About the First Day at the S— Meeting of the Vampires Archdukes – Part 1

After a while, Yakatarina and her maid seemed to calm down. I am not sure what was really going on there but whatever. We finally headed to the beach.

"It is the sea!!!" yelled Yakatarina running towards, well, the sea.

"You are doing this again?" I asked, slowly walking behind her.

She turned to me and smiled, "Sacrifice! This is a matter of sacrifice! That sentence is required to start any beach episode! If no one is going to do it, I will sacrifice myself for the good of the people!"

"It is incredible how you can sound so savvy, funny, and stupid at the same time. Anyway…" I looked to my right, "Why are there so many people here? I thought this was a private beach?"

"It is."

"It is?"

"It is."

That isn't what my eyes were telling me. There were at least a dozen people there and they didn't seem to be there just by accident. You don't exactly bring a parasol, a folding chair, and a cup of red wine to a beach you are not supposed to— wait, nothing says you can't.

"Yakatarina, they are intruders on your beach."

"Correction. They aren't intruders, they are my guests!"

"Huh?" I made, turning towards her.

The red-eyed vampire nodded slowly.

"I invited them," she said before crossing her arms around her chest and looking upwards. "I didn't expect them to come this early though."

"Oh…" Now that I think about it, she never said it would only be the two of us…

"Should I introduce you to them?"

"Huh? No, it is not necessary…"

"Is that so? Sadness."

Yakatarina stretched her arms up in the air, a move that exposed the lower piece of her black-colored bikini and somehow emphasized her cleavage.

"Dawn?"

"U-Uh? Oh, what were you saying?"

Looking down her red eyes scrutinized my face for a few seconds before answering.

"Nothing yet but I did mean to mention something."

"Oh, uh, what is it?"

She folded all of her right hand's fingers except her pinky and presented her pinky to me.

"Promise."

"Huh?"

"Promise me you won't get angry."

I squinted, "If you know your question is going to make me angry, why just not ask and be done? I am not going to eat you or anything."

"True but…" She hugged herself and shivered, "Urgh, you are a bit scary when you really get angry. You don't only yell but shoot at people. How scary. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night after hearing a gunshot, but there's no one there. PTSD. I might have developed PTSD!"

"Uh-huh? Well sorry? I would have gladly stabbed you if I could use an uncanny sword. You would probably not be able to joke the way you do now if that was the case."

"So, about what I wanted to say—"

"You change gears really quickly don't you?"

"You have been staring at my chest for a while now. Is there a peculiar reason for that?"

"..." This smiling devil…

"Now, now, you don't have to be so nervous about that anymore," she said, passing her arm around my shoulder. She then leaned closer and whispered into my ear, "Not after all the nights we spent together, am I wrong?"

"..." This smiling devil!!!

I looked elsewhere, blushing so hard that my face was painful.

"... You always have to say things like that, huh? Fine, I will play along this time."

"Huh?"

I turned around and reached for her chest but before I could touch her, she swiftly jumped backwards.

"Hm?"

I looked at her with a puzzled expression. What she did was clearly an evasive jump and quite the big one – she was at least 2 meters away from me there. On her face wasn't her usual smile but a surprised expression. Her eyes were wide open and the corners of her slightly opened mouth corners were turned downward. In short, she looked like someone who just avoided taking mortal damage.

"... Yakatarina?"

"Huh?!"

Hearing me utter her name seemed to wake her up. She let down her shoulders, seeming lost but quickly went back to her usual expression.

"My, my," she said, zipping her jersey all the way up while shaking her head. "You are quite the feisty one, aren't you? Admirable. Truly admirable! I can only be fascinated by such bold behavior! That said, while I will let you look all you want, touching is a big no-no!"

She pointed at me with her right index while her left hand rested on her hip.

"Understood?!"

"Y-Yes?"

"Are you asking me or are you telling me?!!"

"Oh come on, don't use my… I mean yes."

She closed her eyes and nodded, "As long as you understand."

"Yeah…"

I wanted to tell her that the mole on her chest was a bit too efficient at attracting eyes so I only wished to zip her jersey. However, given her unusual reaction and the situation, she wouldn't have believed me. I mean, she zipped it herself; if I said that was what I wanted to do, she probably would have thought of it as a lame excuse.

"Don't blame her, Kate. The contrast of your raven black hair on your snow white skin is sure to stir many forbidden feelings in those who set their gaze upon you."

The voice of a young boy reached my ears along with the sound of the sand he was stepping on. When I turned my head, I saw a little blonde boy with short hair and gentle green eyes. Noticing my gaze, the young man closed his eyes and offered a gentle smile. He looked a middle-schooler but something about the way he stood made him feel much older.

"Oh, Garlic! Long time no see!" said Yakatarina cheerfully.

"Garlic?" I mumbled.

"That is the affectionate nickname she gave to me," replied the boy before kneeling, one knee on the ground, just before me. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Riftwalker. I heard a lot about you! For a simple person such as yourself to be able to hurt and capture the interest of our Archduchess of the Crimson Roses, I am smitten!"

Praising with his juvenile yet soft-spoken voice, the blonde boy nicknamed Garlic took my left hand and gently kissed my fingers.

"Eh?! What are you doing all of a sudden?!" I asked, panicked.

"Oh, maybe was I too formal for a child of this age?"

The little boy nodded and stood up.

"My apologies. Allow me to correct myself."

And here, before my horrified eyes, a scene out of this world took place.

*crack**crack**crack*

Sickening cracking noises came from the boy as his limbs grew longer and I started needing not to lower my gaze to see the top of his head, but to raise it just to meet his eyes.

"Now then. Arhem."

The… boy (?) cleared his now more mature voice and put his right hand on my shoulder.

"Hey cutie, you alone?"

"..."

"No reply? Could it be that you prefer older men?" the now adolescent-looking boy asked more to himself than to me. "Very well. Let's arrange that."

*crack**crack**crack*

Again, before my very eyes, I heard the muscles and the bones of my interlocutor twist and bend in ways I didn't think were possible.

"Now, I think I look in my late twenties?" he said, passing his hand through his hair. "I know I shouldn't come at you like that, out of nowhere, but what about taking a drink with me? Of course not alcohol seeing as you are still a minor."

"Wah..."

Again, I could only look at the scene before me without uttering a coherent sentence. My brain was too busy processing why I wasn't frightened beyond reason by a little boy morphing into both an adolescent and a young adult in less than 5 minutes. In fact, I was just thinking about how ridiculous it was that his clothes – a T-shirt and a shorts – looked smaller and smaller on his oversized body.

Something inside me must not have worked properly. Then again, I am apparently not really emotive.

"Hm. You still don't look interested. Maybe I should turn into a beautiful young woman then?"

"Wait, what?"

"Now then."

I saw hands envelop the young man's face and then heard another cracking noise. The second after he fell on the ground like a sandbag.

"This Garlic. Truly unaware of how frightening they can be," Yakatarina said, clapping her hands together as if she were brushing out the sand from her palm. "Are you okay, Dawn? Garlic didn't frighten you, did they?"

"... Did you break his neck just now?"

"No problem! That is nothing for an Archduke!"

"Which part in breaking someone's neck is 'no problem' material?!" I yelled, taking a step back.

*pang*

"Ouch!"

My back hit something hard and cold. As I turned around to see what it was, I found myself in front of a black set of armor adorned with a white cape.

"Huh?"

"O-Oh, ah, huh, hello?"

Coming from the closed helmet was an incredibly soft voice. Not befitting the set of armor they were wearing.

"How violent of you, Kate!" I heard someone in front of me say with barely a hint of complaint in their voice.

The blonde-haired man was back to his adolescent size but something was off.

"Ah~, this form truly is an ordeal for the shoulders. To think you have to deal with something like that every day. Though…"

His (?) gaze met mine.

"I think it does elicit a reaction in her after all."

It wasn't a boy before me anymore. It was the right hair color, the right length, and the right clothing but not the right face, body shape, or… gender. Before me was a well-endowed girl looking around my age.

"Now, for the finishing touches."

She (?) touched the hair on the right side of her bangs and pulled it, creating a long sidelock.

"Now, do I suit your tastes, Lady Rifwal—" She swiftly sidestepped a downward chop delivered by Yakatarina, "Wow there. Refrain from attacking from behind, Kate especially just after I change form. You know I feel weak when I do."

"Precisely," replied Yakatarina, still smiling even though I felt something akin to hostility coming from her.

"My, how cold of you, Kate. Is that how you treat your dear friend you haven't seen in the last 10 years? Sadness. I am overcome with sadness."

"Hm? Did you perhaps feel threatened, Garlic? Surprising. Truly surprising. Are my friendly attacks considered threatening by you now? Did you perhaps grow out of shape?"

"Y-You two… please calm down," said the person in full armor placing themselves between the two others.

"Uh… what is going on?" I asked, confused.

***

"Here. This is the Archduke of the Thousand Faces, Garlic," she said, indicating the blonde girl wearing a T-shirt too tight for her.

"Hi! My name is Millia Panis Allium, a member of the trickster's bloodline and Archduke of the Thousand Faces. My friends call me Garlic! Nice to meet you, Lady Dawn!" the girl said, giving me a wide smile.

"... Oh, nice to meet you too… Miss… Mister…?"

"Either is fine! I learned to accept that human language is simply too limited to include my gender!"

"Oh…"

"If you are confused, just use whichever is easier at the moment. I like this appearance so I might use it for the next decade or so. Let it be Miss Garlic, for you, my friend!"

And so, she smiled in a way that reminded me of Yakatarina's. White slit pupils and green eyes. Another Beast-type vampire though she talked about trickster bloodline? I heard that they could modify their body shape at will but I didn't think it extended to their genders.

"Friends? You have those?" Yakatarina chimed in, mockingly.

"Oh, but I have Lady Dawn here," she said, taking my hand. "Lady Dawn, I would be greatly honored if you— *crack*"

Yakatarina made another chop, this time too quick for me to follow. Before I knew it, it broke Mister, huh, Miss? Garlic's wrist.

"Ouch…" she said, letting go of my hand.

"W-What are you doing, Yakatarina?! You can't go breaking people's wrists like that?!" I yelled to her attention.

"But they don't even feel it," Yakatarina said, tilting her head.

"That is not a reason!"

"How pure *crack* You are a nice person, Lady Dawn," said Miss Garlic, fixing her own wrist in a bone-chilling move.

"D-Don't do things like that, please. It is not easy to look at. Or hear for that matter. Besides, your… clothes are a bit…"

"Oh, excuse me. I have no idea where Miss Blue Bridge is right now so I can't have a proper change of clothes. If it is not too much, I would like you to ignore my indecent attire for the time being."

She tilted her head and smiled.

"Oh…I see…" Well, I can't easily ignore that kind of thing if needed…

I turned to the one in armor.

"Who is this?"

"This is—"

"Uh, hm, hello… D-Dawn… how… nice to… I can call you… Dawn… right?"

"Uh yeah sure?"

"This is the Archduchess of Tragic Endings, I—"

"DON'T!!!"

The armor-wearing person moved so quickly that I couldn't follow them. A split second later, Yakatarina received an uppercut sending her flying into the sea.

"Ah~!!! Once more team— *ploof*"

"My. To anger the Archduchess of Tragic Endings enough for her to send you flying… Kate is impressive in her own way," commented Miss Garlic.

"Hey!!! Isn't she dead?!!" I yelled, shaking Miss Garlic.

"W-Well—"

"WEAR PROPERS CLOTHES, YOU!!!" yelled the Armored Archduchess taking Miss Garlic by the wrist and then throwing her into the sea like some random rock.

"Throwing me into the sea isn't a good i—*ploof*"

She then turned to me, donning a more beastly than knightly pose. I had the impression that she was about to attack me too except I would die if she did any of this to me.

"D-Don't worry. You are safe now. I am the Archduchess of Tragic Endings, nice to meet… you," she said, sounding more ominous than truly reassuring.

"Oh… nice to… meet you…"

What did I put myself into? The ominous dark armor aside, her title of Archduchess of Tragic Endings didn't sound very reassuring. What was this talk about Archdukes and Archduchesses about anyway? I thought I was here to enjoy the sea???