How to Live as the Vampire Lord - Side Story Chapter 2

The forest had been devoid of any human presence for an insurmountable time. It was deep, dark, and dangerous. It was also the home of orcs, but they were completely different than any other orcs Princess Lilisain was familiar with. No traces of civilization nor language could be found among them, and they led entirely barbaric lives as predators of the forest. The same was true with the monsters.

Monsters weren’t afraid of Lilisain, even though she was armed with various weapons and reeked of oil and steel. Thus, she was forced to struggle day and night while slowly making her way northwest with none but the constellations as her companion and guide.

Ten days later, Lilisain was finally able to escape the forest with her weary body. She arrived in front of a huge lake in the shape of a crescent moon. However, what she felt was despondence rather than relief. What had been waiting for her challenge was a giant white mountain. It was taller than any of its other brothers in this world, including the mountains of Eland, and the simple sight of it was suffocating. The peaks of the mountains were dressed with thick clouds, and each peak proudly reached toward the heavens as if they were competing with each other. It was clear that none of them had any intention of allowing any creature to step on their steps. Even the hawk, known as the friend of the elves and watchmen of the sky, could only reach the waist of the mountains.

However, Lilisain could not give up. After collecting food near the lake for two days and taking her time to recover, she resumed her journey toward the white mountain. What appeared calm from afar was actually hell. Even though her reflexes and physical abilities were many times superior to humans, she was powerless in the face of mother nature’s cruelty. The weather routinely transformed multiple times throughout the day, and the numerous cliffs made it extremely difficult to climb even a few hundred meters each day.

One day, two days, three days, five days, ten days…

She eventually ran out of food. But even though she was in a dire situation, Lilisain did not descend the mountain. To be exact, she could not descend. She was almost completely devoid of any energy, and the mountain… the vast hell of white did not allow any of its challengers an easy escape.

Lilisain bit one of her scarred fingers and attempted to wet her swollen lips with her blood. It would allow her a quick burst of energy, but she knew she would face certain death in only a few hours. Still, she continued climbing.

She had to know, and she had to ask. As such, she had to climb the mountain and meet the dragon. The pure-blooded elf did not give up until her final moments, and she climbed using her own life as fuel. At a certain point, when her vision started to blur and everything started to fade into black, she caught something in the corner of her eyes.

Kwaaaaoooooo!

A powerful gust of wind swept over the mountain and caused a flurry of ice. Lilisain saw a giant golden dragon in the fantastical scene. The dragon shone brighter than the sun. It emitted an indescribable, overwhelming sense of majesty and mystery, and the dragon’s gaze slowly and smoothly settled on the white ground. It met the eyes of Lilisain, who was slowly being deprived of life.

Lilisain could not tell if she was dreaming or if she was looking at an illusion, but she caught a clear glimpse and saw that the dragon’s lips were curled up.

“You—are worthy…”

The majestic voice caused her body and soul to resonate, and she started fading away.

***

Lilisain finally awakened. Energy started to permeate her limbs, and she came to realize that she was numb to any pain. As soon as she discovered the condition of her body, she jumped up and unsheathed her blade. She was in a circular cave with a wide, open ceiling. It welcomed sunlight through its top, which stretched hundreds of meters high, but she wasn’t graced with its warmth. Even so, the cave remained bright.

She could not see any sources of light, but the cave was still filled with light. It didn’t take long for her to realize the reason behind it.

“It’s brimming… with this much mana?”

She felt a sense of awe. She could sense mana vibrating in the very air she breathed, and she had never experienced such boundless mana, even back in Eland.

It was then…

“You are the third one to have come here.”

The calm yet powerful voice echoed throughout the cave, and Lilisain turned her gaze. Princess Lilisain instinctively came to realization when she saw the young man with warm golden eyes. Although he seemed to be a young man at first glance, the mysterious aura he emitted made it difficult to estimate his age.

“Dragon… Are you the dragon?” she asked.

“That’s right,” he answered.

Princess Lilisain sheathed her sword after hearing his answer. All the energy seemed to leave her body amidst her relief and joy at finally meeting the dragon. However, she tried to remain calm and politely greeted the young man in a knightly manner.

“It’s an honor to meet you. I am Lilisain and Eland’s—”

“I know who you are. I know your family very well as well. I can confidently say that no one in this world knows your family better than I do,” Zescard interrupted.

“…?!”

Lilisain was startled by the unexpected comment. Zescard smiled and slowly approached her. He sat down comfortably on a flat rock and continued, “You and your family are known as the pure bloods, right? You have a special place among the elves?”

“That’s right, but…”

“Pure blood isn’t exactly the right term to describe your family. Rather, you are elves of old, the high elves.”

“…!”

“In addition, the blood of an old brother of mine, as well as the Spirit King flows in the veins of your family,” he added.

“…”

Lilisain couldn’t come to her senses. She knew that elves had a special relationship with spirits, since technically, spirits were essentially distant relatives of the elves.

But a brother of a dragon?

Didn’t that mean another dragon?

Was he saying that the blood of a dragon flowed in the veins of the elves?

“Long ago in the distant past, there were many of your kind. Of course, there weren’t as many as the humans of the current era, but there was a time when hundreds of thousands of elves roamed this world,” Zescard explained.

It was hard to believe. Eland was the single largest gathering place of elves, but there were less than 3,000 elves in Eland. She wasn’t completely sure, but she guessed that there were less than 10,000 elves in the entire world. This had been the truth that Lilisain had known and acknowledged until now.

Zescard seemed to have noticed her confusion, and he continued. “Don’t you know this? Your kind cannot have more than two children. In particular, a high elf like you cannot give birth to a high elf unless it is with another high elf, and your blood thins in your children if you become bound to someone who is not a high elf.”

“…!”

What he spoke of was a secret of the elves, as well as their inevitable fate. It was the reason the elves gathered in Eland to form something of a nation even though they had never been the type to form countries.

“You must have come here because of my brother who went to another world, right?” Zescard asked.

The topic suddenly changed, but Lilisain quickly nodded. Indeed, that was her motive for coming all the way here.

As such, Princess Lilisain responded, “That is correct. I want to know where His Majesty Jan Eugene Batla went. And if possible, with your power, I—”

“I cannot send you,” he responded.

“…!!!”

Princess Lilisain’s eyes filled with disbelief, and Zescard continued. “I’m not saying that I don’t want to. I’m saying that it is not possible.”

“B-but, aren’t you an almighty dragon? Since you sent His Majesty there, surely—”

“That was only possible because he was a dragon as well. You can never travel to that world,” Zescard said.

“Ah…”

Lilisain’s face slowly dyed with despair. She had struggled all this way for the sole purpose of traveling to Eugene’s new world.

“And you must not go there either,” Zescard suddenly said.

“What… do you mean?” she asked. She barely managed to raise her head, compelled by the unknown power contained in Zescard’s voice.

“Your kind, the high elf, is on the verge of extinction,” Zescard said.

“…?!”

“Of course, it is but a thing of the distant future by your standards, but in my perspective, there isn’t much time,” he added.

“W-what do you…”

“In four, or maybe three generations, the high elves will disappear,” he explained.

Princess Lilisain stiffened with complete stupefaction on the spot. Zescard continued while calmly staring at her. “One, I would like your kind to watch over this world for a longer time. To do that, high elves like yourself have to be sacrificed. You need a single existence that can continue your essence for thousands of years.”

“Why would we…”

“And to do that, you are the most important component. Out of all the high elves, the blood of my old brother flows the thickest in you,” he said.

“…”

Lilisain could not find any words to say amidst her confusion. Zescard took his eyes off her and looked around his lair before saying, “Do you remember what I said? That you are the third one to have come here?”

It was out of the blue, but Lilisain nodded in a daze. She was becoming somewhat accustomed to the dragon’s strange way of speaking.

“The one you are searching for, my old brother… I told him that there was only one. But in truth, two have come here so far, and I have granted their requests,” he continued.

“…”

“The language you use. Where do you think it began?” he asked.

“What?”

“Not just the elves either, but the language of the humans today. Where do you think it came from? Who made those words?” he asked.

“D-don’t tell me…”

“That’s right. It was created by the first visitor,” he answered.

“…!!!”

“And the second visitor created faith. To the brother that you’re searching for… I only told him the story of Ferriam,” Zescard said.

Zescard turned his gaze back toward her with a bitter smile. “Soon, the third knight will come. Since my brother has already crossed over using the passage and has arrived at their world, unlike the two previous knights, he will likely reflect my wishes and will to some extent.”

“The third… knight……” Princess Lilisain muttered with astonishment and confusion.

“Until the third knight arrives, you have an obligation to give birth and raise the high elf who will embrace the essence of your kind. This is not my will. It’s your family’s destiny and duty—as the carrier of my brother’s blood. And that is why you cannot and must not go to the other world.”

“I…”

“That’s right. Only you can allow your kind to thrive longer, for your essence and blood to continue onto the next generations. And the essence’s name…”

Princess Lilisain was still filled with confusion and shock. Zescard’s dreary voice echoed after a moment of silence.

“Call him Luciel, after the true name of the brother who had sacrificed all of his powers for your family,” he said.

Lilisain’s individual desires slowly vanished in the face of her duties as Eland’s princess.

However, as one of the few pure-blooded elves left in the world and as a high elf carrying the lineage and power of the Green Dragon, she had a fate and duty befitting her birth.

Lilisain could only nod.

She had no idea exactly where her fate would lead her and tears trickled down her eyes.

DantheMan’s Thoughts

And that’s the end of the novel!! See you guys again soon!