Chapter 143

"Nightmares come often, don't they, Ash?"

As the battlefield was drawing to a close, Celendion abruptly posed the question.

Upon turning, he was still standing there, calmly smiling, despite his subordinates dropping dead around him.

"..."

I didn't like it.

However, it was my role to delay Celendion's entry into the battlefield as much as possible while his subordinates were being annihilated.

I decided to pretend to listen attentively to whatever nonsense he was about to spout.

"Nightmares?"

"Yes, nightmares."

"Do people even exist who don't have nightmares?"

Celendion's smile deepened.

This bastard, who seemed so cold and innocent when we first met, let his guard down too much as the battlefield approached.

As if he was thoroughly enjoying the war, the death.

Honestly, it was slightly terrifying to witness these monsters showing their true nature.

"Nightmares reflect the deepest fears inside a person. They materialize what one fears the most."

I frowned.

He was suddenly mumbling about psychology related to dreams.

I wished I could give him a book written by Freud or Jung from Earth.

"But imagine this. What if that nightmare doesn't remain in dreams and comes to reality?"

"...?"

"What if it emerges from the other side as a monster with a clear form, alive and breathing, and stands before your eyes?"

Celendion stared intently at the wine glass in his hand.

"How would you feel then?"

"What...nonsense is this?"

"Nightmares aren't simply dreams. They are connected to something deeper."

Celendion drained the wine glass in one gulp.

The wine bottle was already empty, and that was the last of the wine left.

"If you truly aim to annihilate us and save humanity, you better think about this point."

Whether this was some nonsensical play or a hint to help clear the game...

I was left puzzled, unable to figure out which one it was.

Thud!

Celendion, placing the empty wine glass on the table, squinted his bloodshot eyes like the moon.

"Now, young one, let me ask once again... do you have nightmares often?"

"...?"

"What do you fear the most?"

What do I fear the most?

Without realizing, I got lost in thought. It was...

"I hope it's not something too horrifying."

Slowly, Celendion shifted his gaze towards the fortress.

"Because, whatever it is, if you look too deep into it, it may become reality."

***

Kiyaaaaaa-!

The mid-boss battle of Alpha and Beta. Phase 2.

The two vampires, whose cores were destroyed and had fallen, stood up again as Fallen Blood vampires.

They lost their reasoning, but their respective combat abilities had only increased.

Alpha rained down even more blood magic than before, and Beta, her whole body covered in muscles, had grown twice as big.

Alpha and Beta were squeezing out every last drop of their life force from their source.

Even if the duration was short, a surge in their specs was unatural.

"Hiieek! We can't withstand this?!"

Kugwakwakwak!

Evangeline screamed while narrowly avoiding the raining blood magic.

"..."

Lucas avoided all of Beta's axe strikes with his icy gaze.

He managed to avoid them, but unlike the first phase, he couldn't find an opportunity to counterattack.

"Godhand, Bodybag! Are you not ready yet?!"

Evangeline jumped. The fortress she had been standing on until a moment ago had been smashed by blood magic and turned into dust.

"We are reaching our limit! Quickly, do someth... Aaargh!"

Crash-!

Eventually, the relentless blood magic cruelly struck Evangeline who had reached her limit in evading.

She managed to block it with her shield, but couldn't fully withstand the shock.

She was flung backward and slammed into the ruins of the fortress. Bang!

The same was true for Lucas. He had reached his limit.

Pit-

A long line of blood ran down Lucas's cheek. It was the first time Beta's axe blade had made contact with his body.

Pit, pipit-

Once he allowed one attack, the rest followed like a landslide. Lines of blood started to form on Lucas's body.

Bang!

Lucas's breastplate shattered into pieces after being hit by the axe.

Lucas took a strong leap backward, and Beta's axe swung upwards in pursuit.

The next attack was going to hit not the armor, but his throat.

Just at that moment, when Alpha and Beta took another step towards Evangeline and Lucas, who had been cornered, a light chuckle came forth.

"Wow..."

Evangeline, her face covered in dust and bruises, smirked.

"Leading them sure is a pain. Damn monsters."

Swoosh!

A net made of silver sprang up from underneath Alpha and Beta's feet.

It was conjured by Godhand using gathered silver nuggets.

As a metalmancer capable of freely manipulating metal, fine craftsmanship wasn't his forte.

He could only create simple, crude shapes.

However, as long as it took the form of a net, it could serve its function to bind vampires.

Bodybag moved and adjusted the net that Godhand conjured, and at the crucial moment, she used it to bind the enemies.

Kyaahhh! Kyaahhh!

Upon seeing the monsters struggle in the silver net, Evangeline squawked out.

"Why did it take so long! We almost died!"

In the distance, a sweaty Godhand was trying to catch his breath.

Godhand swallowed repeatedly, his face conveying utter exhaustion.

"Converting...huff, this amount of silver nuggets...huff, into a net on the spot. It's no ordinary feat, it drains a lot...huff...of energy..."

If he had created such a large silver net in advance, vampires would obviously detect it.

They wouldn't come near it.

The trap could only be used after all the other monsters were eliminated, and Alpha and Beta were in their Fallen Blood state.

Hence, both the creation and deployment of the net had to take place on the spot.

Kyaahhhhhh!

Trapped in the net, Alpha and Beta roared, contorting their bodies.

Alpha tried to use magic even while tangled in the net, and Beta attempted to tear the net apart with brute force.

Flash!

Phoo-phoof!

Before they could, however, Junior, who had rushed forward, countered Alpha's magic and thrust her elemental magic into Alpha's core.

Beta was struck by silver arrows in the head, neck, and chest. Damien, who had gotten closer, took out Beta cleanly with a triple shot.

They couldn't withstand being attacked on their exposed cores while trapped. The two vampires fell into complete silence.

"Whew~!"

Evangeline, dusting herself off as she got up from the rubble, muttered.

"Did we have to go through all that trouble to capture them...?"

From the opposite end of the wall, Lucas, who was fixing his tousled hair, responded in a slightly exhausted voice.

"We needed to prevent their next transformation."

Alpha and Beta originally have three phases.

If their health is halved in their Fallen Blood state, they 'fuse'.

And they become a monster that unleashes both Beta's physical attacks and Alpha's magic attacks.

In Ash's words, they were a 'fucking insane duo till the end'.

But by completely trapping and killing them using silver, you can skip the third phase altogether.

'But seriously, how did Senior exactly figure out the monsters' behavior patterns?'

Evangeline glanced down at the wall below.

Commander Ash of the humans and King Celendion of the monsters were still immersed in their long-winded conversation.

...It was surreal.

That vampire king, stronger than any monster they had ever encountered, and Ash, calmly sipping his drink while engaging in conversation, were a surreal sight.

'That monster could kill Senior with a mere flick of a hand...'

Surely, he must have some basis to be behaving this way.

Even so, his audacity was beyond comprehension.

In retrospect, Ash had always been like that. He didn't seem to possess the human instinct for self-preservation.

Was it because he was a cool-headed commander?

Or was it...

"Alright, everyone must be tired. But let's prepare for the final battle."

Lucas's words snapped Evangeline back to reality.

Lucas, having tidied his hair and armor, was back to his usual clean-cut self.

With a slightly pale face, Lucas looked at the members of the party.

"...This is the final showdown."

***

The battle on the wall had come to a complete end.

"Alpha and Beta have fallen."

Celendion, watching his two subordinates die a gruesome death tangled in the silver net, clapped in a manner reminiscent of a spectator.

Clap, clap, clap.

"Well done, humans."

"..."

I stared silently at the Vampire King.

I did not like this.

Despite losing all 999 of his minions, this monstrous brat didn't lose his cool. It was incredibly irritating.

"Well, that was a long preamble."

Celendion turned to me with a cherubic smile and suddenly reached out.

"Shall we start the real battle now?"

Thunk!

"What?!"

"Let's join the fray."

An invisible force gripped my throat. As my breath hitched, I was lifted into the air.

"May I escort you, lamb?"

With that, Celendion kicked off the ground and soared upwards.

Swoosh-!

I felt as though the earth and sky had flipped. I let out a scream without even realizing.

"What kind of escort is this, you crazy son of a bitch!"

While Celendion climbed leisurely as though on a pleasant stroll on a path of ice and bodies, I was yanked into the air, my throat caught in his magic.

We reached the top of the fortress walls in mere seconds.

My party members looked at me with shock written all over their faces.

"What?!"

"How did..."

"Lord! Are you alright-"

Upon reaching the top of the wall, Celendion immediately flung me aside.

Thud!

Thrown towards the trio of archers, I rolled on the ground in a most undignified manner. Ugh!

"Your Highness!"

"Prince! Are you hurt?"

Damien, Skull, and Oldgirl rushed to my aid. Oh, my back...

"Manners...cough...seem to be lacking for a Vampire Lord!"

Struggling to appear composed, I looked up at Celendion with a strained smile.

"Our negotiations were not yet concluded, were they?"

"What use is conversation between humans and monsters? It's all futile theorizing. Didn't you think so too?"

The vampire lord's boyish face flashed a menacing grin, his long fangs glinting.

"I have been patient for quite some time. Now... may I eat?"

"..."

"I am famished beyond endurance."

Roarrrr!

The atmosphere around us roared, and a nauseating scent of blood began to pulse.

Stage 5 boss.

The lord of the bloodline. Lord of Crimson.

No-Life King. Nosferatu. Dracula-

The named monster, Vampire Lord Celendion, known by dozens of aliases, radiated a terrifying bloodlust from his crimson eyes.

Creak! Creak! Creak!

My party members stepped forward in unison to block Celendion's path. A long sneer spread across the vampire lord's lips.

"I have watched your battles and pondered. Who among you is the most threatening adversary?"

The slender finger of the boyish vampire pointed at each of my party members in turn.

"The sniper? The mage? The knight? You all have potential. However..."

His finger finally landed on me.

"You are the most dangerous, Ash."

"...!"

"Not only did you lead the frontlines here, but you also kept your sanity despite confronting me alone."

Naturally, normal humans would lose their minds from prolonged exposure to the evil aura exuded by boss monsters, especially in a one-on-one situation.

But I was unaffected, thanks to my passive skill [Unyielding Commander].

"You remind me of great humans I have faced in the past... I admit it. You pose a threat on my king's path."

"I appreciate the overestimation... so, what now?"

"So, I will take your life first."

With ominous, flickering eyes, Celendion lifted his gaze and took a step toward me.

"Consider it an honor. To be the first meal of the Vampire Lord's campaign."

The next moment.

Swoosh-!

Celendion lunged at me, and in response, every member of my party rushed towards him, weapons at the ready.

It was the final confrontation of Stage 5, arguably the last stage of the early part of <Protect the Empire>.

The final battle had begun.