“Two… two people?”
Come to think of it, that does seem to be the case.
Over the past two days, they’d basically been moving as a trio. Apart from cooking with Siloque and that… washing incident! This was truly the first time she was alone with Siloque’s younger sister, Hill.
Ineffa watched Hill’s back as she observed.
Hill’s outfit today was different.
Through the knowledge of modern surface dwellers she’d gained from a magical device called a “tablet computer,” Hill was wearing a sporty T-shirt and breathable shorts, along with lace-up sneakers instead of her usual rabbit pajamas.
Could she be wanting to warm up with a fight?
Or does she have something to ask me?
While I am indeed erudite and powerful, easily making lesser creatures feel inferior, Hill is usually either gaming or clinging to that stupid human. Yesterday she even presented me with that magical device called a “tablet computer.” She doesn’t seem like she has any worries…
Ah! The game.
“Heh heh, I get it. You want to know how I got a PURE MEMORY on my first try playing Arcaea, right? That game is really something. Hitting the rhythm and making melodies is strangely satisfying—”
“That’s not it, Illyon. I’m interested in that too, but this is something more important.”
“?
Hill’s smile was as sweet as sprinkled sugar, surprising Ineffa.
“That’s right, this is it!”
Hill held up two metal tools with curved circular ends on their branches. Ineffa’s first thought was—
“A net? Oh, Hill wants to catch fish. You should have just said so.”
“It’s not a net, it’s a badminton racket! A Yonex racket for making cool smash moves!”
“Yonex?”
“Here.”
Hill forced the racket into Ineffa’s arms. She examined this slender “net.”
“Ah… I see. Heh heh, I remember now. A racket, I’ve seen one before.”
She’d seen it in the data on the tablet, and in her past memories.
The blonde vampire in the black gothic dress touched the cool metal shaft of the racket, then swung the long-handled, netted racket that was surprisingly light for its weight.
“Does Hill want Illyon to play badminton? Want to play?”
So that’s what this is about…
“Wouldn’t it be better to play after eating—”
“No, no, exercising on an empty stomach is more effective!”
Hill seemed insistent. From the way she swung the racket, it was clear she really wanted to play.
“Heh heh, I guess I have no choice. I had a lot to do, like pruning the flowers in the back garden and challenging GIVE ME THAT BLOOD. But if you want me to accompany you this much, I’ll spare some precious time to play with you.”
“Yay! Then Illyon, put these on, and these too. The drawstring on the shorts can be adjusted so they won’t fall down while you run.”
Handing a set of women’s short-sleeve sportswear to Ineffa, Hill took a square net from her bracelet and set it up on the lawn. After asking for Ineffa’s consent, she used magic colored powder that wouldn’t damage the grass to draw a court with diagonals 15 meters long.
“You siblings sure like to store strange things in your storage spaces.”
After changing clothes, Ineffa was surprised at how perfectly they fit. She took out the tablet and started studying the badminton rules and video tutorials Hill had given her. After watching two videos, Ineffa thought she had mastered badminton.
Mm, I get it. I’m already a badminton expert.
“Now let’s learn through practice, Illyon. Don’t think I’ll go easy on you just because you’re a beginner vampire.” Hill pointed her racket at Ineffa, declaring this like a swordsman holding a sword.
“Heh heh, that suits me just fine. I’ll take a step back and promise not to use my vampire powers. Struggle with all your might, human. I’ll show you the breadth of the world.”
“Wait, shouldn’t Illyon not use them anyway? Turning into mist to catch the ball wouldn’t be fair to Hill.”
She had a point. Using vampire powers would be too unfair.
One human, one vampire.
A middle schooler with twin tails versus a single-ponytailed little girl.
They stood on the court, staring at each other across the net.
Hill served first. She had the most serious expression Ineffa had ever seen, radiating the aura of a dome master level powerhouse.
She stood as close to the center line as possible, then rotated her shoulder and used her forearm and wrist to hit a textbook-perfect forehand high serve.
The shuttlecock arced through the air, spinning. In Ineffa’s vision, it was just a spinning dot, incredibly deceptive.
But as the shuttlecock reached mid-air, Ineffa had already stepped back. Due to her height, she added a small jump to swing and receive the first shot.
Hill’s emerald eyes were sharp. Her body moved as quickly as a wolf darting through a forest, making her next move impossible to predict.
Her racket swung out like a chain, just before the shuttlecock hit the ground, she smashed it back to her opponent’s court.
The shuttlecock took a strange trajectory. It flew in a wide arc from outside the court, heading straight for Ineffa’s back boundary line.
Ineffa quickly moved to the back line. Seeing Hill’s position was relatively forward, she conveniently lobbed the shuttlecock high toward Hill’s rear court.
Hill gave a sly smile and didn’t retreat at all. She leaped high, reaching a height of three meters, intercepted the shuttlecock at the peak of her jump, and smashed it down with all her might. The shuttlecock fell from high in the air with immense force and astonishing speed.
As the shuttlecock hit the ground, the score became 1-0.
Ineffa let out a frustrated groan. “Grr…”
“Hehe. Hill beat the vampire!” Hill pumped her fist in a victory sign.
“Heh heh, I was just letting you have the first round. I’m going to get serious now.”
“That’s what losers always say. I feel like Illyon is still going to lose.”
“An opening!”
Ineffa launched a surprise low serve to start the second round.
They then played 10 rounds of incredibly focused offensive and defensive battles. Under the fragmented morning light, the thin sweat on the girls’ bodies reflected the glow.
“Illyon, how do you feel about my brother?” Hill asked out of the blue.
“How should I feel? He’s just… whew… ha! A pervert.” Ineffa replied with annoyance, putting her resentment from the bath incident last night into a forceful smash to the other side.
Gradually getting used to each other’s hitting rhythm, they could now talk while playing.
“That’s good! Perfectly fine!” Hill easily returned with a backhand.
Fine about what?
Ineffa caught another center line shot from her opponent, nearly stepping on the center line and committing a foul.
“We can be good friends, Illyon. Hah! You haven’t gotten too close to my brother, have you?”
“Heh… Hmph! Not at all. That stupid human has a few good points, but I have no interest in approaching him.”
“Haha, Hill sees you cooking together all the time.”
“I admit, whew, he’s a good cook. I only learn from him then—”
The scene from the bathroom flashed through her mind. Recalling the “sacred sword” she had tried so hard to forget, Ineffa’s face flushed red to the point of steaming.
“Hmph!”
Her normally perfect swing faltered. In the end, Ineffa managed to hit the shuttlecock with the frame of her racket, and the wobbly shuttlecock fell toward the net.
“That’s so cheap!”
Hill thought it would be a high shot, but it ended up being a net shot.
The shuttlecock barely grazed the top of the net, bounced twice, and fell onto Hill’s side of the court.
She dove to save it with all her speed, successfully catching it on her racket. But when she swung it out again, the shuttlecock hit the net and couldn’t make it over to Ineffa’s side.
Hill lost a point.
“Tch… You learn so fast, even with yesterday’s game. Are all vampires this strong?” Hill picked up the shuttlecock, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and pouted.
“Heh, heh heh. I’m the only one who’s this strong. I’m no ordinary vampire.”
Ineffa’s originally pale, almost deathly skin began to show a hint of pink as sweat rolled down.
“Speaking of which, Illyon, were you distracted just now?”
“No, no! That was part of my strategy.” Ineffa turned her head away, her wandering eyes starting to show a chaotic spiral pattern.
As if I got flustered because I remembered your brother’s “sacred sword”! Absolutely not! And I can’t say it out loud!
Dammit, stupid human! You’re affecting me even from here?!
I’ve killed plenty of male monsters, but a male intelligent being… exposing his sacred sword in front of a sweet, lovely long-haired girl (?)… Wait, that guy is a man!
For Ineffa, who had been holed up for a hundred years, that scene was still a huge shock. She hadn’t slept well last night, and she almost wanted to dig out a piece of her brain to forget it. Besides Siloque’s cooking, it was the second most memorable thing.
She had barely managed to seal her heart with a lid called “composure,” but Hill’s question pried it open, leaving Ineffa’s mind in a mess.
“Is that so…” Hill’s eyes dimmed slightly, revealing a hint of suspicion. “One last question, Illyon. You don’t like my brother, do you?”
“Huh? Of course not.”
Ineffa answered without hesitation, then added in a very quiet voice:
“I don’t like him that much. Yeah, at most it’s like giving a cat a bath.”
Hill kept fingering her racket, then parted her lips—
“Breakfast is ready, you two.”
“Coming!”
Hearing Siloque’s call, even without seeing him, Hill responded with a bright smile toward the direction of his voice.
“Never mind, it’s nothing major.” Hill put her racket back into her bracelet. “Alright, Illyon, let’s play again after breakfast.”
“Ah? H-hey! Human, I can walk by myself!!”
Just as she had dragged Ineffa to play badminton, Hill grabbed Ineffa to go eat breakfast, but Ineffa shook her off. She immediately summoned a Blood Spirit, which lifted the two blonde girls, carrying them from the castle wall through the third-floor window.
—
Monday, May 31st.
A week had passed since they moved into the castle.
Their routine was either grinding for levels or collecting monster drops and practicing skills. Ineffa followed the siblings around the Third Floor constantly. Siloque also showed Hill some key locations, making it easier to camp and kill the Evil Demon Society bosses later.
Tiana had also come back during this time.
She spent a whole morning playing chess with Ineffa. Naturally, Tiana lost completely, but she laughed like an idiot, looking very happy. The siblings, one dragon, and one vampire played a mixed-doubles badminton match. Ineffa swung her racket too hard and accidentally hit Tiana’s butt, but Tiana didn’t care. She rubbed her sore bottom while shouting in pain, and smashed the shuttlecock back.
Then Tiana suggested they all go visit the pregnant Edriel.
But Ineffa refused to ride Tiana in the sky. She used Heart-Capturing Blood to find a lucky monster in the forest and controlled a Hexagonal Elk as her mode of transport.
Hill rode Tiana through the air, while Siloque accompanied Ineffa on the monster’s back until they reached their destination.
It was Ineffa’s first meeting with Edriel. Ineffa and Hill curiously put their ears to the dragon egg, listening.
In short, these things happened.
Now, Siloque’s level had increased by 2, reaching LV26, while Hill was LV27.
They had begun to feel a leveling bottleneck on the Third Floor.
Siloque changed into a yellow insulation suit in his room and looked out the window.
“The moonlight is beautiful… Tonight is the time to trigger a new event.”
Duplicate of the previous chapter. Also nobody can keep a consistent name.
fixed~