Chapter 498
Chapter 498
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 498
Chapter Title: Noctenia (1)
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“...”
“...”
An unnatural silence, so profound it swallowed the entire battlefield.
Roar—
> Boom—! Crash!
The fierce flames continued to rage around them, accompanied by the sounds of structures collapsing, but all of it felt distant now, like echoes from a dream.
Whether it was the Slayers who had injected combat stimulants and kept pulling their triggers, or the vampires lost to their uncontrollable bloodlust and craving for blood...
Not many truly understood what was happening.
They had simply clamped their mouths shut on instinct and frozen in place.
'What the hell is going on? Who did this?'
In the midst of that chaos, one of the few who could still think clearly—Kang Taesan—cautiously scanned his surroundings.
'My head feels refreshingly clear all of a sudden.'
A mysterious voice had echoed across the entire battlefield.
While everyone else had turned to stone upon hearing it, he felt his mind sharpen instead, as if he'd doused it with cold water.
Only then could he coldly reflect on his actions moments before.
'Damn it, I fell victim to a mental attack.'
Resisting to the bitter end even if he broke and shattered?
If things got truly dire, he should've just run—that was the rational choice.
No matter how precious the growth opportunity, it couldn't compare to his life.
'I have the return scroll Seonghyeon gave me! If it gets really dangerous, I can just use that!'
It was some bloodline ability called Blood Eye.
The moment he'd met those red eyes head-on, he'd lost the ability to think straight.
It was incomparable to the bishop Prove, whose movements had merely been somewhat restricted thanks to Unshakable Will.
Of course, Unshakable Will had mitigated it enough to limit the effect to that extent.
'A Rook-class vampire of Noctenia. The manual said they're equivalent to level 7-8 on Earth.'
And now, a being who had nullified that monster's influence with a single word stood right here.
No, not just that—this presence had seized control of the entire battlefield simply by revealing itself—
"Didn't I ask you a question? Why no answer?"
—and stepped out slowly from behind him, brushing past his side.
'...No way. That can't be.'
Kang Taesan swallowed hard as he stared at the figure's back.
A tall man in an elegant suit.
He could only see the back, but recognizing what it was wasn't hard.
He'd analyzed photos of that figure countless times while working at the Ability Management Bureau.
'Phantom? Phantom?!'
The leader of the Blood Alliance, one of Korea's top dark organizations, and the sole earthly bloodline uniting all vampires regardless of origin—the master of Heterosis. The vampire king who had forced Europe's transcendent vampires to their knees one after another, absorbing their clans to form the world's largest vampire cartel. '...And one of the members of Masquerade, the group Seonghyeon belongs to.'
In other words, Kang Taesan and he weren't complete strangers.
He'd received plenty of help from them regarding this Awakening incident.
'But how is Phantom, who should be on Earth, here in Noctenia? And of all timings, right where I am...'
Confusion crept back into his newly cleared mind.
But considering the mysterious abilities he'd witnessed from them so far, it somehow made sense.
If a saint from another world like Heinrich could cross over, why couldn't a vampire?
[Hmm, you figured it out?] At that moment, telepathy from the other side reached his mind, as if it had sensed he'd realized Phantom's identity.
Kang Taesan bit his dry lips and gave a subtle nod.
[I've heard a lot about you from that guy.] "That guy" undoubtedly meant Han Seonghyeon.
Sure enough, Phantom's appearance at this exact timing had to be connected to him.
[For now, pretend you don't know. I'll wrap things up here first, then...] He stopped walking leisurely and finally came to a halt.
In front of the Rook-class vampire Berno, who bristled like a cat with fur standing on end, in stark contrast to Phantom's calm demeanor.
[I'll come find you quietly later.] Leaving only that brief message without ever glancing at Kang Taesan, Heinz 2nd fixed Berno with a cold, merciless gaze.
His eyes held no emotion, as if staring at a roadside pebble.
'King? King? Why is a King here...?'
But Berno couldn't dare challenge that arrogance.
-Kneel and submit. -Bow your waist and lower your head. -Worship the great being who has descended upon this land. From the moment he'd faced the opponent, his instincts surging through his bloodline had writhed violently.
A sensation akin to facing the pinnacle of the bloodline: a King.
The impulse to prostrate himself and kiss those feet nearly overwhelmed him, so he bit the inside of his cheek hard.
'Hoo, I am a Rook of the great Lacus Clan. Here, I represent the Lacus Clan. No matter how superior the opponent's rank, I can't yield so easily to another clan's King!'
The wound in his mouth healed in an instant, but the sharp pain mingled with the thick bloody scent helped him regain his composure.
Suppressing his instincts with effort, he took a step back and bowed slightly in polite courtesy.
"Greetings. I am Berno Amarantis, Rook of the Lacus Clan."
It was the refined etiquette of nobility toward an elder, neither excessive nor lacking.
Having observed proper decorum, Berno slowly raised his head to examine the other's face.
"I'm sure you already know, but this is Lacus Clan territory. This sector, in particular, falls under my jurisdiction. ...Yet I have no report of today's visitor."
No matching face from the memorized descriptions of appearances, but for high vampires, outward appearance wasn't a crucial factor anyway.
Steadying his breath lightly, he continued calmly.
"Perhaps my subordinates made a mistake. I'll investigate and punish them accordingly. That said..."
A King was, quite literally, the king of the vampire world.
But as a Rook, Berno was the high noble just below that.
With both his own and the clan's honor on the line, he couldn't blindly submit, even to a foreign king.
"...If I may be so bold, might I ask where you hail from?"
As he finished speaking, scrutinizing the opponent's expression with sharp eyes despite his courteous demeanor...
Heinz 2nd, who had remained expressionless as if not even listening, finally spoke leisurely.
"You still haven't answered my question."
A seemingly irrelevant response that felt almost out of place.
But Berno, who had furrowed his brow slightly, suddenly flinched and shuddered involuntarily.
The words he'd carelessly overlooked in the confusion resurfaced.
"Wait, surely you're not...!"
He had asked if this was the one who sullied the Lacus Clan.
And this suddenly appearing being had taken up that question.
Which meant that response implied...
"...It was you! You who tampered with our clan's bloodline!"
All pretense of courtesy vanished, his eyes rolling like a priest whose sanctity had been defiled as a roar of fury erupted from his mouth.
"Hmm, your tone's gotten short all of a sudden."
A mocking tone that neither confirmed nor denied.
At this point, whatever excuses the other made didn't matter.
Truth be told, relations between clans had never been good.
They divided territories via treaties and avoided open conflict, but covert power struggles continued beneath the surface.
Still, there were lines that must not be crossed.
No matter how routine the millennia-long war with humans had become, crossing that line could lead to the annihilation of all vampires—a natural boundary.
'To dare touch the bloodline! This is a clear declaration of war. Unacceptable, and must not be tolerated!'
Honestly, he still couldn't fathom how another clan had interfered with their bloodline.
But the idea that a fellow vampire—a King, no less—had done it personally carried far more weight.
Flash—!
Fury-laced crimson light blazed fiercely from his eyes.
He thoroughly ignored the instincts screaming for submission.
Sometimes, you had to fight even knowing victory was impossible.
"Graaaah—!"
For him, that time was now.
From the moment he'd made an enemy of this unidentified King, he'd already forsaken his life anyway.
Crack! Crackle—!
His body, fueled by centuries of accumulated blood vitality ignited at once, forcibly surpassed its limits.
Simultaneously, an overwhelming pressure on an entirely different level crushed everything around him.
"Ho? Not bad."
Even among Rooks, he was near the top.
If he burned his entire life force, he could temporarily touch transcendence.
That transformation extended through his bloodline ability, Blood Eye, to the vampires under his command.
"Grooo!"
"Kyaaak!"
The eyes of his subordinate vampires glowed red, sweeping the area with volcanic fury.
A declaration of will: even if they perished here, they wouldn't tarnish the Lacus Clan's name.
"But..."
Of course, that was their problem.
He couldn't concern himself with every detail.
Heinz had always been extremely busy, with piles of tasks ahead.
"You're too noisy."
The moment those cold words slipped out...
The blazing crimson glares extinguished all at once.
Like candles plunged into the sea.
"Huh?"
Even Berno, who had been burning himself for his final stand, was no exception.
He slowly shifted his gaze downward to his chest.
"Cough!"
When had he struck?
As if time itself had been sliced, a hand had naturally pierced his chest and gripped his heart.
"Blood Eye, huh. I've encountered it a few times before. Among evil eye abilities, it's quite versatile, so I took some interest... "
The intense pressure clamping his heart.
He couldn't move a muscle, whatever trick was used.
All Berno could do was stare tremblingly at Heinz's face as he approached.
"But upon closer inspection, it's just a lesser version of Mystery of Blood. Well, that's to be expected. No matter how impressive the bloodline ability, it's just a power dwelling in one dimension's bloodline."
Blood was sucked out through his heart.
And in its place, unidentified blood began mixing in bit by bit.
'Insane! Kin cannibalism? No, this is beyond that...!'
Starting from his heart, his veins swelled throughout his body.
The very foundation of his being mutated all at once.
Berno's identity dissolved in terror and soul-rending agony, tears of blood streaming as he thrashed and screamed.
"The bloodline...! Do you even realize what you're doing?! This is madness! The Lacus Clan and all others will unite to exterminate you and everything connected to you! You'll make enemies of every vampire in the world!"
It wouldn't even be called war.
Hunting.
Every vampire comprising half this world would burn with rage to eliminate the one who violated this taboo.
Not just Rooks like Berno, but ancient monsters thousands of years old who had touched transcendence, Kings and Queens alike, would move as one.
"Is that so?"
But Heinz didn't care in the slightest.
And why would he...
"That's exactly what I want."
If they gathered on their own, it would save him time.
Even better if they conveniently banded together.
"You've seen the situation, right?"
Heinz whispered lowly, staring straight into Berno's tear-streaked Blood Eye.
"You should move as fast as possible if you want to do anything."
More precisely...
Toward the one presence watching from beyond the bloodline that hadn't fully mutated yet.
"Or you won't even get the chance."
A faint smile touched Heinz 2nd's face, which had remained utterly cold and devoid of mirth throughout.
But the emotion it held was far from joy.
A icy sneer that stabbed like frost into the one facing him.
It plunged coldly over the heart of the being beyond space.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A room filled with antique artworks.
“...”
A young man sitting at its center, eyes closed, quietly opened them.
A faint crimson glow flickered through the room.
The next instant.
Crumble—
Everything around him disintegrated and scattered into the air all at once.
No matter how sturdy the material, how priceless, or how much artisan soul infused—no exceptions.
Not just the artworks, but the walls, ceiling, and nearby subordinates waiting in attendance met the same fate.
"Convene the Lords' Council."
But the being didn't care.
He simply closed his eyes again and stated calmly what needed to be said.
The tiny flap of wings from one Awakened's transfer had become a typhoon shaking the entire world.