#146
To the Rosellia Temple (3)
Auterica was a typical fantasy world where countless races lived together.
But unlike the general perception on Earth, this place was not one where Westerners were the dominant background.
There was merely a difference in the ratios in various regions, but like the races themselves, diverse ethnicities and mixed bloods lived harmoniously in this colorful world.
And that meant, in this world, Easterners were not particularly special either.
Just like the woman standing in front of Harley right now.
‘But no matter how youthful Easterners look compared to other races… this girl looks way too young even considering that!’
He tilted his head as he gazed down at the petite girl who barely reached his chest.
Dressed in a blue robe resembling a dress, she was a modest height of just over 150 centimeters.
Her long black hair was tied back, draping over one shoulder, and her obsidian-like black eyes looked calmly up at him without a flicker of emotion.
…But those white skin and delicate features surely didn’t look like someone in their late twenties.
‘Honestly, with those looks, I’d believe she’s a middle schooler at best. Ah, could she be a mixed-blood of a different race?’
If that were the case, it was very possible.
If elf blood from a long-lived species was mixed in, it would totally make sense.
Unless…
As Harley scratched the back of his head, his massive arms flexing with muscle, the girl suddenly spoke up.
“Excuse me for asking on our first meeting, but are you perhaps of mixed blood?”
It seemed she was having the same thoughts as him.
He was a robust human all around, so he didn’t know what she based her assumption of mixed blood on, but truly, it was insightful for a great sorceress.
“Hmmm—? Ah! I’m a Dragonkin, so I can be considered a Dragon mixed-blood! Not sure how many generations back the blood goes though! Hoo-ha-ha!”
“Dragonkin… I see. My apologies. I am Isea Pristine from the Azerion Empire.”
She calmly introduced herself, extending her small, delicate hand for a handshake.
Harley stared at it for a moment before carefully taking it, shaking it gently up and down with his fingers curled to avoid crushing her bones.
“Ha-ha-ha! Just call me Harley! I’m currently staying in the Tulk Kingdom, but my heart is always with the Southern Warriors!”
“…Y-Yes?”
Isea responded with an awkward smile, as if overwhelmed by his boisterous introduction.
“By the way, are you a mixed-blood too?”
“A-Actually, I am…”
In that corridor of the temple, this petite girl just over 150 cm and a towering man nearly 2.3 meters tall had an unexpected encounter.
*
“Hoo—.”
After parting with Harley and returning to her lodgings, Isea flopped onto her bed, wiping her face.
The reason she had suddenly come to this Rosellia Temple was, needless to say, due to the church’s invitation.
A special task force against the Undead King.
Simply put, it was called “the Special Task Force” or “the Hero’s Party.” This unit was a place of both danger and glory.
In their countries, they were hailed as heroes, and the tales of their lives would be recorded in history books and sung by bards.
‘Though all those who survived till the end met untimely deaths, so no one truly enjoyed that glory for long.’
However, it was their mission to face the Undead King directly, and those who could support them included top-tier martial artists and great sorcerers—being at the peak was a minimum requirement.
Naturally, the Hero’s Party was expected to be an elite combat group composed of the strongest individuals on the continent…
But reality wasn’t that simple.
‘First off, the criteria for being the continent’s strongest is rather ambiguous.’
This world isn’t a game, and there’s no way individual abilities can be quantified with precise numbers.
For comparison, the benchmarks are based on achievements that have surpassed certain levels and general evaluations, but ultimately,
in actual combat, even those of similar levels can have varying outcomes based on compatibility and experience.
There weren’t even tournaments to declare the continent’s strongest, making it impossible to reliably rank their abilities from the start.
In fact, due to the previous Undead King fiasco and the multitude of monsters scattered around, it had been ages since humans fought each other.
Unless someone with a distinct reputation like Heinrich, who became a hero, stepped up, sadly, there weren’t any figures acknowledged as strong.
Given reality, it was necessary to gather qualified applicants and select suitable talents through interviews and evaluations…
But there was another issue.
That was the lack of applicants.
This was partly due to the danger, but there was a more practical reason that made others hesitant.
‘If I join the special task force, I’ll likely be away from Riley for quite a while, and during this time, I can’t afford to do that.’
And among those wishing to decline were other high-ranking individuals, including the great sorceress Isea Pristine of the Azerion Empire.
Strong individuals often rose to higher positions, and those in such positions inevitably had more responsibilities to uphold.
Yet, if asked to set everything aside for a greater cause when their family, city, and country’s fate were uncertain, how many would comply?
If they left their position and lost something truly precious, who would take on the blame then?
It wouldn’t even be for lack of strength but due to circumstances they could have avoided.
And there was no guarantee that the ‘enemy’ wouldn’t exploit their absence.
Be it the Undead Army… or political rivals.
‘Thanks to Prince Simon, this has become bothersome. I can’t flat-out reject the church’s invitation. But taking a moment’s absence should be fine…’
For that reason, hardly anyone volunteered for the task force—
Everyone knew it was essential, yet nobody wanted to personally step up… leaving everyone just to watch each other’s moves.
Given that the fundamental qualifications were already very high, the pool of eligible individuals was small, and with the situation like this, the church could only start inviting and conversing with recommended strong individuals.
Isea, being one of the first recommended to Prince Simon, was naturally included.
‘I have a last resort, so I won’t be in danger of dying, but leaving Riley’s side for too long is misplaced priorities. Why am I still here anyway?!’
Despite having no intention of changing her mind, she visited the Rosellia Temple to show as much sincerity as possible to the church.
In this continental crisis, the saint was stepping forward and offering herself as a sacrifice, and if she were to merely send a message of absence for personal reasons, wouldn’t she risk becoming the target of resentment?
‘No matter how mild-mannered the church may be, you never know with people. To protect the throne, I should avoid alienating myself from the church as much as possible. …Thanks to that damn Simon.’
The moment Prince Simon’s shameless face came to her mind, Isea quietly ground her teeth.
Her usually proud composure was shattered, bubbling with irritation within.
Of course, if she successfully defeated the Undead King and emerged as a hero, the situation would flip, but that wasn’t something achievable in a short period.
And within that time… it was highly likely that the Fifth Princess Riley would not only fall behind in the power struggles but also, through unforeseen “accidents,” find herself in peril.
‘Simon definitely has it in him to orchestrate something like that. …By the way, that guy, what was his name? Harley, was it?’
With a scowl, trying to shake off her unwelcome thoughts, Isea recalled the towering man she had unexpectedly encountered in the corridor.
“At first, I thought a monster had invaded the temple.”
It wasn’t just because he was large.
While her major was elemental magic, she had received the comprehensive support of the Fifth Princess, allowing her to possess considerable knowledge in other areas as well.
And the combination of that knowledge and her unique talents led her to perceive Harley’s presence as—.
‘That left eye… it’s definitely not the aura that a natural life form possesses. …Perhaps a chimera or a predatory monster could possess such a trait.’
It felt as if an enormous monster had been compressed into a human form, the tremendous life force embedded in each and every cell of his body.
Undoubtedly, it was the altered mana, the life force, which was the source of power that monsters possessed.
He even exuded a foreignness that couldn’t be considered an ordinary life form.
As though the energies were inconsistently woven together into an unidentifiable power, resembling a machine assembled from various parts.
And most importantly, it was the trace of ‘madness’ lurking subtly within him and the remnants of sinister black magic.
That was something that couldn’t be easily overlooked, even as a precaution.
‘He might be a pawn sent by Undead King Hans.’
So, she tentatively decided to initiate conversation with him.
In hopes of gathering any further information through dialogue.
“By the way, I’m not really sure about Dragonkin… since it’s such a rare race, there aren’t many documents left.”
If the sense of discomfort she felt was due to his racial traits, then she had nothing in particular to say.
Moreover, the reaction of the mana lingering around him when they shook hands also corroborated the belief that he had dragon blood in him.
‘But one can never be too sure. Lucky for me, I’m scheduled to meet with the saint later, so it might be a good idea to mention it subtly then.’
Thus, she reached that conclusion and decided to leave the assessment to the church.
Thinking about how it might earn her some extra points.
*
In the basement of the Bright Duke’s Family in the Talia Kingdom.
Heinz looked quietly at the woman yawning leisurely in front of him.
“So, you won’t regret your decision, right?”
“Yawn— Of course, you’re asking the obvious. No matter how long I live, living is better than dying, isn’t it…?”
Her languid expression held two meanings.
It implied that she had little time left to live, nearing the end of her lifespan…
‘You’re quick on the uptake, I see.’
And that perhaps she wondered if she would end up consumed by him before passing naturally.
Having witnessed Heinz devour Bisk Yufershi and ascend to pureblood right next to her, it was not unreasonable for her to make such a judgment.
…In truth, that was her intention.
“Ha-ha-ha— The evolution of blood itself is far too fascinating, I simply can’t contain myself. To think I get to experience that transformation firsthand, what could be more enticing than this!”
Briki’s voice began quietly, but it grew more animated as she spoke.
Her partially closed eyes gradually widened until they sparkled by the end of her sentence.
“Of course, I’m also curious about what kind of future you’ll create for your vampires, Heinz. Observing that will surely be enjoyable as well. It should be even more magnificent than what I’ve imagined, right?”
“Right, having another pureblood vampire here will greatly help with future endeavors. So don’t just think of watching, but put in some effort for that future.”
Heinz responded gruffly, slowly approaching her.
How dare she try to remain aloof and observe!
That was his privilege as the superior!
‘Well, that doesn’t mean I’ll just play while working hard. But I can’t allow my subordinate to loaf around while I’m busy.’
As he moved behind Briki, she simply stood still and awaited him without resistance before he sank his teeth into her nape.
The Refined Blood Essence was about to evolve the vampire factors in her blood.
A new change awaited her!
“Ahhhh—! I see now! This is it!”
Finally, the true transformation began.
Her boiling blood, pores steaming with heat, bones and muscles twisting.
Each cell was surpassing its limits, and her waning vitality began to rise incrementally.
The root of one of the ‘Origins of Blood,’ passed down since ancient times, known as the ‘Brokoslac’ of the Auterica vampires—
was being sullied… no, evolved into a more advanced form by Heinz II, a hybrid from another world, as its trace in the long continental history faded away.
Of course, at that very moment,
the Auterica Vampire Clan Alliance, known as ‘Hybrid,’ secured one more complete pureblood.
