CHAPTER 107: NECRONOMICON [5] - FAMILIARITY

Originally, the earlier battle and the severe injury should have long exhausted Baron Bloodshield’s Life Force.

Yet, the moment his hands touched the stone statue, a newfound strength surged within him.

Life Force flowed out of the statue and entered his body before it began coursing through him, boiling like scorched magma.

The Baron’s dark eyes shone with a crimson light, as a fanatical expression crept up onto his face, carrying a yearning for destruction as well as hope for freedom.

With no hesitation, he lunged at Liora and urged his Life Force, not to launch an attack but to detonate it. His muscles tensed, and his body began elongating, making him look like a balloon that was about to burst.

His aura fluctuated, and the world around him froze, as if it were bracing itself for the upcoming impact.

Just then, though, the sound of something sharp piercing through the air echoed.

Liora—who had remained silent and motionless for a long time—finally moved.

The demonic flames around the Spear of the Blighted Sun surged, betraying her inner emotions, as she thrust the spear forward once again.

Though the Baron’s outburst was sudden and inexplicable, she had long expected something like this to happen.

Thus, before the Baron’s body could completely explode, the spear had already arrived between his eyebrows.

Then, with a gentle push, it penetrated straight through his forehead.

A tiny hole instantly formed as the crimson light in Baron Bloodshield’s eyes gradually vanished. Still, the manic expression remained engraved on his face.

Until he took his final breath, that expression was still there, as if it had been etched onto his visage.

Watching the Baron die, Liora’s eyes didn’t show the slightest ripple.

Though she had originally planned to keep him alive for some time, she wouldn’t feel too disappointed if it didn’t happen.

After all, plans were just that—plans.

Still, Liora didn’t allow the demonic flames to devour the Baron’s remains.

After she suppressed them, she casually waved her hand and wrapped the corpse with her demonic energy, placing it on the side.

Then, her expression became solemn.

Lowering her head, she stared at the last object in the entire field—the stone statue that had been the source of the Baron’s changes.

She didn’t rush forward to pick it up, but instead examined it carefully from a distance.

Soon, she discovered a somewhat familiar aura emanating from it, causing her eyes to narrow slightly.

--

Since the very first moment that Liora left the Black Tulip Earldom, her actions had been carefully considered.

The raid on the slave caravan was not a random act of hers, but a way to lure the Baron out of his base.

In her opinion, facing the caravan’s sudden disappearance, Baron Bloodshield would most likely be forced to come out and personally investigate the cause behind it.

After all, if the fact that innocent citizens were captured and brought to his fiefdom spread, his reputation would take a nosedive.

It would be fine if this only resulted in him facing the people’s scorn.

But if the kidnapping of a large number of people was further investigated and traced back to him, it would surely alarm the royal family, placing him in danger.

Of course, it was impossible for Liora to be one hundred percent certain that her plan would work.

If it didn’t, she could only choose the second-best option—to personally visit the Baron’s mansion and sneakily assassinate him.

"Fortunately, although there were some complications and unexpected events in the middle, everything worked out just fine.", Liora thought silently as she walked through the city’s streets.

Hearing the large number of overlapping voices—the shouts of peddlers, the joyful calls of children, and the voices of angry drunkards—and feeling the lively atmosphere surrounding her, Liora couldn’t help but let out a sigh.

It had been a long time since she last visited a human city.

The familiar smells and sounds assaulted her senses, giving her a completely different feeling.

Though she had visited hundreds of cities over the past year, the atmosphere of those cities was ultimately different.

Not only because they were located in the Crucible, but also because their residents were grotesque, bloodthirsty monsters rather than people.

Liora didn’t feel emotional for long. Even though she was deep in thought, her movements didn’t pause.

With brisk steps, she navigated through the city’s complicated streets and, before long, arrived at her destination.

It was a huge castle-like manor, resembling those that one would only see in movies set in medieval times.

Its structure was intricate, with a high stone wall protecting the buildings inside. A watchtower could be seen every hundred meters or so, with large crossbows peeking out of its gaps.

At first glance, the manor looked absolutely impenetrable, like an iron fortress that would never fall.

Yet, Liora instantly noticed a faint disharmony in the air. The source of that disharmony was fairly clear—a complete lack of sound.

As the manor of Baron Bloodshield, the many buildings before her should be filled with people, whether it was guards, maids, or servants.

Yet, the manor was now shrouded in silence, devoid of any signs of life.

"It seems that everything went well at this front too...", Liora whispered.

Her gaze fell on the bloody shield insignia inscribed above the manor’s only entrance, and she slowly walked forward.

Even when she arrived before the gate and pushed it open, no one came to stop her or ask her what she was doing, as if she were visiting a ghost town.

It was only when she reached the other side of the stone walls that she finally saw a living person.

Or rather, a living puppet.

"Lord.", Alpha called out softly. Without waiting for Liora to respond, she began giving a report:

"I’ve followed your instructions and cleared out the entire mansion. All the guards and members of the Bloodshield family have been dealt with.", she said.

That’s right. While Liora was busy fighting against the Baron and the assassins, Alpha had not been idle.

Under Liora’s instructions, she had secretly arrived at the capital of the Bloodshield fiefdom and raided the enemy’s "base".

Although she had faced a large number of enemies during her attack, some of whom were Knight Apprentices, Alpha had succeeded.

"I’ve already gone through the manor and gathered everything of value. Though most of the items discovered are worthless, there are still some that should be of great help to the Lord.", Alpha continued. Then, she paused for a brief moment before adding:

"However, there is a place that requires the Lord to investigate. I tried to do so myself, but I sensed that I would be facing grave danger if I were to step inside."

Her words were quite surprising.

Even though Alpha’s powers had also been partially sealed, she could still exert strength equivalent to a True Knight.

With her combat experience and unusual abilities, she would be able to briefly resist even if she were facing a Great Knight.

For something to make her feel danger, it had to be something extremely powerful or, at the very least, something strange.

Thinking of this and recalling the statue she obtained not long ago, a barely noticeable glint flashed in Liora’s eyes.

She didn’t hesitate for long and motioned for Alpha to lead the way.

"Come on. Take me there.", she ordered.

Soon, the figures of the two women disappeared, fading deeper into the manor.