The First Pope - Chapter 66
Chapter 66
In the castle at the very center of the city, a vast hall had been cleared out to "welcome" their single guest, Avira.
"The God Race prefers simple things." Cynthia handed a cup of water to Avira, her voice soft. "I can only offer you water."
Avira's sudden appearance in Manden City didn't particularly surprise Cynthia. When she'd left the city that day, she had already anticipated that Avira would seek her out again.
This vampire wouldn't rest until she achieved her goal, and frankly, shaking off the entanglement of a Second Generation Vampire was rather difficult.
It was fortunate that Avira had a rather playful attitude. If it were any other Second Generation Vampire, the God Race might have been facing a major crisis.
Even with the Wolf Race and the Elves present, a Second Generation Vampire couldn't do much to the God Race. However, Cynthia didn't want this to draw the attention of the clans in the Blood Domain to her people.
Someone like Avira, who wanted to use them for her own ulterior motives, was actually more reassuring to Cynthia.
Because it wasn't yet certain who was using whom.
A long, brown table was placed in a corner of the hall. Avira sat on top of it, her legs dangling as she swung them leisurely. She took the cup from Cynthia, her gaze sweeping across the hall before she smiled ambiguously. "Just the two of us here?"
Cynthia gave a serene smile, ignoring Avira's flirtatious remark. "Please wait. My kinsman will be here shortly."
"Oh?" Avira found this disappointing. "What kinsman? Will they be frightened by a vampire like me?"
Cynthia stood about ten meters away from Avira, toying with the Light Crystal in her hand. She said with a smile, "I don't think so."
Her words had barely faded when a silver-haired member of the God Race hurried in from outside the hall. Darcy entered and walked directly toward Cynthia, asking as she went, "What did you need me for?"
It was only when she reached Cynthia's side that she noticed a stranger in the hall. She looked up, and the sight of Avira's crimson eyes made her stop short. Darcy's gaze sharpened, and she frowned. "A vampire?"
Avira smirked at Darcy and hopped down from the table, her long red hair falling smoothly over her chest. "An ally of yours, for now."
Cynthia corrected her, "A one-sided one." Seeing Avira look at her, she added with a smile, "The God Race will not be providing you with any assistance."
Avira shrugged. "Whatever."
The "ally" thing was just something she'd said offhandedly.
Darcy's gaze shifted between Cynthia and Avira a few times. Though she still had doubts about Avira's identity, she didn't voice them directly. Instead, she gave a friendly nod and introduced herself, "My name is Darcy."
Avira raised an eyebrow, looking her up and down before smirking. "Avira."
She took out a map and tossed it onto the table, then jutted her chin at Cynthia. "It's getting late. Hurry up. Don't keep me from finding Hanni."
Cynthia walked over and picked up the map, speaking casually as she examined it. "The Wolf Race's clan leader and Vice Clan Leader are both in Manden City. I'd advise you to stay far away from Hanni."
"Otherwise, our 'alliance' will probably only last a day."
Avira turned and sat back down on the table, pouting. "Fine, then. Maybe next time."
Werewolves were a bunch of savages. She wasn't afraid of them, but she found them troublesome.
Avira stayed in the hall until nightfall before leaving. The information she'd brought Cynthia this time was certainly worthy of the title "ally."
The number of vampires Iman had brought, her location, and the positions of her subordinate lords were all recorded in detail on the map. It even included the patrol routes of the vampire squads and their hidden forces, all marked with perfect clarity.
With this map, as long as they planned ahead, they could directly eliminate Iman's group of vampires.
Darcy had already learned Avira's true identity from Cynthia. She picked up the map and scanned it carefully, still suspicious of Avira. "Could this be a trap?"
A vampire helping them deal with her own kind? Darcy found that hard to believe.
Rows of sconces hung on the hall's walls, their orange candlelight dispelling the darkness and making the overly spacious room feel a little less desolate. Cynthia stood by the window, shrouded in shadow, her expression unreadable. "It's probably not a trap."
"The Wolf Race and the Elves are here. One Second Generation Vampire and one Third Generation Vampire don't have the power to swallow us all."
"There's a schism within the Vampires." Cynthia turned her head. The collar of her shirt was slightly open where she'd undone a button, giving her a somewhat languid air. "We are merely a blade Avira is borrowing to eliminate a traitor."
Darcy frowned and fell silent for a moment before letting out a soft laugh and shaking her head. "It seems our God Race has truly grown stronger."
Their status had changed from prey to a "blade" that could be used to eliminate traitors.
But it didn't matter whether they were a blade or not. In their eyes, Avira's only use was this map.
Darcy had been agonizing over how to deal with this Third Generation Vampire who was hiding somewhere unknown. The map from Avira had just solved her problem.
"This Third Generation Vampire has brought quite a few subordinates. It will be tricky for the God Race to handle them alone," Darcy said thoughtfully. "We might need the Wolf Race's help."
Cynthia had the same thought. She nodded and said, "I'll go speak with Clan Leader Helen later."
The sky had completely darkened. Darcy knew that Cynthia usually went to the woods outside the city to find the Elf Queen around this time. Seeing Cynthia raise her hand to close the window, preparing to leave, she hesitated for a moment before calling out, "Cynthia, there's something I want to talk to you about."
Darcy's tone was somewhat grave. Cynthia lowered her hand and looked at her quizzically. "What is it?"
"It's about the Anderson Witches."
Because she still had to rush to Pegel to stop the Vampires from destroying the temple, Cynthia didn't have much time to deal with Iman and the other vampires.
Fortunately, the map Avira had provided was detailed enough. Cynthia, along with Darcy, Chloe, and other members of the God Race, spent several days discussing and formulating a plan before they began to implement it.
Iman and her subordinate lords were not all gathered in one place, so the God Race also split into several teams. Of course, the most difficult opponent, the Third Generation Vampire, was still left to Cynthia.
The Wolf Race were skilled and eager fighters. When Helen learned that the God Race was going to eliminate the trouble next to her territory, she very generously lent them a third of her people.
The reason she only lent a third, rather than helping them solve the problem directly, was that Helen also wanted to see the strength of the God Race for herself.
As a newly rising power on the Sitatul Continent, it wasn't just Avira who was interested in the God Race's strength; the Wolf Race also wanted to probe their capabilities.
"The aura on these knights seems a little different." Although Helen's eyes couldn't see, her perception was extremely sharp. "…An aura of light?"
Although the aura of light was faint, Helen could still sense it on them.
Olivia looked down at the squad of knights in golden armor and said in a low voice, "It is an aura of light. The swordsmanship they practice has been modified. Their sword energy contains the Power of Light, which has a restraining effect on vampires."
"Oh?" Helen was a little surprised. "There's such a swordsmanship?"
"Cynthia came up with it." Olivia's gaze shifted from the knights, searching the area below until it finally landed on Cynthia, who was speaking with Darcy and Chloe. An unconscious warmth entered her light green eyes.
Cynthia sensed Olivia's gaze and turned to look up at her, meeting her eyes. Her long silver hair was dazzling in the sunlight, but not as dazzling as the smile on her lips.
Olivia stared at her, lost in a daze, until Helen's voice called her wandering thoughts back. Only then did she realize that Cynthia had already turned back to converse with the other God Race members.
She averted her gaze and raised a hand to tidy the stray hairs on her forehead, only slowly lowering it once her heart had calmed.
…She had been stirred by this God Race member again. Why did this keep happening?
Cynthia was of a different race. How could she possibly harbor… other feelings for someone of a different race?
Olivia's smooth brow slowly furrowed. Perhaps selecting a Guardian was the only way to solve this problem?
Only Helen, who was beside her, vaguely sensed Olivia's turmoil. Cynthia, who was busy talking with Chloe and Darcy, was completely unaware.
"The witches are also dealing with the vampires with us." Cynthia glanced over at the witches and said in a low voice, "The Anderson Witches have volunteered to take care of the fourth-generation lord in Selpa City."
Iman had many subordinates who were separate from her. To prevent other vampires from noticing something was wrong and escaping, which would cause more trouble, they had split into several teams this time to eliminate them all at once.
The Anderson Witches had volunteered to take responsibility for one city, but just like before, they required no help from the knights or the God Race.
They even refused the Morgan and Garcia witches when they offered to join them.
Chloe said in a cold tone, "Dealing with vampires… I'm afraid they have other motives."
Not knowing what came to her mind, Darcy sighed deeply. "We still need to find proof to know if they really did those things."
Ever since they learned that the God Race could peer into people's minds, the Anderson Witches hadn't given them any opportunity to get close.
"Proof?" Chloe said, her face expressionless. "Doris's words are the proof."
"She can see the future." Thinking of the vision she'd seen from Doris, Chloe's palm couldn't help but tremble. She bit her lip and said, "She saw those witches killing many humans, using their blood and corpses to summon monsters."
"They're no different from the vampires."
Although Chloe disliked humans, she loathed and detested what the Anderson Witches were doing even more.
The God Race could never be allies with people like that.
While Chloe and Darcy were speaking, Cynthia listened quietly. Seeing that Chloe was having trouble controlling her anger, she reached out and patted her on the shoulder, placating her. "Alright, Chloe, calm down first."
"Since it's a prophecy, let's wait and see for now. We'll do our best to stop the Anderson Witches before the tragedy occurs." Cynthia paused after speaking, then turned to glance at Chelsea and Betty. Betty happened to be looking her way, and after their eyes met, she waved happily at her.
Cynthia nodded at Betty, then brought her gaze back and sighed. "Let's set out. Tell the ones tailing them to be careful not to be discovered."
Anderson… If the Anderson Family became enemies with the God Race, what would the Morgan and Garcia families choose?
Cynthia raised a hand to rub her brow. The thought of the relationships between the witch clans made dealing with the Anderson Family feel particularly thorny.
But, just as Chloe had said, witches with that kind of disposition were no different from vampires.
Sooner or later, they would turn on their allies.
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