Shrine was alone in the throne of Vamilinear Castle while looking troubled.
Her trouble comes from the precious Vamilenear jewel.
The Vamilinear jewel was originally a jewel that belonged to Shrine’s family.
Rather than it belonged to them, it is better to say that it coexists with the Vamilinear family, which is a vampire family.
To be exact, it coexists with the head of the family.
The current head of the family is Shrine so if Shrine’s no longer exists in this world, the jewel will disappear too.
However, even if the jewel is destroyed, as long as Shrine exists, it can be reformed immediately.
In other words, the vamilinear jewel is like a mass of power that the head of the family will take over.
By the way, the castle is attached to the jewel.
As long as the jewel exists, you can create the castle in any place.
However, to create the castle from scratch, it will require a huge amount of magical power.
-0-
The Vamilinear family has been destroyed once.
To be precise, they existed as a nation and have lost in a war.
The family, whose number was drastically reduced in the war, chose to scatter away from each other to survive.
Their plan was to increase their population first then found a nation again but that didn’t work.
When the castle(jewel) was lost in the war, the king of the family at that time also ceased to exist.
Originally, the jewel should have chosen the next king that will inherit it but none of those who survived was chosen by the jewel.
No one could answer why it became a tower object. Not Shrine, not the people she gathered there.
Shrine doesn’t even know why she, who was wandering around the world, was called by Mitsuki’s summoning in the first place.
Or why was she fascinated by Kousuke’s blood.
Those who were called by Shrine’s summoning were able to call other people of the family which are about 50.
In the first place, summoning is not so convenient so if you try to summon someone, you won’t even know if that person will answer your summon since you don’t know where they are or if they are still alive.
Then, the question of how Mitsuki was able to summon Shrine will enter the fray. When she summoned Shrine, she was able to answer even if she’s in a different dimension.
Both Kouhi and Mitsuki have the power and technique of cheat existence.
Therefore, even if it is not easy. She was able to summon Shrine, a vampire.
Thus, if you want to call out the scattered vampires, you can’t rely on summoning.
Of course, you can increase the number of vampires by sucking blood but that method is nothing but another form of suicide since you’ll surely earn antipathy.
In addition, increasing the number of family members by sucking blood will make the status of a vampire fall.
After all, the best way to increase vampires is through natural(?) means , which is snusnu.
-0-
However, after consulting with Kousuke, she’s now troubled on how to summon the scattered members of the family from all over the world to the tower.
Since she has to manage the castle, the only thing she can do now is to send people outside and make them spread rumors.
The rumor is that the Vamilinear castle has been revived in the tower.
Of course, the rumor won’t directly say that the castle was revived in the tower.
However, she decided to prepare a rumor that vampires will understand upon hearing.
Even so, it is still possible that it will invite superfluous people in the tower but when she asked Kousuke, he said that it’s okay.
After all, for the tower, the more people are active in it, the more holy power, magic power, and divine power it can generate.
The things that happened during the war aside, there are few people who hate vampires now so those who’ll attack vampires just because they are vampires are a minority.
Thus, she chose about six people and registered them to crown and have them act as adventurers.
If they spread rumors well, it will take time but the rumor will spread to other continents.
Since it is a hot topic now, rumors about the Amamiya Tower are very easy to spread.
She decided to take that opportunity.
That said, it will take time but that’s the only thing she can do now.
At least it is better than doing nothing.
-0-
—Scene Change—
-0-
There is another thing that worries Shrine the most and that’s what she’s thinking presently.
Seeing Shrine’s condition, Zenet, who is one of her close aides, approached her.
「You looked very troubled.」
「…..Zenet….」
When she glanced at him while immediately trying to be composed, Zenet laughed for some reason.
「…..what’s wrong?」
「No. I never thought that Shrine-sama, who I have known since we were children, would be lovesick.」
That’s right. What’s been troubling Shrine since a while ago is none other than Kousuke.
Shrine, who wanted to reflexively deny it, immediately changed her mind and shut up.
No matter how she thinks, Zenet’s words are the truth.
「…..stop that….I know what I’m feeling.」
If you ask her when it started, she’ll immediately answer from the time she drank his blood.
She was so fascinated by Kousuke’s blood.
But now, it’s not just that. Even if you count Kousuke’s blood aside, she still likes everything about him.
However, no matter how much she tried to make him notice her feelings, nothing’s happening.
「After all, the way I acted when I drank his blood for the first time was terrible….」
For Kousuke, he knows that Shrine favors her but he thinks she only thinks of his blood.
「Is it that good…..」
Zenet never said anything about Kousuke’s blood.
However, he knows how much Shrine was affected by that blood.
「To be honest, I can no longer take anyone else other than Kousuke-dono as my companion. It’s that good.」
Vampires, especially a vampire princess like Shrine, sometimes distinguish their lifetime companion from their blood.
However, that doesn’t mean a thing for Kousuke, a human(?).
It’s similar to the debate whether the egg or the chicken is first.
「Well, for our race, we’re not really bothered if it takes time.」
Shrine can see what Zenet wants to say but she looks like she has bitten a bitter worm.
「….we can’t do that. Kousuke-dono is hoping that the jewel’s rating will rise.」
To be precise, he was expecting the divine power generated by the Vamilinear Jewel to rise but that’s probably the same thing.
Shrine did not even know that the Vamilinear Jewel can generate divine power(Or is that the reason why it was incorporated into the tower?) however, she knew that the jewel has a <rating>.
She knew it from the legend passed down to their family and by experience.
However, there is a condition to raise the rating of the jewel.
「….why is the condition to raise the <rating> is to share a bed….」
Shrine murmured as she shrugged her shoulders.
For Shrine herself, it is something to be happy about but the other party might reject it.
If she tells him that it will increase the <rating>, he will not refuse but she won’t do something like that.
Shrine is a maiden.
Or rather, she was forced to realize that she’s a maiden.
「How about talking to someone close to him?」
「Is there someone like that….」
Shrine immediately denied Zenet’s proposal but soon, a certain someone came to her mind.
Mitsuki.
-0-
Shrine knows that it is only a matter of time before she fails if she continues what she’s doing so she decided to consult Mitsuki.