〈 Romania (1) 〉
Henri Coander International Airport in Otopeni, a city adjacent to Bucharest, the capital of Romania.
‘We’ve finally arrived.’
Heinz II, who had now hid his presence by ‘denying existence’ as a habit, slowly walked out of the airport and looked around.
‘For now, I don’t think there’s anything to be particularly careful about…’
But this was a place where one must never let one’s guard down.
In some ways, it would not be an exaggeration to say that this is the most dangerous place in Europe.
‘After all, this is where the headquarters of Drakul, Europe’s largest dark organization, is located.’
I knew very well about Drakul, which is based in this country and is spreading its influence throughout Eastern Europe, thanks to information I had received from various sources.
Perhaps because he identifies himself with Vlad III, the hero of Romania and the motif of Dracula, the fact that the leader of the vampires who uses the nickname Duke is said to be the strongest in Europe…. ‘
His true identity is the head of the European branch of the Buncheon Society. Even things.’
Heinz narrowed his eyes as he sensed the signal of “bloodline longing” slowly beginning to respond.
However, he ignored the senses that stimulated his instincts and looked around carefully again, giving priority to reconnaissance.
‘I don’t know what kind of trick they may have planned, so it would be best to be as careful as possible.’
This was not an area where either Thermidor or Gomorrah could use their power, so the information they had was limited.
Of course, I was confident that I would be able to take care of myself no matter what kind of crisis unexpectedly occurred, but I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing without much gain in a situation where I had to finish my work as quickly as possible before the fight with Beoncheonhoeju.
‘Plus, it’s an opponent that can even be called the strongest in Europe. It will be different from those I have encountered so far. ‘No matter how hard you prepare, just in case, it’s not enough.’
Actually, if I think about it, I have never had a real relationship with a powerful person who has made a name for himself on Earth to this extent.
There were quite a few opponents that he clashed with while working as Hahoe Tal, but they were still at a level that Hans alone could easily overwhelm.
‘Ah, of course, unless you exclude Beoncheonhoeju, which is practically off topic.’
Yulryeongja, who was the head of the East Asia branch of Beoncheonhoe, rose to high rank by being recognized for something other than military force, but his actual combat power itself was not that great.
Unlike the duke we’ll be dealing with from now on.
‘You’ll be able to see his skills soon.’
With that, he left Otopeni and headed to Bucharest, feeling his blood boiling with anticipation for the opponent he would face and the desire to win.
Stop—
…no, no.
When I checked again, I realized that my reaction was not due to that.
‘The signal is getting stronger.’
It is absurd that Heinz II, who has a cool and calm personality by default, would undergo physical changes just because of such trivial emotions.
The closer I got to Bucharest, the stronger the sound of “longing for bloodline” became.
‘For what reason…’
It was something different from what I felt in the previous two countries.
Something over there was endlessly tempting and pulling me.
‘As expected, we need to look into it in more detail.’
As we approached the city to conduct a more thorough investigation—.
The moment you cross some invisible boundary.
He soon realized what was causing his body’s reaction.
Jjiiiing—!
A pounding headache and the strong smell of blood wafting from everywhere.
“Blood Tradition,” which assists in overall abilities as a vampire, “Blood Mystery,” which involves supernatural abilities using blood, and “Insight,” which sees through hidden things, were activated simultaneously to analyze the situation.
‘Wide-range blood magic barrier?’
Since Heinz was also quite knowledgeable in that field, the analysis results came out quickly.
The estimated diameter is at least 10 kilometers.
The main structural formula was clearly based on blood magic, but as expected from the Buncheonhoe, it was not simply used alone.
Perhaps because of this, it had excellent concealment properties to the extent that even one could not be sure of its existence until one entered the interior, and the amount of energy inherent in it commensurate with its size was such that one could never ignore it.
So much so that even his “denial of existence” was completely stripped away.
“…under!”
Heinz, who understood the situation, burst into laughter without realizing it.
Anyway, I never expected that they would be able to do this.
‘I already knew this was Drakul’s stronghold.’
But at the same time, it was also the capital of a fully independent country.
Bucharest’s resident population is approximately 2 million.
No matter how much the relationship and communication between countries is not as good as it was before the tribulation, I thought that we would not be able to do things carelessly even if the surroundings were worried.
‘No matter how good the secrecy is, there is no way that a barrier of this level could have been deployed to this extent and no one would have noticed. There is no way that all the awakened people in Romania are below standard…’
There is only one answer.
This meant that the leadership had already been transferred to a group called Dracul to the extent that not only they but also the government could do anything about it.
And so thoroughly that it could not even be announced to the outside world.
‘Romania is not a poor country, so how is that possible?’
But the question disappeared as quickly as it arose.
Come to think of it, wasn’t the Buncheonhoe the ones who even swallowed up a large country called China?
Since there was a Buncheonhoe behind Drakul, it was not surprising that Romania passed over.
‘…Ordinary people wouldn’t even have a way to know that.’
Also, since he was about Heinz’s level, he noticed it as soon as he walked in. It would not be easy to detect at a certain level, so only high-ranking awakened people above a certain level would have to be managed.
‘Work has become more troublesome. ‘That’s not what’s more important right now.’
Yeah, all of those things were a matter of later.
For now.
As I
was exposed to the barrier and my location was revealed, the first thing to do was to avoid my body.
When he was outside the barrier, it wasn’t even noticeable, but there were more than a hundred people rushing towards his location right away.
‘Tsk, they’re coming in droves.’
As soon as he realized the situation, Heinz went into hiding again and quickly left the scene. He ran to the outskirts and clicked his tongue.
Of course, I had no intention of talking to them from the beginning.
If you clash head-on with an organization this size and don’t catch the actual target, wouldn’t it all be in vain?
First, I looked at the situation a little more, and when I correctly identified the target’s location, I attacked…
At that moment, “Sudden Acceleration” was activated.
Squeaky——!
There was a long tear in space along the path ahead.
There was no time to think about anything else.
Heinz instinctively twisted cause and effect, ignored inertia and pulled his body back, frowning at the sight.
And then he turned his head to follow the trajectory.
‘sniping?’
A line of destruction extending from several kilometers away.
The scar remained in the air for a second or so, but was soon repaired and disappeared without a trace.
‘An attack of this level. It’s not at the average level? ‘The response is faster than you think.’
It wasn’t even a few seconds before he was detected by the barrier.
But right after that, he went into hiding again and a sniper shot was aimed precisely at the position he was hiding from.
‘So you’ve prepared that well? First, retreat and readjust your stance…’
As he was about to move his body with his senses sharpened in preparation for a follow-up attack, “Insight” was activated again in his field of vision.
Soon, something foreign that had escaped my awareness was clearly perceived.
Blink-blink-
A coin-sized eyeball that naturally assimilates with the rock and blinks as if it had been there from the beginning.
It was looking at him precisely with its natural gaze.
Clearly, “existence denial” had been properly activated.
Snap—Chuck!
Judgment and action were simultaneous.
The eyeball explodes without any resistance, as if it has no special defense ability.
However, in front of him who left that behind and flew away again—.
Blink—blink—
dozens of eyeballs were already sprouting from all directions, from walls, stones, trees, and ground, staring intently at him.
‘…gross.’
Every time those eyes blink, my body becomes slightly heavier.
It seemed to be a magical eye that not only had the ability to see through stealth but also debuff abilities…
but once it was under his knowledge, it didn’t matter how many there were.
Skaak—! Chajajajak— Fuhuaak!
Eyeballs popping out all at once as his movements pass quickly without a moment’s hesitation.
The problem was that no matter how many times I eliminated it, it kept appearing again and again.
Now they began to appear from quite a distance away, and the sight of the eyes enlarging into hundreds of eyes encroaching on all directions was not only disgusting, but even eerie.
Just do it yourself!
The moment his body slowed down slightly due to the magic eye, another sniper shot was aimed at him.
No, it was not appropriate to say that I flew into that attack.
Because it was already destroying everything in its path as soon as it was activated.
Not only space but also the intangible concepts associated with it.
‘That looks quite dangerous.’
Of course, even in an untimely situation, there was no way he could have been hit when he was fully aware of the attack he had avoided once.
The sniper seemed to be quite the sniper, so he twisted his attack trajectory here and there, aiming for the possibility that he could avoid it, but they could not do anything about him as he moved along, following the flow of cause and effect and even seeing through it.
…If it had gotten that far, I would have been able to somehow retreat and seek another opportunity.
Heinz had no choice but to give up any further escape and sigh due to the huge magic circle floating in the sky, the strong flow of magical energy felt from all directions, and the presence of multiple people quickly surrounding him.
“Huh, how much did you prepare?”
Since I had already passed through France and Italy, I expected that there would be some level of preparation here as well.
However, he didn’t know exactly when he would come, so who would have guessed that he would have placed a barrier around the entire capital and had people of his caliber stationed there 24 hours a day?
I tried to understand the situation by watching the situation, but I was immediately caught off guard by the other person’s excessive measures.
‘No matter how you look at it, this is an overreaction.’
The place where he is now is a nature reserve between Otopeni, where the international airport is located, and the capital Bucharest.
Here too, as if they had prepared in advance just in case, the barrier that was activated in an instant wrapped around a small area at once, sealing off the space.
If he had escaped in another direction, all the preparations made here would have been useless.
‘Could it be that traps of this level were laid everywhere else?’
I had a strong feeling that it might have been that way, but it wasn’t the past that I had to worry about now.
While he frowned and considered future measures, Beoncheonhoe poured out everything he had prepared so far.
“Fuhu—you’re finally here. “I’ve waited a really long time.”
“…I thought I was going to die of boredom. There aren’t many places to have fun here. “If it weren’t for the doctor, I wouldn’t have come to this place.”
“Ahahaha! me too! Any decent human would have just snapped! “I can’t help it!”
A group of people appeared nearby, accompanied by the sound of chatter as if there was a separate means of transportation that could bypass the barrier.
These are all strong players who exude formidable momentum.
It was a composition so familiar that it felt like déjà vu.
‘I remember when Hans ran into Buncheonhoe in Japan.’
I think it was a similar situation back then as it is now.
Of course, the locations and characters have all changed.
However, I could not optimistically view the current situation as being similar to then.
It is true that the situation was similar to then, but the level itself was completely different from then.
“…Seeing it in person, I now understand why the doctor reacted so oversensitively. I can’t believe it was like this. “If I had tried to run away, I might have really missed it.”
A heavy voice suddenly rang out, and the entire space became heavy.
As the presence that forced the attention of those around him enveloped the son-in-law, the gazes of those gathered naturally turned to one side.
Crumbling—
the sound of heavy footsteps vibrating through the space.
I couldn’t actually hear any footsteps.
However, Ilbo Ilbo, with its enormous presence, shook the air without mercy and was clearly imprinted in the minds of those here.
“Hmm, is it a hybrid after all? It’s definitely fascinating to see it in person.”
A middle-aged man finally appeared.
The arrogant gaze of a gentleman wearing aristocratic robes and neatly growing a beard scanned the hall and immediately fixed on one place.
To the only stranger in this place.
Not to be outdone, Heinz also looked straight at him.
Regardless of whether the vampires that appeared with him surrounded him or not, from the moment that being appeared on the scene, it was impossible to look anywhere else.
Of course, one of the reasons was that I felt that the other person was such a strong enemy, but…
gulp—
my mouth started watering without even realizing it.
The “bloodline longing,” which had been continuously complaining of a thirst for completion, cried out fiercely.
‘That’s it.’
That is the ‘Duke’, the monarch of Drakul, the behind-the-scenes ruler of Eastern Europe, and one of the leaders of the Buncheon Society.
It is the last puzzle that is most necessary for one’s completion.