Reincarnated as the Vampire Princess' Familiar-Chapter 15 - 14 - Judicium Sanguinis

My fight is about to start, yet I still don't know my opponent. The pairings are decided on the spot to prevent vampires or familiars from sabotaging their rivals beforehand.

Right now, I'm alone with Ayra in a private waiting room, where we'll stay until it's our turn. It's my first time seeing this place, considering that last time, I waited for my turn sprawled on Ayra's bed in a semi-conscious state—I had just woken up after being killed.

«I'm warning you, don't you dare lose!» Ayra exclaims, stomping her foot petulantly—she looks just like her little sister, Levreshka, when she acts like that. She's been repeating the same thing for almost two hours now, the entire time we've been waiting here. I'm not deaf!

«Don't worry...» I reply for the umpteenth time, visibly annoyed. «Rather... isn't there a risk that—by using the Blood Words—I might kill my opponent?»

Ayra shakes her head. «Do you think that after all the effort we put into training the familiars, we'd let them die so easily?»

«I hope not...»

«The arena where you fight is surrounded by a special barrier. That magical screen doesn't just separate the stands from the arena but, more importantly, preserves the vital functions of the two human familiars. In other words, no matter how severe the injuries, at the end of the match, all major wounds will be instantly nullified, while the minor ones... well, you'll carry them as a reminder—a price to pay for your weakness.»

A barrier around the arena... yeah, now I remember. When I unleashed the Visanguis, I recall throwing Gerard against something similar—an invisible wall that materialized the moment he crashed into it. Well, at least they care about our safety, though I bet it's just to prolong their entertainment...

«Now that I think about it... when your sister, Clotilde, stepped in to calm things between you and Sasha, she mentioned... what was it called? Judicium something—»

«—Judicium Sanguinis?» Ayra interrupts.

«Yeah, that thing. What is it?»

«To put it simply... it's the method used to resolve disputes between noble vampires. The law of Mildelar is straightforward: when two noble vampires want to assert their claims over each other, they can choose to resort to Judicium Sanguinis—a duel to the death. The right to the dispute and all its consequences go to the winner of the fight,» Ayra explains with a certain pride, as if she takes pride in such barbaric methods.

«We humans abandoned such primitive practices hundreds of years ago...» I murmur, with a hint of disapproval.

«That's because you humans are a weak race, and I don't just mean in terms of strength or magic. You let yourselves be subjugated by anyone who claims the right to do so, too submissive to events to lift your heads and rebel against what you perceive as injustice. You're so weak that a single man, more charismatic than usual, is enough to manipulate millions, to push them to kill each other. We vampires, on the other hand, are willing to put ourselves on the line, to risk our lives to defend our beliefs. The Judicium Sanguinis is nothing more than that—the ultimate expression of vampire freedom and courage!»

Ayra's words, the passion and determination in her voice, strike me deeply. She's right, damn right... and my fate as a familiar, along with thousands of other humans like me, proves it. Even now, despite death itself, we're incapable of breaking free from the chains of slavery that have bound us since birth. Rather than lifting our heads, rather than dying for our freedom, we prefer to endure the vampires' daily torments, their tortures, their humiliations—because we're too cowardly to rebel, too accustomed to suffering passively without reacting, ever since we were in our own world...

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«Your expression tells me you've grasped the magnificence of the Judicium Sanguinis,» she comments, noticing my grim, pensive look as I drown in a flood of self-pity, hitting me like a raging torrent.

«In a way...» I murmur. «Aren't you vampires afraid that humans might rebel? You're making us stronger, capable of wielding powers we couldn't have even dreamed of in the human world. Aren't you worried that, one day, this might turn against you?»

Ayra lets out a light laugh. «Silly boy... do you really think we're that careless? Your dormitories are in such remote corners of the kingdom that, even if you tried to escape, you'd die of starvation before reaching Noxscura, the capital of the Mildelar kingdom, where we are now. But even if, by some stroke of luck, you made it... well, consider this: even my stupid and useless little sister, Levreshka—far weaker than me—could wipe out the strongest of familiars in a single breath. The soldiers of the Scarlet Army—the kingdom's military force—would crush the rebellion instantly, so there's no danger, even in the unlikely event that you decided to rise against us.»

«The army that defends the kingdom...» I repeat, perplexed. «And who exactly are they defending you from?»

«Unfortunately, vampires aren't the only race in this world—not yet, at least. There are other races, much weaker than us, but occasionally, they get the foolish idea of invading our borders. However, there's one race whose strength surpasses all others and, upon the rise of the third moon, the Mons Moon, reaches a power that can rival our own—the lycans. Individually, they aren't much of a threat, but in a pack, they become formidable opponents, even for the most skilled vampire. Moreover, they outnumber us dozens of times over. They are the main reason why the Scarlet Army exists.»

The third moon... I recall that Ayra only briefly mentioned it before, and even then, in a rather fearful tone. Now I understand why. If they're enough to trouble beings as powerful as vampires, they must be just as menacing and deadly.

A knock at the door of the small waiting room interrupts our conversation. «Princess Ayra Valakys, it is your turn.»