Why? Why am I sitting on a throne?

  Well, ly a throne, but that is what this is trying to be.

  After I (well, Genesis Vampire Lord) had cured the vilgers, they unanimously decided that they would hold a party to celebrate, and I was the guest of honor. For that, one of them used earth magic to raise the ground a bit and they set out the best chair in the vilge there to act as a sort of a throne. And now I was the idol of the dhampirs in the vilge.

  I had also taken off the neckce that Agatha gave me before I came to the vilge, as after the blood curse was gohe vilgers asked me to take it off, as long as I wasn’t opposed to the idea. They wao test if they really no longer have their urges and do they still go into a frenzy, if in the presence of a human.

  “Mr. Summoner, I’ve brought you some blood.” Anika said as she offered me a wooden chalice with blood in it. Her name I had learned from the mission.

  “Thank you, Anika, but I don’t drink blood, so please drink it yourself.” I told her.

  “Mr. Summoner doesn’t drink blood? Doesn't everyone drink blood?” She asked ily.

  “No. Only dhampirs drink blood.” I told her. “Or have you seen Agatha drinking blood?” I asked.

  “Lady Agatha has her own blood.” Anika answered. “That is what she says whenever I offer her blood.”

  “Well, I have some as well.” I said as I pulled out my magic fsk and drank some water from it. “See. I do appreciate ying me some, but please drink it yourself.”

  “Yes. I will.” Anika said before drinking the tents of the chalibsp;

  At least the blood didn’t go to waste.

  “Where is Lua?” I asked a passing vilger. I don’t know the names of all of them, as the mission rewards came in at basically the same time, so it was difficult to ect the o faces.

  “Lucia? She is cooking with Agatha. We … doly know how to cur food, so we had to ask for help.” He answered.

  “I see. That’s too bad. I was hoping she would show me around the vilge.” I said.

  “If you want a tour, I show you around.” He offered.

  “No. It’s fine. I’ll just sit here.” I said. It’s not that I don’t want to see everything, but I holy just wao escape this throne already. And Lua knew me before, so she should treat me as she did before. I hope. None of this low-key worship.

  It felt awkward when I was the ‘hero’ of Alewatch, but this is worse. At least there I was just thanked by the passer-by.

  “Mr. Summoner. I was told you wanted a tour. Would you accept me in the pce of Lucia?” A female dhampir came up to me and asked. And not just any female, the ohat wao suck my blood, ended up in the Spellbinding Circle and ran off when I let her go.

  “No thanks. I’ll wait for Lua.” I answered.

  “Please, let me give you a tour.” She said.

  … and now she is insisting.

  “Please.” She repeated. Her eyes were glittering a bit. Not because they were glowing like when she went into a blood frenzy, but because she has tears in her eyes and the light is refleg off of them.

  That’s not fair. You ’t just e and cry in front of me. I have a 4x weako the tears of beautiful dies.

  “... fine. I don’t feel like sitting around any longer.” I answered holy. I just want to get off this throne before I really bee a false idol. I don’t want to be a false god. That just sounds like a way to piss off the actual God. Or was it Goddess? I think everyone says Goddess.

  “Yes. I’ll show you around then.” She said.

  She took me a bit away from the rge building in front of which I was sitting, before she stopped and turo face me.

  She then got on her knees.

  “I’m sorry.” She said.

  “For what? F to attack me? I know you didn’t do it because you wao, so it is fine.” I told her.

  “No. Well, yes, but no. I’m sorry I ever approached you like that. I knew better than to do it, but your st is so tempting that I just wao e closer.” She said. “... then I lost trol. And even then you still cured my curse.”

  … so I smell good? I guess Lua did say my blood tastes good. So I’m a dhampir mag? I don’t know if that is good or bad. It might be good for finding stable dhampirs, so I cure them. They might catch my st and follow me in town. No, probably not. That sounds a little much. Lua didn’t follow me at any point after all. Even after she had tasted my blood.

  “As such, I would like to ask something.” She said. “Please, take me as your sve.”

  “… what?”

  “Please take me as a sve.” She repeated.

  “No, I heard you just fine, but why?” I asked.

  “It is the only way I pay you back.” She said.

  “By being a sve?” I asked.

  “Yes.” She said.

  “Is that really all the value you see in yourself?” I asked.

  “A dhampir ot leave a vilge like this if they aren’t deemed stable. And I, most certainly, am not. So the only way I leave is if someone is responsible for my as. I would like to ask you to be that for me. I know you have the power to hold me back, even if I go into a blood frenzy.” She reasoned.

  “So I’m just your ticket out of here?” I asked.

  “... I apologize that I put it that way.” She said. “But there is no other way. Ever since I was little, I haven’t been able to trol myself. My blood frenzy. But I’ve always wao leave this pce, like Lucia . And because of you, I think I finally have a ce. But I’m afraid. What if I do attaeone again? Even Lady Agatha ot stop me when I’m in a full frenzy, so I need someone else. But you did it. So I need you.”

  “And iurn for being responsible for you, you will be my sve?” I asked to firm.

  “Yes. Please.” She said.

  Hmm. It’s not a bad deal. I guess. Not that I know how expensive a sve really is. Or even what the ws around sves are. I should study that stuff when I get back to Sawyer city.

  “I don’t think your offer is bad.” I told her. “So, I’ll think about it. But first, could you at least give me your name?” I asked.

  “Ah, I apologize. I should have introduced myself. My name is Rhianna. But please call me Ria.” She introduced herself.

  Rhianna? So she is the ohat gave me Vampire Fasator.

  “Ria it is then. I’m Brian, and please call me that.” I said back to her.

  “Lord Brian?”

  “Just Brian.”

  “Not even Mr. Brian?” She asked.

  “No. Even lord Brian is better than that.” I said.

  “Sir Brian?”

  “Just Brian, thank you.” I said.

  “Brian?”

  “Good.”

  “Brian. Food is ready.” I heard Lua calling for me.

  I turo where I heard her and saw her looking at the two of us, with Ria still kneeling on the ground.

  “Mind telling me what happened?” Lua asked.

  “Ria wao bey sve.” I answered.

  “Don’t tell her that!” Ria said as she got up at a speed that wasn’t humanly possible.

  “Oh. Did she really?” Lua asked.

  “Yes. Something about needing a responsible person to keep her in check.” I told Lua.

  “Don’t tell her that either.” Ria added.

  “I already knew about that.” Lua said.

  “Eh? What? I thought you were always stable.” Ria said.

  “Yes. But I still had to gh the tests. They don’t trust us without that.” Lua said.

  “Eh? Really? I thought… “ Ria muttered.

  “e on you two. Food is waiting.” I said to them.

  We walked back to the town hall, the one pce that my tour with Ria actually went over before the tour turned into an apology festival.

  There, I was seated at a table with only Agatha joining me for … I guess lunch, even if it is a bit te for that already. But it is really early for dinner, so this is lunch.

  “Won’t the others join us?” I asked.

  “No. Lua did expin that they , but they refused, stating that they ot possibly eat at the same table as you.” Agatha answered.

  “What about Lua?” I asked.

  “She will. She is just bringing out the food.” Agatha said, just as Lua and Ria came into the room, each carrying e ptter with food.

  Eh? Isn’t that way too much for just two people?

  As they set it down, I looked at the cooked meat oer. What kind of meat is that? It doesn’t look like the ones I know. The structure is somewhat like a fish, but it is clearly red meat. Well, I guess I should say the bones look like fish bones. And then the meat around it looks like normal red meat.

  After she had set the ptter down, Ria came o me and moved some of the meat onto a pte that she pced in front of me.

  “Thank you.” I said to her, before asking. “What kind of meat is this?”

  “Crimson boa.” Ria answered. “It attacked two days ago and I defeated it.”

  “Crimson boa? Isn’t that a B-rank monster?” Lua asked.

  “Yes, it is.” Ria answered.

  “Were you really able to take it down on your own?” Lua asked.

  “Not on my own, no.” Ria said. “But I was the ohat led the attack.”

  “Taking down a B-rank is still impressive.” Agatha ended Ria.

  “Yes. It really is.” I added.

  “Says the ohat takes down A-rank monsters.” Lua said.

  “Well, you know how it is.” I said back. “I don’t take them down. My summons do.”

  “... Wait, what? You took down an A-rank monster?” Agatha asked.

  “Yeah. A sword-horn bull.” I answered.

  “Where would you even find something that strong? And how do you fight something like that?” Agatha asked.

  “It spawned in my dungeon.” I answered. Agatha already knew about me being a founder, so I say it like that.

  “Really? An A-rank monster? What kind of core does your dungeon have?” Agatha asked.

  “S-rank core from a lesser behemoth.” I answered.

  “S-rank? Where did you get … ht. The family treasure, right?” Agatha seemed to realize where the core of my dungeon came from.

  “Yeah. When I told the Wat family about finding and eliminating a rogue dungeon, they decided to use an S-rank core for it. Well, Baron Wat did anyway.” I said. I evehe official title of Brandon, as I feel like I should here.

  “I see. Well, I guess having an A-rank monster in an S-rank dungeon does match.” Agatha said.

  I have to say, snake is good. I’ve heard it tastes like chi, but I think it is closer t. Or at least frog legs.

  “Ria, why don’t you have a taste as well. You hu so you should taste it.” I told her.

  “... I … may I?” She asked.

  “Of course. I did offer some for you.” I told her.

  “Then, if you don’t mind.” Ria said as she sat down and took some of the snake meat onto a pte of her own, before eating it.

  “... it's not that good.” Ria said after tasting the meat. “It’s not disgusting like it used to be, but I don’t like it.”

  “Oh, you don’t? I think it is quite good.” I said.

  “Agreed. Snake be really delicious. Sure this is very simple, but it still tastes good.” Agatha agreed.

  “She is not used to it.” Lua said. “The first meal just tastes bnd pared to blood.”

  “You old me that.” Agatha said to her daughter.

  “You wouldn’t uand.” Lua said.

  “I could try.” Agatha said.

  “It also doesn’t matter. It's not like we have to eat “normal” food after we are cured. We still go on with blood alone.” Lua said.

  “But what is the problem?” I wondered. “Is it just going from liquid food to solid food? Or is there something else? If it is just going from liquid to solid, they should be fih more liquidy foods at first, right.”

  “No. It’s the taste.” Lua said. “I got over it by making a sauce from blood and smearing it over meat.”

  “So using blood as an ingredient should help with the process? Why not just cook something that has blood in it?” I asked.

  “Blood? In the food? I’ve never heard of something like that.” Agatha said.

  Eh? They don’t use blood as an ingredient? I guess it isn’t that on, but in Laura’s home try, there were a few dishes that used blood, like the bck pudding.

  “I do know of something like that, but I’m not sure of the exact recipe. Should we still try it?” I asked.

  “You know a recipe that uses blood? From where?” Agatha asked.

  “My grandpa used to make something like that. He didn’t want to waste the blood from things he hunted.” I said, lying all the way through. And as far as I know, that is the reason blood was used in cooking. “But he old me the exact recipe, so we have to improvise a bit.”

  “We should try it.” Lua said.

  “Food made with blood? It might be good.” Ria added.

  “What do we need for it?” Agatha asked.

  “As I said, I’m not sure. But I think all we need is meat of some kind, this snake meat should work, blood, we have that, and a binding agent like wheat flour, oatmeal or barley.” I said, recalling the little information that I have. “You just mix everything together and bake it in the oven until done.”

  “That sounds so simple. But I feel like that is not going to work at all.” Agatha said.

  “Well, I’m not a chef.” I said. “And why would it not work? We could try and see how it goes. Sure our proportions will be all over the pce, but we make it work.”

  “Well, even ign that part, there are two problems. No, make that three.” Agatha said. “First, unless you are carrying some, we have no flour or anything like that.”

  True. I don’t have any and I don’t think I make any with my cards. I guess I could make crackers with Emergency Provisions and crush them, but that will just cause more difficulties.

  “Sed, we don’t have any sort of cooking implements.” Agatha said.

  Oh yeah. Like a oven tray. Iron Bcksmith Kotetsu might be able to make one if I ask him, but I don’t have any iron or steel with me. And I ’t even make any with the dungeon. I really o analyze some ingots at some point.

  “Third, this vilge doesn’t even have a cooking oven.” Agatha said.

  … oh. Yeah. Why would a vilge that only drinks blood have ahat cook things?

  “But then how did you cook the snake?” I asked.

  “It was roasted o an open fire.” Lua answered.

  “Well, someone knows what they are doing. sidering the cookihod, it came out amazing.” I plimehe duo that had cooked the snake meat. I have cooked some stuff on an open fire before, and it is not easy.

  “Does that mean no food for us?” Ria asked.

  “I could always jump into Gradius and fly back to Sawyer city and make it there.” I offered.

  “No. We could never make you have to do something like that.” Ria instantly said. “You already did everything for us.”

  “Everything is a lot. I don’t think I did that much.” I said.

  “Brian. I think you fot something.” Lua said. “You did something no one else could do. And sidering that Ria attacked you, you easily could have just said no.”

  “Attacked or tried to attack?”

  … What? No response for that? Was it that bad of a joke?

  “Too soon, huh.” I admitted.

  “Yes. Yes it was.” Agatha said.