"Well, too bad we didn't capture their ships, but at least we sunk one!" Claire said. I was sitting on Claire's lap as she nuzzled me and patted my head. For some reason, Claire had been doing that a lot lately.

  "So cold! I love this!" Claire hugged me even tighter. She seemed to enjoy hugging me, but my maid was glaring daggers at her.

  "Princess Claire, could you not hug Milady so nonchalantly? It's improper," Alicia said, scowling.

  "Come on, don't be mad. Let's share. Here!" Claire handed me to Alicia like I was a puppy.

  "You are so kind, Princess Claire!" Alicia immediately changed her attitude. As she hugged me, I could feel her usual soft twin pillows pressing against the back of my head. Yup, she is bigger than Claire, alright.

  "You used to be warm, but ever since you became a vampire, you've been cold… It feels like the Lady Eli I know has changed. You don't even resist when I hug you like this anymore…"

  "Ahem… I brought some cake. It'll be a while before we get back to Elderan's capital," Heracles said, bringing several plates and feystones for me. However, I simply dozed off on Alicia's bosom.

  "Cakes!" Claire clapped her hands in joy. The tart cake with strawberries certainly looked delicious, but I wouldn't eat it. I'd suffer irreparable mental damage if it tasted bland on my tongue. I preferred to savor the imagined taste of the tart, where the flavor remained perfect in my mind.

  "Lady Eli, you don't want any?"

  "No, I won't eat it," I replied while licking the feystone. Alicia had probably filled this one—I could recognize the warmth of her mana.

  We arrived at Elderan's capital two days later. The news about the demons had stopped abruptly. As Claire bolstered the port town, she received a report that the Theocracy had attacked the Western front, capturing one of its fortresses.

  "I almost forgot about that place…" I muttered. I haven't actually been there, but the war effort on the Western Front kept becoming a free topic in our school, and it is almost impossible for anyone not to know about it.

  "We still have soldiers stationed there. But I thought we had a one-year truce…"

  "Urgh… why are we still fighting amongst ourselves when the demons are at our doorstep?!" Claire cursed. A knock was then heard at the door. When our soldier opened it, a researcher burst in, shouting with joy and lacking any semblance of manners.

  "We did it!!" the researcher exclaimed. "Princess Claire! We succeeded! With this, our monster tamer guild will no longer be looked down upon!!"

  "You're in the presence of Princess Claire. At least be polite," one of the soldiers said; knowing that Claire didn't care much about rank or status, they amended their words. They didn't ask the researcher to kneel, just to show more consideration.

  "Ahem! Our first dragon mount is ready to serve you, Princess Claire," the researcher said, kneeling with excitement radiating from him. he bowed like a knight with pride. As if he had slain a dragon for their princess.

  "Dragons?" Ludwin and Heracles turned to Claire. However, Claire was elated.

  "Oh! So the research from the spawner Eli brought has finally paid off? Let me see! Is it in the stables?" Claire asked, thrilled by the good news.

  "It resides in the laboratory, Princess. May I guide you there?"

  "Of course! Let's go, everyone!"

  We went to the laboratory where I had killed Seles for my revenge. In the backyard, a dragon with gleaming white scales stood proudly in the sunlight. Behind it were five wyverns, all wearing chokers. Even though the dragon was white, like the one we killed when getting the spawner, I didn't sense any mana-repelling scales on it. This was just a normal flying lizard. Did it even have breath attacks?

  "Wow… what a majestic creature!" Claire exclaimed.

  "We were lucky with this one. After sacrificing mana from 30 mages, day and night, we finally got this breed."

  "What's the maintenance like? I heard these creatures eat feystones…" I trailed off, suddenly realizing how similar I was to this monster.

  "Oh, yes. They eat about two feystones per day when idle and five when flying. If they're in combat, they may need even more. But it's well worth the cost! A dragon will carry an enormous advantage in air superiority!"

  "Well, let's put that to a test! We're going to use them immediately. The wyverns too. We'll train the imperial soldiers to ride them. I wonder if they can shoot the enemy from the air. I heard Althemer's soldiers are very proficient with rifles."

  "As you wish, Princess Claire."

  Stolen novel; please report.

  With the airship, we reached the Western frontier in less than a week. As the airship landed, the general knelt before Claire, glaring at Heracles and Ludwin with contempt. They hadn't even done anything. Did these generals hate Ludwin and Heracles merely because Althemer was allied with the Theocracy? It was not Althemer who orchestrated the attacks. Moreover, they were just princes, not the king.

  "Report?" Claire asked.

  "Fort Anabelle has fallen to the Theocracy's armies. They attacked us at night, despite the truce, pretending to be peddlers."

  "What cowards! Is this true?" Ludwin said, doubting his ears.

  "They're here," I said. I sensed a mana signature in the distance. Ever since I became a vampire, I had grown sensitive to mana, sometimes even seeing wisps of it in the air. The Theocracy often employed mages as their soldiers. Their mana lighted up like fireflies in the distance.

  "Who?"

  "The Theocracy's soldiers, perhaps. They employ mages as their soldiers, right?"

  "Really? Where?"

  "There," I pointed toward a forest. The mana signature grew closer and closer until it reached our backdoor. We intercepted them as they tried to break in.

  "Althemer's uniform? I knew they were turning traitor!" one of the captured mages cursed as we placed mana shackles on them. Being mages, they usually had the upper hand unless we shot them with guns. However, they were only level 4, 5, and 7 mages. We had Claire and me at level 8, Ludwin at level 7, and Alicia at level 6. Moreover, we had Heracles, who was a skill holder, and countless loyal soldiers in this fort. They stood no chance.

  "Oi! We're in a truce! The demons are invading our continent!" Heracles said.

  "Lies. How could you side with these barbarians who enslave the sons of mana?"

  "Who are the real barbarians when you violate something like a truce?" Claire sighed, then pulled out her gun.

  "Wait. I'm a prisoner! Will you really kill—" BANG Claire shot him. She then looked at me. I merely sighed.

  "Alright," I said.

  "Thank you, my dear sister!"

  "We are not sisters…" I grumbled as I used my necromancy to revive the mage.

  "Why did you want to revive him?" Ludwin asked.

  "To question him, of course. So, what's your purpose? Why did you attack the fort?"

  "Count Dolores was paid by merchants of the Western Nation to take that fort," he answered. I tilted my head.

  "Why would merchants from the Western Nation want people to attack their own fortress?"

  "I don't know."

  "They want to reignite the war. By labeling the Theocracy as having broken the truce, they could spark a more intense conflict. The Theocracy, on the other hand, wanted to gain merit. This is all just speculation, though," Claire sighed.

  "Which merchants? My sweetheart controls the merchant guilds in every Western country. We could embargo them."

  "A Thousand Slash merchant," he answered.

  "Are you a reaper?" I asked. It was just a gut feeling, but from his gait and the equipment he used to break in, he seemed to know the craft.

  "Yes. I am R245."

  "Sorry, senior…" I bowed. The other two mages, who hadn't been shot, trembled in fear.

  "Red eyes that made you tremble as if you are looking into hell. Are you R666?" They muttered. I merely nodded.

  "Why are you asking if they're reapers?" Ludwin asked.

  "Nothing, I was just curious. It's not important," I sighed. My number is 666, but Reaper's work is perilous. Another one just died. I wondered how many reapers with numbers lower than mine were still alive.

  "Heracles, do you think an arms dealer is trying to hijack the market price?" Ludwin asked his brother.

  "They probably are. Their region hasn't seen demon attacks. Or maybe this has been planned for a while. I don't know," Heracles replied.

  "Let's raid the company. Confiscate all the weapons they have. Let the other greedy merchants know that Claire is looking for weapons to combat the demons. They don't need to pull ridiculous stunts like this to jack up the prices," Claire told her subordinates.

  "What about Fort Annabelle?" one of the commanders asked.

  "My dear, will you ask the Theocracy to kindly give the fort back? And whisper to them that one of their devoted believers has made a pact with the Western nations."

  "Roger that." Heracles returned to the airship to write the letter. I was shocked at how quickly the process unfolded. The reply came not even two hours later. All thanks to the mana fax machine.

  Of course, they didn't comply. In the reply letter, the aforementioned count was hanged, though. Claire considered her options but ultimately chose to ignore them.

  "The demons come first. Let's go back and scout Sand Pearl and Tundraise. Guard, expect more treachery from the Theocracy. Don't let your guard down."

  "Yes, Princess Claire."

  Two weeks later, we spotted another attack in Tundraise. Claire had stationed cannons there, thinking her defenses were perfect. But apparently, they weren't. The demons froze the ocean when they realized their ship was about to capsize, then assaulted the garrison. We shot back with guns and cannons, managing to defeat them, but we used more ammunition than expected.

  Port Ellynias, situated between Tundraise and Sand Pearl, wasn't faring as well. Claire had to personally come and bombard the town again to retake the city.

  "Kites!" a soldier reported.

  "They're getting smarter and smarter…" Heracles muttered. As the soldier had said, several kites, each carrying demons, plastered the skies. Using wind magic, they were able to lift themselves and attempt an assault. If this were medieval times, they might have caused trouble. However, we were in a Renaissance-era with guns and even airships, so they posed no significant threat.

  "Let's retreat… I think we shouldn't hold Ellynias. The ammunition can't keep up with the assault," Ludwin sighed. Heracles didn't chide him; he implicitly agreed with him. However, as Claire was his lover, he remained silent, but Claire was insistent.

  "No. If we let them land, it will be harder to repel them." Claire said.

  "If that moving island comes, our cannons would be useless anyway…" Heracles said. Claire pouted at him.

  "We should not be overly cautious. We need to take some risks to protect this continent!"

  Her words fell off my ears. Deep down, I already knew what had to be done. We had a dragon now. I could just talk to the corpse and learn the location of their island—knowing the general direction, like north or south, would be enough. If I asked how long they'd been at sea, I could also estimate the distance. We don't need a map.

  Judging from the settlers' speed, a dragon should be five or even ten times faster. I could simply carry enough feystones for sustenance and launch an assault on the core of their forces. The enemy might have realized we could fly. If they were smart enough, the Kinslayer Law might have already been abolished in their settler camp. We must hurry to strike them before the law was really abolished.

  "Everyone, please listen to me. I have an idea." I approached the group, explaining my plan, fully aware this mission could be my last.

  This is our final war. If we make it through, our continent will be safe. Everyone felt the weight of that truth.