Chapter 14

After the events of Rudoore, Miranda had chosen the path of a vagabond vampire hunter, opting not to affiliate with anyone. She would travel from one town to another, mostly to replenish her supplies: food rations and her arsenal of silver daggers. She would even avoid staying in inns, doing so lengthened her unnecessary stay, which might jeopardize the entire town's safety. Not having much of a choice, she had already made mother nature her new home.

The past experiences of Randell and Rudoore served to teach her a cruel fact: anyone close to her will be ruthlessly removed from the picture, by none other than the Remilia Scarlet.

What was her purpose in doing all this? Up until this day Miranda still hadn't found the answer. The Scarlet Devil claimed that she hadn't received everything from her, but the question would be, what was it that she seek?

However… I am still alive… Most likely intentional, but Remilia had refused to end her life. Miranda did not know the agenda of the Scarlet Devil, but the grudge she held against her was too great. She had already admitted that the lesser vampires – ghouls were directly responsible to her. Their outbreak had caused her very first lost – Lidoris, as well as her foster parents, the Roses. Next was Randell and Rudoore, in which she personally performed the unforgivable deeds.

The more Miranda thought of it, the more she couldn't stand that smug little face of that vampire. Always receiving praises about her extraordinary talent, not to mention she no longer wanted to drag anyone into this, after all, her late comrades, the Black Panthers, esteemed vampire hunters on their own right, were totally powerless in front of the Scarlet Devil. Miranda decided she would be the one to put an end to all this. I will be the one to exterminate her.

So the plan had been laid down. She would avoid as much human contact as possible, while dedicating her fullest in strengthening herself.

Unable to land a single hit onto Remilia, Miranda focused the majority of her training in improving her agility. She believed this would give her the best opportunity to catch up with the vampire as well as boosting her chances for victory.

She vastly improved her sprinting time. Her usual speed would be a twelve-second sprint across a hundred meters. Now she could manage it below eleven seconds.

But… Remilia moved as if she vanished and reappeared. This sort of speed wasn't enough!

Miranda tried pushing herself past the limits, she would fling a dagger forward, and then she attempted to pursue it as well as catching it back without the dagger hitting its supposed target. If I could be faster than my dagger… then…

It was a fool's ploy, naturally. No ordinary human would be able to perform such an incredible feat. Her own dagger throwing skills was already superb, packing magnificent speed and power on the projectile. It would be folly to throw it half-heartedly just to catch it, like if the vampire would be pulling any punches next time they meet.

Despite the odds, Miranda kept trying. There's no way around it.

Bracing herself under the harsh weather, Miranda would train under the scorching heats of summer, the unrelenting rain of fall, as well as the merciless cold of winter. There were also hazards coming from wild beasts and ghouls, the latter probably thought that Miranda had invaded their abodes. They could no longer provide her with any challenge, however.

How long has it been?

Not enjoying much human contact for two years, as well as images of Remilia kept haunting her every night, Miranda had begun to become more and more paranoid and depressed. She longed for human company, during brief appearances in towns she had become uneasy around people, as if like a fish out of water.

There were also times where she couldn't find any involvements in ghoul hunting to earn herself some pennies to spend. It wasn't wise for her to wait too long in town. Therefore she would had to hunt down wild animals such as bears and deer for their meat, but during winter this proved to be even more unforgiving, as these animals would hardly appear, preferring to cuddle in their respective homes and wait for the cold to subside. There were also times where she became too engrossed with her training that she forgot to eat or replenish her supplies.

Which was why, starvation also became a prominent part of Miranda's endeavors. Recovery from the strenuous trainings had slowed down due to sheer exhaustion and fatigue, most importantly the lack of nutrition to come by. Miranda gradually become malnourished, not able to keep up the supreme standards she set for herself.

Had my methods… all this while… been wrong? Clouds of doubts had enveloped Miranda's head. For two whole years, there wasn't any sign of Remilia, What could she be thinking? The vampire had promised that they would meet again someday during their last confrontation. Could it be that she had already forgotten about Miranda due to boredom?

If that's true… then it's also… a good thing…

Miranda collapsed from her training, famished from her lack of food during the past months of winter. It was early spring as the rain kept pouring down heavily, but she was too tired to retreat to her home, a sheltered cave. She lied down under the rain and closed her eyes, waiting for her energy to come back to her.

"Hey… are you alright?"

A human's voice.

It couldn't be.

Miranda struggled to open her eyes, what she saw was something she had longed for some time, yet now extremely afraid to embrace.

No…

"Get… away… from me…" opposing with a weak voice, Miranda tried to push away the female human who approached her due to sheer kindness.

"No! Look at you! You are in such a bad condition!" She must be referring to Miranda's battered body as well as emaciated limbs, a seemingly helpless girl lying under the pouring rain. "Why are you here? Where do you live?"

Miranda could not answer any of the questions. She was afraid. What if after she answered any of them, the girl would proceed with more questions, and they inadvertently became closer to each other? What if another innocent life would be taken away by Remilia just like that, just because said person had become "dear" to Miranda?

She tried again to resist help, but ultimately her mind went blank and she passed out. "No…"