Volume 1, Chapter 7 – An Unexpected Turn

Contrary to expectations, the priest did not resort to force immediately. Yisi loosened her clenched fist—had the other party attacked her right away, she would have retaliated without hesitation. The Omniscient Map showed that this priest and the soldiers outside were all below level 10. Even a simple Fireball spell would have been enough to defeat them effortlessly. But since force didn’t seem necessary now, Yisi was more than happy to avoid it.

[Advanced Appraisal]

Just to be safe, Yisi cast an appraisal spell on the priest. The target of [Advanced Appraisal] wouldn’t feel anything unusual, so she wasn’t worried about being discovered.

Sure enough, a status window appeared in her vision. The priest, named Owen, wasn’t using any disguise magic—his level was indeed only 8. Not only was his magic power inferior to hers, but even his physical strength paled in comparison. Owen’s strength stat was in the double digits, while hers was nearing six figures.

Though Yisi ignored him, Priest Owen didn’t seem angered—or rather, his expression suggested he had expected this reaction. He turned and waved at the accompanying soldiers, signaling for them to leave.

One of the soldiers hesitated.

“Priest Owen, you—”

“Leave. I have something to discuss with Lady Pescia. This is the Vice Archbishop’s order.”

“Understood.”

Without further hesitation, all the soldiers filed out of the inn, leaving only Yisi and Owen inside.

As if his earlier sternness had been an act, Owen’s face softened into a kindly smile. He gestured toward a chair, inviting Yisi to sit.

“Lady Pescia, didn’t we agree that as long as we met your needs—providing you with treatment equal to what you received in the vampire territory of Hyurent—you wouldn’t leave the mansion without permission? If you wished to go out, you only needed to inform your attendants, and we would arrange for you to move freely within Niru City. We need to secure the Bishop’s return, so we have no intention of threatening your safety.”

When was there ever such an agreement?

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Sitting in the offered chair, Yisi tilted her head slightly. The gold-trimmed white priestly robes Owen wore did seem familiar. She searched the memories of the Count’s eldest daughter—and the result surprised her.

In fact, just as Owen had said, the Count’s eldest daughter had made such an agreement with him. In exchange for being treated as nobility, she would not cause trouble for the Church. Her living conditions had been luxurious—far from those of a prisoner. Even outings outside the city had been permitted. In these memories, the Count’s eldest daughter had even found the human world’s novelties intriguing, to the point of wanting to stay longer.

Of course, she hadn’t abandoned her sadistic tendencies. The Church simply forbade her from tormenting humans, instead supplying her with vampire prisoners who were already on death row. As for the girl Yisi had seen being abused earlier, she was a personal attendant who had been captured alongside the Count’s eldest daughter.

Naturally, Yisi grew suspicious. Why would a prisoner receive such preferential treatment? Even if the human Church intended to use her in an exchange for their captured bishop, there was no reason to indulge her to this extent.

After thoroughly reviewing the Count’s eldest daughter’s memories from the past week since her capture, Yisi finally found the reason.

The Count’s eldest daughter had used her acting skills to convince the Church that after absorbing the corpse of the Demon King Ouranos, she had gained the ability to instantly annihilate an entire city—at the cost of her own life. Combined with the fact that the vampires’ overall strength far surpassed that of the Human Alliance, the Church had no choice but to tread carefully, offering her unbelievably favorable terms.

Forget the fact that the vampire territories are twice the size of the Human Alliance’s—just the Count’s eldest daughter’s acting skills alone are worthy of admiration…

To turn the tables while surrounded by enemies through sheer wit—Yisi admitted that if it were her, she could never have pulled it off. Before her reincarnation, she had been an ordinary college student with no real-world experience, a complete novice in such matters.

Well, I can think about all that later. Right now, the priority is how to deal with this priest.

Owen posed no threat to her. The Count’s eldest daughter had only been level 21, forced to rely on deception to survive. But now, thanks to her reincarnation, Yisi was level 427. Even if Owen refused her demands, she could do as she pleased.

That said, Owen had always been a kind man—so much so that even the Count’s eldest daughter had been reluctant to make things difficult for him. If possible, Yisi didn’t want to resort to force against someone like him.

Wait… What if I could use Owen’s authority to secure a long-term stay in the human world?

A new idea struck her.

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The current Loysvier was no longer the original. No matter how hard she tried to play the role of the Count’s eldest daughter, she would eventually slip up. Rather than waste effort on a futile act, why not abandon the identity altogether and simply live in the human world?

Humans and vampires hadn’t been at war for nearly a century. Even if the Church’s territories couldn’t tolerate vampires, surely there were other nations under royal rule where multiple races coexisted peacefully.

After a long silence, Yisi still hadn’t responded. Owen’s friendly expression twisted into a wry smile.

“Speaking of which… After discovering your absence, we immediately dispatched search parties to nearby towns. Then we found that Niru Forest had been destroyed by unknown means. A spell of that magnitude would require at least sixth-tier fire magic—yet no one in the northern continent is capable of such a feat. Lady Pescia, you once claimed to possess the power to annihilate a city in an instant. Could it be that you…?”

“Huh?”

Did he figure it out already? No, no—stay calm. This is just Owen’s speculation. But… actually, his assumption might work in my favor.

Some within the Church had doubted whether the Count’s eldest daughter truly had such destructive power. If she could use this opportunity to reinforce that belief, she could instantly seize control of the situation.

Strength is always the foundation of negotiation.

For the sake of her future plans, Yisi maintained her cold expression—not that she needed to force it, since the Count’s eldest daughter had always been aloof by nature.

“What? You don’t believe I did it?”

“So it really was you. But—”

“But I said using it would kill me, yet here I am, perfectly fine?”

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Owen awkwardly rubbed his nose, not answering—which played right into Yisi’s hands.

“I said that once—back then, it was true. But now, I’ve fully absorbed the remnants of the Demon King Ouranos’ power. As long as I don’t use city-destroying magic more than three times, I won’t die. If you—no, if the Church—doubts me, I can reluctantly demonstrate a second time. But let me warn you: anyone who witnesses it firsthand will perish in the aftermath.”

It sounded like a ruthless threat, but Yisi had no choice. The idea of performing another exaggerated 『Explosion』 chant in front of strangers was mortifying—akin to reading an embarrassing middle-school diary in public.

“N-No need! There isn’t a second Niru Forest for you to test your magic on!” Owen wiped sweat from his brow. “Would you be willing to return with me? Your younger sister is still waiting in the city… Of course, if you prefer, I can arrange for suitable accommodations here in Anno Town and have your sister and attendants transferred. It won’t take long. And while Anno isn’t as bustling as Niru City, its peace and tranquility are unmatched.”

For some reason, Yisi got the impression Owen was strongly recommending she stay in Anno Town. After a moment’s thought, she inwardly laughed.

Of course—Anno Town has a population of less than 3,000, compared to Niru City’s 50,000. Even if I broke our agreement and destroyed it, the losses would be minimal.

As for bringing her sister Camilla and attendants here, it seemed considerate, but was really just a way to ensure she wouldn’t use large-scale annihilation magic freely.

What Owen didn’t know was that the Count’s eldest daughter had never cared about her sister.

“What do you think? On top of that, we’ll provide you with more vampire servants. As long as you remain within our supervision, any request you make, I’ll do my best to persuade the higher-ups to fulfill it. In a month’s time, your father will come to retrieve you. Please consider this stay in the human world as… a vacation.”

It’s like he’s begging me to be his prisoner.

The thought was so absurd that Yisi almost laughed. The people of this world were far more accommodating than she’d expected.

Still, agreeing too easily would ruin the Count’s eldest daughter’s cold, unapproachable image. Yisi deliberately snorted.

“Hmph. I want to stay in Niru City. Are you trying to exile me to this backwater?”

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She had her reasons for returning to Niru City.

First, with 『Advanced Teleportation』, she could leave anytime. Second, her offensive magic could obliterate a city in an instant. The Church had already feared the Count’s eldest daughter’s fabricated power—now that it had been “confirmed,” they wouldn’t dare threaten her.

Lastly, her current status as a “pseudo-prisoner” was the perfect cover for exploring this world. No one would disturb her, and she could exploit Owen’s willingness to accommodate her demands, using the Church’s resources to gather information.

The fact that the Church feared city-destroying magic revealed one thing: they had no way to counter it. That made it all the more crucial for Yisi to investigate this world’s strongest beings.

Rather than wandering aimlessly alone, it was far more efficient to leverage the collective knowledge of an entire organization. If things turned dangerous, she could always resort to either 『Explosion』 or 『Advanced Teleportation』 to escape.

Her words made Owen smile in relief.

“Of course not. You know I belong to the Church’s conciliation faction—my ultimate goal is peaceful coexistence between humans and vampires. If the sole heir of House Pescia comes to see the human world in a positive light, the northern border between the Human Alliance and your family’s domain may enjoy lasting peace.”

With that, Owen stood and opened the inn’s door.

“The carriage is ready. Lady Pescia, you may return to Niru City whenever you wish.”

“Let’s go.”

Imitating the Count’s eldest daughter’s imperious tone, Yisi rose to her feet.

For someone who had just transmigrated, that conversation had been the result of Yisi’s desperate efforts to suppress her inner panic. She wasn’t confident she could keep up the act much longer. Some quiet time alone in the carriage would do her good.

Stepping past Owen, Yisi exited the inn.