The bishop who came to deliver today's sermon was Metropolitan Pasidos Cadrick of the Holy Sophia District. He was a vigorous elder around fifty years of age, with a full forehead and a lush white beard, dressed in an exquisitely elegant Orthodox cassock, holding a silver cross in his hand. At the mention of "denunciation," his sharp eyes immediately looked over.
"Child, whom do you wish to denounce?" Pasidos said authoritatively.
"I wish to denounce my cohabitant, who is also the mistress of my house, along with my steward, my personal manservant, my head maid, and the rest of my servants—a total of 24 people—all of them evil Vampires," Aske said righteously. "They murdered my parents and kept me in the dark. As soon as I discovered their identities, I came to report to you immediately."
"Vampires?" Metropolitan Pasidos frowned. In the East Solomon Empire, members of the Blood Clan who were Transcendents were not legally required to be captured and killed, provided they were officially registered with the Church and lived in designated areas. If what Aske claimed was true, then without a doubt, they were foreign Vampires of Filth, who needed to be purged and cleansed.
Aske stood his ground, suddenly feeling a glimmer of light. The light revolved around him, as if penetrating every inch of his hair and skin, carrying a meticulous inspection. Without a doubt, this Metropolitan was not an ordinary man, but a powerhouse of at least Rank 7, who had mastered the Power of Laws, enabling him to use such hidden Spirituality to activate the discerning Spirit Light.
Considering that the Magic Tide of the Sixth Epoch had just begun to rise, it indicated that this Metropolitan was born no later than the Fifth Epoch, making him at least 200 years old.
"In that case," Pasidos confirmed the man before him was a pure human and nodded solemnly, "I shall dispatch a team of the Church's direct Iron-armored Holy Cavalry. You will lead them to your residence to complete the purification mission. May God bless you, child."
"God bless," Aske said solemnly.
As he quickly stepped out of the church's main entrance, Aske saw a troupe of Knights approaching from the left. They were all wearing bright white Power Armor, engraved with various Holy Rune Arrays, and armed with high-frequency vibration swords or engine-boosted Warhammers.
"I am Erwin Gullins," the leading Iron-armored Holy Knight said with an air of condescension, holding his Two-Handed War Hammer. "Are you the citizen who denounced the presence of Vampires in his household?"
"That's me," Aske replied.
"Good," the Knight Captain said. "We aren't as congenial as His Holiness the Metropolitan in the church. If you've simply fabricated this report for some mercenary games... the expense for one outing of the Iron-armored Holy Knights is enough to bankrupt you for a lifetime, including the cost of your coffin."
"No problem," Aske replied. "In fact, once we arrive at my house, you will see whether I'm telling the truth."
"So be it," said the Knight Captain. "I'm not sure if the crowds near the church include spies stationed by your family's Vampires. Let's hurry to our destination."
The Knights had just walked out of the Church and immediately drew the attention of the surrounding crowd. It couldn't be helped; those full-cover Power Armors were certainly striking, their mere appearance emanating an unmatched deterrence. Aske understood the implication of their words and jogged ahead, leading the Knights to the ancestral home, pointing inside and saying,
"It's right here."
In the hotel room, Peggy was standing in the bathroom, staring at her pale reflection in the mirror.
The face in the mirror remained youthful and beautiful, only now it was less rosy and more pallid. Her lips, normally full and tender red, had also become dim, looking as though she was weighed down by a serious illness.
She knew this was due to not consuming blood. Knowledge obtained from her Extraordinary trait informed her that as the possessor of Flesh I, she must ingest at least 2 milliliters of fresh blood daily to maintain her youthful appearance; otherwise, her visage would rapidly age and eventually turn into a ghastly, mummy-like state.
Of course, abstaining from blood was merely a deterioration of appearance; it had no effect on a Vampire's actual strength.
She took a razor blade out of the medicine cabinet, paused in silence, and then forcefully slit her wrist.
Blood instantly flowed out profusely, making her already pallid complexion grow whiter. But after a short while, the flesh around the wound curled up and healed itself, soon looking as good as new.
I am no longer human.
Lost in a daze, she went to stand by the window, hugging her slender legs, and stared blankly outside. The building in the distance was once her home, now burnt to ruins. Her parents were no more.
Had they still been alive, what would they think upon seeing their beloved daughter turned into a monster?
Suddenly, she saw a troupe of armored Church Knights running straight down the street opposite, stopping next to the ruins of her house.
Was it Aske? Had he reported the Vampires to the Church? Peggy instantly had an epiphany. So simple, she thought, afraid of the Church because she had become a Vampire, she hadn't considered this angle. Even if she couldn't come forward herself, she could still induce others to report on her behalf through an anonymous identity, leveraging the Church's power to kill those Vampires.
She held her breath, watching on from afar as the crowd ducked and covered their heads on the street below. After all, being citizens of the Imperial City, they had grown accustomed to various supernatural incidents and thus were very compliant under official direction.