“Rin…”

The blistering lips of the ashen vampire repeated the new name a few times, firstly as if it was a distant concept, then slowly her voice gained a resonance of familiarity with it, signaling that the scorched vampire had accepted her new name. 

She nodded.

“V-Very well, Rin it shall be.” 

Seeing that she had found the name to be a fitting one, Ciel affirmed with a nod of his own. Following this, his eyes narrowed down, taking a moment to thoroughly examine Rin’s grotesque figure. His brows furrowed. 

“Your state, how well can you prevent others from noticing it?” 

He asked.

Rin was quick to answer. 

“A-As of now, perhaps only when I actively deploy my charm.”   

“That requires eye contact, correct?” 

Rin’s neck twisted slightly, denying his conjecture. Then she added,

“O-Only commands require eye contact. My existence alone is endowed with my charm. I-I can infect an unprotected mind like so and without their awareness affect them in accordance to my will.” 

Hmm. So just by being around them, she can affect the way they act? It seems a vampire’s authority in the mind domain is rather high. That might explain why they have yet to be discovered within this city until now. 

While under thought, Ciel recollected the image of the bustling street he had witnessed not too long ago at the edges of the slums. Soon a singular hotel surfaced in his mind.  

If we exit in a way so that it is a direct line to that hotel then perhaps nothing too bad will occur. 

Ciel understood that he could not hide her state therefore all he could do was attempt to mitigate any potential mishaps. 

I suppose this is the price of wielding a defected organic weapon huh.

Having made his decision, he spoke.  

“That will have to do then.” 

Saying such, Ciel quickly stood straight and began taking off the ragged gray shirt which he currently wore. It was an accessory made of poor materials way before the cruelty of nature further dropped what little integrity it possessed. Beyond its dirt filled state however, his shirt was slightly oversized and peppered with tears and small holes.  

When it came to covering up Rin’s hideous state, the shirt was far from the ideal solution, and yet for now it would have to do. Throwing it over to Rin, showing little care of where it landed, Ciel ordered. 

“Put this on, we will be leaving right now. Make sure to not let out any sounds of pain once we leave the slums.” 

Rin seemed to sense the disturbance the cloth caused in the air around her as it fell, however even with that she failed to catch it before it touched the dirt. Her stretched out arm hung in the air for a moment before she dropped it down in pursuit of the clothing. 

These actions triggered her cycle of infernal torment once more, however she merely ignored the pain through gritted teeth. Finally, her fingers found the ragged fabric and took hold of it. 

“U-Understood.” 

Only a single word left her scorched lips. 

*****

Before the start of the slums, on the edges of the greater organism known as society, Ciel stood. Beside him was a figure seemingly burnt from head to toe, wearing nothing but a tattered gray shirt which did not even manage to cover past her waist. Initially Ciel had thought it would, however he had made a simple oversight; that being the difference in height between himself and his vampiric partner, Rin. 

Within Bastion, the average height for a man was 1.70 meters tall while women fell just short of that at an average height of 1.63 meters tall. Currently, at the age of 15, Ciel was standing just below the woman’s average height, however his vampire companion was the opposite, standing just above the men’s average height. He had been fortunate that his shirt was already a bit oversized, however that luck was a fleeting one. 

Realizing that there was nothing which he could do to further mend this issue, Ciel simply sighed. 

He turned to face Rin, who was struggling to even remain standing, and asked. 

“Ready?”

With her eyes still hidden behind a veil of scorched flesh, the pitiful vampire appeared even further crippled. She herself remained unbothered by this however and nodded stiffly. 

“Good. Now then, open them.” 

Rin did not linger, upon hearing his words, her eyelid twitched before being pulled back. Immediately, Ciel came to witness two dazzling red gems, ones which were of a deep crimson, and which carried with them an insidious power. 

Despite laying sight to double what he had before, Ciel did not struggle to contain his emotions this time. The reason for that was simple, the dreaded authority which those scarlet eyes possessed were still hidden further from the world, only this time its trapper was not flesh but Rin’s own will. 

Satisfied with this, Ciel waited no further. He reached out his first step, then another, followed further still by another, until at last he had done it, he had returned to society after what felt like an eternity. 

*****

Crossing the road had not been a struggle. As expected, Rin, even with her torturous cycle at full churn, remained silent and capable. Even more so than Ciel had initially thought her able of. Furthermore, the stubborn vampire had not yielded to Ciel’s pace, matching it with her own. It seemed her pride had yet to falter.

It was not until Ciel successfully crossed the busy road before at last Rin’s unique appearance presented its first hindrance. 

“Wah! My dude, is she alright?!” 

A man commented, he was one of the many people lingering outside the plethora of bar and club options. He was dressed in full black with many tattoos etched into his face and a colorfully painted green hair which, unfitting to the rest of his appearance, was neatly placed in a slit back hairstyle.

He had been leaning against the city light poles, taking a hefty sip of his Stinger-Brand beer when his eyes suddenly bulged and he began choking mid-way through his chug. Then after a few heavy coughs, he blurted out those words with a trembling finger directed precisely at Rin’s scorched figure. 

Ciel had just stepped upon the pedestrian sidewalk when he heard the man’s panicked voice. Sparing him a cold chilling stare, the green haired man visibly became startled by his intense animosity and let out a heavy gulp. 

Before the man could say anything else however, Rin had already made it to Ciel’s side. The parts of her body which were visible glowed red, constantly fluctuating between intense and dim states. That all culminated with thin steam being left behind as she walked. 

To others, not only was she mutilated and in a state where no one should have had the ability to walk, but she appeared like an overheating machine on the verge of igniting into utter cinder.

Rin's neck stiffly turned, her eyes falling not just on the startled man, but the few dozen others which were alerted by his yell. Her lips parted, and a weak but unfathomably alluring voice rang out. 

“Pay no heed…” 

As she spoke, her crimson eyes grew in its luster, glistening brightly like a pair of scarlet moons when at their fullest. 

The audience present all grew motionless for a moment, then after no more than two seconds passed, they all continued along their way, uncaring for neither her nor Ciel’s presence. 

Yes, quite the boon indeed. 

Ciel could not help but feel satisfied by her display of power. He felt that the gamble he chose was worth wild if it meant this power alone would be at his disposal. However, he knew better than to believe it would remain that way for long. 

I do need to be careful. I have to make sure she regains her strength at a pace just short of my own. If not then when the time comes I might carve out my own heart with a wide smile and hand it to her. 

Rin was certain to prove herself a useful partner, but even more so a dreadful enemy.

Not lingering any further. The two quickly walked towards the nearest establishment. Before them now stood an old building, one of stone with rusted steel edges, and standing only three stories tall. Plastered on its center, just above the alloy double doors, was a sign bathed in bright blue which read: 

‘Hazard Hotel’ 

This was to be their first settlement… 

After a few more instances of Rin exerting her powerful charm, Ciel pulled back the double-doors with some considerable effort. Most modern hotels were equipped with self-operating doors, even if not, they would often employ a doorman to do just that. For a place like the outskirts however, expecting such conveniences of life would only highlight one's ignorance. 

After successfully winning his struggle with the alloy doors, the two had stepped inside the small establishment. There they were met with a simple hall, no, it was not a hall but the entire first floor of the building. 

The floor was empty with only the counter resting at its end. Surrounding it on both sides were spiraling stairways made of rusted steel which served as paths towards the upper levels. The moment the door closed shut behind them, a red light just above it flickered brightly and brought with it a screeching beeping. 

BEEP!

BEEP!

BEEP!

“Huh…?” 

Only after such an alarm did the sole figure, an older man with grayish hair, a thick beard of the same color and a large gut hidden behind his brown torn vest, turn to face their way. 

Hoisted on his chapped lips was a single white, its tip collapsing to ash as a result of the spreading flame within. The old man’s eyes squinted for a moment, then just as quickly his brows bent into an ugly scowl.

“Tck. Didn’t I tell yah?! No more begging damn it! Get out you rats! I have no free rooms to give! Even if I had a damn hole in the dirt I woulda still charge you rent for it! So go! Go! Go!”  

Ciel stared forward at the yelling man for a moment before turning his head to face Rin, he murmured. 

“Well then, I do not think I need to explain what I want you to do next right?”