To Be a Power in the Shadows!

Milia and Claire reach the top of the Red Tower and push the door open.

“SID!”

Spotting the corpse of a black-haired young man lying on the ground with blood flowing from his chest, Claire dashes over.

Then she embraces him without a second look. Tears burst from her reddened eyes.

“This can’t be! I’m begging you, open your eyes!! Sid!? Sid? …… Nn?”

Claire suddenly calms down and takes one good look at the corpse.

Her tears stop.

“This isn’t Sid.”

“Eh? He’s not?”

“Where’s Sid? Is he safe?”

Claire looks around restlessly.

That moment, Milia screams out.

“――CLAIRE!!”

“…… Eh?”

It happened much too fast.

When Claire looks down, she suddenly realizes that the young man’s arm is protruding from her abdomen.

Blood bubbles out from Claire’s mouth.

“Goho…… what…… is this…… Sid……”

“CLAIRE!!”

Claire crumples to the ground.

Then the young man who has blood flowing out from his chest moves.

There was no mistake; he had indeed been dead.

However, right now he is getting up on his own two feet, and red tentacle-like protuberances are coming out from his chest.

The tentacles squirm revoltingly while extending to envelope his entire body.

“Ahh…… this can’t be…… don’t tell me……”

Milia recognizes that presence.

The red tentacles eventually envelope his body in its entirety, then bursts away.

And then.

From within the dancing sprays of blood, a beautiful, naked woman appears.

Crimson hair and similarly colored eyes. Pure white skin and perfect proportions for a female body. That figure matches exactly with the memory of Elizabeth the Queen of Blood within Milia’s mind.

Elizabeth clutches Claire, who still has a hole in her abdomen, and bites into her neck.

“u, aa……”

Sound falls from Claire’s mouth.

She appears to be unconscious, but she is still alive.

However, Milia can do nothing but watch Claire being drained of blood.

Because Milia understands.

It is carved into her very instinct.

She understands that before the revived Elizabeth, anything she does would be a mere exercise in futility.

“Claire…… aa……”

Then the Claire who has turned deathly pale from loss of blood is casually tossed aside.

Elizabeth’s beautiful eyes settle on Milia. Those eyes are not registering Milia as anything other than food.

“a…… Elizabeth-sama……”

Milia backs away while quivering.

Her master has been revived.

There exists no method to stop Elizabeth, the greatest progenitor who ever lived.

This time, too, she did not make it in time.

The tragedy from a thousand years ago is going to be repeated.

Tears well up in Milia’s eyes.

But the sorrow in her eyes is overwritten by astonishment the next instant.

The black figure who suddenly appeared crashes into Elizabeth.

Elizabeth’s red claws are met by a jet-black blade.

It is the woman in a jet-black bodysuit that Milia had met down in the archive —— Beta.

“Secure her!!”

In response to her shout, three more black figures appear and extract Claire.

Beta receives one more swing from Elizabeth’s claws with her jet-black blade, then jumps back to take her distance.

“665, status?”

“Still breathing. But in need of immediate medical attention.”

“Noted. But…… I don’t think she’ll let us go just like this.”

In the direction of Beta’s gaze, a naked woman is walking forward.

“You all, support me.”

““Yes, ma’am.””

“The Vampire Hunter-san over there, we’ll be leaving Clare in your care for a while.”

“a…… Claire……”

Milia accepts Claire’s body from 665 and embraces it.

“You can’t, wait……”

Right before Beta is about to engage with Elizabeth, Milia calls her back.

She must be warned.

“It’s impossible…… Elizabeth-sama is, no one can win against her……”

Beta’s cat-like eyes gaze back at Milia from behind her mask.

“I wonder about that……”

Then she brings her jet-black blade up in readiness, and faces off against Elizabeth.

◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇

How did things turn out like this.

Beta fiercely laments her failure while facing off against Elizabeth the Queen of Blood.

The very fact of having allowed her master’s sister to be on the verge of death cannot be called anything else other than a failure.

Her master still has yet to make his appearance. That surely means that there is currently something else that he must prioritize, and that he has entrusted this place to her.

However, Beta had realized it too late.

And that has led to the worst outcome possible.

If her master’s sister loses her life, then Beta would never be able to face her master again.

“Against the Queen of Blood, how far can I go……”

But despite her mutter, there is nothing but killing intent in her eyes.

There is only one way to redeem herself. The opponent is powerful, but she must do it.

Beta imbues her jet-black sword with magic with incredible force. Then she taps the floor with her toes twice in signal.

Her three subordinates disperse.

Ready to move at any instant.

Beta sizes up the Queen of Blood, waiting for the right timing.

The Queen of Blood approaches at a slow walk. Her completely bared body that has on not even a thread is stained by the light of the Red Moon. With unreadable eyes that seem somewhat sleepy, she sizes up Beta and the rest.

Then she enters striking distance.

“——Shi!!”

The flash from Beta turns into the start signal.

That breathtakingly beautiful and fast jet-black blade is stopped by the Queen of Blood’s outstretched right claw.

At the same time, her left claw sweeps forward in counterattack.

However, she is attacked from behind by 666.

She has no choice but to redirect her left claw towards her back in defense.

But that very instant, 664 and 665’s attacks are already homing in, and Beta has already shifted into a follow up attack.

The Queen of Blood gazes at the three blades bearing down upon her with somewhat sleepy-looking eyes —— then opts to only protect her heart.

The beautiful body of the Queen of Blood is gouged by three blades.

“I-, it doesn’t come out!?”

The cry is 664’s.

The three blades are stuck, buried in the Queen of Blood’s naked body.

The Queen of Blood had received the attacks with her muscles —— then sealed their movements.

“Ku!!”

Beta strengthens her entire body, then yanks hers back out forcibly.

Unfortunately, 664 and 665 do not have such strength.

“Change the shape of your sword!”

So Beta barks, but it’s too late.

The claws of the Queen of Blood close in on the two of them.

Beta leaps into motion. But it is 666 who is faster.

Using her beautiful swordsmanship, 666 severs the Queen of Blood’s tendons.

The Queen of Blood loses power in her two arms. She regenerates in an instant, but that’s enough time for 664 and 665 to alter the shape of their slime swords and pull them free.

Then Beta’s slash tears into the Queen of Blood’s face, 664’s tears into her flank, 665’s tears into the tendons of her leg, then finally 666’s tears into her back and sends her flying.

The Queen of Blood’s naked body crashes into the far wall.

“Well done, 666.”

666 briefly lowers her head.

The Queen of Blood shows no sign of moving from underneath the debris. Beta and the rest keep their guard up vigilantly while slowly backing off.

At the very first glance, Beta had determined the Queen of Blood to be a formidable enemy. She felt with her skin the difference in their very level of existence.

Most likely, she would not stand a chance one-on-one. Even when fighting together with her 3 subordinates, it would still be tough. That’s what she had thought.

In fact, the Queen of Blood is a formidable enemy, and Beta knows that it’s not over yet.

However, the fight is significantly easier than she had expected.

The teamwork between the new recruits is much smoother than she had expected. Furthermore, 666’s battle prowess is a head above all the other recruits. 664 calls the shots, 665 offers her knowledge and intelligence, and 666 brings her battle strength to bear. Just as Lambda said, this is indeed a good team.

“We might actually win……”

So murmurs Beta unconsciously.

However.

“It’s impossible…… you all are indeed strong. However, the power that submerged the world in fear during the Red Moon was not merely on this level…… It’s only because Elizabeth-sama has just woken up……”

Milia responds to Beta’s murmur from behind.

Even while embracing Claire, tears of despair are welling up in Milia’s eyes.

“Elizabeth-sama has always…… had extremely low blood pressure……!”

“Eh?”

That instant, the Queen of Blood’s magic surges explosively, sending out an incredible shockwave.