Chapter 140: News Of War
General Vrees was shortly followed by another demon, this one resembling a large, grey-skinned elf with membraneous skin between her arms and sides.
She was dressed in a front-cut blouse along with her more uniform components - which for much of the camp seemed to be black clothes of varying shapes - and a lightweight leather helmet with bone layered in scales. Her horns were leaf-like, and they grew out and around her ears in a way that suggested they might funnel sound.
Most striking though was her split jaw and the rows of teeth that were revealed when she gave Kir what he hoped was a smile.
"This is Mesembrine of House Vissanguis," General Vrees gestured. "She is Captain of our scouts and aerial legion."
"On behalf of my division, I offer an apology for the rude behavior of my scouts," she said in a voice like someone was chewing on a harp, but with a strong impression of being unaffected by her strange mandibles, seeming to occur more from back in her throat. The woman bowed formally.
"It was no issue," Kir said. "I hope they weren’t punished."
"Would you prefer to carry out such yourself?" she asked.
"No, no. No punishment needed," Kir said, then tried to change the subject. "I’m sorry, but I’ve never seen a demon like you..."
Mesembrine seemed to... preen? Her body language was strange. "Then I have the honor of being the first vampire to meet the son of Maledict."
Kir had never seen any depiction of a vampire like her. "Is it true that vampires, ah, drink blood?"
Mesembrine chuckled, which sounded a bit oddly like choking coming from her. "It is true that we bite to bleed, but that is mostly to keep our fangs inside while we drain our meals of mana." As she spoke, a blue outline of teeth over her teeth formed, with four very elongated, fanglike canines. A moment after showing these magical fangs, they blinked away and were gone. "But the blood itself doesn’t do any more for us than a cup of wine."