44 An Agitated Crowd

"I am the patriarch of the Vampires of the Divine Light, and the lord of Dawnbreak."

"You can call me Lord Kaschar."

Reed did not intend to use the name Reed. After all, he was still under disguise in Grimm, and even the smallest risks had to be prevented.

Kaschar was a surname in the Norland Empire. While it was not very common, it was not exactly rare. Even Grimm had two Kaschar families, so nothing would be exposed.

"Perhaps you are still doubtful and fearful."

"But I can tell you without reservation."

"The Vampires of the Divine are not the evil bloodsuckers you know, we are the descendants of the gods."

"We shall lead all of you to glory!"

"Have you seen the city you are in now?"

"This was built by both man and vampires a hundred years ago."

"You will get the protection of the Vampires of the Divine Light here, you will get land, jobs, and everything you want to have.

"All I want is for you to work hard."

"You must be very curious. Why did the Vampires of the Divine Light bring you back to Dawnbreak from thousands of miles away?"

Rackel looked at the circle tall platform at the center of the plaza, and he was immediately attracted by the words of the vampiric patriarch.

"Were we going to keep you like fodder in captivity like how the legends told? Were we going to plunder your property? Were we going to brutally kill you?"

The straightforwardness of his words caused everyone to fall into an inexplicable emotion, after being snatched into this strange vampiric castle, fear had always been hidden deep in their hearts.

It was the power of the vampires that kept them in line.

When they suddenly heard Reed's words, the atmosphere in the crowd immediately began to change.

"Milord, wasn't that the case?"

A shadow hiding in the crowd shouted, asking the question everyone wanted to ask.

Reed nodded appreciatively at the direction of the voice.

"Good question. I can vouch with my life, this is not the case. We, Vampires of the Divine Light bear no malice against you. We are the Vampires of the Divine Light, the descendants of the gods. Man, was once friends with our ancestors in the past, so shall it be now, and in the future. Inside the walls of Dawnbreak, as long as the laws are not violated, there would be no harm wrought upon man by the vampires. Your lives are protected by the Vampires of the Divine Arts, so are your private properties, and even the entirety of you will be protected by the Vampires of the Divine Light."

This immediately caused a series of exclamations, and no one thought that this vampiric patriarch would say such a thing.

Man were once friends of the vampire's ancestors? This, this was just too shocking.

Moreover, this vampire had promised not to harm them and protect their private property. This simply subverted all of their inherent mindsets.

Even Rackel was no exception, as he was deeply shocked by the figure on the tall platform.

"Many people still harbor doubts about us, and perhaps even think that this is just a ploy by the vampires."

His voice was not loud, but it passed clearly into every person's ears.

Most people turned their heads with some guilt and pretended to not care. After all, the reputation of the vampires was abysmal in the eyes of humans, and it was still somewhat unrealistic to expect them to trust the vampires in a short period of time.

"That doesn't matter. You are totally free to think so."

Unexpectedly, there was no excuse nor any reprimand, and he had agreed with them just like that.

This made Rackel even more curious. Was it true that the Divine Light Vampires were really different?

It was not only him. All of the humans present were shocked. A noble would not have brooked any outsiders slandering them, but why these vampires... were so different?

Reed's face seemed to radiate divine light, his tone was slow and steady, and was full of confident charm.

"Why do I say this. It's because the Vampires of the Divine Light are destined to be your protector. We have plenty of time, and you can go ahead to better understand us with ease. Besides, with our current strength, we did not have to tell you all this, and could just threaten you with force if we wanted to be evil incarnate in your minds. However, we, the Vampires of the Divine Light are different from the evil vampires in your mind. We are a divine race that descended from the gods, and had once lived under the sun and were friends of the men. The vampires that you mostly encounter, are bloodsuckers, evil and terrifying bloodsuckers, and not the Vampires of the Divine Light."

"Just like the human race. There are Northlanders, Norlanders, the Highlanders, the Blueskins, and the like. The vampires too are divided into many races. Are the Norlanders the same as the Blueskins?"

Humans by nature relied on repetition, and a lie would become truth if it was repeated a hundred times.

With the notion that the Vampires of the Divine Light were different from those evil vampires being constantly spread by Reed, even the most stubborn of people would start to ask questions.

Plus, there were various examples as proof, which made many of the humans believe it somewhat.

Even Rackel, a Level 7 warrior with a rich experience as a career mercenary, fell into deep thought after listening to Reed's words.

He did not know whether Reed was speaking the truth or not, but he was sure that if the Vampires of the Divine Light had any evil goals, it could be achieved without all this... because the Divine Light Vampires had insurmountable power.

Power was truth, verse of the God of Justice.

"So, my people, you are the first residents of Dawnbreak, and you should feel honored. Dawnbreak is far away from the threat of war and the incursion of beasts. This land is beyond the world in the legends of the Goddess of Life. You can live here in peace and quiet, without famine, plague, orcs, or blackmailing nobles. As long as you work hard, you can support yourself and your family."

Reed's expression was serious, and there was a force in his voice that people could not help but believe.

"When you were registered, I trust that each of you has heard that adults will be allocated twenty acres of land." He then paused, and his scorching gaze scanned the crowd below.

He keenly felt that the breathing of the crowd had gotten a little faster.

For common folk, land was the foundation of everything, and no matter how much doubt they had in their hearts, they would inevitably have hope as well.

"Now, I proclaim that all of the promises made by the Vampires of the Divine Light are valid. Every adult will be allocated ten acres of land!!"

Whoa!

There was an uproar. Many of the common folks living at the border all their lives were only farming for someone else almost jumped with excitement when they heard this.

Ten acres of land, it was more than enough to feed a family, and every adult has a share.

Goddess of Life above, if what this lord had said was true, what reason do they have to refuse to live here?!

"Is it true? I can also get 10 acres?"

"Garnier, you have four adults in your family. Doesn't that mean you get 40 acres of land? Goddess above, you are going to make a fortune!"

"Is, is this really possible? For everyone to be allocated land..."

Reed waited until the excited voice of the crowd below died down a little before he threw another even more explosive message.

"In the near future, the Vampire of the Divine Light will build Mage Tower and schools in the city. As long as you are a resident of Dawnbreak, you can learn knowledge and magic regardless of your birth, background, or family."

Reed's last words completely plunged the crowd into an unprecedented agitation.

Learning knowledge and magic!!

In a world where knowledge and magic were monopolized by the nobility, this was undoubtedly the most precious thing.

Was all of this real?

While reason told many people it was impossible, but they could not help having the thought.

What if it was real? If they could learn knowledge and magic, whatever the price may be, it was still worth it.

"Goddess of Life above, if my boy can learn magic, I will certainly take the Vampires of the Divine Light as relatives."

"This, how is this possible. We can learn magic? We are commoners..."

"The incredible Vampires of the Divine Light..."

Rackel looked at the crowd around him descending into an inexplicable frenetic atmosphere and shook his head helplessly.

The Vampires of the Divine Light, for better or worse, had now achieved their goal.

The favorable opinion of this group of people towards the Vampire of the Divine Light had increased by many times over, and the initial caution they had had largely disappeared.

However, Rackel did not say anything. The vampiric patriarch's words earlier not only roused the surrounding crowd, even he had the urge to stay here.

The temptation of allowing his offsprings to study and learn magic was so great that he could not refuse.

If he had not gone out to join a mercenary company and become a mercenary who crossed paths with the God of Death every single day, he would still be tending the fields in the small town of Ayric.

Knowledge and magic represented status and honor, and that allowed them to be like the nobility, who were the masters of this world.

No one could refuse such a temptation.

Seeing the fear and doubt in the eyes of the crowd below turn into hope and anticipation, and those resentful eyes turning into respect and fawning.

Reed laughed in his heart.

It worked.