Vast had briefly wondered if there was a specific condition for everyone to have spoken to him again, however, the situation of absolute silence regarding his person returned when he least noticed. At the same speed, he stopped caring.
The Conqueror's Tower. It's not too far, but even I have to get there as fast as possible. I won't die to a Vampire, much less because of the curse!! Not now!
As if the disadvantageous ability he had wasn't enough, the curse still acted as a cage for him. If he strayed too far from the place where he acquired the curse, it would stop his heart within a precise period of twenty days.
He only remembered this fact after hours of trying to pack his things. All he did was click his tongue and keep gathering everything.
That invading vampire from the day before was taken in by the castle's special forces for a thorough investigation.
As for Emilia, Vast searched for her throughout the castle, but found not a single trace of his beloved. At times he heard her calling his name, all mere hallucination, which turned into a few tears after the failure of such a search.
Damn it!! He lamented, undoing another of the suitcases he had prepared with such dedication.
He himself ignored his wounds after the fight to search for Emilia in a hope unmatched. But the result was the same for him and everyone who tried. It was as if her body no longer existed.
Emilia…!! I would do anything to bring her back!
There wasn't even certainty that she was dead, but he took that as the cruel truth. Creating hopes would be worse for his already weakened heart.
"That Tower… " He went to the only window in the room. "What exactly is there?"
The kingdom of Von Legurn was vast, but the so-called Conqueror's Tower exceeded that word.
It wasn't for nothing that it was also nicknamed the Infinite Staircase. It was a black structure with completely smooth walls, whose limit surpassed the visible sky. Artisans from all over the world praised whoever built it, even if they had no idea who it was. Therefore, many simply accepted it as a divine creation.
For Vast, however, it was far from being something like that. This was due to rumors, almost confirmations, that inside the Tower there was a King. Not just any, but a man who gained the title of Eternal King.
The reason was quite simple, he was — supposedly — immortal. For a certain time, such information was known only to the high nobility and to some meticulously selected members of the Church, while in the lower castes there were only rumors spread about the existence of this figure. Unfortunately, it was impossible to keep total secrecy of information for long, especially with Vampires on the loose.
No one knows what Era he's from. And, being immortal, he must know a way to bring the dead back to life.
Not only that, many — including the vampires themselves — believed that therein lay the formula for everything in the world, including the cure for diseases and solutions to any problem.
Vampirism was proven to be a disease, therefore, all humans who still had hope for the future carried with them the belief that there was the thing that could put an end to the vampire plague. In other words, the vaccine capable of fighting the disease.
It was far — very far — from being a certainty, but hope was the last to die. Vast also believed that this vaccine could put an end to his curse, but it was a purely personal speculation.
Well, I guess I better go. He decided upon realizing that he had abandoned all planned luggage.
In the end, he only ended up with a short sword that he stole from the armory and some emergency rations, which he got from the guards' stock.
Now I just need to find a way out of the castle.
He looked around. In the corner of his large room was his immense wardrobe. Upon opening it, there were stacks and stacks of sheets made from the most resistant fabric of the West. For some reason, there was also a lion, but he ignored it.
Perfect! And he began to put the plan into action.
Outside, some guards noticed the opening of the prince's bedroom window. They could do nothing but observe and question briefly what the hell is this?
Vuush! The response came in the form of a huge wardrobe. The furniture flew out the window at an absurd speed, taking flight as if it were a bird. Tied to one of the legs was an extensive rope made of several blankets tied together.
When it reached the end, it revealed what was on the other end.
"BUT WHAT!!?" exclaimed the guard.
Vast held onto the end of the rope, quickly climbing it until he reached the wardrobe itself in mid-air.
Alright, I think it's going to work.
Gradually, the wardrobe lost its altitude. And, being close enough to the wall after traveling approximately a mile and a half, Vast jumped.
He managed to pass through the wall with plenty of space between him and the large boulders that formed it. And on the other side, the forced landing caused a slight impact, but even the doubled pain was not as intense as he expected.
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"It was a simple plan, but it worked pretty well," he celebrated with a smile on his face. "Now, I should start walking."
He stood in front of the Kingdom's gate, where some guards stared at him, utterly perplexed. Given their demeanor, they were not in a position to contest his presence, however much they wanted to.
Thank you for taking care of me, Emilia. I promise I'll be back soon.
He placed one hand over the left side of his chest, hoping for the continued strong heartbeat for a while longer.
His gaze then fell on what lay beyond the gate, the castle. Still visible in its imposing figure, it took up more than half of the entire kingdom. Somewhat exaggerated, but there was no questioning the architecture's decision.
He hadn't even begun his walk and already missed his home so much that he started to experience what should have been hallucinations.
On the balcony of his room, there was a figure waving at him. Even from that distance, it was impossible for Vast not to recognize the smile of the woman he loved. Dressed in her impeccable maid uniform, Emilia waved enthusiastically to Vast.
With tears escaping, he waved back at that divine image. He couldn't know if it was real or a cruel illusion, and at that point, he wouldn't return to find out; he couldn't.
He then turned, aiming at the straight line created in his mind that would lead him directly to the Tower. The journey he had dreamed of so much had finally begun!!
***
After about two hours of walking, the Kingdom was almost out of sight, while the Conqueror's Tower was close and far away at the same time.
That Transformed Vampire... What he told me…
The words hadn't left his head since he began the journey. The only fear was that one of the guards nearby at that moment might have also heard the whispers of the corpse, but he could tell they hadn't thanks to the solitude so far.
The King of the Tower...
A simple phrase, perhaps too simple. However, the meaning it carried was invaluable to Vast.
Does he mean the Immortal King? That's all I can think of. Or is there another Being that lives there?
The possibility sent a shiver down his spine. Anything capable of living in what should be the most dangerous place in the world must have a power beyond what Man could comprehend. But there was no reason to dwell on this now, though, even if doing so didn't make him give up the journey.
How far until the next village? I remember, in this direction, I'll find BonFire Village.
No one had given him such an obligation; in fact, they always tried to prevent him from continuing with that habit considered rude/unnecessary for the nobility. But, as the sole heir prince, Vast believed he should memorize the name and location of each of the communities present in his future territory.
He did that, but not only that. In addition to knowing with high precision where each village was, he also studied the types of vampires discovered by researchers. This was for a reason more of his Curse — [Mutter] — than anything else. He never thought he would embark on a journey to the Conqueror's Tower with the goal of acquiring the vampire vaccine, but the precaution was worthwhile.
Transformed... He's a rather rare type, but the fact that he was transformed was almost evident in his description.
He remembered the moment he identified the vampire when in the hall.
Transformed
Strength 35/100
Agility 20/100
Intelligence 2/100
The curious panel, known as the "aura" among the Cursed, always appeared when one wanted to discover the strength or identity of their enemy. Apparently, there were no restrictions to view it, but the information was extremely basic. Another limitation was that it only worked on Vampires and nothing else.
Strength and agility were self-explanatory; what really mattered in combat was Intelligence. For Vampires, this referred to how well the individual could manipulate their innate technique, meaning the one they were born with or acquired when they transformed. It's doens't necessarily imply how deadly the skill can be.
Cursed couldn't evaluate their own attributes, but Vast knew that at least his strength and intelligence were greater than that of this Vampire. On the other hand, ordinary people didn't even come close to half of that. The maximum strength and agility even the most well-trained common soldier in the world would reach would be an average of 10, considering this specific power scale.
I need more strength! That was a fact. It seems like my blood causes pain to these monsters. I wonder if the same applies to other Cursed, or if only I have this trait?
He would love to ask, but the problem was that he had never heard news about another like him in the kingdom, much less in the entire West. He knew of others in the other three regions, but not even he, as a prince, was allowed to leave his own domain.
This limitation was the fault of the vampires.
——————
Original
Descendant
2nd Degree/Transformed
Wanderer
Indulgent
——————
That was the ranking that humans knew about this species.
It was known that the only category the Indulgent could never reach would be that of Original. The reason didn't even need to be said. And, about these Originals, humanity had knowledge of four of them.
Among all types, they were the most intelligent, undoubtedly, capable of organizing strategically in various situations. Currently, each of the four Originals acted as if they were the King of Kings in their respective regions. What happened between them — friendships and enmities — was a mystery to mere humans.
Vast was heading towards these originals, whose statistics he had heard surpassed 70 points. Just one of them with that power was enough to destroy his Kingdom.
I can't keep thinking about this, it will only hinder me! He decided, facing what was ahead of him.
He was finally seeing it, BonFire Village. The houses with stone foundations and wooden walls were spaced out from each other, leaving room for some future utility. However, something wasn't right at that moment.
BOOM!!!
Definitely not.
Damn! This aura again! He ran as fast as his curse allowed him.
With his long strides, it didn't take him more than a minute to cover the two kilometers that separated him from the village. Of course, it cost him a good deal of his energy, but it wasn't time to ration it.
As soon as he reached the village, amidst people screaming, he immediately saw the culprit for such despair.
"Damn you! What are you doing to my subjects!!" he exclaimed, gaining the figure's attention.
"Huh!?" He twisted his face as he looked at Vast. With gray skin, he was clearly a Vampire with more brains than the one from the castle. The human body was in perfect condition, wearing a black and sparingly decorated outfit that protected everything except the face from the sun. And on this face, the purple bright eyes stood out.
"Who are you, kid? Can't you see I'm having lunch here?"
The Vampire looked closer, the shiny clothes blinded him for a moment, and his expression revealed that he had understood who the boy in front of him really was. With that, he muttered: "Interesting."
Vast, in turn, did what any cursed would do before starting the battle. The aura covered his eyes, revealing the enemy's stats.
Wandering Vampire
Strength 20/100
Agility 18/100
Intelligence 9/100
Then, the prince smiled, drawing the short sword at his waist before anything else. Finally, the epic phrase.
"I'll show you a pain worse than a thousand suns!"