The Undead King of the Palace of Darkness (WN)

“Dammit! Every single place reeks of undead… who would’ve thought things would turn out this way…”

Strolling in a deserted town someplace, Oliver Arbor sighed.

Despite the sun still being up in the sky, there was barely anybody out and about.

Once upon a time, daytime used to be the hour of the living. However, everything has changed now.

The retreat of Death Knights, the longtime enemies of the undead, enabled them to expand their territories. And for ordinary humans incapable of wielding the power of blessing, even weaker undead who are capable of being under the sun, prove to be plenty dangerous. All the more so, when there is no one to protect them.

Upon sensing the humans’ drop in defense, even dark beings that had not allied with any demon king and kept to themselves, began to make their move.

Oliver is also part of the second category if he had to be placed in one. In the time he spent as a member of Rainel’s army, he slaughtered humans with glee.

Not to satisfy his hunger, but because that was the wish of the wild nature instilled in werewolves.

And even now, those instincts have not disappeared.

“… Hmph”

Oliver snorted.

Humans have a much more inconvenient physique compared to werewolves. Owing to his curse, Oliver is quite strong in his human form as well, however he is in a totally different league once he transforms.

Werewolf’s curse comes with its own share of disadvantages. The fact that it makes them wild and also the fact that their wild side could overwhelm them and they could degrade into an ordinary beast if they stay in their wolf form for too long.

However, for Oliver, who received the curse from a third generation retainer directly connected to the Beast King, as long as he stays careful, things could go either way.

While in Rainel’s army, where strength is all that mattered, he stayed in his wolf form as long as he could manage. But now, he spends most of his time in his human form.

Probably because he had been lost in thought, he was surrounded before he realized it.

Three people behind and three at the front. Humans in cheap armor, wielding cheap looking swords. Considering how they are able to mask their footsteps and aura, they seem to have some experience fighting.

In other words… they are small fry. Back in time of peace, they would not even make mercenaries. At best, they would have become… bandits.

Oliver looked up. His eyes met with one of the guys in the front.

The man looked a head taller than Oliver in his human form.

Despite being smack dab in the middle of town, he carried a well-used, large scimitar on his hip and his mouth curved into a crooked smile.

The man stops a few feet in front of him. Oliver follows suit and also comes to a stop. He could tell the men in his rear quietly spread around to surround him.

Undead were not the only things that became lively after the world order crumbled.

Judging from their actions, Oliver came to a conclusion.

They are bandits after all. Ever since the armies of demon kings became more active, a majority of the towns experienced a drop in their defense.

In spite of the state of emergency, humans did whatever they wanted, which only makes them incredibly foolish.

The men were all clad in black outfits.

“Hey, old fart, whaddya doin here by your lonesome? Surely you know it’s not safe here. You must’ve heard about the Head King that rules this place.”

“Head… King…”

The men looked a little puzzled at Oliver whispering to himself, but soon nodded in agreement.

Two men at his side slowly spread out in both directions as naturally as they could.

“Yeah, that’s right. Head King. Most of the soldiers protecting the town are dead. Of course, the King has no interest in a broken-down deserted town like this, but there are those that do show interest.”

The man grabbed his scimitar in a flashy manner and got into a fighting stance. Sunlight bounced off the dull blade. And his supposed friends also drew their swords.

Ridiculous. Simply ridiculous. Back in the day, there was no fear of being attacked by people like these even on the outskirts of a town.

Well, I guess his perception might be a little skewed since he was always the aggressor….

“The King told us, ‘Do as you please’. Our black clothes are proof of that! The more heads we take the higher the status granted to us by the King.”

Such foolish thinking. The dead despise the living. No matter the ulterior motive, it makes no sense for them to show mercy to mere humans.

All the more so when the humans in question are no more than small time thugs.

Oliver looked around, assessing the situation and sighed.

“Head King”.

Each day there are more and more Kings I have never heard of.

The map is redrawn too frequently because of all the different power plays. Just where the heck was this Head King hiding until the Death Knights disappeared?

I would have never imagined that there were humans who would choose to side with the undead, of course, that is not to say it has never happened before, however, the number has skyrocketed lately.

End Baron lamented that the vampires had degraded in quality, but it appears they are not alone in that.

All they took into account was their opponent’s physique, whether they were armed, and the head count before they decided to attack them.

“… You’re just being used. Because the undead can’t use their powers under the sun. Unlike me…”

Saying so, Oliver transformed.

Weaker werewolves need to draw power from the moon, but a third generation werewolf like Oliver has no need for that.

It has been many years since the Beast King was felled. There are barely any werewolves left that are capable of transforming without borrowing strength from the moon.

Upon seeing Oliver grow humongous in a flash, the expressions on the faces of men who were very elated at finding easy prey, changed drastically.

They could neither swing their swords nor scream out loud, but simply stand rooted to the spot. They left themselves wide open in front of a beast.

“Though this won’t get me any reward, it’s kill or be killed.”

There is only one thing that could override the wild instinct of werewolves. And that is fear.

Werewolves live in packs. They are brought into this world to serve their master.

As long as it is the wish of the Alpha to not attack humans, the werewolves are forbidden from doing so.

Blood blossoms bloomed. With a single swipe of his arm, three of the men were torn to shreds and thrown to the ground. And that is when, the men let out something between a yell and a scream.

“Never thought things would turn out this way.”

One of the men raised his scimitar and rushed headlong at Oliver.

After lamenting one last time, Oliver returned the favor beast-style.

☠ ☠ ☠

This is not working out.

A castle that was abandoned after it was invaded by demons. With curtains and planks blocking out even the smallest ray of sunlight from seeping in, I sat in the cellar of the castle and sighed.

Plopped down on the couch that was brought in, I tried to shake off the annoyance of unknown origin from settling in.

All threats in the vicinity had been nullified.

After defeating Rainel, I killed the Mirage King. Only ones capable of killing me are other Demon Kings, a fellow noble vampire or the Death Knights. Well, vampire hunters could also make tough opponents but as long as I do not screw up badly, I doubt I would lose.

Nevertheless, the situation remains unchanged.

We have saved several towns and killed many dark beings. Mirele has slowly mastered her abilities after extensive on-field experience.

However, we still remain in the dark. With each passing day there are more undead surfacing. There were many who claimed to be Kings among the ones I killed, but they were all far inferior to Rainel in terms of might. Also, starting with the Stake King, the subsequent demon kings do not seem to have as much leisure to go around attacking simple human settlements.

I am not sure whether it is by design or merely a coincidence, but there are too many obstacles to clear. Since each town has shut in on itself, there is almost no way to glean new information.

It is unclear exactly where the Death Knights are stationed at this very moment. All that is known is that Senri is the one leading them. I would not expect anything less from Senri, she is perfect at keeping information from leaking out, but that does put me in a bit of a pickle.

After all, I am no more than a vampire who got a small power-up.

Not being able to venture out during the day is also a legitimate issue. My bat form is really convenient for scouting but the fact that I can only do any real work after sundown really limits how much distance I can cover. The land is simply too vast.

Moreover, if the Death Knights are holed up somewhere, it is sure to be set near a water body. Or worst case scenario, it could even be on a lone island surrounded by water on all sides.

Currently, my only allies are Oliver, Monica and Mirele. Oliver is a mutt, and Monica can fly but she is not all that strong.

And it is hard to say our plan of recruiting people with Dead Soul disease is going swimmingly. They are few in number to begin with and we are in the middle of war at the moment. Should I count my blessings for finding Mirele so quickly?

First of all, the process of vampirification involves transfer of power. Meaning, the one facilitating the process will experience a drop in their power. Hence, I cannot make too many.

With the way things are going, just when am I going to be able to see Senri? If this keeps on, Senri might forget me- not!

Ahh, I feel like raining down flyers, announcing that I am alive. However, I cannot do that because Monica could get shot down from the sky.

And Mirele is well, Mirele….

“Brother! Take a look!”

At that moment, my one and only retainer, Mirele burst into the dark room, all smiles.

Mirele was stark naked. Because transforming into a wolf rips clothes apart.

The ability she received from me is Curse Steal, so she cannot even manipulate her blood to cover herself up. That kinda reminds me of the past.

Mirele was holding a huge wooden box. She looked all proud as she presented it to me.

“I made a coffin! And it’s perfect!”

“Mirele, have some shame.”

She looked very withdrawn even moments before becoming a vampire, but now she is all animated. It is daytime now, sleep time.

Not to mention, she is too carefree. For an enemy of humanity.

Carefree and naked. Just who does she take after?

Mirele quickly hid herself behind the coffin after I pointed her nakedness out and slowly peeked out.

“But brother, there’s no more clothes left to wear in this castle. Except for my best set, everything’s ripped.”

Not that they got ripped but you ripped them.

“Just stay a puppy all the time.”

“But I transform into a wolf.”

Mirele stared at him, eyes all round, looking perplexed.

Haha… a wolf is a lot cooler than a dog! But I can transform into a wolf too now. A fluffy wolf with a long white coat! Just why?!

Since there was no other choice, I bit into my right thumb. I manipulated the blood flowing out to surround her to form clothes.

The ability Blood Pain I possess is weak. Quite possibly due to the fact that I did not steal it from the actual body of the owner, I cannot maintain the shape of blood once it gets too far from my reach.

I need to quickly find a vampire with the ability for Mirele to steal the curse from. Wait a minute, are all the vampires excluding those serving the Stake King, all nudists?

“Yayy! Thank you, brother!”

Mirele followed me around like a chick, shouting excitedly. I do not remember raising such a shameless child.

She is probably just starved for human relationships since she had been bedridden for a long time. In my case, the Lord was quite a character so I never particularly developed a bond with him. Suppose Senri had saved me in a similar fashion as I did Mirele, I cannot be sure I would not have behaved the same way.

Mirele put down her handmade coffin on the floor, grabbed me by the arm and tried to shove me into it. As slender as her arms were, she was pretty strong since she was a vampire.

Hold it, stop… this coffin does not have a mattress. I am glad you made it just for me, but a plain wooden coffin just would not do! Not to mention there are some nails sticking out that poking holes into me.

Dainty frame that crumpled up and bumped against me. Soft skin. Long hair tickled my cheeks. Mirele put her ear to my chest for a second, as if she could hear my heartbeat, she soon raised her neck to my face and purred.

“Dear Brother, I offer you this coffin and me as a show of gratitude! Please help yourself to my blood!”

Really, I wonder who she takes after. I do not remember raising such a shameless child!

I am devoted to Senri. I will not cheat on her.

Mirele squirmed, rubbed against me and said all embarrassed.

“Brother, you pervert!”

“That’s a lie! Who do you think put clothes on you?!”

I need her to be the same, imposing Mirele, that she is on the battlefield.

At this rate… she might force herself on me. This will not do. This simply will not do, even if we are vampires.

… Senri needs to learn from her! Be it a handmade coffin or offering herself, both would make the perfect present.

“I’m back, Lord End.”

And as luck would have it, Monica who had been sent on a scouting mission returned at that very moment.

On top of being able to fly, she can also be out and about during the day. Though rather weak, she also possesses charm abilities and Oliver, who can fight and whiff things out, are very useful allies. Though, I am also capable of the things Oliver can do.

Upon learning of Monica’s return, Mirele’s expression very openly changed. Apparently, she is not too fond of Monica.

Maybe because she flew back without rest, Monica looked haggard. Demons have superior endurance compared to humans but it is still far inferior to vampires.

She had dark circles under her eyes and her hair was all disheveled. I should make sure to not snap at her even if she has nothing to show for all that effort.

I cleared my throat and promptly asked for a report.

“Welcome back, Monica. Have there been any developments?”

“… Lord End. It’s too late to gloss things over.”

Monica held her head as if she was nursing a headache and with her voice sounding exhausted, she began her report.