The Undead King of the Palace of Darkness

I felt tranquil as I heard the clock ticking.

My abilities have greatly improved since becoming a noble vampire. And it is not just all in my head that my fighting spirit has also been kindled by it.

I used to practice prudence before. But just as I was no longer afraid of getting hurt soon after I became a vampire, there have been more distinct changes.

That said, I welcome them.

The opponent who has been pushing Senri and her team into a corner is a formidable one. I was not confident of being able to face off against such an insurmountable enemy without the fighting spirit of a vampire.

I sat down at my table and counted them down. The score of new abilities I gained upon becoming a noble vampire.

Only just recently did I become capable of wielding all those innumerable special abilities in quick succession.

And I expect vampires who have existed for a long time are probably way more skilled at it.

Speaking in terms of pure power, I should be stronger than most vampires, but a vampire’s abilities come with a caveat. I cannot let my guard down for even a second.

I evacuated any humans alive to the kitchen. Well, even if they did end up losing their lives, I doubt Senri would ever find out, but it is just common sense to minimize casualties as much as possible.

Moments passed and something came flying through the hole that had been opened in the wall a while ago.

It was a large man whose right arm had been bitten right off his body. He had blood-red eyes and large fangs sticking out the corners of his mouth. More than that, his scent made it obvious that he was not human.

Man, here I was content being a lesser vampire for such a long time, but now every Tom, Dick and Harry is a vampire.

His muscular biceps were twice the size of mine and he was deathly pale.

“S-Shit! It’s just a freaking kid. Why is my brethren here of all places-”

Tearing through the ceiling as if it were a mere piece of paper, a wolf with a silver sheen descended into the tavern. Mirele’s wolf form was not all that big, however, vampires do not just transform into an ordinary wolf.

The man grabbed a bunch of tables in the vicinity, and flung them towards Mirele who lunged at him. Mirele countered by simply shaking off the onslaught.

However, the man transformed in that split second.

His huge body ripped and swelled. There appeared a dark brown wolf 1.5 times the size of Mirele.

Its jaw opened wide and the huge wolf and Mirele butted heads. I watched beasts at action, feeling left out.

Looks like the man had not even noticed my presence. I guess I owe that to the ability I absorbed from the Mirage King.

The Mirage King’s curse. Contrary to his alias, was the power of “Condensation”.

It helps absorb the negative energy that the undead naturally emit and condenses it. And the energy that is condensed and honed like that of a rock or bone, can escape even the Death Knights’ detection abilities.

That is precisely the curse the Mirage King possessed.

And it is highly likely that my ability derived from the curse of Mirage King, a skeleton, is rather rare.

All of my strengths as an ancestor are derived from the special abilities of vampires, with the exception of this one ability.

I never had the opportunity to ask what it was called, but if I had to name it, it would be Compact Bone.

That said, the ability is only capable of sealing in negative energy. It is totally possible for vampires to pick up my scent through the use of their senses, so I wonder if my scent got masked by Mirele’s.

The silver and brown wolf duked it out. Though the latter was much bigger in size and their stage of evolution about the same, the battle seemed to be leaning in Mirele’s favor.

A battle among vampires is never pretty. Vampires have super-regeneration abilities and practically experience zero fatigue, so unless they are taken by surprise and struck in one of their vital parts, it will only result in a long drawn-out battle.

However, this particular battle was very one-sided. Mirele simply swiped a nimble limb in response to receiving the brown wolf’s gigantic fangs, but her swipe easily tore through his brown fur.

Blood spattered everywhere. The atmosphere reverberated with anguished howls. Wonder if he realized that something was off after all this time, for the brown wolf tried to retreat but Mirele gave chase without hesitation.

Her fighting spirit did not feel like it belonged to someone who was an invalid just until a few days ago with no dreams or hopes for a future.

The man was trifled with relentless attacks and cried out his voice all hoarse.

“What the hell… shit, don’t tell me you’re of a higher rank…?”

Mirele’s right paw trampled on the man’s head.

Vampirification is not an ‘infection’, but a transfer of power.

Therefore, the purer the parent vampire is, the stronger the vampire created.

The one who turned Oliver into a werewolf was the retainer of the retainer of the retainer of the Beast King, a third generation werewolf in other words.

As I am an ancestor, a vampire of the highest rank, she who received my blood, the King of the Dark, would be the first ever ‘dark vampire’.

The man who had stopped moving for a moment after taking a blow to his head was repeatedly bombarded with more blows. The floor cracked and the tavern shook as if an earthquake had struck.

Eventually, maybe because he lost control of his power, the wolf shrank and turned into a man.

It has been a while since I started hunting vampires, but it looks like Mirele has already settled into the role pretty well, despite being fairly new at it.

After taking a look at the half-dead man who was spasming as he was sprawled on the floor, Mirele howled softly once and ran over to me.

Her silver pelt, her body so monstrous it could never be equated to a human, shrank down in a moment. It is a strange sight no matter how many times I witness it.

By the time she reached me, there was no indication of her having been a wolf just moments ago.

The transformation had left her in her birthday suit but Mirele didn’t look the least abashed and threw her arms around my neck.

“Brother, I did it!”

Even I had been mindful of the ripped clothes when I first transformed, and yet what am I to think of this complete abandon of virtue?

“How many were there?”

“I killed two.”

I guess she took them by surprise. Hmm… I have no complaints.

I patted her head for a job well done while she quivered and her red eyes, the mark of a vampire, were twinkling.

Maybe this is how I seemed to Senri back in the past. Was that not enough head pats… ?

The convulsions of the man lying on the ground gradually died down. Stomping on his head would stop his brains from turning but nothing can stop it from regenerating.

That said, the reason Mirele did not kill him is because I had ordered her to let one live.

It was to gather information… and if there are no witnesses, we would not be able to have information about us to get to the other side free of hassle.

Though it is better to hide your cards for a surprise attack to do its job, Senri and her order are still desperately fighting as we speak. It would lighten the load on Senri’s shoulders if the opponents were to split their forces.

Mirele turned her head and held out a pale neck and purred.

“Brother, I want my reward. … Please help yourself to my blood.”

I see. I wonder if Senri felt this way when I begged her for blood. Though the roles are reversed at present, it is apparently a stimulating experience for the host as well.

Maybe because she was no longer alive, Mirele’s face was not flushed but her voice sounded aroused.

I used the ancestor’s power and flicked Mirele on her forehead, she who has always been faithful to her desires. I walked over to the guy whose brain had finished regenerating.

I have underlings now. I need to show how dependable I am to my capable underling.

Eyeballs back in one piece. His unfocused eyes slowly cleared up and met mine. It is not necessary for me to bind him. As the difference in strengths between this vampire and me is day and night. Seeing as how Mirele beat him down in a rather one-sided fight, he is no match for me and moreover, he is aware of this himself.

That is how vampires work.

I grabbed him by his hair, lifted his head, looked him square in the eyes, grinned wide and growled.

“State your affiliation and objective. This island… is my territory. If you spill your guts, I will consider letting you live.”