30 Years Have Passed Since the Prologue

Another ordinary morning arrived for the diligent citizens of Krasilov (the ones not so diligent all perished), who gazed at the still dark sky with a sense of pride.

“Looks like everyone woke up unusually early today?”

The almost completely black night sky indicated it was close to midnight. And naturally, an ordinary Krasilov citizen would not think lazily, “Since I woke up early, I should sleep a bit more.”

Once they opened their eyes, these folks immediately began to seek work, moving greedily as they hoped that at least today they would receive more than one potato in their rations.

The moment they arrived at their workplaces, the citizen suddenly realized, “There seem to be unusually many early risers today.”

After five hours, still gazing at the dark sky, they wondered if they had woken up even earlier than expected.

Even after twelve hours had passed, looking at the dark sky, a seasoned Krasilovian might have thought of “polar night.”

In fact, polar night cannot occur at this latitude, and polar night does not happen in summer, making the assumption completely wrong. However, generally, logic is more popular as “what one wants to believe” rather than “rationality.”

People fear the inexplicable phenomena. And many do not want to understand what they fear. Thus, Frechenkaya was like any other day for two days following the first polar night.

The third day of continuous polar night, being a special occurrence without room for excuses, caused people to stop talking and barricade themselves at home, starting to pray. Those who could leave had all departed, and the mages began to huddle together in deep thought.

Enrique was no exception.

When the day vanished, having the mightiest race as allies was somewhat reassuring. Lucia sought out her master.

Her master was lurking in a dwelling within the underground. In this extravagant nest, where not even a candle was lit, Lucia knelt before the sole glowing red eyes.

And at the same time, she thought.

Why are you in the underground in a situation with no daylight? The one who would have responded first to any anomalies in Frechenkaya, why are you here?

As if hiding….

“Master, it has been three days of polar night. Is there anything you’ve grasped…?”

“Did you encounter anyone on your way?”

A sharp voice abruptly entered before the question finished. Lucia looked up at Enrique. Her master was someone who always smiled calmly in any situation. Now, however, she appeared anxious.

Anxious? No, Lucia was a vampire. Half of her bloodline still belonged to the living, but her other half possessed the senses of a vampire.

Just as mosquitoes “see” carbon dioxide, vampires can see the “emotions” of others. Though it was not within a clearly perceivable range, vampires can sense their victims’ fear.

Enrique was currently afraid.

This realization shocked Lucia into silence. How could someone, and how could anyone, instill fear in that powerful elder vampire, one of the strongest individuals of this era?

As she looked into her eyes, Enrique also read her emotions. Since she was a vampire stronger than Lucia, it was even easier for her to do so.

Seeing the fear reflected in her cherished disciple’s eyes, Enrique forced a smile.

“Lucia, leave this city.”

“Master, but….”

“Bring Ivan here. Tell Elizaveta not to come to this city for a while.”

“I will help too, Master. Even if I cannot be of great assistance, at least I can serve as a shield….”

Enrique looked down at her with tired eyes and gestured. Lucia’s legs, which had resolutely tried to remain, moved of their own accord.

“Master!”

“Go, gather your companions and leave.”

It was the command of an elder. Until now, she had never used “commands” on her disciple, but this was an exception. There was no time to persuade or the strength for it.

As Lucia left, her nest fell silent once more. Enrique closed her eyes, blanketed in darkness.

The entire world is dark.

The sky of this metropolis, the underground, everything was buried in shadows. The bloodlines that drank her blood and the rats, wolves, and bats that moved by her gesture were all silent.

They were not dead. It was silence. The monsters lurking all over the city were silent. This meant they had cut off the channels, disregarding even the orders of high-ranking vampires.

This meant only one thing.

A higher vampire than her has now entered this city. Considering when things began, they must have been aboard the carriage that entered the city three days ago.

From the moment “it” stepped into the city, her followers began their silence. Since that night, the polar night began. The number of missing persons in the city increased. The darkness was slowly engulfing the citizens.

Yet, Enrique dared not move. She was seized by fear.

Fear of defeat? No. Fear of dying in a fight? Definitely not.

If that were the case, she would not have been affiliated with the Hero Party. She would not have joined that journey where even victory couldn’t be guaranteed and where it wouldn’t be strange to die the next day. She was indifferent to death as much as she was to life.

However, there was only one thing she feared. The curse of the vampire. Subjugation to the higher vampire. Having swallowed her elder out of fear and become an elder herself.

In the vampire society, defeat does not guarantee death. It means subjugation, or rather, even more despairing servitude. The defeated are bound to be swallowed or be made to serve.

Thus, Enrique hid within the darkness. She evicted all her underlings and crouched alone, sealing her nest.

“Disciple.”

Thinking of that man who would inherit everything from her, the one who could stand against her alone.

“Come quickly. It’s tough.”

Smiling, as if joking.

Back then.

Einar could face the legions. He charged alone, defeating them and clearing a path.

Veolgrin could collapse fortresses. He soared high and destroyed several fortresses in a single day.

Patricia could stand against death. Even when her limbs were severed and her heart stopped, she would revive as if newly born under her prayers.

Jill Ber could face opponents. No matter how strong the adversary, he would stand his ground, not retreating an inch.

And she, Enrique, could face the city.

Even alone, given enough time, she could shatter the city. The people would weep at the fact they had survived the night, hating and fearing it, and preparing for death while gazing at the evening glow.

Behind every shadow, the traces of vampires hide. In every corner of the streets, swarms of rats watch over the people, and the bats that cover the night sky disclose the locations of their prey.

A powerful vampire cannot be harmed with mere weaponry. She could mock the knights gliding through time and make the priests, who called upon the name of their god, wither away.

If she inherits the bloodline and increases her underlings, the work becomes even easier.

Fathers come to fear sons, mothers fear daughters. Lords come to fear knights, and knights come to fear the people. Those fascinated by vampires would stab their parents without doubt or resistance and offer their blood.

So, she could face the city alone. She simply chose not to.

And at this moment, to be defeated by “another elder” would be as if she were fully giving all her abilities to her enemy.

A defeated Enrique would provide her disciples and her people as prey to “it” without any qualms.

As long as there remained even a sliver of a possibility of defeat, she dared not move. It was not because she feared defeat or death, but rather for what could happen afterward.

She feared a future where she would collapse everything she loved by her own hands.

Back in those days, the powerful rogue who followed the Hero Party was no longer present. With many beloved things now nurtured, confronting the enemy was not an option for her anymore.

Her heart had grown. Hot blood flowed through her veins. An insurmountable weakness had emerged.

So she quietly murmured the name of a man as she hid in the darkness.

“Ivan. Little Ivan…. My disciple.”

The one man who could do everything she could.

Even if she were captured in the end, the name of the man who could stand against her.

Patricia smiled ruefully that morning, pondering the sun that refused to rise. At this point, wouldn’t she be the one calling for a crisis? If such occurrences followed her wherever she went, it was likely she was the problem.

“Lord, I am a sinner, I am a sinner, indeed.”

The sun is originally a symbol of the Lord. It’s a testament that the Lord loves all living things and evidence that the Lord is always with us.

That has vanished. Divine power is another matter. Humans can live without divine power, but they cannot live without light.

The phenomenon of polar night is indeed a natural climatic event. However, that typically happens in far northern demon realms or the fringes of the northern domain, and even then, it occurs infrequently in the depths of winter.

With such an event bursting in summer Frechenkaya, it was anything but an ordinary omen.

People of this era are not foolish. They do not chatter about thunder as divine punishment or claim lunar or solar eclipses as acts of demons. They are rational enough to not hold rituals out of fear of rain.

Yet, when a polar night occurred in mid-summer and lasted five days, people began to look for superstitions rather than rationality or logic. The inexplicable situation had to be responded to by something equally unfathomable.

Thus, they gathered in the cathedral. Six cathedrals, including the Grand Cathedral of Frechenkaya, were packed with torch-bearing people.

“Saint, my daughter. My daughter isn’t returning…!! Please, Lord…. Lord, keep my daughter safe….”

A woman cried out emotionally. The mother, searching for her daughter who had vanished in days past, ultimately crumbled before the holy figure, repeatedly mumbling her prayers.

More people like her emerged day by day. Many had disappeared into the darkness. Those who ventured outside the city did not return.

Magical lights lined the city border. Therefore, the city had not completely submerged, but beyond that was another matter.

Little did many dare to remain behind without magical lights. And even if outside the city were safe, there were not many who could directly leave.

Common citizens couldn’t even think of leaving while leaving their foundations and assets behind. In this era, abandoning one’s group was akin to inviting death. It is not a world easily navigated by vagrants.

The train services had already been suspended, and most nobles who could control the city died during last year’s coup. Even the legal nobility, who maintained administrative power, were also thrown into chaos, with the military and monarchy absent from within the city.

Thus, citizens trembled in the cathedral, filled with fear. This had merely transpired over five days.

“Has there been no contact from Sister Enrique yet?”

“None, among the priests who entered the underground, no brothers have returned.”

“Lord.”

Those who descended to make contact with Enrique had not returned. Whether they got lost in the shadowless underground or faced a terrible fate is unknown, but priests without divine power are utterly helpless.

Patricia looked up at the sky helplessly.

“It’s not the Seven Dragon Lords. No way. It has no divine power.”

As someone who once wielded divine power more potent than anyone in this world, she quickly realized that the events happening in this city were unrelated to divine power.

However, the mages of the city were unable to solve or comprehend this situation. If it wasn’t magic or divine power, what on earth was happening?

Isabelle gathered with the Hero Party at Isabelle’s mansion, unoccupied without her presence, and began their meeting with solemn faces upon Lucia’s return.

“Master Enrique has gone into seclusion….”

“The Saint said she doesn’t know what’s going on either.”

“Disappearance cases are on the rise. Several have vanished from the orphanage already.”

“The army can barely hold the city gates, they can’t attempt anything else. They lack the manpower for that.”

“All diplomatic missions have been closed. Ambassador Tylesse is someone I know, but even he wouldn’t open the door. It seems there’s nothing inside.”

After sharing their opinions, the Hero Party sighed deeply.

“Master told us to escape the city.”

“Doesn’t this involve the demon realm?”

“That seems to be the case.”

As Eugene, who agreed, nodded in silence, Oscar solemnly also dipped his head.

“Then we can’t just run away. People are disappearing.”

“Even the Hero Party has hesitated to fight?”

“Are we not the Hero Party?”

At Yurie’s words, Oscar declared firmly, standing up to conclude his words.

“Those who want to flee can do so; those who wish to fight should stay.”

“How, who are we supposed to fight?”

“We’ll have to figure that out from now on. If someone is abducting people, then it at least means there’s a tangible enemy.”

“True, that’s not an incorrect point….”

Elpheira sighed and then stood up, following Oscar.

“Well, we can’t hide behind Lord Yaremov forever. If we can solve this neatly until those people return, then that will indeed be the true Hero Party.”

“Right, Bella has reportedly already defeated the Seven Dragon Lords. If we fall too far behind, that’s not good.”

As Ecdysis also stood up, the others readied themselves for battle without protest.

Would the Hero Party really cower just because of the night?

A hero must be able to march proudly even amidst the heart of the demon realm.

“Are all train services to Frechenkaya completely halted?”

“Yes, yes, sir. All routes heading that way have apparently been damaged. They are currently in repair, but we don’t know when they will resume…”

Ivan nodded at the station attendant’s words. During this season of Rasputitsa, just leaving the urban area would be akin to traversing swamps.

The wagon would likely become stuck with a wheel every hour. A horse wouldn’t last half a day before it was exhausted.

Should they revert to using the underground? However, the dwarf tunnels are not easy to navigate without a dwarf guide. It would be akin to a labyrinth.

It’s not merely a single large tunnel. Even with drilling relics, many trials and errors would be required to excavate a stable tunnel without collapsing, resulting in a three-dimensional maze filled with tunnels that could collapse at any moment.

Under these circumstances, utilizing the dwarves’ newly established tunnels without a guide would be a suicidal act. The method he found his way in Andgrind was largely due to relying on “relatively old tunnels.” The older ones tend to be more reliable.

But all the tunnels dug now for the advance road are “new tunnels.” It’s hard to ascertain directions based on existing standards.

So he wanted to use the train. If safety can be secured, no means of transportation in the world is faster than the train. However, all lines heading toward Frechenkaya had collapsed.

And this appeared to be a glaring sign anticipating an assault on Frechenkaya.

“Isabelle.”

“Yes, Uncle.”

“It’s training for running.”

“Eh, come on. From here? Really? On foot?”

Ivan nodded as he calculated the estimated time required to run on foot from the border to Frechenkaya.

Isabelle’s face turned pale.

   

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