In the stench of blood, a woman quietly walked forward.
Her red eyes, filled with sorrow, remained unwaveringly fixed ahead.
It was a bizarre sight. And it’s no surprise, as numerous humans surrounded her, screaming and waving spears and swords, revealing their fear and bloodlust.
However, the woman didn’t acknowledge the chaos around her. Like some nameless pilgrim, she silently took one step at a time.
She appeared as if she stood alone in the world. Many humans tried to approach her, but it was as if the darkness of night protected her, cutting down everything that drew near.
With each step she took, fresh footprints were etched onto the once-trampled red earth.
The blood-soaked soil, saturated with the remnants of old footsteps, churned and emitted a foul stench.
With every step, the weight of the responsibility she bore became more palpable. The blood scent that rose from her memories was undoubtedly that of the vampires that had fallen, obeying her command.
The woman, Martini Sahelrn, finally moved her gaze. No longer did she see her subordinates nearby.
“May you find peace in your eternal sleep.”
Standing alone in the heart of enemy territory, Martini whispered softly.
The strongest vampire must never show weakness before others. Hence, this small act of mourning was all she could offer.
“However, no matter what happens, I will not let your sacrifice be in vain.”
It was a flower dedicated to those who had fallen and a vow to herself.
To the humans around who were listening, it also sounded like a death sentence. One of the Bertica Kingdom soldiers, unable to hold back, shouted.
“Don’t be afraid!! If we just hold out—”
Before anyone could finish their words, dozens of heads flew through the air.
With her right arm raised to shoulder height, Martini swung her hand horizontally, and those humans who stood in line met their death before they could even grasp what was happening.
“No one shall be spared.”
Martini vanished from sight.
With a thud, a sound of something bursting echoed, and with a moment’s delay, the ground where she had stood split and turned over, affecting an area of dozens of meters around her.
From the crack, something pitch black surged upward rapidly. Those humans unable to escape were instantly obliterated, akin to insects leaping into an inferno.
Fresh blood soon flooded the soil that had soaked up the old blood. Yet this was just the beginning of a nightmare.
KWA-BAAAANG!!!
With a tremendous roar, those nearby exploded. Armor and shields failed to prove their worth.
Just a single vampire.
In front of that one vampire, hundreds of humans fell within seconds.
Each time she moved, humans in her path met their end; with a wave of her hand, the obstacles blocking her vanished.
Uncontestable violence and destruction.
Despite having shared enough information beforehand, and recognizing the threat, they were helpless against the overwhelming gap in power.
Martini’s very actions proved why she was called the strongest vampire.
The western front transformed into chaos in an instant. Alone, Martini tore through the ranks of the allied forces, and just as this confusion unfolded, the vampires of the duchy began their advance, toppling the divided frontline.
The priests of the Luminous Kingdom cast holy magical barriers, but that alone was woefully insufficient to stop Martini.
Yet even in this scene of one-sided slaughter, time kept flowing.
The time bought with the lives of countless soldiers. At the end of it, hope for the allies began to take shape.
KI-YIING!!!
For the first time, the sound of swords clashing could be heard, instead of breaking and severing.
Martini frowned at the appearance of a human who had managed to withstand her strike.
“Martini Sahelrn.”
“The red-haired knight… I see, you’re the one.”
The strongest knight, Jeref Parvian.
The apex of vampires and the apex of humans clashed.
Brilliant white light erupted from Jeref’s body like lightning, and the rising divinity drove away the darkness.
For the first time, a wound appeared upon Martini’s skin. The twelve knights that followed also made their appearance.
“We will handle the Grand Duke. The kingdom’s forces will maintain the frontline.”
As per Jeref’s request, the forces consisting of the Bertica Kingdom and the Armes Kingdom started to reposition themselves.
There were some losses, but as planned. If they can eliminate the Grand Duke here, the tides of battle would turn.
A total of thirteen elite knights, supported by dozens of assisting priests. No matter how powerful a vampire might be, they couldn’t possibly face such a number alone. The moment this thought crossed their minds—
“Indeed. I suspected as much, and here you are.”
“Is it foolish to think I’d throw myself into the heart of enemy territory without being prepared for this?”
A massive shadow’s hand surged up and struck the ground. The soldiers of the allied forces, who were trying to maintain their lines, were swept away effortlessly.
The surprise troops of the duchy came crashing down from the low hill on the side.
The center of the allied front crumbled under the offensive from both sides, quickly pushing it up to where Martini and Jeref faced each other.
Hundreds of shadow arrows soared into the sky, tracing arcs before descending.
Jeref swung his sword towards the heavens.
A soundless slash. The silver flash tore through the night, obliterating the falling arrows without a trace.
Flapping her wings, a maid clad in attire that seemed out of place on the battlefield caught the attention of the knights.
Jeref was certain she was the one who had just fired the arrows. Everyone, including Jeref, knew exactly who she was.
“Didn’t seem the type to gamble. But cornered, and here you are.”
Vampires from the Grand Duke and the Duke, and what seems to be a group made up of several noble titles.
This was clearly not enough strength to field in a single battlefield. If they overinvest like this in the western front, it meant they’d give up the northern front, dominated by the imperial army.
The intention was clear.
Even at the risk of losing the Grand Duke’s castle, they were determined to eliminate every last one of the humans present. Such a deployment was unthinkable without that kind of intent.
“It seems you’ve all come charging in just as if you were waiting for a chance.”
In response to Jeref’s mockery, Martini shot back with her own sarcasm.
Was it coincidence or fate? The strategies of both the allies and the duchy were perfectly aligned.
The allied forces focused on eliminating the high-ranking vampires above the count level, almost entirely excluding the variables introduced by numerous ordinary vampires that could slow them down.
While the frontlines pushed and pulled, wins and losses in individual battles could vary based on numbers, but ultimately, the outcome of the war depended on the high-ranking vampires, including the Grand Duke and the Duke, as per the allied forces’ assessment.
Even if it meant enduring some losses, they would deal with the powerful first.
That’s why Jeref’s detachment was formed, and it was coordinated that other knights and elite units of the imperial army could join at any moment if notified.
The same went for the Sahelrn Duchy.
After just a few clashes, Martini Sahelrn realized that the duchy had no chance in a prolonged war.
Somehow, by utilizing underground passages, they could employ guerrilla tactics, delaying the enemy until ultimately, they managed to entrench themselves in the Grand Duke’s castle, making it hard to prolong the war.
In the worst-case scenario, even if they surrendered the above ground of the Grand Duke’s Castle, as long as they held onto the underground farms, the vampires could fight night and day from below.
But that was ultimately just a time-buying act.
The situation was different from the war three years ago. Back then, the duchy was much stronger, and humans hastily formed an alliance, but the true aim was not the subjugation of the duchy, but the assassination of the Progenitor.
But now, it was different. This time, the allied forces were genuinely determined to wipe the duchy off the map.
Compared to the duchy, which could hardly replenish its dwindled forces, the allied army had greatly increased in size with the addition of the Armes Kingdom, and there seemed no indication of supply shortages, possibly due to plundering the forest’s resources through the conquest of Albresia.
While they could potentially invoke resource loss by dragging things out, that would only be a fraction of the problem.
These humans weren’t the type to shy away from long conflicts due to fear of loss, and a passive defense couldn’t overturn a foregone defeat.
Ultimately, the key point was the strength of the Luminous Kingdom and the imperial army. Especially, it was crucial to minimize the presence of knights and supporting priests to have even a slight chance of turning the tide.
Martini Sahelrn made her decision. To grasp even a weak chance for victory instead of a slow but certain defeat, she committed the duchy’s elite forces entirely to the western front.
Her plan was to penetrate through the weakest point, maneuver behind, and deal with the supporting priests first.
And the result was laid out before her.
Whether it was coincidence or inevitability, there was no way to discern, but both the duchy and allied forces sharpened their blades aimed at bleeding each other’s human resources, leading to an unexpected all-out war instead of fighting for advantageous terrain.
Without hesitation, Jeref requested reinforcements from the Knight Order and the imperial army, and thus began the slaughter that washed blood with blood.
Flames, divinity, and the dazzling white light emitted by the knights lit up the night sky like day, and the shadows created by the light became daggers, consuming countless lives.
The fierce battle raged throughout the night to the extent that the clouds were ripped apart and the landscape transformed.
In just a few hours, thousands of lives perished upon this land. Blood turned to rivers, and corpses piled up like mountains.
Yet, neither side could claim victory. The cold reality dictated that someone’s death would inevitably spiral into meaningless tragedy.
“Accept your fate. Victory belongs to us.”
Martini Sahelrn raised her head slowly above the horizon and cast a resentful gaze upon the sun that began to spread red light across the black sky.
In the end, it was the sun, not the warriors willing to gamble their lives, that determined victory and defeat.
There was no room for retreat. She sought to kill the humans before her, but ultimately, she couldn’t finish it all in a single night.
Stella Banteker felt the life draining from her body quickly, wiping the blood that streamed down her forehead, obscuring her sight. Her wounds could no longer heal.
“Flee. I will hold them off alone.”
Martini commanded firmly.
The determined glint in her red eyes showed that she hadn’t given up yet, but everyone knew that even the strongest vampire was no different from an ordinary person under the sun, unable to wield magic.
“That is impossible. Did we not vow to face any outcome together?”
Stella replied with a wry smile, refusing. The other surviving vampires, unable to hide their fear, still showed no intent to back down.
Everyone on the battlefield understood that it was all over. Perhaps they were silently accepting death, realizing it might already be too late to flee.
Seeing the faces of vampires lined up like martyrs waiting to be burned, the allied forces smirked and finally felt assured of their victory.
The Sahelrn Duchy, which had been an eyesore rooted in the center of the continent for so long, would today vanish into history. They would achieve what even their ancestors couldn’t.
Jeref raised his sword.
Wordlessly, he aimed for Martini Sahelrn’s neck and swung his blade.
The dawn had already broken. Though she wasn’t cloaked in burning white light, it would be an unavoidable strike for a vampire under the sun. However—
TING!!
The first to react was the knights.
They clearly saw it. What deflected the blow was a dark magic that should not exist under the sunlight.
The eyes of Martini and Stella widened.
The sharp, out-of-place sound of high heels pierced through the battlefield’s noise, cutting into their ears.
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