Ch.63Mining and the Vampire (4)

I felt goosebumps.

The sight of hundreds of vampires simultaneously staring at the tent where we were hiding reminded me of a story I once read online.

Something about telling someone in a dream that they were dreaming, and suddenly everyone in that space turned to look at them.

Even in that story, it was just a classroom with a limited number of people, but the mere thought of it gave me chills.

And now, it was happening to me.

On a much larger scale, with the added creepiness that only vampires possess.

No matter which way I turned, I couldn’t escape those red gazes.

The stares embroidering the tent where my companions and I were hiding were eerie enough, but what was truly terrifying was the hundreds of beings who could pounce on us at any moment.

It seemed that the mixed-blood vampires ultimately couldn’t break free from the control of higher vampires.

Despite thinking I’d built up some goodwill with them, and even though they had no reason to hide their hostility if they truly considered me an enemy…

They were clearly hostile toward me, their eyes burning with hatred—simply because their master, a blood clan member, was looking at this tent.

Lorian, belatedly realizing his mistake, covered his mouth in horror, but the sound had already escaped.

“Hmm.”

A sticky voice. Different from Lorian’s somewhat rough but pleasant tone.

It gave the overall impression of viscous blood. The blood clan member whom Lorian called Edilum looked like a proper blood clan member, unlike Lorian.

Because of this, I could predict what would happen next.

Edilum extended his hand. Unlike the leisurely movement, blood droplets formed at his fingertips and accelerated.

The sound of air being torn apart echoed along its trajectory. But even that sound couldn’t catch up to the fired blood droplet.

Fast. Almost invisible even to my eyes. It looked like a red beam rushing toward me.

The target was my heart. A spot where even a homunculus would lose consciousness momentarily if hit.

Not the neck, so I wouldn’t die, but losing consciousness would be troublesome. Reflexively, I raised my arm, and—

CRACK!

I watched as my arm was crushed, armor and all.

My brain went numb. My consciousness faded for a moment.

A sense of loss washed over me, along with a sharp, cold pain rising from the stump of my arm to my brain.

Hot, cold, painful.

A single strike that shattered through my 22 Health, plate armor, and even my blood essence. I gritted my teeth to endure the rising pain, and felt my teeth crumble from clenching too hard.

Did I bite down too hard?

But there was no time to think. I deliberately rolled on the ground, pressing my severed arm against the floor.

I suppressed the involuntary screams and pain. The blood flowing out was less than expected, thanks to my regenerative abilities.

So I immediately looked at Lorian.

Her red eyes, meeting mine, trembled slightly. Only after our eyes met did she understand what I wanted.

Her hand moved, and the blood dripping from my severed forearm soaked the floor.

Wide and shallow. Like someone who had died from a broken heart.

Only after the blood had flowed like this did Edilum slowly lower his raised hand.

“An adventurer?”

“Y-yes, my lord of blood.”

“Send the corpse up, and continue your work.”

And with that, the androgynous blood clan member left. The exit was as sudden as the entrance had been.

“He’s gone.”

Isla said. She was holding her crossbow with a slightly furrowed brow, as if annoyed. Ready to shoot at any moment.

She was clearly aiming at the departed Edilum, but for some reason, I felt I needed to protect Lorian.

“That’s a relief. My quick thinking was pretty awesome, right?”

When I spoke with a forced smile, Isla raised her eyebrows. Her sharp gaze made me flinch.

Lorian hiccupped upon receiving that gaze, and I closed my mouth before making another joke.

They say it’s scariest when normally calm people get angry.

I couldn’t say a word in the awkward atmosphere.

“A-are you alright?”

“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. It’s nothing.”

Fortunately, the vampires’ conversation gave me a chance to escape. As we stepped outside the tent, the gazes gathering on me were not much different from before.

But the creepy feeling was gone, even though they still glowed red.

Probably because of the situation. As I thought this, I recalled the blood clan member who was now gone.

Edilum. The blood clan member who noticed and attacked just from Lorian saying his name.

Whether he heard the name or just sensed something, I wasn’t sure.

But at least I understood the situation.

The ruler of this mine, the master of these hundreds of vampires.

He was more skilled in blood magic than Lorian.

I clicked my tongue while looking at my still-regenerating forearm.

*

“Edilum is a blood mage… of the blood clan.”

Lorian said with a troubled expression after we left the tent, around the time my arm had regenerated.

“You use blood magic too.”

“It’s different. I’m a blood knight, and blood magic is just supplementary for me.”

Indeed, thinking back, Lorian’s blood magic was rarely used offensively.

At most, he would manipulate an opponent’s blood flow during sword exchanges to control their movements or apply debuffs, not shoot blood droplets like sniper bullets.

“Blood mage, what exactly do they do?”

“They primarily train in blood magic… and defeat enemies with blood magic. They’re the mages of the blood clan.”

I couldn’t say I understood just from hearing the name. Lorian already looked quite conflicted.

“Do you know each other?”

“I do know him. But… since my body became like this, I haven’t met him, so I’m not sure if he’d recognize me.”

The part I was worried about seemed to be fine. Despite his complicated feelings, Lorian explained diligently.

“Edilum is the type of blood mage who focuses on blood magic as an offensive tool.”

“Like what he did earlier?”

“Yes. I didn’t expect him to shoot so immediately, though.”

The blood bullet that flew at ultra-high speed like a sniper’s bullet.

There wasn’t much information about blood magic even in the game.

It wasn’t such a grand magic. It was just a basic “normal attack” that used blood as a bullet.

Yet its power was formidable. I wasn’t sure exactly what happened, but it shattered my arm despite my blood essence and armor.

I thought it might be the type that bypasses hit checks and goes straight to damage, or at least gives some bonus to such checks.

So I could understand Lorian’s next words.

“That was a blood bullet. It’s the most basic blood magic and… the most fundamental attack method.”

“And it crushed my arm.”

“Edilum is especially a master of blood bullets.”

An annoying type.

As always, enemies who stick to the basics tend to be the most troublesome.

I frowned and looked at my now fully regenerated arm.

[Defense: 18(Crimson Shadow) + 5(Dexterity) = 23]

And the status window floating above it.

My defense wasn’t particularly low.

Thanks to Crimson Shadow being treated as part of my body, my defense fully benefited from my dexterity, making it higher than an ordinary medium-armored warrior.

A defense of 23 was unmatched among natural creatures.

Even a well-trained warrior in plate armor with a shield would only have about 21 points.

Not only that, I had Parry. Considering my proficiency of 3 points, my effective defense could be considered 26 points.

The blood bullet tore through that defense and crushed my arm.

It even broke through my armor, which had resistance to all types of damage thanks to blood essence, and crushed the flesh beneath.

Both damage and accuracy were at levels that couldn’t be ignored. A formidable enemy.

He seemed to be on par with or even stronger than Lorian before he broke his ring and became a woman.

Sure enough.

“Edilum held a higher position than me. I was just a guardian blood knight, but Edilum was an attendant to the Court Count.”

Court Count. An unfamiliar name. I could tell from the nuance that it was some kind of empress-like figure, but…

She didn’t bother to explain further. Perhaps she thought I already knew.

“Is he much stronger?”

“He would be. Especially… if those mixed-bloods support him, we couldn’t fight without Nerilmeius.”

Nerilmeius, the mourning dragon. An enemy I probably couldn’t have defeated without the new skill I had acquired.

If we need something of that caliber to fight, then it’s not a fair fight. Especially if those mixed-blood vampires start interfering.

Moreover, hadn’t Lorian said he wouldn’t point his sword at the weak?

Thinking about that, I didn’t think Lorian could handle those mixed-blood vampires.

Rather, I could see him being overwhelmed. He’s such a straightforward guy.

After pondering for a moment, I offered what I thought was the optimal answer.

“Then should we go up and take him out now?”

“…Huh?”

Crush enemies before they grow, and when opportunity presents itself, don’t hesitate to strike.

“You said it would be difficult once the mixed-blood vampires start interfering. So while it takes time for them to come up… in a short time…”

I ran my thumb across my throat. Both women looked shocked.

“We take him out.”

“What are you saying?!”

Lorian was particularly flustered. She gaped in astonishment.

“Anyway, our goal is to find the blue mineral here. Honestly, anything else isn’t our concern.”

“But still.”

“But if this Edilum or whatever is in our way… why not just remove him?”

That was always the case. Sometimes the simplest, most straightforward answer was the most efficient one.

It seemed that way now.

A vampire who controls mixed-blood vampires and might be advancing some plot of the three clans here.

Getting rid of him would solve multiple problems at once. The more I thought about it, the better the idea seemed.

“Edilum might seem like a villain to you now, but he’s still a blood clan member. Although I let it slide last time, I still think we should use your father’s factor.”

It didn’t seem that way to Lorian. She spoke firmly with her hands on her hips.

Kinda cute.

“Edilum is a member of the blood clan. Although he’s loyal to the Court Count, I don’t think he’d consider that more important than my father’s resurrection. So…”

“I told you I’m not interested in expanding my influence or becoming a lord or whatever.”

“Can’t you just go along with it once, pretending to be fooled?”

Lorian pleaded with me, almost whining.

No, he actually clung to me and whined. I finally gave a half-hearted answer when Isla’s gaze started to frighten me.

“Fine, fine. But don’t expect too much. From what I can see, this doesn’t look like it’ll end well.”

“Don’t worry, Edilum is still a blood clan member. His loyalty to my father will be deeper than his loyalty to the Court Count.”

Lorian smiled brightly as he assured me.

Inwardly, I thought:

I should activate Mourning as soon as we meet him.

With that, we boarded the transport cart prepared by the mixed-blood vampires.