Chapter 28:

Chapter 28:

Chapter 28. Hunting Human Hunters (2)

The valley at night was darker than the plains.

Neither Gebel nor Isaac had any desire to face vampires in the middle of the night, so they hurriedly headed out of the valley. Isolde, seemingly uninterested in unnecessary risks, quickly followed them.

Since an attack could happen at any moment, Isaac continuously surveyed their surroundings.

He decided to think of the Paladin Order as a ‘means to hold out in an emergency’. The enemy wouldn’t expect the Paladin Order to be rushing to their aid, so holding out would mean victory.

“Will they come back?”

“Are you scared?”

Gebel asked with a smile. Instead of snapping back, Isaac calmly calculated their chances of winning.

“Having seen the Abyssal Beast, they’d have a hard time attacking us even at night. But Inquisitor lady can’t summon the Abyssal Beast all night long...”

“Probably they’ll try to force us to summon the Abyssal Beast first.”

And once Isolde sends the Abyssal Beast back, tired, Duke Heinkel Gullmar will reappear.

The gist was simple.

Our trump card is the Abyssal Beast; theirs is Duke Gullmar.

Whichever side plays their card first loses.

In other words, Isaac’s party had to fight the Wallachia hunters in the middle of the night without the Abyssal Beast.

‘Would that make the odds about fifty-fifty?’

The Wallachia hunters had shown pitiful skills during the day, but it would be different at night. There was a reason why they were considered knights of the Red Chalice. Moreover, he had to estimate how many more would join.

Calculating a fifty-fifty chance, he assumed one or two of the three in his party would either die or be seriously injured. Of course, Isaac didn’t consider his own death.

‘This is calculated without using my tentacles.’

If he’s critically injured and tentacles emerge, it’s highly likely the same thing that happened with Kalsen will happen. Everything nearby would be devoured. Isolde and Gebel too.

Even if he somehow survives, if his tentacles are revealed, Isolde would surely have to be killed.

‘I’ll have to separate from these two if I want to survive right now.’

Isaac’s eyes sharpened as he looked upwards.

Silhouettes were sliding down the valley slope. They were silent, nearly undetectable, resembling fast-moving fog. Gebel and Isolde, noticing Isaac’s gaze, quickened their pace.

Fortunately, there was no red mist, and their numbers seemed small. However, it was uncertain where they might be hiding, free to move about.

“Inquisitor, use the Doctrine of the Moth.”

“Yes!”

At Gebel’s advice, Isolde readily used the miracle. Dust-like ashes fluttered from her clothes, dissolving into the darkness. They had been discovered by the hunters before, but that was because Isaac had diverted their attention with a decoy.

As Isolde disappeared, the movement of the pursuing Wallachia hunters faltered. They must have thought Isolde was their most dangerous opponent. It was natural for them to be disoriented with the greatest threat gone.

But they weren’t fools.

***

A sharp whistling noise echoed through the valley. Simultaneously, arrows flew from above.

“Whoosh!”

Gebel deflected an arrow with his sword in a flash. Isaac, lacking such skill, quickly hid behind a valley rock. The arrows embedded in the rock were treated with a dark substance, typical of those specializing in hunting humans.

He would make them pay for defiling the sanctuary with their tainted blood.

Isaac swung his sword.

And so it happened.

***

The Wallachia hunter, charging at Isaac, didn’t fully grasp what was happening. An absurdly bizarre aura emanated from Isaac, who had seemed frail. The hunter suddenly thought irrationally that he was committing an outrageous blasphemy against the Red Chalice.

‘Red Chalice, help!’

A scream rose to his throat, but it was too late.

The next moment, the Wallachia hunter’s head plunged into the ground. The hunter, rolling limply, tried to get up, but soon realized only his head remained.

Isaac’s silhouette had blurred for a moment, but he had passed through the hunter’s body like wielding eight saw blades, ripping it apart.

The hunter’s body barely maintained its shape.

It was a ghastly and gruesome swordsmanship.

‘Such technique, fit only for barbaric realms... how could it be in the territory of the Codex of Light?’

The Wallachia hunter tried to protest with his mouth, but his neck was no longer suitable for making sounds. And there was no one left to hear his voice.

Isaac didn’t care about the severed head.

He just felt an immense hunger.

‘Ah... if I hadn’t eaten Zihilrat, this would have been troublesome.’

The hunger was psychological; there was still plenty of meat in his flesh storage. However, the demanding nature of this advanced sword technique was evident; it couldn’t be used frequently.

[Advanced Paladin Sword Technique Proficiency Increased! (Lv 2)]

[Please name your combined advanced sword technique.]

After using the technique only twice, Isaac realized its level had increased. He remembered he hadn’t named it the previous time.

‘The Avalanche Paladin Order named theirs “Avalanche Sword Technique”, so maybe...’

He thought about calling it “Tentacle Sword Technique,” but that seemed embarrassing to introduce to others. Naming it “Isaac Sword Technique” also felt awkward.

‘Isaac Technique. And since it leaves eight sword marks, let’s call it “Eight Branches.”’

From now on, this move would be known as the “Isaac swordsmanship: Eight Branches.” Isaac decided so.

[Isaac swordsmanship: Eight Branches (A) has been established.]

Isaac felt the move embedding in his mind like a skill. He also realized how much satiation it consumed.

Feeling stiffness all over, Isaac turned to check on Gebel. If Isaac could take them down, Gebel should have been able to handle it with ease.

But what he saw when he turned around was unexpected.

“Gebel!”

An old Wallachia hunter in a billowing red cloak was thrusting a spear into Gebel’s side.

It was the Vampire Duke, Heinkel Gullmar.

Gebel was also stabbing Heinkel’s chest, but he seemed to have no strength left.

Heinkel, intent on finishing Gebel, tensed his shoulder, but suddenly someone appeared behind him. It was Isolde, using the Doctrine of the Moth.

Silently appearing, Isolde stabbed Heinkel in the back. Her Sword of Judgment, deeply embedded, emitted intense heat, burning Heinkel’s flesh and blood. As Isolde forcefully pulled out her sword, a spray of blood followed, tearing Heinkel’s belly to his side.