Episode 1193
Episode 1193
"That mage really needs to stop moving already."
"I agree."
Currently, five knights had collapsed from exhaustion while tracking that mage.
This was the result of relentlessly pursuing a mage who never stopped moving.
And this was despite them taking shifts to track him!
"If we lose him this time, we probably won't be able to chase him like this again."
The fact that they were still able to follow him at all was thanks to luck favoring the knights.
The Moonless Night Knights, at Lee Han's request, had chosen the most straightforward method: sheer numbers.
The knights swiftly traveled between cities and villages in the western region, personally checking every place a traveler might stay.
Of course, they didn't go around shouting 'Suspicious people, come out!' and beating people up like Lee Han had. They simply identified and noted any travelers who gave off even the slightest unnatural magical presence.
Afterward, they verified the identities of those travelers, using the knights' network and connections to confirm whether their identities were genuine. Those who couldn't be verified were then pursued directly.
It wasn't for nothing that the Moonless Night Knights were said to be capable of running nonstop from the western coast all the way to the Nightmare Swamps. These were knights who knew how to execute the simplest methods with the most tenacity.
Once caught, there was no escape.
Despite their abilities, luck had played a bigger role in locating the Einrogard professor.
An unexpectedly large brawl had broken out at the tavern where the professor was staying, causing the flawless disguise magic he had maintained to leave behind faint traces.
From then on, the Moonless Night Knights pursued the professor desperately, without rest. When five knights collapsed from exhaustion, a sixth would take their place.
'If only we could plant some kind of tracking method on him. But he's just too sharp...'
"Sir Bark. The mages from Einrogard have arrived."
"Finally!"
Amrek beamed with joy.
They had desperately needed the support of capable mages, and now they had arrived just in time.
Though the Moonless Night Knights' own mages were highly skilled, they still felt uneasy about facing an Einrogard professor.
"Let them in! Quickly!"
Lee Han, Professor Kirmin, Ibinta, and two Death Knights came rushing upstairs.
The knights, sensing the true nature of the Death Knights, looked at them with a mix of respect and fear.
"By any chance, are you all...?"
-Your guess is correct, little ones.
"W-we are honored to meet you. Is the person beside you also a knight?"
-Ah. That one's a slave.
Ibinta's face twisted in displeasure.
As if being dragged out here suddenly wasn't bad enough, did they really have to humiliate him like this?
"Huh?"
-It's common for tracking teams to have at least one slave to handle the dirty work...
"That's enough. Please step outside for a moment. We need to talk."
Lee Han pushed the Death Knights out. He was worried that, being the Skeleton Principal's subordinates, they might leak the plan to track Professor Voladi.
The knights, realizing his intent, looked deeply hurt.
-You don't trust us?
-There's no need to imitate our master's level of thoroughness...
Once the Death Knights and the Moonless Night Knights had stepped out, Professor Kirmin cast a soundproofing spell.
Lee Han first tried to thank Amrek. Even with their existing friendship through his younger sibling, going this far to help was truly...
"Thank y—"
"So you're Wardanaz? I really owe you one!"
Amrek suddenly pulled Lee Han into a tight embrace. The dwarf's forceful hug left Lee Han slightly flustered.
"Huh?"
"Thanks to you, Batrek didn't fail! I'm so grateful!"
"......"
"......"
Lee Han and Professor Kirmin immediately understood the situation. Flustered, Lee Han quickly replied.
"Batrek would've done well on his own—"
"Don't say things you don't mean. Not even you, nor anyone from the Bark family, would believe that. Even the professor here probably thinks the same."
'Oh no.'
Professor Kirmin realized a beat too late that he should have denied it immediately.
If he had said 'no' right away, it might have sounded more convincing...
"Let's keep the gratitude to a minimum. We have work to discuss. Professor Bagrak, was it? That man truly never rests."
Lee Han and Professor Kirmin each received a copy of the knights' report.
Amrek fixed his gaze back out the window and asked,
"Professor, what should we do? Should I go and relay the message?"
"You're saying they've been tracking him for over a day?"
A faint crease formed between Professor Kirmin's brows.
"Yes. But we rotated personnel periodically..."
"They must already know. Wardanaz. It's clear Professor Bagrak is using the knights for something. We need to move first."
Professor Kirmin spoke decisively. Lee Han was surprised, but Amrek was even more so.
The idea that their target had noticed their pursuit was...
"That's ridiculous—"
"First, trust us and assist. Do you have a list of notable figures in this city who are difficult to approach but located relatively nearby?"
Though flustered, Amrek, ever the seasoned knight, adapted to the mage's eccentricities.
Mages acting incomprehensibly was nothing new. And if they were from Einrogard, it was even more expected.
"We do have a list compiled by the knights, but..."
"Give it to me. Among these, who bears the darkest shadow of death?"
Professor Kirmin drew blood from his palm and scattered it over the list. The blood writhed and gathered over one name.
"Lord Langbern, from the city of Alquie in the west, race: vampire. It must be him. Wardanaz, let's go meet your teacher!"
After lightly wrapping a magical bandage over his unhealed wound, the professor gestured. Amrek, still bewildered, kept firing questions—so much so that Lee Han didn't even need to ask.
"Are you saying Lord Langbern is in danger?"
"He's likely a former survivor of the Sanguiros Cult. Right now, Professor Bagrak is hunting down remnants of the Evil God Worshippers."
"Lord Langbern?!"
Amrek couldn't hide his shock.
Lord Langbern was a man whose character matched his considerable wealth.
Though unfortunately not very sociable—spending most of his time quietly at home—whenever he did appear, nobles and merchants alike scrambled to befriend him.
He was the kind of man who had almost no dirty rumors, unlike most nobles who had plenty...
—Sir Bark! The mercenaries at the Severed Moon Inn are suddenly on the move!
Hearing the knights' shouts from below, Amrek quickly checked outside.
Just as reported, the wandering mercenaries at the inn were moving en masse, as if driven by some sudden impulse.
Why would they leave when they'd already paid for their stay?
"Don't be fooled by the mercenaries. It's probably his trick. Let's head straight to Lord Langbern's estate!"
Professor Kirmin flew down the stairs like the wind. His murderous aura made Amrek blurt out in alarm,
"Are the two of you enemies? Should I be cautious?"
"...Surprisingly, they're friends!"
Provoking the wandering mercenaries wasn't difficult. Just whisper that the knights were after them, and any mercenary would leap up and bolt.
A wandering mercenary without a guilty conscience was a rare thing.
Especially when the pursuers were the infamous Moonless Night Knights.
"It really is the knights! Damn it! No wonder I've been having restless dreams!"
"Better not set foot in the west for a while. Did someone curse this land? Last time, it was those lunatics sweeping through...!"
Once they confirmed the knights were real, the mercenaries erupted into curses and immediately surged in the opposite direction.
They knew instinctively that moving as a group increased their chances of escape, even if surrounded. After all, wasn't another mercenary's capture the perfect chance to slip away?
The street vendors who had set up their stalls along the road hastily dodged aside in shock at the mercenaries' sudden rampage. The mercenaries continued their mad dash without stopping.
"To the east! There's a side gate in the city walls we can break through! Once outside, we can blend into the crowds!"
At someone's shout, the mercenaries nodded in agreement—it was clearly the right move.
The eastern wall indeed had a poorly maintained side gate, and beyond it were numerous merchants and travelers who had come up along the river—perfect for slipping away unnoticed.
If worse came to worst, they could always steal horses... or even boats...
As they ran, a noble's mansion suddenly loomed large before the mercenaries. Just as they were about to hastily detour around it, another shout rang in their ears.
"Just smash through the gates and keep running! Is this really the time to go around? The Nightfall Knights are right behind us!"
"Break it down!"
Cornered, the mercenaries boldly committed acts they would never have dared under normal circumstances.
They shattered the main gates and immediately began sprinting across the garden toward the rear wall. The guards inside rushed out in alarm.
"Get out of the way! We're not here to loot your damn house! Just let us pass and nothing will happen!"
"You crazy mercenary bastards must have a death wish! Do you even know whose mansion this is? Attack!"
A clash erupted between the fleeing mercenaries and the guards trying to stop them.
Meanwhile, a single shadow quietly seeped in through a fourth-floor window of the mansion.
"Some mercenary riot, you say?"
"Yes. There's no need for concern, my lord."
The elderly vampire clicked his tongue in displeasure. The Head Butler bowed apologetically once more.
"I'll retrain the guards immediately."
"You'd better. What kind of disgraceful performance is this for the pay they receive? Unacceptable."
No reply came. The vampire Lord Langbern turned his head with an angry glare at his subordinate's insolent attitude.
But standing behind him wasn't the Head Butler—it was a familiar vampire mage instead.
Professor Voladi spoke coldly.
"Langbern. A believer of the Sanguiros Cult. Correct?"
"...!!!"
Langbern felt terror as if all the blood had drained from his body.
And he regretted his complacent orders. Just because some filthy mercenaries were causing a ruckus in the courtyard, he'd sent even the guards from this floor down to deal with them.
"W-wait. Let's talk this through. I have no ties to the Sanguiros Cult anymore!"
This was the truth.
In the distant past, he had joined other western vampire nobles in drunken faith, offering countless sacrifices to gain that power—but after the large-scale purge and subsequent retaliation, he had long severed all connections to the Sanguiros Faith.
"Your wealth?"
"Wh-what?"
Though the question was brief, Langbern, already extremely tense, immediately grasped its implication.
His current wealth consisted entirely of treasures received as rewards for sacrifices made to Sanguiros.
"I-I'll donate it all to others. Will that suffice?"
"Your reputation?"
"...I-I'll confess everything too."
He had to bite his lip in humiliation, but there was no other choice.
What mattered most was survival, after all.
Wealth and reputation.
Only by surrendering everything he'd received from Sanguiros did he stand even a slim chance of living.
"Will this do? Huh?"
Professor Voladi shook his head briefly. Then he pointed at Langbern.
There was still one more thing left.
"What? What else...?"
Bewildered and slow to understand, Langbern finally realized.
Wealth and reputation weren't all he'd received from Sanguiros. He'd also gained youth and vitality in exchange.
"B-but this can't be returned! It's my blood we're talking about! Are you planning to drain every last drop from my body? Huh?"
Without a moment's hesitation, the other nodded. Flames of fury erupted in Langbern's eyes.
"You damned vampire bastard! Back in the day, a lowly vampire from an insignificant family like yours wouldn't have dared even look at me...!"
His words were cut short. Langbern's consciousness faded as he witnessed his own headless torso spurting blood for the last time.
'We should have finished them all off back then...'