“If you know about this, how come they don’t? I’d imagine immortal vampires would somehow stumble on this kind of thing," Orion asked as the carriage to Silverpeak rumbled on.
Despite the softening enchantments woven into the wood, there was only so much comfort that could be provided before it became too expensive to make financial sense. And the rocky mountain road definitely didn’t help.
“Oh, I don’t doubt the older ones know. Though their magic doesn’t work the same way as ours, they have had centuries to learn and steal the knowledge. But those sent on this kind of mission are rarely ancient. In fact, according to the city watch meetings I was able to listen in on, they’re pretty sure they’re dealing with a relatively young vampire.” Selene replied, staring curiously at the slight shimmer around them.
“Just a privacy spell,” Orion muttered, trying to steer her back on topic. Figuring out how to adjust the air's density to cause extreme energy loss in sound waves hadn’t taken much effort, even if he was unsure how it would hold up against supernatural senses. “What meetings have you been spying on, exactly?”
“All kinds. Did you know that an entire department of the local militia won’t even mention your mother? They're so afraid of her that they call her the Mindbreaker. It took me a while to figure out who they were talking about," she chuckled, seemingly amused by the nickname.
If Orion hadn’t been there to see the events firsthand, he would have doubted they were really talking about Asteria. But between her cracking heads open like overripe melons in search of infiltrators and the sound defeats she’d been handing him during their training sessions, he could see how that might happen.
“Does this evaluation have anything to do with the dead body they found? Because while it’s true that older vampires don’t fall to their instincts as often, it doesn’t mean they can’t. Or even that this might be a way to mislead the pursuers into thinking they are dealing with a younger, rash vampire.”
Selene hummed, then shrugged. “Well, I guess we’ll see. I was able to divine a dark presence within the camp, and I know you’ve been wanting to go there.”
Orion sighed. He was starting to think this might be a bad idea. Sure, he was very curious about this vampire activity, and he was confident he could defend himself better now, after weeks of practice duels with his mother, but that wasn’t a good reason to walk into the lair of a bloodsucking monster.
The only reason he agreed to this was because he doubted Seraphina would let anything truly dangerous hang around. Whether she thought that permitting this kind of interference within Silverpeak was a small price to pay for peace between the factions, or simply didn’t want to hunt down a minor threat herself, he had seen firsthand how she handled real ones.
That didn’t mean there would be no danger. They would be very far from anyone who could help them if they actually stumbled upon this vampire, and while he didn’t want to think it would immediately resort to violence, the poor corpse that had been left without a drop of blood would beg to differ.
At least I stocked up on Bloodsucker Bane and crystals before leaving. Even if we end up finding the vampire, we should be okay.
Eventually, the carriage stopped. “Silverpeak! The next carriage will depart in an hour, and the last in eight!” The rider called, and everyone filed out.
As always, the town was a hive of activity, but Orion quickly noticed that, even compared to his last visit, there were more guards visibly patrolling the streets.
It made sense, as business couldn’t happen if people didn’t feel safe, but he doubted any of them would be much help in finding the vampire.
“Was there something you wanted to buy?” he asked Selene, but the girl merely shook her head and started walking away, toward the southern gates.
Silverpeak wasn’t as large as the cities of his old life, but it wasn’t a small settlement. Even with decent physical stats and the glow of youth, the two arrived at their target about forty minutes later, with a sheen of sweat on their brows.
“This is still supposed to be winter!” Orion grumbled, earning a laugh from Selene.
“Well, the sun is out and the birds are chirping, so spring might have arrived a bit earlier this year,” she commented.
Eventually, they had to slow down since the gates appeared ahead. At least a dozen guards were stationed there, with additional men on the walls and some patrolling the nearby streets.
Overall, it was clear that the militia viewed the tent city now spreading outside as a major problem.
“Halt!” A soldier called, raising his hand to his spear before freezing in place as he spotted the Sanctum’s heraldry on their clothes.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
It seems like Lucina has gone to some effort to teach them what we look like. I suppose she was lucky that I was the only one they threatened; otherwise, she might have been in real trouble.
After all, she served at the behest of the coven. If the witches didn’t believe she could handle the security, or thought the militia was out of control, she’d be purged post-haste, regardless of her noble status.
Cyril was not a kingdom. The aristocracy only existed as long as it followed the rules set by the magicals.
Orion and Selene paused, watching curiously as the men scrambled. After a minute, an older soldier stepped out from the barracks attached to the wall, looking both resigned and determined.
“I am Captain Johan Mutz, and I am in charge of the southern gate. What brings two acolytes here?” His voice was loud but not angry. Instead, he seemed to be the kind of man accustomed to having to shout, and who naturally adopted that tone.
“We are curious about the refugees,” Selene replied before Orion could come up with an excuse. “We want to talk to them and see what the tent city is like.”
Resisting the urge to facepalm at her directness, Orion watched as the captain struggled to figure out how to reply. He had no doubt that under different circumstances, they would have been sent away with a stern warning, but they were the man’s superiors, kids or not. He couldn’t tell them what to do.
“Will you take an escort of men with you?” He asked after a moment, sounding resigned.
“Two at most,” Orion interjected before Selene could give the poor man a heart attack. He didn’t particularly like the idea of having shadows attached to them, especially since he doubted people would feel safe enough to talk with the soldiers so close. But given that they were here to find a vampire, a creature famed for its physical abilities along with its bloodsucking habits, perhaps having someone more martially inclined along wouldn’t be a bad idea.
Worst comes to worst, they can serve as bait while we run away, he thought dispassionately.
The captain opened and closed his mouth before nodding. “Alright. Gilbert, Amory, you are up!” He roared, and two soldiers stepped out from the barracks.
They were hulking behemoths, standing about seven feet tall. Their arms were thicker than his leg, and the way they moved made it clear these two weren’t just your average soldiers.
A check with his glasses revealed as much.
[Gilbert Dane - Lv. 88] [Master Spearman - D-Rank]
[Amory Bosset - Lv. 92] [Shieldbreaker - D-Rank]
Then, to be thorough, he checked the knight as well.
[Johan Mutz - Lv. 103] [Knight of the Gate - C-Rank]
Huh, so they have at least one tier three fighter. I guess I can understand why he was sent here, given the circumstances.
The two soldiers shadowing them were evidently a cut above the rest, both because of their class, level, and rank. Their being stationed here instead of the market only boosted Orion’s opinion of Lucina.
Even if it wasn’t her idea, she appointed a capable commander to handle this kind of work. That alone deserved praise.
Soon enough, the gates groaned open, and Selene and Orion slipped through, followed by their protectors.
The sight that appeared before their eyes stopped them for a moment. Everywhere the eye could see, tents, makeshift houses, and even a few more stable shelters had been constructed.
The camp stretched across what was left of the mountain valley and was likely inhabited by at least ten thousand people, but possibly many more.
When he last saw the tent city from above, it couldn’t have been more than a couple of thousand people. Its fivefold growth over the past months showed that the situation south was only worsening.
Several people had paused what they were doing when the gates opened and were now eyeing them with naked curiosity.
A few even gazed longingly at the streets beyond the walls, clearly weighing their chances of making a run for it.
None tried, however. I wonder if they were punished for it. This is cleaner than I would have expected, so I imagine the guards maintain some kind of presence here as well.
Sure, there were signs of trash around the shelters, and people moved around with little regard for property lines, but the smell wasn’t as bad as he’d feared. While there was wariness and a great deal of tiredness all around, no one seemed truly desperate yet.
Whatever one might think about the decision to leave all these people outside the walls’ safety, they were at least given enough food and water to survive.
“Alright, where do we start?" Orion asked, and Selene shook herself out of her stupor.
I wonder if she’s ever been outside before. Maybe in Silverpeak, but I doubt she’s seen this level of poverty. I spent an entire childhood in just slightly better conditions, so I’m used to it, but it must be a shock for her.
“Hmm, let’s go that way,” she said, pointing and skipping in that direction.
Orion hurried after her. If he hadn’t known she had scouted ahead before, he would have thought this was entirely based on a whim, but he’d learned to trust Selene. Especially now that every divination magic was enhanced.
The two guards followed behind them, maintaining the pace without much trouble. Orion noticed them exchange an exasperated look, but to their credit, they never let their guard down.
Selene cheerfully darted through the rows, sometimes barely avoiding collisions with others, sometimes jumping over a rock or an abandoned crate.
Eventually, she slowed down as they reached a quieter part of the camp.
There were families with children here too, but it was mostly shifty young men watching them pass by.
Orion had to wonder what they appeared like to others. They looked like a pair of wealthy kids, boldly walking through a place where parents told their children to stay away, shadowed by the town guards.
It took longer than expected for something to happen. They heard a scream from nearby, and Selene immediately ran toward it. When they arrived, they found an old woman on the ground with two men standing over her threateningly.
Two more appeared from behind a wooden hut, while six others blocked their escape from the other directions.
“Well, what do we have here?” Called the man who appeared to be the leader, a man with a thick beard and shaggy blonde hair.
They hadn't made any threatening move yet, but the guards had gone dangerously still, and Orion knew it would only take one wrong step to turn their little outing into a bloodbath.
“We’re just passing by and heard a scream,” Selene said guilelessly. If Orion hadn’t known her so well, he would have believed she was a perfectly innocent girl, too.
But he did know her, so it didn’t take long to realize his friend was not worried about these men at all. Her eyes stayed fixed on the old woman, and Orion blinked in surprise when he saw why.
“Everyone who passes by here has to pay a toll. You know, for community stuff. To take care of hungry children,” the man replied, grinning and showing a set of perfectly human, if yellowed teeth.
The elder, on the other hand, suddenly had very prominent canines. She had stopped trembling on the ground, and in the blink of an eye, she was behind the would-be bandit, sinking her fangs into his neck.
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