The Company Commander has returned

Chapter 36 - Sea of Red

"We're gonna need help?"

Another soldier asked.

"It would be faster to see than hear,"

I pulled out a firework.

I lit the fuse with a match.

After sticking it into the ground,

I stepped back to the left.

"Over here."

I hid the soldiers behind me.

Moments later, the firework exploded,

and when the light soared high,

a flash of lightning struck with thunder.

Where the firework had been, only a dark scorch mark remained.

As expected, Madam Anne quickly took the shot.

Of the seven shots, I saw at least four.

Her arrows had a maximum of three shots left.

"Wh-what the...?"

"Madam Anne's magic tool...!"

"How is he controlling her like that?"

I pointed at my senior once more.

"It's not me, it's the fireworks of this woman. I just took them. Their plan is to use the spot where the firework explodes to strike with lightning. That's what was agreed upon."

I drew my sword.

I stabbed the tip of the scabbard into the ground.

My senior looked down at the cross-shaped sword and lowered her head.

"You said earlier, Madam Anne stopped operating the entertainment district to catch me."

She didn't answer.

"The firework is not only the sniping point but also the meeting place for the late vampires."

I bent my knees and lifted my senior.

"You can't die yet."

I offered her my arm.

"You still have use."

"It won't go as you wish...You will also die, Mago..."

"Then, are you planning to die here? You can do as you please."

"Ugh..."

She bit down on my forearm, drawing blood.

As soon as the blood was consumed,

her pale complexion returned and her half-dismembered waist healed.

"The vampires made me their target, but Madam Anne herself doesn't move. She can snipe from anywhere if she knows the position, but it would be faster for her to move herself. What is she plotting?"

"I don't know."

She shook her head.

"If you don't know, there is no reason to spare you."

I casually said.

"What...?"

She widened her eyes.

"Does that mean you won't spare me... you plan to kill me?"

"Of course. I'm just not doing it right now."

"Mago... you...?"

"I'm not some anaconda tavern worker. I'm an imperial soldier. We've decided to treat you as an enemy. What, did you think this was a game of tag?"

"Wait... are you really going to kill me...?"

I looked down at her waist, which was almost fully healed.

Having lived in that body this long,

she probably never imagined a human could take her life.

"Of course, you won't enjoy it either."

"Mago, wait, I told you to wait!"

"How many people have you killed like that? After foreseeing their death and imprisoning them like slaves. How many times is this now?"

"I don't know! I only did what Madam told me!"

I ignored her words and stood up.

"We'll go alone."

Two soldiers saluted.

They were the two who had stopped me at the checkpoint earlier.

"We would like to help, but we can't leave the checkpoint unattended."

"Two is enough."

After a moment, one of the soldiers brought a rope.

With it, they bound my senior.

I slipped my sword between her body and the rope.

She froze instantly, and, as expected, it worked wonderfully.

They placed her on the horse.

"Then, let's go."

"Yes."

Both soldiers mounted their horses.

"Where are we going?"

"To the winery."

"The winery...?"

"I've been there before, so I know the way. It was on my way back from there last time, remember?"

"Oh, you were hauling wine in a carriage..."

"We need to finish quickly. Madam Anne is striking lightning where the firework exploded, but something about it seems off. I don't know what she's plotting out of sight."

"Yes, we'll do our best."

I held the reins with my left hand,

while my right hand, which was still being drained of blood by my senior, was loosened and dropped.

The blood dripped, leaving a trail on the ground.

The following vampires would surely be lured by the scent.

They would come sniffing, like hunting dogs.

***

The chef at the Anaconda Tavern revealed his red eyes.

He kneeled and surveyed the ground.

"Madam Anne's lightning, twice. Once over there."

He pointed to the scorched mark.

It was the trace from when Mago called Madam Anne's lightning.

"I couldn't find any other trace. One of the two lightning strikes must have hit..."

He glanced around.

There was no sign of anyone.

The chef intended to collect Mago's body and leave.

However, Mago was gone, and even the head server had disappeared.

All that remained on the floor was a blackened burn mark and bloodstains.

He slowly lifted his head.

A trail of blood drops led the way.

"Vampire blood and human blood. For some reason, both are here."

He wrinkled his nose.

The chef raised his right arm.

"Let's go after them."

The vampires of the entertainment district spread their wings and took flight.

***

"Vampires, for real...?"

The imperial soldiers watching from inside the checkpoint were the first to speak up.

"There's at least thirty of them..."

"I heard a vampire's strength is four times that of a human."

"No, I heard five times..."

"How do you plan to deal with thirty vampires with just three people? Even if he can summon Madam Anne's lightning..."

"Maybe we should have left him alone..."

"What? What are you saying?"

"Better one die than three..."

***

"You're renting my winery?"

The owner asked as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Yes, and the wines in the basement as well."

"Oh, no. The Imperial army using my winery? It's bound to get destroyed!"

The owner raised his voice in anger.

"Well... I can't promise the structure will remain intact."

"See, I told you...!"

"I will compensate you once it's over. I promise."

I bowed my head in request.

"How can I trust you...?"

"This winery is under an exclusive contract with Madam Anne, isn't it?"

"That's true... Ah, wait! You're the coachman, aren't you?"

The owner finally recognized my face and pointed a finger at me.

I grabbed his finger and pushed it away, replying,

"Now you recognize me. White hair isn't that common, but I guess I should thank you for not having prejudices..."

"Weren't you driving the carriage for Madam Ann?"

The owner eyed my military uniform suspiciously.

"That's right, but as you can see, I'm in the Imperial army now. Back then, I had to pose as a coachman for certain reasons."

"Why would the Imperial army be involved with Madam Ann...?"

"To put it bluntly, I'm going to destroy her entire influence, including the Anaconda and her entertainment district."

"Wh-what...?"

The owner's voice rose sharply.

"I will compensate you with Madam Anne's assets. How about that?"

"Madam Anne's assets...? This is nonsense!"

"Not necessarily."

"Just recently, a man who stole Madam Ann's money fled. They say he was struck by divine punishment and died in the blink of an eye!"

"If Madam Anne dies, that won't matter."

"Ha...! You're going to kill her?"

"I came here for that reason."

"There's no one who can kill Madam Anne..."

"You have a lot of trust in Madam Anne."

"Without trust, I wouldn't have done business with her. Wouldn't you agree?"

"I'm not concerned with that. I understand you'll cooperate."

"Wait, hold on..."

"The Empire must have regulated the amount of alcohol supplied to the entertainment district, right? Didn't you know that?"

"What?"

"You knew and still supplied wine. Must I bring that up? Let's end this peacefully."

"No, but..."

The owner immediately backed down.

"Thank you for your cooperation."

"Hey, what exactly do you intend to do with the winery and the wine? What's your plan...?"

I was about to answer when the Imperial soldier who had come with me spoke up.

"We've already taken it!"

He was holding a battle axe in both hands.

Another soldier was in the same stance.

"Ah, no way..."

The owner, sensing something, shook his head.

"Ah, thank you. Now, we can start breaking things."

I took an axe and spoke.

***

"No, don't...!"

"Mago!"

My senior struggled.

The cross-shaped sword made her strength no match for a child's.

I dragged her down into the basement where the wine was stored.

The basement, where the floor was about to collapse.

"Let go of me!"

"You still haven't answered. How many have you killed?"

"Ugh..."

She struggled, refusing to answer.

"The war has been going on for nine months. When humans were trying to become vampires by drinking blood from the Anaconda, it must have been around the same time. Should I just calculate it simply?"

I dragged her to the corner as I spoke.

"There were five mutts trapped in the warehouse. Even if the warehouse was emptied once a month, that's about forty-five."

"That's all?"

"Yeah?"

"During the war, that's a number that could easily be killed."

"Sure, what's the point of saying more?"

"Compared to the number of people who died every time the Imperial army retreated... it's nothing! Do you understand?"

"Think whatever you want."

"You don't have anything to say...!"

"How many of your kind have died? How many vampires died in the last nine months? Not one, right? You had the power to fight the Demon King's army, but instead, you were busy killing humans in the shadows and filling your bellies."

"Ha, just because you have power, does that mean you have to fight?"

"No, but there's no reason to kill humans. You could survive just fine on monster or animal blood."

"That stuff's disgusting."

"That's a reasonable excuse."

"You don't know anything... what do humans know...?"

"You don't have anything to say, do you?"

I grabbed the axe tightly.

There were oak barrels filled with wine lined up on both sides of the basement.

They were stacked to the point where the end wasn't visible.

I struck the closest oak barrel with the axe.

The wounded oak barrel spat out red wine like blood.

The wine seeped onto the floor beneath my feet.

The more barrels I broke, the higher the wine level rose.

From my feet to my ankles.

From my ankles to my knees.

From my knees to my waist.

After raising the level to a point where it was hard to move, I made my way back up to the surface.

"I'm finished..."

The winery owner kneeled, his face filled with despair.

On the first floor of the winery,

blue moonlight was pouring in.

I looked up,

and saw the moon clearly shining.

Two soldiers were up on the roof, breaking it open.

They were hacking away with axes relentlessly.

This should be enough.

"You can stop now!"

"Yes?"

"Please come down!"

"Ah, yes! Understood."

They tried to climb down the ladder, but finding it troublesome, they jumped down roughly.

When one of them stepped onto the first floor,

the floor caved in.

"Ugh..."

There was a short scream as he fell.

A splash of water echoed.

"Hmm?"

I headed toward the hole where he had fallen through.

Looking down,

he was staring up at me, submerged in wine.

"The floor's cracked. It'll break if you give it a shock."

"I thought so..."

"I noticed that the last time I was here. I fell through myself then."

"Yeah... I'll hurry up and get back."

"Okay, it's about time, so let's go."

"Yes..."

He swam up to the stairs connecting the first floor and the basement.

From there, he used his legs to climb the stairs.

"Please wait from a distance now."

"Yes... are you sure you're okay alone?"

"No problem."

They nodded and left the winery.

Meanwhile, I waited inside on the first floor, at the very back, for the vampires.

After a short while, they arrived.

I quickly counted and found there were exactly thirty of them.