As I gaze down upon a court of literal bloodsucking parasites, a thought occurs.
I, uh, can't really tell any of them apart.
They all have the same hair and eyes as Gasper, blond and blood red respectively, they all have skin as perfect, smooth, and pale as a doll's, and they all look like they're larping a Victorian England fashion convention.
For a second, I actually thought I had taken a wrong turn and somehow ended up back in time to boot.
Then I reminded myself that, no, that's just how the vampires here worked. I pulled it all out of more than a few vampires' minds directly after all.
Everything from the location of their main castle, to their defenses, such as barriers and watchtowers, patrols, all of it.
Turns out, weather like this that hides the sun, while it isn't so great a hunting time as night, it's better than nothing at all.
See, the guys my clones found, they were all lower-ranking vampires who still had to go out and hunt for their food.
The parasites up here in their fancy castles? They don't even need to go out; they have servants keep stock close by, in the town surrounding the castle.
They actually aren't treated so badly, at least the grunts believe anyhow. The best quality blood is given by those healthy and hale, who are still virgins, a bunch of factors like that.
Ironically, it incentivizes the pureblood vampires to 'take care' of their food.
Right up until something makes the purebloods decide otherwise, for any number of reasons they can come up with.
That's how dhampirs end up happening. Usually.
If Valerie wasn't already a factor, and so were these humans, along with potentially other dhamphirs, I would have nuked this entire castle from orbit, along with every other vampire fortress or town I came across.
Ripping all that out of their heads also resulted in me learning way too much about vampire politics…
Which, no, if I start thinking about it now, I'll fall asleep on the spot!
And I was going off on a tangent anyway.
The point is, I have no idea who the hell is who here. A dhampir won't burn up in the sunlight, so I don't need to worry about killing any of them, but I think I might have accidentally killed that one guy, the one who was keeping Valerie locked up and researching the Grail.
Marius, his name was.
But like I was thinking, I don't know, he never got an actual novel image, and all these damn vampires look the same!
Well, that is true, there are a couple of context clues that I can use to put some titles to faces.
For all the good that does me.
My attack bashed in the ceiling, but didn't disintegrate it, leading to several large chunks strewn about.
A few of the vampires, like little worms, have taken to using them to hide from the sunlight.
A particular large chunk, or maybe it'd be more apt to describe it as several larger chunks held together by a dark mist, is located around the end of this long, straight hall.
I chose to attack this place specifically because I could sense the most concentration of power here, and Gasper pointed out this was likely the throne room, so I went for it.
If he was right, then that's probably the throne, huh, and those three under it are likely pretty important for parasite, yeah?
Gasper is being unusually quiet all of a sudden, and no one has tried or said anything quite yet, so…
I begin my slow descent down, "You things fit under those rocks, you know? So unfortunate they can't save you forever…"
Dramatic? Yeah, a bit. A little cringe, playing up the overzealous divine being angle?
Oh, one hundred percent.
But here's the fun thing about acting how everyone expects.
Overzealous gods tend to also be easily angered gods, who also tend to kill and smite first, not the type you'd beg for mercy from.
So, I was barely halfway down by the time someone broke.
A vampire under a piece of debris makes an immediate break for it, carrying his cover like an umbrella.
I don't even see where he's trying to book it to, I don't even care to look. I raise my hand, the one holding my sword, pointing a finger out.
A beam of light erupts.
It blows the rock apart.
Some guy wearing an old-time military uniform is revealed, before he immediately collapses under the sunlight, porcelain skin burning away like the paper off a cigarette, his screams of pain and agony barely last, before his ashes join the piles of it blowing across the red carpet.
My feet join them soon enough.
My face twists in disgust as I land on the ashes.
I'm wearing fucking sandals, oh me why!?
I make a show of shaking what ash I can off my feet, my disgusted scoff filling the air.
"So," I continue, "I'll admit I'm surprised. Don't you love running, scurrying off into dark corners? Especially when the sun is involved…"
Now that I'm on the ground, I can see it far more clearly.
Behind me now are a set of large doors, the proper entrance, leading directly onto a long red carpet that runs all the way across this long, spacious hall, resting at the end of the hall, where, by a few steps, it's raised from the ground.
Atop that raised section is a throne, and under it are three vampires. All men, no surprise there. Also, no surprise that they all basically look the same, except one is sitting on the throne while others aren't.
The vampire on the throne is the one holding up the dark mist, a single finger pointing up to do so.
Meanwhile, to the throne's right is a slightly smaller vampire, at least compared to the other two, while the one on the left is an even more damn near identical copy to the vampire sitting on the throne.
Hmm. In the end, for my purposes, I don't exactly care who the other two are.
"Yet here you remain. Not even going to attempt an escape?" I finish.
The one on the throne returns with a scoff of his own, "In my own castle? No. I would never run from such a blatant attack."
His castle? Definitely King Tepes.
I had to resist the urge to snort there. Yeah, alright, buddy. Not sure how the coup happened in the novels exactly, but you definitely ran like a little bitch there.
My gaze sweeps across the three. The king and the one to his left don't even flinch. Their faces remain cold, dead glares.
Yet the younger one on the right takes a step back, terror etched into his face like he was born with it.
I raise an eyebrow, "For a being as old as yourself, surely you understand what's going on, no?"
The king's glare sharpened, "Surely, sun god, you have no idea what you've wrought!"
The dark mist around the king exploded out. In an instant, the sunlight was covered, as a tidal wave of liquid black stretched out and drowned out every inch of it.
It even tried to cover me, too. I could feel it, the sickly, deep, crushing cold of an everlasting night. A place with no sun, no light, no life, pressing all around me, trying to push me down, put my power out like one would a mere flame.
That dark wave broke against me, parting like a wave upon a cliff shore.
The king's facade of confidence broke instantly, his glare turning into one of pure and utter horror.
The sun is still burning bright at my back. His darkness advanced no further.
Unfortunately, my power isn't a mere flame.
I moved.
My sword embedded itself right into the throne, directly next to the king's face.
This time, he flinches, his head instinctively tilting away from the blade as simply being near it began burning his skin, his teeth gritted as he meets my eyes.
Thunk. A headless body smacks against the floor behind me.
The life side of the throne is now empty.
When the king created his dark area here, the one on the left tried to rush through it and at me.
He didn't make it even halfway before I slashed his head off. That's how little note he was worth.
At the right, a yelp is heard, the vampire there falling on his ass at my sudden appearance.
"Y-You…" The king barely manages, his voice a mix of fear and anger, "I do not recognize you, d-do you not understand the enemy you've made here-"
"A dead one," I state, coldly, looking right into his eyes. "A very, very dead one. No one will avenge the vampires' destruction, a shame no one will celebrate it either, but then again…that's just how worthless your entire kind is."
He gulps.
"...T-That, can't be all you want, could it?" He immediately tries anew, "W-We have done nothing to offend the gods, wherever you come f-from, I made sure of it! S-So, you must be here for something, r-right!?"
I smile.
"Not completely a fool, are we? Good." I nod, "I know you have the Grail. It's in your daughter. Give it."
"T-Take it, t-then!" He cries, seeing hope, "Her as w-well! She was a useless g-girl, you'd be d-doing us a blessing delivering her away from us!"
The cardboard box above my shoulder rumbles slightly.
The king glances toward the box, noticing the slight movement, but quickly switches back to the real threat: me.
I pat the box placatingly, even if I feel my temper flaring just like his own. Yeah, sure, I've never met the girl before, but it still kind of pisses me off, hearing someone talk about his own daughter like that.
We won't need to worry, though. He'll get his due.
I don't need to glance toward the debris above me; I can feel it there, on the edge of my senses, precariously balanced under his power over darkness.
With a thought, I can make it all snap.
But first…
"Well then," I smirk, tilting my head questioningly, "where is she?"
The king spoke quickly, then, there was no need to use my eyes, even if it would have made this entire thing easier.
Too easy in my opinion.
The cardboard box twitched as he spoke of the cell downstairs. Directly next to the dungeons. Where they perform the experiments.
I had heard enough by then.
"Excellent." I state, cutting him off before his rambling can turn into gibberish, "I'll be off then." I pull my sword from his throne and give it a twirl as I step away.
I see the relief in his eyes, the relaxation of his entire body. All of a sudden, the vampire looks like he's aged several decades in a single moment.
Almost casually, as I turn and step away, I raise my sword.
Sunlight blooms from the blade.
In a golden flash, all of the darkness he had created was snuffed out.
At the same time, all the debris across the hall was blown away.
The throne room descended into another cacophony of agonized unholy screams.
I did not look back.
"...Good," Gasper whispered from the box, most likely to himself, but I heard it regardless.
"Very," I answered back regardless.
Silence overcame us, as there was no need for any more words; the screams of vampires crying out echoed behind us.
~ A New Sun ~
All in all, it wasn't too long a stretch between the throne room and our destination.
The king wasn't exact with the location, but he was close enough that even without Gasper to guide me, I still probably could have found it.
Every time I spot a new hallway or path, I take the liberty of stopping for just a moment to take the ceiling off.
By the time I'm done, every inch of this castle is going ot bathed in sunlight, purified of all the filth.
Then, once everyone is either dead or out, I'm going to nuke the entire castle.
But first, Valerie.
We arrive at the door, and I have to say, if this door is really meant to keep someone in, well, it'd do a pretty bad job of it.
The thing is made of wood and looks really heavy, but the hinges are fraying at the seams, and the lock is completely busted in, as though someone smashed the door shut several times over, and then kept doing it.
"...you sure this is it?" I ask Gasper, a touch hesitant.
"Yes, I am sure." He responded, almost far too quiet, far too focused.
"Really? Like, really?" I wave at the door before easily poking it open with a finger.
"I know how it looks, but trust me, this is where the King was referring to, it has to be…" he stops for a moment before letting out a deep breath, "Can, can I come out, please?"
I blink at the box, before nodding, and setting it down right next to the door.
Gasper pops out, almost so fast he falls out of the thing entirely.
"A-Ah! Well, uhm…" he quickly brushes himself off, although there really isn't anything to brush off, "do I look o-okay?"
I stare down at him blankly.
He's still wearing the girl's kuoh uniform, I'm pretty sure it's the only thing he has, so…?
Well, for Valerie, it should be fine, actually. She's the one who started his crossdressing habits after all.
A little weird, but uh, well, when you're basically unwanted things to a bunch of snobby, racist noble families, you find joy wherever, right?
At least this time, I won't judge.
I give him a thumbs up, causing him to beam me a smile, before nodding.
"Alright! W-Well, sun senpai, let's go find her, then!" He pumps his fist.
But doesn't actually run straight through the door.
I chuckle before walking right on in, Gasper quickly on my tail.
The walk downward couldn't be more stereotypical if you tried. Stone-carved staircases, straight down into a dingy dungeon filled with crusty iron-barred cages.
The only difference is the lack of lights whatsoever. Makes sense for vampires, I guess.
Well, there was a complete lack of light until we reached one cell in particular.
It looked less like a holding cell, though, and more like an actual bedroom, albeit a very spartan one.
"V-Valerie!" Gasper ran to it immediately, running around and ahead of me to grab hold of the bars leading to the room.
There, lit by a singular lamp, was a dhampir girl.
Unlike pretty much every vampire, she actually has some uniqueness to her. She looked maybe a few years older than me, with sandy blonde hair that held a bit more vibrancy than the vampires normally do, even Gasper.
Except that where she differed entirely was her blood red eyes.
Dull. Not dead, but not entirely there. Eerily enough, she was already looking our way before we walked up, but they couldn't quite fixate on us despite that.
Her face was completely neutral. Mouth a stiff line across her face, that didn't even so much as twitch as Gasper called her name.
It remained like that even as she started speaking, or, rather, mumbling.
"...Oh?" She tilted her head slightly, "He told me you'd come here." She stated, voice somehow echoing throughout the dungeon even as it was delivered in a mumbly, nigh deadpan tone.
Gasper flinched, his face falling somewhat, "W-What…? He, V-Valerie? W-What's wrong!? Why do you-"
A chuckle emanates from the dark right next to Valerie.
Finally.
A wavy-looking dagger comes out of the dark, gently pressing against the dhampir girl's throat.
Despite that, Valerie doesn't react at all.
"V-VALERIE!?" Gasper cries out, his grip on the bars becoming so tight that the metal groans.
"Shush, halfbreed." A male voice scoffs, "Now-"
My finger comes up far too fast for anyone to see.
Light arcs through the air, the first beam takes off the hand, the brief flash exposing another vampire 'hidden' in the dark besides the dhampir. Another Victorian England larper, or in other words, another noble vampire.
Perhaps Marius?
"A-AAGHH!?" He falls back, as his severed hand, or what's left of it, and the dagger fall to the floor, "N-No! NO! W-WAIT, I-!"
The next beam goes right through his chest, the flash of light sending him slamming into the wall behind him, turning his words into choked sputtering.
He speaks no more after.
What a dumbass. Yeah, sure, he's a vampire, so I can't sense his life force because they don't have any.
But. I could still sense his power. Completely different from his lifeforce presence. The idiot didn't even think to suppress that.
Gasper, still at the bars, blinks.
"...W-Was that, Marius?" Gasper asks, slowly, before shaking his head.
I shrug, holding up a hand, which promptly glows a simple and soft light, revealing the entire cell to us.
Exactly as spartan as I thought, just with the new inclusion of a dead vampire with a fist-sized hole punched through his chest.
Nice.
A wave of my sword severs the bars, causing Gasper to completely forget about the dead vampire as he breaks the bars the rest of the way, jumping inside the cell, and practically leaping right onto Valerie.
"V-Valerie!" He cries, tears welling up in his eyes.
To my slight surprise, the girl actually jerks a little, as if caught off guard.
"...A-Ara?" She utters, dreamily, an impossibly small smile arcing across her face, "Gasper? Is that you? Oh my…" weakly, she manages to raise a hand, and put it on top of his head, "There there, no need to be such a crybaby…"
"Vaaalllerrieeeee~..." Despite her words, he continues to wail and hic, sobbing and choking more than a little bit on his own tears.
Ah, the power of friendship. Not sure how long she's going to be here for, so I won't interrupt.
So, I stand back and let them have this, smiling all the while.
Not only because this is nice to see, but also…
My clones have caught so many vampires trying to flee that it almost isn't even funny.
Oh yeah, see, before I started this attack properly, I was well aware of the fact that there would be a lot of vampires who would take the chance to up and run.
Or, even worse, try to take off toward where the Tepes have their forces stations to keep an eye on and hold the lines against their enemies, just to inform them of any goings on.
So, I took the liberty of putting rings of clones up like nets, ready to capture any who are attempting to flee.
I even took over their watchtowers and such for this express purpose!
So, as I've been taking my walk, dozens of vampires ran, putting on their best full-body suits and carrying around these hilariously oversized sun umbrellas, trying their best to make a mad dash to the overcast area beyond, where they can use their powers to escape easily.
Thus far, my clones have made sure not a single one has escaped.
The real big Darwin Award winners are those taking their humans or dhampir slaves and such with them, making them even more noticeable and even easier to catch.
Ah, I love it when a plan is as simple as 'apply sword,' it truly makes everything right in the world~!