CA – Chapter 91
Chapter 91
Upstairs in the grand hall of Rose Manor.
Noah followed Glanna through corridor after corridor. The noisy clamor from downstairs could even be heard up here. She turned her head and glanced out the window. Under the dim yellow light of the torches, she could see nobles in magnificent attire gathered in twos and threes, talking and laughing.
She withdrew her gaze and asked, a hint of confusion in her voice, "What on earth are these vampires doing?"
Vampires and Black Witches both belonged to the forces of darkness. Although her Garcia Family was only interested in awakening the Dark God, Noah had heard rumors about the vampires capturing humans in an attempt to create hybrids.
Moreover, she knew that Rose Manor was just one of their strongholds; many more were hidden in the shadows.
But the vampires had been doing this for several hundred years, and in all that time, nothing major had happened on the continent.
Nor had there been any news of a hybrid appearing among the vampires.
Glanna also turned her head to glance out the window. She raised the corners of her mouth slightly and said nonchalantly, "The reason they're creating hybrids is all because of a single sentence left behind by a second-generation vampire who was lucky enough to survive the Holy War—the famous scholar, Ernest."
Noah looked at her curiously and asked, "What sentence?"
Glanna let out a low chuckle, deliberately keeping her in suspense. "Beg me, and I'll tell you," she said teasingly.
Noah: "..."
"A Black Witch of the Garcia Family never begs."
"Oh?" Glanna raised an eyebrow, smiling. "So you don't want to know anymore?"
Noah said expressionlessly, "The vampires' affairs have nothing to do with the Garcia Family."
As the two were talking, a vampire suddenly appeared before them, raising a hand to stop them. "Lord Delia asked me to bring you over," he said in a low voice.
Glanna lifted her chin at the vampire, gesturing for him to lead the way.
The vampire led them to a room. He pushed the door open gently, then stepped aside. Glanna and Noah entered, one after the other.
Inside the room, the Lord Delia the vampire had mentioned was sitting at a long dining table, eating dinner. A glass of thick, fresh blood was paired with an exquisite lamb chop. Her posture was aristocratic, and her every move was incomparably elegant. If one ignored her crimson eyes and the bizarrely perfect, lifelike doll placed opposite her, she was no different from a refined noble lady enjoying her meal.
Delia swirled the glass in her hand a few times. Catching sight of Glanna and Noah entering, she pursed her lips and sighed impatiently. "Why did you have to come while I'm having dinner?"
Glanna pulled out a chair and sat down, placing her hands flat on the table. She looked at Delia with a smile and said softly, "Take your time. We can afford to wait for one dinner."
But it was clear Delia had already lost her appetite. She set down her glass and signaled for a nearby vampire to clear the table. "This is all I have of what you wanted." She tossed a Space Gem in front of Glanna.
Glanna picked it up and glanced at it, raising her eyebrows. "It's a little less than I expected."
Delia shrugged. "Elder Evan only gave me this much." Among the vampires, those currently honored with the title of "Elder" were the third-generation power holders.
Tossing the Space Gem in her hand a few times, Glanna pondered for a moment before slowly nodding. "Alright." She put the Space Gem away and said to Delia with a smile, "However, I hope you can tell Elder Evan that it's better to be a little more sincere with one's collaborators."
Delia nodded noncommittally. She made a gesture to the vampire beside her, who turned and left the room.
When he returned, he was followed by seven or eight young women. They were ordinary humans, their expressions dazed and their appearances disheveled.
Delia gave Glanna a look and said flatly, "These are all of them."
Glanna stroked her chin, sizing them up. Then, she leaned close to Noah's ear and whispered a few words.
A flash of astonishment crossed Noah's eyes. "Are you sure you want to use that witchcraft?" she asked doubtfully.
Glanna nodded and patted Noah on the waist. "Don't forget what you promised me," she said with a light laugh.
Noah narrowed her eyes. She rose from her chair and walked over to the women. She pulled back the hood of her cloak, letting her smooth, long hair fall over her chest. The Black Witches were all petite in stature, with delicate, almost childlike features.
The Power of Darkness, much like the Power of Light, could slow aging. Noah and Glanna were of similar age and were both Red-robed Witches, but because of their small, cute appearances, if they were to mix with humans, no one would ever imagine they were cruel and bloodthirsty Black Witches.
Noah walked up to the first woman and grabbed her wrist. She closed her eyes slightly and began chanting in a low voice. The Power of Darkness gathered in her palm and slowly seeped into the woman's body.
A trace of pain appeared in the woman's dazed eyes. She aged rapidly, but her belly slowly began to swell.
Noah stopped and moved to the next one, her expression impassive.
Time ticked by. Delia, growing bored of waiting, got up and walked over to the doll in the opposite chair. She gently stroked the doll's snow-white hair, then wrapped an arm around its waist and led it to the window. Moonlight streamed in, making its white hair shimmer.
After performing the witchcraft on the last woman, Noah lowered her head, pulled her hood back up, and walked over to Glanna's side.
Glanna glanced at Delia playing with her doll, then lowered her eyes and let out a soft chuckle. She stood up and led Noah out of the room. The vampire guarding the door opened it for them.
After Glanna and Noah left, a vampire led the women away as well. A short while later, another vampire hurried in. Stopping a meter away from Delia, he bowed his head and said, "Lord Delia, all of those people have failed."
A few pearls had fallen off the doll's sleeve. Delia, who was carefully trying to fix it, replied casually to the report, "Dispose of them in the usual place."
The vampire acknowledged the order and withdrew.
The doll's dress was exquisitely made. Even after the pearls on the sleeve had fallen off, it was extremely difficult to repair it to its original state.
Delia tried for a long time without success. She stared down at the pearl in her hand, a flash of anger in her eyes, and threw it to the floor.
The pearl bounced a few times on the floor before rolling into a corner.
Delia took a deep breath. She stood blankly for a moment, leaning against the doll, then silently went to the corner to pick up the pearl. Taking up the doll's sleeve again, she continued her repairs while saying self-mockingly, "So this is how boring eternal life is."
After leaving Delia's room, Glanna and Noah walked through the corridor and stood on an empty terrace. Noah was curious about what was in the Space Gem Delia had given Glanna. Just as she was considering whether to ask, Glanna took an Elf Fruit from the gem and handed it to her.
The fresh fragrance and the fruit's vibrant life force stunned Noah for a moment. "It's actually an Elf Fruit," she said, surprised.
Glanna rested both hands on the railing. The night wind blew her cloak open, causing the red robe underneath to flutter. She looked up at the bright moon in the night sky and said softly, "Do you think a Gorefiend could be propagated using an Elf Fruit?"
Noah, who knew her personality well, glanced up at her. "Don't you dare get any ideas about my Garcia Family," she warned. The Gorefiends were summoned using the blood of her family.
For Glanna to say such a thing was clearly malicious.
Glanna had anticipated Noah's reaction. She let out a soft laugh and was about to say something when her eyes suddenly caught a white figure. The smile on her lips froze instantly.
A white-haired woman walked out from around the corner. Her icy gaze swept over the Elf Fruit in Noah's hand, then settled on Glanna. "Glanna Anderson," she called out coldly.
Glanna turned and looked the woman up and down, a smile playing on her lips. "Long time no see." Although she was smiling, the atmosphere on the terrace had already dropped to a freezing point.
Even when a sudden burst of cheers erupted from downstairs, the frigid atmosphere on the terrace didn't change in the slightest.
The scheduled time for the auction had finally arrived. Tang Qiu and the others had long since left the cellar and returned to the grand hall. The hall, which could accommodate a thousand people, still felt a bit crowded. Tang Qiu, Lucille, and Lola didn't push to the front, instead standing in a spacious corner.
Tang Qiu carefully observed the passing nobles. Whenever she saw someone with a similar build, she would point them out to Lucille or Lola, who would then blend into the crowd to try and confirm their identity.
But there were simply too many nobles in the hall, and Tang Qiu's luck wasn't very good tonight.
After checking ten people without finding the Gosse prince, Tang Qiu had to pause and consider that perhaps a different method would be better.
The vampires had indeed prepared three Dark Elves for tonight. Since they were to be auctioned off one by one, the cages holding the other two were placed casually in an out-of-the-way corner.
As it happened, there was one right behind Tang Qiu. As she was lost in thought, she took a step back and bumped into the cage. There was a clattering sound, as if something had broken. Tang Qiu subconsciously turned to look. A broken chain lay at her feet, and the cage door was wide open.
The Dark Elf seemed not to have expected Tang Qiu to turn around. She had just poked her head out and met Tang Qiu's gaze.
Seeing the "escaping" Dark Elf, a flash of surprise crossed Tang Qiu's eyes. Just as she was about to speak, she saw the Dark Elf silently sit back down.
Tang Qiu: "..."
She knew these Dark Elves weren't so simple.
Lucille noticed something was amiss where Tang Qiu was and started to walk over, but the torches on the hall walls suddenly went out. Darkness descended in an instant. The hall was silent for a second, then erupted into chaos, punctuated by screams.
The moment the torches went out, Tang Qiu looked directly at the Dark Elf's cage. It was already empty.
Lucille teleported to her side. "What happened?" she asked in a low voice.
"It's the Dark Elves." Tang Qiu looked up, searching the hall for them. "They let themselves be captured to get in here."
Lucille frowned. "What's their objective?" This Rose Manor was proving to be more complicated than she had imagined.
Tang Qiu shook her head. Her lips parted, about to say something, when she suddenly sensed a familiar presence. Her expression changed slightly. She looked up, her brow furrowed. "...There are werewolves in the manor."
She had sensed the presence of werewolves.
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