"Ah—" The Elder's eyes wavered, and his body froze stiff at the sound of those words.

He wanted to refute them, to open his mouth and say it was all folly. But, his body did not permit him as the intense feeling increased from that crushing stare. He gulped, and his mouth simply moved on its own and spoke.

"T—ten percent… The real number is ten percent…"

"WHAT!?" Adam slammed his hands on the table in outrage, while Lisvern bore a blank expression to his side, his visage pail like he had seen a ghost.

"Explain yourself old man!? Why lie to us again at a time like this!? Especially concerning our friend!? Huh!?"

"Ah— I… I…" The elder's face perspired, and his mouth opened, yet his words did not go past simple mumblings barely audible beyond the shaking of his mouth.

"If he won't explain it, I will. It's very simple really." Alucard uncrossed his arms and took a step forward towards the table.

"He's trying to minimize any kind of damage possible. By making you believe Taylor had a high chance of survival, you would keep your high morale. He would say something along the lines of 'it will take several weeks for him to heal, and in the meantime, we should eliminate the threat to the village in order to provide better treatment.' And, not only that, but when Taylor most likely dies, you would make some excuse, and we wouldn't put as much blame on the village, but instead blame it more on the fate that had cursed him dead. Isn't that right, elder?" Alucard leaned close on the table and deepened his eyes towards the old man on the other end.

"N—not exactly… But yes… Mostly," He gulped, making Alucard smile beneath his mask

"Not exactly you say? Care to explain anything I messed up then?" Alucard stood up straight, removing his hands from the table.

"Yes… Please answer us Elder… Enough with the lies… Explain yourself…" Lisvern finally snapped out of his daze and found enough energy to speak, his gaze filled with an endless void nearly equal to that of Alucard, all directed at the Elder himself.

"We didn't have any malicious intent! Really! I was gonna say that the treatment does need weeks to heal, you're right! But it's the truth, not an excuse! We're desperate! We need a way to get food! And with that beast still up there, we only have enough in our reserves for one more week! After that, we will all starve to death! Not just us, but you and your poisoned friend as well!" The elder lowered his shaking head beneath his shoulders, tightly hanging onto the wooden table as his eyes leaked waterworks upon the wooden floor.

"We can't even get any food from elsewhere in here because we're too poor! But even if we weren't, every single one of our fighting capable men sacrificed their lives trying to slay that beast! We have no one to fight! Those damned goblins won't let any supplies in! We're stranded with nowhere to run! Our land is dying, and our people are going mad with hunger! We truly are desperate! Believe me! We had all interests at heart! We had no other choice!"

"..."

"Elder…" Lisvern mumbled. "Even I have to admit, your plan seems sound in theory. You're right, our morale was much higher with that lie. But you misjudged how stubborn a certain man in my team is…"

"..." The elder stopped shuddering for but a brief moment, looking up past the ground and the puddle of tears below him.

"When Vernon said that he won't return until Taylor wakes, he really meant it. And with how you described that beast, I would absolutely not allow my men to enter that cave with two of our members not with us. I'm sorry, but as long as Taylor remains asleep, there is no hope for this village."

The Elder's wrinkly eyes grew wider, and the waterworks of desperation began to trickle down even quicker as he raised his voice.

"Then… Then what our we supposed to do now!? Simply accept our doom and starve to death! Every father! And every mother and child all dead of starvation!?"

"We never said we would abandon the village." Lisvern shook his head. "We'll find some other way to survive, at least until we find the fate of our friend. That is when I will decide what to do moving forward."

"I— I understand… Thank you so much…" The elder clasped his hands. "I'm so sorry for lying… I was just afraid that you were all like those other adventurers, but you're different…Truly nice people… If you need absolutely anything, please don't hesitate to let me know!"

"Thank you," Lisvern lowered his head. "I will still need to discuss with you about things moving forward. I hope that this unusual first meeting won't hinder our future relations."

"Y—yes! Like-wise!" A twinkle gleaned in the eyes of the old man as he clasped his fists together and properly lowered his head.

"I see then," Alucard suddenly interrupted. "Elder, before I leave, I would like to take this opportunity to ask you some questions. Would you mind answering?" He crossed his arms once more.

"Yes, of course, I'd be glad to help in any way I can." The elder took a deep breath and calmed his nerves, yet he still made sure not to look directly in that man's direction.

"The medicine you say you use to cure the poison, what is it called? And can you provide me with a sample of it?"

"Oh, yes of course!" He promptly nodded. "It's called "Ash Blossom". It's a plant that had long been growing in the mountainous forest behind our village, but when that beast arrived, more of the forest began to die, and the Ash Blossoms that used to be plentiful became a very rare commodity. It's a wonder drug that has cured many of our illnesses for generations. I have one on me at all times, just in case I need it."

Hearing the name of the plant did not pique Alucard's interest in the slightest. After all, he had never even heard of such a thing. However, upon seeing the elder pull one out of his pocket, his eyes nearly came bursting out of the slight cracks in his mask, and his entire body moved nearer to take a closer look.

It was a soft stemless ten petalled flower. Around the size of an open palm, Its edges flowed elegantly arched with a red pistil at its center that dazzled the eyes with its whimsical air.

"Sir… Alucard…" The elder shuddered. "Do you recognize this flower?"

"Yes, I do, it was very common in my homeland, although it was referred to by another name." Alucard inwardly shook his head and once again steadied himself. "And you say this is very common in the forest behind the village?"

"Yes, very abundantly so… at least it used to be," he scowled "I would form expeditions to go look for more, but the forest is far too dangerous with all the fighting force of the village wiped out…"

"I see…" Alucard nodded his head before inwardly beaming to himself beneath his mask, turning around and heading towards the door. "That's all I needed to know, I'll be off then…" He yawned.

"Wait, Alucard, where are you going?" Lsivern's voice reached out.

"Apologies. Today's been long, and my eyes are going tired. The weather is nice, so I'll be finding a new spot of grass and sleeping outside to rest my wounds. I'll be back in the village by early tomorrow. If you don't mind, inform me of anything important by then. I hope Taylor's situation doesn't weigh too heavily on your minds. I'll leave the rest to you." Alucard stopped and turned his head to speak, yet not enough to show his face.

"I get you." Lisvern smiled in acknowledgment."You've more than done enough for today, just leave the rest to us."

"Mhm," Alucard resumed his casual stride towards the door, yet, right before he could step one foot out, he was once again halted by another voice calling his name.

"Alucard, before you leave, I have one question to ask you that's still bugging my mind… You said that you had definitive evidence of the elder's lies, but you never explained what it was."

"Hmph, so it seems…" Alucard turned his head to face Adam who had asked the question, before his gaze shifted to the entire room who were all expectantly looking at him. It was a sight that he could not help but grin at, one that was somehow felt by all those who stared as they eagerly awaited his answer.

"You see, unlike you two, I had been on high alert ever since I entered the village. And, as soon as we passed the cemetery, I immediately knew something was off. It was hard to spot with the naked eye, but, there were graves whose soil was fresher yet ever so slightly darker than the others. In fact, considering the village population, there were too many to be normal… It was a sign that the goblins must have recently attacked the village." Alucard took a small pause.

"So as the elder left us to greet his people, I kept a particularly close ear, until, for one time, I finally heard it. 'If the newcomers ever ask about the poison, the chance of death is not ten, but fifty percent. Spread the message while they are occupied with me. I will personally see the punishments of any who dare break this rule, understand?' Or, it was something along those lines," he inwardly chuckled.

"If you don't believe me, feel free to ask any of the villagers outside about the poison's death rate. I'm certain they'd be more than happy to tell…"

Alucard's shadow had now left the door, yet the eyes of those previously looking at him did not stop following it. None spoke despite the fact that they were once again free to resume their talks. Their expressions varied, yet the thought that crossed their minds was all the same.

'What a terrifying man...'

Still, they oddly felt a peace of heart knowing he was their ally. They could not dare imagine what it would be like to face him as an enemy, especially the elder, who was most shocked of all, knowing all too well how calculated and perceptive Alucard must really have been to uncover it all.

It was to the point that they began to harbour doubts. They all had a slight inkling telling them that whatever that man was doing, it was not simply laying down to sleep as he had told.