In the midst of the wind and snow, a large group of vampires surrounded me, weapons in hand and eyes fixed hungrily on me. I’d been surrounded by enemies once before. Back then, the mech I was piloting had been blasted into a heap of molten scrap by laser fire from every direction in just three seconds. I’d only survived by sheer luck. As I tried to figure out how to escape, my body moved before I could.

“Scum, who gave you permission to ask questions?”

A commanding voice came from my mouth, and the sheer force of it shook the snow from the branches. The vampires around us took a fearful step back. Two of them even buckled at the knees and dropped to the ground before me.

“I’m terribly sorry, Your Excellency.” Lilith actually lowered her head to me. “I overstepped.”

“Get lost,” I said, looking down at her. “Leave at once, before I slaughter you all.”

“Yes. I’m terribly sorry.”

I hadn’t expected that line to come on a little too strong! Lilith lowered her head and backed down, but one of her subordinates let out a roar.

“How dare you speak to Lady Lilith like that! Who do you think you are?”

The vampire standing behind me on my left leaped into the air and shrieked as she lunged at me, swinging her blood-red claws. Unlike Lilith, I couldn’t sense any great power in her. It seemed she wasn’t a vampire at all, but a “blood thrall”—a half-finished vampire, transformed only partway. She had all a vampire’s weaknesses, but none of their strength.

If I showed even the slightest weakness now, the vampires would probably all come at me at once.

“Insolent!”

I barked the word and activated Blood Armament. Blood-red chains shot out of thin air, wrapped around the vampire in an instant, and hoisted her up before she could blink.

“Wh-what… What is this? Guh—”

Before she could finish spouting nonsense, I spun around and swung the Bloodletting Sword in my hand, cleanly severing her head. Her blood sprayed across the pure white snow like scattered red petals. A drop landed on my cheek. I stuck out my tongue and gave it a light lick. A rich, creamy smoothness burst across my palate.

Vampire blood really was delicious!

“Blood Armament!” Lilith cried, her face full of shock. She dropped to her knees with a thump and pressed her forehead deep into the snow. “I’m terribly sorry, Your Highness… I… I overstepped. Please forgive me!”

The other blood thralls fell to their knees with her. The situation had turned around in an instant.

“Get lost,” I commanded, my voice ringing with authority. “If anyone dares tell a soul about this, I’ll chase her to the ends of the earth and cut off her head with my own sword.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Led by Lilith, the blood thralls fled with their tails between their legs. She seemed to be the vampire active around here, but… she didn’t seem powerful to me at all. If anything, she was incredibly weak. What interested me more was the “Vampire Duke” she’d mentioned, Dunglar. As far as I knew, vampires who earned the title of Duke were immensely powerful. They were the true aristocrats of the night. Count Galaton had gathered an army just to deal with a single vampire—and had even brought in the Order of the Holy Knights for backup. If they were going after a Duke, throwing more bodies at the problem probably wouldn’t be enough.

The sound of a corpse crumbling to ash interrupted my thoughts. The blood thrall I’d beheaded turned to white ashes in the wind and snow. The presence around me had vanished. Now was my chance—time to run!

I activated Sprint and raced all the way back to town. Before anyone noticed, I slipped quietly into my home.

The next day, Luka came over with her mother. They brought me all sorts of things, from animal hides to dried meat, but I didn’t accept everything. I only took a fur coat and a bag of dried meat. The autumn hunt had gone badly, and the hunters hadn’t caught nearly enough game. Their food stores for winter were actually running low. If spring came late, there might even be a famine. I accepted Luka and her mother’s kindness, but I really couldn’t take any more.

“Elsa,” Luka asked hesitantly, “how much was that medicine worth?”

Would she faint if I told her it was worth 500 gold coins?

“It was free. It’s a gift, so you don’t owe me anything.” I opened my inventory and held eight bottles of high-grade recovery potion between my fingers. “See? I’ve got plenty. Want a few more?”

Luka looked at the potions in my hands, her expression complicated. She didn’t say anything else, but gave me a heartfelt hug. Just then, we heard a noise behind us. We both turned around and saw Maeve cautiously peeking out of the bedroom.

“Oh, you have a guest. Sorry to interrupt.”

“Elsa,” Luka said, suddenly looking wary for some reason. “Who was that just now?”

So I gave her a brief explanation of Maeve’s situation.

“Mom,” she said, turning to her mother at once. “I’ve decided. I’m staying at Elsa’s tonight.”

Uh, but… my bed won’t fit three people!

To my surprise, Luka’s mother cheerfully agreed.

Ma’am, your daughter’s acting strange today.

The next morning, my eyes were bloodshot as I lay in bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. The soft sensations against my body had kept me awake all night. On my left, Luka lay on her side, holding my arm, her well-developed breasts pressed against it. On my right, Maeve was tucked under the covers, leaning against my waist, and her restless right hand kept making a move for my sensitive spots. What made me even more miserable was that both of them had bigger breasts than me!

What nonsense! This is so unfair!

Hmph. It’s not like I want those two useless lumps of fat.

From that day on, Luka came over almost every day. Her favorite excuse was “borrowing the bathroom,” and somehow my firewood consumption doubled. What was with this inexplicable competitive streak? Luka was making her advances boldly, but Maeve seemed a little on the passive side. Aside from spacing out and meditating every day, she didn’t seem to have anything to do. I’d asked her to help chop wood out back, and she’d managed to lose my axe. This girl was a complete homebody.

Before I joined the military, I was a shut-in who played games all day and lived off other people, immersed in the world of anime. But I’d long since been reborn in the army. They say the military is a great furnace that can forge heroes out of cowards. I wouldn’t call myself a hero. I was just… the lucky “Private A.” Still, I’d done my duty, and I was proud of that.

As expected, Luka came running over again at dusk, keeping an eye on me from behind the courtyard wall. I was standing in the outdoor kitchen, frying bear meat in a cast-iron pot of melted lard. The smell of the sizzling meat drifted through the yard and lured Luka over. She leaned against my shoulder, sniffed the bear steak in the pot, and suddenly broke into a bright smile.

“Elsa, that smells amazing.”

“Heh.” I flipped the steak over. “You can turn anything into a super-delicious dish by frying it.”

“That looks so good! Make me dinner tonight!”

“Sure.”

I happily agreed, then suddenly felt someone watching me. Maeve was pressed against the glass window, drooling as she stared at the steak in the pot. Her whole face practically spelled out the words: “I want some.”