Chapter 12: Charlotte's Troubles

Regarding Duke Borde's affairs, Charlotte didn't know much. After all, even though she inherited the memories of her original body owner, she hadn't left the estate for ten years.However, Leno's visit woke Charlotte up to a rather serious issue. That is the current situation of the Castell family. More accurately, her own situation.

Regardless of when Countess Castell became a vampire, or what her strength was before. Before last night's sacrifice, the old lady was indeed the main figure and protector of the Castell family all along. Now, this main figure is dead. Suddenly dead.

The Castell family is left with only an underage female heir. If Charlotte were inheriting a normal earldom, that wouldn't be a problem. But she isn't.

Through memory integration, Charlotte knows just how wealthy the family she's inheriting really is. To put it in perspective, the steward in her memories once proudly mentioned: "The entire Castell earldom contributes more than one-sixth of the fiscal revenue of the Borde Duchy."

What does that mean?

Two-thirds of Borde Duchy's fiscal revenue comes from direct taxation of the Duke's territories, and one-third from vassal noble contracts. And the Castell family, equivalent to a vassal noble, monopolizes half of the contract tax revenue outside Borde Duchy's direct control. In other words, Castell family contributed just as much as all the other vassal nobles in Borde Duchy, more than a dozen families combined. And the taxes paid to the lord are only a quarter of the Castell family's income.

In reality, the Castell family's visible income probably approaches that of the duchy's territory taxes!

Although Borde Duchy is relatively remote and impoverished within the kingdom overall, its status is somewhat akin to the central and western provinces of the Republic of China.

But even compared to the wealthiest duchy, the Castell earldom would still be considered quite wealthy territory. Using a comparison from China, it's like a second-tier economically developed city in the central and western provinces.

So, here's the problem. A vast and wealthy territory. An underage female heir.

Will Charlotte's inheritance of the estate go smoothly? Will she successfully inherit the title? And even if she does inherit, will she be able to maintain it?

At this moment, various small plotlines about power struggles began to spread in Charlotte's mind...

At the same time, whether it was the church's goodwill or the duke's invitation, they all became much more intriguing in Charlotte's eyes. Charlotte felt a bit of a headache. The hidden dangers of her vampire identity were not yet resolved, and she was likely to be embroiled in the power struggles of the duchy.

The game of power is always turbulent and cruel. Just because she's cute and pitiful doesn't mean everything will be fine. This isn't a Mary Sue novel!

Acting cute and foolish can indeed gain favor and lower others' guard. But that only works when there's no conflict of interest, or when the conflict isn't significant enough. Not to mention, even without considering wealth, her appearance alone is enough to make people covet her.

After all, even after experiencing various beautiful photos online in her previous life, she could still gaze into the mirror and become infatuated, exclaiming that it was worth living this life just to have this face!

"Some things, when it's time to give up, must be given up..."

Charlotte remembered Leno's hint before leaving. She understood. The other party was suggesting that in the worst-case scenario, she could consider relinquishing her inheritance rights to the estate to avoid being caught up in the power struggles among nobles. But...

"Why should I give up?"

Charlotte shook her head.

She survived the blood sacrifice; could her current situation really be worse than being crucified last night? Even if she gets involved in struggles and crises, isn't that something for later? Nothing has happened yet, right? Not to mention, will everything be fine if she gives up her inheritance rights?

Some things can be prepared for in advance, but it's not wise to give up just because it might rain. Moreover, is she really just a powerless little girl? No. She isn't.

Although she's weak now, Charlotte knows that the path to transcendence has already opened up for her.

Charlotte thought of the "Gospel of Blood" in her consciousness. That's her trump card. It's also her opportunity to become stronger. All she needs is time. She needs time to strengthen herself, to consolidate her position in this world. As long as she becomes strong enough, she can hold onto everything that belongs to her. The estate is not just wealth, it's also a backing. She must find a way to inherit it because it will be the base for her survival in the future.

She's a vampire! Where else is more suitable than her own estate to hide her identity?

Of course, before becoming powerful enough, she also needs some appropriate and clever techniques to deal with the difficulties she might encounter. She will make full use of everything she can use.

"Although the future is still uncertain, it doesn't mean there's no hope." Sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ NovᴇlFɪre .ɴᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

Charlotte muttered in her heart.

Pushing aside these worries, Charlotte refocused her attention on charging the "Gospel of Blood."

Nobles have their rules, and the church has its order. She should be relatively safe for the time being.

Although it's a bit strange to be a vampire living in a church hospital, in a sense, it's also a form of protection. She can't do much now, so she might as well think about how to fully charge the Codex and develop more of its functions. At the same time, she can also take this opportunity to learn more about extraordinary powers through the hospital's priests.

Of course, she also needs to study her own body! Uh, not that kind of man-interest study, but a scientific study of a "vampire" (serious face)...

Thinking of this, Charlotte raised her head again and looked at Lottie, who was still rudely mocking Leno's rough behavior on the side. In her eyes, this gentle, beautiful, and kind big sister priest has become a reserve charger for the Gospel, as well as a survival guide in another world.

Charlotte took a deep breath, slightly raised her beautiful face, and began to skillfully act cute and pitiful. She poked her nearly healed wound forcefully, feeling the familiar pain, making a mist of tears welled up in her eyes.

"Hmm? Miss Charlotte, are you feeling unwell?"

Seeing the girl's pitiful yet forced strong expression, Lottie couldn't help but feel her heart clenched, overwhelmed with pity. That pitiful and somewhat sensible appearance instantly triggered her maternal instinct.

"Sister Lottie..."

Charlotte raised her head, and her pure and innocent watery blue eyes looked at Lottie. Her long eyelashes trembled slightly, and her voice, slightly muffled, sounded particularly moving.

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"My wound... it seems to start hurting again... ..."

"Is it hurting again?"

Lottie subconsciously held the girl's arm, her voice full of concern.

"Yeah..."

Charlotte obediently nodded. She sniffled and wiped her nose, slightly tilting her head, her clear and innocent pupils reflecting Lottie's slender figure.

"Sister..."

"Can you... use divine magic to help treat Charlotte's wound again?"

After saying that, she gently lowered her head again, weakly saying.

"If... if it's inconvenient, forget it..."

Lottie hesitated a bit. That shy, nervous, and extremely apprehensive pitiful appearance is hard to refuse. She fell silent for a moment, let out a soft sigh, and nodded slightly.

"Alright."

"Divine treatment should not be received too much in a short period. If you feel tired, let me know immediately, and I will stop."

After saying that, Lottie took a deep breath, placed her hands above Charlotte's palm, and closed her eyes. Her expression gradually became solemn and sacred, and her gentle and solemn prayer sounded slowly.

"O Lord Harald!"

"You are the creator of the new world,"

"You are the holy one in the court,"

"The gods follow in your footsteps,"

"The believers listen to your teachings,"

"Great and merciful Lord!"

"Please heal me, and I will recover."

"Please redeem me, and I will be saved."

"..."

Dazzling and radiant golden light radiated from Priest Lottie. Countless flickering photons slowly gathered and danced in her palms then falling on Charlotte like snowflakes.

However, when the warm light fell on the girl, it brought burning pain like a branding iron. But Charlotte was already prepared for this. She endured it. Not only that, she raised her head and made expressions of joy and happiness.

Before her eyes, a blood-red color slowly emerged. The familiar text finally unfolded.

["Gospel of Blood" detected an ongoing divine ritual——]

[Ritual name: Sacred Heal]

[Caster: Lottie de Brois]

[Recipient: Charlotte de Castell]

[Ritual effect: One of the most basic healing divine spells of Lord Harald, capable of effectively treating minor injuries, relieving pain, and dispelling minor toxins. When the recipient is marked as evil existence by the Holy Court, it will cause pain.]

[Interception Probability Assessment: 100%]

[Do you want to intercept?]

The familiar interface, the familiar inquiry. Charlotte also made a skillful response.

'Intercept.'

Ritual judgment modification.

All in one go.

When a warm breeze replaced the burning pain, the progress of the Blood Calling also changed...

81.1%, 81.2%, 81.3%...

Watching the slowly rising progress bar, Charlotte felt relieved. She knew that she could now freely leech the Holy Court.