Chapter 43

Vampires here in this world were honestly kinda disappointing for the rank and file. They were a bog-standard vampire with enhanced speed, reflexes, and strength but besides the so ever so minor blood manipulation in which they saturated either their own blood or blood they had taken from someone else with their mana to control it. They had no other abilities.

But my hopes for a clean and easy purge were ever... Ever so fucking quickly destroyed as the moment Alpha threw a massive fireball into the large stone gate of the Red Tower to force it open, we awoke its guardians. And the ever-so-poignant proof of these Vampires being connected to Molag Bal somehow were realized.

A dozen Deathhounds raced towards us with their large clawed paws creating sparks across the ground with their sprint towards us even as the nearby temperature plummeted from their presence. "Don't let them bite you," I warned simply as I was well aware of the terribly freezing breath they had that would give anything they bite terrible frostbite to the point that should they get you by the leg or the arm for a good number of seconds.

It was more likely for the limb to shatter into chunks of ice instead of you bleeding to death via them ripping the limb off with their uncountably many needle-like teeth.

I didn't allow the Deathhounds to run us down, I sent a hail of knives made out of Baldur's holy light and like I thought before, undead certainly was weak to Baldur's 'holy light' combination as the knives that hit home in the death hounds bodies made their forms explode. Which ended up sending blackened gore everywhere as the holy light met the essence of darkness, cryomancy, and necromancy creating a terribly violent reaction.

And so Beta and I sent projectile constructs of holy light into the death hounds with Beta using her bow and the light to great affect as though she was Quincy from Bleach honestly. But Alpha wasn't a slouch either in her own shadow magic would still impale the monsters as we stepped forward and into the Red Tower fully leaving the corpses of the front guard dog monsters behind us.

"Were those hell hounds?" Alpha asked with clinical interest as thankfully despite the hounds having a slight dog-like appearance they were so monstrous with their overly skinny frames, glowing red eyes, and the mouth full of needle teeth that I didn't feel anything about killing a dog like creature.

I shook my head and frowned as I inspected the death hound at our feet and finally, after a moment of silence as we moved onwards I spoke softly. "They are death hounds, hounds resurrected from death with necromancy and cryomancy filling their forms with dark power... If they are here then beware the Gargoyles I mentioned previously. With their stone skin and precious metals and gems that make up their core they are rather resistant to both physical and magical damage." I wanted them.

The Deathhounds were never something I was really scared of, as the world of Eminence in Shadow did already have its own monsters that could take on elemental effects, so I was well used to the idea of monster slaying. But the Gargoyles were purpose-made to slay warriors and mages so we needed to keep wary of them.

A couple of minutes later as we dealt with the last death hound on the ground floor, we entered the next floor and the surroundings brightened as we clearly entered the more habitable areas of the Red Tower with accountable oil lanterns and large candle's giving soft light to the large winding hallways that lead to unknown area's.

Which was a firm reminder of how the massive Red Tower was the haven for an entire race of beings that couldn't survive under the sun's glare. "Filthy cattle! How dare you break into the glorious Blood Tower!" A mousey voice yelled at us and I blinked and couldn't help but break into hearty laughter at what stood before us.

A literal midget not even three and half feet tall armed with a matching sized rapier stood to block us with two massive gargoyles that were eight feet tall lumbering behind the midget with heavy steps being made with each movement.

"The first vampire we meet, the first sentient guard we come across is a literal midget..." I said dryly as I knew it wasn't a young vampire boy or something as the midget had an admittedly well-cared-for beard that hung down to its chest.

The midget in question thumped its chest mightily with a tiny fist making my lips twitch and it proudly spoke. "Nay, I am merely the first guard! The first among many great Vampire guards that keep the Holy Blood Tower clear of cattle like yourself! Now prepare to meet you end you misbegotten wretches!" He said with pride clear in his voice as he drew his rapier with one hand and in the other he aimed his hand at us and glowed with a crimson light that I recognized...

The inborn drain life spells that even the weakest of vampires of Nirn knew from conception. That allowed the vampire to use their magic to drain the stamina, and lifeforce of their target and restore it to themself.

Alpha and Beta both made their attacks blowing the Gargolyes away from the tiny vampire who flinched and screamed at the blinding light that came from Beta's holy arrow that exploded within his vision like a purpose-made flashbang targeting his eyes.

And in that time in which the Gargoyles got blasted backwards, I stepped forward blurring into motion with my speed and with a gurgling noise I ended the life of the midget vampire with a conjured javelin of light spearing through its heart and after a moment the vampire broke apart into a cloud of slightly glowing ashes. But I didn't bother to inspect or collect the ashes as I heard a Gargoyle roar at me as it withstood Alpha's lancing shadow tendrils that were boring into its flesh as it attempted to smash its massive clawed fist into my head.

As the fist came down I used my literal years of training under Heracles and fighting much larger pure brawn enemies to grab the monster by the wrist and then I used its weight as a fulcrum and as it landed on its backside in front of me with its wings framed around me, I made a knife out of holy light and rammed it directly into the gargoyles head as it recollected itself after being thrown.

I knew the gargoyle was dead as the head and the rest of the body just collapsed and broke apart into stone, glittering jewels, and of course some ores of precious metals. "I need to get the method of summoning Gargoyles... It can be a way to train Shadow Garden's, Numbers and make some good money at the same time." I said with a small frown at the realization of how heavily defended this place was going to be.