The Ice's Yearning Volume 1 Chapter 3

“What do you think?”

Takas.h.i.+ro calmly answered the random question that his lord threw at him abruptly without any warnings.

“There is no precedent.”

He understood that the conversation was about the human child which his master picked up several days ago.
He wasn't particularly ordered to do so, but he had been serving that human child like she was “guest of his master”.
Takas.h.i.+ro also understood that the girl was nothing but an interesting observation target for Byakuren. The current situation could also be called the result of a mere whim.

Byakuren's private adjoining room.
Unlike of a room in the bas.e.m.e.nt that was given to Alfra, this was a room with brusque stone walls, though the furnis.h.i.+ngs and the luxuriousness of the interior wouldn't lose to the private rooms of royalty.

Cold air was seeping in from the balcony on the 4th floor, the top floor of the castle and if one took a good look, they would have an extensive view of an enormous snow field.
The fireplace was not lit and the room was the same temperature as the outside where snow kept falling. However, the two demons showed no signs of minding it.
Takas.h.i.+ro was waiting by the throne where Byakuren was sitting, as if ready to follow through with her wishes at a moments notice.

“Scramble for magical powers and the exchange of powers through the blood is a normal occurrence between demons, however…there is no precedent when it comes to humans.”

“……I'd expect so.”

“This is merely what I have heard.”

Making a preface, Takas.h.i.+ro continued.

“According to what I have heard, when humans are given the blood of a high-ranking demon, about half of them die from their capillary vessels exploding.”

Byakuren urged Takas.h.i.+ro, who took a short pause, with her eyes.

“For Alfrsama, who was lethally injured, to not end up the same way and even heal her wounds in as few as seven days is something that is normally unthinkable.”

Alfra's injuries were very severe even externally and if left to heal naturally, would take several months to heal, while if the inner injuries were also taken into account, it wouldn't be surprising if she died instantly.
It was definitely a fatal wound.

“So you are saying that there is an unusual main cause for this?”

“Someone like me cannot understand it ―― but, there is still a possibility that the same effect could be seen in other humans, so in my humble opinion, this is not a question that could be answered by holding onto Alfrsama case only.”

“Certainly. …I've heard that within the humans, there are those who hunt demons in order to make miracle drugs for longevity or nostrum to raise their magical powers and try to obtain their blood and entrails?”

“That is not necessarily a mistake. It is fact that it is possible to activate the same kind of healing powers and metabolism like us, the demons, by ingesting magical powers through blood. Even so, Alfrsama's resilience is abnormal.”

“Though”, connecting his words, Takas.h.i.+ro continued his speech.

“It is almost impossible for humans to hunt powerful demons. If there are no humans who have drunk the blood of high-ranking demons, there is no way of comparing.”

Takas.h.i.+ro contemplated for a short while.

“As expected…I think that even just speculating why such results appeared would prove to be difficult.”

“Hm…”

“Even if humans stepped into the territory of demons in hopes of quickly getting rich, I reckon even just surviving would be a hard feat.”

“…..”

“For example, what if the Orcs increased in numbers way too much due to their tremendous reproductive powers and a severe famine broke out in the period of every few years. Once their numbers increased to a certain number, Orcs would leave the demon territory and plunder war against the neighborhood human Kingdom.”

“This year is that year and that girl's village was burned.”

“Yes. This time their numbers were small and the forces must have been from about 12 000 to 15 000. But, because of that, they were faster and many villages were swallowed in the battle. However, they ended up in combat with the Knights dispatched from the capital and the Orcs seem to already be in the state of collapse.”

“….in short?”

“My apologies, I ended up diverting the story. 30 years ago, humans conducted an Orc culling strategy.”

“I've heard about that. Thinking that if they would be regularly invaded by Orcs, it would be better to reduce their numbers before they would become saturated and attacked the demon territory, right?”

“Yes. I have heard that a troop of about 10, 000 with chivalric order as the main force was aiming for the Orc village. However, after being  met with Lord Gaien's ambush attack and leaving enormous casualties, they instantly took flight.”

“Gaien…was it the n.o.ble with the rank of Count?”

“That is correct. Even for the national army, entering the territory of demons was not an easy feat. It seems that after withdrawing without gaining any results, they have arranged troops in several fortresses related to the national border and supervise humans who try to trespa.s.s into the territory of demons.”

“They don't want to anger demons, huh….oh, I remembered. Gaien ――it's that man who incited the Orcs to plunder humans if they were hungry.

　Takas.h.i.+ro asked Byakuren who had been furrowing her eyebrows as if remembering something unpleasant.

“Is madam acquainted with Lord Gaien?”

“He's a senile old fool who looked at with obscene eyes as if licking me all over.

Byakuren answered as if spitting out.
Takas.h.i.+ro smiled bitterly at his master who slanderously cursed at the demon with court rank.

“Therefore, we can say that for humans to obtain the blood of demons is close to impossible. There is no precedent, so there is no way of checking what kind of effect does the blood of high-ranking demons have on humans.”

“I see…so the matter goes back to there…”

Byakuren, which had been ruminating for a while, opened her mouth.

“I will continue giving blood to that girl for a while. Notify me about any changes, no matter how trivial it might seem.”

“I understand. However, I am afraid that madam's blood contains the same amount of magical powers as the n.o.bles'. For humans it would be close to the powerful poison――”

Takas.h.i.+ro unconsciously stopped in the middle of the sentence.
Byakuren was smiling, with the corners of her mouth lifted.
Takas.h.i.+ro stood in stony silence after seeing the rare smile of his master.

“Any problems with that?”

“No, pardon me.”

The old butler simply bowed his head very deeply.

After having a simple dinner of soft bread and a small dish soup, Alfra dazedly stared at the door.

――So bored…

In the end, Byakuren silently left the room at the same time as Fermar who exited the door to bring the dinner. Several hours later, there was no news from the silver-haired beauty.

――I wonder why she came here?

It was a natural question.
Without saying anything in particular, Byakuren just stared at Alfra's body and left the room soon after.

“Uuu～～……”

The expectation that Byakuren would come back and the curiosity of wanting to go outside the room kept Alfra's sight chained to the door.

―― There aren't any windows so I can't look outside either…

Bored Alfra got off the bed and while keeping an eye on the door, she peeked at the dresser.

Wondering if she had any strange parts, she tried looking sideways, laughing, pinching her cheeks and pulling it.
The mirror made of gla.s.s made her curious, but soon enough she got bored of it and started to fiddle with the luxurious furnis.h.i.+ngs.

But still, she couldn't help being curious about the door.

She wasn't told that it was okay to leave the room, so Alfra had somehow started to think that she couldn't go outside. However, because of too much boredom, she boldly turned that thought over.

―― I haven't been told that I can't go outside the room…would it be okay if I went outside?

She stood before the door while asking herself, tilted her small head and tried thinking for a bit.

―― Will I be scolded? is it okay?

Before her extended hand could reach, the door was push opened inwards.

“Hiiee….”

She ended up giving out a weird voice. Her hands that had lost the destination unconsciously started to wind around in the air.

“U-um, I'm sorry.”

Alfra muttered with a trembling voice, looking up at Byakuren's face, which was at a much higher position than her. With the eyes as if seeing something very unusual, Byakuren looked at Alfra's dancing hands.

Brus.h.i.+ng aside both the strange air at the place and the frozen Alfra, Byakuren entered inside and asked.

“Were you trying to leave the room?”

The tone of her voice was the same as usual, but Alfra unconsciously froze in fear.

“I-I'm sorry. I was a bit curious about the outside…”

“I don't really mind. If you're bored, do whatever you want.”

“Eh?! is it okay if I go outside?”

“I already said that I didn't mind.”

“Oh…I'm sorry.”

Making her say the same thing again, Alfra, who remembered that Byakuren hated repeating her words, instantly looked down.

“I will take a little bit of blood.”

“Huh….?

Byakuren grabbed Alfra's arm and blew on the back of her hand. Just like yesterday, glittering snowflakes danced in the air. Alfra shrugged her neck, feeling the almost painful coldness.

“Oh my.”

Murmuring in an amazed voice, Byakuren caressed Alfra's hand that was white as if it was covered in frost.
The frost disappeared immediately, but there were not even the traces of a scratch.
Again, Byakuren blew a breath.
Unlike the previous time, ice crystal-like things spilled out from her mouth. A stinging pain ran through Alfra's hand.

“It hurts!”

The wound wasn't that deep, but the cracked skin was tinted with blue, as if frostbitten.
Making a satisfied face, Byakuren put her mouth on the gradually spreading blood.

“Aaah!”

Alfra felt gooseb.u.mps due to the coldness of the pressed lips and the sensation of her wound being licked. Her cheeks were dyed with red and she looked at Byakuren's mouth with moist eyes.
Byakuren quickly raised her head and muttered with the same expressionless face.

“….I don't really understand well.”

Bringing her face close to the wound once again, this time Byakuren gave out a slight surprised voice.
Alfra, following her line of sight, was also surprised to see that the bleeding of the wound had stopped. The part that was discolored in violet had returned to its normal skin color and the wound itself was getting smaller.

The silent Alfra and Byakuren, how long had they been watching? Eventually, flesh rose from inside and the wound became almost inconspicuous.

“….What is this? why?”

“That reminds me, I promised to tell you today, right?”

“Yes….”

Whispering that she had forgotten about it, Byakuren ordered Alfra to sit down on the bed. Without sitting down on a chair herself, Byakuren asked Alfra as if confirming while looking down on her.

“Do you know that strong magical powers reside in the blood of demons?”

“No, I didn't know. I'm sorry.”

“I see. Well, whatever. Magical powers dwell in the blood.”

“Yes.”

“Magical power is a pure force. Depending on how you use it, you can boost your vitality or the healing speed, and you can also perform magic.”

“Amazing! So that's why that wound healed right away.”

“That's right. While you were asleep, I kept dripping my blood in your mouth. Everyday for 10 days.”

Alfra herself too understood that she had been wounded deeply enough to have wandered on the border of life and death. ―― Nevertheless, when she woke up, she readily accepted that those wounds were completely done.

Normally, she would have felt that the wounds of that severity being completely healed in less than 10 days was weird no matter how one looked at it, but Alfra was still young and there was something more important than such a thing for her.

――Byakuren-san saved me.

Alfra's mahogany-colored eyes twinkled ecstatically.
When she thought that Byakuren who gave out a strong, cold impression, was concerned about her wounded condition and nursed her for 10 days, she felt unable to contain herself with feelings like ――happiness and embarra.s.sment ――, her heart becoming restless.

“My magical power should be residing in your blood.”

She couldn't understand it but finding out that Byakuren's magical powers resided inside of her made Alfra be in more high spirits.

“Though…earlier when I got your blood, I couldn't sense it well.”

“――Eh!?

She was completely disappointed right away.

“Still, a considerable amount of magical powers should have transferred from me to you. The healing speed of that wound was wonderful.”

Feeling she was being praised, Alfra looked at Byakuren with a smile that looked as if she was wagging her tail.

“Close your mouth, how sloppy.”

She learned that she should have been on her guard all the time.

“Healing wounds and raising the resistance towards the magical powers is something that can be done to some extent even without being conscious.”

“I see….”

“Try to practice the active use of magical powers next.”

“Huh…by practice, you mean…”

When Byakuren silently protruded her hand, she showed a small blizzard on top of her palm.

“Wah! M-magic?!”

“People have different strengths and weaknesses. For me it's snow or ice. Mainly I'm good at lowering the temperature.”

“Byakuren-san, amazing!”

“You should be able to do something too. Give it a try.”

“Eh?”

――Something as in…what?

She at least understood that the other person was expecting something magical. In hopes of answering to those expectations, she tried putting both her hands forward.

“Uuuu～～～！”

“……”

――Something, come outー! Anything is okayー!

“Uuuu～～～！”

“……”

“…..is there any kind of a trick to it?”

“Well….I wonder how I should say this, like this….”

Again, Byakuren's palm was raised and the gust of wind imcomparatable to the one before overflew.
Ice wedge whirled in the center of the room and Alfra's hair fluttered.

“Amazing….”

In the room which eventually regained the peace, leftover snow was thinly covering the floor.

“Like this, I guess.”

Alfra alternated between looking at her palm and Byakuren's face.

“Oh, right, right. Right now I'm calling water and wind energy at the same time. I'm not paying much consciousness to it though.”

―― Not being conscious of it…I wonder if that's the trick? what are the water and wind energy?

The questions only kept increasing.
After that, Alfra tried her best for a short time (about one hour), but she couldn't produce any kind of results.
And in the end, Byakuren, who couldn't think of any helpful advice seemed to have gotten bored quickly.

Leaving Alfra with “if you manage to produce something, I'll give you blood as a reward”, silver-haired beauty left the room.

“Her resistance to the magic seems to have risen a little bit.”

“Are you not giving her too much of blood?”

Byakuren's private room. Takas.h.i.+ro still flawlessly managed the conversation with his master which talked only a few words as usual.
Although he was a man capable in many fields, his communication skills should've probably been worthy of special mention.

“I haven't given any to her yet today. Instead I got some blood from her, but at first, I couldn't scratch her.

“Is that so?”

“For the second time I slightly overdid it and the wound changed colors as if frostbitten, ―― but it healed in a second…”

“Even if doesn't reach the level of beastmen…she seems to at least have the Troll-level healing powers.”

“When you cause frostbite, the healing by magical powers gets slower. I think that perhaps because the blood circulation gets obstructed, the flow of magical powers also stagnates.

“As expected, it is still abnormal for a normal human.”

Sitting deeply on her throne, Byakuren abruptly changed the topic while still resting her chin on her hand.

“Teach that girl how to use magic.”

“Certainly.”

“I tried letting her do it just a moment ago, but I don't seem to be suited for it.”

“I will dedicate all my efforts to it, but please do not hold high expectations.”

“I know.”

“Alfrsama is an intellectual child, but everybody has something they are suited or unsuited for.”

Byakuren raised her eyebrows in surprise.

“Intelligent? that girl is?”

“Yes.”

“That timid girl who always has her mouth sloppily open and only stares at me with the pathetic dog eyes?”

Nodding once, Takas.h.i.+ro started to defend Alfra while still showing his submissiveness.

“It is certainly as you have said, ―however, after almost dying once, she was brought to an unknown place. Given her age, it is not surprising that she is so timid. As for the thing you called “dog eyes”, is it not a manifestation of deep affection? Puppies are also unexpectedly very cute.”

Takas.h.i.+ro talked favorable about Alfra, but he avoided mentioning her mouth.

“Haa…deep affection, huh.”

Byakuren muttered with a face full of skepticism ―― However, perhaps she had a change of heart of some kind, she rose up from her throne.

“Well, whatever. Let's go give that girl today's portion.”

On that day Alfra was told by Byakuren that she would get blood as a reward
if she managed to produce “something”, but ultimately, despite her being unable to do anything, she was still somehow fortunate enough to receive the reward.

               

—-
Notes:
Takas.h.i.+ro says 例に取って which is something like taking as an example, I guess? well, the basic idea is that as long they don't know what kind of reactions would other humans show to the blood of the demons there is no way of finding out if Alfra healed fast because of her individual traits or because all humans just get accelerated healing powers

A miracle drug is 霊薬, nostrum is 秘薬

Alfra is such a lesbo-gay even as a kid

Anyway, I hate 3rd POV so please notify me about the mistranslation, awkward grammar and typos so I could fix them afap
If I'm neglecting one series for several months you can come to yell at me on discord