Howard was now clad in a hood which kept his appearance hidden. No one could see his expression.
“This isn’t a war! This is genocide!” Howard roared.
The corpses being tossed into the flames included children and even infants. The council soldiers slaughtered every vampire they ran into. Progia picked the ancient castle as their final battleground with the intention of wiping out the Byrne clan. He didn’t even mind killing some of his men in the process.
The demonkin had no intention of leaving survivors in this battle and were intent on permanently wiping the Byrne clan out.
If it wasn’t for Qianye and Nighteye, Howard would’ve fallen and the beleaguered clan would’ve been exterminated.
Nighteye said, “There are a lot of traitors in your clan. You might need some time to deal with them.”
These traitors were the reason the coffin didn’t get sufficient blood supply, why the reserve ponds were poisoned, and why Howard couldn’t wake up in time. Without them, the communication equipment wouldn’t have been destroyed, and the Queen would’ve been notified of this treachery.
Nighteye didn’t have enough information to judge the situation when the council attacked the Mueller Castle, but things were no longer the same now. Progia’s assault on the Byrne clan’s castle had crossed the bottomline of the holy war. Only in ancient times would wars progress to such a degree.
Howard seemed to have aged hundreds of years in an instant. He said in exhaustion, “No need. If they are still alive, they probably understand by now that the demonkin never had any plans to let them live. Instead of wasting time on capturing them, I feel that I should think about why there are so many traitors.”
The sun had once again cast its rays upon the Twilight Continent. The lingering clouds in the sky softened the harsh rays of the sun as it showered down onto the vast land.
Castle Midas was growing farther and farther away, but the rolling smoke remained just as eye-catching from afar. Howard paused briefly as he stepped through the mountains and couldn’t help but glance back at his home. He then increased his speed until he was just behind Nighteye and Qianye.
…
Habsburg walked into the City of Eimer, but he didn’t even spare its weathered walls a single glance.
Walking through the old sand-colored streets, he sensed the laws of the world were different here. This was a characteristic of all semi-dimensions and minor realms.
Habsburg might be an extremely young prince, but he wasn’t lacking in experience. The change in surrounding laws didn’t affect him at all; he even had the leisure to size up this battle city.
This city was constructed in a classic Apennine style, with a small plaza behind the city gates. It was originally designed for travelers to park their carts, but now, it was fully occupied by a flounder-shaped airship.
The shape of this airship was rather odd, but it looked sleek and streamlined. The outer frame was completely sealed, and even the exhaust wasn’t visible. The lack of weapons made it seem like a civilian airship.
Habsburg narrowed his eyes. This was the legendary void colossus, Golden Flounder. However, it was hard to tell whether this airship was an imitation or if it was constructed from the creature’s skeleton.
There were two grand dukes standing at the base of the gangway. Habsburg recognized one of them as Duke George of the Dark Abyss. The arachne duke was a woman, someone Habsburg had never heard of.
The two bowed in salutation upon seeing him. Habsburg was expressionless as he returned the gesture, but inside, he was puzzled as to why they were so respectful.
After George finished greeting Habsburg, the arachne duke introduced herself as Melina. She was one of the vice-captains of the Crystal Spider Corps, which served as the Royal Guard to the Spider Queen.
Habsburg wasn’t all that surprised when he saw the council’s observer in the cabin—Predica of the Dark Nightmare. The two greeted one another amicably.
Soon afterward, the two dukes presented a simple report on the situation.
Habsburg sensed something when he heard that Duke Doer was the one overseeing the vanguard unit. The lineup of experts here wasn’t weak at all. It was easily enough for war even without a great dark monarch or the City of Eimer.
The council chairman’s comment about their limited forces was likely because they hadn’t brought any cannon fodder at all. Habsburg observed the report and noticed that his mission was quite ordinary. What was not ordinary was the Demon King personally asking him to perform his council duties.
Predica nodded after listening to the reports. He turned to Habsburg and said, “The semi-dimension will jump after fifteen minutes. Do you want to take a look around the city?”
Habsburg shook his head. “No need.” He leaned back into the chair comfortably. Although it wasn’t so bad that one would consider him rude, it definitely wasn’t the most appropriate action for a half-formal setting like this one.
Predica shot him a glance before turning back to discuss some matters with the two dukes. The latter then left after a while.
“You really don’t want to observe how the City of Eimer is controlled and operated?”
Now that only the two of them were left, Habsburg leaned his head against the backrest and closed his eyes. “The chairman said I’ll have full control, right?”
“You’re right!”
“Okay, I’ll be in command when the time comes.”
Predica didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. He then noticed the man’s undisguised tiredness and couldn’t help but feel a bit worried. “Has your wound from the new world healed yet?”
“The injury is fine now, I just feel tired.”
Predica went silent for a while. He knew that Habsburg had been summoned in advance to the nearby Cipla Island. There, he worked as the chairman’s assistant in managing the great number of troops from the new world.
That place was called the land of vestige, not an easy place to stay in.
The Eternal Hall and its attached islands were located fairly close to the top of this world. The origin power, the pressure from the void, and the effects of the Sacred Mountain made it almost impossible for those below count rank to live normally.
Habsburg had remained there for three days without taking a single step outside. Someone of his rank shouldn’t have been adversely affected, but the injuries he had sustained in the forests of the new world had yet to heal.
After a moment of silence, Predica discovered that Habsburg’s breathing had calmed down and his aura weakened. The latter had actually fallen asleep.
Predica was stunned for a while, but he ended up smiling wryly. Should he consider this as Habsburg’s trust in him? Or should he take this as a form of protest and neglect? Predica’s figure faded away from the room, leaving space for the vampire prince to be alone.
Moments later, the entire City of Eimer trembled briefly as it went into a spatial jump.
Dozens of dark race airsh.i.p.s were hovering silently in the void outside of Fire Beacon Continent.
The flagship of the fleet was a duke-grade vessel, and its external appearance proved that the duke was a werewolf. Half of the other warsh.i.p.s sported an insignia depicting crossed swords stained in blood, a sign of the council’s direct subordinate forces. The other half contained sh.i.p.s of various styles and were likely a coalition of different races.
In the flagship, the Werewolf Duke Doer was performing maintenance on a large-bore firearm. He seemed rather calm, almost as though he wasn’t on a battlefield and rather enjoying some rare free time.
A knock came from the door as an aide walked into the room. He didn’t pass Doer the doc.u.ments but began reading them out loud as usual.
The werewolf duke listened quietly while the aide went on with the recital until all the doc.u.ments had been reported.
Doer nodded. “Not bad. They did quite a good job this time.”
The aide, a werewolf count, added, “There are no proper experts in the two provinces. Johnny’s group should just go back home if they can’t even get this done right! Sire, the Zhao clan’s Serenity pass is too close for comfort. Shall we set up a defensive line there, lest they interfere?”
Doer glanced at the origin sun-dial on the table. “No need, just proceed as planned. Pull back the troops at the appointed time, no matter what the outcome of the battle is. Remember my command, pull everyone back. The lords should be arriving in about fifteen minutes.”
The werewolf count didn’t understand the reasoning behind the commands, but he knew well enough to obey. He repeated the orders loudly and left the room after Doer’s nod.
The werewolf duke lowered his head and went on with his gun-cleaning.
In one of the vampire-styled airsh.i.p.s in the periphery, the first mate’s room. A vampire marquis was reading a sheepskin book in a manner even more relaxed than Doer.
He suddenly looked up to see a person in the room. There was no telling when or how he had appeared.
Marquis Leonard was shocked, but he didn’t make any unusual movements. He straightened his body and stood up with great agility, bowing deeply at the projection before him.
Leonard then produced an item made of crystal and blood, which released a sound-isolation array.
Habsburg nodded in satisfaction. “Anything new in the clan?”
Leonard said, “We were drafted to the Blacksun Swordbearer’s base the day after you left with the chairman.”
After some thought, Habsburg asked an unrelated question, “Have you seen the holy river during cultivation recently?”
Leonard replied truthfully, “No, apart from that one time where the river appeared during the advancement of a certain powerhouse. I can see its shadow when I’m around you, but I was never able to touch it or elicit a response.”
Habsburg nodded. “Leave the squad during ground operations, don’t go back to any vampire continent. Find a place to lie low.”
Leonard’s expression shifted visibly, but he didn’t ask extra questions. “Will you not go with me?”
Habsburg said after a monetary daze, “I can’t.”
“You are just like me, you don’t belong there.”
“But they are Samael’s descendants.” Habsburg gazed at the pouting young vampire with a gentle expression. He was quite obstinate and childish, just as he was when Habsburg picked him up back in the year.
Leonard asked, “Is it the council? Or have the demonkin learned about the Lost Paradise incident?”
Habsburg said, “Forget this matter completely. It has nothing to do with you.”
Leonard went quiet once again. Only after a while did he say, “Very well, Father. I will do as you wish.” He then went down on one knee before Habsburg, almost as though he were performing a final salutation.
Habsburg ran his fingers through the young man’s hair, sighing gently as he did so. The prince’s figure faded away, leaving Leonard in a daze as he stared at the drop of origin blood in his palm.
