The carriage crawled along the main road. A tiny window let in slivers of light, painting those people’s tired, hopeless faces. I shouldn’t keep tussling with the Hero. Honestly, I don’t want to fight him at all. Can’t I at least keep up my great image as the Dark Lord?

Alright, we’re about to slip out. Time to start my grand plan as the Dark Lord. From where, though? Maybe... take the Royal Capital first?

Yeah, no, I’m not taking the Royal Capital. Even if my strength comes back, I’m still a salted-fish-level slacker. Just a juvenile Dark Lord. I can’t stir any big waves. Better follow what Qiqi said before and look for the... the... right, the Vampire-kind. Lott should know. Books say the Vampire-kind are very special.

It seems they split off from the demi-human races and call themselves nobler than humans. The Church hunted them for a while. Then both sides reached a brief truce. Their numbers stay low. But once a war starts, they can assimilate—infect humans and spawn a lot of subtypes. So the Church never dares to fully break with them.

They say the first time things blew up, the Vampire-kind got the Dark Lord’s support and almost flipped the Empire.

What a terrifying race...

“Carriage over there! Stop! Queue up for inspection!” A harsh shout snapped me out of my daze. I quietly crawled to the tiny window and peeked out. Knights on both sides. Soldiers too. The city gate was ahead, a long line snaking forward.

“Word from the Church says people leaving through this gate might be a problem. Tighten inspections!” A knight who looked like a captain paced by on horseback, then vanished into the guarded garrison.

Tch. They’re predicting like this, huh? Skipping the Dark Lord identity that shakes the world line, and aiming for “suspicious persons” instead. Makes prophecy easier. But a human trafficker’s cart is suspicious too, right? Heh. The most dangerous place is the safest.

Wait. Mess up my hair first!

“Lott, can you still tell it’s me?” I raked my long hair into a tangled mess.

“Like... like Sadako...” He let out a goofy grin.

“Hazelnut? Like the Ferrero ones? Am I that round?!” I protested.

“Sadako. The ghost girl.”

“Eek!” I hurriedly combed it again. There. Perfect. I poked my head out. The stubbly uncle was negotiating with them. To be precise, he was trying to block the inspectors.

“This is routine.”

“Sorry, could Officer Xu come out?” The uncle stopped a soldier trying to circle around and smoothly slipped him two bits of silver. The soldier glared, then turned and shouted, “Officer Xu, someone’s looking for you!”

Soon, a middle-aged man with a beer belly strolled over. “Yo, Old Wang, it’s you. What now? Knocked up the neighbor’s son again?”

“Old Xu, don’t tease me. How was I supposed to know he was a fake—never mind. I’ve got a batch that needs to go out fast. Really urgent. The client wants them now.”

“Urgent?” The man glanced our way. I ducked back down. When I risked another peek, the officer leaned to whisper in the uncle’s ear. “Do you know what’s happening right now?”

“The Dark Lord escaped. What’s that got to do with us civilians?” The uncle spread his hands. “Relax. No weird figures here. You think I’ve got the guts to catch the Dark Lord and sell them? If I did, handing them to the Church would pay better, wouldn’t it?”

“For safety’s sake, I’ll check personally.”

“Check all you want. If you’re doing it, Old Xu, I’m not worried.”

So there’s some connection after all. Otherwise he wouldn’t be moving people out at a time like this. Just please, let him check and find nothing.

I sat back down, curled into the corner, and kept my head low.

With a scraping sound that knotted my stomach, the carriage door slid open. Sunlight blasted in, making it hard to keep my eyes open. The fat officer swept his gaze around. It paused on me for a moment. Then he swept again. Landed on me again. My heart jumped. Crap. Did he notice?

“Old Wang, come here.” He waved. The uncle stepped into view. “What?”

“This the urgent cargo your client needs?” He pointed his fat carrot of a finger at me and jostled the uncle.

“Uh—oh. Yeah.” The uncle froze for a beat, then recovered fast. No wonder he’s been in the trade. His skin is thicker than mine. “Well? Decent goods, right? The gentleman wants them in a hurry.”

“With goods this good, you won’t let a buddy have a taste first?” WTF. Why’s he climbing in and undoing his belt?! Help! Lott! Take that guy down! Prove you’re bigger!

Ahem—something weird slipped into my brain. The sleazy officer was grabbed back by the uncle. “Don’t. Don’t. The gentleman wants it untouched. Can’t just ruin it. If he blames me, I can’t afford it.”

“Who cares? Get the army medic to cast a Healing spell and it’s fine. If she doesn’t get pregnant, who can tell? Besides, at that age it’s rare.” He kept pressing. I shrank further into the corner.

Wait! Healing spells can repair that... that thing? Seriously? Then you could, like, indefinitely... that membrane? I’m excited—what am I saying! Focus! I’m keeping my first time, alright! Tch! Even without a first, it wouldn’t be for this kind of creep! How is that any different from getting dragged to the outskirts!

“Do you know who that gentleman is?” The uncle’s face went serious. “You think you can hide this?”

“Who?”

The uncle leaned to the beer belly’s ear. Hey, could you two stop whispering like that? It’s indecent! And whispering doesn’t mean I can’t hear!

“Vampire-kind nobility. They can taste a virgin in a single sip of blood.”

The beer belly’s face went white. He backed off and shut the door. “Let them pass!”

The carriage rumbled to life again. I let out a long breath. Two shadows slid overhead—the city gate’s silhouette. Once we pass this, we’re safe. Honestly, I’ve recovered about forty to fifty percent of my strength now. That’s pretty solid for a mage.

“Whew. Safe.” I leaned against Lott, stretched out, and let slip a soft, breathy sigh that even made me melt a little. Then I smoothed my hair. Lott’s shoulder is way cleaner than the moldy planks. Maybe once we’re far from the Royal Capital, we can hop off. Or maybe he’ll actually deliver us to a vampire castle?

Air blew in, carrying the scent of fresh grass and malt. We’d hit the outskirts. There was a hint of camphor too. Must be woods nearby. Not bad at all. Sniff, sniff—bamboo! If not for the carriage, it’d feel like a picnic. These slaves... with the Dark Lord’s funds, buying them out shouldn’t be a problem.

Suddenly, hooves thundered that didn’t belong to our draft horses. That sound—warhorses.

“Carriage ahead! Halt at once! Archers, ready to loose!”