The Youngest Son of the Northern Grand Duke Wants to Break Off the Engagement

Alter, seized by conviction, tried to come up with a countermeasure.
If Brillie were fighting alone, there would be little to worry about.
However, now that he was by her side, it became a clear constraint.

'She'll try to protect me while fighting... There will definitely be a problem.'

Alter could roughly predict how Brillie would act.
Based on the dispositions and atmosphere described in the original work, her crisis responses, and the gentle demeanor she had shown him, considering all these traits, Brillie would not be able to fully demonstrate her abilities because of him.

'If we get caught here, we could die.'

A pureblood vampire was targeting Brillie to seize the blood of destiny.
Until satisfied, it would continue to drink more and more blood, and Brillie would not be able to avoid excessive bleeding.
In short, for Brillie to survive, she had to defeat the pureblood vampire, no matter what.

'Originally, I should let her escape, but if we can't win, that's meaningless too.'

In the original story, Brillie took the advantage over the pureblood vampire and led it to the verge of being killed.
But the pureblood vampire escaped at the last moment, barely clinging to life.
From that point, the pureblood vampire came to both oppose Brillie and, deep down, harbor feelings of yearning for her.

'I need to decide now. Should I just watch, or should I kill that thing...?'

"Just stay by my side. Then you won't get hurt."

Brillie, her hand on the sword hilt, moved protectively close to Alter.
She didn't expect the vampire to launch a surprise attack at this very moment.
She'd hoped it would disappear without a trace, but who would've known it was this persistent?

"Heuh, ugh... aaah..."

Multiple afterimages began to emerge from the darkness.
Along the dimming twilight, the silhouettes flickered faintly.
Skin drained of all color, an impression both cunning and wicked, magic power tainted with ferocity.
Five vampires were eyeing Brillie, surrounding the two of them.

'... Five? It's supposed to be three.'

Alter grew even more tense, anxiously pondering.
It was already hard enough protecting himself, but now there were even more enemies to fight.
He didn't know what change had added new variables, but he couldn't deny that the situation had worsened.

'Four out of those are hybrids, but the pureblood is too difficult.'

Hybrid vampires had many more weaknesses than purebloods.
They would burn instantly in sunlight and couldn't even endure attacks derived from holy arts.
Moreover, with such a low amount of magic power in their bodies, performing magic was impossible for them.
In contrast, a pureblood vampire had overcome all of these disadvantages and could unleash vast magic power.

'We could fight and win, but it's too dangerous.'

Alter expected the worst.
Brillie would lose, the pureblood vampire would feed on her blood, and he himself would die in vain.
Especially now, with the variables diverging from the original work, he couldn't just rely on what he knew from before.

'If it comes to this... there's only that option left.'

Alter made up his mind without even watching the battle.
All the people nearby had fled, and there wasn't time to run to the carriage.
In the end, unless they defeated these vampires, there was no guarantee of safety.

'I can't fine-tune this, but if it's just for Brillie...'

Alter hesitated for a moment, then steeled his resolve.
He began drawing out his inner magic power and quickly scanned his surroundings.
Brillie, belatedly sensing the abnormality in his magic power, had no choice but to turn to him.

"What are you doing right now?"

"I thought I'd try a little trick."

Alter muttered softly and began converting the magic power inside his body.
He lacked experience with magic, only knowing the theory in his head.
However, his aptitude as a mage was so exceptional that forming the shape wasn't difficult.

"Miss Brillie, I'll leave what comes after to you."

"What do you—?"

Before Brillie could finish, Alter activated his magic.
Immediately, cold air flowed from his body, and soon faint shards of ice began to form.

Brillie instinctively felt something was off, but couldn't bring herself to stop Alter.

'If I die from this... it can't be helped. I don't exactly have the leeway to complain.'

Alter instantly identified the pureblood vampire and infused his attack with intense murderous intent.
If he were to follow the original story, he'd need to weaken the magic enough for the vampire to escape.
But his physical condition was still sluggish, and his mastery of magic was not polished.
So now, he had no choice but to pour everything into this one spell.

'I just have to hope my body can endure it.'

Alter exhaled softly and unleashed the cold.
His breath frosted white, and the frigid air spread out in all directions in an instant.
Before the vampires even had time to think about running away, parts of their bodies were already freezing over.

"Kyah!"

"Huaaa...!"

The four hybrid vampires couldn't withstand the cold and were completely frozen.
They didn't move at all, like ice statues.
Then, cracks formed in one area, and soon the statues shattered completely.

"Hurgh... How could I... The successor of the purebloods...!"

Aner, shrouded in the freezing air, trembled uncontrollably.
Both legs were already frozen, with just his arms moving sluggishly.
But even so, there was no way to drive out this cold, and his bodily senses were growing dim.

'Impossible. Where did this human come from...?'

Aner had targeted only Brillie, not sparing a thought for the human beside her.
But that human had, in a moment, released an enormous amount of magic power and wiped out the hybrid vampires.
If only he'd known Alter had this much magic power, he would never have attacked first.

'Am I going to die? Me?'

Aner sensed his own death, yet fiercely denied it.
There was no way a pureblood like him could disappear so meaninglessly.
This kind of cold—he must survive and overcome it somehow.

"You could use magic?"

"I'd studied a bit... just a bit."

Alter withdrew his magic and let out a labored breath.
His breathing was still only disturbed, no pain had followed yet.
If he could just maintain this state, he might be able to recover slowly later.

"I've never seen magic like that. You seem stronger than me."

"I'm not that... kuh!"

Alter suddenly bent over and coughed up blood.
He'd anticipated there would be some side effects, but now he was vomiting blood.
He felt a tightness constricting his entire body, with a loud buzzing echoing in his ears.

'Did I... overdo it by giving it my all?'

Alter's vision blurred as he involuntarily slumped.
He didn't even have the strength to stand anymore, and belatedly, pain washed over him.
It was probably because the magic power supporting his body had vanished, causing massive strain.

'If this keeps up, I'll die first...'

Alter appeared on the verge of collapsing, but then stopped.
Brillie supported and held him in her arms.
At least he had stopped coughing blood, but his eyes were unfocused.
She would need to take him to a priest right away for treatment.

"Can you hear me? Hold on, please!"

"....."

"Hey! I said focus!"

"....."

"Hey! You can't die! Please, just hold on a little longer!"

Brillie shook Alter's body desperately.
She had worried if his sudden use of magic would cause any problems, and now an accident had occurred after all.
If only she'd stopped him from using magic, perhaps she could have prevented this.

'He should have just trusted me...'

Brillie ignored the vampires and climbed directly into the carriage.
She checked and confirmed that four out of the five vampires were frozen and shattered.
The last one survived, but with half its body frozen, it wouldn't last long.
She would have to leave the rest to the city guard and come back to check later.

'He's not going to die like this, is he? Don't go. Don't let it end like this.'

Brillie, anxious, didn't let go of Alter.
No matter how weak or young he was, he was the one she had promised to marry.
Just now, when they were starting to get to know each other, she didn't want to be separated like this.

'Why did he force himself when he was in that state...?'

* * *

Alter, feeling a gnawing hunger, cautiously opened his eyes.
At some point, he was lying on a bed, in a familiar environment.
He guessed he must have fainted and been brought back to the duke's mansion.

"Ugh... whew..."

Alter felt a subtle pain as he arduously sat up.
His head spun a little, and both hands were trembling.
He never imagined the aftereffects of using powerful magic would be this severe.

'At least, I didn't die.'

Alter was relieved internally, but still conscious of the pureblood vampire.
He was sure his attack had worked, but he hadn't confirmed whether it had survived or not.
If it did survive, there would be another variable to deal with.

'Since things are different from the original, I might not end up as the male lead.'

Alter frowned in thought for a while and then started searching for water.
He had no idea how long he'd been lying down; both thirst and hunger were striking him at once.
When the butler or maid arrived, he would have to ask for a meal first.

'If I'm not the male lead, maybe it'd be better to just die...'

"Are you alright? Do you recognize me?"

Brillie, entering the room, came straight to Alter's side.
She'd been plagued by anxiety while Alter was unconscious.
But fortunately, he had come to and didn't seem to be in any mortal danger.

"Yes. I'm alright."

"Are you sure? You don't feel sick anywhere?"

"My head's a bit dizzy... but I can bear it. Did I come back to the mansion right away?"

"Ha... Mister Alter. You've been in bed for three days. I thought you'd never wake up!"

"......?"

Hearing this, Alter's drowsiness vanished in an instant.
He hardly believed it—his sense of time must have been distorted.
What kind of magic had he unleashed to keep him unconscious for three days?

"The priest finished treating you, but they said we still needed to keep an eye on you. If there's any problem, you have to tell me."

"Other than the dizziness... Ah, my hands are trembling a bit."

"That's all?"

"Ah... wait. My hands aren't trembling anymore. My head... maybe it's gotten a bit better? I think I'm alright."

Alter looked around briefly, then gave a definite answer.
He wouldn't say he was in perfect condition, but at least he could move.
Since Brillie was here, he might as well ask the questions that were on his mind.

"What happened to them?"

"Them? Ah, do you mean the monsters?"

"Yes. Did all of them die?"

"... Yes. All five died on the spot."

"......"

Alter grew quiet, coming to terms with what he had done.
Not only the hybrid vampires but also the pureblood—who was supposed to become the male lead—had been killed.
Of course, it had been the only choice for survival, but he hadn't wanted this outcome.
Now, all the content related to the pureblood vampire would be excluded from now on.

'Is this right? I won't even be able to clean up after this...'

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Oh, Alter had that dawg in him...
He annihilated that pureblood vampire in a jiffy...
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】