Chapter 123
Chapter 123
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 123
Chapter Title: Yupersh Clan (2)
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Visk Yupersh had reverted to his true form alongside his subordinates atop a hill overlooking the capital.
His face twisted as he glared silently at the city below.
"Ha—! So that's what it was?"
The unpleasant feeling that had lingered throughout their journey, leaving him perpetually on edge, finally revealed its source upon arrival.
"Brocoslak... That ghost managed to cling to life all this time. And of all places, right here, right now?"
Confronted with this unforeseen situation, he concluded that it must have been the cause of his unease.
It was far more convincing than agonizing over an unknown culprit.
'Right, if the opponent is another Sacred Blood, that makes sense. I instinctively sensed a rival so close by, and that's why it felt so repulsive.'
Forcing himself to accept this rationale, he curled his lips into a cold smile.
The nagging discomfort persisted, but it would surely vanish once Brocoslak was eliminated.
"...Lord Visk? Are you saying that 'Sacred Blood Brocoslak' is down there?"
Theodor Yupersh, standing quietly at his side, furrowed his brow and posed the question cautiously.
They hadn't accounted for a Sacred Blood on the enemy side when devising their plan, so this development was bound to disrupt their strategy significantly.
"Yes, that relic from the past is indeed there, but..."
Visk replied dismissively, glancing sideways.
One eyebrow arched, betraying his irritation.
"So, what's the problem? Do you think anything changes with me here? Adding one more ghost to the mix? Surely the elite of Yupersh aren't getting cold feet?"
Theodor broke into a cold sweat at Visk's sharp, irritable tone and hurriedly bowed his head.
"N-no, sir. I was merely concerned about unnecessary casualties. Our original plan called for wrapping this up with minimal losses before moving on to stabilize the Kingdom of Talia."
Visk stared at the back of Theodor's lowered head before tsking and turning his gaze back to the city.
The persistent unease had made him snap without thinking, but he had to concede that some sacrifices were inevitable now.
Even without their two True Bloods, who could say what defenses the enemy stronghold held?
Moreover, the former lord, Mulro Brocoslak, specialized in blood magic—a mage type entrenched in his domain with thorough preparations.
No opponent was trickier than a mage hunkered down in their lair.
"In any case, they've likely noticed us by now. Let's move in immediately. We can't give them more time to prepare."
"Yes, sir!"
For vampires, born of the shadows, slipping into the city under cover of night was as effortless as breathing.
Nearly fifty shadows scaled the walls swiftly and stealthily.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Mulro? How's the preparation coming along?"
Briki lounged on the sofa in Mulro Brocoslak's office, sipping her black tea with casual ease.
Unlike her earlier hyper-vigilant state, she now resembled wilted vegetables—hardly the look of someone bearing dire warnings.
Wise Mulro, of course, didn't point it out.
"I've ordered all external forces mobilized and defenses reinforced as much as possible. But responding without knowing the exact threat is challenging, so for now, we're proceeding with standard measures..."
"The Yupersh Clan has come calling."
"...Pardon? The Yupersh Clan? Why would they suddenly..."
"What good does it do asking me, who's only just awakened? You should know."
"True, but... this came completely out of nowhere."
He replied with a flustered expression, then promptly broadcast the situation to every clan member in the estate.
In a full-scale war, they needed to consolidate to avoid being picked off individually.
Rising from his seat, Mulro hurried out of the office, rubbing his eyes wearily.
Briki trailed behind, yawning lazily, but he had no time to mind her demeanor.
'I've ordered the humans in the estate to stay indoors until further notice and set up barriers for them, so they should be fine...'
The real issue was the Yupersh Clan—the vanguard of the three great vampire clans, boasting the strongest combat prowess—invading now.
Compared to their well-prepared assault, their own defenses were woefully inadequate.
"So, do you know where they are right now?"
Mulro flung open the doors to the grand banquet hall where his forces were assembling and addressed Briki.
Visk, their Sacred Blood, must have used some trick; even his True Blood senses detected nothing.
As a spellcasting type, his detection abilities were subpar compared to others anyway.
"Urghhh— Oh, that?"
Briki stretched languidly behind him and answered nonchalantly.
But her voice brimmed with newfound vitality, as if her prior wilted act had been a facade—like reserves of energy prepped and warming up for battle.
"Pardon?"
"—They've just arrived."
Crackle—!
The moment her words ended, a hole tore through the estate's barrier.
Dozens of vampires infiltrated, their murderous hostility palpable.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Well, well... You're one tough ghost to kill, Brocoslak. I figured it was about time you kicked the bucket."
"And you're as rude as ever, past or present. Same with the last one—is that a Yupersh tradition?"
"You seem pretty attached to life. This time, I'll help you rest in peace. Your precious clan will crumble alongside you—no loneliness there."
"You never listen, either. How can someone be so utterly obnoxious?"
The two Sacred Bloods traded barbs, each spouting their piece without regard for the other.
It didn't take long for the intruders breaching the estate to clash with those waiting in the grand banquet hall.
The Yupersh objective was to wipe out Brocoslak and seize their turf, after all.
'This is looking pretty bad.'
While the Sacred Bloods bickered, Mulro quietly ground his teeth, sizing up the opposing forces.
Their numbers slightly favored Brocoslak.
Even hastily summoning nearby allies, as the home base, mustering this many was feasible.
But quality was the problem.
'Over ten Purebloods, and the rest all Lesser Blood. Better than nothing...'
Incidentally, no Servants or Slaves were stationed here.
In the holy capital of Talaria, with its temples everywhere, operating those half-baked aura-leakers was impossible.
'Even if Lady Briki handles Visk Yupersh, they've got four True Bloods over there... Grim.'
Mulro sighed inwardly but steadily gathered his energy.
He did have some confidence, though.
After joining Heinz's forces, he'd benefited from the Purified Blood Essence, achieving greater growth than before.
With his heartbeat, viscous blood magic surged from his evolved vampire factor, coursing through his veins.
"So, who's your current lord? I'd like to see how your clan fell... Hm?"
Visk, clashing auras invisibly with Briki amid their verbal sparring, sensed something.
But it was too late.
Whoosh—
Blood sigils hidden throughout the estate glowed crimson, warping space.
The already spacious hall expanded dramatically, forming an ideal battlefield.
The barriers bolstered allies within while debuffing foes, narrowing the power gap.
'Extending the office-limited ability across the entire estate is progress, but... not enough.'
The barriers allowed lower vampires to buy time, but facing True Bloods remained daunting.
Reinforcements were needed.
And Mulro had one method usable under barrier support.
"Come to me, Phrygia—!"
As his incantation ended, a pool of blood formed before him.
Phrygia emerged from it, fully battle-ready.
"Hmph, I didn't expect to fight them this soon."
She sighed upon summoning and prepared for combat.
The Monster Forest was too distant to call both True Bloods, but this evened the odds somewhat.
'All that's left is holding defensively until Lady Briki takes out Visk.'
Of course, they were still far from victory.
But the barrier should withstand even a Sacred Blood from inside, buying them time...
"Hah, I accounted for some resistance, but this is getting annoying."
A voice from close range.
As Mulro pondered, a pair of stark white eyes met his.
"Eliminate you, and this barrier crumbles."
Before Mulro could react, Visk closed in instantly, hand thrusting for his heart—
"Aren't you underestimating me a bit too much?"
Boom—!
A massive shockwave erupted as he and Briki collided head-on.
Mulro, saved by her intervention, folded space to evade and wiped cold sweat discreetly.
"...Looks like I need to deal with this ghost first."
"Ugh, you really need a beating."
Visk gnashed his teeth in frustration at the second interference—Briki had checked him even during the barrier's activation.
She ramped up her own aura undaunted.
Tension mounted once more between the two sides.
Crunch— Crackle!
Suddenly, a rift cracked open in one section of Mulro's barrier.
"What in the—?!"
Mulro flinched, hastily adjusting the space, his eye twitching.
An unidentified external force was punching through.
Though weaker against outside attacks, this was a barrier he'd meticulously reinforced with his enhanced power.
Not even a True Blood should breach it easily from without.
As attention focused on the anomaly, a pair of hands—clawed and scaled—prodded through the rift.
Like sliding open a door, they carefully pried it apart.
Crackle—
The barrier's fissure widened slowly, and through it squeezed...
A shaggy beast's head.
"Grr, didn't account for this barrier. Went easy tearing in, so timing's off."
Not a mere beast head, but a monstrous helm atop a savage figure, who grumbled lowly while extracting his body from the rift.
As his massive, muscled frame entered, the barrier repaired itself flawlessly, as if nothing had happened.
Even Mulro, its caster, was stunned by the clean intrusion without straining the spell.
"What? Who the hell is that?"
"...A barbarian? No, those arms..."
Bare torso rippling with muscle and primal tattoos, arms sheathed in dark red scales and razor claws.
The eccentric intruder scanned the room with mismatched glowing eyes beneath his beast helm.
Confirming all eyes on him, he bellowed,
"Which of you bold fools dared touch our Hubert?!"
The exhibitionist barbarian warrior, Hari, seeking vengeance for his friend, roared imposingly.
Crack! Pop—!
Sinister sounds leaked from his tensed, intimidating physique.
Heralding the violence to come.
"Hubert?"
"Wait, bursting in here spouting what now...?"
Those still clueless exchanged frowns.
From the mystery intruder's identity to his words, few here could make sense of it.
Undeterred by the reactions, Hari's gaze locked solely on the Yupersh Clan.
"Found you—."
His lips curled ferociously, baring beastly fangs.
"You? The bastard who churned that poor kid's guts like soup?"
His slit pupils zeroed in.
On the red-haired, red-eyed vampire, Klein.