Chapter 121

Chapter 121
## Chapter 121

Silent War (3)

If one were to inquire about the most heavily burdened lieutenant among the current Immortal King’s high-ranking staff, a single name would instantly come to everyone’s mind.

Banshee Queen Olivia held that title.

The assignment of exposing the Oath of Heaven’s Defiance, which was Hans’s primary directive, required constant and relentless effort because their network was scattered far and wide across the land.

Furthermore, her presence was absolutely vital when it came to subjugating and integrating the factions they had already uncovered.

Amidst this heavy workload, she received a brand-new mandate from Hans.

She was to look into the specifics of an assassination plot carried out by a vampire against a merchant operating in Tarak, and provide a full report.

[Alas… This poor girl is going to perish from sheer exhaustion…]

Olivia murmured softly to herself as she drifted through the pitch-black shadows of the cavern, encircled by a multitude of phantoms.

It was a bit of dark humor suited only for a member of the undead, but regrettably, there was not a single soul in this subterranean cavern capable of offering a reply.

[Furthermore… my complexion feels as though it has grown quite coarse of late… Even though I strictly avoid the sun, that terrible adversary of beautiful skin…]

A pale, ethereal finger gently traced her equally translucent and flawless cheek.

She attempted another lighthearted remark, completely unfazed by the icy silence of her companions… but naturally, no response came.

[Sigh… I was truly foolish to anticipate a shred of wit from these mindless creatures…]

While she maintained strict decorum and refrained from speaking so carelessly before the Immortal King, she had grown deeply accustomed to talking to herself and spinning wordplay after spending centuries in isolation.

Yet, it felt entirely pointless when there was no one around to appreciate her humor…

Ultimately, Olivia relented and lowered her eyelids, shifting her focus to interpret the chaotic data that the phantoms had delivered to her.

Phantoms, stripped of their mortal cravings, fixations, and cognitive identities, possessed a greatly muted presence, but their individual consciousness also became incredibly faint, making them exceptionally difficult to command.

An ordinary person would find it nearly impossible to sift through, isolate, and piece together the vital facts hidden within a disorganized jumble of randomly gathered observations.

However, she was far from ordinary.

[How peculiar… The strike against Hubert, that merchant from Tarak… There are far too many anomalies here…]

To begin with, she was entirely unable to locate Hubert, the actual target of the hit.

Standard procedure dictated tracking the victim first to ensure a precise investigation, so she had initially sought to pinpoint his whereabouts, but…

‘…He must be concealed within a meticulously crafted protective ward. It is rather humiliating that even my senses failed to detect his location.’

Nevertheless, he was never her primary objective, so she eventually abandoned the search for Hubert and instead scrutinized the potential perpetrators with immense care.

Following several days of balancing this investigation alongside her prior duties,

She at last succeeded in laying bare every detail regarding the suspects.

[Yet they were completely blameless… A significant portion of them remained entirely unaware that he had even been targeted…]

The definitive finding indicated that this was not a strike born from a personal vendetta against Hubert or his mercantile enterprise.

Just as she was feeling thoroughly disheartened that her grueling efforts had yielded nothing substantial…

[Ah— This is an absolute catastrophe…]

Goooo—!

The very air trembled, and a massive wave of necrotic energy rippled outward as Olivia began to let out a mournful shriek.

It was a devastating force capable of snuffs out the lives of anyone lacking spiritual protection merely from hearing the sound.

[Kkiiiiik—!]

[Ugh—]

The phantoms packing the cavern writhed and wailed in agony as the dark energy washed over them, throwing the entire space into instant turmoil.

Yet Olivia, the very source of this violent disruption, was already quietly evaluating the data once more, her face completely wiped of emotion.

If Hubert himself was not the root cause, then the catalyst had to originate from an external force.

Her subsequent objective was to deeply investigate the specific vampire who had executed the strike.

However, that individual proved to be highly unusual as well.

He had masked his tracks so flawlessly that she could not uncover his path solely through the delayed tracking of her phantoms.

Still, failing a directive bestowed by the Immortal King was out of the question.

Sending her phantoms far and wide, she resolved to monitor every single vampire residing in the surrounding territories, gathering every scrap of information available.

Following days of relentless, unceasing scrutiny that spanned morning and night—while temporarily pausing her work regarding the Oath of Heaven’s Defiance—

[Hehehe… It appears these little ones are the culprits…?]

She finally tracked down the cluster of vampires convening within Raffella City, located in the Talia Kingdom.

An entirely separate faction of vampires, completely unrelated to the Brokoslack Clan that governed the region, was encroaching upon their territory.

[This is turning into quite an entertaining development… I must convey this to the Immortal King immediately…]

-Lady Olivia? This is Dwell. How much longer must we remain stationary?

Right at that moment, a magical transmission reached her from Dwell McCain, who had been partner to her investigation into the Oath of Heaven’s Defiance.

She had previously instructed him to halt temporarily so she could pivot to the vampire matter, and he reached out to her the very instant she concluded her search.

[…Sigh. Truly, I am going to pass away from being overworked…]

With that, Banshee Queen Olivia embarked on yet another exhausting day.

—

‘An infiltration by a rival vampire faction?’

A handful of days after tasking Olivia with the matter, she had thoroughly unraveled the situation and brought to light the reality behind the attempt on Hubert’s life.

Not only had she deduced that the event did not stem from internal strife within Hubert’s Trading Company, but she also realized it tied directly back to Brokoslack, who maintained a collaborative alliance with the merchant…

She had even successfully determined that the specific faction responsible for the strike was currently massing within Raffella City in the Talia Kingdom.

‘Was their strategy to create a diversion before launching a strike on Talaria? It would have worked flawlessly had they managed to draw out the defensive forces as well.’

This marked the inaugural attempt at territorial growth by Brokoslack, who had historically remained secluded in their own domain, adhering to a strict policy of isolation.

Naturally, from the perspective of an adversarial faction, they would view this as a highly calculated and swiftly advancing campaign.

When an operation that had been prepared with such precision suddenly began to show vulnerabilities, it was only logical for the rivals to isolate the cause and exploit it.

‘And they intend to capitalize on that precise vulnerability to strike at the core seat of power… Is that their angle?’

Olivia noted in her report that the encroaching forces appeared to be acting with a sense of urgency.

Reckoning by their logistical setup, which included the concealing ward, their original goal was total stealth, but they fell into her radar precisely because they were rushing forward without properly configuring their safeguards.

This clearly indicated that the assault was right on the horizon.

‘The primary complication, however, is that Brokoslack remains completely oblivious. They are exposed right now due to the complications in the monster forest and their efforts toward external growth… ’

Their already sparse vampire population had been thinned out even further due to deployments across multiple regions, leaving significant gaps in their domestic security grid.

Furthermore, because the teleportation matrix required roughly two more days to complete its recharge cycle, it was out of the question for Heinz the Second to deploy to Talaria instantly.

‘Moreover, it is unwise for Hans to step in directly… Revealing his peak strength would expose his whereabouts to the world, escalating the situation dramatically. It would cease to be a mere territorial squabble between vampires.’

The timing was completely wrong for the Immortal King to make a public manifestation.

He required more time for the dark legions to harvest additional malevolent energy, and for the rulers of the land to reach a formal accord at the upcoming grand gathering…

‘The reports indicated that the aggressors this time are believed to belong to the Ufersh Clan, correct?’

Realistically, they were the sole entity possessing the resources to orchestrate an operation of this magnitude.

If ‘Brokoslack’, ranking among the dominant trio of vampire factions, had seized control of a minor realm in the western territory, then ‘Obaipo’ was the one exerting immense authority over the eastern federation.

The final member of that dominant trio, and indisputably the mightiest among them, was ‘Ufersh’—a faction anchored within the heart of the Azeria Empire whose operations spanned the entire continent.

Crucially, their supreme ruler was none other than a ‘Sacred Blood’, standing at the absolute apex of the vampire race across Auterica.

‘I did not anticipate crossing paths with a Sacred Blood under these circumstances.’

Beings of the Sacred Blood lineage were not individuals one crossed paths with casually.

At present, he was aware of only two such entities.

Setting aside Brokoslack, who had entered a profound state of dormancy with an indeterminate awakening date, this figure was effectively the most potent vampire active on the continent.

‘Furthermore, Visque Ufersh himself will likely oversee this operation directly. This complicates things immensely.’

He was well aware that historical relations between Ufersh and Brokoslack were deeply strained.

There had already been minor skirmishes between them during the conquest of the Talia Kingdom.

Friction had flared up when they expelled the Ufersh loyalists from the realm to secure their own borders, though after Brokoslack withdrew to a secluded corner of the mainland to isolate themselves, further conflict had ceased…

‘Yet they have suddenly launched a coordinated, large-scale assault.’

He remained uncertain as to what exactly had triggered this shift in their strategy, or if they had simply grown irritated by the recent expansion efforts…

Regardless of their motives, now that the pieces were in motion, the pressing concern was formulating a counterstrategy.

‘Hmph, it cannot be helped. They crossed a line by targeting Hubert and attempting to dismantle Brokoslack, an asset I expended immense effort to secure… I will not sit idly by and watch it fall.’

He needed to mobilize every resource at his disposal.

The very instant that resolution crystallized in his mind,

Harley, who had been stationed at the northern Iron Fortress engaged in the systematic eradication of beasts, began his deployment.

Simultaneously, Hans, who had been surveying the surrounding sectors and gathering new assets, also began to slip through the shadows.

‘Given the unpredictability of the situation, I must establish a contingency plan.’

Should the Immortal King find himself forced to step onto the battlefield personally, it would undeniably draw external scrutiny, but constructing a plausible cover story would be simple enough.

He could easily claim a sudden necessity for harvesting vampire remains or state a desire to bring the faction under his vassalage.

As Hans slipped into Talaria, silently wishing that direct intervention could be avoided, his senses picked up an entirely unforeseen variable.

‘Oh? This development is… rather advantageous.’

This unexpected turn arose because…

An entirely unanticipated aura was present within the area.

—

“So, you fully grasp the gravity of the situation, correct? You are well aware of the repercussions should you attempt any deceit?”

“Y-yes… Without a doubt, Harley!”

“I shall place my confidence in you. I am truly terrifying when provoked, am I not? Kkahahahat—!”

“…Indubitably! Rest assured, there is no need for concern!”

The individual replying to Harley’s assertions with a strained smile looked incredibly tense.

It seemed highly probable that the man wished to reply, ‘You are terrifying regardless of your mood,’ though that might have merely been a passing assumption.

“A matter of extreme urgency requires my attention immediately, so you will defer to Howard’s direction for the time being. Furthermore, ensure the staff are monitored tightly so that no one behaves foolishly to test my patience! I shall review everything upon my return!”

“Understood! I shall accord Howard the full respect due to a direct proxy of the proprietor and assist him faithfully.”

The distance separating Tarak and the Iron Fortress required a mere day of travel, meaning accounts of Harley’s martial feats had already spread widely through this region.

Consequently, the personnel within the enterprise were fully enlightened regarding his status, viewing him essentially as an equal partner to Hubert.

His staggering martial prowess, the explicit backing of the Holy Church, and the open invitations extended by Count Aonia…

It would require a foolish level of audacity to openly oppose his directives.

‘This particular front is secure, so the next destination is… ’

Harley, after confirming that order was maintained within Hubert’s Trading Company one final time, immediately turned his steps toward the grand cathedral in Tarak.

‘Speed is of the essence. A brief window of a few days was granted, but I must settle this affair rapidly and journey back to the citadel.’

Naturally, the command structure at the citadel, most notably Count Aonia, had attempted to dissuade him from departing.

The contributions Harley had delivered to the defensive lines thus far were so monumental that his temporary absence naturally sparked deep apprehension.

‘However, given that I have been anchoring the front lines without a single moment of rest, securing this brief window of time should be acceptable… ’

Owing to that record, securing a temporary leave to recuperate was not an arduous request.

Count Aonia had gone so far as to offer a direct decree to Tarak’s local garrison, ensuring they provided heightened security for Hubert’s Trading Company upon learning that Harley’s departure was prompted by the recent assault on Hubert.

He resolved to accept the administrative favor with gratitude, ensuring safeguards were in place should any opportunistic rivals try to exploit Hubert’s absence.

“Oh? Is that truly Harley? Word reached us that you were entrenched at the Iron Fortress, whatever brings you back to our gates?”

“Hahaha—! Well, the situation demands…”

Upon finally setting foot inside the cathedral within Tarak, Harley

Was granted passage to the Talaria Temple located deep within the Talia Kingdom by utilizing the teleportation gateway housed within the sanctuary.

Directly toward the epicenter where the storm between the vampire factions was about to break.