This is coming a bit late, but regardless, Happy New Year. Enjoy the chapter

Chapter 11: Bloody Tears: Part 2

Bloomingdale

"What am I looking at?"

Lord Demak, the ruling Monarch of this village was slightly taken aback by the question of the young man Infront of him. Regardless, he did not allow it bother him that much.

"Oh, these things?" Demak asked as he glanced lazily at the farming villagers. "I wouldn't pay them any mind if I were you. As you can see, they're not really, norished. The real products are being kept in my mansion."

"Products…" Ben could feel his anger rising as he repeated the name that this man just used to address people.

"I can guarantee you that this batch of products far exceeds the last set." Demak said. "We even added a younger one specifically for Lord Stefan." He added before facing one of his thugs/soldier. "Rumor has it that his family jewel isn't large enough to handle older specimen."

The two men roared in laughter at Demak's joke. Also laughing, Demak turned around ready to sprout out some more words but then the sound of gagging reached the ears of the soldiers. Even the workers on the farm stopped what they were doing in at the sudden sound.

Ben sneered as he looked at the shocked expression on Demak's face, which now had a golden spear inside his mouth with the blade's end sticking out of the back of Demak's head.

With a hard tug, Demak's head was cruelly ripped off of his body and was sent flying into Ben's left hand

Everyone present watched as the headless body fell to the ground and blood began to pool from the neck. Ben glanced down at the stunned look on the now dead man's face. He then dropped the head on the ground, before crushing it under his boot.

On seeing this, the thugs were far too stunned to process what was going on. Regardless of their condition, they were never going to recover from the shocked state they were in, cause the spear Ben was holding suddenly rammed through the spine of the first thug, before it was driven down between his shoulder blades. In a swift motion, Ben wrenched the weapon free from the thug's body before slicing the second thug in half from his torso.

As both thugs fell to the ground dead, Ben willed the spear out of existence, before making his way to the frightened villagers. As he got closer to them, some of the older men began placing themselves Infront of the younger children in a defensive manner.

Stopping a few feet away from the villagers, Ben raised both his hands as a way to ease their tension. "Greetings."

"Are you…a noble under the Eight Fingers?" An elderly man asked

"I am not."

"His attire says otherwise." A young boy scoffed, but despite his tone, one could tell he was just putting up a brave face.

"I realize my countenance and current…actions, suggest otherwise, but I can assure you, I'm not with this Eight Fingers you speak of." Ben said. From the side of his eyes, he noticed some villagers trying sneak away. "Wait." He said, stopping them in their track. "I understand that you've suffered greatly, and my killing of those men insight unease in you, but I'm on your side."

From behind the elder, a boy of about eight years, left the side of his mother and began approaching Ben. "That thing you did back there, it was magic right?"

"It was." Ben smiled lightly at the boy. "Want me to teach you?" The boy's eyes widened in excitement at his question. "The kid friendly version though." He added, slightly shattering the boys expectations.

"Crack biscuits." The boy pouted comically.

From the crowd of villagers, a young girl shyly stepped forward. "Are y-you…are you here to help us?" She asked.

Ben looked upon the girl before kneeling down to her level. "What are your names?"

"I'm Xander." The boy said

"Attis." The girl muttered.

"I'm Ben." He said. "And yes, I am here to help you. But first, we need to fill up your stomachs." He said before facing the oldest man present. "How much food do you have in your stores?"

"Not much I'm afraid. Lord Demak usually hogs whatever we harvest into his mansion before giving us whatever he feels is enough."

"Well, since he isn't here anymore, I say we storm his residence." A good number of villagers could not help but roar in approval.

Death-Spreading Brigade Cave

As Brain walked to the entrance of the cave, the faint smell of blood greeted his nose. A lone bandit is seen rushing towards him as the screams of the others filled the cave.

"Sounds like a party." Brain said, catching the panicking man off guard.

"Huh?" Stopping to take a better look at the person who spoke, the man could not help but let out a relieved sigh. "Brain, thank the Gods! We're being attacked!"

"Yeah, that much is obvious." Brain said dryly. "How many?"

"Oh, right. There are two of them. Both women."

"Women?" Brain raised a brow. "Are you pulling my leg."

"Uh-"

"I'll handle this one." Brain said, stopping what ever reply the man had. "Head back. Fortify our inner defense."

Nodding, the man rushed inside, leaving Brain to continue his stroll to the entrance. As he got closer to his destination, the screaming suddenly stopped. That meant that all his comrades near the entrance had been slaughtered.

"If there's only two intruders, that means their abilities must be around the same level as mine." Brain smiled coldly as he continued to advance further. Not even a second of walking, he saw two shapes appear before him.

"Oi oi, it looks like the two of you had a lot of fun."

"Hardly. I don't know if it's because these people are too weak, but they're not filling up the Blood Pool."

"A vampire, huh? Great." Brain said as he took a good look at the individuals before him. "This'll be fun. Very fun."

"But you're all by yourself, sir." Shalltear said, having heard his monologue. "If I were you, I would call the rest of your friends, then you might have a chance."

"Don't need 'em." He said, while adopting a fighting stance. "Those morons would only cramp my style, anyway."

"My, aren't you brave?"

As those words left her mouth, the Vampire bride charged forward. Her movements were swift as the wind, however, her speed did not bother him.

"Chestooo!"

As he shouted, Brain brought his katana down with a forceful swing. Filled with a power that could split an armored warrior bodily in two, it raced through the air like a hurricane.

"Kuh!"

Counter-attacked mid-charge, the Bride leapt away as she pressed her hand against her chest. The cut started from her left shoulder and ran across her breasts.

Brain frowned as he stared at his foe. The shoulder wound he had inflicted was slowly healing up.

With her injury healed, her eyes went wide, and her red pupils seemed abnormally large. In that moment, a fog suddenly clouded Brain's mind, and he felt favorably disposed toward the enemy before him. However, he dispersed the fog with a quick shake of his head.

"...Mystic eyes, huh? My will isn't weak enough to be affected by that sort of thing alone."

Seeing him resist her attempt at mind control, the Vampire Bride bared her fangs to frighten him, but that attempt at intimidation was tinged by her own fear. Brain slowly advanced on the Vampire Bride, who steadily retreated in time with his movements.

Shalltear who had been standing at the sidelines was displeased by this deadlock, and could no longer hide her annoyance.

"No, it's my turn."

Shalltear snapped her finger, and the crisp, clear sound made the Vampire Bride's body shudder. Brain took notice of this but did not say anything. Judging by the taller woman's reaction, he deduced that the petite vampire was stronger.

Brain tightened his grip on his katana's hilt, slowly shifting into an attack stance.

"I am Brain Unglaus." Shalltear quirked an eyebrow at him. Feeling somewhat uncomfortable, Brain continued. "...What is your name?"

"Oh! So that's what we're doing. How utterly adorable." Shalltear took up the hems of her skirt and curtseyed elegantly, like a dancer at a ball. "My name is Shalltear Bloodfallen. I hope you will entertain me well before you perish."

Brain stared silently at Shalltear. "She thinks she's unbeatable. Typical monster."

Brain exhaled slowly and lowered his stance, returning his sword to its sheath. Activating his [Field, he stood there preparing for a draw cut, the [God Flash]. His breaths had become long and shallow. "But she won't be faster than my God Flash strike."

"Are you done preparing yet?" Shalltear looked at Brain, who stayed silent and did nothing but breathe.

"I'm ready to make my move, so if you have any last words, feel free to say them."

Shalltear shrugged in boredom at his declaration. "Then let the Massacre begin." She strode forward with that cheerful pronouncement. Shalltear's steps were unguarded, seemingly defenseless, as dainty and casual as if she were heading for a picnic

"Gazef. I developed the [God Flash] and [Field] so I could beat you." Brain thought as Shalltear slowly approached him. "And if I combine the two of them, I will."

"[Blade Technique. Whistling Wind!]"

With his declaration, Brain struck with all his might at Lightning speed. His blade cleared his sheath, slicing through the air at Shalltear.

However, Shalltear caught the attack with her fingertips. What made it worse was that she held his blade gently, like one would the wings of a butterfly.

Brain could not help but pant heavily, as he felt the air seem to freeze around him. "...Im-Impossible…"

"I think you just realized how futile this is." Shalltear said still holding onto his blade. "I may be a petite and beautiful little monster, but I'm also cold, cruel, and ruthless.

She then let go of his blade, while also giving him some space. "If you have another attack, you should try it now."

Brain's breathing grew chaotic. His sweat flowed like rain, soaking his entire body.

"What's the matter?" Shalltear asked. "Was that all of the martial arts you know?"

"Martial arts?" Brain whispered. "Is that what you think I was doing?" Biting his lower lip, he unleashed a great shout as he made his move on Shalltear. Brain swung at Shalltear. His blow, which marshalled all the muscles of his entire body, could easily cut an armored human being in half.

However, Shalltear had swiftly flicked the nail of her left little finger with blinding speed. In addition, Shalltear did not seem to be using any strength at all; the rest of her hand was balled up into a fist, leaving only the little finger sticking out; and it was slightly bent. Slice after slice, Shalltear continued to deflect his attacks while yawning in the process.

"What's wrong? Are you tired already?"

Brain stopped swinging as he heard those surprising words. Realization then hit him. There was no way he could defeat her.

"I thought you'd have more stamina than this. How strange. I thought you used martial arts to increase your strength and speed." Shalltear said in a mocking tone. "But I don't notice any difference. You're just as weak as you were before we started. If you want to make a good impression, you, sir, are going to have to work a lot harder than that."

In the face of a truly powerful being, Brain was no different from the powerless weaklings he used to mock.

"I'm an idiot…"

"...Are you done? Then it's about time to wrap this up, no?"

Shalltear giggled as she advanced on him, her little finger extended. Brain cried out; not a warrior's call to battle, but a child's weeping.

Brain ran wildly. He faced his back to Shalltear. Having experienced Shalltear's physical ability first-hand, he expected that she would catch up with him immediately.

Still, he paid that fact no heed. Or rather, Brain no longer had the energy to worry about that sort of thing. He simply revealed his defenseless back to her, scrunching his face up into a tear- and snot-filled mess as he desperately ran deeper into the cave.

Just then, an innocent girl's voice, laced with bloodlust, came from behind Brain.

"Are we playing tag then? You're going to play all sorts of games with me? Then I shall enjoy myself, ahahahaha~"

Cave's Main Hall

A cold wind slipped through the gaps in the barricade over the surviving men of the Death-Spreading Brigade, all forty two of them.

Almost everyone was arrayed behind this defensive formation, holding their crossbows as they waited in the center, left and right wings.

The sound of running came toward them, growing louder and louder.

Someone gulped loudly. The sounds of several crossbow strings being drawn back could be heard amidst the silence.

As the sellswords watched the hall's entrance, a man sprinted into view, panting heavily. It was a miracle that nobody had loosed their bolts at him.

"Brain!"

The man who shouted was the head of the mercenaries, the Brigade's leader. Soon, a great cheer exploded through the hall. Their jubilant cheers came from their belief that he had defeated the intruder. Amidst this praise, Brain stood at the entrance to the hall, holding his weapon in one powerless hand as he quietly surveyed the area as though he was looking for something.

The cheering died down as though suppressed, as the sellswords picked up on Brain's strange mood. He was now running for the barricade.

"Oi! Wait up, we'll open up for you!"

Brain paid those words no heed as he squirmed into the barricade, forcing his way through without wasting a single moment before continuing his run.

He felt the sellswords stare dumbly at him as he opened a door. It led to a cave which was being used as a storeroom, and he rushed inside.

"What's wrong? Did he put something in there?"

"Who knows? It feels weird, though… was he crying? Nah, that couldn't be!"

They stuck their heads out to look at the closing door, but the mercenaries were thoroughly baffled by the strange event which had transpired before them.

The Leader frowned at this, however, he did not have the time to verify his suspicions due to the sound of slow, graceful steps heading towards the barricade's direction, revealing none other than Shalltear.

"Good evening, everyone. My name is Shalltear Bloodfallen. Is this the finishing point? Does this mean the game of tag is over?" She asked as she looked around for Brain. Noticing he wasn't among the men in front of her, the grin on her face suddenly grew larger. "Are we playing hide and seek noooooooow?"

She giggled merrily, seemingly amused by this. Shalltear lowered her head and laughed and laughed and laughed, her silver hair shrouding her face.

As the sellswords gasped at the sight before them, Shalltear's laughter grew ever louder. Her full-bellied mirth echoed through the hall as the girl slowly raised her head again.

The face they saw was no longer beautiful. The color flowing out of her pupils had dyed her eyes completely red, and the two neat rows of white teeth in her mouth now resembled a set of delicate syringe needles, like a shark's gaping maw. A lewd pink glow leaked from her throat as transparent saliva drooled from her mouth.

"Ahahaaahahaahaahahaa!!!" Shalltear bared her fangs and grinned, so wide that the corners of her mouth almost touched her ears. She laughed several dozen times, like the tolling of an off-key bell. Whimpers of despair filled the air of the hall.

"A vampire. Fire at will!" Upon hearing their leader's voice, the sellswords came to their senses, chased away their fear, and fired their crossbows as one.

The bolts which shot out roared like a downpour, riddling Shalltear's body with projectiles. Thirty one of the forty bolts fired had hit, each piercing deeply into her body. At this range, the bolts could even go through metal armor, so this was the logical outcome. In addition, the four which had entered her head would have been fatal for a human being.

Someone breathed, "We killed it…"

Those words were the hope which all of them were clinging to. Although their foe was still standing, so many bolts stuck out of it that it resembled a porcupine. By common sense, it should have been definitively dead.

As though driven by some kind of sixth sense, the sellswords began reloading their crossbows…And then, Shalltear moved.

As she slowly spread her arms, the bolts which covered her body began working their way out and then fell to the ground. None of them had so much as a single drop of blood on them, nor were their heads dented. It was as though they had never been used at all. Shalltear laughed, and a vile, predator's snarl appeared on her face.

Scattered cries of terror rose from the frightened sellswords. As though urged on by those cries, countless bolts ripped through the air toward Shalltear once more, however, she took a step forward, and then moved

She sailed gracefully through the air and landed on the other side of the barricade. As her high heels clacked on the ground, all the bolts stuck in her fell off as well.

She turned to look at the soldiers behind her, who were reloading their crossbows and then, punched one of the men.

Her hand pierced the body of the sellsword she had punched, sending him flying into the barricade. With a heaven-shaking crash, the wood of the barricade disintegrated, spraying splinters everywhere.

The stunned sellswords stopped reloading their crossbows, staring dumbly at Shalltear.

Shalltear stuck her index finger into the mass of blood floating above her and drew out a strand of blood, which turned into a Magic Rune.

"[Penetrate Magic - Implosion]."

After casting this tenth tier spell, the bodies of ten mercenaries began swelling up from inside. There was no time for them to cry out. All they could do was watch their bodies expand inexorably, looks of ignorant terror on their faces. Then, in the next moment, their bodies burst, like balloons popping.

"Hahahahhhahahaahaha! Firewoooooorks! How prettyyyyyyyy~" Shalltar pointed to the spraying blood, applauding and cackling as she did.

Following that cry, an estoc impaled Shalltear's chest from behind piercing her heart. It sawed up and down, as though to widen the wound.

"Die, you monster!" The broadsword swing after that nearly clove Shalltear's head in half, its point stopping after it pierced her left eye. "You lot, hurry up and get stuck in!"

As wails and cries rose from them, three mercenaries hacked at Shalltear's body with the weapons they had at hand.

They swung over and over again, but Shalltear still stood firm, despite having a broadsword buried halfway into that face of hers. Said face bore a frightening smile, with no sign that she was in pain at all.

After they tired of attacking her, the sellswords cast down their swords and switched to punching and kicking her, the tears streaming down their faces. Though they were much larger than she was, Shalltear remained unmoved.

Shalltear tilted her head to look at the mercenaries and began thinking. Then she clapped her hands together, having thought of some devilish scheme. Then, she casually flicked one of those delicate ivory hands of hers. And thus, three skulls rolled to the ground.

"Run away! Run away! Run for your lives!"

"We can't beat a monster like that!"

The sellswords screamed and fled in all directions.

Having lost all will to fight, one of the running men was seized from behind by Shalltear, who grasped his head with both her hands and squeezed. His head popped open like a shellfish having its carapace cracked open, and his brains squirted out.

"Hahahahahahahahaha! Whaaaaat's that look on your faces, are you scaaaaared~? Wait a minute, hahahahahaha! Hang on a bit, I'm iiiiiiiiitttt—! Hahaha, hahaha, hahahahaha!"

Their curiosity piqued by that sinister voice, the sellswords turned to see a stomach-churning sight. The blood-drunk queen of nightmares chased them down, not allowing a single mercenary to escape.

Countless screams of anger and cries of despair echoed through the great hall…

Bloomingdale

"And here's a bowl for you as well." Ben said with a kind smile on his face as he handed over the final bowl to a small little girl in torn clothes.

The little girl took the bowl and gave Ben a small hug around his waist before running off.

The little girl in question was one of the people Demak planned to sell off. They were five girls in number when Ben and the villages had stormed the mansion. The girls we all within the range of 15 to 16 years, with the youngest being 12. The thought of what could have happened to this people had he not arrived sickened him to his core.

"Once again I'm reminded that the world is filled with fucked up individuals." Ben mentally sighed as he watched the villagers eat. Turning to his left, he caught site of some men transporting Various bags of food away from the Storehouse to various houses in the village. It would seem the food in Demak storehouse could feed the entire village for about two years or more, yet the bastard continued hogging them to himself.

"Never in all my years did I imagine Bloomingdale would be this lively again," He heard the village's Elder say from behind him. Ben turned around and faced the smiling man. "You have my thanks. Though it pains my that I wasn't much help to you."

"Nonsense. The information you gave me was really helpful." During the few hours Ben had spent in the village helping the residents, he was able to ask the the Elder of the whereabouts of Ninya's aunt. Unfortunately, her aunt had died of a sickness three months ago. Despite the sad news, he was still able to get the name of Ninya's lost sister, Tuareninya Veyron.

"Your word gladdens this old man's heart." He said, right before his face turned stern. "Will you still travel to the capital? Surely you would not mind staying here for a few days."

"You're worried about the village's safety in my absence?"

"Naturally." The man admitted

"You don't have to worry. I've taken measures to ensure no harm comes to this village while I'm gone." Ben said, before turning to an empty space to his right. "Besides, he's already here." Just as the words left his mouth, a sound similar to curtains tearing caught the attention of everyone present.

The empty space Ben had been staring at now had a massive tear in reality, and from that tear, came out a massive Wolf.

"Lord Ben, I came as soon as I got your [Message]."

"Your timing could not have been better, Fenrir." Ben said, as he hugged the massive Wolf by his neck.

Gasp of shock could be heard from the villagers as they slowly approach Fenrir.

"By the gods." A villager muttered in shock.

"This is Fenrir. He will be watching over your village in my absence."

"Can I pet him?" Xander asked, while slowly approaching him. Suddenly, Fenrir began nuzzling his stomach, causing him to laugh uncontrollably. On seeing this, more villagers began approaching the wolf.

While this was happening, Ben chose that moment to slowly step away from the group. Once he was a good distance away, he began using the [Message] spell to contact Sebas.

"Lord Ben, it is good to hear from you." Sebas said from his end.

"Likewise." Ben said. "Have you reached the Capital? If I remember well, Ainz said he was sending you and Shalltear on a recon mission there."

"I am currently at the capital, though I'm sorry to inform you that Lady Shalltear is not with me."

The information seem to catch Ben off guard. One reason he wasn't too concerned with Shalltear leaving Nazarick was because he was certain Sebas would keep her in check. But hearing she wasn't with him. "What do mean she isn't with you? Where is she?"

"Forgive me for not informing you earlier. Since Lord Ainz does not require any sleep, during your resting hours he had given Shalltear a separate mission."

"What type of mission?"

"Lord Ainz had sent her to capture Bandits who know Martial Arts." A long silence befell Ben once he heard this. Not comfortable with his sudden quietness, Sebas called. "Lord Ben?"

"What in Odin's Nut sacks was Ainz thinking?!" Sebas couldn't help but flinch from the boys uncharacteristic swearing. "Shalltear and Capture are two words that should not be in the same sentence." Ben then tried to use [Message] to contact Shalltear, but it did not work. Unable to contact her, he deduced she was already in her [Blood Frenzy] state.

"Shall I contact Lady Shalltear?" Sebas asked

"It's no use." Ben said as he took to the sky with a sonic boom. "The bandits she is suppose to capture are probably all dead. Right now she might have taken her attention elsewhere. I currently can't pinpoint her exact location to teleport to, and Fenrir isn't familiar with her scent to track her…Damnit, Ainz and I are going to have a long talk once I'm done with her."

Cave's Main Hall

Shalltear grinned evilly as she stood within the silent hall which was now devoid of any movement. The orb of blood above her head had absorbed a lot of fresh gore, to the point where it was only a little smaller than her head.

"Thaaaaaaat waaaaas fuuuuuuuuuun~"

After hearing Shalltear's exclamation of delight, the Vampire Bride who had been stationed at the hall's entrance to prevent anyone from escaping lowered her head. "I am glad that you enjoyed yourself, my noble master."

"Time for the maaaaaaiiiiiiin diiiiiishhhh~"

Shalltear wrenched open the door to the storeroom into which Brain had fled, bursting the lock off. The hinges still hung from the door in Shalltear's hand. Shalltear might have lost herself in her Blood Frenzy, but she still remembered the mission assigned to her.

Shalltear shoved away the obstacles in her path, and advanced to the place from which the wind blew. She found a hole behind the boxes, which had been blocked up by sandstone less than a meter ahead. The fresh air flowed in from a gap in the rock.

"A hole? He escaped!" Shalltear roared in anger, frightening the Bride present

"Lady Shalltear!"

One of her Vampire Brides had left her post, angering Shalltear

"Whaaaaaaat is iiiiiiiiiiit?" She turned angrily to face the Bride.

"Several people are headed this way."

"Hoho, Fortune smiles." Shalltear said before dashing out of the cave at inhuman speed.

On exiting the cave, Shalltear leapt up and hopped over the log barricade at the cave entrance. The Vampire Brides which accompanied her slowly advanced forward.

Shalltear looked on her targets with a smile.

They were three male warriors stationed at the front, two magic casters and a female red haired warrior.

"As I thought! A vampire!" The male caster said. "Imbue your blades with silver! Don't look into her eyes! We must fight to escape!"

"I know I have to capture them. But I want to kill them! I want to rip them limb from limb, and bathe in their blood!" With a cry like she had torn free of her bindings, Shalltear stepped forward. Her steps were light and easy, however, to the people before her, she moved faster than the wind.

She thrust out a spear hand.

It pierced her victim's shield, shattered his armor, ignored his magical protections, ripped straight through his skin, muscle, and bone, and closed around the heart which had been beating just a moment ago. And then she tore it out. As she stood over the body of the warrior collapsed, the female warrior whimpered in fear, while the priest's face twisted in anger.

She casually swiped her right hand, but this careless blow was enough to behead the sword-wielding warrior, sending him to the ground in a spray of blood.

Shalltear turned to the cleric before her. The female warrior stepped forward, putting herself into the line of fire, though she only wielded an ordinary steel weapon.

"How adorable" Shalltear thought. "You'll be my desseeeeeeeeerrrrrtttttt~" Shalltear bellowed from her gaping maw as she leapt over the woman.

Easily leaping over the female warrior, Shalltear landed before the arcane magic caster and the cleric.

Before the cleric could react, Shalltear already had the hand holding his holy symbol in her grasp, and she squeezed. The cleric's bones disintegrated under that irresistible force, and shreds of muscle and skin squirted from the gaps between Shalltear's fingers.

"Guwaaaaaargh-!"

After hearing the cleric's cries, Shalltear wave of her hand, the blood spurting from the stump of the cleric's neck flowed into the orb of blood above Shalltear's head.

At this point, somebody thrust a sword into Shalltear's back with all their strength. However, attacks like that were completely ineffective against her. Shalltear stood firm like a great tree, though she found the swordpoint protruding from her chest a minor inconvenience.

"No way… it's not working!? Isn't this a silver weapon!?" The sword had pierced her chest and her heart, as it turned out but Shalltear's nonchalance drew a garbled scream from the female warrior.

Since the female warrior did not have a silver weapon, she must have taken it from the body of the slain warrior.

"[Magic Arrow]!"

In desperation, the magic caster cast a spell, sending two arrows of light streaking at Shalltear. However, they were easily resisted.

With a casual wave of her hand, Shalltear relieved the person who no longer interested her of his head.

Shalltear picked up the fallen head on the ground and tossed it at the last male warrior. The heads flew forth with supernatural speed. Then, as expected, he collapsed to the ground.

While Shalltear was not paying attention, the female warrior flailed wildly at Shalltear's body with her sword.

"Now theeeeeen~ desseeeeeerrrrrtttttt~! Let's eeeeeeaaaaatttt~!"

Realizing that she was the sole survivor, Britta, the female warrior, stumbled back, eyes glistening with tears. She scrabbled at her waist pouch, fishing around inside for something.

Shalltear seemed curious about what the woman was doing. Soon, the female warrior pulled out a bottle and threw it.

Shalltear narrowed her eyes at the bottle tumbling through the air, and smiled coldly. She could have easily dodged it, but her pride as one of the strong did not allow her to avoid it. In addition, she wanted to see the look on the woman's face when her final trump card crumbled before her eyes.

Shalltear swatted aside the flying bottle. The force of swiping at the bottle caused the crimson fluid within it to spill from the bottle's mouth and splash on Shalltear's skin.

And then, there was a faint stinging pain.

The insides of Shalltear's mind went white for a moment, and her bloodlust was instantly extinguished.

She looked at the place from which the pain had come, which was the hand which had batted the bottle aside. An acrid odor and a wisp of smoke boiled up from the place where the liquid had touched her.

Shalltear turned to look at the fallen bottle. Its mouth was open, and a faint, sweet scent came from it. Shalltear was very familiar with that container.

It was a potion bottle of the kind commonly used in the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

"Impossible!" Her roar shook the very air. "Capture that woman unharmed!"

Upon hearing Shalltear's command, the Vampire Brides who had only been watching from the sidelines up till now sprang into action. In an instant, they had seized the arms of the female warrior while she attempted to flee during Shalltear's brief stupor.

The female warrior struggled valiantly, but the Vampire Brides' strength far outmatched hers, and they dragged her before Shalltear.

"Look into my eyes!"

Shalltear seized Britta's chin and forced her to look into her mystic eyes. Of course, she was very careful to control the amount of force that she used. It would be quite troublesome if she ended up wrenching the woman's jaw off because she used too much strength. "Tell me about that potion! Who did you get it from!?"

"A boy in black robe gave it to me at the inn."

"...No way… no, this can't be… but… where… in which city is this inn?"

"It was an inn located in E-Rantel."

Shalltear gasped in shock as she felt the world spin. This was because she had a rough idea of who the black-robed boy actually was.

"Why did you come here? What was your objective?"

"Our job is to protect the city, so we came to investigate when we heard there was a bandits' nest nearby. In the end, we found something strange, so we split up our team. Our party was responsible for a reconnaissance in force, which brought us here."

"You split your team?"

"Yes. We didn't know how many bandits were present, so we decided to split up and draw the enemy into a trapped area the other party was setting up."

"So there's another team," Shalltear muttered. She clicked her tongue as she realised that this meant more trouble for her.

"Then, how many of you came here?"

"There were seven people including me, and then-"

"Hm? Wait, seven people? Not six?" Shalltear counted the corpses around them. Three warriors, one mage, one cleric and this woman. The numbers did not add up.

"Yes, there was also a ranger. He said that he would hurry back to E-Rantel for help if an emergency occurred."

"Say what…?"

Eyes wide open, Shalltear charged up the sides of the lowlands, faster than the wind. She leapt over the edge and looked around, but even her darkvision-capable eyes could not penetrate the depths of the forest, and though she listened carefully, she could only hear the wind blowing on the grass and trees.

Shalltear did not possess any detection abilities or divination magic. Under these circumstances, finding a single person in the entire forest would probably be impossible.

"Son of a bitch!" she cursed.

He had escaped; she had been too careless. Shalltear ground her teeth as she realized that she had let two of her prey slip away.

"Familiars!"

Several shadows wavered into existence near Shalltear's feet. The shapes of several wolves appeared, but unlike regular wolves, their fur was black as night, and their eyes radiated a malevolent crimson glow. They were level seven monsters, Vampire Wolves.

"Hunt down and kill everyone in the forest!"

Upon hearing the shouted order, the ten Vampire Wolves surged into the woods as one.

"You two!" Shalltear said her Vampire Brides. "Keep this girl somewhere safe until I'm done."

The Vampire Brides bowed and began moving with Britta in hand. Shalltear grabbed her head and slowly crouched down.

"...I'm going to be scolded for sure… what should I do… however… hm?"

Shalltear raised her head, looking toward the part of the forest where the Vampire Wolves had gone. Shalltear sensed the disappearance of her familiars. It was not the disappearance of magical banishment, but the discorporation of being killed.

"They were killed that easily?" Shalltear growled before sprinting off to the direction her familiar were last seen.

Death-Spreading Brigade Cave

Once Ben made it to the road that would lead to the capital, he was instantly greeted with a trail of death that led him to this cave. Already knowing who was responsible for the Carnage, he rushed into the cave in hopes of finding Shalltear.

As Ben went deeper into the cave, he walked passed the corpse of many dead men littered all over the place. Considering the state of the area, Ben had concluded that there was no surviving individuals in the cave, that was until he felt the presence of multiple individuals. Dashing through the interior, he came across what his senses had picked.

Infront of him sat several naked women, all who seemed to have been used as sex slaves. Ben felt his legs grow weak as he looked down at them. He couldn't help but curse the world silently. It was as if Fate was throwing the evils of this world at him one at a time.

"First Clementine, then that fucking Lord and now this?" He thought with a bitter taste in his mouth. The women now noticing his presence, began fearfully crawling away from him.

"[Sleep]." With a bit of hesitation, Ben uttered the status spell, instantly causing all the women present to slumb down.

Ben was about to tiredly massage his head when suddenly he felt the presence of three individuals. Turning around, he came face to face with Shalltear's Vampire Brides holding a familiar red her girl.

"Lord-"

"[Binding Cold]."

The two vampires were instantly encased in ice, causing them to drop their captive. Before Britta could hit the ground though, Ben had already moved in to catch her. As Ben studied the adventurers face, he noticed the effect of Shalltear's Vampiric charm in her eyes.

"[Dispell Charm]."

Once free of her charmed state, Brita immediately slumped over crying. For a minute Ben silently stood over her, unable to come up with the right words to console her with.

"They're all dead." She muttered.

"I'm sorry."

Brita raised her head to look at Ben. "I remember you. You're the one who gave me that potion."

"I-"

"It saved me." She said with tear filled eyes. "Thank you."

"You should rest." Ben said before leaning down to her level. "[Sleep]."

Like the women in the cave, Brita slumbed over. With Brita asleep, Ben turned to the Frozen vampires present. "[Release]."

The Brides were then instantly released from there frozen prison.

"Lord Ben-"

"Where is Shalltear?" He asked, instantly cutting whatever the Vampire was about to say.

"She's…in the forest…North of here."

On hearing the bride stutter, he couldn't help but feel guilty, due the tone he just used on them. He shouldn't take his anger out on them. They could never stop Shalltear from doing as she pleases even if their lives depended on it.

"Is she still in her [Blood Frenzy] state?" He asked in a calmer tone.

"No."

Sighing in relief, Ben decided to contact Shalltear with message.

"Lord Ben!" Ben heard Shalltear's panicked voice in his head.

"Shalltear, whatever you're doing withdraw now!"

"I can't-"

"Shalltear!" Ben felt her mind slip into [Blood Frenzy] again. "Damnit Shalltear." He turned to the vampires present. "I want you two to guard these humans. Under no circumstance are you to harm them. Understood?"

"As you wish."

Now aware of Shalltear's location due to [Message, Ben allowed the familiar feeling of the [Bifrost] wash over him as watched the world around him change.

On teleporting to his destination, the first thing Ben noticed was the scared expression of Shalltear. At first this confused him, but before he could contemplate what could cause her fear, something suddenly struck him in the back.

Confusion turned into horror as Ben felt his mind suddenly turned white.

"Mind control." Ben thought as he grabbed his head, frantically fighting against the dominating force currently corrupting his mind.

As Ben continued to struggle for control, he noticed 13 individuals present. Among these individuals, two of them stood out the most. A young man who was probably the strongest being outside Nazarick he had encountered, and an elderly woman who wore an attire he could not analyze. There was only one thing in YGGDRASIL a Sage's [Eye] could not process…

"A World Item."

Fully understanding the danger he was in, Ben watched helplessly as Shalltear to created a [Purifying Javelin, before hurling it at the man who held the large, mirror-like shield standing between her and the old lady.

The strike flashed by in a streak of light and struck the old lady after penetrating the body of the man in front of her and the shield he was holding.

This act seemed to have tempered with the spell trying to control Ben, giving him just a few seconds to utter one spell…

Shalltear POV

Sprinting out at lightning speeds, Shalltear burst from the forest, to the last known position of her familiars.

There were twelve people before her. Each person was attired in a full panoply of equipment which varied between each of them.

They looked quite potent at a glance. Of course, Shalltear did not have any skills to discern the power of magic items, so she had to go by her gut, but she felt that their magic items might be of legendary class or above.

Shalltear considered the twelve men and women, and her gaze finally rested on one of them, a man.

"That man… is he strong?"

Shalltear was surprised and had no levels in dedicated warrior classes, so her assessment of her opposition's strength told her that he was not only stronger than the Vampire Brides she had brought along, but stronger still than Solution, the Pleiades battle maid.

His hair was black and long, almost reaching the ground, while his keen eyes had red pupils which regarded Shalltear with caution. He carried a plain-looking spear which seemed incongruous with the rest of his equipment.

"Use it."

The man issued a clear, crisp command. Panic broke out in the rest of the party. Shalltear had no idea what those words meant. However, she imagined that whatever was being used was powerful, possibly enough to rival Shalltear's sole divine class item.

The others sprang into action in response to the command, but Shalltear paid them no heed. There was only one person who stood out in her reckoning; the others did not seem like much of a threat.

The group's formation was centered around a woman in a strange dress.

Suddenly, Shalltear shivered.

This was the first time which Shalltear had ever shivered. It was a subtle observation, or one could call it a warning from a sixth sense.

Shalltear's eyes turned, intending to seize the old lady her instincts were warning her about.

That human had to die at all costs.

The spear-wielding man rushed at her just as she realized this and was about to make her move.

"Get lost!"

Shalltear batted him aside with all her might. However, when subjected to a strike that would pulverize a weak human being, the man was simply knocked back and did not perish on the spot. In addition, his will to fight was still intact despite being blown away.

Shalltear cast a spell, centered on the old lady.

"[Mass Hold Spec…]"

She wanted to capture several people. This was because she had a premonition that capturing these people would not only make up for her previous errors, but earn her praise.

As she thought that, a colorful light suddenly appeared before Shalltear and her opponents. Her eyes widened in shock as Ben stepped out from the light.

He looked like he was about to say something, but was suddenly halted by a golden dragon like creature attacking his back.

"No!"

She yelled in anger of him being attacked and instantly manifested a [Purifying Javelin]. With all her strength, she threw in through the man holding a shield and into the woman who dared attack a Supreme Being.

With the woman down for the count, she began making her way to the struggling form of Ben, but as she got close to him, she heard him utter a spell.

"[Bifrost.]"