The First Pope - Chapter 36
Chapter 36
The Vampires had always wanted to destroy the temples of the Sitatul Continent, so when Olivia heard from Hanni that many third-generation Vampires had gathered here, her first reaction was to wonder if a temple was hidden in this place.
After the gods left the Sitatul Continent, the temples sank underground one after another. Compared to the Vampires, who had controlled the Sitatul Continent for nearly a thousand years, the number of temple locations known to the Elf Race and the Wolf Race could be counted on one hand.
Although she didn't know why the Vampires wanted to destroy the temples, she figured it wouldn't be for any reason beneficial to humans, elves, or wolves. If Olivia had been unaware, it would be one thing, but now that she knew, she had to stop them.
When Hanni learned that Olivia was also staying to deal with the Vampires, she was overjoyed. "Clan Leader Helen will surely be delighted to hear this. They'll probably take another three days to arrive. Why don't we go scout the area where the Vampires are gathered first?"
Hanni looked eager to try. She had grown up listening to her clan members tell of Olivia's great deeds and admired her deeply, trusting her strength completely.
She had been rescuing humans nearby recently mainly out of boredom. Though she was young and spirited, Hanni wasn't reckless enough to charge into a gathering place of third-generation Vampires all by herself.
According to Hanni, at least four third-generation Vampires were gathered here, along with an unknown number of fourth-generation ones. She wasn't sure if there were any second-generation Vampires present. If Olivia were at her peak, she wouldn't hesitate regardless of whether there were second-generation Vampires, but now… Olivia lowered her gaze slightly, her hand behind her back unconsciously curling into a fist. She was silent for a moment and was about to agree when Cynthia, who had been standing beside her, suddenly spoke up. "There's no rush. It won't be too late to investigate after the Wolf Race arrives."
Hanni turned to look at Cynthia, her sky-blue eyes filled with curiosity. "Are you from the God Race?"
Cynthia gave Hanni a friendly smile and nodded. "God Race. Cynthia."
"Wolf Race. Hanni."
It was Hanni's first time leaving her territory, so it was also her first time seeing a member of the God Race. She naturally reached out and squeezed Cynthia's arm, grinning. "The God Race is so weak."
Her smile was innocent and bright, showing no hint of mockery, so Cynthia merely glanced at the hand gripping her arm, smiled, and didn't argue with her.
Olivia, on the other hand, frowned and said in a low voice, "Hanni, that's very rude."
Hanni shrank back and quietly apologized to Cynthia.
"It's fine." Cynthia glanced at the crowd of people not far away, leaned closer to Hanni, and asked, "Were the people we met on the road all rescued by you from the Vampires?"
Hanni nodded repeatedly, a proud look on her face. "That was me."
Seeing Hanni's expression practically begging for praise, Cynthia sighed with worry instead. The sigh startled Hanni, who asked cautiously, "What's wrong? Did I do something wrong?"
"No, you didn't do anything wrong." Cynthia paused, then turned to look at the crowd. "But it's very dangerous to just leave them on their own like this."
Hanni scratched her head. "Then what should I do?"
"You need to take them somewhere safe." Cynthia pointed in a direction. "Head east. There's a relatively safe valley. You can take them there."
Hanni carefully committed it to memory and then asked, "Now?"
Seeing that Sarah and the others had finished their investigation, Cynthia smiled and nodded.
Hanni obediently ran off to escort the humans away.
Olivia silently watched Hanni's retreating back, easily fooled and sent away. Cynthia, catching her gaze in her peripheral vision, explained, "That wolf seemed a bit too energetic, so I gave her something to do."
"There's no rush to investigate what the third-generation Vampires are doing. It's more prudent to wait for the Wolf Race." Third-generation Vampires weren't that weak; the Della they had met in Ochester hadn't been at her peak.
And Cynthia knew there was something wrong with Olivia's condition. Although she hid it well, the occasional fatigue that flickered in her eyes betrayed her.
Olivia knew Cynthia had noticed something, which was why she had taken the initiative to suggest waiting for the Wolf Race. Even though it was out of concern for her, she couldn't help but retort, "A few mere third-generation Vampires can't hurt me."
Cynthia's gaze swept over Olivia's face before she nodded in agreement. "Her Majesty the Queen is so powerful, of course they can't hurt you." Then her tone shifted. "But I'm not."
"I'm just too weak for a member of the God Race."
Olivia met her gaze silently. Cynthia looked into her pale green eyes, the corners of her mouth curving into a beautiful arc as she said softly, "Beautiful and powerful Her Majesty the Queen, please take pity on this weak member of the God Race."
"...Flowery words." Olivia snorted coldly and turned, striding away.
Watching Olivia's departing back, Cynthia couldn't help but let out a soft laugh. That woman really liked to act tough and was so stubborn.
Chasing after Olivia right now would surely provoke her into a fit of embarrassed anger. Cynthia raised a hand to tidy the long silver hair that fell over her chest, her gaze shifting away nonchalantly. Just as she was about to find Sarah and the others, a flash of red in her peripheral vision caught her attention, running towards her.
The red-haired girl staggered as she ran, as if she might fall at any second, yet her speed was surprisingly fast. By the time Cynthia turned around, she was already right in front of her.
From the exertion, the red-haired girl's cheeks were flushed and her breathing was a little ragged. As she reached Cynthia, she accidentally kicked a stone and cried out in alarm, her body tipping towards Cynthia.
Cynthia froze for a second. She had intended to reach out and catch her, but her eyes fell on the girl's open collar. The large expanse of fair skin made her pull her hand back. She took a subtle step backward, planning to help the girl up after she fell.
But she had only moved her leg back half a step when the red-haired girl had already thrown herself into her arms. A cloyingly sweet fragrance made Cynthia frown.
"...I'm sorry." The red-haired girl acted startled and quickly pulled away from Cynthia, but in her haste, she stumbled again and fell, sitting on the ground.
Her tattered dress suddenly fell open, exposing a great deal of her charms. The red-haired girl lowered her head shyly, tugging at her clothes to cover herself. "There are a lot of snakes over there," she said in a small voice. "I was a little scared."
When she fell, her calf had been scraped by a sharp rock on the ground. A trail of bright red blood trickled down her fair skin. The red-haired girl bit her lip, her delicate voice exceptionally pitiable. "Could you please heal me, Lord God Ra-"
As she spoke, she looked up, but the expression on her face suddenly froze.
Sarah was leaning over her, asking with a concerned expression, "Are you alright? Let me help you up."
Avira: "..."
She looked up and searched around, spotting Cynthia standing not far away, her back to them, talking to another member of the God Race.
"...Thank you." Avira forced a smile for Sarah. She reached out to adjust her clothes, then grabbed Sarah's arm to stand up. Seeing that her leg was still bleeding, Sarah bent down to heal it for her.
The wound on her leg was just a simple trick, but the Healing Spell Sarah used was real. Avira felt the faint aura of light coming from Sarah's fingertips, and her interest in the God Race grew even stronger.
"Can I learn this too?" Avira asked curiously, looking at the white light on Sarah's hand.
Sarah scratched her head, saying apologetically, "Only humans with a Light Constitution can learn it."
"What's a human with a Light Constitution?"
Sarah held up her hand to show Avira the white light on her fingertips. "Being able to sense the Power of Light means you have a Light Constitution."
Avira lowered her gaze in thought, then raised her right hand. Her long fingers passed through the white light, and a few strands of it clung to her hand.
Avira wiggled her fingers and asked with a smile, "Does this count?"
Sarah's eyes widened, and she nodded excitedly. "Yes, yes, it counts." She had thought she wouldn't find a suitable human this time either.
"Does having a Light Constitution mean I can go with you?"
Sarah nodded eagerly. She took Avira's arm and turned to shout at Cynthia, "Cynthia, this person can sense the Power of Light!"
Avira had wanted to pull her arm free from Sarah's grasp, but seeing Cynthia look their way, she stood cooperatively, putting on a bewildered yet joyful expression.
Cynthia raised an eyebrow and walked over. She looked Avira up and down and said, "A Light Constitution?"
Sarah held up Avira's hand for Cynthia to see.
The white light on her fingertips was indeed the Power of Light. Cynthia nodded and said with a smile, "Welcome to our group."
Avira tucked her red hair behind her ear, her brown eyes shimmering. Her tone was tinged with a faint shyness and adoration. "It is my honor to be by your side, Lord God Race."
"Oh?"
"Actually, I-I liked you very much the first moment I saw you." Avira twisted her fingers together, feigning a look of unease.
Sarah looked at Avira, then at Cynthia, sensing that the atmosphere was a bit off. She turned and quietly slipped away.
Cynthia glanced at Sarah's retreating back and then shifted her gaze away, unconcerned. She stared at Avira and said in an ambiguous tone, "An admirer of mine, are you?"
Avira had anticipated this silver-haired God Race's reaction. Perhaps she would tell her to leave with a look of disgust, or perhaps she would smugly enjoy the adoration, or maybe even feel shy about being pursued. But her current reaction was beyond her expectations.
She felt there was something strange about this God Race's tone.
Avira licked her lips. Just as she was pondering whether to flatter this God Race a bit more, a crude wooden plaque was suddenly held out in front of her.
Avira looked down at the wooden plaque. "What is this?" she asked.
The wooden plaque was crude, its edges worn smooth. Two lines of text were carved on it: Stone Town Cynthia - One Hundred Twenty-Seven.
"Let's give you a number." Cynthia glanced at the plaque and said with a beaming smile, "My one hundred and twenty-seventh admirer." This was a wooden plaque she had taken from a corpse to hide her identity when she first transmigrated, and it had been sitting in the corner of her Space Gem ever since.
Avira: "..."
Numbering her admirers… Was she that narcissistic?
She held the plaque and looked at it for a long time, then looked up at Cynthia. Seeing that she wasn't joking, she felt a hint of contempt, but she still managed to squeeze out a smile. "It's my honor."
Seeing that Avira actually believed her, Cynthia's eyes deepened. She looked Avira over again, her red lips curling. "I'm just kidding," she said softly.
"Don't you recognize this plaque?" Cynthia took the wooden plaque from Avira's hand, her fingertips gently stroking the worn edges as she said unhurriedly, "This is the number given to blood slaves by the Vampires, to make them easier to control."
Avira, who had been treating this as a game, frowned imperceptibly, but her expression quickly smoothed over. "So that's what it is," she said, her face unchanging. "The city I was imprisoned in never issued things like this."
Managing cities was a task for fourth-generation Vampires. How could Avira, who lived a life of leisure in the Blood Domain, possibly know about such a low-level thing?
However, has this God Race figured something out and is testing me? Avira dismissed her earlier contempt, and a deeper interest flickered in her slightly lowered eyes. It had been a long time since she had met someone so interesting.
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