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“Hey, Tia? Who’s that guy…?”

Sia whispered to me in a small voice while looking at the Old King.

“That’s the king of this country. Quite aged, isn’t he?”

“A king? That old man? I thought he’d be someone more dignified and strong.”

“A dignified and strong person, huh….”

I couldn’t help but chuckle at Sia’s remarks. To call someone like him dignified and strong when he resembles a leech that can only survive by draining life from others…

It’s just laughable.

“But from the way he’s speaking… do you know him?”

“Well, we had a bit of a history in the past.”

“You and Tia? Heh… I’d love to hear a bit about that.”

I casually glanced at the Old King, who shook his head slightly. He probably didn’t want to reveal his past mistakes to others.

“Since he doesn’t want to share, it’s a secret.”

“Ugh. Can’t you just tell me? If it’s related to Tia, his name must be somewhere, and if it links to blood, it should be easier to find.”

“What’s a no isn’t a yes.”

“Ahem.”

See? Even the Old King is clearing his throat as if to say ‘don’t say that.’

“Ugh. Fine. I’ll give up for now.”

Sia, surprisingly willing to back down. Well, she probably plans to sneakily look into it later.

“But… if that old man is the king of this country, how is he protecting it from the nomads?”

Curious, Sia examined the Old King. He seemed too old and weak to be defending this country from those feral and violent nomads.

Of course. Who would think that old man is the protector of this small country?

“Because there are things he can do that no one else can.”

“Things he can’t do?”

He can’t swing a sword or command a band of soldiers. He doesn’t wield endless magical power either.

All he could do was control the power of life.

“Um… is it okay to say this?”

“Seeing how he doesn’t seem like an ordinary human, it’s fine.”

With the Old King’s permission, I gently rested my hand on Sia’s head.

“Tia?”

“I’ll show you how he protects this country.”

I interfered with Sia’s vision… blocking everything else so she could only distinctly see the power of life.

Everything else was blocked so she could only see the life that shines.

Then.

“This is….”

“Pretty impressive, right?”

In a deep darkness, where not a single speck of light could escape, the light of life bloomed.

The faint glow of small insects, the humble yet persistent glow of weeds, and the busy flickering lights of humans moving around.

That scene made you feel like you’ve fallen into the endless universe.

“And aside from the dazzling light, I can’t see anything….”

“Oh, my bad. I didn’t block mine.”

I completely forgot. If life were expressed as light, my light would be the biggest. Nothing could be seen in front of that light.

The light I emit is invisible to me, so I just overlooked it.

“Alright. I’ve blocked mine. You should be able to see now.”

“Ah, yeah. I think I can see something now. It looks beautiful like a night sky.”

“That’s the light of life.”

If you can see the power of life as light, you’d definitely see something different than before.

So, shall we proceed?

“Want to look over there?”

I gently turned Sia’s body to face where the Old King was.

The bright and large light of life visible to Sia was different from the others.

But it was a light that was gradually fading.

“What is that…?”

And connected to that light was a huge pillar of light extending down into the ground.

“Underground… what on earth is that…?”

The faint pulsating light of life indicated that something massive was alive beneath the earth.

A gigantic something possessing life was curled up underground, with its roots spreading wide.

“Interesting, isn’t it?”

“No, this is… something I’ve never seen before.”

“Well, of course. It must’ve taken an immense amount of life gathered over years to become this giant.”

It probably took more than centuries. It might require pouring almost all life accumulated over a millennium to complete.

In exchange, the ageless king turned into an old king. But he doesn’t seem to regret that choice.

“Showing something I’ve created to others… is a bit embarrassing.”

The Old King spoke with an embarrassed expression. It seemed showing what he dedicated his whole life to create was quite a humbling experience.

“That… what exactly is it…?”

Sia asked the Old King with a look of disbelief. What it holds is merely the power of life. The magical power flowing with that life extended like the roots of a giant tree underground.

Its size… covers the entire area of this country.

“Under this country… that thing is extending?”

“Exactly.”

Sia had a face that showed she couldn’t comprehend.

What that is, why it holds such colossal life, why it’s connected to the Old King.

She couldn’t understand any of it.

Even though she was the God of Knowledge and Magic.

“This concept is a bit fresh, and I too was surprised. I can’t fathom how someone would think of sending most of their life outside of their body to create something like that.”

“I was just desperate to survive.”

“But it’s effective, right?”

I returned Sia’s vision to normal and said.

“That thing is what protects this country.”

Someone once said, the king of Wallachia tames monsters using blood, to protect his nation.

The essence of that rumor was that being lying beneath the earth.

“I guess you could say it’s a being forged from life. Hmm, do you have a name for it?”

“No. I haven’t named it. It has no self and exists solely through the life force I pass on.”

“It has no name. That’s a bit sad.”

Such a massive and pitiful existence.

“All it can do is… repel those who wish ill toward this country, and threaten its people.”

“Repel…?”

Sia’s expression conveyed a sense of disbelief.

Such a gigantic thing, with such an immense life, could hardly be imagined how it would function otherwise.

To think it was only used to guard this small peaceful country was hard for her to understand.

“How can something like that repel enemies? No, can it even move properly? If it stirs, this country might topple!”

“Just calm down, Sia. If you could topple a country, you could do it just fine too.”

“Well, that’s true! But to create something so unknown, all it can do is protect a single nation—it doesn’t make sense to me! How does it even protect?!”

“Well… seeing is believing.”

I conjured a square screen with magic and showed it to Sia.

A spell that shows past events… for now, let’s call it that.

“What’s this?”

“This was a month ago. When the nomads invaded the plains.”

On the screen, dozens of nomads on horseback were charging in armed with weapons.

There were no walls to halt them, merely wild animals or a flimsy fence.

The nomads, with their clear intentions to burst into the village, tear everything apart, murder, burn, and plunder, were arriving.

“Ugh!”

They were pierced by crimson thorns that erupted from the ground.

Of course, not all nomads were killed at once. Some managed to fend off the thorns with their weapons or dodged on horseback at the last moment.

“Watch your feet!”

“A beast is lurking underground!”

The thorns continued to rise, almost as if they were intent on not leaving any of those who infringed upon this land alive.

“It’s just going to scratch them! It’s nothing to be worried about!”

The strongest-looking nomad tried to comfort the others, but those thorns weren’t just aiming to merely pierce their enemies.

“Ugh, urgh….”

Its existence was birthed from absorbing the lives of others.

Thus, its basic attribute was looting.

It was an existence optimally designed for stealing other lives.

The nomads pierced by the thorns began to have their lives siphoned away.

Blood, muscle, organs, lives.

When everything was fully siphoned away, all that remained were just a pile of bones.

Sia, the nomads, and everyone were left speechless at that horrific sight.

Before long, all the nomads lost their lives and would become scattered bones on the ground.

And just like that, the crimson thorns that created such destruction vanished back underground as if nothing had happened.

“Wow… you really made that…”

Sia gazed at the Old King with a shocked expression.

“Don’t think too harshly of it. He just wanted to protect this land.”

In other words, without such a thing, this country would have already been trampled long ago.

“Still, no matter how devoid of self it may be, merely piercing enemies… if it has no name, it’s still a bit pitiful.”

I looked at the Old King.

“If it’s okay, may I name it?”

“The Goddess of Life naming it directly? It’s an honor, but wouldn’t that glory be excessive for such a creation of mine?”

“Come on, it’s just a name.”

I smiled softly.

“By giving it a name, this existence will become something under my gaze. Should it cause any problems or rampage… I’ll be able to take action.”

“That’s… a bit reassuring.”

The Old King, who had given almost all life to that being… wouldn’t have much lifespan left.

Yet, that being would continue to exist until that life ran out.

Even if he were to disappear, there would be a need for someone to control it or intervene should it rampage.

“Let’s call it Sanguinus. Taking the meaning of ‘blood’ from Sangue, and calling it Sanguinus.”

By receiving this name, that being would be unable to escape my sight.

I pondered between “vampire” and “Sanguinus,” but vampire feels more like a species name. I think Sanguinus fits much better. Yeah.

 

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