CH 166

“M-mercy! Please show mercy, Your Excellency!” The nobles immediately kneeled on the spot and began to beg with pale expressions. Their families and servants also followed suit and kowtowed while shivering with fear.

‘Why are they so frightened?’

Eugene thought it to be slightly odd. Even though they had made a slip of the tongue, he wouldn’t kill the nobles of a royal family without hesitation, not when they would make great prisoners…

‘Ah, is it because I’m a vampire?’

It was a dark night, and the nobles had been sneaking out of the city to save their hides. He was the ruler of a powerful army, a high-ranking vampire, and a cold-blooded man who would devastate the City of Brodin by tomorrow. As such, the nobles naturally thought of him as a cold, merciless man.

‘If that’s the case…’

“Galfredik. It has been a while since you tasted human blood, right?” Eugene asked in Brantian.

“Huh?” Although Galfredik’s comprehension of Brantia’s language was worse than Eugene's, he still understood Eugene’s words. After a moment of confusion, Galfredik recognized Eugene’s intentions and took off his helmet before smiling viciously.

“Kuhe! Come to think of it, you’re right. The blood of nobles… They must have been drinking high-quality liquor at feasts day after day… The mere thought of it makes my mouth water. Hehehe!” Galfredik wiped off the saliva that dripped down his fangs and smiled insidiously while staring at the nobles under the moonlight.

“Hieek!”

“Mercy! Please, show us mercy!”

“Uah… Huaahh…”

Galfredik had spoken in the language of the Caylor Kingdom, so his words weren’t fully understood, but despite that, his actions had a great effect. Three nobles and their families burst into tears and began begging for their lives.

“I was getting hungry after rushing over, so the feast will be even tastier and better. Now, whose blood shall I taste first?” Galfredik approached them step by step while licking his lips.

“Uaaaghhh!”

“Sir! P-Please, have mercy! Huaaaghh…” Some of the nobles even pissed themselves and fell backward. They slowly crawled away in fear.

All of a sudden, Eugene spoke in a soft voice, “Me and my knight. We are very hungry right now. If you want us to forget our hunger, show us a token of your appreciation. That might help.”

“Oh…?”

“Silver, gold, treasure, whatever it may be.” Eugene continued.

The nobles flinched, then fought to raise their voices.

“Everything! We will give you everything!”

“H-Hey! Bring the box!”

The nobles’ servants hurriedly put down the various objects they were carrying.

Click!

A box the size of a human adult was opened to reveal money, jewelry, mana stones, and various relics under the moon.

“Kieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeehhh!” The greedy spirit’s eyes lost their focus as she dove into the box, and Eugene turned his gaze to the trembling nobles.

He spoke, “Hmm. This is rather regrettable.”

“…!”

“Isn’t that so? Your lives, are they only worth this much?” Eugene asked.

The nobles felt as if their very souls were being sucked away from their bodies. The money they were offering was more than enough to purchase a small territory, but even that wasn’t enough? Unfortunately, those holding the sword would always be in the right. The nobles knew it better than anyone else since they had lived their lives as that kind of people until now.

‘What should we do?’

‘What do you mean?! If we want to live, we must give him more!’

‘But we’ve already emptied out everything we have. I don’t know what else to offer…’

Eugene immediately noticed the way the nobles glanced at each other.

“Hey, gentlemen,” Eugene called out.

“Y-yes, sir!”

“You have more wealth in the city, right?” Eugene asked.

“T-that’s right, but…”

“Good. Then let’s head in together.” Eugene said.

“…!”

The nobles became wide-eyed and asked carefully while looking at Eugene, “You mean… right now?”

“Why not? Since we’re on the topic, let’s head there right away,” Eugene responded.

“B-but…” The nobles were in a dilemma. There was no guarantee that the vicious vampire duke would keep his promise. Moreover, no one knew what would happen once Eugene was allowed into Brodin.

‘Ah! That’s right! Vampires can’t enter cities unless they’re invited, right?’

The nobles had been frozen stiff with fear, but their brains started to work once again after being cornered. They were inwardly overjoyed.

However…

“Your families are in my hands. If you have any other ideas, you know what will happen, right?” Eugene immediately shattered their vain expectations.

“…!”

It was unbelievable. A figure of high prestige, a duke, didn’t hesitate to threaten them with their families?

“Now, let’s go,” Eugene said. The nobles slowly lead the way as their hopes and dreams transformed into despair.

***

Uahhh…

“W-what is it?” Cameron the Third was jolted awake from his sleep. He had barely fallen asleep after a restless, troubled night.

Ahhhh…! Kuaagh…! Help me…!

Horrible screams continued to echo from the distance, and the young king quickly grabbed his longsword from behind his bed.

“Y-your Majesty? What’s wrong?” The queen rubbed her eyes after being woken and asked in a fearful voice. Suddenly, the bedroom door burst open and four guards rushed in.

“Your Majesty! It’s an enemy attack!”

“Please follow us! You must prepare to leave…!”

“You… Lanslo of Drak! Have you forsaken your honor as a knight?!” Cameron the Third shouted in desperation after realizing the current situation. In the meanwhile, the screams grew louder and louder. The king and queen followed the guards wearing only their outer garments. The ancient, historical castle housed a secret passage for emergencies, and Cameron the Third rushed to the passage entrance. Only the kings and the captain of the guards were privy to its location.

“Please go ahead, Your Majesty! Sir Ridler and I will buy some time here!”

“Keugh! I will not forget your honor and loyalty,” Cameron the Third responded while clenching his teeth and pushing a brick to reveal a secret handle. Then, he pulled the handle to reveal the secret passage door.

As he thrust a torch to illuminate the passage, a voice suddenly called out.

“Ah, it’s nice to meet you, King of Brodia.”

“Kyaaahk!”

“Huagh!”

Cameron the Third and his queen retreated with surprise, and their escorting knights stepped forward like lightning and swung their swords into the darkness.

Clang! Thuck!

“Uagh!”

Clear, metallic rings were followed by dull thuds, and the knights collapsed one after another.

Shuack!

After overpowering the two knights in an instant, Eugene grabbed Cameron the Third and the queen. He held Wolfslaughter against their throats and spoke, “Throw away your weapons. Otherwise, your king is dead.”

“…!”

The remaining knights fell into despair after witnessing Eugene’s lightning-fast swordsmanship.

Clang!

Eventually, they tossed their weapons away, and Eugene turned his head before speaking, “Good work, Sir Roswell.”

“N-not at all,” one of the nobles answered awkwardly before revealing himself from the darkness of the passage. He was one of the nobles who had been caught trying to escape from the city. Although it came as a huge shock to Cameron the Third, who had ascended the throne at a young age, most of the influential noble families in Brodin knew of the secret passage’s existence. The passage was even connected to the mansions of the nobles who had been attempting to escape, and it led to the place where Eugene captured the nobles.

“Roswell? Y-you dare!? You vile traitor!” Cameron the Third shouted in disbelief and anger.

“What? What are you talking about? You were trying to run away as well!” Roswell cried out in response.

“Shut your mouth! Your grandsons will defile his mother and kill his father! The deepest, darkest evil land will become Roswell’s grave!” The young king cursed his traitorous vassal with bloodshot eyes.

However, his shouts were returned with derision. “Hehe, at least I will leave a descendant. The Brodia family will disappear today. It means that a child like you will no longer be able to play king. Isn’t that right, Your Excellency Batla?”

“D-Duke Batla?” Cameron the Third turned his gaze with surprise. Unfortunately, he couldn’t see the face of the person holding him hostage.

However…

Shuack!

“Kuagh?!” Silver reflected the glimmer of the torches, and a thin line of blood appeared on the throat of the traitorous noble.

“W-Why… Kuaagh…” The man collapsed as blood started to gush from his throat.

“Ah! Ahh…”

“…?!”

The queen fainted at the noble’s sudden death, and Cameron the Third’s eyes became filled with shock. Afterward, a low, cold voice rang in his ear. “Hey, King of Brodia. There are more bastards like this, right?”

“…!”

Eugene continued to whisper softly after feeling the young king flinch. “Those bastards who were acting impudent like this bastard I killed, I will kill all of them for you. In return, come under me. There’s no other option.”

The king’s vassals fled less than a day after the castle became surrounded by the enemies. Since it was painfully obvious that the Brodia family was rife with strife, Eugene was certain that the young king would accept his offer. He even executed one of the traitors on the spot.

‘Or I can just kill him…’

Cameron the Third stopped breathing after hearing Eugene’s suggestion. The cold whisper had been like the temptation of the devil himself. He suddenly recalled the words from earlier in the day.

- His Excellency the duke has a slightly, no, a very dirty personality. He is not benevolent enough to leave potential threats alone. He doesn’t care who he is up against.

Lanslo’s words overlapped with Eugene’s whispers, and Cameron the Third’s expression began to harden. In addition, fierce anger and hatred materialized in his eyes.

“Can you really… take care of everyone I want?” he asked.

“Naturally.” Eugene responded.

“In that case, I will swear on the honor of the Brodia family… I swear before the spirits of all the mountains and fields, the lakes and the seas. I will serve under you,” the young king declared. He was less than 20 years old, but he was already too tired. His decision today was fueled by nothing but his hatred and the taste of betrayal.

“Good.” Eugene grinned before removing Wolfslaughter from the two people’s throats.

“Kieeeeek! Now, you’ve taken a king as your servant! Since he’s a king, he must possess a lot of treasure, right? All of that will belong to m—to Sir Eugene! Kiehehehehe!” Mirian shouted with ecstasy.

“Uagh!” Cameron the Third cried out after hearing the insidious voice coming from the dark. His heart started to beat violently.

“Ah, that’s just the evil spirit; no, the spirit in my service. You don’t have to worry about it,” Eugene explained.

“I-Is that so? Ah, however…” Cameron the Third pressed on his beating heart and looked at Eugene before continuing awkwardly. “I apologize, but there won’t be much gold, silver, and treasure. My subjects are about to starve to death, so there won’t be much for the duke to take. No, there probably won’t be anything for you to take.”

“Kieeehh?! N-noooo!!” The spirit screamed and fell to her knees in grief.

“...”

The duke took on a similar expression as well. His plan to take the wealth of the nobles and the royal family had just been destroyed after all.

***

“Sir Drak! Sir Drak! Please wake up!” An urgent voice called out.

“Hmm? What is it?” Lanslo stretched before exiting his tent. It was still dark outside.

The squad captains and Partec were gathered in front of his tent. They couldn’t hide their excitement as they responded. “A white flag is hanging over the walls of Brodin. The gates are open as well.”

“The sun hasn’t even come up yet. Are you saying that they have surrendered already?” Lanslo asked.

“Haha! That’s right,” one of the captains said.

“Oh, my. The king must be quite impatient,” Lanslo said. He entered his tent and quickly put on his armor before running to see the sight for himself alongside the captains.

“Hooh!” Lanslo’s eyes became filled with surprise when he saw a white flag hanging next to the Brodia family’s flag. Pranbow and Wolfgan stepped forward next to him and voiced their regrets.

“Hmm. This had been a great opportunity to show the duke my skills. How regrettable.”

“When the hell do we get to fight properly? And the dark lord isn’t even here, so why are they already surrendering? What’s their problem?”

“…” Edmund didn’t say much because of his quiet personality, but he was also disappointed. He continued to fidget with the pommel of his sword.

“They must have been pressured by the might of our army. Even if they resisted, they would have lost within a day. It was the better choice for them to surrender earlier to avoid bloodshed.” Lanslo grinned. Afterward, he turned around and shouted, “Brodia has surrendered! Everyone, prepare to enter the city!”

Uwaaaahhh!

The soldiers roared. They had occupied one of the five biggest cities in Brantia without even doing anything.

Ten minutes later…

Eugene’s soldiers followed behind the knights in organized lines and arrived in front of Brodin’s gate. Two knights came out triumphantly behind Cameron the Third, who looked strangely calm, and a group of men and women in fancy clothing.

“Oi!”

“Huh?”

“What’s the dark knight doing there?” Wolfgan muttered. The burly knight who called out was Galfredik.

“Ohhh! Lorraine! My precious jewel! My adorable lark! Uhah!”

“B-Brother…?!”

The other knight was Reyma. He immediately cried out after spotting his sister, which resulted in a scene of a tearful reunion.