“I didn’t expect you to be short, but your head sure is sharp,” Vera lightly patted Bai’s small head, praising her.
Bai pouted, dissatisfied, and said, “I’ll definitely grow taller later, taller than Sister Vera.”
“All right, all right, no time to waste. Let’s set off quickly. If we wait any longer, the Vampire Beasts will be here,” she glanced at Bai, who had just crawled up to her leg, and couldn’t help but chuckle softly before turning away to suppress her laughter.
From her perspective, Bai’s height was just about what it was.
Bai:……
Vera took her hand proactively and warned, “Hold on tight. It’s so dark in the forest, and if we get separated, we’ll never find each other again.”
She thought for a moment and added, “And! If we absolutely have to fight a Vampire Beast, you just hide! Don’t come out! Because… yes! Because you’ll get in my way!”
Bai nodded slightly.
She knew Vera was worried she’d become Vampire Beast snack, but when that time came, she’d definitely run out recklessly.
Seeing Bai say no more, Vera’s legs seemed to catch the wind, even pulling Bai’s legs into the rush of air, and the two headed deeper into the forest.
The originally rugged muddy path became smooth under the blessing of magic.
After running for more than ten minutes, Bai didn’t even gasp for breath; she even felt running through the entire forest would be no problem.
“Ss—”
Suddenly, Bai cried out in pain on the road. Vera immediately stopped, alarmed, and asked anxiously, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, just scratched by a branch.”
Bai raised her arm, leaving a faint bloodstain, but it was nothing serious.
Compared to the countless knife scars on her other arm, it was negligible.
Still, Vera tore a piece of cloth from her clothes and bandaged it on before pressing forward without pause.
Not long after, Vera’s expression stiffened. She immediately stopped Bai and quickly leapt onto a tree branch to hide.
“What’s wrong? Are there Vampire Beasts nearby?” Bai whispered.
Vera didn’t answer but instead gave a serious ‘silence’ gesture, signaling Bai to be quiet. Her eyes were alert, cautiously scanning ahead.
“Thud… thud… thud…”
Heavy, thunderous footsteps approached.
The source sounded like a giant, massive and terrifying.
Bai immediately covered her mouth and peeked out toward the noise.
In the darkness, a colossal beast lumbered forward. Its fierce beastly eyes glowed with terrifying red light.
The tall, sturdy trees before it looked like paper, breaking with just a slight movement beneath its steps.
“Boom…”
It growled low, a sound like rolling thunder. Bai covered her mouth in fear, feeling her heart tremble in resonance with that growl.
“What kind of Vampire Beast is this? So huge!”
“The Vampire Beasts we saw a few days ago were barely half this size! What on earth is this thing?”
Bai thought fearfully.
She couldn’t even imagine if Aurelia and the others encountered this creature—would there be any chance of victory?
Its sharp claws dug into the ground, creating pits one after another.
The beast stopped moving its mountain-sized body, now less than ten meters from Vera and Bai.
It lowered its head, its beast eyes scanning the forest, seemingly sensing something.
Vera swallowed nervously, holding her breath.
One hand gripped Bai tightly, the other already reaching for the slender sword at her waist.
If they were discovered, she’d have to strike first—maybe then they could still escape.
Fortunately, after searching for a few minutes, the beast gave up.
It straightened its upper body and walked deeper into the forest.
Only once the footsteps completely faded did the two exhale in relief.
“What exactly was that thing…”
Bai asked, still shaken.
Vera shook her head.
“This is the first time I’ve seen a Vampire Beast like that. No, since the Vampire Beasts appeared, this is the first time. Our tribe’s hunt teams have never encountered such a monster. That body… it’s like a mountain.”
Vera’s voice was low, laced with deep fear and caution.
She dared not imagine if such creatures appeared not just in the southern forest, but even near her sister’s area—that would be terrifying.
She had to hurry even more.
“Let’s go, Bai. I have a feeling the Broken Blood Knight Order must be just ahead,” Vera said, turning to her side.
“Can you really sense it, Sister Vera?”
Bai asked.
“We elves are born in the forest and naturally have the ability to vaguely sense hidden dangers. Just now, that feeling was even stronger. They must be nearby!”
Vera replied, her gaze growing firmer.
“Mm!”
***
Their pace quickened considerably.
Soon, the scenery around them changed.
The surrounding trees had collapsed, the break marks clearly made by Vampire Beasts. The ground was a mess.
Blood and shattered armor pieces were scattered everywhere, but there were no corpses—probably already devoured by those beasts.
A strong stench of blood hit their noses.
Bai covered her mouth and nose, struggling not to vomit.
Even Vera frowned repeatedly, unable to bear looking directly.
“Hide behind me. Kids shouldn’t look.”
Vera pulled Bai behind her and scanned the surroundings. Indeed, clear human footprints appeared ahead, extending far.
This had to be the Broken Blood Knight Order!
***
“Hold on! Reinforcements from the Kingdom will arrive soon! Just a little longer! Keep holding!”
Aurelia shouted toward the front. Before her, six Vampire Beasts roared and charged at the dozen or so remaining Knights.
Normally, six Vampire Beasts shouldn’t be a huge threat, but they’d been fighting this grueling war of attrition for three days and nights…
“Roar!!!”
One Vampire Beast bellowed, swinging a claw and knocking a Knight flying.
“Goda! Go treat the wounded! Aurelia! I’ll take one! You lure the other away!”
Skarn shouted, covered in sticky blood.
He hoisted his chipped broad sword and charged at a Vampire Beast, pushing the massive creature back several meters, nearly toppling it.
“Yes! Captain!” they replied.
“Cross Slash!”
Leaping, Aurelia slashed a silver cross-shaped sword energy at a Vampire Beast, but it only grazed its skin.
The beast glared at her angrily and charged like a wild bull.
“Damn… I’m running out of stamina,” Aurelia gritted her teeth.
Her energy had long reached the limit; now she was holding on by sheer will.
Unexpectedly, on the day after Bai suddenly disappeared, the Broken Blood camp suffered a large-scale assault again.
They had planned to avoid the brunt of the attack, but no matter where they ran, the Vampire Beasts seemed to have lain in wait for a long time, surrounding them from all sides and completely blocking their only escape route.
Almost three days had passed, with at least six attacks every day.
This hellish cycle of warfare dragged on too long.
Their Knights—some dead, others injured—had no strength left to continue fighting.
It was likely that the next day they would be completely swallowed by the Vampire Beast onslaught…
A flash of despair crossed her mind. But in that moment of distraction, the Vampire Beast was already upon her.
It opened its bloody maw, ready to bite her body in two.
Now, there was no time to dodge…
***
“Sister Aurelia!”
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