The Eminence in Shadow, Vol. 3 (Light Novel) Page 8

  He walks briskly to the door, opens it, and steps outside.

  Suddenly, he freezes in his tracks.

  “A-and who do you think you are…?”

  He hadn’t sensed anyone out in the hallway. When he opened the door, there shouldn’t have been anyone there.

  Out of nowhere, a man dressed in a black longcoat appears before him.

  Crimson immediately extends his claws and prepares himself for battle.

  “Begone now. Lest your life is for— Gluh?!”

  Crimson’s body splits in two.

  He’s been cleanly bisected from head to crotch.

  He hadn’t even been able to follow the ebony sword’s swing with his eyes.

  His eyes go wide in shock as he quickly regenerates.

  Crimson is a powerful vampire in his own right. He can shrug off a bisection or two, easy.

  “Who are you?! How dare you lay that vulgar blade of yours on m— Bluh?!”

  In the middle of his sentence, his head goes flying.

  Even though he was on high alert, he still couldn’t see the man’s movements.

  “I—I say! I’m starting to get ang— Hruh?!”

  This time, his arms are sent into the air.

  “You fool! Under the Red Moon, vampires are un— Chuh?!”

  His legs get the same treatment, instantly carved into pieces. Then his torso gets sliced like salami.

  “Wh-what?! My regeneration can’t keep up wi— Fluh?!”

  The regenerating parts of his body immediately get chopped off and minced.

  “W-wait! Wait just one moment!! What are you after?! We can talk this o— Mruh?!”

  Next, his neckless head gets diced up.

  “Impossible… This can’t be happening…”

  Afterward, all that’s left is his heart. It, too, gets stabbed.

  Crimson crumbles to ash.

  The man in the longcoat then enters the room and stops in front of the large coffin.

  “My name is Shadow. I lurk in the darkness and hunt down shadows…”

  He waits for a moment.

  On standby.

  Waiting…

  “Blood Queen… I know you’re in there…”

  And still he waits.

  He stays in place…!!

  “…You’re there, right? I don’t sense anyone, but you’re just concealing your presence, right?” Shadow opens the coffin and peers inside.

  There’s no one there.

  “Huh? Wait, seriously? What kind of cliché is this?”

  He looks around the room and spots the corpse of a dark-haired young man with a hole in his chest.

  “You aren’t the Queen, are you? Nah, you’re a guy, and dead to boot…”

  He tilts his head to the side and looks at the pile of ash by the door.

  “Was that vampire the Queen? He did have red hair… No, no, there’s no way it’s a dude, right? He did seem kinda like a boss, though… Buuuut he was way too weak for that…”

  He ponders for a moment.

  “Is this one of those weird scenarios where the Queen is missing…? Maybe it’s the thing where she never even existed in the first place, or the one where she’s already been killed, or the one where she’s out and about… Anyways, let’s go pick up the coins, then I can go looking for her…”

  He turns around and walks out.

  “Sigh… I hope I didn’t get here too late… I came here as fast as I could… Maaan…,” he mutters as he disappears.

  The crimson moon casts its fantastical light over the now-empty room.

  Suddenly, the sacrifice’s body twitches.

  Thump, thump.

  The heart embedded in his chest begins beating.

  Mary and Claire reach the top of the Crimson Tower and open the door.

  “Cid?!”

  Seeing a young man with dark hair toppled over and bleeding from the chest, Claire rushes over to him.

  She wraps him in a tight embrace. Tears gush out of her ruby eyes.

  “No!! Please, Cid, wake up!! Cid?! Cid? …Huh?”

  Claire quickly snaps to her senses as she looks at the corpse.

  Her tears dry up.

  “This isn’t Cid.”

  “Really? It isn’t?”

  “Cid? Cid, where are you?”

  Claire’s eyes dart around the room.

  Then Mary shouts.

  “—Claire?!”

  “…Huh?”

  It all happens in a flash.

  By the time she’s noticed, the boy’s arm has already pierced her stomach.

  Blood dribbles from Claire’s mouth.

  “Gluh…What’s…happening…Cid…”

  “Claire!!”

  Claire crumples to the ground.

  The boy, still bleeding from the chest, begins moving.

  He was definitely dead a moment ago.

  Now, though, he rises to his feet. Red feelers come pouring out of his chest. They wriggle and squirm ominously as they engulf his body.

  “Oh no… No, it can’t be…”

  Mary knows this aura.

  The red feelers cover the boy’s body completely, then suddenly burst outward.

  And when they do…

  …a beautiful, naked girl appears from within the spray of blood.

  Her hair is a deep crimson, as are her eyes. Her skin, on the other hand, is pale, and her proportions are nearly perfect and feminine. She looks exactly like the Elisabeth that Mary remembers.

  Elisabeth embraces the impaled Claire, then sinks her fangs into the girl’s neck.

  Claire’s voice dribbles from her mouth. “Ah, ah…”

  She’s still alive.

  However, all Mary can do is watch as Claire has her blood sucked.

  Mary knows all too well.

  Now that Elisabeth the Blood Queen has risen, there’s nothing they can do.

  “Claire… Ah…”

  Claire gets tossed aside, her skin pallid from the blood loss.

  Next, Elisabeth turns her beautiful gaze on Mary. In her eyes, Mary is nothing more than food.

  “Oh…Queen Elisabeth…” Mary trembles as she shrinks backward.

  Her master is risen.

  Elisabeth is the strongest of the Progenitors, and there’s no way to stop her. Once again, Mary was too late.

  Tears well up in her eyes.

  In an instant, though, the despair in her eyes turns to astonishment.

  A dark figure appears out of nowhere and crashes into Elisabeth. An ebony blade collides with Elisabeth’s crimson claws.

  It’s the woman in the bodysuit they met down in the library—Beta.

  “Secure her!!” she shouts, and three other figures appear to protect Claire.

  Beta blocks Elisabeth’s claws with her sword, then leaps backward to put some space between them.

  “Number 665, what’s her status?”

  “Still breathing. But she needs treatment badly.”

  “Noted. Unfortunately…I doubt she plans on just letting us go.”

  The naked girl begins walking toward Beta.

  “You three, back me up.”

  “Roger that.”

  “Ms. Vampire Hunter, I’m leaving Ms. Claire in your hands for now.”

  “Oh, Claire…”

  Mary takes Claire from Number 665 and cradles her in her arms.

  Then she calls out to stop Beta from trying to fight Elisabeth “No, you can’t…”

  She needs to warn her.

  “It’s impossible… Not even you can beat her…”

  From beneath her mask, Beta casts a feline glance Mary’s way.

  “Even if that’s the case, this is my mission.”

  With her ebony blade in hand, Beta faces off against the Blood Queen.

  How did things get this bad…?

  Beta laments her failure as she faces off against the Blood Queen.

  It’s all her fault that her lord’s sister’s life is in such danger.

  Her master h
asn’t shown up yet. There must be an important reason why he had to prioritize some other matter, which means he implicitly left the situation here for Beta and the others to handle.

  However, Beta hadn’t realized that until it was too late.

  Because of that, the worst-case scenario is unfolding before her eyes.

  If the unthinkable happened and her master’s sister were to fall, Beta wouldn’t be able to face him anymore.

  “Time to see what I can do against the legendary Blood Queen…,” she murmurs. Her eyes are filled with determination.

  There’s only has one way she can fix her mistake: by beating the Blood Queen.

  An intense look crosses Beta’s face as she concentrates magic into her ebony blade. Then she taps her toes against the ground to signal her orders to her subordinates.

  The other three fan out.

  They’re ready to act at a moment’s notice.

  Beta stares at the Blood Queen and waits for the timing to line up.

  All the Blood Queen is doing is slowly walking forward to close the distance. As the Red Moon’s light shines on her nude body, she stares right back at Beta. Although the look in her eyes is inscrutable, she seems almost sleepy.

  She enters Beta’s range.

  “—Hyah!!”

  Beta’s slash marks the start of the battle.

  Her attack’s gentle elegance call Shadow’s swordsmanship to mind.

  The Blood Queen blocks it with the claws on her left hand. As she does, her right moves to attack.

  However, before she can, Number 666 launches an assault on her from behind.

  The Blood Queen has no choice but to use her right hand’s claws to ward Number 666’s attack off.

  At the same time, Numbers 664 and 665 are already rushing in from her sides, and Beta begins her follow-up attack, as well.

  The Blood Queen casts a drowsy glance at the three slashes bearing down on her—then only protects her heart.

  All three blades cleave deep into her fair skin.

  Fresh blood fills the air and sullies her flesh. However, she doesn’t so much as stir.

  “I—I can’t get it out!” cries Number 664.

  The three swords, still buried in the Blood Queen’s body, refuse to budge.

  By catching their attacks in her muscle sinew, the Blood Queen has succeeded in sealing their movements, too.

  “Rgh!!” Beta reinforces her body, then forcibly rips her sword free.

  However, Numbers 664 and 665 don’t act in time.

  “Change your swords’ shapes!” Beta cries. But she’s too late.

  The Blood Queen’s claws bear down on the two of them.

  That’s when Number 666 makes her move.

  In a beautiful display of swordwork, she slices through the Blood Queen’s tendons.

  When she does, the vampire’s arms go limp. They regenerate a moment later, but it’s just long enough for the other two to change their slime swords’ shapes and yank them free.

  Then Beta lands a slash on the Blood Queen’s face, Number 664 lops a chunk out of her side, Number 665 slices open the tendons in her leg, and finally, Number 666 sends her flying with a slash to the back.

  The Progenitor’s naked body crashes into the wall.

  “Good work, 666.”

  Number 666 responds with a tiny nod.

  Buried in the rubble, the Blood Queen can’t move. Beta warily readies her blade, making sure to keep a safe distance back.

  All it had taken was a glance for Beta to determine that the Blood Queen was a formidable foe.

  Her initial impression was that fighting her one-on-one would be impossible. Even with three of her subordinates, she’d been expecting a rough fight.

  In reality, she had been a fearsome opponent.

  However, she’s easier to fight than Beta had anticipated.

  The rookies were exceeding her expectations, too. It’s just as Lambda had told her—between Number 664’s leadership, Number 665’s wisdom and intellect, and Number 666’s battle prowess, they made for a solid team.

  “We might just be able to win this…,” Beta says unthinkingly.

  But—

  “You can’t… You people are strong, I’ll give you that. But Queen Elisabeth has only just awoken… This isn’t anywhere close to her full strength.” Mary’s eyes are filled with tears and despair as she cradles Claire. “Queen Elisabeth…has always been a late riser!”

  “Huh?”

  The Blood Queen’s magic is rising explosively, causing the very air to tremble.

  When she rises from the rubble, she’s clad in a dress the color of blood.

  No, that’s not quite it.

  She’s clad in blood in the shape of a dress.

  Her once-naked body is now hidden away under liquid. It slithers hypnotically over her skin, almost as if it were alive.

  Beneath her mask, Beta grimaces, feeling the power radiating from the vampire.

  “So this is the Blood Queen.”

  Something cold runs up Beta’s spine. She can feel in her very skin just how fundamentally outmatched they are.

  The Blood Queen is an honest-to-god monster.

  The only person who could possibly stand up to such a freak of nature is her master.

  “Beta…” Number 664 looks toward Beta for guidance.

  Beta shakes her head.

  She doubts the Blood Queen would let them escape if they tried, and they’d have to leave her master’s sister behind anyway, so the plan is a nonstarter.

  A voice breaks the tension.

  “Well, well, well, I see you have quite the monster here… Allow me to join the fray.”

  Its owner is the nine-tailed fox who just appeared. Her silvery hair flutters as she snaps her iron folding fans open.

  “You’re… Yukime the Spirit Fox…”

  Beta’s never met her in person, but she’s fully familiar with the Lawless City’s rulers.

  She and Yukime exchange a stare, each trying to discern something about the other.

  Beta makes her decision. “We appreciate the help.”

  “Then let us fight as comrades.”

  They all square off against the Blood Queen.

  However, they’re interrupted by yet another intruder.

  “Hey now. Don’t go gettin’ this party started without me.”

  The tanned behemoth marks his arrival by smashing in through the windowpane. Lifting his massive billhook onto his shoulder, he looks at the Blood Queen and scoffs.

  “So you the boss round these parts? This town’s mine, lady. Don’t go thinkin’ you can just come in and do as you please.”

  “Where exactly did you come in from?”

  “Where I came in from is none of your damn business, hag. But this woman’s head is mine.”

  “Oh, be my guest.”

  The tanned giant readies his billhook.

  Beta knows who he is, too. He’s one of the Lawless City’s other rulers, Juggernaut the Tyrant.

  Now, all three of the Lawless City’s rulers are gathered in one room. Each of them boasts power enough to control a third of the city, and a full two of them are squaring off against the Blood Queen alongside her.

  Beta thanks her lucky stars. They still have a chance.

  “Take that!!” Juggernaut seizes the initiative.

  With barbaric movements, he closes the gap and brings his billhook crashing down.

  The Blood Queen doesn’t so much as move an inch.

  “Th’ hell?!”

  Although the vampire is the one who takes the weapon head on, the surprised shout comes from Juggernaut.

  His billhook passes right through her without stopping.

  “Mistform?!”

  It’s the ability exclusive to powerful vampires that allows the user to turn their body into fog.

  When the Blood Queen uses it, though, there isn’t any warning or lead-up. And what’s worse, she’s able to use it only on the part of her body in the billhook’s
path.

  “This is bull!!” Juggernaut swings his weapon in a wide sweep.

  Once again, the Blood Queen takes the attack without even flinching. Her neck distorts for a moment as the billhook passes through it like air.

  Then an orb of blood gathers at her right hand.

  It’s filled with insane amounts of magic.

  Yukime and Beta cry out in unison.

  “That’s dangerous!”

  “Get down!!”

  The Progenitor releases the orb into the air, and it explodes.

  When it does, blood sprays around them. In the blink of an eye, though, it coalesces into arrows and goes flying at each person present. The projectiles paint the air scarlet.

  “—!!” Beta doesn’t hesitate.

  She immediately moves to cover Claire and blocks the arrows with her body.

  Her slime bodysuit hardens over her vitals, and she cuts down as many of the arrows as she can while using her body as a shield.

  The projectiles cut deep lacerations into her cheeks, arms, and thighs.

  Finally, the rain of arrows dies down.

  Claire is unharmed.

  Beta, on the other hand…

  “Y-you…” The words get caught in Mary’s throat as she looks at her.

  Beta’s black bodysuit has been spliced to ribbons, exposing her white skin and the red blood trickling from the dozens of punctures in her arms and legs.

  “Rgh… I’m fine.”

  Blood streams from Beta’s body and pools around her feet as she readies her sword.

  However, not everyone was able to move like Beta had.

  Number 664 is covered in wounds, and she’s losing blood from her abdomen at an alarming rate.

  Number 665 is in the same condition, with lacerations running all over her body and heavy injuries to her feet.

  Number 666 is covered in cuts, too, but none of her wounds seem serious.

  Yukime took a couple hits, although she doesn’t look too bad.

  As for Juggernaut, who was getting up close and personal when the bloody rain started…

  “That stings like a mother…”

  He’s utterly drenched in blood.

  The arrows hit him all over, dying his tanned skin red. Even so, he remains standing on his own two feet with his billhook perched upon his shoulder.

  The weapon in question is notably chipped. He must have used it to protect his vitals.

  “Dammit… What the hell’s up with this chick…?”

  Even so, he soon drops to one knee.