Renil and Gasen were back by the time the two returned. Henrick nagged as soon as he saw them, “What were you talking about that made you take so long to come back?”
Shaneth also chimed in. “You didn’t hug each other or anything while you were away from us, did you?”
“Omo! How did you know?” Iris asked in surprise. Shaneth’s gaze turned cold as she glared at Iris, and Iris waved her hands in surprise, quickly replying, “It was just a kiss on the forehead!”
“Who kissed whose forehead?” Shaneth asked coldly.
“That is… I kissed Kang Yoon-Soo’s forehead…” Iris said meekly.
“Haa…” Shaneth let out a sigh, then suddenly started to rummage through Henrick’s backpack.
“Hey, what the hell are you suddenly doing?” Henrick protested.
“I have no choice. I have to drink today because my heart is in agony,” Shaneth said.
“Hey! Do you plan to kill someone today?!” Henrick exclaimed.
Iris suddenly remembered the events at the inn and her face turned pale white. She then clung to Shaneth and cried out, “Shaneth! I am sorry!”
Kang Yoon-Soo’s eyes trembled, and he slightly lowered his head and said, “I’m sorry…” He seemed to have a lot of things to apologize about today.
Renil glared at them while saying, “Tsk… This is annoying me. He has a girlfriend who gets jealous of him… Isn’t that right, Gasen?”
“…”
“Oh, that’s right! You can’t speak, can you? But I’ve been wondering for a while now… you’re a pervert, aren’t you? It means yes if you don’t reply,” Renil said playfully.
“…”
“What?! You are a pervert who can’t hold your lust back if you see a man?!” Renil continued to tease Gasen.
“…”
Gasen’s large fist flew toward Renil, but the young man was already a step ahead as he ran away as fast as he could.
Deff looked at the rowdy crowd he was with, and he scratched his cheek as he said, “I guess it won’t be boring, at least…”
***
The place they went to next was an art museum. The museum, which was located on the outskirts of Vulpehin, was quite an old and rundown place. It had been closed and abandoned quite some time before; the building looked eerie, giving off an aura that made it seem centuries old.
“This museum is a protected heritage site. Please leave this place at once,” a security guard warned them as he blocked the entrance.
Then, a familiar voice suddenly said from behind, “Ah, they’re my colleagues. What are you doing standing around there? Hurry up and come in!” It was the old man, Rapentahil.
The security guard raised a salute in surprise and asked, “When did you arrive, sir?”
“I arrived before you started your shift! When else? Stand guard properly, I tell you! Is a twelve-hour shift that difficult?” Rapentahil rebuked the security guard.
“I apologize, sir,” the security guard apologized in a dejected yet firm voice.
Rapentahil led the way as they entered the museum, walking ahead as he said, “Other people usually ask why we even need to assign a security guard to an old building like this.”
He slowly went up the stairs, and the rest followed him up. Upon reaching the upper floor, the group saw that there was a variety of paintings hanging on the wall of the museum.
Henrick asked, “Why did we come to an art museum when we were supposed to go to the vampires’ city?”
“That’s because the vampires’ city is located in a painting,” Deff replied.
“Ah, so the thing is… What the hell are you talking about?” Henrick objected.
“I keep telling you, you’ll find out once you get there. Don’t you think it’s quite a thrill?” Deff replied with a smile.
They went up to the third floor of the art museum. The floor was old and creaky, and the group had to pay extra attention not to step on any weak parts of the floor, lest their feet fall through.
“There are a lot of amazing things in this world, and most of them tend to be hidden in rundown places like this,” Rapentahil said as he opened the first door. The door opened with a creak that sounded almost like someone screaming in agony; what greeted the group inside was a nearly empty room. The only thing that was in the room was a painting of a black city hanging on the wall.
“Don’t tell me… Is that the vampires' city?” Henrick asked with a grimace.
Rapentahil rubbed his mustache as he said, “You have quite the keen senses. That’s right, that painting is Sanguineum.”
“What do you mean?” Shaneth asked.
“Won’t it be easier to show you rather than to explain it? Right, Gasen?” Rapentahil replied as he motioned to Gasen with his eyes.
Gasen approached the painting in response. He stretched his large hand toward it, and his hand was sucked in. It was as if there were another space within the painting.
“…What the hell?” Henrick muttered as he blinked a few times.
Gasen had already disappeared, having been fully sucked into the painting. Iris could not hide her shock, exclaiming, “Oh my! The painting ate Gasen!”
“This painting is a method of traveling to Sanguineum. That’s why this old rundown art museum is called a heritage site and is still being guarded until today,” Rapentahil explained.
“So does this painting have the ability to teleport someone elsewhere as well?” Henrick asked.
Deff shook his head and responded, “Sanguineum is a place that doesn’t exist on this continent. It’s another dimension that the Vampire Alchemists used all their power and knowledge to create.”
Shaneth suddenly said, “Come to think of it… There was a time when we went through a fireplace and traveled to the Chimera Dimension through it.”
“So that’s why you aren’t surprised at all. So does that mean the vampires use this painting as well to enter and exit Sanguineum?” Henrick asked.
“No, there are a few more paintings that connect to Sanguineum aside from this. Of course, those are being kept by the vampires,” Deff explained.
Shaneth tilted her head in confusion and asked, “But how did this painting that’s a gateway to the vampires' city end up in your possession?”
Rapentahil laughed a few times and responded, “Why do you think this old man is mixed up with these young Vampire Hunters? That’s because I’m quite skilled when it comes to things like this.”
Deff smiled and added, “This painting was found by Sir Rapentahil. There was a vampire disguised as a human among the criminals he killed in the past.”
Kang Yoon-Soo went through his memories. The original method of going to Sanguineum was to find and kill all of the vampires in hiding and collect their keys, in order to open the door to the basement of a mansion. The key Rapelka had dropped was one of those keys that were required to open the door to that basement.
‘But I avoided needing to do all that by cooperating with them.’
The reason why he had decided to cooperate with the Vampire Hunters was that they had the means to go to Sanguineum without going through all of that trouble; he had no reason to waste any time killing the vampires hiding in the city one by one.
“Now, let’s start moving. I suggest that you carry a lamp with you at all times, since Sanguineum is always dark because of the magical fog surrounding it,” Rapentahil said.
“Aren’t you coming with us?” Shaneth asked.
“I can’t leave my spot at the investigation headquarters for that long, and truth be told… My body isn’t what it used to be back in my younger days, so I don’t think I’ll be of any help in combat either,” Rapentahil replied.
Renil snickered and said, “So, has the old man realized he’s nothing but dead weight?”
“You insolent, arrogant punk,” Rapentahil shot back, glaring at Renil. He then let out a sigh as he continued, “Ha… It’s such a shame… If only my friend were here, these vampires would all be taken care of by one strike of his sword.”
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“Don’t just keep yapping about it and bring your knight friend over here already,” Renil grumbled.
“Haa… Shut up, you punk. I could easily have taken care of five vampires if I were still in my prime,” Rapentahil said.
“Don’t make me laugh. Hey, grandpa, have you gone senile or something?” Renil replied, raising a brow.
“You punk! Do you think I would still be in my position if I were senile?” Rapentahil shouted as he slammed his fist into Renil’s head.
“Now, now, why don’t we start making our move? Gasen should be waiting for us right now,” Deff said as he put a bluish silver sword on his back.
Rapentahil looked at him and said, “Please kill all the vampires.”
“Isn’t that why we’re here in the first place?” Deff replied with a smile before disappearing into the painting. The painting of the black city rippled a bit as he entered it. Kang Yoon-Soo followed behind him soon after.
“See you over there,” Shaneth said as she entered the painting.
Henrick and Iris looked at each other before Iris said, “Henrick, why don’t you go in first?”
“No way, you go first,” Henrick replied.
“Is Henrick planning to escape after being left alone?” Iris asked.
“What do you take me for…?” Henrick responded.
“Hmmm… Then I will trust you,” Iris said, before she breathed in and dove into the painting.
Henrick was left all alone after Iris disappeared into the painting. He touched the painting a few times while stuck in a dilemma. ‘Should I go in…? Or not…? Selfishness can be quite troublesome…’
“What are you doing dillydallying?” Rapentahil asked, staring at him.
Henrick scratched the back of his head and replied, “Ha… What’s the worst that can happen? Death?” Then, he jumped into the painting and the scene around him started to turn blurry and dark.
***
The buildings in Sanguineum were all black, and the thick blackish-red fog that enveloped the city did not allow a single ray of light to enter it. A scent of blood lingered in the air of the city surrounded by darkness.
[You have arrived at the vampires' ossuary, Sanguineum.]
[The city is filled with all sorts of dangers lurking in the darkness, and they will be after your blood.]
[The city’s residents are hostile to all races except for vampires.]
[Saints, healers, and garlic farmers will be targeted specially by the vampires.]
+This place is related to a legendary quest.
+You may skip the earlier parts of the quest and jump into the part related to this place right away.
+You may quickly receive the rewards by skipping, but you will be exposed to a ridiculous difficulty level.
+Do you wish to commence the legendary quest related to Sanguineum?
“Yes,” Kang Yoon-Soo muttered.
[This is an opportunity not recommended by the system.]
[Your level is drastically lower than the recommended level for this quest.]
[Do you really wish to commence the legendary quest?]
“I said yes,” Kang Yoon-Soo said.
[The Legendary Quest—Vampire Lord has been accepted.]
“It’s dark, so please be careful, everyone,” Deff said as he lit a lamp. The group moved along through a forest on the outskirts of the city.
Shaneth lit a large flame on her finger, then said, “There really isn’t a single speck of light in this place.”
“The vampires are nocturnal and have excellent night vision, so of course, daytime doesn’t exist in this place at all,” Deff explained.
Henrick observed the tall black buildings on the horizon. He furrowed his brows and said, “Why do those buildings look exactly like the ones in Vulpehin?”
“That’s right. Sanguineum was built with Vulpehin as its model. That’s why the two cities are nearly identical to each other based on their structures,” Deff explained.
However, the difference between this place and Vulpehin stood out like a sore thumb—there was an extremely luxurious castle right in the middle of the black buildings. The castle was extremely large, exuding majesty despite the darkness.
“What’s that place?” Henrick asked.
“That’s the castle where the Vampire Lord resides,” Deff replied.
“I’m guessing he’s ridiculously strong if he lives in a place like that,” Henrick said.
“The blackish-red fog surrounding Sanguineum was created by the Vampire Lord,” Deff added.
Henrick furrowed his brows and said, “Wait a minute. You said this place was created by the vampires themselves, right? But why’s there still sunlight inside it?”
“Even the vampires can’t just live by themselves, since the world has to be balanced and fair to everyone,” Deff said as he pushed down a tall shrub with his hand. The bush bent over until it snapped like a thin twig. Deff then added, “They also need nature if they want to maintain the environment on the outskirts of the city. That’s why the vampires chose to use this magical fog to block out the sunlight they hate.”
He looked at Kang Yoon-Soo. The real reason they were here in Sanguineum was in his hands. He asked, “But how do you plan to spread the disease? The vampires in this place have an excellent command structure.”
“We’ll go to the ossuary,” Kang Yoon-Soo said.
“Hmm… You’re right. There’s no better place to spread the disease than that place,” Deff responded.
Shaneth suddenly asked, “Why do we have to spread the disease at the ossuary?”
“The place in Sanguineum called the ossuary is where the vampires’ ancestors were laid to rest, and it’s also where their remains are being kept. The vampires of the city usually visit the ossuary at least once a day,” Deff explained.
“So it must be a good place to spread the disease since it has a lot of foot traffic,” Shaneth added.
Renil loaded a bolt into his crossbow as he said, “But the ossuary isn’t an easy place to infiltrate. The ossuary is treated like a holy pilgrimage site by the vampires, and that means there’s going to be a lot of vampires guarding it.”
“I guess the problem is how we’re going to get all the way there,” Henrick grumbled.
“I have a map of Sanguineum that I drew when we came to scout it out before. It’s not perfect, but we’ll be able to find our way if we use this,” Deff said, taking out a map.
Kang Yoon-Soo closed his eyes and tried to recall, ‘The life when I lived as a map expert and scoured every corner of the continent…’
The landscape of Sanguineum, the locations of all the vampires standing guard, and the shortest way to get to the ossuary—he recalled all of it. He opened his eyes and said, “We can’t go this way.”
“What did you say?” Deff asked.
“There’s no way we can reach the ossuary without getting caught by the vampires if we walk,” Kang Yoon-Soo said as he drew his sword. He continued, “We’ll fly there instead.”