Vampires are night demons. Even if it's in a cave where not a speck of light enters, it can't do its best in the daytime.
　But their natural enemies, the Knights of the End, are different. They hunt the undead in the daytime because the undead's weakness is the sun, not because their abilities are impaired at night.

　The day of the mission. A near-perfect moon hovered in the sky.

　Senri and his mercenaries, fully equipped, were surrounded by a heavily lit fire.
　Half of them, including Senri, were on the offensive, while the other half were on the defensive. The mages were mostly on the offensive.

　The smell of beasts, stronger than ever before, is coming from the wind. There are probably more of them than have appeared in any of the previous attacks.
　And that woman's scent was well and truly in the mix. The smell of war is strong.

　Our destination, Lonburg, is near. My opponent must be in a hurry.

I'm going to play.

"Yeah, ............, but wouldn't it be better to attack in the morning than at night?

　The mercenary man with the air of a fierce warrior frowns.
　Most demons move at night. Unlike humans, beasts have night vision. It's always better to kill monsters in the daytime unless you have a reason to.
　I'm sure you've heard of it.

In the morning, ...... they are wary and won't approach. If I were alone, I could follow him. ............

I'm not going to let Senri fight alone. The other party is ...... probably not undead.

　The captain of the merchant company, apparently named Laurel, said in a pompous manner.
　It's the right decision. If we send Senri alone and she should be defeated, this squad will be at great risk. The only reason the woman hasn't attacked with all her might is because she has Senri.

　And there's another reason why Senri chose the night. Because I can't fight in the day.
　I'm a pacifist vampire, but I'm not going to let Senri fight alone. I managed to beat Arbatross.

"Yank yank!

　The moon is round. The moon is round and full of power. The moon is round. The moon is round and full of power. Senri kneels down, looks at me coldly (as usual) and pats me on the head.

"Baron is ...... staying home.

"Yank!

Be a good boy.

？？？？？

　I was stunned by the unexpected ...... words.
　A stern mercenary man stroked my frozen head with a rough hand and laughed.

I'm sure you'll be happy to hear that. Your master is strong, and so are we.

"Kyan Kyan!

　That's ridiculous. ...... I'm Senri's partner, remember?　It's parent-approved.
　It's true that this form won't help you, and Senri's detection may be sufficient for this distance, but it's terrible that you won't take me with you. .......

　My body is lifted from behind. The merchant's child, whom I play with all the time,......, Katerina picked me up.
　She was a blonde girl in her mid-teens with a delicious smell of blood. When I turned around, Katerina looked down at me with loving eyes and said.

Barron, it's okay. Don't be afraid. ...... I'll protect you.

What's that?　What is it?

"There are plenty of guards here, and if you just stay still, it won't take long. Stay with me. Okay?

"............ squeak

　I have no reason to listen to a girl who won't give me blood, but I don't think I can handle it anymore.
　I was taken to the middle of the children by the fire. I looked away from Senri and the others with a pathetic look on my face as Katerina hugged me.



§ § § §



　Leading the mercenaries, we proceeded towards the sign of the beast.

　The word "demon lord" refers to the king of a group of other races that are hostile to humanity as a whole.
　It can be any race. Sometimes it's a dragon, sometimes it's a magical beast with wisdom, and sometimes it's a "king of the dead. If there's one thing they have in common, it's that they're not easy monsters.

　The Knights of the End is an order whose mission is to hunt the undead. But they are used to fighting demon lords.
　The powerful and wise undead often take control of many demons and turn them into demon lords. On the other hand, a demon lord may have an undead under his control. The Knights of the End fight all kinds of enemies in all kinds of situations.
　Senri had fought against them many times before.

　The mercenary man next to him, Rex, spoke to Senri.



"Senri......, when you return safely, would you like to join my mercenary band?　Former Knights of the End are welcome. That dog Barron's powers could come in handy. You may have your reasons, but we have plenty of them. It's better than traveling alone.

...... I appreciate the offer, but I have work to do.

　Rex chuckled at Senri's matter-of-fact answer.

　The end's position is quite precarious. Senri's reason was probably much heavier than Rex had imagined.
　Mercenary groups sometimes fight the undead. Some of them may even have a vengeance against vampires. I couldn't join another group so easily.

　I can't ask you to stay in dog form forever. .......

　In the face of the demon king's army, Senri and the others did not have any strong fears. Because of Senri. The name of the Knights of the End is so strong.
　The Knights of the End are not very good at protecting. Many civilians and hired mercenaries have been killed or injured.

　But it's better than being stuck in fear.

　They're aware of us. And they're choosing to intercept.

　Their presence is widely scattered. They're going to surround us. They're wary of the mage.
　But it's also convenient for Senri. She's probably the leader. If she's defeated, the beasts will scatter.

　It doesn't matter if we lose a few beasts. We've got enough men at base camp.
　Senri can't protect them all by himself. Senri's role now is to destroy the leader.

Incoming. Stay alert.

　With those brief words, tension flared among Rex and the rest of the strike team.
　A warm breeze blew. I've already cast a night vision spell on the members. Even in the dark of night, the beast will not be missed.

　--And then Senri met the black mass with his sword as it swooped down to surprise him.

　The black blade and the silver blade struck each other fiercely and sparks flew. Senri's hair stood on end at the strong hint of darkness.
　What attacked her was a woman with large, black wings.

　Unlike the last time they had encountered her, her skin had turned brown, and there was a strange pattern of red lines running across her widely exposed skin.
　Her exposure was great, and her skin was almost completely uncovered, except in the local area. Its irises glowed with gold.

　A long black tail extended from its rump. Senri did not raise an eyebrow, though his companions were in a state of unrest.

　There are only a few demons that can take human form and turn into people. Rather, the expression on the face of the woman, who was clearly not human, caused a strong stir.

　The jet-black long sword in her hands and the silvery white sword in her hands were locked in combat.
　But Senri's power was greater. The confrontation was brief. Senri pushed the woman back with one hand as she came down with great force. The woman flaps her wings and dances in the night.

　It belonged to a demon different from the undead. Her hideous attire is a symbol of depravity.
　A supernatural life form that rules the world beneath the earth. An incarnation of evil. A fearsome demon who wields many demonic powers and plunges humans into darkness.

　For the Knights of the End, it's second only to the undead as a target for extermination. Senri moistened his lips and said.

I'm not sure what to make of this.

"Don't you dare, demon knight!

　The demon was furious, and a magic circle appeared in his hands. You can say that the demon is magic itself, it does not need a big procedure to use magic.

　Perhaps the opponent has never fought a demise knight before. No, he must not. If he had encountered a demise knight, the female demon in front of him would not be alive.
　The reason why he chose to intercept her was because he was not familiar with her power.

　The howl of the beast echoed in the distance. The beast's army, led by the woman, was approaching. Senri said to Rex, who was standing next to him with a tense expression on his face.

No change to the plan. I will kill that demon. I'll stop the attack. We'll stick to the plan.

"Oh, yeah, ......, let's go!　Follow Senri!　The fate of the company rests in our hands!

Oh, ......, oh, oh, oh, oh!

　The others roared, their hearts trembling.
　Then Senri intercepted the black lightning with his blessed blade.



§ § § §






　That's terrible. It's too bad. I lay dejectedly in Katerina's lap.

　Senri's blood smells the best, but Katerina's blood smells really good too. Of course I couldn't suck it, but just being on her lap made me itch. If I were a mere vampire, I would not hesitate to suck her blood.

　As a gentle hand stroked my prized white fur, I gazed around me unperturbed.

　I can tell most people's emotions by their smell. There was a slight smell of fear and relief in the camp.
　There was a large group of non-combatants gathered around the fire. They were surrounded by a large group of mercenaries guarding the camp. Most of the mages had joined the attackers, but only one remained in the camp. It's a perfect defense.
　Even so, if the enemy were as strong as I am, it would be a disaster, but there are few monsters stronger than vampires, so there's no point in thinking about it. In that case, I'll just give up.

　A number of children, both boys and girls, gathered around me and took turns patting me on the head. These are children I've made friends with in my travels over the past few years.
　It was very refreshing to be surrounded by these children, as I rarely had the chance to be surrounded by them in my lifetime.

　The children seemed to be a little nervous at this unusual atmosphere.

"Baron, will you be my child when this is all over?

"Yup.

　Will you give me?　Will you give me blood?　Really?　I can't go for a walk during the day, can I?

　...... I feel like a king. So this is the King of the Dead.

Let's hope the mission goes off without a hitch. ......

We've got to bet. We can't escape on our own.

　"We can't outrun them alone." A group of men, apparently the leaders of the merchant guild, were talking over a fire.
　Senri is strong. I know that better than anyone. So I don't doubt she'll win, but at the same time, there's only one Senri.

　Senri wasn't there when I was attacked by Arbatos.
　Her power is a personal power. That's why she can't protect the company completely by herself.

　The fact that we know so little about the enemy is also a cause for concern.
　The smell of Senri reached my nose on the wind as I decided to stay at home and keep my guard up. It seems that the battle has begun as planned.

　The point where Senri and the others were fighting was so far away that I couldn't even hear them, but I was far enough downwind that the smell reached me.

　If I smell Senri's blood, I'm going to help him immediately. I twitched my nose to check the situation.

　And then I raised my head.

　Isn't that strange?　We're downwind. The direction of the wind hasn't changed much.

　During the first battle, Senri said he recognized the woman pretending to be the victim by her smell. The enemy must know about my nose. Then the attack should come from downwind.
　In fact, it didn't matter if it was upwind or downwind because of Senri's extensive probing magic, but they didn't know that.

　The first attack was well planned.
　In a wild world, the ability to read downwind is essential. It's hard to believe they wouldn't notice something like that. They move faster than we do. They could have hidden the smell if they wanted to.

　Was he trying to let me know where he was: ......?　Why?　Am I overthinking this?

　I left my lap and stood on the ground. I can feel the frustration, but it's too late to tell Senri that.

　A strong smell of blood entered my nose.
　It's close. Not a battlefield. A moan, followed by a scream.

　I panic and turn to face the blood.


　A small man was standing near the fire.



　A mercenary man who was resting at his feet is lying on the ground. I don't know what kind of attack he had, but his head was almost completely missing. Obviously he died instantly.
　A reddish-black liquid was spreading from the gaping wound. His eyes were wide open and looking at me. There was no light in his eyes, but I could feel the emotion of regret.

"Oh, Oliver, what are you--

"What ......?　You're too peaceful for your own good, mister.


　The mercenaries who were guarding the area heard the screams and gathered around.
　However, the man called Oliver's face was not in a hurry. He didn't even reek of fear.

　It's you. He wore a black hat on his head, and unlike the mercenaries, he wore a well-tailored traveling outfit that emphasized comfort. A small whip hung at his waist.


　He is a small man with thin muscles. His appearance was fearless but not as violent as the mercenaries.

　But the fingertips of his right hand were wet with blood. A drop of blood fell from the tip of his fingernail.
　The smell is human, but no ordinary man would cut a man's head open with his bare hands.

　It was one of them. We had company inside. He was hired as a guard and joined the trade.
　And they revealed themselves just as Senri was about to leave.

　The fallen man was one of the best mercenaries in the group. However, he could not have prevented the surprise attack from the man he thought was one of his own.
　The guards were on the lookout for an attack from outside. No wonder.

　The merchant was carrying a package from a distance. If they had been in on it all along, it would have been a ...... long shot. And the fact that they have revealed themselves at this time means that they have a good chance of winning.

　A mature merchant man, perhaps his employer, retreated and denounced him in a trembling voice.

You've lost your mind, ......, and now you're going to return the favor!　You've got a lot of money--

　You're really out of touch. You don't understand the situation.

You're right. The Senri girl is strong, but no matter how strong she is,......, she can't carry this entire carriage by herself.

　There's a right place for the right person. If Oliver's goal is to sabotage the supply, there's no need to kill Senri.
　As Oliver cowered, a large ball of fire landed on his head and exploded with a dull thud.


"You traitor!　Did you really think you could defeat this many people?


　The mercenaries surrounded Oliver, their eyes glittering. The merchants looked pale and turned away from the non-combatants.

　The fireball had been fired by a mage who had been left at the camp as a precaution.
　The attack magic was so powerful that even the lowest level of magic could easily kill a single person.

　Definitely a fatal wound. If the opponent is human, that is.

　The smoke clears. The mercenaries widen their eyes to the limit and take a step back.
　Oliver was unharmed. His hat is blown off and his shirt is half ashen, but his skin is unmarked.

What a horrible thing to do to a ...... former comrade of mine. ...... It was my favorite hat.

What are you--?

　The mercenaries were all under pressure as he spoke as if nothing had happened.
　Oliver dusted off the ashes and said regretfully.

The hat was supposed to stay. But it can't be helped. After all, tonight--it's almost a full moon. We'll destroy everything anyway.

"What?

　And then a thick vein appeared in Oliver's flesh. His small body swelled up violently, making a creaking sound.

　The mercenaries buzzed and took a few steps back with pale faces.

　I recognized that change. It was Arbatos.

　His once-human body swelled up so much that his clothes, pants, and shoes were torn off from the inside out.
　His height, which had been a little over a meter and a half, nearly doubled. Dark brown wire-like hairs grow out from his tanned skin. But the biggest change is in the face.

　The skeleton changes. The jaw grows longer, the nose grows longer, and both ears move upward to become huge ears. The change lasted a few seconds.

　The children who were watching from afar screamed. I wagged my tail and stared at Oliver.

　One of the mercenaries called out his name in a trembling voice.


"Werewolf.

No need to introduce yourself, I see. Human.

　A werewolf. A mixture of wolf and man.
　Not like Arbatos, who was almost a beast. That's exactly what I imagine a werewolf to look like.

　He stomped firmly on the ground with both feet, smiled deeply, raised his log-like arms wide and attacked the surrounding mercenaries.