Interlude: 101 Years Ago

It was pure chance that Rosalind had come to Japan after the flames of war had threatened her homeland in Europe.

A powerful vampire like her didn’t need to drain blood to survive. The only reason for her to suck blood was to create servants to help her defeat either those humans who wanted the secret of her longevity and youth, or Silver Slayer who simply wanted to kill her. There was also the inconceivable possibility that she might need to restore her life force after being badly wounded by silver. Yet however impossible it seemed, that had been her fate. And so an injured Rosalind was forced to flee the country.

Running water was no threat to Rosalind. But she didn’t like it. In order to get to Japan, she had to travel by ship much farther than she ever had before. She would spend more time than she ever wanted to at sea—on the largest body of moving water in the world—and while she was exhausted, no less.

It’s less like I’ve taken damage and more like I’m just stressed out and tired...

But that didn’t mean she needed to drink blood. Fatigue could be cured with rest. However, Japan was the first foreign country Rosalind had ever been to. She’d heard it had a completely unique culture, far different from anywhere in Europe. Just by wandering around the city, she could see a mix of different religions. And unlike in Europe, they didn’t oppose each other. Instead, they almost seemed to have fused together somehow.

In Europe, it was mainly the religious who had effective means of fighting monsters like her. But what about here? Who would it be to attack her now? She couldn’t even imagine. Essentially, Japan was beyond her comprehension. That’s why she wanted to be as prepared to defend herself as possible.

And she found her prey quickly.

Rosalind wore European-style clothing, rare for this country, and had an inhuman beauty about her. A foreign girl like her wandering around alone was sure to attract attention from those with less than noble motives. Rosalind merely wanted to restore her life force, so when one such man dragged her into an alley, her intention was to kill him rather than make a servant out of him. But either way, she was unexpectedly interrupted.

“Gyah!”

The man she was about to kill suddenly fell forward, his eyes rolling into the back of his head. From behind him, another man appeared.

“That was a close one, wasn’t it, little girl?” he said.

Who is this man?

The second man wasn’t so much a man as he was a boy. He looked older than Rosalind appeared to be, but he was still quite young. He wore cheap clothes and was holding a long piece of lumber that looked like it had been taken from a construction site.

Did he see me getting dragged into the alley and decide to save me? I didn’t need his help... but he does look delicious.

The man who’d attacked her was middle-aged and looked like he’d been spoiled by the pleasures of newfound wealth from some project or another. Rosalind wasn’t the type to be picky, but given the choice between some scuzzy old man and a healthy young boy, she much preferred the latter.

“Let’s get out of this alley and back on the main street,” the boy said. “If you don’t have a place to stay, I’ll help you find one.”

He was oblivious to her murderous designs on him, so he offered his hand to her with a smile.

“Don’t you dare touch me,” she said as she slapped it away.

“Hmm... I see. All right, that’s fine too. Just follow me.”

The boy turned his back to Rosalind to lead her out of the alleyway, showing no concern for his own safety.

Idiot.

Humans had come after Rosalind’s life so many times that this boy’s apparent sense of justice didn’t impress her in the slightest.

First, I’ll keep him from crying out.

She fixed her eyes on her target and took a step forward, aiming for the boy’s throat. There was no hesitation in her movements. But...

“Whoopsies!”

“What?!”

Not only did he dodge her attack without even looking, he grabbed her out of thin air as she leaped in for the kill.

“—?!”

Rosalind was stupefied. All she could do was stare.

I understand dodging, but why grab and hold on to me?!

Had he thought that she’d tripped on the middle-aged man’s body and fell forward towards him?

“Hmm... Little girl, could it be that you’re not normal?”

Even her best guess had been wrong. Now she had no idea what to think, much less what to say. Then he proceeded to talk about things she didn’t understand at all.

“I’ve got this weird thing called the bloodline of the Namidare,” he explained. “I’m used to girls like you who aren’t quite normal.”

Who is this guy? What is he?

He was still holding her in his arms. She’d never been touched so gently by someone.

I don’t understand. What... What is this feeling?! Fine, I guess I’ll just have to kill him!

The confusion was too much for her to handle, so she decided to cut it off at the source, but...

“So just leave it to me,” he said.

Her hand stopped. Her heart pounded. She’d fallen in love. She’d fallen in love with his dazzling smile.

“I don’t know what it is that you’re caught up in, but don’t worry. No matter how deep your darkness is, I’ll save you from it.”

“...”

It wasn’t that she’d never seen a human smile before, but no one had ever smiled at her like that. No one had ever been that kind to her. Her whole body tensed up like she’d been shot through the heart.

“W-Would you put me down?” It was all she could say.

“Oh, sorry.” He smiled and set her down on the ground.

It then became clear how much taller he was. Rosalind could feel him looking down at the top of her head, and her heart began to beat faster.

“N... Namidare?”

“Right. Wait, you haven’t told me your name yet.”

“R-Rosalind.”

“Rosalind, huh? I figured it would be foreign, but that’s a cute name.”

“...!”

His words only made her feel more embarrassed. She had no idea where these feelings were coming from.

“All right, let’s go someplace quiet where you can tell me your story.”

The boy kept talking, but Rosalind was at a loss. And so for now...

“D-Don’t call me ‘little girl.’ Despite how I may look, I’m older than you.”

...was all she could manage.

“Wait, seriously? You really don’t look like it...”

“Sh-Shut up!”

“Hmm... Okay, got it.”

He thought for a moment and looked like he’d come up with some kind of clever trick to play. Then the boy named Namidare offered Rosalind his hand once more.

“Give me the honor of taking your hand, princess.”

“?!”

This was definitely his way of getting back at her for slapping his hand away earlier, but she didn’t have the mental capacity left to think about that. And she definitely didn’t have the mental capacity left to tell him she wanted to hear him say her name again, so from that moment until the day they said goodbye, he always called her “princess.”

“Come on, hurry.”

“...”

Timidly, she took his hand. That was all that it took to make him smile again.

“I wonder what kind of story yours is, princess!”

“...”

He hadn’t yet fully explained the bloodline of the Namidare, so half of what he said was lost on Rosalind.

But his hand was so warm...

And she could feel the kindness in his gaze...

And when she saw the way he smiled at her...

For the first time in her life, she wanted someone by her side.