A Regressor's Bucket List

Chapter 175 : Beastkin Faction (2)

After Shim Cheong-yi was dragged away by U-jin, flailing her arms.

“……”

The space Valencia sought out after leaving the dining hall was on the roof of the mansion.

As it wasn't a space meant to be climbed, there was no dedicated path up, but creating paths where none existed had been as good as her specialty, both during her time in Aileen Village and at the royal palace.

Finding and climbing up to a place like this wasn't difficult; for her, it was already a natural, everyday occurrence.

Perched on the roof, Valencia turned her head and surveyed the things that came into her view.

Of course, there wasn't much to see.

Beastkin.

Half-demolished buildings.

Newly constructed buildings.

That was about the extent of everything that could be described with words.

Beyond that, only a yellowish-brown wasteland, hard to even name, stretched out endlessly.

Well, still.

Compared to before she arrived—that is, before U-jin had left this place—quite a few things had changed.

While it was still far too lacking to be called a 'village', compared to the beginning when it was filled with nothing but half-demolished buildings, it now had a few structures suitable for living, giving it the appearance of a place where people gathered to live.

Before U-jin left, he had informed the Beastkin through Jerry that this place would become their new home.

Accordingly, the Beastkin who decided to settle had begun restoration work on the buildings, though it was still too early to call it a full-scale effort.

Of course, since it was still in the initial stages, most of the view, as described before, was covered by the wasteland beyond.

…That was all there was to it.

A monotonous, unremarkable backdrop with nothing worth adding.

But.

As Valencia looked down at the Beastkin moving between the shabby building remains and the newly erected structures, her expression held a certain indescribable complexity.

Rather than a look of mixed feelings, it was more of an expression where several emotions were jumbled together, one she herself couldn't yet clearly define.

Looking at this simple and monotonous scenery, she felt a sentiment so complex and subtle that if asked to pinpoint the true nature of her feelings, she wouldn't be able to give a definite answer.

And though there had been no specific instruction, Tom Hardist, who had followed Valencia up to the roof as if it were the most natural thing to do, was watching her complex expression from the side.

And in that expression, suddenly.

‘…….’

The past came to his mind.

It wasn't the exact same space, but he too had once leaned against a corner wall of the mansion when he first arrived, watching the people from a distance.

He couldn't know if Valencia was thinking the same thoughts he had back then.

But judging from her expression alone, it seemed certain that the emotions he had felt then and what Valencia was feeling now shared a similar vein.

‘…….’

‘What should I say?’

It was obvious, but both in the past and now, Valencia remained a difficult person for Tom to deal with.

If it had been anyone else, he would have snorted and mocked them for their ridiculous-looking face, but in this case, the subject was different.

Worlds different.

She needed something different.

In a normal situation, 'consolation' would be the most standard response.

But that was impossible.

Beyond the shyness and awkwardness, he was simply not the type of person suited for such things. Even if he tried, it wouldn't be comforting in the least.

Suddenly.

Shim Cheong-yi's voice flashed through Tom's mind.

『…Hey. You dog-like fellow.』

『……?』

『I have something I want to talk to you about for a moment.』

…That seemed like a good idea.

A conversation that could clear her complicated thoughts and refresh her mood with a different topic.

Just as that girl, Shim Cheong-yi, had come to him and lifted his spirits, he thought it would be good to have something that could turn her attention elsewhere.

‘…The dinner menu? Martial arts? Or… maybe talking smack about that bastard would be best.’

As he watched her expression, his mouth opening and closing like a fish, Tom thought.

‘…Right, at times like this…’

He chose one of the various options flashing through his mind and, with a determined expression, cleared his throat once to speak.

“Ahem.”

“……”

“Prin—?”

And just as he was about to call out to Valencia and start the conversation.

Grab-

Suddenly, a pure white glove appeared over the corner of the roof.

The owner of the glove, who had clumsily hooked their arm over the roof, soon revealed their identity with a groan.

“…Phew.”

A black suit and black tie on long limbs.

Neatly swept-back hair that gave off a subtle aura.

Skin so white it was pale.

Deep dark circles under his eyes.

…Jerry Junior.

‘…….’

A peculiar light entered Valencia’s eyes.

The reason was simple.

She was the one who had come to this unfamiliar place, and since she still had things to discuss with U-jin, she had thought someone else might come looking for her.

But it was because the most unexpected person among them had arrived.

And in the most unfitting way, at that.

Jerry, who was taking off his soot-covered gloves with a deep frown, soon shook his head and muttered.

“…To climb up by grabbing an uncleaned wall. An experience I never wish to repeat.”

Ssk-

Then he turned his head to look at Valencia and spoke.

“I have something to sa… say.”

“……”

“…to you.”

The ending was clearly that of formal speech, but since he mumbled in the middle, it was impossible to know exactly what tone he was using.

However.

“…This bastard.”

Tom Hardist glared at Jerry Junior, letting out his characteristic low-frequency growl as if to show his displeasure.

From his perspective, it was only natural.

It was bad enough that he had appeared at the exact moment he was about to do something, interrupting him, but on top of that, it was Jerry Junior.

The guy he already had it in for had shown up doing something equally annoying.

From Tom's point of view, there was no way anything good would come out of his mouth.

Besides.

“…Are you in your right mind, you bastard?”

In Tom's mind, Jerry was not the kind of person who could ever take the initiative to appear before Valencia.

There were many reasons, but in the end, Jerry was the descendant of Count Dracula, the one who had caused the whole disaster.

A long time may have passed, but while wounds and wrongdoings might dull with time, they could never disappear.

This was especially true for deeply carved scars.

Even if they were to consider the circumstances and have a conversation, it was something that could only happen when Valencia decided to and showed her intention first.

For him to presumptuously come and request a conversation like this seemed nothing but rude and shameless to Tom Hardist.

He also thought there was no way Valencia would accept such a request.

…But.

Ssk-

Valencia raised her right hand to cover Tom’s mouth and asked back.

“What is it about?”

“…Princess?”

She spoke to him as if she were curious about what he had to say.

At that.

“…I would like a private audience… if I may.”

Jerry’s gaze shifted slightly toward Tom.

It meant he wanted Tom to leave.

“You…!!”

Anger surged in Tom at this even more displeasing turn of events, and he was about to roar, but.

“…Go down. Thomas.”

“…Yes?”

“I said, go down. He said he wants to talk alone.”

Valencia granted Jerry's request, once again relaying his demand on his behalf.

“But…”

“It’s not like I called you here anyway.”

“……”

“Go down. If you’re going to stay here, I’ll go down.”

“……”

Tom Hardist wore an expression full of grievance.

…But that changed nothing.

At least in this dynamic, he was, without a doubt, the subordinate.

* * *

“What did you want to say?”

While Valencia had shown some signs of difficulty with Shim Cheong-yi, was it different when dealing with a fellow Beastkin?

Valencia’s voice as she spoke flowed much more comfortably than it had in the dining hall.

“……”

On the contrary.

It was Jerry—who normally showed no agitation and maintained a poker face with everyone except U-jin—who was now using an unfitting tone and showing signs of discomfort.

“So…”

“If I’m right, you seem uncomfortable with your way of speaking. You don’t have to worry about that.”

“……”

And as if she knew, Valencia pointed out his difficulty before he could properly begin his story, telling him there was no need to be concerned.

“I guess you’re being mindful because I’m a Beastkin… but well, it’s your first time seeing me anyway.”

“……”

“And as for the throne… the Vampire Clan left the Beastkin Nation long ago. There’s no need for unnecessary formalities. The nation has already fallen, and to be blunt, I’m not a queen right now anyway.”

“……”

At a glance, it might have sounded like she was subtly throwing shade(?), but.

Valencia actually thought so.

She was the one who had abandoned her duty to inherit the throne and run away in the first place, so she already felt a degree of embarrassment and skepticism about returning now to act as a queen.

There was nothing more ridiculous than trying to establish the authority of the throne now and forcing others to use honorifics.

Furthermore, Jerry Junior had never even seen her before, and he was born after Count Dracula had left the Beastkin Nation.

To put it bluntly, he was a stranger with no connection to her.

She could guess that Jerry had his own identity as the heir who carried the Vampire bloodline, but.

Valencia had not the slightest intention of lording her authority over him for something like that.

In fact, if her memory served her right, even her own father, outside of official settings, used to speak frankly and informally with the chiefs of each Beastkin tribe, with whom he had been bosom buddies since childhood.

With the Beastkin Nation not even existing yet, it made no sense for her to be concerned with authority already.

“…Then. I will speak as I normally do. Is that alright?”

“…Of course.”

Valencia nodded as if it didn’t matter at all.

Jerry began his story with a small sigh, ‘Hoo-.’.

“…It’s about nothing else.”

“……”

“…There is something I wish to discuss regarding my clan.”

A story about the Vampire Clan.

It was to be expected from the moment Jerry came here, braving the filth he hated, and from the moment he struggled to use formal speech.

Jerry had not come to this place as ‘Jerry Junior’.

He had come as the heir of the Dracula Family.

As the last remaining survivor of the Vampire Clan, to seek out the heir of the Beastkin Royal Family.

…To be precise.

“…About that day.”