149 The price of knowledge

One shot from the Reiterpallasch was enough to repel the gargoyle. The sculpture like beast fell on its back and wiggled around like a turtle that fell on its back. Francis inserted his katana in the beast's neck. Blood flowed out and filled the gargoyle's mouth and neck. Francis slowly bent over and filled the remaining blood vials he had with the gargoyle's blood.

After he stood up, Francis kicked the gargoyle many times. 'This… is…. For… scaring the wits out of me!' He would accentuate every word he said with a strong kick at the monster's body. He took a deep breath then looked around him. The other sculptures looked normal, devoid of life. He made a mental note to beware of any weird statue.

When Francis looked out from the balcony, the majesty of Cainhurst castle revealed itself to him. The castle was in fact very large, larger than he ever imagined it to be. 'Many paths have been destroyed here. I'm afraid I don't know what happened here in detail but I can make my own speculations.'

With his sharp observation skills, Francis looked outside and started deducing. 'To reach the castle, one has to cross a bridge from Hemwick Charnel Lane. But the bridge had long been destroyed and I don't even understand how I reached this place. What's more, as soon as I arrived, the main gate opened by itself.

'Someone must be watching in the distance and manipulating things around me.' Francis didn't like this prospect at all. Even if it was the queen observing him, he didn't like being led around like a helpless sheep. 'I can see a destroyed path from here that used to lead to the uppermost part of the castle. Perhaps I should check it out.'

Francis was reluctant to do so. Going back to that path meant going outside. He didn't want to risk meeting those mosquitos again. 'The statues I saw outside and even around here are out of place. Who would decorate such a well-designed place with scattered statues? The way I see it, the statues were most probably a blockade erected at the last minute.

'There has been a great fight inside the castle. I have no doubt in that. As to who fought who, I can only assume that the church had finally had enough of the castle and decided to organize a coup.' Francis looked at the banquet hall he just left. 'The church might even have interrupted their little party to start a slaughter.' The ghost he saw were a clear indication of the killing that took place within the castle.

Francis decided to risk it and go back outside. If he wanted to reach the queen, he had to be sure of her intentions. He strongly felt that he was being watched. As much as he loved manipulating others, he loathed being on the receiving end. He was dead set on figuring out what happened before. If he was to meet the queen, he would do so with a firm heart.

If he felt like he was dragged into something that had nothing to do with him, he wouldn't meet the queen no matter what. He suspected that she wasn't the only one who knew about Paleblood. Surgit didn't seem to be surprised at the mention of Paleblood before. Francis suspected that he knew something about it.

If Francis had just taken as much time searching the hunters' dream as he actually did looking around the castle, he would stumble upon the hidden message. Since he didn't notice it, Cainhurst was the only place that knew of Paleblood in his mind.

Francis took the stairs and left to the main yard. After he exited, he clenched his weapon and walked slowly. He didn't want to be ambushed by the mosquitos. If those things attacked in great numbers, he would definitely meet his demise regardless of the blood vials in his possession. Francis looked around and saw the remnants of the broken bridge that led to the top of the castle.

There was only rubble left and the road that used to take up, took down. The descent was treacherous. Snow made Francis move slowly around the boulders that blocked his path. There were no mosquitos around. Francis didn't drop his guard however and kept moving downwards.

When he reached the bottom, Francis looked up to see the castle's roof; just looking at it made him dizzy. There was nothing special about the place though. A frozen corpse lay down on the snow. After he inspected it with his insight, Francis reached out and scooped up the shiny item that sparkled on top of the body.

'Echo of a fallen knight.' Francis' heart skipped a beat. Countless larvae creatures jumped at him the moment he picked up the item. They were the most disgusting thing he's ever seen since he arrived to Yharnam. They were bone white and extremely slippery.

The moment one of them jumped at Francis' face, he tried to catch it and crush it.However the little thing slipped through his finger and bit off his nose. Their teeth were extremely sharp as well. As soon as the creature bit his nose off, it tried to bite much more and get inside his head.

That terrified Francis and pushed him to jump back in horror. Pain soared through his entire being. The larvae were attached to his feet, back and shoulders, nibbling and trying to get inside. Multiple shots were heard all around the castle's main courtyard. Francis used everything in his possession to get those small disgusting things off him.

Molotov cocktails, gun shots and even swings from both his weapons. Francis was in a sorry state after he got rid of the larvae. It took him three vials to recover from his injuries, but his nose was completely gone. He looked like Voldemort stuck in Yharnam.

After inspecting the little creatures, Francis's eyes widened. If he gave them some more time to devour him, his whole body would be consumed in seconds. On top of the teeth they had in front, there were small sharp ones that extended down their throat. 'What frightening munching machines!'

Francis sighed in relief. His nose was a small price to pay in order to know of their existence. He vowed to burn them to ashes the moment he noticed their presence the next time. He couldn't allow himself to be swarmed by them. They were like piranhas, attacking in great numbers and devouring their prey in seconds.

Francis looked at the cold blood he just received. Cold blood was an item that could be popped in order to receive blood echoes from a fallen warrior. It wasn't the same as killing a hunter and stealing the echoes. But if a very strong hunter died, their blood would coagulate over time and form cold blood. If one was lucky enough to find cold blood formed from the echoes of an experienced hunter, they'd have a chance at gaining a new rank instantly.

Francis popped the item without hesitation. After he checked his echoes, he let out an audible gasp. He had actually found cold blood in which two blue clusters formed. 'Talk about lucky! With that I can reach a new rank in Bloodtinge and even get close to a new rank in skill. I should keep an eye out for these larvae. I have a strong feeling that they feed off strong foes.' Everything feeds on blood in Yharnam. Francis knew that full well.

He couldn't bring himself to go to the dream yet. There were too many things to explore in the castle. Francis didn't want to lose his momentum. 'Going back to the dream would restore my nose. But as long as I can still smell things around me, I don't see how that matters to me.'

Francis took the treacherous path back up towards the castle. When he reached the top, he saw a small tower he hadn't noticed before. Due to the mosquitos trying to kill him earlier, his only focus was to reach the inner part of the castle. The tower led to an area above, closer to the roof he noticed from the balcony. 'Closed! I can't be that lucky…'

Francis was now pretty sure that the castle was unsuspectingly attacked. The broken statues scattered everywhere were living proof of the attempt to fend off the attackers. Even the broken path that led upstairs meant that people were trying to protect the most valuable thing in the palace.

'I must get up there! But before I do so, I really need to take my time exploring the place. There are scholars everywhere who write what happened to them before they died. They value the knowledge they'd leave behind more than their lives. Such a big palace must have different libraries and studies. I came to Yharnam for knowledge, and knowledge I shall have!'