"Master?" Alexios spoke.
"...Hmm? It's nothing, I was just thinking about something."
"Master, don't let this man's words affect you. He doesn't know what he's saying."
"I know Alexios, I know..." But, despite having said that, he was still thinking about Victor's words.
Without Victor knowing or intending to do so, he ended up planting a seed of doubt in the king's heart.
"Victor, why did you say that?" Scathach asked curiously.
"I just wanted to tease him a little, it's no big deal now... Whether he has any doubts or not, that's not my problem." Victor completely ignored the subject. After all, it wasn't his problem.
"Anyway, back to business." Vlad looked at Alexios.
"Yes, Master." Alexios opened the box he brought and took out a black parchment.
"That's..." Scathach immediately recognized what it was.
"Yes, this is a magical witch contract, the same thing you signed in the past, Scathach."
"Hmm... If I'm not mistaken, this black contract can only be broken by the queen of witches, right?" Victor spoke.
"Yes."
"Are you her ally?" Victor asked curiously
"Of course not, this is just business."
"I see..."
"The contract is simple. I will give you the title of vampire count, and all the power, and influence that comes with such a title."
He exhibited a small smile:
"Of course, I haven't forgotten the special 'privilege' you will receive."
"..." The king's words made a small smile appear on Scathach's face.
"In return, you must never speak what you've learned here to anyone without my direct permission."
"Pretty simple..." He looked at Scathach as if asking her opinion.
"Eh...?" Scathach quickly returned to her neutral expression and replied, "Don't worry, it happened the same way to me."
"I see... In that case, let's move on, where do I have to sign?" He looked at Alexios, who was holding a kind of knife.
"Wait," Vlad spoke.
"What happened?" Victor looked at Vlad.
"Before signing the contract, you must decide what the name of your Clan is."
"What do you mean the name of my Clan? Can't it be the same name I have now?"
"You can't, Walker is your last name as a human. Of course, you can use it if you don't have commitments that relate to a Vampire Count, but when you're going to introduce yourself as a Count to another supernatural being, you have to have another last name."
"This is the tradition I created myself."
"Oh... So all the Counts had different last names before?" Victor looked at Scathach.
"Yes. I also had a name, and a different last name before..." Scathach had a rather nostalgic look on her face.
Victor had been a little curious about Scathach's first and last name in the past, but this wasn't the time to ask about it.
"So? What clan name are you going to choose?" Vlad asked again
"Hmm..." Victor touched his chin and started to think. Suddenly he had an idea.
"Vlad, what is your full name?"
"...Why do you want to know?" Vlad narrowed his eyes a little.
"Just answer."
Vlad was a little curious about what Victor was planning:
"...My full name is Vlad Dracula Tepes. Although the last name 'Dracula' is not used very much by my children and me."
"..." Victor exhibited a small smile.
Vlad's eyes widened a little, "Don't tell me..."
"You said that my blood is like yours, and that it was called The Blood of the Night King, right?"
"Yes." Vlad displayed a small smile on his face. He had already deduced which direction Victor was heading.
"Although I am someone of the same blood type as you, I want to be your opposite."
Of course, Victor was talking about the king's distrust of his own wives. He didn't want to be someone who would distrust his wives...
After all, if you can't trust your wife, why did you get into a relationship in the first place? If you're afraid of being betrayed, you shouldn't bond!
If Victor were in the kind of situation the king found himself in, he would directly ask his wife, and as a couple who had lived thousands of years together, they would know if the person was lying or not.
In that kind of situation, it would be better to be honest and straight... What if he found out he was being cheated on? Well, there's always the friendly torture room...
Although Victor doubted very much that this will happen with the kind of personality his wives have!
As expected, crazy women are the best!
But that's not how Scathach, Alexios, and Vlad interpreted Victor's statement...
"I choose Alucard as my last name."
"..." An uncomfortable silence fell over the place.
Alexios and Scathach just stared at Victor in shock.
Does this boy understand what he just said? Choosing the same surname of the king, just written backwards, meant it was a statement.
A statement that said: 'I am not inferior to you, I am equal to you!'
It was basically a way to challenge the king's authority! They completely freaked out!
Vlad's and Victor's smile grew as if they were in sync, and suddenly:
"HAHAHAHAHAH~!" The two started laughing in sync.
Their laughter echoed throughout the king's castle and sent shivers to everyone who heard the two men's laughter.
"Very Well, Very Well!" Vlad clapped his hands.
"As expected of someone with The Blood of the Night King! You didn't disappoint me!" The king suddenly rose from His throne.
He took a deep breath, and suddenly he spoke in a voice that echoed throughout Nightingale.
"With my authority as king of all vampires, I, Vlad Tepes, hereby declare."
"That voice..." The first prince, Theo.
"Father?" The first princess, Lilith.
"He seems to be making an announcement," Elizabeth said. "How long has it been since he's last done this?"
"Thousands of years," Lilith replied.
"The birth of a new Vampire Count!"
"...Huh?" That was the reaction of all princes and princesses.
"As of today, the fifth pillar of vampire society responsible for exploring and discovering new lands is assigned to Clan Alucard."
"Clan Alucard? Who was the idiot who wrote our names backwards and created a Clan?" The second prince, Lucas, complained.
"But importantly, a new Count has just been born, that hasn't happened for thousands of years..." Lilith said.
"The leader of Clan Alucard is the new disciple of Scathach Scarlett, who recently won an arena game, Victor Walker!"
"... THAT MAN AGAIN!" Lucas, Saul, and Adam yelled angrily, and they felt that man was born to provoke them.
Elizabeth just dropped to her knees on the ground and looked up at the sky as if life had no meaning, "Isn't that too ridiculous? A 21-year-old vampire becoming a Count?"
"...Eh? He's only 21 years old!? Why is he so strong!?" Saul and Adam shouted in unison.
"Has my dad finally gone crazy? Is he smoking something illegal?" She couldn't accept the reality in front of her.
"The youngest vampire ever to receive the title of vampire count..." Lilith muttered, and slowly her smile began to grow.
"As per tradition said, Victor, the new Count, has abandoned the Walker name, and assumed the name Alucard."
"Wait... He's become a Vampire Count, that means he can be challenged, and if he loses that title..." Theo's eyes were gleaming with a shrewd look as a plan began to form in his head.
"My citizens, hail the new Count Vampire, the new pillar of vampire society, Victor Alucard."
"Ugh, that last name doesn't match, what's on this man's mind?" Saul spoke, irritated.
"If you think about it, our names don't match either..." Elizabeth muttered.
Suddenly the king's voice died down...
"Father..." Ophis had her eyes glowing blood red.
Realizing that the announcement had ended, the first prince, Theo, was about to turn and leave.
"My children, I call you." Suddenly all the children heard the king's voice in their heads.
"Yes, Father." They all spoke, except for the first prince, Theo.
"...Yes, Father." Then he spoke when he realized he couldn't leave now. 'With the appearance of a new Clan with the title of Count, the political power game will change. I need to move fast.'
...
After Victor signed the black parchment, he looked at Vlad.
"You're bad at speeches."
"Shut up, I haven't done this for millennia."
"It doesn't change the fact that you're bad at it."
"Ugh..."
"But... Responsible for exploring and discovering new lands, huh?"
"That is a job that suits you perfectly, does it not?"
"You're not wrong." Victor displayed a big smile.
"Congratulations on becoming a Count, Victor." Scathach spoke with a small smile.
Victor looked at Scathach and flashed a small smile, "Am I in the same social status as you now, master?"
"Yes, so you don't need to call me master anymore." She didn't look sad to be speaking those words.
"Oh?" Victor took Scathach's hand. He held her hand like a couple would hold each other's hand.
"..." Scathach looked at her hand, and for some reason, felt quite warm inside.
"What should I call you now?"
"Scathach... Just Scathach..." Her voice was surprisingly very low.
"Okay, Scathach."
"!!!" Scathach felt that the way Victor called her name now was quite different from how he called her in the past.
She couldn't help but smile happily and squeeze Victor's hand a little tighter.
"..." The king looked at this scene and thought, 'Isn't that boy very proficient at this? Wasn't he the boy who was confused a few moments ago? He looks like a natural playboy now... Who taught him?'
"We finished? I need to go home... That place must be in chaos now..." Victor said, and he wasn't wrong, and his wives were freaking out now.
"Yes, we are done. Even though you've risen and become a Count, you still have no territory. And since there is no available territory..."
"I'm supposed to explore and make my own territory, huh?" Victor laughed.
"Well, that is your job as a Vampire Count."
Victor remembered that the king's territory was very far from the mainland and that his friend's Clan was the most distant territory from the royal capital; 'I must visit Eleonor's territory in the future. Luckily, I already have an invite from her... But first, I'm going home, and this time. Nobody will stop me!'
Victor felt strange, since, every time he decided to return home, something always occurred...
"Return home, and enjoy your free time. Soon, I will have my subordinate deliver all the necessary things that make you a Vampire Count."
"Yes, I will. I'll see you soon, Vlad."
"Come on, Scathach."
"Yes..." For some reason, Scathach's voice was lower than normal.
Soon the two disappear.
"Vlad, huh? It has been a long time since someone called me as if I were a friend." He looked quite melancholy for a few seconds.
"Master?"
"Is nothing." Soon Vlad's expression turned grim.
Suddenly, he heard his children's footsteps.
Seeing all his children except his youngest daughter, his face trembled a little.
"Alexios, go get Ophis."
"Yes, Master." Alexios snaps his finger, and soon a small portal appeared in front of him, and he entered.
Looking at his children, especially his sons, he said:
"Disappointing."
"..." Their father's voice sent a shiver down their spine.
..........
