When Sarka asked what he meant by saying that hanging out with friends was an “obligation,” Baigarten immediately understood and nodded.
“It’s an ‘obligation’ for vampires sent to Esteban School. It’s about maintaining friendships with humans as required by their families.”
When Ruslan’s eyes widened, Baigarten scratched his brow.
He seemed to hesitate for a moment, but he no longer tried to hide information from Ruslan.
As if acknowledging Ruslan’s position now deeply entrenched, Baigarten explained calmly.
“As you know by now, the Coexistence Faction has been sending some of their young children to ‘Esteban School’ for a long time to train them to adapt to human society.
When those children grow up, they become intermediaries between human society and vampire society. They’re called <Bridges>.
For children dispatched as <Bridges>, it’s their obligation to maintain friendships with children from politically and commercially important human families from their school days.
Just as I, a <Guardian>, perform the duty of ‘protecting and monitoring’ Sarka at this school, Sarka, as a <Bridge>, performs the duty of ‘cultivating friendships’ with humans as required by his family.
In fact, for children like me and Sarka who are involved in the treaty, our school days at Esteban School should be seen as somewhat early entry into working life.”
Baigarten spoke in a businesslike tone tinged with slight fatigue and responsibility.
Ruslan blinked with a slightly surprised expression.
He had thought that since they were the most popular kids in their class, if Sarka had to befriend humans anyway, he’d chosen children who were at least somewhat on his level……
Sarka hadn’t chosen them—it was a list required by his family.
With a strange feeling, Ruslan was lost in thought when he suddenly muttered with a curious expression.
“……For something like that……he’s doing it really diligently?”
Thinking of Sarka, who had been pulling all kinds of nasty tricks to irritate Baigarten and acting obnoxiously, he found it somewhat unexpected.
For someone who stubbornly refused to accept his father’s ideology, he seemed to be performing the duty itself quite obediently.
As if understanding Ruslan’s puzzlement, Baigarten added with a sigh.
“……He’s a typical pureblood family vampire.”
“Pardon?”
When Ruslan made a puzzled expression, Baigarten explained dryly.
“In vampire society, ‘minors’ are ‘property’ of their family.
Vampire children are taught that it’s a virtue to completely obey the family that gave them their <name> and to fulfill the responsibilities assigned by the family.
Especially purebloods are required to have a stricter sense of responsibility in proportion to the tremendous power they enjoy. The idea is that those above must set an example first for those below to obey them.
Sarka is a <Complete Pureblood> of the highest grade, and he was the direct heir of <Leogrante>, a prestigious pureblood faction family that enforces the strictest obedience training.
Regardless of whether he agrees with their ideology or not, he’s a typical vampire who considers it natural to fulfill the responsibilities assigned by the family that gave him his <name>……
Above all, that guy has talent.”
At the end of his words, Baigarten suddenly frowned.
When Ruslan looked at him curiously, Baigarten suddenly ground his teeth and spoke in an exasperated tone.
“Damn it, when I first taught him, the relationship between Sarka and the Count was twisted to the worst degree, so he listened to my words less than he’d listen to a neighborhood dog barking. I thought he had no will to do it at all.
He was only a genius at pulling all kinds of petty pranks to irritate me and make me angry, and had no interest in anything except turning my insides out…… I thought his goal was to cause a ruckus and get expelled as soon as he enrolled.”
Seeing Baigarten’s expression full of hostility, Ruslan felt he could guess how Sarka had treated Baigarten without asking for more details.
Sarka had screwed with Ruslan very consistently and efficiently.
Even though Ruslan was about as significant as a passing fly to Sarka, so it wasn’t a particularly sincere attitude, Sarka had pushed Ruslan to the point where his eight-year resolve was shaken.
How much worse must it have been for Baigarten Jung, the ‘monitor directly attached by his father’?
Baigarten had once said he tried to coax Sarka and get him to open up. He’d thought that even if they were different species, they were person to person, so if he approached him sincerely, there was no reason they couldn’t become close on a personal level.
Until that naive belief was shattered, Sarka must have trampled that human using any means necessary.
Until Baigarten, who had received coexistence education his entire life, completely gave up on building a trusting relationship with Sarka and decided to control him as a strict keeper.
Ruslan felt like he’d break into a cold sweat just imagining that process.
Baigarten clenched his molars as if heat was rising as he recalled that time, and continued speaking.
“So on the day of the entrance ceremony, I went to see the freshmen table practically trembling, calling upon the true god, wondering what kind of trouble he’d caused……
For a moment, I thought he was a different person.
He was smiling cheerfully in a way that gave me goosebumps, playing around as if he’d met friends he’d known for 10 years. He even pretended to be close to me and acted so kindly. I thought I was seeing things.”
Baigarten looked back at Ruslan with an expression beyond flabbergasted to absurd.
Ruslan vaguely seemed to almost remember that on the entrance ceremony day, an upperclassman had come to the freshmen table to greet them.
Perhaps because Sarka’s appearance was too shocking, even Ruslan, who had no interest in his classmates, had caught a glimpse of Sarka greeting some senior who looked like a high-ranking noble in a friendly manner.
The conversation and expressions they exchanged seemed comfortable and affectionate, as if they’d known each other for a long time, so Ruslan had inwardly thought he should avoid getting on that silver-haired boy’s bad side. If he was on friendly terms with such a high-ranking noble, he must surely be one of the powerful figures.
The other children probably felt similarly.
Baigarten continued recalling that time with an expression of utter disbelief.
“I taught him directly from when he was infant-level ignorant about human society. Far from being a Bridge, I thought it would be medal-worthy if he just stayed quietly buried without becoming notorious as an eccentric.
But not only did he adapt calmly as if he’d lived as a human his whole life, after some time passed, that guy, how should I say…… claimed the position of ‘respected person of character’ in his class?”
“Mm……yes.”
Ruslan nodded obediently without denying it.
Among his friends, and among the children in the class, Sarka’s image was that kind of feeling.
Baigarten looked like he was so dumbfounded he could barely speak.
“In less than half a year, he pulled all the children on the list required by his family onto his side, and was even taking on something like a leader role in that group.
After doing nothing but other things throughout his education, I wondered how on earth he did it…… I realized later.”
Baigarten let out an incredulous breath, then muttered helplessly.
“That guy benchmarked me.”
“Pardon?”
Ruslan’s eyes widened.
Baigarten spoke with an expression like he’d had his organs stolen while his guard was down.
“I thought he was ignoring me the whole time and only scheming to torment me…… But during the education period, he was constantly observing me.
He stole everything—my speech patterns, personality, habits, even my jokes and expressions. When I realized he was imitating even my accent so creepily it was like he’d recorded it, it was terrifying.”
Ruslan’s eyes widened.
Come to think of it, the ‘imperial accent’ Sarka used was exactly the same as Baigarten’s.
Ruslan had just thought that since it was the accent mainly used by the Empire’s high-ranking nobles, Sarka must have corrected it that way when entering human society.
But thinking carefully, Sarka used an accent that reflected even Baigarten’s unique subtle habits.
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t an ‘imperial’ accent, but ‘Baigarten Jung’s’ accent.
Baigarten furrowed his brow with a creeped-out expression and said.
“It’s not just vocal mimicry. He perfectly grasped my ideology, values, and morality, and handles every situation like I would.
<Always be fair but considerate of the weak, uphold principles but don’t lose your humanity.>
Imagine words I would have said flowing out of someone else’s voice, and actions I would have taken being reproduced by someone else’s body.
When you actually see it, it’s like he’s possessed. It’s practically a doppelganger.”
Baigarten shuddered with a terrible expression.
Only then did Ruslan feel like Sarka’s puzzling behaviors were starting to fit together piece by piece.
Sarka had said the reason he protected Ruslan and treated him kindly was because he ‘imitated you humans.’
Even then, Sarka had been honest.
Looking back, it was perfectly the kind of action Baigarten Jung would have taken.
Baigarten was the eldest son of a powerful ducal family and the Head Boy who received the trust of both students and professors.
The reason Ruslan, who had no interest in school life, remembered Baigarten Jung’s face and name was also because he was a respected figure among scholarship students for always being considerate of them.
Even Bruce’s gang didn’t treat scholarship students carelessly where Baigarten Jung was watching.
Head Boy Baigarten always treated all students fairly regardless of nationality or status, and when unreasonable things happened, he took the side of the scholarship students who were the weaker party.
Even the despicable Bruce gang knew this, so they mainly committed their misdeeds in places his eyes didn’t reach, like near the auxiliary library.
Baigarten spoke with a helpless expression.
“I’m this school’s Head Boy. Since he copied all my personality and social skills, he went beyond simply adapting among humans to even claiming a leader role in the group.
He even takes on the role of correcting his friends when they cross the line. He uses the exact methods I use.”
“Ah……”
Ruslan unconsciously let out something like an exclamation.
When Sarka’s friends had mocked Ruslan, Sarka had restrained his friends in a very gentle manner.
That attitude of coaxing and soothing his friends without erasing his smile was not the method of that sensitive and sharp boy.
If anything, it was closer to Baigarten’s method.
The more Ruslan looked back, the more he realized it wasn’t difficult to find characteristics borrowed from Baigarten in Sarka’s speech patterns and actions.
Always gently restraining those around him from crossing lines, coaxing and soothing rather than getting angry, taking on the role of protecting the weakest person in the group—these were things Baigarten had been doing.
The feeling was strange.
Was it fortunate that Sarka’s first education partner and human model was Baigarten Jung?
But it was also amazing that just because he’d decided to copy it, he could actually copy it so perfectly.
As Ruslan was somewhat dazed, Baigarten sighed and continued.
“That guy has a knack for learning. His observational skills are good, his expressive abilities are good, and his application skills are excellent. His ability to grasp and accept rules is outstanding…… and when he puts his mind to it, he’s also adept at handling people. He would have done well in politics too.
If Sarka’s mother hadn’t passed away, in a few years Sarka would have become the central figure of the Pureblood Faction’s next generation and given us quite a headache.
In fact, it seems his mother was planning to send him into politics too.”
“Is……that so?”
Ruslan’s eyes widened.
Baigarten looked back at Ruslan with a gloomy expression.
“You’ve probably heard bits of this, but Sarka was the valedictorian of the <Leogrante> Basic School’s Complete Pureblood Class, the most prestigious pureblood faction family.
If his mother hadn’t passed away like that two years ago, he would have gone straight to <Wolfsbane> Duel School, which specializes in Complete Purebloods. It’s vampire society’s highest educational institution.
Many of the high-ranking politicians in the vampire government are graduates from there.
Since Sarka was the direct heir, he was probably also discussed as a candidate for next-generation family head.”
Ruslan’s mouth fell open at Sarka’s standing, which was more impressive than he’d thought.
Though he’d gotten the impression from behaviors and expressions that unconsciously showed through that he was from a high-ranking noble family, hearing it directly, it was even more impressive than Ruslan had thought.
Sarka’s past as truly an elite among elites left Ruslan dazed, when he suddenly hesitated and asked.
“Then……now……”
Baigarten made a bitter expression.
“It would be difficult now. For Sarka to seize power again in vampire society, whether Coexistence Faction or Pureblood Faction.”
“……Why?”
When Ruslan asked carefully, Baigarten answered like a sigh.
“Because he came to <Esteban School>.”
“Pardon?”
Ruslan asked back in surprise.
Baigarten explained with a complicated expression.
“You’ve probably heard this story. Usually those sent to this school are the lowest bloodlines like <Mixed Blood> or <Human Blood>, and there’s never been precedent for a vampire of <high grade> like Sarka being sent to Esteban School.”
“Ah……yes.”
Ruslan quickly answered, recalling the things Alberich had rattled off and Sarka, whose nature had twisted after hearing those words.
Baigarten explained dryly.
“Usually the child selected as a <Bridge> is the lowest bloodline, the most incompetent vampire in that family.
Low-bloodline vampires have superpowers so weak they’re not much different from humans, so they’re treated as a useless lowly class in vampire society. If they receive education as intermediaries here instead, they can be of some help to their family, so those children obediently accept the <Bridge> role.
It’s a very important role, but because it’s been mainly handled by lowly bloodlines, it’s also a role looked down upon in vampire society.”
Ruslan’s mouth fell open.
Baigarten explained bluntly.
“Since Sarka is a <Complete Pureblood>, he probably won’t be looked down upon as much as Bridges of other bloodlines.
But within the same <Complete Pureblood> bloodline, Sarka’s career has become like a rag. Among his classmates back home, Sarka has now fallen to being a laughingstock.
As valedictorian of Leogrante School, he would have been following the very best elite course of the Pureblood Faction, soaring high with a bright future ahead……”
Baigarten had a complicated expression.
Ruslan couldn’t continue speaking.
Baigarten continued his explanation bitterly.
“When Sarka first fled and became a member of <Hütivras>, there was apparently a lot of talk within the Hütivras family too.
As I said, Sarka was an outstanding <Complete Pureblood> to the extent of being discussed as a next-generation family head candidate.
He’d promised to become part of the Coexistence Faction, and since he was still young, he could be sufficiently re-educated.
The Hütivras family apparently also was wary that if Sarka re-established himself in the Coexistence Faction, he might threaten their own children’s positions.
The Hütivras family demanded that the Count send Sarka to <Esteban School>. They tried to push him out in advance so Sarka couldn’t seize power within the family.
In fact, since assigning such responsibility to a <Complete Pureblood> was unprecedented, it was also an issue where the Count could have refused by setting other conditions somehow……”
Ruslan’s face hardened.
Baigarten confirmed Ruslan’s guess with a dark face.
“The Count, whose power struggle with Sarka had reached its peak, accepted that demand.”
Ruslan let out a breath.
Baigarten had a troubled face. As he’d defined it, the misfortune and bad karma between these two had begun at that moment.
Baigarten sighed with a truly headache-inducing expression.
“The relationship between Sarka and the Count, which had been increasingly going wrong, became completely twisted beyond repair with that decision as the turning point.
Naturally, since it’s like the father personally threw his son’s future into the gutter.
To compare it to human society, it would be similar to suddenly throwing the eldest son who’s aiming for law school into a livestock pen in the middle of nowhere and ordering him to shovel cow dung?
It’s no wonder Sarka rebelled, or that he came to hate everything about this school.”
Ruslan was dismayed.
Baigarten showed an expression tired from exhaustion, as if he had no idea how he’d gotten dragged into this crucible.
Ruslan was lost in thought for a long while, then frowned.
“……Why exactly is the relationship between Sarka and the Count this……bad?
Last time you said Sarka’s mother is practically the ‘enemy’ of Sarka’s father……
What on earth happened……?”
Ruslan looked around cautiously with a careful expression.
Baigarten looked at Ruslan with gloomy eyes.
Baigarten, who had been lost in deep thought, finally decided he should explain, and opened with a heavy voice accompanied by a light sigh.
“It’s complicated to explain…… but you should see the fundamental problem as starting from here.
The Count’s current wife is a <human>.”
“What?”
Ruslan’s eyes widened.
