“No, I’m telling you. You can really trust me. I don’t know about anything else, but when it comes to drinkable water, I can definitely provide you with it.”’

“Fine. However, do it where I can’t see you.”

“Yes.”

In the end, Eugene took along the water spirit named Mirian. Although the process of producing water was rather disgusting, it was an amazing ability to create drinkable water anywhere, anytime. However, that wasn’t the only reason Eugene decided to bring Mirian.

“Are you sure that you’re invisible to other people?”

“Of course, none of the people eaten by that crocodile bastard ever saw me or heard my voice. At first, I tried warning them about the crocodile. Told them that a monster lived here. But since they couldn’t see me nor hear my voice, all of them ended up as food.”

It appeared spirits were invisible to the human eye, or at least, none of the humans who visited the wetlands had ever seen or heard Mirian.

‘A small, flying spirit. Above all, no one can see her except me. She will be useful in many ways.’

That was the most important reason Eugene chose to bring Mirian alone. And for the same reason, Mirina abandoned the wetland and decided to stick with Eugene.

“Phew! You don’t know how much I’ve been through all these years. The only thing that could see me was that damned monster bastard. You can imagine how lonely and bored I was, right sir?”

“A little.”

He was being truthful. Since living in hiding at the foot of the mountain, Eugene rarely came into contact with others. He couldn’t count the days he spent without speaking a single word, and loneliness was the only friend to accompany Eugene for life.

“Oh, sir, I guess that must be your home, right?”

“That’s right. But why don’t you stop calling me sir?”

“Then what should I… Should I call you Mister Eugene?”

“Just call me by my name. You and I aren’t humans anyways.”

“Ah, then while we’re at it, should I just drop the honorifics completely…?”

“Do as you please.”

“Hehe! Then let’s do that!”

She really did adapt quickly. After discovering that Eugene was not as hard-boiled as she initially thought, Mirian flew circles around him rather excitedly.

“It’s distracting. Stay still.”

“Yes sir! I mean, yeah!”

Mirian calmly landed on Eugene’s shoulder. After thoroughly observing the cabin to confirm that there had been no intruders in his absence, Eugene opened the door and entered.

“Oh! The house is nice.”

Mirian buzzed from place to place. Eugene wondered why she was so interested in a house with simple furniture that he built, but he quickly realized why. Just as he had never left the cabin, Mirian must have never left the wetland. Even if she wanted to sign a contract with someone, it would have been futile if they couldn’t hear or see her. As such, the low-ranking spirit Mirian chose Eugene as her partner, even though spirits could only ever enter into a single contract during their lifetime.

“Phew. Release.”

Eugene laid down his bag and murmured. The black skin covering his upper body disappeared into the skin without a trace. 

“Wow, it’s amazing no matter how many times I see it. Is that what makes it possible for you to go around during the day?”

“That’s right. But it’s not like I can go around naked. I need some clothes as well.”

Eugene confirmed his theory after sunrise. The wetland monster’s skin was able to completely block the sunlight. In addition, it was possible to will it on specific parts of the body. Relative to when Eugene wore black clothes and a robe, his physical ability improved twofold when he summoned the black armor. However, his eyes could not be covered by the monster’s shell. He covered the weak spot by using a long-brimmed hat or a helmet. 

“So what are you going to do now?”

“For now… I need to see someone.”

Eugene planned to head to the town of Broadwin after sunset. It was the closest town to his cabin, and it was only a few days before an incident would occur in Broadwin – something he thought had nothing to do with himself.

But he had no reason to sit on the sidelines just like then.

*** 

“Kiyaah!”

The chief of Broadwin was leisurely enjoying a mug of beer after a meal.

“F-father!”

“What is it? What did you do this time?”

The 12-year-old shouted while rushing into the house, and the chief responded with a frown.

“B-boar! There is a boar outside! The red-eyed monster must have been here!”

“What?”

The chief jumped up from his seat and ran out of the house with his eldest son. In front of the door surrounded by a low stone wall, a small boar lay dead.

“Wow! It’s a pig!”

“Mom! It’s a boar!”

“Boys! Be quiet! Take it in with you!”

The children shouted excitedly, and the chief responded with a shout. After the kids took away the pig with joy and excitement, the chief tilted his head in puzzlement.

“It shouldn’t be time yet…”

There was a red-eyed monster who lived at a hut located at the foot of a mountain far away from the town of Broadwin. When the monster first appeared around ten years ago, everyone was afraid. But the monster rarely even approached the village, let alone harm anyone, and he even presented them with one or two hunted animals every couple of months, as if paying taxes. No one cared about him any longer.

For more than a decade, the red-eyed monster and the townspeople of Broadwin maintained a strange relationship and mostly kept to themselves.

However, the monster had brought a boar after sending a deer just 15 days ago.

“Did the hunt go well? This is strange.”

Just as he was about to turn around, the chief froze in his spot when he saw a pair of red eyes shining over the fence. He had never seen the monster since that day more than a decade ago, but he immediately recognized the monster to have gotten bigger compared to then.

The monster gestured towards the chief in the darkness – as if calling him forward.

“W-what should I do?’

The chief felt chills run down his back. He wanted nothing more than to immediately run into the house, but the monster had never once acted against them. Moreover, the monster shared his game for more than 10 years.

Giving them a boar in just fifteen days was different than usual.

‘Does he have something to tell me?’

The chief was a clerk of a large business association in his youth. After being caught for embezzlement, he ran away and settled down in the town of Broadwin. As such, he was quick-witted and smart.

He slowly walked to the stone wall with a loud gulp.

“I-It’s been a long time. D-do you have anything you want to say?”

“May I come in for a moment?”

Eugene, the red-eyed monster, asked. Vampires could only enter an establishment after being invited by the owner.

“Well… C-come in for a second.”

With the chief’s permission, Eugene took a step into the insides of the stone perimeter.

“I’m actually here to show you that I’ve been cured.”

Eugene took off his mask after speaking.

“…..!”

The chief became wide-eyed when Eugene’s face was revealed in the pale moonlight. It was because the face of the monster was much more normal than he thought, or even more beautiful than anyone he had ever seen.

“I let no one approach my house until now because of a disease I was inflicted with after being poisoned. It could have spread. But I wanted to let you know that I’ve been completely cured.”

“I, is that so?”

The chief instinctively took on a polite tone.

“But I won’t be coming down to the town for a while anyway, since that will be more convenient for both of us. But if anything happens to the village or you need my help, you can call me anytime.”

“Ah, yes! I will surely do so!”

“Then I will get going.”

Eugene slipped on his mask before walking away. The chief stared blankly at Eugene’s back as the vampire seeped away into the darkness. After a while, he came to his senses and muttered in a low voice.

“It can’t be... A half-elf? Or maybe he was a descendant of an aristocrat? His face was…”

The chief had seen a few elves during his time as a clerk, but he was convinced that the monster was much more mysterious and beautiful than even an elf.

*** 

“So you’re going to be hanging out with the people of that town now?”

Mirian chattered while flapping in the air. She was convinced that it had been a good choice to stick with Eugene.

“No.”

“Huh? Then why did you say such words?”

“I have my reasons. Don’t worry too much about that town. We will be out of here in a few days anyway.”

“Really? That’s even better! I’m so excited!”

Mirian bounced with joy. Her goal was to see the world outside of the wetland.

‘I became acquainted with the chief. Next is…’

A group of mercenaries would visit the town of Broadwin in a few days. Their purpose was to take a boy who lived in the town to the castle of Lord Tywin, the lord of the region. He never imagined the incident would have anything to do with himself in the past. In fact, he had not even known about the incident at the time.

‘The day the mercenaries come, all of the villagers will die. But since I met with the chief today, he should call me this time around. If so…’

Eugene’s eyes sank coldly as he sprinted back to the cabin.

***

Three days passed.

In the meantime, Eugene did many things.

During the day, he either rested or practiced invoking Black Scales, the ability he gained from the wetland monster, more quickly and skillfully. At night, he wandered the area around Broadwin and focused on memorizing the terrain and the roads. He also hunted every night in preparation for leaving town.

During his time running, Eugene learned that the leather of beasts traded at a fairly high price, though not as much as those of intermediate monsters. Since Eugene had no money, he would need to trade in animal skins to gain capital to live in the world.

He consumed only a small portion of the animals he caught.

He wasn’t very hungry, perhaps because he devoured a huge amount of blood from the wetland monster. More importantly, the blood of animals did not taste very good anymore. He couldn’t understand how he had sustained himself by drinking such a thing in the past.

Eugene caught two black wolves and four deer in three days, then brought the meat to the chief’s house after skinning the animals. All the while, he hoped the chief’s interest in him would grow.

Three days later, at noon, Eugene left his cabin in advance and headed to the only road connecting Broadwin to the outside world. It was a quiet place with dozens of leafy trees.

***

‘It’s them.’

The sun had almost disappeared beyond the horizon. Eugene spotted a group of people appearing on a low hill from the top of a tree.

‘Eight.’

It was a typical group of mercenaries. As expected of low-class mercenaries, they were equipped with feeble armor. Only three of them were wearing leather armor, and the rest wore armor made of several layers of cloth.

The three equipped in leather were armed with weapons such as short swords and maces, as well as circular shields, but the rest of them only carried wooden sticks and daggers.

‘I will take care of the ones with short swords and shields.’

He learned during his past life that the equipment of the mercenaries was usually proportionate to their skills. Eugene would take care of the three most threatening mercenaries first, then deal with the rest of them.

The mercenaries climbed down the curved hill and neared him. Only the sound of the occasional wind sweeping branches and leaves could be heard in the silence. The irregular sounds of the mercenaries soon added to the mix, and after a while, the three mercenaries were about to pass under the tree where Eugene hid.

Eugene pounced silently like a sleek beast. He stabbed with the dagger in his right hand and clawed with the long, sharp nails on his left hand.

Whooosh!

“Keugh!”

“Argh!”

The two mercenaries stumbled. One had been stabbed in the unprotected area of the neck, and the other’s face had been torn apart by Eugene’s nails.

‘Now six.’

The vampire hunted two mercenaries in an instant, then turned his red eyes to the rest of the group.