Vol. 1: Chapter 08 – Van Helsing

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Translated and edited by Tianic

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[dropcap]W[/dropcap]e were able to sit down and rest our exhausted bodies. In the viceroy’s dining room, several kids were devouring food like young wolves.

“Does boss eat stuff like this every day?” Jack asked, “His dinner tastes just like mine.”

“Well, what do you expect, dragon meat?” I said promptly, “This is my birthday dinner after all.”

“Alright, Jack,” Moya said with a mouthful of food, “Eat more and prosper.”

Then we stopped talking and focused on the food.

“Dear, look at them.” My mother said with a smile on her face, “They’re such innocent kids.”

“Indeed, what a bunch of joyful faces.” Father nodded, “Today is Cohen’s birthday, where are Cohen’s presents, sweetie?”

“Way ahead of you,” My mother had a small box banded in red ribbons, “Here you go, Cohen.”

“Thank you! Mother.” I quickly opened it, “Wow! It’s a piece of cloth!”

“That’s not cloth.” Mother laughed, “That is a soft armor.”

“Really? It feels incredibly light!” I put the armor on my knees, “And it’s very big!”

“Cohen’s still tiny,” Father said, “Considering your growing speed, you’ll be able to wear it by 16.”

“Does it have a name? It’s so light and so black.”

“Yeah, uncle Visual, it looks like a piece of cloth! Are you sure it can defend?” Carey asked.

“Don’t underestimate it. It’s especially useful in defending magical attack!”

“Oh really? Let me try.” Carey pointed her fingers at me excitedly, but nothing came out.

“Don’t you forget, sister?” Flynn said, “Your mana was already depleted from today’s lessons.”

“Right… next time.” Carey sat down, much annoyed.

“Cohen! This is from Swift and me!” My big brother handed me a box.

“Thank you, brothers!” I opened the box, “What is it? Looks like an egg?”

“Yes, you are right! Swift boomed, “This is a eudemon’s egg, Aunty Bellatrix gave us when we were in DC.”

“Really?” I looked at the egg in the box. The shell was crystal clear,  “But how to cook it? Boil?”

“Gosh…” Swift suffered, “That is not for eating!”

“Hahahaha, my Cohen is exceptionally good at eating!” My mother said, “Your Auntie Bellatrix worked hard to get it, and it’s going to hatch, into a eudemon!”

“What… impressive! Eudemon! What is it? Moya asked.

“Well, a eudemon is a creature that will grow and develop in accordance with its master’s abilities.” My father was delighted, and he answered, “What is more, the hatching time is extensive, and in order to hatch, the egg needs its possessor’s power.

“But Cohen has none!” Carey stood up, again.

“What I said about power,” Father looked at me, “it comes from one’s soul, the power of good and evil.”

He nodded, eyed me, and continued, “It’s the greatest power that lies within everybody. Your auntie and I had to ask His Majesty’s consent to give you this egg. Looks like an ordinary egg as it is, Cohen might end up with a very powerful eudemon.

“Really? Then Cohen will have a powerful sidekick!” Flynn said joyfully, “Will it listen to Cohen?”

“It will. The eudemon and its master are connected telepathically.” My mother said.

“Thank you, brothers!” I said, “But father, aren’t you giving me any presents?”

“Looks like I can’t run away from that.” Father expressed great patience, “We had all the food I prepared for your birthday carried outside the city, numerous kids need them. You wouldn’t blame your father, would you?”

“Not at all!”

“Really? Well, how about this. Cohen, you can ask me for a present now, anything!”

“Ok…” I went over my head, “I want to go to the Divine City with you!”

“You want to go ?” Father pondered, “Ok, no problem. Either way, I need to address refugees to His Majesty. I’ll take you with me!”

“Hooray! I’m going to DC!” I can’t describe how happy I was.

“Boss, get us some souvenirs.”

“Yes, boss, it’s better to be clothes, see! We donated our new suits to those kids.

“Wilder, you look awesome in that one with holes on it. It’s cool!”

“Carey, milady! That one was on you!!!”

“Kids, quiet. Your auntie Katherine will bring clothes for you!”

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It was my very first time to ride a horse! My father had handpicked a white pony for me. It had milky fur so I named it Cloud. It was so clever! He will not wander about, and it followed my dad’s ride all the time. That way I can talk with him without any trouble.

“Father! Look at those wildflowers!”

“Of course, this is the grassland bordering the Dark Forest!”

“Is that the forest where the alien people live?”

“Yes, it is.”

“Is it really dark there? No sunshine?”

“Well, no. Like our own city, there’s light. But most of the people who live there are not human beings. Basically, their ways of life are very different from ours. Thus everyone thinks it’s a mysterious place, then came its name. Plus people think the alien races are dangerous, and they could be tough toward outsiders, which made us humans uneasy to access their territory. This is how it was named.”

“I see, then what kinds of people are there?”

“A great many, there are orcs, vampires, wingmen, and elves!”

“Sounds fun! Father, don’t stop. Tell me more!”

“Sure, if Cohen wishes.”

From a distance, a horseman approached. The rapid clopping sounds disrupted our conversation. That rider roared and stopped beside us.

“My Lord! We found a group of hunters in the front!” The leading horseman was the leader of my father’s guarding squadron. Uncle Maiza.

“Hunters? What’s their business here?” Father scowled.

“I saw them carrying a couple of iron cages.” Maiza sweated, “And I think there was something in the cages.”

“Damn it!” Father turned angry, he summoned his guards, “They again! Get them! Stop the fleet, we camp here today.”

“Yes, My Lord!” Maiza said aloud to his followers, “You there, with me!”

Thirty horses rushed away following Maiza, causing gusts of dust floating in the air.

“Father, why do you need to get them?”

“Cohen, I want you to remember. Those are bad people in this world. They are here to capture kids, kids of people I told you about earlier.

“Although, why do they want kids?”

“To sell!” Father said sorely, “They are going to sell the kids to other countries as slaves!”

“What is a slave?”

“Slaves are… slaves are people without freedom, without protection, without enough food. They could be bullied, teased, or oppressed by anyone anytime.

“That… sounds terrifying, but how come I’ve never seen any slaves?”

“Cohen, lucky for you, we don’t have any slaves in Swabia, and that was one of the reasons I am here to rule a province.”

“OK, I see!”

By the time my father’s men had finished camping, I saw uncle Maiza came back escorting several people, along with several cages.

Eudemon is a species with great power. They can be divided into higher or lower classes. Eudemons are rare. They feed on the mental powers of their possessors. Eudemons are usually possessed by the royal families. People other than the royal family will have to ask for the ruler’s permission to have one.