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“Oh…”

The restraints binding my body suddenly vanished. The red chains that had been wrapped so tightly around us—so tightly I couldn’t even stand up—had suddenly dissipated like mist.

“Tch. That damned s̲l̲u̲t̲.”

I muttered curses at the girl that’s no longer here, then immediately stood up and brushed the dust off myself. The only other movements around me were those of my two subordinates.
Dachshund and Chihuahua, who had been bound by chains just like me, were also free now.

“Boss, I’m sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it. Nothing happened until we could move again, so it’s fine.”

It would’ve been a hassle if monsters or the army had found us while we were immobilized. If that had happened, we would’ve had to do something—even if it meant forcing our way out.
The reason the chains vanished was probably because she fell asleep. That s̲l̲u̲t̲. I think she went by the name Argento, didn’t she?
The vampire ability “Blood Arms” is deactivated when the user loses consciousness. I know that all too well.
And it seems she really likes to sleep. There’s no doubt the ability was deactivated because she fell asleep. If she’d been attacked by a monster and died, that would’ve been a relief, though.

“Any injuries?”

It goes without saying, but I’ll check just in case.
After capturing us, that s̲l̲u̲t̲ cast a healing spell before leaving the scene. So we shouldn’t have any wounds. If anything, we were rolled up in a mat and tossed around, so we’re probably just a little covered in sand.

……And she’s such a ridiculous healer, too.

Our injuries were nothing more than scrapes, but she used a surprisingly elaborate spell for that.
Healing all three of us at once. And to top it off, it even removed dirt. Not only were our minor injuries healed, but even the mud and dirt I’d picked up when I dove into the ground were completely washed away.

“I’m fine, Boss!”
“Me too!”
“Alright. Let’s go, then.”

It’s not just a little—it’s actually pretty infuriating that she clearly went easy on us, but as they say, life comes first.
I’m pissed, but I’d better prioritize staying alive. First, let’s retrieve the knives I threw, and then we’ll deal with this.

“What on earth is that woman?”
“How the hell should I know? I’ve never heard of a vampire with such ridiculous healing abilities and speed.”
“You’re right. If she’d been around for a while, we’d know about her already.”

Dachshund’s right. If a vampire like that had been around for a long time, we would know about her.
I know a few “absurd” vampires. The “Vampire Princess” of Gold, the “Count” of Black, and the “Lord” of Red.
But she is silver. A new kind of absurdity—silver—that rivals the others. Vampires are always born out of the blue, but it’s rare to see one with abilities like that right off the bat.
On top of that, she’s even got such an absurd *toy*.

“Where the hell did she pick that thing up?”
“That thing? You mean her sword?”
“……Yeah.”

I’ve known about that sword for a while, too. Even Dachschund and Chihuahua have heard of it. Since I can appraise artifacts, I knew right away what it was.
Sister blades forged by a mad swordsmith who had lost his other half. Two blades forged in a moment of nostalgia for a fleeting dream.
One of them is in the Empire. I’d heard the other had been lost to the shadows, but now it’s ended up in the hands of that s̲l̲u̲t̲. How on earth did she get her hands on it? We’d been unable to track it down for years.

“The Dreaming Water Lily”

Both the name and its effect have been verified. I knew them from the start, anyway.
Since she seemed clueless, I thought about telling her, but once the conversation stalled, I lost interest.
Why the hell should I be the one to tell her, anyway? It’s ridiculous.

I retrieved all the knives I’d thrown and stowed them away for now. I can maintain them while on the move.
I’m still not that far from the border. We need to get moving soon and find our next prey.
I don’t know if we’ll run into that s̲l̲u̲t̲ again. If we do, I’m determined to make her pay for treating us like clowns this time—but as things stand now, that might be a stretch.
If we’re going to take a vampire of that caliber seriously, three of us just won’t cut it. We’ll need something to overcome that challenge.

“……I guess I’ll start thinking of a plan.”

It’s a line of work where you never know when you’ll die—there’s no telling what lies ahead. At the very least, it’s better to prepare for the things we can see well in advance.
I haven’t come up with anything yet, but I’ll try to think it over when I have a spare moment.

……She seems to have a lot of openings, too.

To be precise, that s̲l̲u̲t̲’s underestimating us way too much.
She seems to have learned her lesson a bit from this fight, but she’s still way too complacent.
If she hasn’t improved in that regard by the time we meet again, I’ll be the one who wins next time. Of course, I’ll have a plan ready even if she has improved.
I’ll make her regret the strange mercy she showed us by letting us live—next time for sure.

“Let’s go, you b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲s̲!”
““Aye, Boss!!””

Satisfied with their usual, prompt response, I flick my cloak.
Anyway, first things first: tomorrow’s meal. We’ve got to find our prey and hunt it down.
That’s right. We’re the band of thieves that can silence even a crying child. After all, we’re the Terrier Bandits.
It’s gotten tough operating in the Kingdom, but the Republic is vast. It should be a good place to make a name for ourselves.
We haven’t decided where to go. We don’t even know what tomorrow will bring.
And that’s fine. That’s exactly how it should be. Because right now, we’re free.
We’ll do whatever we want. We won’t let anyone get in our way. We’re thieves, after all.