“This is the place! Go down from here, follow the underground river and you’ll reach the sewers of Crimson Citadel.”
On the night of the second day after the gnoll camp was attacked, at a river bend where the Kadman River flows through Anderma Hills, Hog, riding a scruffy earth wolf, hunched his shoulders and said to the Wolfsbane vanguards beside him:
“My clansmen and I escaped from here, but I must warn you, they might have discovered this place, and there are dangerous things on the third level of the sewers.”
“We know, just ghouls,” said the leading Wolfsbane vanguard, a tall figure. Upon closer inspection, one could see that his features somewhat resembled those of Joban Marci, who had been killed by Murphy.
Especially the cruel look in his eyes beneath the full beard, which was almost identical to Joban.
He was Joban Marci’s half-brother, another son of Korando, named Stander Korando Gongreau.
It was clear that although Lord Korando had been a vampire for over 30 years, he still believed in the concept of “father and son fighting together”. Besides his sons, he also had two daughters in his faction.
However, the two Korando sisters were currently still on Greenleaf Island helping their father manage the territory there, and had not participated in this operation in Transia.
“Since you’ve arrived, I’ll be going back now, huh?” Hog appeared very frightened.
He portrayed the character of a cunning but fearful weak gnoll so realistically that the Wolfsbane clan members could even smell the terror of his anxious heart.
This elicited contemptuous laughter from these brutal fellows.
“Go back? Where do you think you’re going?” Stander sneered, grabbing Hog by the collar and pulling him off his equally small earth wolf mount. Pointing at the hidden river pit not far away, he said:
“Your chieftain’s order was for you to lead us into Crimson Citadel for reconnaissance. How do I know you won’t deliberately lead us to our deaths?
Go!
Lead the way in front.”
“This wasn’t part of the agreement!” Hog shouted, but was immediately slapped twice by a Wolfsbane huntress who stepped forward, leaving him dizzy. Her wolf-bat claws, sharper and more ferocious than those of other clans, pressed against his throat as she said coldly:
“Either lead the way! Or die!”
“King Kenport won’t allow you to do this,” Hog whimpered very pitifully, but having no choice, he could only call for his earth wolf mount to wait for him nearby, then was coerced into leading these Wolfsbane vanguards back into the passage towards the sewers of Crimson Citadel.
His pitiful state was not an act.
His fear was also very real!
After all, the Wolfsbane vampires he was dealing with were completely different in their ways from the members of the Blood Vulture Clan he had encountered before.
Even though gnolls could hardly understand what civilized races called “elegance”, he knew that these guys around him were all murderous thugs who wouldn’t bat an eye at killing someone. If he didn’t follow their hearts, being killed would just be a matter of a few claw swipes.
And Kenport wouldn’t fall out with the Wolfsbane clan over a “crippled bastard” like himself.
The more this happened, the more Hog hated these bastards.
Not just hating the Wolfsbane vampires, but also hating that fool Kenport with his grandiose yet incompetent ways.
How could such a big idiot lead the Transia gnolls well?
If the so-called “nobles” in the Dark Mountain range were just this stupid, it’s no wonder the gnolls had launched four Black Disasters but never managed to conquer the continent.
Such power without the restraint of wisdom could only harm others and oneself!
Meanwhile, in the Blood Vulture Halls, Count Andrei, who was discussing action plans with his subordinates, raised his head to see his room door being pushed open.
Lady Adele stood in the doorway, making a gesture to him.
The Count of White Mountain immediately walked out of the room, and in the shadows, Lady Adele said in a low voice:
“The Computation Bead signal of the ‘Pangolin’ is approaching Crimson Citadel. It should be leading the Wolfsbane vanguard close to here. I don’t know how prepared you are, but there’s no time left for you to prepare further.
Start your performance.”
“Alright!”
Count Andrei took a deep breath as the moment arrived. He said to Lady Adele:
“Please inform Lord Murphy that I’ll be waiting for him in the Fight Club.”
——
Although the Wolfsbane clan’s vanguards were brutal and still hadn’t shed that air of street thugs, they weren’t stupid. After Hog led them into the underground tunnel, these guys had been very careful all along.
The style of the Greyclaw faction they belonged to could be simply summarized as follows: even among the notoriously rule-breaking Wolfsbane clan, the Greyclaws were considered one of the more “extreme” factions.
They craved expansion and power. Having originally been fierce urban thugs, with the addition of the never-ending fearful desire granted by the Wolfsbane blood, their actions became even more radical.
The Greyclaw faction had several cities as their territory on Greenleaf Island, but they weren’t satisfied. They often initiated actions to swallow up the territories of other factions, and they disliked being suppressed or restrained. This annoyed old Edward to no end, which was why he transferred them to the continent as the vanguard of the Wolfsbane clan’s participation in the Black Disaster affairs.
The reason Korando was able to obtain the defense map of the Wolfsbane clan in the Cato region was also because of this responsibility.
After pledging loyalty to King Louis, the Wolfsbane clan received a reward. A part of the Cato region was allocated to them as territory, as a new stronghold for the Wolfsbane vampires on the continent. Old Edward clearly intended to manage it well.
Regaining territory on the continent was of great significance to the Wolfsbane clan, who had been forced to withdraw from the continent and even faced extinction at one point under the joint suppression of the Avalon Church and the Circle Tower years ago.
Unfortunately, the Wolfsbane descendants, who didn’t value tradition, really couldn’t understand old Edward’s painstaking efforts. The eager Greyclaw faction had already viewed the entire Cato region as their own possession.
Especially for Korando.
His most important task now was to expand the faction’s influence. He had no intention of directly confronting the Black Disaster and fulfilling Edward’s duties at the cost of his own faction’s annihilation.
This was determined by racial characteristics.
Stander felt he had gained important information. He hesitated for a moment, then ventured to slip into the upper level of the Fight Club, lying down by a broken wall to survey below.
In the arena below illuminated by gas lamps, two young and handsome vampires were engaged in a duel to the death.
It really was a duel to the death!
They showed no mercy, one using strange Night Claws, the other wielding a sword emanating chilling air, but the one using claws was clearly more skilled, almost dominating the other.
The latter was covered in blood but unwilling to retreat.
Unfortunately, will doesn’t equate to strength. In one assault he was grabbed by the face and slammed to the ground by his opponent. That wasn’t the end of it, the victorious Blood Vulture vampire pinned him down and left scars on his handsome face.
This kind of injury wasn’t much for vampires, they could heal scars, but being watched by so many lowly Mortals was a terrible humiliation for a vampire.
“Arrogant Northerner, you’ve come to Blood Vulture Clan territory so you must obey our rules!”
Murphy berated harshly:
“This is just a small lesson for you, Andrei! Next time, I’ll gouge out your eyes and send them back to your sister!
Don’t think the Wolf Queen’s reputation scares anyone!
We Transians don’t fall for your tricks!”
The surrounding crowd immediately erupted in cheers, delighted at their lord’s victory, but Stander hiding away felt a jolt in his heart.
This Thorn pretty boy who had just been humiliated in front of everyone was actually the Wolf Queen’s brother?
This was big intelligence!
Stander’s heart leapt with joy, just as he was about to leave with his findings, in the next instant he saw Murphy flapping his wings to fly up to the arena, proudly waving to his blood servants in acknowledgement, while beside him a coquettish female vampire with a voluptuous figure fawningly presented him with his weapon.
A sword cane.
A Wolfsbane style sword cane.
This thing made Joban’s second brother’s eyes bulge. He recognized it as his brother’s sword! The gray wolf head emblem on the hilt was unmistakable.
That was his father’s faction symbol.
“So it was you!”
Stander gritted his teeth, he had caught the murderer of his brother, this vampire called ‘Murphy’, a Black Iron rank trash!
From his appearance he seemed to be the current Governor of Transia?
That ridiculous rumor was true, a Black Iron rank vampire had gained control of the now riddled-with-holes Transia through sweet talk and currying favor with humans.
“Very good, very good”
The Wolfsbane warrior stared intently as Murphy left escorted by several pitiful vampires, he also saw that humiliated vampire count being supported away from the arena by his servants.
He quietly followed.
The other was a member of the Thorn Clan so he didn’t dare follow too closely, he could only prick up his ears to listen.
“Today’s grudge will be repaid in the future!”
The pretty boy said sternly:
“I will kill him! How dare he humiliate the bloodline of the Hero King like this! Vesta! The things I asked you to do”
“All done, master.”
Another sinister voice replied:
“Murphy is currently troubled by the gnoll warlord in Anderma Hills. The assassins he sent out failed, they didn’t manage to burn the gnolls’ food supplies but instead enraged them.
He’s too preoccupied to monitor us now.
I’ve already stockpiled enough explosives in several hidden locations in the sewers of Crimson Citadel as per your instructions. At your command, this laughable Crimson Citadel will be engulfed in flames.
This will be your fief, my master! Today’s humiliation naturally cannot be let go easily, he will kneel before you begging for your mercy, and you will cruelly deny him!
Grand Duchess Shani has already made preparations in secret, as long as you can eliminate Murphy and his weakened elder Tris, our clansmen will support you in annexing this place.
You will realize your ambitions!”
“But those gnolls.”
Andrei hesitated somewhat, his servant immediately replied:
“Their existence will keep Murphy too occupied to pay attention to us, master. Moreover, in the face of the Thorn Clan’s midnight assassins, a mere warlord is nothing. Once their leader is gone, the gnolls will scatter!
They’re always like that.
No need to consider them!
How to kill Murphy is the pressing issue you need to resolve right now.”