## Chapter 1081 – Ancient Vampire

The first question I asked was about Colt Rahen’s background and origins.

“The exact origins are unknown, but…”

We focused on the Oracle’s explanation.

“Vampire Lord Colt Rahen… is presumed to have been active… even during the era when the Titans… ruled over humans…”

What the fuck?

“No way.”

We had only asked the first question, and already some ridiculous story was coming out. Was it true that the Titans ruled over humans?

“What the hell.”

We were so dumbfounded by those words that we briefly paused the Oracle, exchanging doubtful glances. Everyone looked like they had heard something absurd.

“Hey. What the hell are you talking about?”

Karin snapped at the Oracle.

“The era when the Titans ruled over humans? Explain that briefly.”

It was an abrupt question, but everyone seemed curious, focusing on the Oracle. I was the same. What the hell was this?

“Knowledge about… the era when the Titans ruled over humans… has been concealed by humans… so more detailed information… could not be gathered…”
“What the fuck, man?”
“Most records of the Titan era… have been lost… there is almost nothing remaining… this knowledge was also… obtained by chance… but it is credible…”

With those words, the Oracle shut its mouth.

—…

A moment of silence descended upon us due to this shocking fact.

It felt like renowned anthropologists had made a surprise Christmas year-end announcement that Homo sapiens sapiens were actually a pathetic race dominated by those Neanderthal bastards.

“So… there was a race that ruled over humans in the past? And that was the Titans? Who would believe that?”

Human Liztina was genuinely dumbfounded.

“If you go around saying stuff like that, you’ll get arrested. Isn’t this a lie? From the start, it’s not like this guy’s information is reliable.”

Karin was right.

It’s not like this thing is the Philosopher’s Stone, spitting out only the truth.

“While it does not speak falsehoods, it is possible that it has simply collected distorted or incorrect knowledge, mistaking it for the truth. Is there any being with absolute knowledge? Even books written by experts contain errors.”
“That’s right. Exactly.”

I nodded at Risha’s wise words.
That’s our Risha.

Of course, not just me, but all the women here who were human nodded. Wouldn’t you feel shitty hearing such a strange story that humans were slaves? This was a natural phenomenon.

But Hilde, Ari, Claudia, and Risha are exceptions here.

“Is it true that humans were ruled by the Titans? You said it was credible knowledge, but can you be sure it was true?”

I asked that question briefly.

“Truth… varies… depending on the observer… of course, this Oracle… did not directly experience that era… so the reliability of this information is entirely…”

Suddenly, it closed its mouth, and Risha paused it. If it showed signs of overload, Risha would stop it immediately.

“Okay. Pause for now.”

With that, the interrogation was temporarily halted.

“This seems to be considered forbidden knowledge… Let’s move on for now. It’s not that important right now, is it? The Titan era it mentioned is even before the Idol War.”
“Yeah.”
“Right. Even if it were true, it was a long time ago, right? It doesn’t seem that important.”

Claudia’s reaction was calm.

“Well, when you think about it, that’s true. It just feels bad, that’s all. It just feels a bit off.”
“Yeah, it does.”

Winnia nodded at Liztina’s words and said to me.

“Anyway, Darkie. You said that Titan was the one in the waterway, right?”
“Yeah. It was huge and strong. If those were typical Titans, humans wouldn’t have stood a chance.”
“…”

I had to admit that they were stronger than humans.

“Then let’s start again!”
“Yes, Father. You said there’s no information about human history, so let’s skip that and go back to Colt Rahen.”
“We should.”

We had the Oracle continue the explanation it was giving earlier.

“Even when the Titan era waned… and the human era arrived… Colt Rahen was still going strong… Amidst the chaos brought about by the fall of the Titans… Colt Rahen grew explosively, taking advantage of the unstable human forces… and became an extremely powerful being… expanding his power… It was during this time that he was called a lord…”
“Good.”

Assuming this guy’s words are true.

When humans fucked up the Titan race, which was powerful enough to build an empire, all sorts of chaos ensued due to their absence.

That’s obvious.

Humans aren’t the only ones in this world. Humans wouldn’t have been the only ones welcoming the fall of a powerful race.

So, in that chaotic time, that Vampire Lord seized the opportunity and grew, expanding his power. That’s how he became a being worthy of being called a lord.

“However… by the time of the Great War… when the power of humans and gods was at its strongest… Colt Rahen was… subjugated by human paladin orders blessed by numerous gods… With that… he was sealed…”
“Hmm.”

So, he was eventually sealed during the Idol War.

Wasn’t that a time of ruin?

Was it possible to kill such a powerful enemy during a time of ruin? No, if the power of humans and gods was at its strongest, it seems like chaos wouldn’t have been able to occur that easily.

We paused it again and discussed.

“It’s a bit strange. Wasn’t the Idol War era a time when everyone was fighting so hard that they didn’t have any energy to spare?”

When I said that.

“Your sister knows that too.”
“Yes, me too.”
“Yeah, me too.”

Everyone nodded.

“I don’t know much about human history!”

Except for Hilde.

“It’s okay. You can’t.”

It wasn’t that important, but I thought it would be good to address it. Then Risha opened her mouth.

“…It can’t be said to be strange. If there are strong humans and strong gods gathered, what would happen if they had different thoughts? For example, if they had different positions, different countries, or different beliefs.”
“Ah, that’s true.”

Well, it’s not like powerful countries don’t fight each other. The Idol War was said to be a time when various faiths clashed, so it could be a natural occurrence. There might be times when they unite, but if strong bastards fight each other, the chaos would accelerate.

“The Great War. So, the Idol War. Why did that happen?”

This time it was Liztina who asked.

“I don’t know.”

Immediate answer.

“What the fu…”
“The reason for the outbreak of the Great War… is that there are… so many reasons that an absolute answer… cannot be derived. The Oracle… has about… seventeen hundred guesses about the cause of the Great War…”
“Ah. Yes. I understand.”

This guy doesn’t know either.

“Okay, we know the general background and origins, right? Let’s end this now.”

The first thing we agreed to ask was about Colt Rahen’s background and origins. There were some parts where the question went off track, but it wasn’t completely irrelevant, so it was okay to listen to it.

But we should stop around here.

“Then the next question is about Colt Rahen’s weaknesses. And an explanation of the circumstances of the sealing and subjugation. Finally, we should ask about his characteristics.”
“That’s it.”

Ari said, and we asked that again.

“Vampires… show vulnerability to the power bestowed by beings called gods… divine power… Colt Rahen is the same… and he weakens during the day, when the light emitted by the sun, blessed by the Sun God, is at its strongest…”

Almost breathless voice.

I write that down.

“Vampires… all know how to use blood magic… using the blood they have absorbed… Vampire Lords are the most powerful beings among those vampires. A race that uses the blood they absorb to create more blood…”

Blood magic, huh.

“Therefore… sending weak soldiers ahead… will only increase his power… To kill a Vampire Lord… you have no choice but to use an elite force… where each individual is powerful… When Colt Rahen was sealed… it was possible because… many elite paladins… were dispatched…”

A race that uses the blood they absorb to create blood.

Then, as that guy said, quantity over quality won’t work.

We have no choice but to throw in only elites.

“Destroying the heart… can neutralize him… but Colt Rahen eventually revived… Because he is a being who has never died… nothing is known about how to completely destroy him.”
“Fuck.”

What a fucking bastard.

So, even though he’s been beaten to a pulp and sealed before, he’s never actually died, so even if we beat him to a pulp, we don’t know if he’ll die or not.

If the humans of that time could only seal him, well… but hundreds of years have passed, so it seems like we might be able to kill him.

This was a really strong bastard.

“Any other valid weaknesses?”
“There’s no way a Vampire Lord… would have any valid weaknesses…”
“That’s true, too.”

There’s no way such a strong being would have any interesting weaknesses.

Being neutralized when his heart is destroyed, weakening during the day. And being vulnerable to divine power is just a simple characteristic.

It’s the same reason why humans are weak to fire, die when their hearts are destroyed, and can’t see well at night, damn it.

Anyway, we asked about the sealing.

“The sealing… was so powerful that multiple gods worked together… Unless something special happens, it will last for hundreds of years…”

Sealing by the gods.

“As recorded in this Oracle… the sealing completely cuts off the person’s nutrient supply… prevents them from moving… and constantly consumes their power… so it was very effective for immortal beings…”

So, the sealing is perfect.

Unless something special happens, it will remain sealed.

Is there no need to bother taking him out and killing him? But hundreds of years have already passed. So, like other things, the sealing may have naturally been released. And it’s also true that we need to take this guy’s words with a grain of salt.

Even if we find him, we need to check his sealed state and decide on our next course of action.

“Risha. Can you still do a little more?”

Risha nodded at my question.

“Then let’s stop here for a moment. If we stop now, can we just use it next time?”
“Of course. It’s better to use it leisurely than to use it to its limit and stop it.”
“That’s right.”

With that, we finished the primary information gathering.

“Well, the vampire lore itself is the same.”

Karin said.

“They use blood magic. Destroying the heart can neutralize them. They weaken during the day… There would have been more lore circulating among the people. Is this all that’s valid? It’s probably true that they don’t have any particular weaknesses.”

We immediately analyzed what we knew about him.

“It’s said to be a perfect being that the gods sealed together, but dungeons are being discovered all over the world these days. There are many cases where ancient monsters come out of them. So, we can’t trust it. There’s also Lich Gunn.”
“Yeah. Sister is right. We have to go and check.”

It became clear that we shouldn’t bring an army. So, we decided to exclude that, and what’s left is whether to tell the church or not… Honestly, I don’t think they’ll be of much use.

They’re said to be vulnerable to divine power, but I already know the difference between their combat power and mine. There’s no way I can bring them in when I’m going with the Oracle.

There’s also Hilde and Ari.

“Then let’s start preparing to leave. Ah, but Risha. Can this only be activated with equipment?”
“That’s the case for now, but there’s no particular problem. It’ll be quick to process it… but it’ll take some time if we prepare it.”

I thought so.

“Then let’s go to Krasheim when that’s done.”

We just need to find out about blood magic and proceed. And before we go, let’s put all the luggage and stuff in the basement of the house, lock the door, and seal it.

* * *

A few days later, we left Isvant, which we had grown fond of, and set off for Krasheim.