Leaving the golem a short distance away, I stepped between the two vampires, as naturally as if someone had to do it.

"Hey, trespasser. That's enough of your bullshit. Knock it off and get up."

The vampire and the intruder turned their eyes toward me at the same time. She regarded me with quiet, subdued eyes, while he raised his head slightly and glared. His audience interrupted, the intruder's fierce thoughts rang out.

'How dare he! A mere human interrupts this sacred audience with the Progenitor? Does he wish to die?'

The only reason those words did not escape his lips was that he stood before the vampire's throne. Without her here, he would have lunged straight at me.

'Were we not in the Progenitor's presence, I would tear you limb from limb and drain every drop of your blood with blood manipulation!'

Fierce hostility bore down on me. To him, I must have looked like a nuisance who had come to disrupt his long-awaited reunion. Which was true.

But I hadn't stepped in without something to fall back on. I wouldn't have intervened at all if the vampire weren't here. From the start, the person I was addressing wasn't the intruder. It was her.

"Trainee Tyrkanzyaka."

I'd lose if I fought the intruder. Even if we both suffered cuts and bled, he could simply scoop his blood back up like dropped coins, whereas I'd have to wrap myself in bandages and rest for days.

In that case, all I had to do was not fight.

Winning through combat was for amateurs. A true master won without fighting.

I crossed my arms and raised my head. All that endless frivolity I'd projected until now had been for this very moment.

I wiped the smile off my face and furrowed my brow in displeasure. Twisting slightly, I adopted an unstable stance, as if I might storm off at any second. Something to unsettle anyone watching.

To the intruder, who was seeing me for the first time, I would look like an ordinary thug. But to the vampire, accustomed to my carefree, sunny disposition, I would seem a little unfamiliar.

Unfamiliarity meant fear. For the briefest moment, the vampire feared me.

... Of course, it wasn't fear of my power. It was the momentary fear you felt when a close friend suddenly turned deadly serious.

Surprisingly, the two were the same emotion.

"I have been very patient."

The foundation of stage magic was neither sleight of hand nor marvelous props.

True magic meant playing with the audience's psychology.

In that sense, I was still a magician.

"He has entered another's territory unannounced in the middle of the night, ignored its master to seek out a guest as he pleased, and refused a legitimate request. My territory, my dignity, and my honor have all been threatened."

I explained my justification, allowing a hint of anger to show through. I'd given her enough clues. The vampire reached the conclusion on her own.

Since everything I had was under threat...

'Surely not. He means to kill him?'

That one thought flashing through her mind was all I needed.

"They say tolerating a third affront is not mercy, but indulgence. As you know, I'm quite conscientious. I cannot simply overlook this insult."

I narrowed my eyes and twitched just one finger of my folded hands, as though that single finger were enough to eliminate the intruder.

Carefully presenting an arrogant front, I asked the vampire:

"However, out of my affection for you, Trainee Tyrkanzyaka, I will ask one final time. May I kill this intruder?"

I didn't have a snowball's chance of killing him, but the vampire, unaware of that, pleaded with me in earnest.

"... Do not. I beg you."

In her mind, I was as powerful as the Regressor, if not more so. Ridiculous misunderstanding or not, if that was what she believed, there was no reason not to use it.

The vampire was powerful. That aside, she had no desire to meddle in other people's affairs. She merely watched everything from a thoroughly detached observer's perspective.

When the Military State discovered her beneath an old church they were demolishing, and when they tried and failed to kill her, then decided to put her in the bottomless pit instead, she knew what they were doing and let them be.

Yet even someone as indifferent as her could not turn away from the affairs of her own kind. She pitied them, denounced as cursed creatures, and felt responsible for having created them.

The vampire implored me.

"For my sake, at least. Please."

Good. After such an earnest plea, she wouldn't suspect anything if I backed down now.

"If you insist."

Whew. Success.

I'd have been in trouble if she'd told me to kill him or spare him as I pleased. Sparing him after all that would have looked strange, but unfortunately, I had no way to kill the intruder right now.

Pretending my lack of ability was merely a lack of inclination, I swung around to address him.

"Know that you're only alive because Trainee Tyrkanzyaka has such a pretty face."

"W-what?!"

As if flipping a switch, I instantly lightened the mood. I heard the vampire's flabbergasted exclamation behind me, but set that aside for now.

"If she were ugly, I'd have personally dunked you in pickled garlic today. Now get lost. Stop making a scene in the dead of night."

"Pickled... garlic?"

Apparently unwilling to kneel in front of me, the intruder had awkwardly risen to his feet. Yet even after my abusive remarks, he could neither attack nor flee. He simply stood there uncertainly, his eyes darting about.

'Someone the Progenitor herself would go so far as to beg...? Could this human be incredibly powerful, despite appearances?'

The vampire came into his view. The concern with which his revered Progenitor watched us was far too sincere to dismiss as a joke or misunderstanding.

The hierarchy among vampires was absolute. Doubting one's superior was sacrilege, enough to send one's blood surging backward. Thus, they could not even question a superior's judgment.

'It's possible. This is Tantalus! A place that housed all manner of monsters. This human might be a monster beyond imagining, too!'

Belatedly instilled with manners, the intruder straightened his clothes. Hoping to avoid offending me any further, he cleared his throat and offered his hand at last.

"Forgive my late introduction. I am—"

"Save it. It's still nighttime. Maybe not for you lot, but for humans, this is a time for sleep and vigilance."

I pointed toward the collapsed administration office.

"Your room is that ruined office over there. There's an empty cabinet. Use it as a coffin and put yourself to bed. Don't expect any better treatment."

"Grrgh."

'I've never been treated like this anywhere...! But this is where the Progenitor has been staying. The other inhabitants of the bottomless pit must be powerful and mysterious, even if they cannot compare to her. Bow your head for now! Survival comes first!'

The intruder bowed only to the vampire, then headed toward the ruined office without even meeting my eyes.

Whew. Thank goodness he hadn't attacked.

If you're going to run a con, you've got to do it properly. Even that self-important noble of the night had bowed his head before me of his own accord. Playing the powerhouse through countless crises had paid off.

I'd made the right choice. As I briefly basked in the thrill...

"Thank you."

A swaying parasol entered the edge of my vision. The vampire had come to stand beside me. I replied calmly.

"Don't mention it. Not with how close we are. I can do you a favor like this."

"How close we are?"

"Close enough for me to fondle your heart, aren't we? We've formed such a deep connection, after all."

"Pfft. Yes. So we have."

The vampire burst into laughter. Then, looking quietly expectant, she brought a hand to her cleavage.

Oh, wait. Again?

Her flesh split. The skin parted, exposing things that should never be seen. The lamplight could not reach those intimate depths, leaving the shadowed cleft of her chest invisible.

But by now, I was confident. Confident I could find the heart hidden within by touch alone.

"Since you mention it, would you do it for me?"

"Now? In the middle of all this?"

"What is wrong with now? Is this not the perfect moment? Darkness all around, the whole world quiet, and no one watching us."

Her red eyes sparkled with anticipation. Sighing, I raised my finger.

I would rather not recall what followed.

A squishy sensation (the heart), fingers probing and digging inside (the ribs and lungs), and breathless moans accompanying an electrifying sensation (lightning magic). Hot liquid spurting like a fountain (blood).

Once it was over, while I edited the experience in my head for the sake of my mental health, the vampire contentedly put her skin and clothes back in order.

"Hehe. Thank you. I shall head inside now."

With that, she sat atop her pitch-black coffin. Without sound or any hint of its presence, it glided smoothly toward the underground armory, carrying her along. The iron door bearing a glowing red brand swung wide to welcome her. Only after the great coffin and her gleaming silver hair had disappeared did the iron door close with a heavy thud.

Pitch-black darkness and silence settled in. I, too, approached the lamp I'd set down earlier.

Only then did words pour out of the golem like a breached dam.

『What was that just now? What exactly did you do?』

"Something tingly that feels good."

『Tingly?』

"It's hard to explain. Just think of it as something like a massage."

Anyone who could understand from that alone would have to be a god or a mind reader. Being neither, the golem tilted its head and reached its own conclusion.

『In any case, you appear to be on good terms with the Progenitor.』

"It's an effort to stay alive."

The golem nodded.

『Then this discussion may become much easier. A visit from another vampire is outside our anticipated circumstances. We require a proactive response from on-site personnel.』

I replied indifferently.

"Sure. Good luck with that. Oh, and don't forget my reward."

『Reward?』

"You're not planning to pretend nothing happened, are you? I stepped between two vampires with nothing but an ordinary human body. I just risked my life for the Military State. I deserve some kind of reward."

『It is a citizen's duty to serve the Military State.』

What utter nonsense. I promptly hoisted the golem into the air. Dangling by its neck, it flailed its limbs and cried out.

『Cease this threatening behavior immediately. Accumulated negative evaluations may adversely affect your eligibility for release or your post-service assessment.』

"If your orders keep piling up, Captain, I'll fucking die before I ever get evaluated. Make some reasonable demands. If you wanted to use someone like this, you should have brought a real Instructor instead of me."

『Are you not impersonating an Instructor even now in order to survive? Impersonating military personnel is a serious crime, punishable by death. I consider overlooking that offense a sufficiently meaningful reward—』

"Huh? Just because it makes noise doesn't mean it's a speaker, Captain AB."

I popped off the golem's speaker. Deprived of its mouth, it frantically flailed its limbs and reached toward me.

"It might not look that way, but I'm putting my life on the line here, Captain AB. From now on, consider the other person's circumstances before you speak. Answer me."

The golem hastily bobbed its head up and down. After enjoying the sight to my satisfaction, I flicked the speaker back with a finger.

The golem hurriedly reached out to catch it, but its iron frame was too rigid to grab things properly. Flailing like someone who had been burned, it barely managed to cradle the crystal-ball speaker in its arms. The way it clutched the thing protectively, afraid I might steal it, was pitiful.

After somehow reattaching the speaker, the golem spoke wearily.

『... I will grant one reward, provided it falls within my authority. However, I cannot exceed that authority, even if this unit is destroyed.』

See? Golems or humans, they only became cooperative when they felt personally threatened. I set the golem back down.

"It's nothing much. Send me a few mana herbs or something. I've been using everyday magic daily lately, and I'm all out of mana. It's leaving me weak."

『Mana herbs are Level 3 luxury goods. You are not permitted access to—』

When I tapped its speaker, the golem hastily changed its tune.

『However, they can be requisitioned as supplies. Since there is a valid reason, I will have them delivered within a few days.』

"Good. Make sure you pack plenty. Honestly, compared to the work I'm doing here, a few mana herbs are nothing."

After issuing that warning, I turned away. Yawn. So sleepy. Time to hurry back to bed.

Plenty of sleep was the surest path to a long life. Yawning widely, I started back toward my room.

Then the golem grabbed my trouser leg again.

『Please wait. I request that you transport this unit to the dining hall.』

"What?"

『Without your assistance, this unit's many impairments will make returning to the dining hall difficult. Please take this unit to the dining hall—』

"I can't quite hear you. Strange. I could hear you just fine on the way here. Is it because you've gone all stiff and formal again?"

When I pretended to pick my ear, the golem fell silent. Apparently, it had realized what I was asking for.