4
Clang, clang—the sound of metal striking metal echoed through the forge.
Where was I? In the elf village’s smithy.
What was I doing? Hammering orichalcum under the elder’s strict supervision.
Why? Because of Unyu-ko’s situation.
The day after the shocking “whole village bowing” incident,
the elves finally regained their composure and came to a decision.
(Well, I only heard this from the elder.)
“—So, the princess failed to slay the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire, did they?”
The elves referred to their High Elf as “princess.” Fitting.
“You mean they lost?”
“Not entirely. But I wouldn’t call it a success either, given what you’ve told me.”
The elder had no knowledge of the vampire’s activities over the past few millennia.
When I and Yuzuriha-san filled the elder in, the elder’s face darkened.
“The princess… likely tried to seal the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire within her own body. Half of it worked. But the other half failed—and that’s why it’s still preying on humans.”
“Huh? But the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire had a normal girl’s body, right? Not a tiny, chibi form like Unyu-ko’s.”
“Unyuu!?”
“High Elves can take two forms—child and adult.”
“Really!? ”
“ Normally, they don’t use the child form, since their mind regresses along with their body. But there’s one reason she’d force herself into it.”
“Which is?”
“She had to divert her excess magic just to keep the vampire suppressed. If she didn’t stay in that form… she’d lose control.”
“…”
“Don’t look so troubled. The solution is simple.”
“Which is?”
“You must slay it. Take responsibility.”
—And just like that, the elder told me, dead serious, to take responsibility. What a mess.
And so, we return to the present.
Clank, clank—I continued hammering orichalcum for a special forging process. This wasn’t ordinary smithing.
“Listen well! Pour every ounce of your healing magic into each strike of the hammer!”
“Yes!”
“The jewel was delicate—it could only handle a saint’s magic. But orichalcum is different! Even your absurdly massive reserves won’t faze it!”
“Yes!”
“You’re the only one who can save the princess now! We’re countin’ on you!”
…Apparently, Unyu-ko was in danger.
If her magic continued depleting like this, she’d soon lose the ability to suppress the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire, allowing it to fully revive.
And if that happened?
Even in its sealed state, it slaughtered every human it encountered. If it regained its true power—
It would wipe out humanity and then spend eternity searching for orichalcum.
No joke—that’s straight-up an apocalypse ending.
So, what could we do? Only one answer:
Strike down Unyu-ko—along with the demon inside her—before it was too late.
“…Elder.”
“What is it?”
Between hammer strikes, I spoke up.
“Is Unyu-ko really going to be okay?”
“That’s why we’re workin’ so hard right now, ain’t it?”
“Yeah, but…”
According to the elder, Unyu-ko had taken damage from our battle, but so had the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire. Meaning now was the best chance to finish it.
But if we simply killed it, Unyu-ko—the vessel—would die too. Hence, our current plan:
[If we hit it with a weapon supercharged with healing magic, Unyu-ko gets healed while the vampire takes extra damage. Win-win, right?]
A brilliantly simple strategy. By exploiting the vampire’s weakness to healing magic, we could pull this off.
Wait, couldn’t we just blast it with healing magic directly? Nope. Turns out that would just heal the vampire too.
Something about orichalcum’s divine properties, elf magic, sealing jewels, barriers, and who-knows-what-else. The explanation was too complex, so I gave up.
All I needed to know was that I had to hammer orichalcum. Good enough.
“So, forging an orichalcum sword will deal extra damage to the demon, right?”
“Nah, that’s just my personal preference.”
“WHAAAAAT!?”
“C’mon, you can’t slay a demon with just a stick. Gotta look cool doin’ it.”
I was speechless.
Okay, fair point—but did the elder have to say it like that?
5
After using up all the orichalcum the elves had given me, the holy sword was finally complete.
Wait, was this really necessary? Apparently, yes—it could be reused after the battle.
“So don’t you dare lose it!”
“I mean, it’s not like I’d misplace it…”
Then, after a few days of rest to recover my magic—
The day of reckoning arrived. Tomorrow, I would face the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire.
*
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.GITHUB.IO
On the eve of the final battle, I stood under a waterfall for ritual purification.
Such rituals are said to have some effect against vampires, even if it’s just a placebo.
Even if it was just a small advantage, the elder insisted every bit counted against a vampire. I agreed.
Since it’s a waterfall ritual, I’m wearing only loincloth,
I let the icy water pound against my back as I meditated, focusing my magic. Time blurred. The elder said someone would come for me when it was time.
“—Big Brother… Big Brother—”
Someone shook my shoulder repeatedly, pulling me from deep meditation. My session must be over.
When I opened my eyes—
Moonlight illuminated Suzuha’s figure, drenched in spray, wearing nothing but a thin white cloth.
“W-Wha—!? Suzuha, what are you wearing!?”
“I-I had no choice! They said only pure white undergarments were allowed for the sacred ritual!”
“W-Wait, I heard women could at least wrap their chests!”
“That flimsy cloth ripped the moment I took a deep breath… B-Besides… if it’s you, Big Brother… I-I don’t mind… y-you seeing…”
Her face flushed bright red, Suzuha kept her gaze lowered as she glanced up at me with an apologetic expression.
And right below that, two outrageously ripe swellings—so full they put her head to shame—made their presence known with near-violent insistence.
If she weren’t my little sister, I’d have been in real trouble.
“Ugh, enough! Just go behind me!”
“Y-Yes…!”
“Wait, Suzuha!? Why are you hugging me from behind!?”
“Ah, sorry. Brother’s back looked so broad, I just… I mean! I was trying to warm you up after the waterfall left you freezing, so I—”
“‘Just’ doesn’t cut it!?”
Once again, I was grateful Suzuha was my sister.
“What’s the big deal? It’s just your back.”
“Well, fine… But why did you come get me? The elder was supposed to.”
“Well, you see, Brother. At first, the elven elder was going to fetch you as planned…”
“Yeah?”
“But when Yuzuriha-san saw her outfit, she threw a fit—”
“…I have a bad feeling about this.”
“Because at the time, the elder was dressed in nothing but a loincloth, barely containing her ridiculously massive chest, with a face that could rival a succubus. Her lethally explosive, hyper-sexualized physique was so overwhelming that Yuzuriha-san refused to let her greet you like that.”
“…Where the hell did you pick up that… vivid way of describing things?”
“From one of the Sakuragi Ducal House’s maids. is there a problem?”
Yeah, now that she mentioned it, there was a maid with a particularly… flavorful way with words.
I’d really prefer it if she didn’t rub off on my little sister like that.
“Whatever. So what happened next?”
“Well, Yuzuriha-san and the elder started arguing, and it escalated into a full-on catfight. So I slipped out and came here instead.”
“You should’ve stopped them!?”
“No need. Those two are the type who bond by beating each other up.”
“…Can’t really argue with that.”
Both of them did have that hot-blooded streak, after all.
Then again, Yuzuriha-san was a female knight, so maybe it made sense.
And so.
Time passed—quite a bit of it—with Suzuha still clinging to my back. Then, softly, she spoke.
“…Brother.”
“Hm?”
“Tomorrow’s battle against the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire… It looks like everything’s been perfectly prepared, but the truth is, it’s really dangerous, isn’t it?”
“…How’d you figure that out?”
This is troublesome.
I thought I’d hidden it well—acted like it was nothing so no one would notice.
“Because the more danger you’re in, the more you pretend like everything’s fine.”
“Guess I overdid it, huh? My bad.”
“You’re willing to risk your life to save Unyu-ko, aren’t you?”
“Well…”
Sure, I cared about Unyu-ko. I did want to save her.
But was that the only reason I was fighting the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire, knowing full well the risks? No. I didn’t think so.
And if someone asked if I was doing it to save the world, I didn’t really feel that way either.
So in the end, it had to be—
“…I think I just want to settle things.”
“Settle things?”
“Yeah. Between me and the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire.”
Long ago, I watched as everyone in my village was slaughtered before my eyes.
Suzuha and I were nearly killed countless times. Yuzuriha-san had a hole blown through her chest.
No matter what circumstances the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire had, that pain would never fade.
But at the same time, I respected Unyu-ko for holding back the demon all this time. I did want to save her.
So in the end, I just wanted to settle things.
That was all.
Hearing my words, Suzuha didn’t try to stop me.
Instead, she asked:
“Realistically, what are your chances?”
“Pretty risky, I’d say.”
Tomorrow’s battle would likely be the most dangerous of all my fights against the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire.
To restore Unyu-ko from her child form, we’d be giving her orichalcum.
If we stabbed the demon-slaying sword into her while she was still a child, she’d die along with the demon—purely from the physical toll.
But that also meant strengthening the Wandering Silver Haired Vampire slumbering inside her.
What would happen then? No one knew.
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