Return to Jorgaldur Volume III: blood warrior

Hidden in the mountain (I)

Getting out of the county didn't bother her, as she just had to walk out. Sure, she would be found out, but it didn't matter if she was walking away from the place. For now, though, she wanted to take the opportunity to investigate, to learn more about one of her enemies.

Surely, there was no way she could eliminate him. Her power was insufficient, and she didn't know nearby places to level up. If she was lucky, some would be found. If not, she would have to come back later. Although she would make sure to perfect her anti-infrared suit.

At the moment, Gjaki was in a forest, in which she had to be very careful. Although not as densely distributed, there were some golems and other devices inside. Still, she knew what to look for with her Bats, and she didn't go near areas of vegetation too dense to hide them.

"It's stressful," she told herself.

She had to dodge surveillance devices and forest dwellers. At the very least, the vampiress had to make sure not to fight near anything that might give her away. To do this, her scouts had to examine the area meticulously, making sure nothing was left behind.

She breathed a bit of relief when she almost stopped finding them by the next night. The area was level 60, so it was no use trying to level up there, or get blood. Therefore, she kept walking until she found a small town, or maybe it was a big village.

Gjaki spent the last hours of the night investigating it with her spies, but she didn't find anything strange, abnormal or suspicious. The only thing a little unusual was that there was no such thing as an inn to spend the night in. Perhaps, that wasn't so unusual in a place where out-of-county travelers wouldn't come.

It was approaching dawn, so she stayed in the closest thing to a shelter she had found. It was between the vegetation and a small stone wall that would protect her from the direct sun. She intended to watch them some more before going to sleep.

However, something peculiar caught her attention. Many villagers, men, women and children, began to come out of their houses and gather in the main square. The sun was just beginning to rise when several carts arrived, in which they got on.

"Where will they go?" she wondered.

She hesitated. Moving during the day was dangerous, and perhaps they were just going to work in a nearby field. However, something told her that she should follow that lead. Perhaps, it was the downcast faces of the villagers, or perhaps, it was the armed guards escorting the carts.

She dressed in the same full-body clothing she had worn as Kigja. It was one she had perfected while waiting for the counts' meeting to end. After that, she followed them.

She had lost sight of the carts hours ago, for they had gone beyond the limit of her scouts. However, she kept walking, for the route they had followed was quite obvious.

She would have been able to keep the distance if she had used up all of his resources. However, the vampiress didn't want to waste blood, since there wasn't much left, and she didn't dare go too fast either. Although few, she had found a couple of golems in the forest that surrounded the paths followed by the carts.

Hours passed before she saw the carts again, when they were returning. It was near dusk, and the occupants looked dirty, exhausted, and silent. In addition, there were many more carts, which would take different forks to return to their respective homes. There were also a few that were arriving, but much less.

"What do they need so many people for?" she wondered.

She kept walking, more lightly dressed once it got dark, and she was able to get rid of her sun protection. The tracks of the carts wheels were obvious, so she knew she was on the right path, but not where it was taking her. That was when she felt it.

It was a faint, albeit slightly familiar blood aura. It had a certain resemblance to that of the blood knights, although the aura seemed incomplete.

It was strange that she had sensed it from so far away, but it hardly increased its intensity when she got closer. It didn't make much sense, so she felt a little taken aback. What she did know was that she had arrived at the right place. It was a small mountain with a hole in the center, and it was surrounded by lesser vampires.

"Is it a volcano?" she wondered.

She sent three Bats to investigate. There were multiple wagons there to transport she didn't know what, and rails that led into the interior of that mountain. However, she couldn't know what was inside, as it was completely sealed.

A little blood aura leaked from the place. There were also some kind of large fans, which were powered manually by the workers, perhaps with mana. Thanks to them, the aura was dispersed, reaching further but maintaining a low density. It was oppressive to non-vampires, but not unbearable.

The night shift workers were in charge of dispelling said aura, preparing and repairing the carts, the rails or some platforms. Clearly, they were in charge of readying the place so that others could work the next day.

What intrigued Gjaki the most was what was inside. Surely, the blood aura was extremely powerful if they needed to vent what little was leaking out.

After a while, she saw a luxurious carriage arrive, from which a vampire got out. She recognized him as one of those who had attacked the mansion.

"It must be Pokmu," she deduced. "My god, he wears a monocle like a typical villain. It's too cliché."

Aside from recognizing him, his level was high, and everyone seemed to treat him with respect, or fear, so she didn't doubt his identity. Not to mention that he looked like the bad guy. Although it was also true that the previous two didn't.

The vampire entered through a door into the interior of the mountain, and came out a couple of hours later. He didn't seem very pleased, and yelled something at an underling. Shortly after, he went to the carriage, got into it, and drove away.

Gjaki came out of hiding, and approached the place, with a clear objective. She had to go in and see what was in there. She had to do it before morning.