“Hahaha, hahahahaha!!”
On the floor of the cathedral, Count Palocas writhed like a beast caught in a hunting trap, his chest heaving violently—each inhalation sounding like mocking laughter, each exhalation a furious roar. Every struggle was a provocation hurled at Death itself.
These humans, who had yet to grasp the gravity of the situation, would not remain arrogant for long. Soon, they would bear the wrath of a vampire count—an inferno enough to destroy heaven and earth.
As Palocas’s laughter echoed, Lan Qi handed a massive syringe to the Executioner.
“Mr. Executioner, our job is to save lives. That is everything.”
As his words fell, it was as if the sharp cry of a medical alarm blared in the air, heralding a patient’s crisis.
“We must give everything we have for the patient before us.”
“...Alright.”
The Executioner accepted the Blood Pressure Resuscitator. Though he was no doctor, something told him he would wield this medical instrument with ease.
White light illuminated every corner. The cold, steel tools of surgery gleamed harshly, reflecting blinding rays.In this pristine, immaculate emergency room, everything was under strict control. Even time itself was calculated down to the millisecond.
The patient was ready for surgery. His face, twisted in agony and mental strain, flushed red as blood coursed through his veins like fire. One glance—even without the monitor’s display—was enough to see: his blood pressure was dangerously high.
The tense air felt frozen, broken only by the ragged sound of his breathing and the heavy thud of an overworked heart.
From above, under the central light, the Executioner located the largest vessel in the crook of the count’s arm—the brachial artery.
His eyes locked on the noble’s skin, steady as he prepared to drain the excess blood.
“Hahahahaha… so, you finally know fear? Just wait until the sun is gone—then see what follows.”
The polished floor tiles, once immaculate, were stained with blood, while the glassy reflections cast an icy pallor across Palocas’s face. A twisted smile flickered across his lips before he broke into wild, triumphant laughter, as though celebrating something joyous.
“Praise the goddess…”
The Executioner gripped the syringe, his eyes burning with fanaticism.
According to Mr. Lan Qi’s ecological research, vampires of this age treated humans as livestock and playthings. The stronger the vampire, the greater the mountain of sins upon their head. To subdue such a being was, in itself, immeasurable merit.
The Executioner’s mouth twisted into a dreadful grin as he crouched, plunging the syringe into the count’s brachial artery. His chest rose with a deep breath, muscles taut as he pulled back on the plunger.
“……”
The instant the needle pierced his flesh, Palocas felt only a faint prick of itchiness—nothing compared to the searing pain he had endured earlier.
Then a wave of icy cold spread through his body.
His body jolted violently, but paladins and attendants pinned him firmly to the ground.
“Don’t be afraid—it doesn’t hurt…”
The Executioner slowly began to draw out blood. Each pull of the plunger was like tearing away fragments of the count’s very life.
The three clergy members watched as the dark-red liquid filled the transparent tube—dense, turbid, heavy—as if countless karmic debts lay hidden within.
“!!”
The count, who only moments earlier had been sneering at their futility, suddenly froze, his mind racing. He realized at last what they were doing.
“You—you bastards! What are you doing?! Stop!! Stop at once, you damnable worms!!!”
Palocas’s scream tore through the chamber, primal and desperate, like a beast being flayed alive. For the first time since his birth, he tasted something more terrifying than death itself. He thrashed with everything he had, frantic to break free.
Gradually…
A heavy dizziness overwhelmed him. His vision blurred, his body grew light.
Each pull of the Blood Pressure Resuscitator siphoned his life away. He willed himself to fight back, but his limbs felt weighed down by stone, immovable.
“Take deep breaths. The dizziness is normal.”
Lan Qi’s gentle voice whispered by his ear.
“No!!”
The count’s voice trembled, shattering into terror. At last, he realized the truth: that black-haired, green-eyed man was a monster far more deranged and terrifying than he could ever imagine.
As his noble blood was drained, Palocas could feel his vaunted strength ebbing away. Numbness spread to his hands and feet. Each heartbeat crashed down on him like a hammer, stretching time into endless agony.
The Executioner worked furiously, yanking the plunger again and again, like rowing in a dragon boat—ruthlessly dragging the blood from the vampire’s veins.
“Ahhh…”
The air itself seemed frozen. Only the faint, faltering breath of Palocas remained.
“Huperion, our project On Ecological BaLan Qi and Vampire Governance now has its first precious data and practical results.”
Lan Qi clasped his hands behind his back, his voice full of satisfaction.
Huperion’s eyes widened.
“…‘Our’ project?!”
She recalled overhearing Lan Qi and Princess Alexia speaking on the second floor earlier about his academic plans.
But she had never imagined she herself had already been listed as a co-researcher!
“Of course. Your name will be on the final paper.”
Lan Qi looked genuinely surprised at her disbelief.
Huperion hesitated for two whole seconds before shutting her eyes tightly and nodding in pained resignation.
“…Alright. Then, thank you.”
She knew Lan Qi’s intentions were good.
But still—if possible—she would rather her name never appear on that paper. For once published, it would read less like research and more like a war criminal’s confession. The author line itself would be a roll call of criminals.
And yet… for this journey to the Empire of Kreyth, to suppress the vampires—she had to go. In fact, her duty to go was greater than even Lan Qi’s.
So Huperion could only share in Lan Qi’s “scientific achievements” through gritted teeth.
From this point on, there was no going back to the Temple of the Goddess of Fate.
Meanwhile, as they drained the count, they conversed casually.
“By the way, even if the count weakens in the daylight, we’ll still need to keep drawing his blood constantly, right?”
The young merchant heir, who had been sitting at the banquet table, now crept closer to watch the operation, asking with genuine curiosity.
He seemed utterly unafraid now—as if a vampire count was nothing much at all.
The stoic female guard stared at him in shock. Never had she imagined their foolish, kind-hearted young master would calmly say something so utterly deranged!
And yet, thinking carefully, it made sense. To imprison such a creature nightly within the castle was nerve-wracking. If he ever recovered his blood and struck back, they might all face a catastrophe beyond repair.
“Mm, but don’t worry. I’ll make sure everyone sleeps well and eats well. The next four days will be full of peace and fun.”
Lan Qi turned back to them with his usual sunny smile.
“……”
Seeing that guileless grin, the others finally understood—he had even more extreme plans in mind.
But for now, with Lan Qi on their side, they could not help but feel almost too safe.