Chapter 397
Chapter 397: Encounter and Execute
Hey there, it’s Hero Alexander.
Finally spotted the lake pirates’ ship…!!
“Alright everyone, are we ready? …Let’s go hunting!”
Bishop Lexar, filled with magical energy, drew the two holy swords hanging from beneath his trademark red-black long coat.
At first glance, they appeared to be ordinary short twin swords. However, they were actually dwarf-made and contained immense magical power—each named [Nikola] and [Maria]. It turns out these were the names of his parents, who were killed by a vampire…
Lexar drew the swords and charged them with lightning.
““Ready!””
The other combat members of the Vampire Hunters were equally spirited. Each held a holy sword in their dominant hand, but their other hand was equipped with various items.
Some had compact shields, magical talismans, weighted chains, while others wielded simple metal stakes. There were even those carrying a miniature version of the mechanical bow seen in Evaroti. It can be shot with one hand—pretty convenient! Anyway, all this gear was specifically for hunting vampires—Vampire Hunters really are unique.
Normally, heroes don heavy armor along with a sword and shield, but almost all the Vampire Hunters donned either enchanted leather armor or simple robes. Even wearing heavy metal armor could lead to fatal injuries if blood blades seeped in through the gaps, so it seems they prioritized evasion over defense.
“Take care, everyone!”
“Wishing you good fortune!”
The crew of the NeedAlun and non-combatant Vampire Hunters like Rujiakka retreated inside the ship. Meanwhile, the mid-range fighters like the Forest Elf Yesera and priest-oriented Vampire Hunters prepared to guard the NeedAlun and its crew. By the way, Leila was also counted among the wizards remaining for the defense of the ship.
“Got it! Leave the rest to me!”
I waved back—there are those who shine in the background and those who unleash their true value on the blood-soaked front lines. Like me.
By the way, Rujiakka was doing an outstanding job.
With the wind spirit summoned by the Forest Elf Yesera and Romeo’s dedication from the ship’s hull, the NeedAlun reached the shore of Aulitos Lake at record speed for a medium-sized passenger ship.
Even though we narrowed down the search area somewhat, finding a specific ship hiding somewhere in the dark waters on a nearly new moon night was nothing short of insane.
However, Rujiakka’s sense of smell was anything but average.
“It stinks—like something lower than vomit…!!!”
Removing his leather mask, Rujiakka began sniffing hard at the wind and yelled less than an hour into the search.
“I’m smelling the stench of lake pirates who haven’t bathed properly—like the foul odor of fermented blood! No doubt about it, it’s a vampire!!”
So vampires smell like that… gross.
I’m glad I only have a normal sense of smell. If I caught that stench every time, I wouldn’t last a day in Evaroti.
Regardless, we could now roughly determine the direction of the lake pirate ship that was probably quite far away. Under Rujiakka’s guidance, the captain skillfully steered the ship, gradually pursuing while converting the headwind into thrust.
However, tonight was nearly a new moon. The stars barely illuminated the lake’s surface, and even if we approached the pirate ship relying on our sense of smell, it would be nearly impossible to confirm visually that it was indeed a “lake pirate ship.”
But we weren’t ordinary folks.
First, I gathered dark magical power to enhance my night vision.
“I’ve got this!”
Hero Arthur, hiding his left eye beneath his bangs, shimmered with silver light.
This was his secret weapon number one, a technique called [Sacred Eye]. By combining it with the magic of far sight, he could see through the night and detect magical energy. While he mentioned there were various benefits, he probably refrained from elaborating due to the mystery surrounding it.
Just—
“One reason why I am Arthur.”
He said something deep and cryptic.
“It must be the curse of the Hilburn family. A child born with the [Sacred Eye] inherits the name Arthur and great magical power—that’s about it.”
I see. And there’s also the ancestral magical weapon…! The tireless combat I witnessed at the front lines likely stemmed from this eye allowing for self-enhancement.
As I was mulling all this over, Arthur cupped his hands in front of his left eye like a telescope, using his far sight magic to scout.
“…Yeah, that ship has some serious magical energy aboard. It’s about the same level as the noble class demon we fought previously.”
Arthur said with a firm voice. Did he just “see” magical power from this distance?
Noble class? Isn’t Vlad Cheesuina, the vampire lord, a count in the Demon Lord Kingdom?
Either a significant vampire has come on board, or simply—
“Looks like they’ve been feasting quite a bit… those bloodthirsty beasts!”
Bishop Lexar bared his teeth, imbued with poisonous hatred.
Exactly. Either they were originally big shots, or they’ve gorged themselves to the level of noble class—either way—!
How infuriating! This time I’ll make sure to spill your filthy blood.
“Are there any other magical beings present?”
“Sadly, I can’t tell that much. Magical strength shows itself like a beacon. If there’s a bright light, the others are hidden in that glow…”
I see… even if I see a torch from a long distance, I wouldn’t be able to count how many candles are nearby.
“And at this distance, it’s tough… but it could be useful on the battlefield. You’ll see at a glance where the dangerous ones are.”
“Sure. But during a fight, you rarely have the luxury to use it. Just dealing with the guy right in front of me is enough.”
As Arthur waved his left hand, dispersing magical energy, he shrugged.
Anyway, this confirmed that the ship was indeed pirates and that vampires were on board.
“Deckhands should be ready to disengage quickly. Lookouts, stay alert! Pay attention to the surface; if it gets foggy, blast the magic right away!”
By the time the silhouette of the pirate ship became faintly visible, Bishop Lexar was taking charge.
“First, we need to stop their movements—let’s burn their sails!”
Launching a surprise attack without warning would seriously hurt if they were actually civilians—but if by chance they weren’t pirates, we’d all bow and apologize together.
“Leila, it’s on you!”
“Yes! Here I go!!”
At my formal call, Leila advanced, draping her mantle over her head in the heat.
Leaning right at the edge of the bow, she put her hands together in front of her face as if praying, murmuring something—pretending to be casting.
Among us, Leila had the longest range and firepower.
However, her strong stance, blasting light from her mouth like “Gaaaaa!” resembled a dragon’s breath too much. If she were to use that “secret technique” in front of Arthur and the others, a certain level of deception was essential.
That’s where the mantle came into play. It hid her mouth and hands quite nicely.
With this, she could pretend to cast magic with her hands in front of her face!!
However, if seen from the front or side, it would be obvious—
So she would do this while standing at the very edge of the bow with no one around!!!
And then shout out some random incantation to mask the roar, Leila!!
“Mooohhhh… [It’s a very hot and bright light—!!]”
After an ample charge, Leila shouted, releasing the light.
Wow, that chant was so lame!!
One of the young Vampire Hunters did a double-take, looking like he couldn’t believe it!
Stop! Don’t look this way!! I wasn’t aware of it either!!!
But despite such an embarrassing chant, the power it unleashed (since there was no roar) was more than enough to keep people at bay.
A beam of light sliced through the darkness.
It brightly illuminated the pirate ship while igniting the sails that had been folded on the grand mast one after the other. The sailcloth, treated with oil for water repellence, was superior fuel…! Unless it were a military ship, there was no fire resistance or magical protection!
With sails ablaze, the pirate ship became brightly lit. For a while, we wouldn’t need additional lighting, and since it appeared well-constructed, it probably wouldn’t catch fire on the hull right away. It looked like a ship too grand for the lake pirates—surely they had commandeered a vessel taken from the vampires…!
NeedAlun was closing in, distancing itself from the wind to avoid any sparks flying our way.
Soon, the time to board and slash would come. The captain, holding the helm, left only the minimum crew behind while the deckhands retreated inside the ship.
“If we go by the book—we should wait for dawn.”
Bishop Lexar, with both holy swords unsheathed, opened his mouth quietly.
“The great sunlight will drastically curtail the movements of the beasts. A noble-class vampire would be quite troublesome, but with sunlight, our losses would likely be dramatically minimized… However…”
He gripped the sword’s hilt tightly.
“If there is a possibility that innocent civilians are captured aboard that ship, and that they are still seeking help, even if just a fragment…”
In a flash, lightning crackled as if to embody Bishop Lexar’s fervor.
“We cannot abandon them. We cannot stand by idly. To that hand of salvation we wished for so desperately on that day—”
In despair, we prayed for a savior with a maddening fervor.
“Now, at this moment, we ourselves shall become that salvation…!”
Everyone listened quietly.
Though our races and beliefs differed.
We were united in spirit—!
“Death to the creatures of darkness!”
I unsheathed Adamas.
“Peace for the innocent people!”
Arthur raised the Hero King’s Shield.
“Let us end this accursed night here and now!”
Bishop Lexar crossed his two holy swords—
““[Holy Radiance!]””
The magical energy roared.
““[Come to my hand!]””
Light surged forth, exploding.
The ship was dyed in blinding silver—
“Whoa! These guys are heroes!!”
A filthy pirate, gathered on deck, shrieked as the pirate ship loomed closer.
A human, yet afraid of the heroes?
What a clear self-introduction—it’s laughable!
—Thank goodness this wasn’t a case of mistaken identity!
“[“I declare a holy war here!”]”
Arthur lifted his glowing shield.
“[“Absolute Defense Zone!!”]”
The silver shield shattered with a bang, bursting into shimmering light.
It spread like waves.
Piercing through us, it established a vast spherical zone.
This was Arthur’s secret weapon number two—[Absolute Defense Zone].
A powerful barrier based on the legendary Hero King’s weapon. As a manifestation of Avalon’s power, it could provide defensive enchantment to fortresses and ships, expanding barriers with formidable physical and magical resistance.
Thanks to this, the NeedAlun managed to withstand the attack from the “Demon Lord of Aulitos”…!
The barrier sparkled overhead like a starry sky, sending shivers down my spine with its mystique.
“If this barrier isn’t inferior to the mythical barriers used by Lady Lilia to restrain Emelgias… I’d say it’s quite something!”
That’s incredible…!
Naturally, this barrier expanded in all directions—also beneath the water’s surface.
This barrier was of the same caliber as the one used by that Liliana to subdue a duke-level monster?
There’s absolutely no way some noble class rubbish could break through.
Even if they tried to escape into the water…!
Then, with a heavy thud, the ship shook.
—we had joined alongside.
Right next to me, a red-black coat flared up swiftly.
“[“God Roar!”]”
Zzt! A bolt of lightning surged from Bishop Lexar’s twin swords.
The crooks massed on the deck of the pirate ship were swept away by the lightning in one fell swoop.
“Yahhh!”
“Uwah!”
“Agghh!”
They screamed in unison, collapsing as if paralyzed—
But among them was—
“GRYAAAAHHHHHHH!!!”
One figure writhed in agony, smoke billowing from its body with a hair-raising scream. That was—!
“[“God Lightning!!”]”
Without missing a beat, the ultimate bolt of lightning struck.
The deafening crash; the one struck did not even get a chance to scream as they were turned to ashes.
“You traitors of the vampires—receive my lightning!”
As the groans of the pirate scum echoed through the ship, Bishop Lexar declared calmly while stepping aboard.
“—Then, let God decide the rest.”
As he trampled over the pile of ashes.
The twin holy swords in his hands sparked with silver flames.
