Chapter 331
Chapter 331
Chapter 331
At Bacchus' words, Zeke's eyebrows twitched.
'The Emperor wants Geo Lubern's remains?'
Preserving the bodies of saints and holy knights was a common practice from the Holy Empire to the Holy Kingdom.
However, it was the first time Zeke had heard that the remains of Geo Lubern, the first Holy King, were still in the Holy Kingdom.
Originally, the Holy Nation that Geo Lubern established worshipped the God of Light, but the current Sun Order considers the Sun God, who split from the Creation God, as their supreme deity, so there were differences in doctrine.
From the Holy Kingdom's perspective, while they acknowledged Geo Lubern as a saint, they had no particular need to preserve his remains.
'Geo Lubern's historic site. It seems that even the Holy Kingdom couldn't enter it, so the relics and remains were preserved as they were.'
Zeke looked at Bacchus and said.
"The Emperor wants Geo Lubern's remains, you say. Where did you get this information?"
"If you want to trade, guarantee my safety and that of my companions. Then I'll hand over all related information."
After contemplating Bacchus's words, Zeke nodded.
"Fine. I'll do that."
With Zeke's words, the pressure that had filled the chapel disappeared.
Bacchus coughed as his strength suddenly left him.
Roban looked at Bacchus with a worried expression and supported him.
Zeke said to Bacchus:
"It would be better to change locations for now."
Bacchus nodded and patted Roban's head who was supporting him, saying:
"Roban, wait a moment. I'll be back soon."
At Bacchus's words, Roban nodded with fear-filled eyes.
He looked at Zeke and said.
"Let's go upstairs."
Bacchus and Zeke went up the narrow stairs to the space above the chapel.
There were traces of daily life like an old bed and clothes, suggesting it was the space where Bacchus had been living while using the monastery as a hideout.
Bacchus offered a seat and said:
"I heard you like tea, but given the situation, I'm sorry I can't serve any."
Then Zeke took out teacups, a teapot, and hot water from his inventory.
Seeing this, Bacchus's eyes widened in surprise.
Zeke steeped the tea and poured it into cups for himself and Bacchus.
Bacchus savored the tea's aroma.
"It's good tea. Mother would have liked it too."
"Don't you find it strange to say such things when you're a treacherous son who killed your own mother?"
At Zeke's words, Bacchus frowned and said.
"I did not kill my mother."
"Lady Kali’s faction confirmed Carmilla's death directly, are you trying to deny it?"
At those words, Bacchus was silent for a moment before slowly speaking:
"The information that the Emperor is after Geo Lubern's remains. Mother was the one who told me that too."
"Huh?"
It had been several months since Bacchus killed Carmilla.
It was impossible for the already dead Carmilla to know about the Emperor's personal visit from a week ago and reveal its purpose.
"Explain what's going on."
Bacchus took a sip of tea and began his story.
"You already know that mother was a vampire."
"Yes, I heard from Lady Kali."
"Do you know that your mother is a descendant of the Royal Vampire bloodline?"
At Bacchus's words, Zeke made a surprised expression.
"Carmilla is a descendant? Wait, did the head of the family accept her even knowing she was a descendant?"
"Arthur Draker is... a complicated person in many ways."
Zeke agreed with Bacchus's words.
Though they were both Arthur Draker's sons, they were similar in that neither regarded him as a father.
Bacchus spoke again.
"Mother, being a descendant, was bound to Arthur Draker. The reason she sought refuge with Lady Kali was to find a way to break free from Arthur Draker."
"Wasn't it a deal made because she received threats from the family due to being a vampire?"
Bacchus nodded at those words.
"That's certainly part of it. But that wasn't the main reason. Mother wanted to break free from Arthur Draker's binding and find the true power of a descendant. If that happened, she would be able to fully use the power of a Royal Vampire, comparable to a Black Knight."
"The true power of a descendant. So Arthur Draker's binding prevented her from awakening her power."
"Yes, eventually Mother found a way to break free from that binding. That's why I personally stabbed Mother's heart."
"You killed Carmilla to break her binding? Is this some kind of metaphor?"
Bacchus shook his head.
"No, it's literal. Even if a descendant dies, they can be revived through a resurrection ritual during the full moon. Of course, you have to accept some power loss, but it means you won't die under certain conditions."
"A being that can be revived even after death."
Even Zeke didn't know descendants had such power.
"So you killed Carmilla to break the binding and then performed the resurrection ritual to bring her back?"
"Yes, Mother, now free from Arthur Draker's binding, is currently recovering her power somewhere."
Zeke could understand why Bacchus had killed Carmilla with his own hands when she was being held hostage.
"Hmm, but how did Carmilla find out that the Emperor was looking for Geo Lubern's remains?"
"There are countless powerful men across the continent who desire to embrace beautiful vampire women. The information they possess includes things even the Black Corps couldn't find. They tell everything because they regard Mother as their Great Mother."
"You mean Carmilla is running an intelligence organization through vampire women?"
"Mother has lived a long time as a descendant. She left many traces in various places even before being bound by Arthur Draker. Red Eye is also the result of seeds Mother had planted."
It seemed Carmilla's influence was spread across the entire continent more than expected.
'Regular vampires have lifespans similar to or slightly longer than humans. But as a descendant, she would have lived several times longer, so it might be possible.'
Zeke looked at Bacchus and said.
"What is the Emperor trying to do with Geo Lubern's remains?"
"What an aging and ill Emperor desires can only be one thing."
Bacchus continued slowly.
"The Emperor is trying to use the First Holy King's remains to restore his body to a young and healthy state."
"Even the Holy King's remains wouldn't have such power."
"He probably knows a special method, that's why he's looking for those remains. Like a way to utilize the miracle power that the Holy King was said to have wielded."
As the Holy King, Geo Lubern was a healer class who could use both light magic and miracle power.
If the Emperor could use the Holy King's power, while immortality might be impossible, restoring vitality to the body would be quite possible.
'We need to prevent him from reaching the Holy King's relic site first.'
As he was organizing plans in his head, Bacchus spoke to Zeke.
"Zeke Draker. I have a proposal for you."
When Zeke turned to look at Bacchus, he seemed quite tense and was sweating.
"What kind of proposal?"
"You might know this, but Mother and I are currently searching for traces of the Royal Vampire."
"To fully revive the true power as a descendant?"
"Yes, that's the only way for Mother to completely break free from Arthur Draker. Though she's freed from the binding now... if he tries to find and constrain Mother again, there's no way to stop him."
'Does Arthur Draker know that Carmilla has been resurrected?'
As he conversed with Bacchus, it occurred to him that Arthur's goal might not just be Bacchus.
"Why does Arthur Draker want to keep Carmilla captive? Though descendants are rare, they shouldn't be beings worthy of such attention from Draker's head of family."
Even if Carmilla, as a descendant, found traces of the Royal Vampire and unlocked her true power, it would be impossible to stand against Arthur, who possessed Grand Master level power.
After contemplating, Bacchus slowly spoke.
"The being that Mother and I are searching for is not an ordinary Royal Vampire."
He paused for a moment before continuing.
"We are searching for traces of Caligula, the King of Vampires."
Zeke frowned at Bacchus's words.
"The King of Vampires."
I never heard of the Vampire King in my previous life.
Looking back now, it's highly likely that both Bacchus and Carmilla died during the Continental War in my previous life.
Zeke spoke to Bacchus.
"Are you asking me to help find traces of Caligula?"
Bacchus nodded.
"If you help us with that, we will be your eyes and ears, Zeke Draker."
"Hmm."
"Our information network is faster than the Black Corps. Especially for underground information. After dismantling the Syndicate, this must be quite an appealing proposal for you."
As Bacchus said, after dismantling the Syndicate and developing the Cusco Kingdom and Southern Islands, operating an information organization wasn't as easy as before.
This was because some of the Syndicate's information network spread across the continent was partially lost with the organization's dissolution.
Zeke pondered Bacchus's words.
'The head family said they would give me a great gift if I handed Bacchus over to the Black Corps. Since they rarely use such expressions, I might even receive the position above Guardian Knight. But if I help him, it's possible to receive cooperation from the True Clan.'
After contemplating, Zeke slowly spoke while looking at Bacchus.
"Why are you revealing all of this to me while requesting help? Do you have any reason to think I can help find traces of Caligula?"
"The one who sealed Caligula on earth was none other than the Elder Dragon. The Elder Dragon used the Fairy King's power to seal him. We thought that you, who received the Fairy King's blessing, could find those traces and break the seal."
It was the first time Zeke heard that the Elder Dragon had sealed the Vampire King.
'If the Elder Dragon sealed him, there's a high chance we'll need to open the sealed area through the system.'
Zeke had the Absolute Compass, so finding the traces wouldn't be difficult.
After careful consideration, he nodded.
"Alright, I accept your proposal."
Bacchus showed a surprised expression at Zeke's words.
Although it was what he wanted, he had made the proposal thinking it would be difficult, but unexpectedly, Zeke accepted.
"Really?"
"Why, don't you like it?"
Bacchus shook his head and said.
"Of course not."
Zeke took a more comfortable position and spoke while looking at Bacchus.
"Then now tell me properly. Why did you pass false information to Sister Kali?"
At those words, Bacchus made a troubled expression before slowly speaking.
"I didn't expect it either. I passed the information after checking several times... I didn't think it would be a trap set by Jiemens."
"If that's true, your ability as an informant seems a bit questionable."
At Zeke's words, Bacchus shook his head in panic.
"This may sound like an excuse, but if there had been more time, I would have definitely noticed it was a trap. However, things were moving very urgently, and suspicion about me was growing within the Black Corps. Because of that, Souma was calling in internal inspectors, so I had no choice. Since I was aware that the information was incomplete, I added a warning about various concerning points when passing the information."
It was true that Kali moved hastily instead of contemplating after hearing Bacchus's information about the Pirate King.
If Kali had prepared her troops more carefully before entering the island, she wouldn't have fallen into the trap so easily.
Although suspicion about Bacchus wasn't completely resolved, it seemed worth making a deal.
Zeke took out a covenant from his inventory.
Bacchus showed a surprised expression looking at the covenant placed on the table, just as he had when seeing the teacup.
"...You carry around things like this too?"
"You never know when and where you might need to make a contract."
Zeke wrote and signed the covenant according to the terms of their deal. Soon, their names were engraved on each other's wrists.
After putting the covenant back in his inventory, Zeke spoke while looking at Bacchus.
"Alright, but why did you kidnap the Pope's successor while being chased? The Black Corps was saying you were planning to hand him over to the Emperor and seek asylum in the Empire."
Bacchus shook his head and answered.
"It's actually the opposite. The Emperor enforces policies oppressing other races. There's no way an Emperor who believes in human superiority would grant asylum to vampires."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"Traces of Caligula were connected to the Holy Kingdom. We rescued Roban to get related information from the Pope."
Contrary to the Black Corps's expectations, Bacchus had actually been trying to protect the successor and send him to the Holy Country.
Nevertheless, Zeke spoke with a puzzled expression.
"Then why were you holding him here instead of sending him to the Vadoka Holy Country?"
At those words, Bacchus's expression darkened.
"Because if we take Roban to the Vadoka Holy Country now, his life would be in danger."