Chapter 527: Bloody Requiem (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 527: Bloody Requiem (2)
How on earth did Stan, who was supposed to be buried underground, manage to set a trap and wait for us here?
The story goes back a few days.
It was after the Raid Team’s intelligence gathering had ended with nothing more than a collection of feel-good stories about Viktor Vadim.
They were left with only a single lead.
Stan, the pale-faced bastard Kim Do-jin had left buried in the ground.
When they flew right over, pulled the guy—who was still struggling to get out of the ground—and sat him in an interrogation room, they had been confident they could extract information from him.
Just looking at his pale face, didn't he seem like the type who'd put his own life first and betray others as easily as breathing?
But that wasn't the case.
“The Romanian government? I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
He had an unexpected backbone.
He remained unfazed by the interrogation from Kim Do-jin and the other members of the Raid Team.
He just played dumb.
It felt as if he had already prepared his answers for the moment he was captured by the enemy.
Because of this, opinions within the Raid Team began to diverge.
“Should we just bust in?”
“Bust in?”
“Whether we sneak in or break in, if we go in and shake things up, won’t something turn up?”
“Do you really want me to cuss you out?”
The team member who made the ridiculous suggestion wilted under Francis’s growl.
“What if we shifted our target to the Blood Sanctuary instead?”
“That’s right. If the two are really connected, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to investigate that side.”
Some members argued they should put the Romanian government on hold and focus their investigation on the Blood Sanctuary.
Their opinion was quite reasonable.
They even went so far as to dispatch a few members to investigate the area around the Blood Sanctuary.
The problem was that they couldn't find a single clue, let alone a way to get inside.
It was a frustrating situation where, no matter which direction they chose, they were quickly blocked and returned to square one.
Believing that waiting around would accomplish nothing, Kim Do-jin proposed a new move.
“Why don’t we just let him go?”
“……?”
Stan, the man they were holding captive.
He was suggesting they release him.
Of course, he didn't mean to just let him go unconditionally.
No matter how resolute a person is, no one is without fear of death.
Kim Do-jin took advantage of this and proposed a bet to Stan, who was once again buried in the ground.
“How about I give you a chance for revenge?”
“…What kind of trick are you trying to pull?”
“It’s exactly what it sounds like.”
The terms were simple.
In exchange for his freedom, Stan was not to reveal that he had been captured by the enemy.
Then, if he succeeded in his revenge by any means, he would win.
If not, Kim Do-jin would win. It was a bet with their lives on the line.
“Fine.”
After some thought, Stan accepted his proposal. He signed a contract and was released.
With twenty percent of the supplies the Volunteer Group had recovered back in his hands.
In a way, this was a set future.
One where they didn't know when or how the enemy would tighten the noose.
An incredibly uncertain and perilous future.
But they had no other choice.
It was the only lead they had at the moment.
And they believed.
They believed that even if things went wrong, a future where they were defeated would never come to pass.
Because they had humanity’s greatest hero, Francis Meyer.
* * *
The worst possible move had struck the Volunteer Group and the Raid Team.
Honestly, I didn't see this coming.
To think that even the fleeing soldiers were all part of an elaborate act.
However, I did learn one thing from this.
“…Did you join forces with the vampires?”
“I’ve had a feeling for a while now, but…”
The man holding a sharp dagger to the neck of Michael, the Volunteer Group’s leader, grinned.
“You’re too sharp. So sharp I’m tempted to never let you live.”
To be honest, I had anticipated it to some extent.
The Fog Transformation he’d used time and time again whenever he dodged my attacks.
I don't know how he acquired that power, but it's an ability exclusive to vampires.
I ask him.
“You’ve captured the high ground. What’s your plan now? Are you going to turn us all into vampire food?”
“It’s true they will become food for vampires, but not these ones.”
The man shakes his head as he answers.
So they aren't food for these guys.
The world of vampires is structured as a strict class society.
And that class is determined by the blood flowing through one's veins.
The king of vampires, the True Ancestor.
Those who inherit a high concentration of his blood become nobles, while those who don't become low-ranking soldiers.
The ones who appeared here were all small fry.
“So we’re offerings for a higher-up, is that it?”
“Heh… It’s nice that we’re on the same page.”
With a smirk, the man presses the dagger harder against Michael’s neck.
“Ugh.”
A faint groan, and a single trickle of blood runs down his neck.
After displaying his red warning, the man jerks his chin toward the area behind us.
“Turn around and walk. That goes for everyone here, not just you.”
“……”
With the less combat-capable Volunteer Group taken hostage, there was only one thing we could do unless we wanted them all to die.
Obey his words without resistance.
I turn around and meet the distressed eyes of my comrades.
Let’s follow his orders for now.
Understanding my meaning, my comrades turn around one by one.
Confirming that our hostility had vanished, the vampires approach with vicious smiles and give their command.
“Look forward and walk, you blood bags.”
“…There’s a wall right in front of us.”
My casual retort makes his face twist into a scowl.
Smack—!
A stinging pain blossoms on my cheek.
It seems he was quite displeased with a mere human—nothing more than food—talking back.
“Shut up and follow orders.”
“Ah, yes.”
Pushed forward by the vampires, we begin to walk. Before long, a red barrier materializes before our eyes.
Now what?
Since there are no other instructions, it seems I have to keep walking…
“Ugh.”
A visceral sense of repulsion rises within me.
No matter how many battles I’ve been through, I really don’t want to rub my body against a wall reeking of blood.
Just as I scrunched up my face and forced myself to take a step, something strange happened.
Woooong—
The red barrier before my eyes rippled, revealing a small opening.
As I walked through it, I soon found my feet standing on crimson-stained ground.
“Ah…”
I had successfully entered the Blood Sanctuary.
The moment both my feet were firmly on the red earth, my steps became drastically heavier.
It felt as if invisible shackles were binding my feet.
“So this is what it feels like.”
It’s just as Francis said.
At this rate, I’ll be about twenty to thirty percent slower than usual.
I turn my head and glance at the vampire’s feet.
His steps are even lighter than they were outside.
It seems that in here, vampires aren't negatively affected like us; in fact, they seem to benefit from it.
“This is going to be a real headache.”
As I frowned, thinking this would be more troublesome than I expected, the others following behind me all entered the Blood Sanctuary.
Then, the vampire next to me shoves my back again.
“Walk.”
“……”
I wish he’d stop licking his lips every time he looks at me.
He looks exactly like a person, so it feels like I’m watching a cannibal who enjoys human flesh.
Shuddering with disgust, I move forward.
No matter how far I walk, all I see is the red earth.
There isn't a single trace of the civilization where humans once lived.
Did they destroy it that thoroughly?
Or… did this land erase the traces of humanity on its own?
As I walked endlessly, inhaling the coppery air that seeped into my lungs with every breath, the building that had looked like a dot on a red piece of paper when we entered now revealed its grandeur.
A fortress wall, solidly built with dark gray bricks.
Spires rising high above it.
The elegant traces of ancient times.
And an overwhelming sense of foreboding, radiating intensely from within the castle.
The ancient castle where the True Ancestor slept greeted us with a chilling welcome.
As we reached the massive castle gate, the vampire who had been constantly licking his lips recited a welcome.
“You should feel honored that mere humans like you have reached the sanctuary of the vampire clan.”
“……”
I’m so overwhelmed with gratitude, I don’t know what to do with myself. Really.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Creeeak—
Thud!
Once inside the towering castle walls, we were immediately thrown into a damp underground prison.
Stan looks down at us from beyond the sturdy iron bars.
“You’d all better stay quiet. Unless you want to hasten your deaths.”
With that, he swiftly exits the prison.
Leaving is his choice, I suppose.
“…But isn’t it a bit much to cram this many people into a single cell?”
Over twenty people were crammed into a cell barely ten pyeong [approx. 355 sq ft] in size.
“Stop spreading your legs, Frank!”
“Nngh…”
“Breathe softer, you bastard! I can feel your breath on my neck!”
“Deal with it. I’m putting up with your damn bad breath.”
It was absolute chaos.
Seo-yeon, who was stuck right beside me to avoid contact with others, asks.
“What are we going to do now…?”
“Hmm, well, let’s see.”
As I answer vaguely, Shin Yu-jeong, who was plastered to my other side, protests by rubbing her head frantically against my arm.
“‘Let’s see?’ If you say that, it means we’re all fucked!”
“Hey now, use nice words.”
“How am I supposed to use nice words when we’re about to get our blood sucked dry and die!”
“Hmm.”
She has a point.
Objectively speaking, our situation is about as bad as it gets.
We’re in the middle of enemy territory that makes our bodies heavy.
We’re wearing special handcuffs that forcibly seal the flow of mana.
And to top it all off, even the priests of the Volunteer Group are being held hostage.
“Hah, this is truly hopeless.”
Right.
If I were an ordinary Hunter, that is.
By now, the ones who locked us up should be far enough away.
“Shall we start making our way out?”
They don’t know.
They don’t know that I’m no ordinary mage.
And therefore.
“Hmm, like this, maybe.”
Snap!
They also don’t know that special handcuffs designed for ordinary humans wouldn’t work on me.
The freedom of my arms, restored in an instant.
From here on, it’s a race against time. I turn to break the cuffs on the others’ wrists, but Shin Yu-jeong asks me with a dumbfounded expression.
“You, you… how did you…?”
How did I do it?
“Just… skillfully?”
“……”
The way everyone is looking at me changes.
From the looks on their faces, they’re all thinking, ‘What is with this crazy bastard?’
“What? Why? What is it?”
I’m the one who should be dumbfounded.
Did you really think I’d willingly walk into a trap without at least this much preparation?