Love Letter From The Future

Ian stumbled back, gasping for breath.

Finally, it’s over.

The vampire’s body had vanished without a trace. Yet the reason Ian couldn’t smile was the lingering echoes of the rampage that squeezed his head.

Memories flooded in.

Scenes of the man from the future fighting while the original personality was asleep played endlessly, as if urging him to engrave this battle in his heart.

Just now…

It seemed he had used some technique he didn’t remember…

However, Ian’s internal struggle did not last long.

He spotted a girl running over the distance, her footsteps bright and light.

“Master!”

It was a longed-for title.

How long had it been since he heard that voice? Ian smiled wryly and embraced his ecstatic fiancée who was jumping with joy.

The soft weight and warm body temperature.

As if she were born to fit there, Elsi’s petite figure was perfectly suited to Ian’s embrace.

“…Senior Elsi.”

“Did I, huh? Did I help?!”

Drenched in the heat of victory, Elsi was half out of her mind. As if she wanted to compensate for not being able to help for a while, she rubbed her head against Ian’s chest without restraint.

“Yeah, yeah?!”

“Yes, yes… you helped, of course. So let’s think about how to get out of this barrier.”

While Ian’s hand gently stroked Elsi’s head.

Apparently pleased by the praise, Elsi bared her teeth in a broad smile.

“…When we get out, we’ll get engaged, right?”

Though the intent was not as pure as it sounded,

Ian, having anticipated this, replied without showing signs of embarrassment.

“Yes, of course… but first we need to escape this place.”

“Don’t worry about that.”

As if she had already expected this, Elsi wore a smug expression.

“To maintain the barrier, a core is necessary. This barrier is a bit special, as there seems to be a separate core for the outside and inside… but fundamentally, the internal core is taken care of by the caster. Now that the caster is dead, the barrier will naturally collapse, right?”

“When will that be?”

“Well, the moment the caster dies…”

The conversation that had been flowing smoothly came to a halt.

Elsi, trailing off, narrowed her brow and looked around. But no matter how long she waited, there were no signs of the barrier collapsing.

There was only one implication.

With a solid kick, Ian struck Elsi’s body.

As Elsi flew through the air, not even managing a scream, a fountain of blood erupted from Ian’s leg.

“Ugh…!”

His blood roared painfully, drawing a murderous gaze behind him.

For just a moment.

Once again, a fountain of blood sprayed out. This time, it gushed from Ian’s entire body.

He collapsed, coughing up a mouthful of blood. The blood vessels in his neck and face bulged to their limits, twitching.

In a heartbeat.

There was no time to resist. No, resistance itself was impossible.

The blood throughout his body ran wild. It was a miracle that something managed to protect his heart and brain.

Yet, the truly terrifying thing was something else.

It was the fact that this was not a phenomenon the enemy had intended.

The heart and the blood beat together like a drum. It was the fervent cheer of the fervent crowd celebrating the rise of a new leader.

Thunk, an intangible pressure slammed Ian’s head into the ground.

His innards groaned. Ultimately, he couldn’t withstand the pain of his whole body being crushed.

“Ughh, ughhh…!”

His bloodshot eyes turned toward the source of the pressure. Such an overwhelming presence, a strength that could seize the power of life and death in the area with a single step.

He had felt it once before.

In the capital of the Holy Kingdom, Siendel, in the courtroom located on that towering mountain.

Thud, thud.

The sound of capillaries bursting under excessive blood flow tickled his ears.

Using it like a string instrument, a woman, lacking even a thread, gracefully descended from the sky.

“…It’s been a long time.”

Her voice was flat.

Neither admiration nor scorn, as if the world was proceeding as it should.

The legendary mage gazed deeply with her profound blue eyes at the man.

“Do you feel freed from your long confines, Ian Fercurus?”

“If you release… I think I’ll understand…!”

“I’m sorry, child. I haven’t even begun properly yet.”

Such an overwhelming presence, this vast gap in power.

Ian instantly realized what was happening.

The vampire had summoned her true form.

The flesh of the sin that once stained the entire world with blood.

As she stepped lightly, Ian’s head was slammed back into the ground once more.

Smack!

“This wasn’t according to plan. Originally, I wanted to take my revenge more leisurely and surely…”

The vampire clicked her tongue, her face darkening.

Yet she didn’t stop walking. The closer the woman got, the more pressure was applied to Ian’s body.

The intensity of the blood raging within him.

It was commendable that he could refrain from screaming until the end.

“My plans have gone awry too much. I lost my precious little sister, and I had intended to make that thief mock me for a while longer…”

“Thief…?”

“Yes, the one you call ‘the great witch’… hm.”

The vampire, who had almost started retelling old stories, sneered.

What did it matter now?

Revenge had been accomplished. Though it was more empty than expected, what mattered was the fact that the vampire had triumphed.

The great witch was dead. The vampire lived on.

There could be no clearer hierarchy.

The vampire, now near Ian, gradually lowered her stance.

To match her gaze with his.

“You are being deceived. Like everyone in the distant past… Most of what that woman achieved was merely the result of taking my own.”

“…Hmph.”

A faint sneer.

The vampire did not particularly refute the sound of that laughter. Just, with a hint of annoyance, she subtly flicked her finger.

Smack!

The sound of a fountain of blood gushing from the nape of his neck.

“Does it hurt? How does it feel to have lost control of all your blood? This is the power I possess… I dominate all blood and life in the area, of course, including the magical power contained within.”

No response came. It seemed the vampire hadn’t thrown those words expecting an answer.

“To obtain this power, I had to sacrifice much. My treasured family and people, all of them… How about it, child? Don’t you want to make a contract with me and wield this power?”

Despite the subtle allure, the man showed no particular interest. He simply voiced another question.

“…Why do you desire power so much?”

“Because I wanted to reclaim it.”

A dark and tenacious confession.

In an instant, the sight of an unfathomable marsh could be seen.

The density of the emotions contained within was beyond imagination. Nevertheless, the man chuckled.

“What do you want to reclaim?”

“Everything!”

“And so, what?”

The vampire’s brow narrowed slowly. It seemed she struggled to understand the meaning behind the repetitive questions.

With blood boiling, dripping down his face, the man asked again.

“What have you reclaimed now?”

Silence.

The woman seemed to want to say something, but her lips wouldn’t part. Instead, a chilling proposal followed.

“…Shut up and answer. So, will you join us?”

Now it was the man’s turn to remain silent.

The vampire curled her lips in a twisted smile at his obstinate demeanor.

“Don’t you understand yet? There’s no one here to protect you. Only those you have to protect remain… that little miss, the person dear to you…!”

“Why isn’t there anyone?”

At that retort, the vampire let out a hollow laugh.

He truly was a stubborn man.

Hadn’t he seen it with his own eyes? His body pierced by the crimson lance, and then the scene where he confirmed the death with a crimson wave.

Only a Master could confront a Master.

With the ‘great witch’ dead, the match was over. There was no reason for the vampire to summon her true form here.

No one here could possibly keep her in check!

To reinforce that cruel reality, the vampire let out a derisive laugh and extended her finger.

Toward where the great witch’s corpse should lie.

“Hehehe, good. You’re going to stick with that stance until the end, huh? Then watch well, the fate of that miserable loser…!”

As she turned her gaze away, the vampire froze.

What struck her white mind was the man’s mocking voice.

“Watch closely? Where?”

“So, over there… clearly…!”

The vampire stumbled as she spoke, slowly rising.

It wasn’t there.

It was nowhere to be found.

The enemy, who should have been broken and rolling on the ground, was nowhere to be seen.

The woman’s startled eyes darted purposelessly. She scanned all around, searching for the scene she desired, but it was nowhere to be found.

Ultimately, her gaze turned upward.

There, the once-clear night sky was now visible.

It was not a fake created by the barrier. The dimly glowing stars moved in a highly calculated orbit, a masterpiece of a creator that no mere creature could ever imitate.

How could this be?

The woman’s questioning didn’t last long.

“Flow and cycle.”

In the still land, a soft voice settled down.

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