How to Live As the Vampire Lord

Master Rivoles still had his back to the high lords. A gust of wind caused some of his neatly combed hair to fly to the side, but he remained carelessly standing there like a statue. It was an unbelievable sight considering his nature to pursue neatness and organization at all times.

‘I can’t believe the master is acting like this…’

Verna could see that Master Rivoles was wholly focused on Mehen’s mansion.

“Which clans have families in this city?” he asked in a calm voice while finally putting his hair behind his ears.

Verna quickly came to her senses and responded, “Yes, Master. There are families of Helmond, Samit, and Todor.”

“Did they call for their clan masters?” Master Rivoles asked.

Verna answered, “I’m not entirely sure, but it’s quite possible if the lords of their families have made the same judgment as Mehen. Perhaps… The masters of the other clan…”

“It’s not Helmond. Samit… I don’t think so. Not that brat of Todor either,” Master Rivoles said.

“…!!!” The eyes of Verna and the other high lords widened with astonishment. Wasn’t their master saying that there was a figure possessing power close to a clan master within Mehen’s mansion right now?

“Master, this is—”

“That’s right. It goes against the law of the clans,” Master Rivoles responded. Although they held hands with the empire and lived in harmony with humans and other races, vampires still had their own laws, which were more absolute than the laws of the empire.

- When entering a city or a village occupied by a member of another clan, the consent of the clan’s authoritative figure must be obtained. If a vampire under the lord class wanted to enter a city to settle down, permission from the existing clan’s lord was necessary. If a high lord sought to do the same, they needed permission from a high lord. And if a vampire was in the same class as ‘clan masters,’ they needed to obtain permission from a clan master.

“Well… maybe they’re simply visiting?” Verna said.

Clan masters did not mobilize easily. In particular, prestigious and well-known clan masters refrained from moving around due to the commotion it would cause. However, there were clans that weren’t as cautious—smaller clans or those shrouded in veils. The masters of such clans sometimes liked to hide their identities and enjoyed traveling around. That was what Verna was referring to.

“Then they would not have openly entered the house of Mehen and settled down. And the child named Mehen. Is he crazy enough to let another clan master into his house when he knows I’m coming?” Master Rivoles said.

“…!”

Verna flinched. She had complimented her child with her own mouth just a moment ago.

“They have come here with a purpose…” Master Rivoles muttered before moving once again. The expressions of the high lords following behind him like shadows became gloomy. There was an unidentified member of the Tribe, perhaps a ‘monarch’ at their destination.

***

“…”

Master Rivoles had a calm expression as he stared at the mansion. It was without any guards, and no one was coming out to greet them. The tingling sensation he felt coming from the mansion had died down as he approached the mansion.

‘Someone who has complete control over their Fear. No, perhaps…’

Was the Fear only directed at him? Perhaps they had noticed his presence…

‘No, that’s impossible. There’s no existence who would be capable of such a thing…’

Master Rivoles recalled the faces of certain ‘figures’ who were only known to a few clan masters and very few members of the imperial family. However, they did not leave the imperial castle. In fact, he knew that they had even rejected the crown prince’s request and were living somewhere deep in the imperial castle. If it were them, he would have heard from the crown prince—to avoid if possible wherever their destinations were—to stay silent no matter what they did.

‘If not them, who could it be?’

The Fear only he could detect had disappeared, and the front gates of the mansion were wide open without a single person standing guard. It was as if they were being invited in.

“Master, allow us to go in first and—” Verna said.

Master Rivoles cut her off by raising his hand, then strode forward.

“Your child must have already told the uninvited guest all about me, so there is no need. It appears that they are waiting for me,” Master Rivoles said.

“Yes…” Verna responded while biting her lips. She followed behind her master with the other high lords.

‘I don’t know who they are, but I will not forgive them. They dare…’

Although she was her master’s direct descendant, she barely had the chance to see her father once every few years. It had been quite difficult to bring him to this place, so how dared they flood her with such disgrace and humiliation?

‘But what if they truly are on the level of master? What if it’s a master of an unknown clan?’

Then, there would be nothing she could do. There was nothing for her to do as a high lord. Even if the unidentified figure belonged to a small clan, masters of vampire clans were fundamentally on a whole different level from the others. It was the case with her father, Rivoles, as well as the master of Helmond, whom she had seen once before. Moreover, even if it had only been for a moment, the unknown figure had caused Master Rivoles to become ‘nervous’.

‘No, there is nothing to be afraid of as long as Father is here. Even if it’s the master of another clan…’

Verna rekindled her determination while trying to suppress the anxiety from creeping up her whole body. However, she only became tenser when the group passed the courtyard and finally entered the mansion.

Not even a single rat could be found in the compound which was expected to be brimming with various vampires and employees. As if it were haunted, only suffocating silence decorated the inside of the mansion. No longer able to stand the tension, anxiety, and irritation, Verna opened her mouth to speak. Right then; however, Master Rivoles strode up the stairs.

“It seems our uninvited guest is on the second floor.”

“…!!!”

Verna and the high lords were shocked. They hadn’t even felt anyone’s presence, let alone any Fear. However, Master Rivoles knew exactly where the uninvited guest was located. However, this wasn’t a show of Master Rivoles’ power. Rather, the unidentified, uninvited guest had only made their presence known to Master Rivoles.

Tap, tap, tap…

After passing through the decorated corridor laden with a red carpet, Master Rivoles came to a stop in front of a tightly closed door. He gestured, and Verna bowed before slowly pushing open the door.

Creaaaak.

Beyond the wide-open door was a dark space. The curtains had been drawn, and only one spot received the warm light of the sun pouring through the window.

“…!!!”

Verna’s eyes filled with complete disbelief. There were dozens of men and women on their knees facing one direction. It was clear that they were all vampires from their attire, as well as the fact that they were away from the sun’s rays. However, one person, a vampire with obsidian hair and deep, crimson eyes, was sitting leisurely at the place touched by the warmth of the sun. Naturally, Verna wasn’t surprised that the man was a ‘daywalker.’ Rather, it was unbelievable that all the vampires showing obedience to the man were children of the Rivoles Clan. They were truly a part of Rivoles’ family, and Master Rivoles’ blood was flowing through their veins.

However, even though their master and god had arrived, they did not even spare him a single glance, let alone prostrate themselves in awe. It was something that could not and should not happen.

“Th… This….”

This was the first time in her life of over a hundred years that Verna felt the most furious. Just as she was about to roar, Master Rivoles raised his hand while standing firm and staring at the man.

“…?!”

Verna stared at her master with surprise. However, Master Rivoles continued to gaze at the handsome young man under the sun without moving an inch. Verna and the high lords had no choice but to stay still as their master maintained his silence. After a short amount of time, which felt like an eternity, a cold smile appeared around the lips of the handsome young man.

“I was a little surprised. You are definitely different from the others since you are a master,” the young man said.

Verna could not tolerate how the young man dared to take on such a tone with her master.

“You—”

“Stop!”

However, Master Rivoles’ intervention was faster than her speech. Verna’s expression turned ghastly after being rebuked by her master. She and the other high lords could not understand the situation at all. The vampires weren’t even budging even though their monarch was here, and their master wasn’t showing any anger. Moreover, the youngster was watching as if the situation was only natural—he was watching as if he found the situation fun.

If it weren’t for Master Rivoles slowly taking steps toward the handsome young man, the high lords would have believed themselves to be in a dream. Finally, Master Rivoles arrived in front of the handsome man. But even though a clan master was standing right in front of him, the young man did not get up from his seat. Rather, he stared as if he found everything intriguing.

“Are you the master of Rivoles?” the young man asked.

“…That’s right. And who… might you be?” Master Rivoles asked.

Verna and the high lords were in disbelief. Their master was acting respectfully toward someone he had seen for the first time.

“Jan Eugene Batla. King of Maren,” the young man answered.

“…!!!”

So, he was him. He was the King of Maren. Verna and the other high lord stiffened on the spot. They weren’t surprised to see the one responsible for bringing them to this place; however, they were surprised that he was the one who caused this situation.

Master Rivoles remained silent for a moment after hearing Eugene’s answer. Eventually, he asked once more, “I would like to know your True Name, not the name of the world.”

“…Tsk.”

Eugene clicked his tongue after hearing Master Rivoles’ words.

“Since you are asking me about that, it seems you don’t know anything about me either,” Eugene said.

Eugene had somewhat expected it, but he felt rather disappointed after confirming it. The master of the Rivoles Clan wasn’t an Origin, as an Origin would know his identity. However, it wasn’t like he didn’t profit from their meeting either.

“But from the looks of things, it seems you know others who are similar to me,” Eugene commented.

“And since you are asking me, you must not know much about them either,” Master Rivoles answered.

“Yes. That’s why I came all the way here to find out. Anyway…” Eugene said before untwisting his legs and slowly standing up from his chair.

“…?!”

Master Rivoles’ eyebrows wriggled. The atmosphere had changed even though Eugene had simply stood up from his chair. It wasn’t just Master Rivoles either. Verna and the other high lords could clearly feel the change as well. It wasn’t as if Eugene had evoked his Fear, so what was this bizarre yet overwhelming energy? What was this mystery that made even their father—Master Rivoles—look so shabby? However, their confusion was nothing compared to what Master Rivoles was feeling.

Eugene’s voice calmly rang. “Are you going to continue standing like that knowing well what I am?”

“…!”

Master Rivoles flinched. However, he only hesitated for a moment.

“The true monarch of our clan. The Overlord of Blood and Darkness. I greet the Origin.”

An absolute being. One of the great monarchs of vampires.

Rivoles spoke with all his heart after getting down on one knee.