“Bloodthirsters”
“These are a type of humanoid race who must consume blood in order to survive. There are various theories about their origin: an ancient curse, a failed immortality experiment by the Holy Court, or perhaps descendants of a forgotten ancient blood god. The Holy Court sees them as Fiendish Beasts that must be purified, but since they cannot be purified, under the Oracle of the former Pope, they were branded as ‘tainted’ and driven to the Rust Frontier.”
Is that so?
Then there are two possibilities.
One is that the church was helpless against them, and so felt their divine authority was being challenged—after all, they claim to be mighty gods, and if even ‘purification’ is beyond them… that must have felt humiliating.
“They suffer from bloodlust and must regularly drink fresh blood. They can feed on all kinds of creatures, but human blood is most effective. Otherwise, they will go mad and their bodies will wither. But, they are not mindless beasts.”
“They possess speed, strength, and regenerative powers far beyond those of humans… Especially regeneration—some Bloodthirsters can be said to be truly undead. As long as there is a scrap of flesh left, they can recover into a complete being. Of course, this takes a very long time—perhaps a year, or two, or even ten. A few ancient or powerful individuals can control their own or others’ blood to attack, defend, or perform Blood Rituals.”
“Their weakness is sunlight—not to the point of disintegrating into ashes, but exposure weakens them and causes searing pain. Silver objects can hinder their regeneration, and certain special herbs and symbols can suppress them.”
Ah…
Liangcai suddenly remembered that many things in the Holy Court are made of silver. Could that be related to this?
But on second thought, it seemed unlikely.
Would those Bloodthirsters really risk their own safety and recklessly trespass onto church territory after being exiled? Aside from a few extremists… probably not, right?
“They organize in ancient Blood Clan or tribal units, ruled by the strongest elder or ‘Blood Lord.’ They usually dwell in underground caves, abandoned mines, or shadowy canyon castles. Some clans still keep to an ancient code of honor—only hunting animals or the guilty, rather than indiscriminately killing the innocent.”
“They are tense strategic allies with the Disbelievers. The Disbelievers need the Bloodthirsters’ formidable combat power, while the Bloodthirsters need the safe blood supplies the Disbelievers provide—be it from willing donors, animal blood concoctions, or captured Holy Court inquisitors. There’s deep mistrust between the two, and the alliance often grows strained after incidents of bloodlust going out of control.”
Liang Lai stroked her chin in thought.
If you really have to compare, the Witches’ relationship with humans is closer, while the Bloodthirsters… because of their instability, are far more likely to clash with humanity.
“Hmm… Ah! My head hurts, I feel like my brain’s about to grow!” Liang Lai clutched her head.
Still, having learned so much she never knew before, Liang Lai was genuinely happy. She suddenly felt, “So this world still has hope, after all,” but that hope lasted less than ten minutes before she poured cold water on herself.
“Even though they have technology, it doesn’t mean their behavior or thinking is liberated. It all depends on their policies… hiss~”
Everything seemed to return to square one.
But there was one thing that never changed: Liangcai still wanted the child she was raising to become the Pope.
Even if some things can’t change overnight after becoming Pope, as long as things progress little by little, one day, the world she hopes for will be built.
Liang Lai looked forward to that day.
Flooded with so much knowledge, Liang Lai was utterly exhausted, falling asleep the instant she lay down, so she didn’t even notice when Motifiel entered the room and placed a gentle kiss on her fingertip.
The next day.
Liang Lai rubbed her groggy head and went downstairs, only to bump right into Dolosa coming up.
The moment Dolosa saw Liang Lai descending, she immediately reached out and grabbed her wrist.
“Liang Lai! I have something to tell you!” Her eyes sparkled with excitement.
“Huh?”
Liang Lai let out a big yawn, staring drowsily at her eldest daughter.
“What is it? What’s got you this happy?”
“Uh,” Dolosa immediately regained her usual cold demeanor, even clearing her throat, “I’m not happy, I just—you know, I was born with a smiling mouth.”
Liang Lai: “?”
“Ahaha, alright then~”
Early in the morning, and Dolosa had already made Liang Lai laugh.
She raised her hand and ruffled Dolosa’s hair.
Wow, do I have to lift my hand to pat my child’s head now? Time really does fly… Liang Lai sighed.
“It’s just, I discovered that Motifiel is totally pretending to be blind. She was reading the other day, and even cooked four dishes and a soup this morning!”
Ah…
So that’s what this is about?
Liangcai blinked a couple of times, then pinched her eldest daughter’s cheek in resignation.
“Sigh, that’s on me. I forgot to tell you girls at the time—I thought you’d all already realized… Motifiel’s not actually blind; otherwise, how could she have read the book?”
Dolosa: “..?”
Another episode of playing the clown.
“Motifiel told me herself a few days ago that her eyes are fine. This is my fault, for not telling you and letting you get the wrong idea.”
Of course, Liang Lai understood—this was Dolosa’s way of acting jealous, but she didn’t call her out.
After all, she’s still a child; a little jealousy now and then is no big deal, it’s not as if it caused any real trouble.
No need to forbid it.
“Oh…”
Dolosa despondently headed back downstairs.
But, the moment she saw Motifiel carrying out four dishes and a soup, her spirits seemed to soar right back to their peak.
Liang Lai could feel a pair of sparkling eyes locked onto her, and when she looked down, she met Dolosa’s expectant gaze.
Huh?
What’s she seeing?
A sense of foreboding suddenly rose in Liangcai’s heart.
She hurried down the stairs and walked to Dolosa’s side.
“Xiao Duo, what’s—”
She hadn’t finished speaking, when her gaze followed Dolosa’s and landed on Dexilensi, whose face was complicated beyond words; then on Asterys and Delucia, wearing awkward smiles; and on Illucy, who was trembling as she stared at the things on the table.
“What are you all…”
Again, she didn’t finish.
Because Liang Lai’s own eyes had fallen on the table.
“Haha, suddenly I’m not so hungry anymore, maybe it’s because I had a late-night snack, so I’ll just…” Liang Lai had just started to lift her foot.
“Liangcai Mama~!”
A joyful shout rang out behind her.
Liang Lai slowly turned her head, only to see Motifiel, her little face smudged with all sorts of mess, holding a pot of soup and beaming foolishly at everyone.
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