#120 Silent War (2)
“Kuhuk…!”
His fading consciousness snapped back with violent clarity.
His crushed lungs regenerated, breath bursting from his throat, and his heart hammered wildly as blood coursed throughout his body.
As the fatal injuries gradually began to improve thanks to 「Hyper-Recovery」, strength slowly returned to his limbs.
‘…I really did almost die and come back…!’
Had it not been for the special privilege Hans had obtained upon achieving the ‘Undead King’ title—「Instant Death Immunity」—he would have truly died.
But his condition had been so severe that it seemed he would need quite a long time to fully recover.
His organs, which had been completely turned to mush, regained form as if winding back time, but they were far from being in proper shape.
“Guild Master! Here’s a potion!”
“We’ll take you straight to the temple! Please, hold on just a little longer!”
Watching the mercenaries surrounding him frantically shove emergency potions into his mouth, Hubert accelerated his thoughts and calmly analyzed the situation.
‘The assailant was a vampire, but one I had never seen before.’
Moreover, the assailant’s level was incredibly high, having hidden from everyone’s sight to launch a sneak attack.
It meant they had slipped past not only the mercenaries’ escort but also Brokslak’s surveillance network.
‘My senses aren’t all that sharp, so I couldn’t properly gauge the opponent, but to pull this off, they must be at least a Pureblood.’
And not just any Pureblood, but one at the very pinnacle, equipped with abilities specialized for assassination.
But…
‘Why would such high-grade personnel target a mere nobody of a merchant like me?’
Candidates capable of commissioning this flashed rapidly through his whirring mind.
From rival trading companies that had clashed with him as he recently expanded his business, to nobles eyeing the merchant guild, and back-alley organizations that had been crushed under his heel.
…There were so many that he couldn’t pinpoint anyone in particular.
He prided himself on expanding his business as uprightly as possible, but by the very nature of profit-driven ventures, it was impossible to have no enemies.
‘But why a vampire, of all things? Just a coincidence? …Damn it, I have too little information. I should start by digging into the fact that it was a vampire of unknown identity.’
He never even considered that Brokslak might have backstabbed him.
Bound to Haines II by the 「Refined Blood Decree」, they could not possibly disobey an order to fully support Hubert.
‘To properly grasp the situation, moving the clan through Haines would be most effective, but he happens to be away at this very moment… And on top of that, since I already sent Howard, the teleportation circle is on cooldown.’
Unfortunately, it seemed difficult to resolve this easily.
But there was something even more important right now.
“Kuhuk! Wait….”
Hubert stopped the guards who were trying to feed him potions and rush him to the temple, then unilaterally conveyed his message.
He told them he would hide somewhere safe to recover for the time being before returning.
‘If that bastard finds out I survived, this time he’ll make sure to finish the job for good.’
The assailant had left confident he had finished him off, but there was no telling when he might return.
Since he couldn’t count on 「Instant Death Immunity」 anymore, the best course was to leave this place as quickly as possible.
“…I have a way to contact Howard personally, so in the meantime, I’ll convey business matters through him… Whew, spread word to the guild as well….”
“Y-yes? Wait, how do you intend to hide….”
He couldn’t afford to waste any more time.
The moment he judged he had roughly conveyed the situation, Hubert immediately concealed himself from the spot through “Summon Dismissal.”
Of course, there was the question of whether he could trust those mercenaries, but he couldn’t afford to worry about such things right now.
‘They’re talents recommended by the Southern Warrior Trio, so I can trust them to some extent. Though one never truly knows what lies inside a person…’
If they betrayed him, he would simply mobilize every means at his disposal—including Halle and Brokslak—to make them pay an appropriate price.
“Hah, still, what a bolt from the blue this is.”
Rumble—
—a brilliant mass of light illuminating the room seeped into the body of the figure lying prostrate on the floor.
I was currently transformed into Heinrich through 「Avatar Projection」, pouring holy power into Hubert, whom I had resummoned to Earth.
‘Thanks to 「Instant Death Immunity」, he managed to survive, but…’
He had been left barely clinging to life, so it seemed he wouldn’t recover quickly.
No matter how much Heinrich was acknowledged as a saint, his abilities were solely focused on combat.
It was only natural, as he possessed not a single blessing related to healing or recovery.
‘Still, recklessly blasting holy power into him seems to have quite an effect even with just the 「Auterica Sacred Law」.’
Moreover, with the common skill 「Hyper-Recovery」, it seemed he could recover enough to move about after a few days of complete rest.
But that wasn’t what was important right now.
‘This is becoming troublesome. I have no idea where things started going wrong.’
Whether the guild was involved, or the vampires, or perhaps even Halle—there was no information with which to make a judgment.
He had been trying to build an information organization precisely for moments like this, but trouble had erupted while Haines briefly stepped away.
“Phew—well, what’s done is done. What matters is how I respond afterward.”
Fortunately, he had another information organization on this side.
Though their nature didn’t quite suit this kind of work…
‘Ah, they exist precisely for times like this. Their disposition may be slightly different, but as long as they can roughly grasp the situation, that’s enough.’
They were somewhat weak at detecting the covert struggles and political machinations between humans, but in some respects, they possessed capabilities that surpassed those of ordinary informants.
‘I’ll give the order to start immediately. I don’t know who they are, but they’ve messed with the wrong person.’
And so, under the Undead King Hans, Olivia—the intelligence chief of the Undead Legion—and countless ghosts began to move, seeking to uncover the truth behind the attempted assassination of a mere merchant.
***
In a space reeking of bloody fetor.
The white-haired, white-eyed vampire, Biseukeu Yupeureuswi, took a deep breath and spoke in a low voice.
“How are the preparations coming?”
“They are proceeding smoothly. Combatants are gathering per the mobilization order, and numerous Blood Gates are being installed along the route to the Talia Kingdom.”
A shadow in the darkness responded quietly to his question.
Blood Gates were a unique blood magic employed by the Yupeureuswi Clan, a type of makeshift spatial teleportation gate that allowed them to operate across the entire continent.
Their range wasn’t great, and they required large quantities of blood to install, but compared to the convenience of using them, such limitations were practically negligible.
“Going straight to Tallaria risks detection, so we have set our initial target as the city of Rapella, several days’ distance away. Of course, for us, we should be able to reach the capital in less than half a day.”
“Hmm—good.”
Biseukeu let out a satisfied sound and nodded quietly.
“Also, we have just received a report that the matter in Tarak of the Tulk Kingdom has been completed as well.”
“Oh? What was there?”
He, who had been sunken in his chair, tilted his head and looked at the shadow.
He had ordered them to devote all their efforts to targeting Brokslak of the Talia Kingdom; why was this matter being brought up now?
“…There was intelligence that Brokslak intended to extend its reach there, linking with a trading company in Tarak to expand its influence. So I reported that we would assassinate that trading company’s leader to divert their attention, but…”
“Aah—that’s right. It was so trivial that I had forgotten.”
Biseukeu nodded in understanding and stroked his chin.
To him, the life or death of a single human was a trivial matter hardly worth caring about, and his attitude was thus exceedingly light.
“It seems Klein, who happened to be in the vicinity, dealt with that merchant leader along with several Brokslak vampires. Since that child took action personally, I don’t think you need worry about traces being left behind.”
“Klein—I remember him. He was certainly quite useful for a Pureblood. There is no better talent than that child when it comes to quiet, thorough work, is there?”
“That is correct. He is the talent with the highest potential to become a True Blood among the current Purebloods.”
“Yes, well, I’m sure he handled it well. In truth, it does not matter what happens over there.”
Biseukeu, who believed the clan’s military might alone was more than sufficient to accomplish their goals, waved his hand dismissively.
In truth, while he said nothing watching his subordinates exert themselves in various ways for this matter, he was confident he could wipe them out by himself.
He was simply waiting according to plan because the final goal wasn’t merely eliminating the enemy.
“So, when do you think preparations will be complete?”
“To complete the work with maximum secrecy, I estimate it will take about one more week—”
“Too long. Reduce it further.”
“…We can shorten the mobilization with haste, but if we rush the Blood Gate installation, we risk detection—”
“A week means you can cut about two days off. Finish within five days.”
“…Yes, Lord. I shall obey your command.”
The shadow could argue no further and simply bowed his head as Biseukeu cut him off decisively, with no intention of listening to his subordinate.
Now that the Sacred Blood’s command had been given, he had but to carry it out.
“I look forward to facing him. How in the world did he manage to seize control of the clan? We are of the same bloodline, and yet… I simply cannot fathom it.”
Anticipating that his curiosity would be satisfied in just a few days, Biseukeu Yupeureuswi smiled coldly.
***
“Thank you! Have a safe trip!”
“Yes, yes~ Oh my, what a capable young lady. I wish my son would learn a thing or two from you. Oh-ho-ho~”
Seeing off the smiling lady leaving the grocery store, Diana straightened her bowed waist and stretched.
The sun was setting; it was about time to close up shop.
“You worked hard today, Diana. You don’t have to help out like this; aren’t you busy with your studies?”
“No, Uncle. Working like this directly is helpful too. My teacher also says that learning only from books is dead knowledge!”
Diana, the girl who had formed a bond with Haines and traveled with him from Ajeantu to Rapella, spoke with a bright smile.
She had completely mastered reading, writing, and arithmetic at the tutorial school and was currently learning accounting and commercial law privately from an instructor she had befriended there.
The tuition was quite expensive, but since Haines had provided her with ample funds, it wasn’t a major issue.
‘We can live like this all thanks to him, so I want to be of some help.’
But there weren’t many fields where Diana could help Haines.
With poor physical conditions and no particular skills, the best she could do was use her head; fortunately, she possessed an excellent talent for that.
The instructor in charge of her education had expressed sincere admiration for her outstanding aptitudes on several occasions.
‘Among those who manage money, many are capable, but few are both capable and trustworthy!’
She didn’t know exactly what Haines was doing, but she thought a financial officer would be helpful in any field.
She was still lacking, but if she worked hard, she could become someone indispensable to him.
It was in that moment, as Diana renewed her spirited ambitions and tidied the store—
Sniff, sniff.
—that a scent wafted from somewhere, stinging her nose.
‘Again…’
The smell of blood that she had already caught several times today alone.
She had sensed it fairly often before as well, but its frequency had increased sharply these days.
‘And lately, the scent seems somehow different.’
The unfamiliar scent of a vampire—one different from the kind she had grown used to—was gradually increasing.
‘I hope nothing is wrong…’
Diana frowned, quickly finished cleaning up, and went inside the house.
Thinking that she needed to warn her younger siblings Aaron and Rafi once more.
And so.
The silent war was approaching with every passing moment.