Chapter 26 Responsibility

　　"Got any holy water? Test those people with holy water."

　　Edward offered.

　　One of the hunters handed him a bottle of holy water he was carrying and asked, "Is this enough?"

　　"Enough."

　　Edward came next to the old knight and put a drop on the back of his hand.

　　The holy water immediately began to burn the skin on the old knight's body, while Edward immediately wiped away the drops.

　　"He transformed too."

　　The hunter who had handed Edward the holy water drew his silver sword and asked, "Kill?"

　　Your son sighed as he looked at the still unconscious old knight and said, "Let's get it under control first."

　　Chief Hector has the hunters all follow Edward's method of testing unconscious people, and cautions everyone not to wake them up even if they find they've been converted.

　　"I'll go check on Evely." Edward walked out with holy water and a stony face.

　　Fortunately, there was no reaction to the drops of holy water on the back of the Huntress's bare hand.

　　Edward was only slightly more at ease.

　　He returned to the ballroom and tested the remaining people with the hunters.

　　"All have been converted."

　　After finishing the last man's test, Chief Hector was near despair.

　　No one attending this ball, including the castle's squires, was spared.

　　"Do it, kill us." Baldwin was so desperate that he sat down on the ground and drew in his neck.

　　"But the people who are here contain nearly all of Constantine's nobility, and they hold the entire military and political power of Constantine, and if they die ...."

　　"It is through them that the elder brother will turn Constantine into a city of vampires! Constantine is finished! Do it!" Baldwin's eyes had glowed red, the true red eyes of a vampire.

　　All the hunters present knew that things had reached an irreversible point, but no one could lay their hands on the Guildmaster who was generously begging for death.

　　"Master, does turning into a vampire necessarily mean losing your mind and attacking humans? Do you want to attack us now?" Edward asked.

　　Baldwin was momentarily speechless.

　　"There are vampires in this world that can coexist peacefully with humans, right? Just like the new Joy Night Empire in the north ...."

　　"What is this talk of peaceful coexistence? The vampires of the Joy Night Empire have merely kept humans in captivity like domestic animals!"

　　"Doesn't Constantine do the same?"

　　"How can it be the same?!"

　　"The nobles encroach on the lands of the commoners and keep them in captivity like domestic animals, the commoners do not have the slightest human rights, in order to survive, they contribute their labor and sweat as if they were giving their blood, in this regard, is there a difference between being in Constantine and being in the Joy Night Empire?"

　　Edward doesn't really have any intention of instilling the world with the universal values of Bluestar, knowing that there's no ground for these ideas to survive in this world of low productivity.

　　He also knew that Baldwin was not fundamentally different from other nobles, but just because he was a nobleman did not negate the glimmers of his humanity; this master vampire hunter, at least, was a man of integrity, courageous, and capable of sacrificing himself for the sake of the greater good.

　　Such people are worth saving.

　　"These people present here, I wouldn't dare to say that each and every one of them is innocent, and in the matter of oppressing civilians, they are even guilty of original sin. However, they did not become vampires by their own will, and just because of the fact that they may suck human blood in the future, is it reasonable to kill them without asking?"

　　Hearing Edward's words, the hunters fell silent, and the few that drew their silver swords silently put them into their scabbards.

　　Baldwin pondered for a moment and sighed, "You have a point, these people are innocent, but I have no face to face my family who were killed by vampires if I just live on. Give me the silver sword, and I'll finish this on my own."

　　"Master, I can give you the silver sword, but do you really want to run away from your responsibilities?"

　　"My responsibility?"

　　"Think about who these people became vampires because of! Because of your brother! And he is the Lord of Constantine and is supposed to guard this territory! And you are his rightful heir, and it is your duty to guard the territory for the humans and seek a way out for the vampires!"

　　This is the first time Edward has shown his aura since he came to this world; before this he was mild and aloof.

　　"Not only you, but since they are nobles of Constantine, it is their duty to guard Constantine whether they are human or ghost. That's all I have to say, the Silver Sword is here."

　　Edward laid the silver sword in his hand across Baldwin's face.

　　This makes the original owner of the sword very depressed, he silently recited in his heart, "This sword is my hey, you take it and forget to return it to me also even if, now also use it to make a scene ....."

　　The hunter didn't do anything to ruin the mood, though, and he could only hope that Master Baldwin would stop there.

　　Baldwin looked at the silver sword and thought for a moment, then laughed bitterly, "When you put it that way, it would seem like I'd be a coward running away from my responsibilities if I were to die."

　　Edward, however, bristled and smiled, "I will continue to treat you as a respected Guildmaster, no matter what choice you make."

　　"How can you be a vampire hunter when you've become a vampire yourself."

　　"Nah, when Master was still a human, when he saw someone doing something that hurt the world, he wouldn't hesitate to cut that person down, would he? Who says you can't be a vampire hunter when you become a vampire?"

　　"It feels like you're being particularly crooked tonight, so here's the deal, if I do fall into an evil vampire, you'll behead me with this silver sword."

　　The original owner of the sword wanted to rush up and shout "This sword is mine, I am the owner of the sword!"

　　Edward, however, was unaware of the inward cry of the hunter behind him, who said to Baldwin, "You'll outlive me, and by the time you fall, I may be long dead."

　　But he then said with a straight face, "But even if I and all the hunters present here pass away, the legacy of the vampire hunters will not stop, and if the master does fall, there will inevitably be a new generation of hunters to crusade against you."

　　"That I do believe."

　　Baldwin looked at the group of lean lads in front of him and suddenly felt that his time was in fact long over and a new generation of vampire hunters had grown up.

　　However, he had already reached the age where he couldn't do without old age, but he suddenly became an immortal monster, is this a good thing or a bad thing.

　　"Now there's another thing, not everyone shares Master Baldwin's awareness, and there's still the question of what to do with these guys."

　　Edward pointed to the newborn vampires sprawled across the floor, a little guilty.

　　"Let's put them in the guild dungeon for now." Chief Hector said.

　　It was a long night ahead.