Episode 120 Silent War (2)
"Ugh…!"
His fading consciousness was abruptly awakened.
His crushed lungs regenerated, his airway opened, and his heart beat violently, sending blood throughout his body.
His body gradually regained strength as his fatal injuries started to heal with "Super Recovery".
'…I almost died…!'
He would have really died if it hadn't been for "Instant Death Immunity", the perk Hans obtained after achieving the 'Immortal King' achievement.
But it seemed like it would take a long time to fully recover because his condition was so severe.
It was a good thing that his organs, which had been completely crushed, were regaining their shape as if time was rewinding, but their condition wasn't very good.
"Master! Here's a potion!"
"We'll take you to the temple right away! Hang in there!"
Hubert calmly analyzed the situation with his accelerated thoughts, watching the mercenaries frantically pouring emergency potions into his mouth and trying to transport him to the temple.
'The culprit was a vampire, but someone I've never seen before.'
And he was at a very high level, considering he was able to infiltrate and ambush him without being noticed.
It meant that he had bypassed the mercenaries' guard, as well as the Brokoslack Clan's surveillance network.
'Hubert's detection ability isn't that good, so he couldn't properly grasp the opponent, but for this to be possible, he would have to be at least a Pureblood.'
And among them, he would have to be at the top level and have abilities specialized in assassination.
But…
'Why would such a high-level individual target Hubert, a mere merchant?'
Candidates for who might have ordered this flashed through his mind as his thoughts raced.
Competing merchants who had clashed with him as the company expanded, nobles who were eyeing the company, and even gangs in the back alleys who were being suppressed by him.
…There were too many to pinpoint anyone specific.
He prided himself on growing the business legitimately, but there was no way there wouldn't be enemies when profits were involved.
'But why a vampire? Is it just a coincidence? …Damn it, I don't have enough information. It seems like I need to start by figuring out the identity of this unknown vampire.'
He didn't think the Brokoslack Clan had backstabbed him.
They were subordinate to Heinz the Second through "Refined Blood Essence", so there was no way they could disobey his order to fully support Hubert.
'The most effective way to grasp the situation is to mobilize the clan through Heinz, but he's away at the moment… And the transfer formation is on cooldown because I already sent Howard.'
Unfortunately, it didn't seem like it would be easy to resolve the situation.
But the most important thing right now was something else.
"Cough! Wait…"
Hubert stopped his bodyguards, who were pouring potions into his mouth and trying to hurriedly transport him to the temple, and unilaterally conveyed his message.
That he would hide in a safe place for now, recover, and then return.
'If he finds out I'm not dead, he'll try to finish me off for sure this time.'
He had left, thinking he had eliminated him, but he didn't know when that guy might return.
It was best to avoid this place as quickly as possible since he couldn't rely on "Instant Death Immunity" anymore.
"…I have a way to personally contact Howard, so until then, I'll… Whew, I'll convey the work details. Inform the company as well…"
"Y-yes? But how are you going to hide…"
He couldn't stall any longer.
As soon as he judged that he had conveyed the situation, Hubert immediately disappeared from the spot with 'Dismiss'.
Of course, there was the issue of whether he could trust those mercenaries, but he couldn't worry about that right now.
'They were recommended by the three southern warriors, so I should be able to trust them to some extent. Of course, you never know what's in people's hearts…'
If that happened, he could just mobilize all means, including Harley and Brokoslack, and make them pay the price.
"Sigh, what a sudden disaster."
Wooong—
A bright halo of light in the room seeped into the body of the person lying on the floor.
I was currently using "Individual Projection" to become Heinrich and pouring holy power into Hubert, whom I had summoned back to Earth.
'He survived thanks to "Instant Death Immunity", but…'
It was only enough to barely keep him alive, so it didn't seem like he would recover quickly.
Even though Heinrich was recognized as a Saint, his abilities were focused on combat.
It was only natural since he didn't have any blessings related to healing and recovery.
'But it's quite effective just by recklessly pouring holy power into him with "Auterica Holy Magic".'
And with the common skill "Super Recovery", it seemed like he would be able to recover enough to move around after a few days of rest.
But that wasn't the important thing right now.
'This is troublesome. I don't know where things went wrong.'
He didn't have enough information to judge whether it was related to the company, vampires, or even Harley.
He was trying to raise an information network to prepare for this kind of situation, but it happened while Heinz was away.
"Whew— Well, it can't be helped now that it's happened. The important thing is how to respond."
Fortunately, he had another information network.
It wasn't exactly suitable for this kind of task…
'Well, it's there for a reason. Their personalities are a bit different, but it's enough if they can grasp the general situation.'
They were a bit weak at grasping human conflicts and political schemes, but they were superior in other ways.
'Let's give the order so they can start working right away. I don't know who those bastards are, but they messed with the wrong person.'
And so, Olivia, the head of intelligence of the immortal army under Immortal King Hans, and countless ghosts,
Started to move to uncover the truth behind the assassination attempt on a mere merchant.
____________________
A space filled with the smell of blood.
Visque Ufersh, a vampire with white hair and white eyes, took a deep breath and quietly opened his mouth.
"How are the preparations going?"
"They're progressing smoothly. Combatants are gathering according to the summons, and we're setting up multiple Blood Gates on the route to the Talia Kingdom."
A shadow in the darkness quietly answered his question.
Blood Gates were a kind of temporary teleportation gate used by the Ufersh Clan, a unique blood magic that allowed them to operate throughout the continent.
It had the drawback of not being able to travel long distances and requiring a large amount of blood to set up, but that was a minor inconvenience compared to its convenience.
"We're setting the target to Raffella City, which is a few days away, to avoid being detected if we go straight to Talaria. Of course, we can reach the capital in less than half a day."
"Hmm— Good."
Visque nodded with satisfaction.
"And we just received a report that the task in Tarak, Tulk Kingdom, is complete."
"Hmm? What was there?"
He tilted his head, looking at the shadow, sinking deeper into his chair.
He had told them to focus all their efforts on taking over Brokoslack in the Talia Kingdom, so why was he suddenly talking about that place?
"…There was information that Brokoslack was trying to expand its influence there by partnering with a trading company in Tarak. So I reported that we would assassinate the head of that company to divert their attention."
"Ah— Right. I forgot because it was a trivial matter."
Visque finally nodded and stroked his chin.
The life or death of a single human wasn't something he cared about, so his attitude was nonchalant.
"It seems Klein eliminated the head of that company along with a few vampires from Brokoslack. Since he personally took care of it, you don't have to worry about any traces."
"Klein, I remember. He was quite a useful guy for a Pureblood. There's no one better than him at handling things quietly and efficiently."
"That's right. He's the most likely candidate to become a True Blood among the current Purebloods."
"Well, then he must have done a good job. It doesn't really matter what happens there anyway."
Visque waved his hand dismissively, thinking that the clan's forces alone were more than enough to carry out their plan.
He wasn't saying anything to his subordinates who were working hard, but he was confident that he could wipe them out alone.
He was just waiting according to plan because his ultimate goal wasn't just about eliminating them.
"So, when will the preparations be complete?"
"We're trying to finish the preparations as secretly as possible, so it'll take about a week…"
"That's too long. Shorten it."
"…We can shorten the summoning time by pushing them, but if we rush the Blood Gate installation, there's a risk of being detected…"
"A week… you can shorten it by at least two days. Finish it within five days."
"…Yes, Lord. Your will be done."
The shadow couldn't protest any further and just bowed its head as Visque firmly cut him off.
Once the Sacred Blood's order was given, they had no choice but to follow it.
"I'm looking forward to meeting him. How was he able to take over the clan's leadership? They're from the same bloodline… I can't understand it."
Visque Ufersh smiled coldly, anticipating that he would be able to solve his curiosity in a few days.
_____________________
"Thank you! Have a good day!"
"Yes, yes~ Oh my, what a bright young lady. I wish my son would learn from you. Ohoho~"
Diana stretched her back after seeing off the lady who left the grocery store with a smile.
It was time to close up shop as the sun was setting.
"Good work today, Diana. You don't have to help, you're busy studying, aren't you?"
"It's okay, Uncle. It's also helpful to work directly like this. My teacher said that learning only from books is dead knowledge!"
Diana, the girl who had traveled from Azantu to Raffella with Heinz, said with a bright smile.
She had completely mastered reading and arithmetic at the tutoring center and was currently learning accounting and commercial law from the instructor she met there.
Of course, the tuition was quite expensive, but it wasn't a big problem because the money Heinz had given her was more than enough.
'We're able to live like this all thanks to mister, so I want to be helpful to him somehow.'
But there weren't many areas where Diana could be helpful to Heinz.
She had a weak physique and didn't have any special skills, so all she could do was use her head. Fortunately, she had a great talent for that.
Even the instructor who was teaching her exclaimed in admiration at her intelligence several times.
'There are many people who are good at managing money, but few are both competent and trustworthy!'
She didn't know what Heinz was doing, but she thought a financial manager would be helpful in any field.
She was still lacking, but if she worked hard, she could become an indispensable asset to him.
As Diana was reaffirming her ambitious goals and cleaning up the store,
Sniff—
A scent pierced her nose from somewhere.
'Again…'
It was the smell of blood, which she had already smelled several times today.
She had smelled it quite often before, but the frequency had increased recently.
'And the scent I'm smelling these days is different.'
The scent of unfamiliar vampires was increasing, not the familiar ones she was used to.
'I hope nothing happens…'
Diana frowned and hurriedly finished cleaning up, entering the house.
She thought she needed to warn her brother Aaron and Rafi again.
And so,
A silent war was approaching.