On the vast plateau, there is nowhere to hide. Sunlight descends from the sky, illuminating from the highest points, so on this shadowless land, all things in the world are fully exposed. Those who find the world beautiful will like the plateau. Because they can see more of the world. Those who do not will feel the opposite.
The bloodline of Lungken has many beastmen. Protected by their fur, they possess resistance to the sun. If one were to let their guard down just because it was daytime, they would have been chased down on the spot.
However, I had Aji.
"Woof! Woof woof!"
"Baaaa!"
Collie's Yeilling, the sheep beastman Meyang, shrieked and fled. Wrapping his body in fur that was beyond lush and verging on plump, he had gained the power of immortality as a vampire, but a sheep was still a sheep. When Aji barked and charged out, Meyang let out a sheep's cry and holed up in the guard post.
Collie had taken the hounds and Yeillings to pursue me. Only a single Yeilling was left to guard the fog-shrouded guard post. If it were a sheep beastman, even as a Yeilling, it could endure the sunlight, but it couldn't beat Aji.
The sheep beastman howled at me.
"Baa! Put that away!"
"Excuse me? Lord Collie told me to take care of it."
"Baaa! I get it! Just go somewhere I can't see you! Baaa!"
"Alright. I'm going? I'm really going."
"Baaa!"
Hah, seriously. It wasn't like I was dying to leave. I guess it can't be helped.
I took out a ball from my bosom. Aji, who had been radiating instinctual hostility toward the sheep beastman vampire, immediately lowered his stance and wagged his tail when I brought out the ball.
"Alright! Stop taking your anger out on an innocent sheep and let's go! Fetch!"
"Woof!"
When I threw the ball, Aji darted out like a bolt of lightning. Good. Throwing the ball, I naturally crossed the guard post's boundary. If we kept following it like this, we could cross the border...
"No, Aji. Don't go too far! I'll come too... Did you already fetch it?"
"Woof!"
"Next time, fetch it a bit slower. Here!"
Throwing the ball, I crossed the border very, very naturally.
Borders are rarely clearly defined by lines. Especially if there are mountains there, it is even harder to determine. Because no one lives there anyway.
So usually, if there is a mountain on the border, the highest ridge is set as the boundary.
Passing the peak, crossing the ridge, the whole world hidden by the mountain came into view at a glance. It was a panoramic view rarely seen in the fog-shrouded duchy. Merely by crossing a single ridge, a completely different vista from what I had seen so far revealed itself. Absurdly easily.
However, this too was the result of crossing dozens of ridges and reaching the very last one. I suppose I can be somewhat proud of it. Of course, it was only possible because not a single Elder came looking for me.
"Why did Hilde leave? If she had been with me, escaping would have been this simple."
"Woof!"
"No, Aji. Can you stop fetching now and just walk normally?"
Having crossed the border, the vampires were no longer the enemy. Even if Collie saw through my trick and chased after me, it would probably take at least a day. Until then, let's run as far away as possible.
Going down is easier than going up. I made a sled out of cards and leapt over rocks with my strengthened legs, running down the mountain. Pushing through sand, jumping over valleys, and passing through bushes, I moved for a long time.
How many hours did I run? No matter how much I descended, the end was nowhere in sight. The great mountain, like a fortress, took a long time to descend even when going down. I turned around to catch my breath and saw the ridge I had descended from far, far away.
To have come so far, yet there's still a long way to go. Phew. Won't someone make a teleportation spell somewhere?
Grumbling inwardly, I held the ball and threw it half-heartedly.
"Aji, find the way."
"Woof!"
Aji dashed out and disappeared into the bushes. Rustle, rustle. The bushes scattered with a fearsome momentum and then gathered again. In an instant, Aji returned with the ball in his mouth and dropped it at my feet.
"Here!"
"It's safe. Okay."
You have to cross even a stone bridge after tapping it. How do I know what's hiding in those bushes? Earlier, I thought I was stepping on solid ground and almost rolled off a drop.
Sigh. It's far. The bushes are gradually increasing. Since no one travels here, there are no paths to be seen, so I'm using Aji to check what's ahead.
Still, no one is chasing me. I only need to worry about what's ahead, which is so much better. It was when I decided to be satisfied with my slightly improved situation.
"Awooooo---!!"
From somewhere, a wolf's howl was heard. Before I could even register what the sound was, I was already flat on the ground. Packed with the single-minded desire that, even if the wolf had already spotted me, I did not want to see the wolf.
"Awooo-! You- tricked me-!"
The dog beastman's howl echoed back. I didn't know how it happened, but it seemed my lie had been discovered.
"Woof! Friend!"
"Not anymore!"
"Woof? It is though."
"Then play with me! Or at least hold hands and roll around together!"
"Alright!"
"Don't jump around so excitedly! It exposes our location!"
I shouted at Aji, but it was already too late. Over that ridge, five beastmen revealed themselves. The border surveillance team's Yeillings, led by Shepherd Dog Collie. A vampire mobile unit composed entirely of beastmen, freed from the sunlight by the blessing of their fur, came rushing down the slope with hounds.
It was a momentum where a single slip would send them tumbling down, but it didn't matter. They were beastmen and vampires.
"Grrrrr!"
"Keheng!"
"Baaaaa!"
The five dots soon turned into a landslide, sweeping down the slope. The cloud of dust somehow became a thick fog flowing down. More than anything, at the very front was Shepherd Dog Collie, scratching the ground with her jet-black fur fluttering.
That's a vampire weakened under the sun? Tch. No wonder humans can't escape.
The sunlight is still shining. I can handle up to the Yeillings. But Collie alone was beyond my power. I had to borrow Aji's strength for this. I'm really not sure if I can trust this.
"Aji. Do you know what tag is?"
"Woof! I know!"
"Then it's easy to explain. We're the prey, and they're the hunters! We have to run before we get caught!"
"Woof woof! Confirmed!"
"Then let's run! Before we get caught by them!"
Running out to the opposite side, I inspected my card deck. Spreading the thinned-out, unsightly deck with a shwish, I quickly scanned it with my eyes.
I had used up almost all my weapons. What remained for me was one skewer and four Demon Gods. A few disposable Clovers and Hearts. The potion contained in the Hearts was left quite a bit, but it put a strain on the body, so I didn't want to use it if possible...
No, my body right now is made of the Demon God. Maybe it won't be that much of a burden. I should try utilizing it once in a moment of crisis.
Holding the Demon God's cards in both hands, I ran and began a long chase.
"Awooooo--!"
The first to charge was Collie. Collie, who had leaped down the slope almost as if falling, attacked me obliquely. As if faithful to the command to bring me back alive, she didn't even extend her claws and tried to snatch me with her hands.
"Woof!"
At that moment, Aji threw his body. In midair, the bodies of a beastman and a beast collided. Arms and legs tangled with each other, and a dull sound echoed slowly. A moment later, the beastman and the king of beasts became one and rolled away.
"King...! Don't interfere!"
"Woof! Play! Play!"
"This is not a game!"
Collie flipped her body and slammed Aji into the ground. Though she retained the instincts of a beast, what she used were human techniques. With a rotating attack, broken branches bounced up and dirt rose like a cloud. Having shaken off the king of beasts in an instant, Collie kicked the ground again.
However, overwhelming physicality crushes even technique. Aji was somehow sitting on all fours, biting Collie's hind leg. Unable to fully stretch out, Collie fell flat on the ground.
Collie, with mud on her face, turned her head. Aji, who was biting Collie's leg, barked once with a bright expression.
"Woof!"
"Awoo--!"
When facing humans, she couldn't use her full strength for fear of hurting them, but against a vampire beastman, it was different. At the very least, she seemed to be doing a proper job of holding onto Collie's ankle.
The problem is.
"Baaa!"
"Grr!"
Sheep, dog, cat, and goat beastmen. They were merely Yeillings, and though they were a bit slower than Collie, they were still running straight at me.
Vampires grow stronger when their Lord is nearby. Under the sunlight and not on their home ground, they would be weaker than Village Chief Billitear, but they were just as troublesome for me.
Moving in perfect unison under Collie's command, they clung closely behind me. At the scent of blood the vampires shed, Aji bristled his fur and growled. If it were Collie the dog beastman, that was one thing, but Aji had no reason to be friendly to other vampires. Aji kicked the ground and leaped.
"Awoo-!"
This time, Collie grabbed Aji and hung on. She tried to grab his scruff and throw him, but Aji's momentum was too strong, and she was swept along. The two became one and rolled down the slope.
I wonder if it'll be okay. Not Aji, but the slope. Leaving the two rolling down, causing a storm of dirt and branches, I glanced sideways at the charging Yeillings.
"Baaa! Stop! Or else, you'll get hurt!"
The sheep beastman who was at the guard post? The thick, cloud-like fur looked like it wouldn't take much impact even if it collided, but the charging speed was no joke. With every step, the ground dented deeply in the shape of hooves.
I didn't stop, and the sheep beastman kicked the ground as if having made up her mind.
One, two. Now.
Thud. The ground beneath the sheep beastman's feet gave way. The sheep beastman's body, trying to ram into me, sank into the ground. Failing to notice the trap covered with twigs, she fell right in.
"Baaaa?"
The sheep beastman trapped in the pit looked around, not understanding what had happened. Well, the place where the sheep beastman fell was exactly where I had stepped and run over just a moment ago.
'When on earth? There shouldn't have been time to dig a trap.'
With the power of the Demon God, even this is possible. Simultaneously stepping on the ground and creating a hole, making grass and branches sprout from it to create a makeshift trap. If one doesn't look carefully, they're bound to fall for it.
Because, my surroundings are already full of traps.
"Ack!"
"Meow!"
"Damn...!"
The beastman vampires stumbled over the traps I made, and their speed slowed a little. Whatever they did, I kept running in one direction.
"We can chase you without sleeping! Give up!"
I need to sleep. So I have to shake them off somehow before then. Pushing through the bushes to make a path, I ran without looking back. The sheep beastman shouted, seeing my back.
"Baaa! You will regret it!"
"Meyang. You must bring him back alive."
"I know! A little injury is fine!"
"That's true."
What do you mean 'that's true'. I was a beloved concubine, you know? It's a big deal if I get hurt, right?
But the border's Yeillings had no way of knowing that. The Yeillings closed in on me from all directions. I gripped the Spade 9 in my hand again and folded it with one hand.
Tree of Origin, Grass Knot.
Radius of about 5 meters. All the wild grasses at my feet find their partners. The delicately swaying grass softly entangled each other. Druids, those who were called sages during the era when the world was covered in grass. Their divine power is reproduced by merely moving a single card.
"Awoooo!"
...Of course, some time has passed now.
Thud, snap. Even the grass that had lived a tenacious life couldn't withstand the Yeillings' charge. Stems snapped and roots were pulled out. The wild grasses paying a harsh price for obeying my command. I honored their sacrifice and moved forward.
"Too slow!"
"You guys are just too fast!"
No matter how much I grabbed their ankles, it was hard to shake off the pursuit of the Yeillings who charged without fear of death. Trampling the traps and breaking the grass knots, the four Yeillings gradually closed the distance. If they had intended to kill me, there would have been several opportunities, but since that wasn't allowed, the Yeillings tried to overtake me and block my path.
Alright. Now.
Through the dispersing bushes, the empty air is visible. It's the cliff I had kept an eye on. A cliff hidden by bushes is surprisingly hard to notice until you get close to it. Even more so if you are running towards it.
I slid my body down as if slipping. Pushing through the grass and branches, I killed my speed. Since I had built up quite some speed myself, I could barely stop only after sliding across the ground for quite a distance.
"Baaa! Stop! There's a cliff ahead!"
The Yeillings following behind also braked hard a beat too late. Leaving long trails of dirt dust, the Yeillings supported their bodies. The goat beastman who stopped precariously spat out the branch that had gotten into his mouth and shouted.
"A petty trick! Did you think I'd fall off a cliff from just that!"
"It looks like one of you did fall."
Baaaa-. The sheep beastman's echo rang out long. The goat beastman, who turned his head and witnessed his comrade's fall, immediately replied.
"We don't die from falling anyway! Give up and let yourself be caught quietly!"
"Thanks. Thanks to that, my guilt is a bit lessened."
If only you weren't vampires, I wouldn't have felt much guilt. I struck the ground hard with both hands holding the cards.
I, who am not even at the Jangseong level, cannot shatter the earth with Qigong. That is something only those who have mastered Kun Qigong to the extreme can do.
However, I can accelerate the breaking.
I withdraw and sever the roots spreading in the ground. I break up the clumped dirt. With Earth Magic and Druidism, these two powers, I carve out the cliff that was barely holding on.
"The ground...!"
Even dull vampires definitely felt the sensation of their bodies dropping. The dog beastman, who was in a bad position, slid while scratching the ground with his claws. The goat and cat beastmen felt the crisis a little quicker and quickly scrambled up the collapsing slope.
Of course, I wasn't going to just stand by and watch. With the Spade 8, the Elixir card, I smoothly swept the ground. A layer of the collapsing earth turned into cards and slid down. The cat beastman, whose claws were dug into the waterfall-like flow of cards, couldn't hold on and ended up falling.
"No way!"
Only the goat beastman held on with his tough hooves and climbed up the slope. He ran up and approached me at a speed no different from flat ground. The goat beastman with a remaining beard reached his hand out toward me.
However, if it's just one Yeilling, I win.
I slapped away the goat beastman's hand and stomped on his head. He tried to precariously hold on, but when I kicked him hard with both feet, even his rough hooves couldn't withstand it. The goat beastman's center of gravity gradually tilted backward.
"Ugh, aaaaagh!"
To him, who was spinning his arms trying to regain his balance, I offered a branch as if doing a good deed.
"Here. Grab it."
Perhaps because he couldn't trust my sudden goodwill. The goat beastman reached out and grabbed the branch half-doubtfully. Though it was probably because that was the only thing to grab onto.
Thanks to that, I drew his attention. I gave the branch a light push. The goat beastman, who had momentarily lost his balance while grabbing the branch, fell backward. Just like his other comrades, the goat beastman also fell down that distant cliff.
"You-!"
"Bye-bye. Let's try not to meet next time, if possible."
"Don't think this is the end of us-!"
After spitting out the lines of a villain, the pouring earth and sand made even his face invisible. Hanging from a single tree root, I stared down below the cliff. A thick pile of dirt covered the Yeillings who had fallen first.
It's still daytime. Right now, when regeneration takes time, they won't be able to chase me with these injuries... but if it becomes night, it's a different story. Tch, annoying. This is why vampires are like this. Not dying is foul play.
After climbing up the cliff, I took out a ball from my pocket and threw it. The ball flew in a parabola and disappeared into the bushes, and a moment later, Aji appeared with the ball in his mouth.
"Woof!"
"Did you play well?"
"Woof woof!"
Apart from Aji's excited appearance, Collie, who didn't look very amused, approached pushing through the bushes. Collie, covered in dirt dust and twigs, looked like walking earth.
"...Awoo. I don't know why the Progenitor is looking for you. The playtime ends there."
A vampire's blood is cold. Collie wasn't exhausted, but she wasn't reckless enough to continue the assault without any Yeillings. It was already hard to hold Aji back; if she attacked me while I was with him and ended up being subdued, she and her Yeillings would be incapacitated for quite a long time.
Having decided to return and restore the Yeillings for now, she glared at me and growled low.
"Vampires don't die. No matter how long it takes, we will chase you and definitely find you. If you don't want to be chased forever, surrender now."
"No matter how long it takes? What's the use if it takes a long time? As time passes, Tyr's mind might change, and my life or death might change too."
Is it because they're vampires that they don't understand human hearts? Our hearts aren't eternal, you know. There's such a thing as caprice.
"If you happen to meet another vampire, please pass on my words. Harder-to-obtain things are more precious. So I'm in the process of becoming precious."
"I'll watch if you can stay that relaxed until the end. Awoo!"
Collie let out a wolf's howl and disappeared into the bushes. She would go down the cliff, use her blood energy to restore her Yeillings, and probably come looking for me again at night.
Yeillings are weak under the sunlight. In other words, they become much stronger at night when there's nothing to worry about. In contrast, I have to struggle in a mountain where I can't even see where I'm stepping. I won't be able to handle them as easily as I did today.
Rather than running away, I should make traps to completely incapacitate them before I go. Fortunately, those chasing me now are just one Ain and four Yeillings. If there are no pursuers stronger than an Ain, I can shake them off.
Well. A new pursuer won't appear here, right. Alright. Shall I use both Earth Magic and Druidism to show the beastmen mixed with beasts the wisdom of humans?
***
Yeillings are also immortal, but not indestructible. In the case of Yeillings with relatively weak blood arts, they die and are replaced frequently, making the name vampire meaningless.
Especially, getting injured or subdued during the daytime when the sun is up is fatal. The longer they are left unattended, the more blood energy they lose and their regeneration weakens.
In a chase, numbers are more important than anything. If it got any later, she wouldn't be able to use the Yeillings she had brought. Collie jumped down the cliff and rescued the Yeillings buried under the earth and sand. They were lacking subordinates who couldn't even do their assigned jobs properly, but scolding them for that could wait. Restoring the Yeillings was the priority right now.
It was when Collie was digging through the dirt pile and pulling out her buried subordinates one by one.
Rustle. From somewhere, the sound of bushes being pushed aside was heard, and a single boy with an androgynous appearance and jet-black short hair appeared. Holding a bee tied to a thread.
The boy muttered as he watched the bee, tied to a thin thread, dancing in a figure-eight.
"Strange. The scent of the Tracking Incense I hid on Aji is pointing here."
Shey looked back and forth between Collie and the bee several times and tilted his head.
"No matter how I look at it, it doesn't seem like Aji got tanned. What are you?"