Gospel of Blood

Chapter 417: Flattery and Amazement

Chapter 417: Flattery and Amazement

For a Legendary Bloodborne, conducting an interrogation is naturally a piece of cake.

It didn’t take Albrecht much effort. The already terrified Count Corimo spilled everything he knew.

“So that’s it, you’re planning to use the Roman blood in Countess Castell to activate the Roman family’s contract book and thereby obtain Romanus’s artifact…”

Albrecht raised an eyebrow slightly.

He looked at Count Corimo with an indescribable expression, quite puzzled.

“To think you would target that entity, it’s hard to say whether you are incredibly bold or just incredibly unlucky…”

“But even without considering that entity’s power… What were you thinking? Such an open kidnapping, do you really think the other nobles are blind?”

Hearing Albrecht’s question, Count Corimo swallowed hard and replied fearfully.

“We… we planned to frame the kidnapping on the hidden Starfall bloodbornes and then… in the guise of saviors, we would ‘rescue’ Countess Castell.”

“The Starfall bloodbornes are too cunning, they’ve infiltrated the entire upper echelon of the kingdom, and even some members of the royal family are on their side…”

“The Crescent Diocese is preoccupied, and the Holy Court’s Starfall Branch is already a mere facade. We had no choice but to take such measures to counter the bloodbornes.”

Hearing Count Corimo’s words, Albrecht was quite surprised.

“It’s actually a plan that kills three birds with one stone. If it succeeds, you get the artifact, secure the succession rights, strike at Starfall bloodbornes, and even have a chance to gain the North’s friendship and possibly Castell’s alliance…”

“Tsk tsk, this scheme, was it devised by that Duke Conte? He really is a clever one!”

As he spoke, before Count Corimo could respond, Albrecht muttered to himself.

“No wonder the Nez Clan has been restless recently, they were planning to initiate the Returning Star Plan ahead of time. Looks like… they’re also preparing for the Divinity Descent Day.”

“These guys… what kind of benefits did they promise to get even that entity’s tacit consent and support?”

Albrecht was thoughtful.

Truly, one blood descendant can drive another crazy with envy.

His Blood Demon Cult was being chased around like dogs by the True Ancestor in the Crescent Kingdom, with constant reports and raids on their strongholds. Even he, the Third Dark Apostle, was beaten up and forcibly turned into a blood thrall…

Meanwhile, the Nez Clan was doing just fine.

They didn’t even know the True Ancestor’s identity yet managed to coexist peacefully with the True Ancestor and even gained support!

Truly outrageous. Back then, they were the main force infiltrating Castell. They were also among those who kicked them when they were down!

At this moment, Albrecht was genuinely sour.

Seeing the shifting expression on the “girl’s” face and the surrounding guards and servants turned into puppets, Count Corimo shivered coldly, then forced himself to speak.

“Your… your lordship! I’ve told you everything I know! We had no intention of harming Countess Castell, we just wanted to avoid the division of the Roman family, so we had no choice but to resort to this…”

“Alright, honestly, I don’t care what schemes you’re up to. Kidnapping Countess Castell or harming her, or dealing with the Nez bloodbornes to stabilize Starfall’s royal power… If you could really pull it off, I might even be quite happy and cheer for you. But unfortunately… you’re just a bunch of overestimating worms, nothing more than a joke.”

Albrecht shook his head.

He looked lazily at the trembling Count Corimo, a trace of disdain flashing in his eyes.

“Human nobles, so pathetic.”

With that, a black light flashed in his hand, spreading like tentacles of black lines toward Count Corimo.

Seeing the same black lines on the other “puppets”, Count Korimo’s face changed dramatically, his expression filled with horror as he cried out.

“No! Don’t kill me! Please don’t kill me! I’ll do anything! Anything!”

Albrecht didn’t even look at him, letting the black lines wrap around him, and Count Corimo’s eyes soon lost their luster, becoming no different from the others.

Only then did Albrecht stand up.

He gestured, and Count Corimo, along with the others, stiffly bowed to him.

“Kill you? Heh, I really do want to kill you. I’ve been in a bad mood lately and have been itching to kill a few clueless fools to vent my anger.”

“If I weren’t worried about messing up the True Ancestor’s plans, you’d all be my living corpses by now!”

Albrecht glanced at the surrounding “puppets” and said viciously.

He then finished his tea in one gulp and touched his chin.

“Alright, now that the plot is revealed, what to do next?”

“Should I continue to disguise myself, or manipulate the puppets to sabotage the Roman family’s plans, or… should I play along with their scheme?”

Thinking about the possible fun, Albrecht showed a trace of interest.

However, he quickly reacted, showing a complicated and self-mocking expression.

“Tch, I’ve really gotten used to being a blood servant, thinking about my next move…”

“The more you do, the more mistakes you make. Doing nothing is the best. Figuring out what to do is the boss’s job, not mine.”

With that, Albrecht summoned the contract shadow demon left to him by Charlotte.

Black magic spread and the shadow demon’s form gradually emerged, letting out a low growl.

Albrecht frowned and snorted coldly, exuding even more viscous and terrifying black magic than the shadow demon.

Sensing the terrifying aura of the same origin, the shadow demon immediately quieted down, curling up pitifully, and submissively.

“Pathetic thing, you disgrace the name of the demon!”

Albrecht glanced at it with disdain, losing interest in making it run errands.

“Forget it, this useless thing isn’t reliable. Its intelligence is lacking, I’d better directly apply for a conversation with the True Ancestor.”

“The ceremony hasn’t started yet, so the old lady’s mental communication should still be open…”

“Whatever happens, it’s the old lady’s job to worry about, not mine!”

Albrecht quickly made his decision.

As a master of shirking responsibility in the Blood Demon Cult, he was quite adept at this.

He disdainfully dismissed the shadow demon back to the other space, then communicated with the blood servant mark in his soul, putting on a flattering smile and seeking a mental conversation with the Thorny Rose…

…

Getting on the carriage prepared by Yurst, Charlotte arrived at Roman Square from another direction.

However, she didn’t enter the square itself but used a hidden entrance to go underground.

This should be the underground drainage system of Roan City.

Like Lutecia, Roan City is an ancient city of the old Yunette Empire, and these drainage networks were left from that era of royal prosperity and heavy rainfall.

Of course, like Lutecia, most of Roan City’s drainage system has been abandoned, except for the necessary parts still in use.

This place… had long become a haven for some monsters, fugitives, and even cultists.

The underground area below the Roman Square where the ceremony was held was no different, showing signs of erosion over the years.

However, perhaps due to the proximity to the ceremony site, security here was much stricter, with guards posted everywhere.

When Charlotte and her companions entered, they were quickly stopped by guards.

“Stop! The area ahead is restricted. No unauthorized personnel allowed!”

Yurst glanced at the guards and presented his noble insignia.

“I am Count Yurst, responsible for the security of this ceremony.”

Seeing the insignia, the guards immediately put away their weapons and respectfully saluted him.

“So, it’s Count Yurst. Please proceed, Count.”

They then turned to look at Charlotte, who was standing beside Yurst, with a hint of confusion.

“This is my personal maid and assistant, helping me inspect the protective magic arrays.”

Count Yurst stated proudly.

Upon hearing this, the guards immediately stood at attention.

“Ah, a mage! Please, mage, proceed.”

Thus, Yurst and Charlotte entered the underground area directly beneath the plaza without further hindrance.

Charlotte noticed that, unlike the outer area, the ground here was inscribed with a complex magic array.

Being no stranger to magic herself, she quickly identified that these formations were the foundations of the protective magic that covered the entire Roman Square.

After a brief contemplation, she also realized how the Nez Clan had arranged things.

Clearly, Yurst had successfully gained the trust of the Roman Royal Family, becoming not only an assistant for the ceremony but also the maintainer of the square’s magic array.

It’s likely that the Nez Clan managed to prepare a secret room directly beneath the plaza to “hack” into the Ancestral Recognition Ceremony through this loophole.

As if to confirm Charlotte’s suspicions, Yurst soon led her to a hidden entrance.

“Countess Castell, this is the secret room we have prepared for the ceremony. The formations are set, and once the ceremony begins, this place will also become part of the Ancestral Recognition Ceremony.”

Charlotte nodded slightly in response.

She, accompanied by Nice, entered the secret room.

The secret room was not large. It was essentially a makeshift dugout.

As soon as they entered, Nice scurried around, inspecting the magic array before reporting to Charlotte.

“Lady Charlotte, Yurst wasn’t lying. This is indeed a magic array to hack into the Roman ceremony!”

Charlotte nodded slightly.

The Nez Clan, wary of the “God” behind her, wouldn’t dare deceive her, especially since the person in charge was Yurst, one of their own.

This trip to Roman had gone smoother than she anticipated. Despite the unexpected encounter with Albrecht and the subsequent revelation of her identity, everything was still within expectations.

Now, it was just a matter of waiting for the ceremony to begin.

With this in mind, Charlotte looked around, seeking a place to sit.

Noticing her gaze, Nice promptly pulled out a chair from his interdimensional space and flatteringly said.

“Lady Charlotte, please have a seat!”

Charlotte found Nice’s attentiveness amusing but was pleased and sat down, offering a rare compliment.

“Good job.”

Nice’s feline face lit up with joy at her praise, seemingly quite pleased.

“Lady Charlotte, please have a drink.”

Nice said, producing a glass of sweet milk from his space with his paw and offering it to her.

Charlotte glanced at him with mild amusement. Feeling somewhat thirsty, she did not refuse.

On the other side, Yurst, who had been observing everything, was taken aback.

Huh?

Why does it seem… that Nicholas is also being so submissive to Countess Castell?

Seeing their interactions, he felt something was off but couldn’t quite put his finger on it.

However…

Nicholas was supposed to be the pet of the True Ancestor,

while Countess Castell was the True Ancestor’s agent.

Isn’t the True Ancestor’s pet shouldn’t be that submissive to the True Ancestor’s agent?

Even though Nicholas had always been somewhat of a pervert, a shameless flirt who couldn’t resist pretty women, wasn’t this a bit too much?

Even if Countess Castell’s appearance matched his tastes from centuries ago, this seemed overly submissive, didn’t it?

Yurst pondered, glancing between Charlotte and Nice, wondering if the cat’s transformation had also affected his mind.

Or perhaps… was there a secret about Countess Castell he wasn’t aware of?

Yurst fell into deep thought.

Just then, Charlotte raised an eyebrow and put down her glass.

Noticing her action, Yurst was immediately alert.

“Countess Castell, is something wrong?”

Charlotte squinted slightly and said,

“My double… has been abducted.”

Yurst was stunned.

“Your double has been abducted? Wait… what? Shouldn’t your double be on stage by now? How do you know this?”

Charlotte didn’t hide anything and calmly explained.

“My double is my servant, bound to me by a contract. We can communicate telepathically.”

She chuckled lightly.

“It seems we underestimated the ambition of the Starfall Royal Family. The double on stage is a fake, my real double has been taken away.”

“The Starfall Royal Family truly regards me highly. They even hired two Blazing Sun mercenaries for this.”

Yurst’s expression changed.

“Wait… Are you saying that the Roman family abducted your double?!”

Charlotte nodded slightly.

“That’s how it appears.”

Yurst’s expression turned serious.

Charlotte glanced at him and said with a smile.

“Sir Yurst, there’s no need to worry. The Nez Clan’s plan remains intact.”

“My double has already taken control of the situation. The ones in trouble now… are the abductors.”

Yurst felt a bit relieved at her words.

But soon, he realized something was amiss.

“Wait…”

“Are you saying your servant successfully countered two Blazing Sun attackers?!”