CH 8

“Mister, I brought a better job for you tod… Wha… Nnngh… I… brought it!”

The Saint’s voice echoes around the dark room.

The man raised his head and rubbed the back of his neck.

Seems like something is different from usual-

Oh, so that’s it.

“Good morning, Saint. Are you having trouble opening the curtains this morning?”

“My hands are a little full… Um… Uh, excuse me, can you open it for me? I can’t see anything in this darkness… Wait, mister, can you see?”

“Well, to see like this is just normal for me…”

The man is a vampire.

Even if she does not believe him.

During the time he secluded himself from the world, vampires had slipped into extinction and were now regarded as nothing more than ‘fairytale characters’.

Thanks to that, the vampire feared in the past “The Monster that Crawls Out of the Dusk” was now seen as nothing more than “The Man that Fears to Work”.

The man turned to the young maid in the corner of the room who wore her hair over one side, his familiar, and motioned with his eyes.

Although the familiar acting as a “granddaughter”, the truth is that it’s a mere imitation of a human being, which is why the man’s eye motion could be seen in the dark.

The heavy black curtains are finally opened.

The morning sun illuminated the antique and gothic furnishings of the bedroom, causing the man’s eyes to melt a little.

He rubs his eyes lightly to wipe away the damaged cornea, and it begins to regenerate.

Since the scale of damage to his eyes is so small and it’s mostly immediately regenerated, to any observer it would just seem like he’s bleary-eyed in the morning.

“…So, what did you bring today?”

He sat on the edge of the bed and asked.

Incidentally, he had now put a low table next to his bedside.

Since the Saint brought of things last time, he thought he should prepare a place for her to put them if she did so again.

Having to make such a table from scratch in only one day, he did pity the familiar just a little, but…

It seems to have been immediately useful.

Onto the table, the Saint placed a wooden box that she was carrying in her arms.

“Today, I have prepared some ‘homework’!”

“…What on earth is that?”

It was a phrase he had never heard of before.

Perhaps it is a new word – it makes sense that there would be new terms he hadn’t since he had been a shut-in for centuries. Even though the language doesn’t seem to have fundamentally changed, it seems that certain new words have appeared and certain old ones have become antiquated.

“It’s work you can do from home, homework!”

“…I see. Working remotely, is it?”

“Ah, yes, that’s it. Sorry, did I confuse you?”

“No…”

Somehow, the Saint’s kindness is painful.

The man put a hand on his chest.

“But, young lady, no matter how many times you’ve mention work I keep telling you I’m not interested, so I don’t think today will be any differe-”

“Before saying no, at least hear what I have to say first.”

“Hm.”

“I’m sorry about what happened yesterday. ‘Just get out there and work’ is… I didn’t consider mister’s feelings enough.”

“Are you feeling pity for me again?”

“No! I’m just reflecting on how thoughtless I was! So, today, I brought something that can help you reconnect with society without going outside!”

“That’s what this… ‘homework’ is?”

“That’s right!”

The Saint opened up the box that lay on the table.

Inside, various objects of shapes and sizes seemed to sparkle.

“…What exactly are those?”

“They’re things young people wear!”

“…Aren’t these just cheaply made garbage?”

“Mister, it’s ‘youth culture’.”

“…Are cheap things like this what the kids are into these days?”

“That’s not it! Because young people don’t have much money, they prefer these cheap and cute accessories!”

“…If they don’t have much money, maybe they shouldn’t be buying accessories at all?”

“When you go out to the town with friends, you have to have the same accessories as everyone else!”

“But, buying accessories even when you’re poor? I think it’s better to spend that money on something like bread instead…”

“Buying bread and buying accessories are two very different things!”

“…Hmm.”

He doesn’t really understand.

But, that’s only natural – As he locked himself away, times changed.

To simply dismiss culture you don’t understand as “strange” just makes one look small minded and ignorant.

“Well, that’s fine. So, this remote wo-… Homework, it’s to make these kinds of accessories?”

“Yes!”

“But, this is the work of a skilled craftsman, right? I’d be troubled if you expected me to possess such skills…”

“No, all that’s involved is pasting beads using adhesive, anyone can do it if they persevere!”

“…Wouldn’t it fall apart easily that way?”

“Well, it is cheap after all. But, that’s typical for things made for young people. It’s to be expected.”

“…”

Why would you bother buying such easily breakable cheap things?

Are you supposed to just buy a new one every time it breaks?

It would probably be less expensive in the long run to buy one quality item instead…

“…Well, fine. Back in my day, people would clamour for the jewellery and accessories made by well-known craftsman, but I suppose what people value has changed with the times.”

“The nobles still value things like that. But, this is just for young people.”

“Hmm, but…”

“It’s for the young people.”

“Well, if it’s for the young people, it can’t be helped.”

Because he’s an old man, there’s not much he can say when it comes to youth culture.

However, if the world has changed so much that even commoners are wearing accessories as well as nobles, the gap between rich and poor in this peaceful world must have diminished greatly.

An era of prosperity…

“By the way, the materials you brought, what are they to be made into?”

“Umm… fashion rings and earrings.”

“Hm…”

He didn’t know what a fashion ring was.

When he looked at the shape of the materials pointed out by the Saint, it must be a ring worn on the finger.

“These ones are meant for children. See, isn’t it colourful and cute?”

“…So you say.”

He can’t help but be concerned with how cheap everything looks.

With that kind of gloss, there’s no way these are precious gems…

Once called the ‘King of the Crimson Night’, his place amongst the upper echelons of vampire society wasn’t just for show.

“Hey~ Familiar-chan, Familiar-chan~, do you want to try wearing these?”

The Saint called out to the familiar who stood silently in the corner of the room.

The familiar stayed completely still, as if she were trying to blend with the wall.

She must not want to get involved with today’s annoyances.

“Let’s try making one today ourselves! Look, there’s already some samples to follow! How about we make one for your granddaughter?”

“…”

That granddaughter… The familiar definitely does not want one.

That child also understands the true value of things.

Well, ‘child’ is hardly appropriate.

For the bat who had lived for over 500 years, perhaps ‘old lady’ would be more fitting.

That said, it doesn’t seem like the Saint will be satisfied today unless he makes one.

The man sighed and resigned himself to making just one.

Today as well, the Vampire did not leave his castle.

But, he connected to society just a little.