Chapter 18 Vampire Church
2015-05-14
Author: Floating Tower
The side of Withered Leaf Town was a graveyard.
In this era, remote towns rarely place cemeteries far away, resembling eastern burial practices where graveyards are concentrated near populated areas. Generally, other people passing by graveyards wouldn’t pay much attention, but Wanderers often serve as scouts for adventurer teams, so their observational skills are much stronger. This seasoned Wanderer glanced around and immediately noticed something odd about some of the graves; the soil looked freshly turned.
“It should be from a few days ago.”
The Ranger pinched some soil and even cleared away the weeds that had grown on the grave, his expression serious: “At most seven days ago, someone dug open these graves, and the gravestones have been set up again.”
Someone disturbed the graves?
This discovery made the expressions of everyone present turn somber. The Spellcaster, who had been silent the whole time, observed the surroundings and then cast a detection-like spell before speaking: “It wasn’t done by a Necromancer. There is no trace of undead presence nearby. This graveyard has been blessed by a Priest, so it wouldn’t spontaneously give rise to undead.”
The Paladin’s expression was somewhat angry as he spoke in a low voice: “Then who did it? Desecrating the dead is a grave sin!”
In the secular world, there is still a considerable respect for the dead.
Once buried, they should generally not be disturbed; acts like this are strictly prohibited by most laws.
“Let’s open it and see!” the Wanderer said gravely.
The four present exchanged glances; the Paladin hesitated for a moment but ultimately nodded.
There was something strange about the graveyard.
Soon, they had dug up one of the disturbed graves, and they discovered that the coffin inside was actually empty.
“Dark Creature.”
The Ranger sniffed the air inside and said grimly: “This nauseating aura is definitely from a Dark Creature. I remember my hatred towards them very clearly!”
The Wanderer examined the situation around the grave and slowly said: “It could be a Vampire.”
“Perhaps the Vampire Church has infiltrated here.”
………………
Soren was still unaware of the situation at the graveyard.
However, finding a Vampire was much easier for him. As the daylight gradually faded, he quietly entered the tavern.
The tavern was quite lively.
Beside the bar, there was a rather disheveled Bard. Although Bards are also one of the professions, many do not succeed well because this profession is too versatile. Bards seldom become powerful professionals. A Hell Poet is a rarity; most Bards perform to entertain others in exchange for some rewards. Occasionally, a handsome Bard can charm some noblewomen and earn a little extra money.
Mediocre spellcasting ability, mediocre combat ability, mediocre thieving skills.
These combine to form the Bard.
There have been powerful Bards before, but to become an exceptional Bard, one must have sufficiently strong attributes. Even Soren’s attributes might not be enough to support a well-rounded Bard. Those Bards who could achieve this in the past mostly had special encounters or received assistance from deities. There was once a belief that only those whose initial attributes all reached 18 points could become top-tier Bards.
If the initial attributes were that powerful, they would be top-tier Spellcasters, top-tier Warriors, and top-tier Thieves.
Unfortunately, such people are exceedingly rare.
Moreover, advancing in any profession would make them top-tier. It should be noted that even Soren’s initial attributes are not that high.
The Bard was telling a story using the unique singing style of the Northern Region, and the protagonist of the story was named Soren. Indeed, he was recounting the battle between Soren and Pirate King Asrold, the largest naval battle in the Southern Coast in decades, spreading rapidly in all directions, and more and more common people had heard of this battle.
However.
The content of the Bard’s tale had nothing to do with the actual combat process. In his words, this battle resembled a duel between nobles.
Soren and Asrold fought for three hundred rounds.
In the end, the more evil Executioner—Soren—killed Pirate King Asrold and thus pleased the cruel Ocean Goddess.
That was roughly the story.
The focus of the tale was the battle between Soren and Asrold, detailing how both sides fought back and forth, and how in the end the Executioner—Soren—created an opening to defeat the other Pirate King.
Bard’s stories are mostly unreliable, yet this artistic expression undoubtedly attracted others’ attention.
Soren felt slightly taken aback.
Being the protagonist of a story was indeed a bit disorienting, especially when portrayed as weaker than Asrold and needing to use cunning to defeat him.
Soon, Soren’s target appeared.
As dusk fell, two rather stealthy figures slipped out.
He quietly rose into the shadows and followed behind them; these newly transformed Vampire servants did not notice him and could not detect Soren’s presence.
They crossed the street and arrived at a rather luxurious mansion.
Noble!
The ruler of Withered Leaf Town seemed to be a lord whose name Soren could not recall.
The two Vampires entered through the back door, and Soren couldn’t follow directly, so he quietly climbed over from the yard after they went in.
The presence of Dark Creatures.
As soon as Soren entered, he sensed the aura of Dark Creatures; there seemed to be very few living people left in this mansion.
“Indeed, there is something wrong here.”
He deeply furrowed his brow and thought: “No wonder the Vampires could lurk here unnoticed. It appears the ruling nobles have already been corrupted by them.”
With high-ranking nobles concealing the truth, even if signs of the Vampire infestation emerged, it could be temporarily covered up.
The Northern Region is the territory of Witches.
Such a remote place belongs to their management blind spot, and the power of the Temple is also quite weak.
“They must be eliminated!”
Soren frowned as he listened for sounds, then quietly approached the hall. The Vampire Son’s power could not expand further; this matter must be reported to the Witch Council.
Surely they would not want to see large numbers of Vampires in their ruling area!
Thud.
A very faint footstep sound.
Just as Soren entered the mansion, another figure followed close behind, but this person was somewhat unusual, as his eyes were covered with a bandage.
His eye sockets were slightly sunken, as if there were no eyeballs inside!
………………(To be continued ~^~)
