Chapter 504
Chapter 504
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 504
Chapter Title: Harvest Festival (3)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Smooth carpets stretched down the long corridor, flanked on both sides by countless candelabras.
Gorgeous chandeliers adorned the ceiling at regular intervals.
The artificial light emanating from those lavish fixtures pierced the indoor gloom, standing in for the natural daylight completely blocked by thick curtains.
"You've arrived. We've already completed all the preparations."
"Good work."
"It's an honor! Then I'll open the doors."
The interior was closer to a medieval castle than anything modern.
Luk Berno, standing before the grand doors at the end of the hall, bowed deeply with an expression of profound emotion.
He extended one hand to the side and lightly touched the door.
The next moment...
Guuuuung—
A massive door, beautifully embossed with intricate carvings large enough for a giant to pass through comfortably, slowly swung open to both sides.
As if welcoming the new ruler who had finally descended upon this world.
'Tch, so unnecessarily grandiose. And flashy to boot...'
Heinz 2nd inwardly clicked his tongue as he watched the space beyond the heavy doors gradually come into view.
In a world stuck at a medieval level, it might have made sense, but this was a civilization akin to modern Earth—what was the point of such inefficient ostentation?
'Still, if it's their culture, I suppose I should try to understand.'
It was the basic duty of any intellectual who grasped cultural relativism.
And beyond that...
"Eternal glory to our Lord who has descended upon the earth!"
""Eternal glory!""
...it was also the包容 of the being who now reigned at the pinnacle of Nocternia, embracing those beneath him.
'Now this is a sight.'
Heinz took a few steps past the doors and slowly surveyed his surroundings.
The overall layout resembled a medieval palace banquet hall, but its scale was staggeringly immense, matching the doors themselves.
With a quiet murmur of admiration, he stepped forward.
Thud, thud—
For a time, the only sound was his footsteps—no one so much as breathed.
The space held a considerable crowd, yet as he passed through them, every soul remained prostrate like statues, lips firmly sealed.
At last, he reached the enormous jade throne atop a high dais.
He stared at it for a moment before casually perching on its edge.
And he couldn't help but marvel at the breathtaking vista before him.
'It's just like...'
A clear line of sight, as if gazing down from the heavens upon the earth.
A palace so opulent it seemed to hold the world's entire wealth.
Subjects paying him the utmost reverence.
'...being a god.'
In truth, it wasn't far off.
Heinz 2nd was the sole being on Nocternia's surface to have reached the divine realm.
As he immersed himself in the moment...
A group of men and women at the forefront of the crowd stepped forward and bowed to him once more.
"Your servant Lacus comes before you."
"Violet is honored to serve your greatness..."
The nine Kings and Queens who had once stood at the apex of vampire society.
This was the moment the old guard's rulers formally pledged their submission to the new era's absolute sovereign, in full view of their kin.
'Worth the effort I put into their education. They look to be in decent shape.'
Heinz scanned them one by one, nodding in satisfaction.
They only appeared fine on the surface—their actual conditions weren't all that great.
No matter their regenerative prowess, the punishment he'd packed with divinity hadn't been gentle.
It was only thanks to the Purified Blood Essence that they could stand here so soon looking relatively unscathed.
'Being such prideful lot, they took more work than I'd anticipated.'
Unlike the vampires below Luk's level, whom he'd simply overpowered by demonstrating the gulf in strength...
To fully bring these transcendent beings—who had escaped fate's yoke to forge their own laws—under his wing, he needed their genuine surrender.
'Lucky it was near a remote outpost far from humanity's mainland. Otherwise...'
From those who'd resisted to the brink of death, to ones caught mid-escape attempt, to those feigning submission while biding their time...
He hadn't wrecked the surrounding terrain for nothing.
"Good, you all seem to be in decent condition. As examples to the rest, do take better care of your health from now on."
The Clan Lords forced neutral expressions, hiding their reluctance at the instigator's platitudes.
They had their pride as leaders; they'd tolerate it among themselves, but additional "lessons" in front of their subordinates was a hard no.
'Alright, time to move to the next phase.'
Heinz gazed down at them impassively, propping his elbow on the armrest and stroking his chin.
Of course, subduing the Lords and elite vampires didn't end things.
To swallow up every member of their nine clans—not to mention the minor clans scattered across the world—and unite them under one banner, he'd need to get busy starting now.
'Shouldn't take too long, though. I've done it once before in Outerica.'
The headcount might be higher than then, but with nine Lords to assist, it wouldn't be much of a burden.
And after that...
'About time the humans bit the bait I dangled.'
The Harvest Festival's side story had devoured half the world.
This was the faith propagation project to consume the other half.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Whirrrrr—
The deafening roar of helicopter propellers filled the cabin.
"...Insane."
"H-ha... ha..."
"What the hell happened here?"
The investigation team inside stared out the window, overwhelmed by the scene below.
They'd seen photos beforehand, but the visceral impact of witnessing it firsthand was on another level.
"Isn't that where the mountains used to be?"
"Not just there. Over there's a massive crater where a whole mountain vaporized. Once rain fills it, calling it the largest lake on the Ameria continent wouldn't be an exaggeration."
"...We'll need to redraw the maps entirely."
New lakes where mountains had vanished was just the start.
The land was a wasteland as if hit by a massive missile barrage, complete with enormous fissures that had turned plains into canyons.
"Might be lucky it ended with just an earthquake on that scale. A nearby volcano would've turned it into a full-blown catastrophe."
One Slayer dispatched from S.O.D. shook his head in dismay.
Having been stationed at the outpost here before, the destruction hit him especially hard.
Whirrrrr—
The helicopter circled once before landing at the camp set up by local soldiers.
The forward base they'd poured massive resources into was reduced to barely recognizable ruins, forcing them to start completely from scratch.
"But is this really okay? What if vampires show up while we're here...?"
As researchers bustled about unloading equipment, a tense rookie Slayer sidled up to his senior and whispered.
He harbored hatred for vampires and had chosen this path to hunt them, but he knew his limits.
What could he possibly do against an enemy capable of such cataclysmic destruction?
Dying pointlessly like a dog was out of the question.
"...It'll be fine. Intel's reviewed the situation multiple times."
They hadn't been sent here without cause.
They'd received word that the vampires—who'd recently gathered here, putting all humanity on edge—had entered a new phase.
"Heard the monsters ate some bad blood or whatever and stopped their rampages, holing up quietly. Made this place a no-man's-land. No problems now."
"...Not exactly one hundred percent, right?"
"Gah, kid! If they say so, just roll with it. Where's anything in this world ever one hundred percent?"
The senior Slayer sighed and kicked his rookie's shin, then lit a cigarette.
He was just as uneasy, but he knew this mission was essential.
'We can't keep getting dragged around by them. Now's the time to gather intel.'
What exactly was going on?
What had happened here to so drastically alter vampire behavior?
For humanity's survival, they needed more data.
Even if it meant sacrificing some members.
Only then could they make sound decisions and mount proper countermeasures.
"Energy readings complete."
"...This a glitch?"
"Checked multiple times just in case. The readings are accurate."
"Hah! Unbelievable."
The researchers manipulating complex devices fell silent en masse.
S.O.D. had a vast database built from countless sacrifices—priceless research compiled at the cost of human lives.
But they'd never seen results this absurd.
"To produce this, it'd take dozens of King or Queen-level monsters in one spot..."
"There are only nine Lord-class in existence total. Not even ten, let alone dozens."
"That's why it's so baffling. Precise measurements?"
"Negative. Completely off the observable scale."
"Heh, this is nuts."
Some let out hollow laughs, others wiped cold sweat, still others struggled to steady trembling pupils.
The researchers exchanged uneasy glances, unable to hide their agitation.
The situation was far graver than anticipated.
A single transcendent was asymmetric warfare incarnate—effective in mass destruction, guerrilla tactics, anywhere, anytime.
For their plotting ground to register energy equivalent to dozens...
"Should we really be panicking over unconfirmed data?"
A soft feminine voice cut through the heavy silence.
"D-Director!"
"Ma'am!"
A middle-aged woman slowly emerged from a group of Slayers who'd approached unnoticed.
One of S.O.D.'s directors—a Slayer who matched Rook-class vampires...
...or perhaps even Princes and Princesses.
She addressed the researchers with gentle admonishment.
"Our time is short. We have mountains of work, no luxury to dither over uncertain intel."
"Sorry. We'll start the next task immediately."
"Please do. And I'll lend a hand, so no need to push too hard."
"Y-Yes...?"
She replied to the flustered researcher's question with a soft smile, drawing a military auto-injector from her bosom.
She gazed briefly at the ruby-like red liquid shimmering within, then unhesitatingly plunged it into her nape.
Pssht!
The refined essence of Rook-class vampire blood surged into her veins, heightening her mind to extremes.
Immediately after, she activated her unique skill.
To uncover what had transpired here.
Her consciousness swept through the lingering memories of the space.
Reading the world's flow, piecing together scattered causality fragments to reconstruct the past in her mind.
'Ngh! What in the...'
But her smooth progress abruptly halted, as if slamming into an immense wall.
Like sprinting full-tilt into a barrier, the worst headache she'd ever endured gripped her; the metallic tang of blood filled her mouth.
'Not enough.'
She quietly dabbed her nosebleed with a handkerchief, then drew another injector and stabbed it into her neck.
She knew she was pushing too far, but retreat wasn't an option now.
She understood full well how critical this was.
"Director, you're overdoing..."
"Shh. Stay quiet."
In the tense atmosphere...
The Slayers encircled her protectively in her vulnerable state, watching worriedly as sweat poured down her face.
All they could do was silently cheer her on.
'What is this...?'
Bathed in their concern and anticipation...
A mystical phenomenon unfolded in her mind—one she'd never encountered despite countless uses of her power.
Sparks flew as illusions—real or fantasy?—flashed by.
A divine being had descended upon this land.
Something truly godlike, beyond even transcendent reach.
And that great existence...
"Haak! Heok, haak!"
Regaining her senses, she bolted upright.
She looked around in panic with wide eyes.
When had she lost consciousness?
She was now lying on a cot inside a tent.
"Director! Are you alright? You're conscious..."
"How long was I out?"
She cut off her adjutant—who'd rushed in at the sound—and urgently asked.
The adjutant hesitated briefly before answering.
"A full day! You burned with fever so badly, no emergency measures helped. We planned to evac you by heli at dawn..."
"Do it now."
"Pardon?"
"Call the helicopter. Immediately."
With a resolute expression, she issued the order and rose from the cot.
Her mind brimmed with a single thought.
More precisely, the face of someone who could be the key to this unfolding crisis.
'His name was... San, right?'
The clue glimpsed in that mysterious space.
A fellow Earth-born Awakener named Kang Taesan.