Although he had been born in Fuyuki City, he had spent many long years in the otherworldly Britain, where his values had been shaped.
According to his memories, this island nation called Japan was a peaceful country.
And since public welfare facilities such as orphanages existed, it meant that a stable order had already been established here.
Incidentally, although the nobles and lords of the Fae Kingdom also adopted children, it was only to raise them as cannon fodder for war.
"A world without calamities or wars, a peaceful and tranquil Fuyuki City... How wonderful..."
Shirou's emotion didn't last long. He immediately thought of a practical problem.
"Doesn't that mean there's no place for me to use my skills anymore?!"
Shirou Amamiya had once been obsessed with honing his combat skills.
On the Island of Fairies, there was nothing worth trusting.
Parents, children, lovers, friends... Any beautiful or noble thing could betray you. Only strength would not.
Body and mind, magecraft and swordsmanship—
The power Shirou Amamiya had mastered was precisely why he had eventually become the King of Britain.
But that power he had once taken pride in now seemed unnecessary in peaceful Fuyuki.
"What am I supposed to live on from now on? Where can I find a job suited to me... Ah, there it is."
As he looked at the signboard of a Chinese restaurant by the roadside, Shirou fell into deep thought.
Just as he was considering whether to apply for a job as a cook—
"Get out! Vampire! Stop playing around here!"
A child's shout rang out.
Shirou was very familiar with that ear-piercing uproar. He had encountered it countless times in Britain—it was bullying.
The fairies of Britain loved bullying above all else.
They ganged up on the weak, rejected anyone different from themselves, and took pleasure in tormenting the vulnerable.
Shirou couldn't understand it. Morgan had said that this was simply the fairies' nature.
They innocently enjoyed goodness and flawlessly savored evil. Fairies were creatures of such pure innocence.
"..."
When he turned his head, he saw several children in the park throwing stones at another child who was crouching on the ground.
Ah, I see, Shirou thought, the corner of his mouth curling upward.
Human children really were quite similar to fairies.
Come to think of it, had they just said "vampire"?
The word made Shirou frown.
There were vampires on the Island of Fairies too.
More precisely, there were fairies who drank blood. They occupied the very bottom of the fairy social hierarchy.
After all, humans there were essentially livestock raised by fairies. Fairies that drank the blood of livestock were naturally regarded as unclean and filthy beings.
Were vampires also discriminated against in this world?
"—Bang."
Shirou raised his arm, and his small palm caught the stone hurled at the victim.
"Hey! What are you doing?"
The child leading the bullying shouted angrily.
"Mind your own business and get lost! Do you think you're some kind of ally of justice?"
"An ally of justice? I don't have such lofty aspirations."
His serious answer left all the children dumbfounded.
Shirou Amamiya wasn't an ally of justice. If he had to put it one way—he was probably an ally of the Savior.
Although in this world, "Savior" seemed to be a term that could be grouped together with "justice."
On the Island of Fairies, however, the concept of a "Savior" was nearly synonymous with "evil."
Savior Ash—Morgan. She was someone who loved meddling in other people's affairs.
She would always appear before fairies being tormented by the strong and help them... through violence.
During his journey with her, Shirou had once encountered a blood-drinking fairy.
When he met Bavag, she had been in the middle of being bullied by other fairies.
The way she had crouched on the ground with her head covered while the fairies threw stones at her had been exactly like the child beside him.
The scene before him overlapped with an old memory, and Shirou acted without thinking.
"Are you going to stand up for him?"
The children marched over angrily.
"Never seen you before. Get lost!"
"The house that guy lives in is haunted!"
The child leading the bullying put his hands on his hips. "Yeah! His grandfather's a vampire—ah!"
The stone Shirou threw grazed his cheek and flew past, sending a fierce gust of wind through the park.
"Eh..."
The children, who had been hopping around energetically just moments ago, were all stunned.
The office workers and high school students passing nearby also stopped, their faces filled with disbelief.
"Was that just my imagination...?"
The world record for a baseball pitch was close to 170 kilometers per hour, common knowledge to everyone in Japan.
But the stone thrown by the red-haired boy had clearly far exceeded that level.
It shot through the park like a meteor before finally vanishing into the distant sky.
Had it struck someone in the head, it might have exploded them apart like something out of a Hollywood movie.
Meanwhile, despite having thrown a stone with the force of a cannonball, Shirou acted as though nothing had happened.
"—"
The child leading the bullying began to tremble all over.
Beneath the setting sun, the red-haired boy stared straight at him.
His gaze was cold enough to pierce through a human body.
Like a pair of inorganic amber glass marbles, his eyes froze the air around them.
How many hells had someone witnessed to possess eyes like those?
Even the ten-year-old boy, who had known nothing of the heights of heaven or depths of earth, now had trembling knees. A rapidly expanding wet patch appeared at his crotch.
He would spend the next several decades of his life healing from the terror of this moment.
"That was only a greeting..."
Shirou bent down and picked up another stone. Tossing it repeatedly into the air, he spoke without expression.
"Next time, I won't miss."
"Waaaaahhhhhhh!" "You just wait!" "I'm telling my mom!!"
The children screamed and fled in all directions, scattering like frightened birds and beasts.
"Good grief... Kids born in peaceful times really are unbearable."
Shirou Amamiya had no particular attachment to "justice." He didn't care whether people called him an "ally of justice" or something else—if something displeased him, it displeased him.
He turned back toward the child crouching on the ground with his head in his arms.
"Hey, are you all right?"
"Uu... Uuuu..."
The bullied child nodded through his sobs, then raised his face.
After getting a clear look at his features, Shirou couldn't help frowning. He was plainly an ordinary human. How was he supposed to be a vampire?
"Kid, what's your name?" Shirou asked.
The boy, whose hair resembled purple seaweed, answered fearfully, "Shin... Shinji. My name is Shinji Matou."
Volume One 003: Matou Residence
The boy's name was Shinji Matou.
He was a native of Fuyuki City, and like Shirou, he was seven years old that year.
The Fuyuki City where they lived could be divided into two areas according to their architectural styles.
This side was Miyama Town, a historic neighborhood for ordinary people.
Across the river was another urban district called Shinto, which was undergoing development and rapid growth.
The Matou Family residence stood on a hill in Miyama Town.
It was said to be quite famous in Fuyuki City—a luxurious Western-style mansion that clashed with the old streets around it.
Even during the day, it exuded a creepy atmosphere, while the inside was pitch-black.
Over time, all kinds of ominous rumors began circulating nearby.
At night, people could hear the sound of insects crawling over the ground around the mansion.
Some said that a vampire from a foreign country lived inside.
"So, are you a vampire?"
Shirou stood atop the jungle gym in the park, gazing at the sun sinking below the city's horizon as he asked.
"!"
Shinji Matou's eyes widened. He quickly shook his head, then lowered his gaze and spoke with great uncertainty.
"No... Probably not."
Shirou raised an eyebrow. "Why are you so unsure?"
"I don't know either..." Shinji Matou muttered softly.
There seemed to be some complicated family circumstances involved, Shirou thought.
"Do vampires really exist in this world?"
"I don't know."
"Are there fairies?"
"Huh? Fairies? No... I don't know."
"Is there a public restroom nearby?"
"I don't know."
"How do you not know anything?"
"Ugh... I don't know because I don't know!"
Shinji Matou looked as though he was about to cry.
To passersby, it looked as if the red-haired boy was bullying the purple-haired boy.
"Heave-ho."
Before you continue