The Primal Hunter

Jake considered what his next step would be as Reika was hard at work.

After dividing all the loot and telling the people outside they could enter, Reika called her followers to keep watch over the smithy as her followers also called some smiths while making their way there. They only took a few minutes to arrive, and Jake saw they looked a bit more haggard than before, and he sensed the remnants of curse energy on their bodies. It was easy to see they had been fighting those cursed armor golems.

The two followers stood guard at the smithy as they waited for members of the Noboru clan to arrive. A few had already been in the gallery of observers before, and now, more were coming from a basecamp in the central plains.

Reika and Jake walked out of the armory, and the room with the puzzle in was now near-empty.

“Something has been on my mind for a while,” Reika suddenly said. “Why would one hide an armory in the middle of enemy territory like this? It doesn’t make any logical sense, much less to ensure it with some magical puzzle and not a key or something like that.”

“I actually think it makes a lot of sense. Especially to make it a magic puzzle. That meant one had to have some level of power and experience to open it, and you couldn’t just take a random unturned human and have that person open it with just a bit of mana,” Jake chimed in.

“What stops a vampire from just solving the puzzle?” she asked him, genuinely confused.

“Vampires don’t have mana. At least not the same kind as you and I or really anything else I have met do. Instead, they seem to have some kind of unique energy that serves many of the same functions but is fundamentally different. I think this energy may have also been the cause of their downfall,” Jake answered.

He had fought the Count and noticed this difference in energy pretty much right away. He just called their energy, blood energy in his head because it was red and looked like blood, and knowing the system’s naming sense, he was probably right on the money.

“They don’t? That… I didn’t even consider that.” Reika looked to be deep in thought as she considered the implications of that.

As Reika stood there, Jake noticed one of her followers come out of the armory towards them. It was the communications guy, as far as Jake could tell.

“Mr. Thayne, I bring a message from the Patriarch,” the man said, confirming he was the communications guy. Reika also perked up at the mention of the head of the Noboru clan, and Jake raised an eyebrow – hidden under his mask, of course.

“Do tell,” he answered.

“The Patriarch relays the message that you should have your meeting in the center of the Mistless Plains at the hidden tower once all keys are gathered, and he would like to propose a bet. There are nine keys… so the one to bring five will get priority in exploring the hidden tower,” the man said, adding. “He also expresses his hopes that you and his great-granddaughter are getting along and that you treat her kindly.”

Jake bit onto that first part. “Oh, so he’s out there hunting Counts too, huh? Better tell him to hurry up. Also… I don’t mean to be an ass, but let’s not assume it’s only he and I who are capable of matching those vampires. Especially not after what we just found.”

The man smiled almost triumphantly as he added: “He knows you are one key ahead and that others are also capable of defeating these Counts… but he still stands by his words to bring five. Because if you don’t, he will.”

I’ll take that as a challenge, Jake thought as he just heard the Noboru clan make it clear they were willing to challenge any other faction who managed to obtain a key. Which meant either Jake would have to do the same… or just get those five keys by himself.

turned to Reika. “Oh, and do remember to make use of the wooden stake. Maybe give it

grandparent said something like that in front of others, making him smile a bit internally. Jake also had a good relationship with his grandparents before they passed, and it was only good that

before she steeled her look. “Don’t think he will

and smiled. “Good luck to you. But be warned they aren’t that easily taken down, and I would advise you against trying to beat one with numbers,

bow. It was a tacit understanding that they would naturally split up after the puzzle was done and the loot distributed. Besides they didn’t

on one more line as he left with a wave over his shoulder while walking. “Cya around

Jake. Take care and stay safe,” she half-yelled as Jake smiled under

danger. Sadly, he could not go to the next tower right away but had to find a Mark of Blood first. He did throw a mental message towards Sylphie, and she sent back something about having fun, but that the next floating Mark thing wasn’t Sylphie’s

a response from his boots that there were treasures. However, he also felt the mana of other people, and he didn’t have any inclinations of coming in and stealing any loot. He was confident that what

take him long to get out of the tower, and when he reached the bottom, he saw many other entrances. So yeah, no need to enter

much for even him to spend half an hour slowly burning off a gate with

100% still going to steal some

she landed another slash using her long claws on the human in

claws cut through the man and sent blood splashing everywhere as his entire body was ripped apart.

in the same position as before the Viscount attacked as if nothing had ever happened - the only sign remaining the newly made splatter of blood and some more guts on the floor. He stood the exact same place he had been standing from the moment she awakened. Where he had been standing for the last five hours, just

vampire. Her attacks and steps were sluggish and slow, the red glow in her eyes

his head was severed, the eyes of the severed head stayed on her body. Even when the entire head was squashed, it returned a moment later to observe

had tried, but she was

go on… the man made a sad smile as he

“Thank you.”

hand on the top of her head as he comfortingly spoke at the

came to an end, with not a single wound on her body. She turned to ash and left behind the Mark of Blood while a side

the man, complicated emotions in their eyes, as none said anything but just looked on as he slowly went over and claimed all the loot

to receive him. “How did it

before this, sighed. “The sparks are corrupted… broken… yet whole. I know more now, but still not enough. Come, lets us continue as we seek out one of these

the tomb, one of the people who had been waiting took a look inside and stared wide-eyed. It was pure carnage inside. Guts everywhere, severed limbs by

floor looked like that of a flooded cellar. The liquid on the floor wasn’t water

All of it human.

actual towers. Not mountain towers, but buildings made to look like buildings. He decided to check those out first and sprinted along the plains, scanning them with his sphere all the meanwhile.

as it was camouflaged and nearly invisible, a lot like the vampire’s invisibility. But, as he saw it, he also spotted a common-rarity staff of sorts embedded in the ground, seemingly just left there when someone went “fuck it” and stuck it into the ground before

and saw this small flying thing descend towards the staff. He wondered what it was but saw that the moment it flew down and made contact with the staff, several metal wires were sent out, wrapping themselves around the weapon before pulling it

second the staff stopped touching the ground, it