Chapter 588: Your Name Is Luna

"Her name is... Theresa."

The glow of the streetlights and crimson moon intertwined within the narrow alley, casting scattered patterns of light and shadow. Compared to the bustling noise beyond the alley, this place was so quiet that it seemed like another world entirely.

The vampire girl clenched her small hands as she spoke the name of the girl whose story she was about to tell. A faint sorrow lingered in her eyes.

Just from her expression, Elias didn’t even need to hear the story to know that it was definitely going to be the kind of tragedy he hated most.

At the same time, he couldn’t help sighing inwardly.

(What a vampire who’s completely incapable of lying. Even if I didn’t already know what Theresa looked like, how is the way you’re talking any different from saying, "I have this friend"?)

Elias would bet Otto’s soulium face on it.

The "Theresa" this vampire girl was talking about was ten thousand percent herself!

If he lost, he’d go crush Otto’s soulium face.

If he won, he’d go kill Otto to celebrate!

Seeing the vampire girl’s melancholy expression, as though Theresa were the name of some tragic heroine, Elias found it a little hard to keep watching, so he decided to tease her.

"All right, Theresa~ Theresa~ Since the heroine of the story is named Theresa, what’s your name?"

"Huh?"

The vampire girl immediately froze. She hadn’t expected Elias to ask her name. Although it was a perfectly normal question, the problem was that she didn’t have a second name she could use.

She could have simply made one up, yet this vampire girl apparently hadn’t even thought of something so simple.

She immediately became so flustered that she had no idea what to do, to the point that even the trace of sadness she’d felt moments ago vanished.

The corners of Elias’ lips curled upward slightly. He couldn’t help thinking that this vampire girl was ridiculously adorable.

"H-Human, my name isn’t important."

"No, names are very important. They’re a signet belonging uniquely to each person in this world. I once agonized over a problem as difficult as solving the greatest mystery of the century, all because I wanted to give someone the cutest, most beautiful-sounding name in the world."

Elias spoke somewhat nostalgically. The childhood he had spent with her in that garden town remained vivid in his memory, even though fifty thousand years had already passed.

"The cutest, most beautiful-sounding name in the world..."

The vampire girl’s face involuntarily revealed longing and envy. Of course, that was only natural. What girl in the world wouldn’t want a name like that?

"Human... I don’t have a name... so... you can call me whatever you want... I don’t mind..."

The vampire girl clasped her hands together and fidgeted as she spoke.

Seeing her like this, Elias couldn’t help laughing. But then his smile stiffened. Wait, did this mean he had to name someone again? Nooo~ Everyone knew Elias was terrible at naming things!

Back when his memories had still been sealed, Elias had nearly wrung his brain dry trying to come up with Elysia’s name. Now, seeing the expectant look on the vampire girl’s face, the pressure instantly became mountainous.

"Uh... Does it really have to be like this?"

"...If you don’t want to... that’s fine too..."

The vampire girl lowered her head as she spoke.

Looking as pitiful as an abandoned little white kitten, she made Elias feel an unexpected pang of guilt. He couldn’t help wondering what kind of sin he’d committed to deserve this.

He began looking around. Streetlights, alley, crimson moon, vampire... Was there anything here he could extract a name from?

In the end, Elias’ gaze was still drawn toward the blood-red moon hanging in the night sky. He couldn’t help thinking about just how ominous it was, how maddening... and how beautiful.

Perhaps there was no need to overthink it.

After all, this vampire girl already had the super-duper adorable name Theresa. Right now, he only needed to give her a temporary name to use during the short time they would be spending together.

In that case, he might as well give her a name that commemorated the encounter between himself and this vampire girl.

"How about Luna?"

"Lu... na..."

"Mhm. Because we met beneath the crimson moon. It’s a little simple, but... I think it sounds nice."

Elias hurriedly explained, while inwardly lamenting once again that naming things was absurdly difficult. After all, there was no correct answer.

Sure enough, naming newborn babies was still the easiest and most relaxing. Even if they didn’t like the name, they couldn’t voice any objections. And no objection meant agreement~

"Human, thank you. My name is Luna."

The vampire girl—no, Luna—revealed a breathtaking smile. She couldn’t conceal her happiness at all, looking just like a child who had received a beloved gift.

Elias couldn’t help staring blankly for an instant. Then he felt somewhat puzzled. They were both Theresa, so why had he never once been stunned by the Judah launcher from the proper world?

(Hmm... Maybe it’s because she’s Teriri the Dummy. Bitter-melon-juice-loving, adorably foolish little Teriri, B-rank Judah launcher... Uh, no, Judah belongs to me.)

Elias admitted that Teriri was adorable, but... those who knew, knew. She was still a Kaslana, after all~ From a certain perspective, she was basically another silly little tuna. It was impossible to feel anything improper toward her.

But just then...

"Which rose~ has no thorns~ the best revenge is beauty~ the most beautiful bloom is defiance~"

A pleasant song suddenly came from Elias’ terminal. It was his ringtone, "Womxnly," though his phone selected songs randomly from his music library every time, so even Elias had no idea what would play the next time someone called.

The caller was Himeko.

She said that she had searched the surrounding area but hadn’t encountered any vampire attacks. Therefore, she planned to regroup first and discuss what to do next, while also asking whether Elias had discovered anything on his side.

"Ah... Mhm... Everything’s normal over here..."

Elias silently apologized to Himeko. Her efforts were destined to be wasted, since the person they were searching for was already with him.

However, since he’d already found Luna, it also meant that there wouldn’t be any more victims of vampire attacks in the future.

And although Elias had agreed to resolve the incident, he’d never said he would obediently hand over the vampire. From here on, he would deal with Luna in his own way.

And once Elias made a decision, he never needed anyone else’s permission.

"Is your companion looking for you?"

"Mhm~ I can’t take you with me to meet her, so Luna, stay in my world for a little while."

"Your... world?"

Luna tilted her head, clearly not understanding what Elias meant.

Then Elias raised his hand and swiped through the air. A spatial gate immediately opened, connecting to the Elysian Realm beyond.

"You can play with anything you want. My paradise has everything. The amusement park is open twenty-four hours a day for free, and if you get tired, you can find a room in the big white castle and rest."

"Huh? W-What?"

"I’m going to meet up with my companion first. The night is still long anyway. Later, I’ll listen to you tell me Theresa’s story."

As Elias spoke, he gently pushed Luna into the Elysian Realm.

At that moment, he had no idea just how fantastical and unbelievable his flawless eternal paradise would seem to this vampire girl who had only just escaped into the outside world...

But Elias felt much the same way. This encounter on a midsummer night could only be described as dreamlike. It truly was a midsummer night’s fantasy in every sense of the phrase.

...

"Sorry, sorry. I accidentally ran into an old friend on the way back, so I was delayed a little."

In front of Homu Happy Restaurant, Himeko apologized for arriving late. However, from the slightly unnatural expression on her face, Elias knew that the "old friend" she’d mentioned had definitely been an unexpected encounter.

"A good woman doesn’t make excuses like that, Miss Vigilante of Sapphire City. Also, don’t you feel like our roles have somehow been reversed? Usually on a date, isn’t it the girl who waits for the late guy, while the guy gives the girl roses?"

"W-Who’s on a date with you?!"

Himeko immediately flushed with embarrassment and anger. Unable to stop herself, she raised a hand and punched Elias’ solid chest. She had never even had a boyfriend before, so what date was he talking about?

Today was an investigation! An investigation!!

"All right, all right~ So when you said you ran into an old friend... someone from Schicksal came, didn’t they? Who was it? An S-rank Valkyrie?"

"S... Wait, how did you know?!"

"Hehe. I guessed. You’re still too inexperienced."

Elias chuckled. He really had just guessed.

Still, he found it somewhat surprising. Did Schicksal even have an S-rank Valkyrie during this period? At this point in time, Durandal was six years old and Rita was ten.

Had that bastard Otto sent Li Sushang over here or something?

(That doesn’t seem very likely either... So could this bubble world have an S-rank Valkyrie who doesn’t exist in the proper world?)

"Interesting. So who exactly is it?"

"...I’m not telling you. But from now on, that lord will be taking full responsibility for the [Vampire Incident]."

"Oh~ That’s strange. Schicksal is taking this that seriously? They actually sent an S-rank Valkyrie directly here. That’s definitely not normal. The only possibilities I can think of are that Schicksal already knows the details about Luna—ahem, the vampire—or... the vampire was created through some secret Schicksal experiment."

"N-No way. Schicksal would never..."

"Himeko, you’re still young. Schicksal isn’t nearly as bright and glorious as you imagine. It’s darker than this night sky. So quitting early and enjoying your life is definitely the right choice."

Elias patted the red-haired girl’s fragrant shoulder as he spoke.

"...Elias, just who exactly are you?"

"Me? Just a passing savior. All right, all right, it’s getting late. We should head back too. Since that lord you mentioned has taken over the vampire incident, there’s no need for us to keep worrying about it."

Elias yawned. Then he clasped both hands behind his head and walked away beneath the scarlet moonlight.

Himeko, however, suddenly sensed something strange.

"Wait. What happened to the roses you were carrying this whole time?"

"Ahem. There was a small accident. The flowers are gone."

"...Just in case, let me ask. Do you happen to know anything about that red moon in the sky, Elias?"

"Oh, I made it. I thought it looked pretty cool."

Elias blinked and admitted it without hesitation.

"..."

Himeko immediately slapped a hand over her forehead, utterly speechless. She had thought the crimson moon was a sign that the vampire had appeared. She’d spent the entire patrol on edge for absolutely nothing.

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