that, why did you kick out the employees in the mansion…?”

Ilya said, placing her hands on her waist.

After hearing those words, Verdium immediately opened his mouth, probably because it was a question he had been expecting.

“You probably know how your mother, Olivia, died.”

“Olivia… Mom… her name was Olivia Violet. It was the first time I knew it. Anyway, didn’t you say he died in a carriage accident?”

“That is incorrect. To begin with, ‘Jinjo’, who has a strong body like us, only dies in a carriage accident. This is something that only weak people can experience.”

“… It’s a little strange.”

“Yes, it is incorrect information that he died in a carriage accident. I just couldn’t bear to tell you as a child that your mother was murdered by another human being, but now I have to tell you. Because if it’s not now, there’ll never be a way to know.”

“The person who killed my mother… what kind of person was this?”

Verdium shook off the dust that had accumulated on the coffin.

【Why do you keep kneeling and fiddling with the coffin? I feel bad.】

‘You should just shut your mouth.’

I quieted Chaewon, who was muttering loudly.

“There is no need to say that my mouth hurts. The person who killed Olivia… is none other than Aluns, who is here dead with his head cut off.”

“What? But my dad said that a human just killed my mom-”

“Aluns was originally human.”

‘Wow… the level of the skills was so high, does it make sense for humans to have such high level skills? No matter how different you are from another world, life is really unfair.’

【Let’s shut your mouth first.】

“… Did you turn the person who killed your mother into a vampire? I really don’t understand.”

“From my perspective, making him a slave was the best revenge. And one day, it may become a sacrifice used for ‘resurrection’.”

Illya takes a step forward.

“Resurrection? And by sacrifice… didn’t you mean using me or that woman?”

“By that woman, you mean a colleague who came with a guest from outside, right?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“The reason I kept scaring you by saying that I was using you for money was because I wanted to raise you as a good child.”

【Ah… Is this a way to scare children by saying that ghosts will appear if they sleep late? It’s not that I don’t understand.】

‘Even if you don’t sleep late, ghosts still appear. As you.’

“What is that… You’re just saying things that I really don’t understand.”

“However, at least it was true that the guest’s colleagues from outside were used as sacrifices.”

“Verdium, why do you sacrifice innocent people?”

When I heard that Harin was going to be used as a sacrifice, what I wanted to say came out of my mouth without me realizing it.

“You’re interfering with me on a topic I’m just a beginner at. Is he stupid or brave… Whatever the reason, he deserves to have that sword.”

【Ah, I couldn’t resist and intervened. Wasn’t it okay to not interfere?】

“… I wish you could answer what I said.”

“Looks like you already know about ‘Parasite’… I won’t bother asking where you learned about it. Did you know that if you use that bug, you can save life no matter what?”

“Yes, I know… But can breathing life into a state where one cannot maintain reason really be said to save a living being?”

Verdium was still on his knees, with his back to us, stroking the coffin and laughing heartily.

“It may still be too early for a parasite. How does a novice like you know what will happen if he uses that bug?”

“That’s because I saw it in person.”

“Where did you see it? No, there is no need to ask. I saw it in another world.”

It’s not another world.

I just came here to see what I guess is the future landscape of this world.

“… How did it look? Reviving a dead creature with the effect of parasite is…”

“It was terrible. Being alive wasn’t being alive.”

“I see… I’m glad I failed. I almost caused more unnecessary pain to my beloved wife… Thank you for letting me know. Freshman.”

“How were you going to use Parasite?”

I asked Verdium.

“I should have said it before. To save Olivia, that’s all.”

“Even if it was to save someone you love, aren’t there some things you shouldn’t do? The power of a parasite can cause a civilization to collapse.”

【really?】

Chaewon said, putting her hand on her mouth.

‘I think that’s roughly it.’

【what.】

“… Maybe it’s because I’m a kid, but I don’t have much experience yet. Didn’t you betray me and leave my side? If they loved each other right before they died… they would want to meet again at least once, even if it meant selling their souls to the devil. You too… if you have someone you can truly share your feelings with, you will understand what I am saying.”

“Do you know, something like that…”

“Anyway, that’s why I originally tried to use your comrade as a sacrifice… but then it’s no different from this dead guy here, right? There are a lot of living, intelligent creatures… So, while avenging my wife, I also tried to use her as a ritual sacrifice to revive the dead through parasites. But, I failed.”

For Verdium, who was in despair at the ritual of raising the dead, using the parasite was an inevitable action.

Perhaps, to him, Parasite was like a ray of hope, like a ray of light coming down to the coffin.

“But now that I’ve found out that complete resurrection is impossible even with a parasite… there’s no other way left for me. Now I just pay the price for failure.”

“Dad, what do you mean by price?”

Illya asked Verdium.

“Hey. It looks like they went all the way to Heblon to poison me, but there was no need to do that on purpose. Because I failed the ceremony and am already about to die. Even if you succeed in killing me, you will not be able to inherit the title. If I die, Violet’s territory will become a land where the vampire race can no longer live.”

“Why… hey?”

Illya takes another step closer to Verdium.

“The dragons placed a curse on me. A curse that is fatal only to vampires.”

“What curse is it?”

What curse is there for coming this far?

I have constant headaches.

“I have a very severe ‘white night’ curse.”