CHAPTER 305: THE VAMPIRE COUNT

Even before he could finish his speech, the bone structure cracked down the middle.

A second later, it exploded outward, skull fragments shooting into the air before evaporating into dust.

The remaining primitive vampires staggered, their bodies partially melted and twitching.

Samantha’s skeleton knights sprinted forward with surprising speed, shields raised and spears lowered. They impaled the closest crippled vampires, pinning them down.

Ragnarok leaped into the fray, bringing his sword down with heavy, satisfying impacts.

Sophie spread vines and roots under the enemies’ feet, binding their limbs and pulling them to the ground.

There was no dramatic clash. It was a one-sided slaughter.

Within minutes, the clearing fell silent again.

[Minor Nest Cleared]

[Local Spawn Rate Decreased]

The system message floated briefly before fading.

Ragnarok planted his sword in the ground and exhaled hard. "That bomb... we need more of those."

"We have eight left," Gabriel said. "And they’re for emergencies or big clusters. No wasting them."

Samantha looked at the dust where the nest used to be and sighed dejectedly. "No corpses to raise here..."

"Bombs are anti-vampire," Sophie said. "They destroy not just the bodies but the blood structures inside them. Don’t worry, you’ll have more targets soon."

"Uh... thanks." Samantha stuttered, feeling slightly awkward.

Apart from Sir Broken, it was the first time she had seen an NPC so comfortable talking about corpses with a straight face, as if the class wasn’t hated.

’Maybe there are more people like Sir Broken,’ she thought, a hopeful gleam in her eyes.

Bunny panned her view over the destroyed totem and grinned. "Chat’s going to cry when they see what we just did to a whole nest."

"Are you streaming?" Ragnarok asked.

"Not yet." Bunny smirked. "I’m saving it. No need to leak all our strategies live. Some things are better as highlight clips later."

Gabriel was already looking past the clearing, eyes drifting toward the distant castle.

There was still a lot of work to do.

"Move," he said. "We took out one nest. That lowers spawn pressure a bit, but there’ll be more between here and the castle."

They left the clearing, sticking close to the ridge.

As they moved, the soundscape of the forest slowly changed. The random shrieks and rustles became more organized—almost patterned—like distant war cries or ritual chants carried by the wind.

Sophie listened carefully and spoke louder, "They’re not fully mindless. There’s a hierarchy. The closer we get to the castle, the more organized they’ll become."

For some reason, she seemed to know more about vampires. Gabriel wanted to ask but decided to leave it.

Little did he know that as a princess, one of her required trainings was to study the other races of the world.

"Since there’s a hierarchy structure, killing the Count will destabilize them," Gabriel noted. "And the Tower likes when you cut things at the root."

They encountered two more patrols on the way—both much smaller than the nest and easier to handle. Gabriel didn’t waste another bomb. The skeletons handled them cleanly.

They moved efficiently.

Eventually, the trees thinned.

The ground rose. They emerged at the base of the plateau—just below the castle.

Up close, the structure looked even more imposing. The walls were carved from dark rock, reinforced with bones and crimson crystals. Torches burned with eerie red fire, and shadowy figures moved along the battlements.

Between them and the main gate stretched a wide killing field, dotted with broken statues and shallow blood pools. Several large totems—different from the earlier nest totem—stood like silent guardians.

Each one throbbed with concentrated blood energy.

Sophie narrowed her eyes. "Those aren’t spawn totems. They’re enhancement pylons. They’ll strengthen any defender in range and possibly weaken attackers."

"All the more reason to break them," Gabriel said.

He studied the field.

Archers stood on the walls wearing partial plate and bone helms. Below, squads of vampire knights and primitive elites waited, far more disciplined than the forest packs.

"Too many to engage head-on," Cassie said quietly. "If we charge, they’ll pepper us with arrows and rush at the same time."

Ragnarok cracked his neck. "We can still win, but it’ll cost a lot."

Bunny glanced at Gabriel and asked in a quiet, almost shy voice, "Bomb time again?"

He nodded once.

"Two. First one for the pylons, second for the clustered knights."

He selected another Blood Bomb and scanned the field.

’Alright,’ he thought after a second. ’If I stand behind that broken statue there and throw, the bomb should land between those three pylons and fry most of the front line.’

He moved.

Stepping behind the indicated statue, he noted arrows occasionally whistling down—probing shots landing far away.

The defenders hadn’t fully noticed them yet, or maybe they were waiting for the group to step into the open.

Gabriel weighed the bomb once and threw it.

It traced a smooth arc across the killing field.

The archers noticed it midair and panicked. Some shouted warnings. A few fired at it, but the bomb didn’t react. It landed between the pylons with a soft, almost harmless thud.

Then it detonated.

Booooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooom!!!

The explosion was stronger than the one at the forest nest.

Dark red energy erupted in a tight, focused sphere before expanding outward. The pylons’ bloodlight sputtered and then reversed, as though the flow had been forced backward.

Every knight within range screamed as armor corroded and flesh ripped apart. Several archer squads staggered on the walls, clutching their chests as blood leaked from eyes and ears.

The wave carried on, stripping layers off the castle’s outer defenses.

"Now!" Gabriel roared.

"Attack!"

"Kill the bloodsuckers!"

They charged.

Skeletons went first.

Arrows rained down, but many lodged themselves harmlessly into shields and bone.

Gabriel pulled out a second Blood Bomb mid-run.

He didn’t stop.

He sprinted directly toward the largest regrouping cluster of knights.

At the final second, he dropped the bomb underhand and leapt backward.

"Fall back three steps!" Sophie shouted.

Everyone obeyed instantly.

The second explosion rolled out.

BOOOM!

The range was slightly smaller—narrowed by Gabriel’s angle and the interference from remaining structures—but it erased the entire front rank of defenders and half of the second.

The arrows stopped.

The field went silent for a heartbeat.

"This is evil. I love it." Ragnarok laughed savagely.

"Push," Gabriel ordered. "Before they reorganize."

They surged forward, crossing the last stretch of ground.

The remaining knights met them with desperate shouts.

Steel clashed. Bones broke. Blood flew.

Without the pylons and most of their forces, the defenders quickly crumbled. Sophie disrupted formations with roots and vines. Anna picked off archers with her chains. Samantha reinforced the skeleton line.

Within minutes, the courtyard was theirs.

"Phew... this is getting too easy. I’m scared at this point," a player laughed.

Apart from a few struck by arrows, most of them were still alive.

"Hahahaha! It’s all thanks to Sir Broken’s coordination!"

Despite the easy victory, not even a hint of a smile crossed Gabriel’s face. He led the front, and without being told, the others followed behind.

They stepped through the main gate.

Inside the castle, the air grew heavier.

Dark banners hung from high ceilings. Braziers burned with red fire along the walls. The polished black stone floors reflected their silhouettes.

"No patrols?" Cassie asked, uneasy.

"Not here," Sophie said. "They’ll be further in, clustered around important rooms."

Once again... information Gabriel himself didn’t know. His curiosity deepened.

They proceeded in a careful formation, briefly checking side chambers. Many were empty—guest halls, ritual rooms with inactive circles, armories with rusted weapons.

Occasionally, they encountered small squads of castle vampires—better armed but fewer in number. None lasted long against their coordinated assault.

After what felt like twenty minutes, they arrived at a massive set of double doors decorated with carved bats and twisted roses.

A faint, pulsing aura seeped through the cracks, making everyone’s skin crawl.