The Regressed Blood Knight’s Strategy

Chapter 164

The head priest of the Blood Grand Temple.

Everyone in Rehinar worshipped him like a deity,

Loyal enough to carry out any command he gave.

If he described vampires as his friends, everyone would welcome them with open arms.

They were bound by the same Blood Rune.

“Yoshua,” Kane called.

“We welcome the Young Master\'s safe return,” Yoshua responded.

“This is just a brief visit. I have a favor to ask of you.”

“A favor? Such words are unthinkable. Simply command us. We are ready to fulfill any order from the Young Master.”

Their resolve was extraordinary.

The Blood Temple only consisted of such people.

“Help these individuals settle in Rehinar,” he instructed.

Yoshua turned his gaze toward the vampires.

Each one of them was powerful.

In fact, the individuals standing before him were stronger than he was.

“Vampires…” Yoshua muttered, visibly astonished.

It was broad daylight.

He never expected vampires, known for their nocturnal nature, to appear so openly during the day.

However, his surprise was fleeting.

Yoshua quickly accepted the vampires.

They were brought by the master he served.

How could they possibly be ordinary?

The fact that they would settle into Rehinar indicated they were special.

“What shall we do about people’s anxiety?” he asked.

“Hmm…” Yoshua pondered briefly before speaking.

“How about making them guardians of the night?”

“If such powerful individuals work for Rehinar during the late hours, the people would likely grow favorable toward them.”

The suggestion was logical.

In truth, their strength rivaled that of the Guardian Knights.

Perhaps even surpassed it.

If such individuals patrolled during the hours when crime peaked, what would happen?

The territory’s crime rate would plummet dramatically.

“The only issue is... Can vampires resist the temptation of human blood?”

“You don’t need to worry about that,” the Young Master replied.

“They are bound to me by a subservience contract. They cannot defy any rules I set.”

“In that case, there should be no issues with their settlement. The majority of the populace in this territory are followers of the Blood Grand temple. If we explain that this is the Young Master’s will, they’ll accept it without much resistance.”

“Then I leave it to you,” the Young Master said.

Kane turned to Gillip.

“Now, we just need to decide on a place for them to live, Gillip.”

“Yes, my lord,” Gillip replied.

“Where do you think would be a suitable location for their settlement?”

As if he had been anticipating the question, Gillip answered without hesitation.

“The vassal estates of those who once served Rehinar have mostly been abandoned or dissolved. If you intend to treat the vampires as your vassals, it would be wise to situate them near the Main Estate.”

“So, near the centre...,” Kane remarked.

“However!” Gillip emphasized, “I don’t think they would ever betray the Young Master.”

“And why is that?”

“I overheard your conversation with Yoshua earlier. They are likely bound by a subservience contract through your mana, my lord. As long as the Young Master’s bloodline continues, the vampires will remain loyal. Is that correct?”

Gillip’s analysis was accurate.

Even if the Young Master were to die, the vampires would remain bound to his bloodline.

Moreover, in a subservience relationship, if the master perishes, the vampires gradually lose their power.

To preserve their current strength, they would devote themselves to protecting their master.

“All of that is true,” Kane confirmed.

“In that case, why not construct a fortress on the dangerous western territory?” Gillip suggested.

“You’re thinking of using vampires to fend off the monsters from the demon forest?”

“Not just fend them off, but intimidate them. Vampires have a unique aura. That chilling yet intense nature. Such a presence would render even mutated monsters immobile with fear.”

Vampires, with their aggressive nature, were among the most formidable species.

And mutated monsters feared them a lot.

This was the primary reason why the number of mutated monsters near the Shadow Isles was noticeably low.

“Good. You’ll take responsibility and oversee this,” Kane commanded.

“Me? But I’m in charge of Philaec,” Gillip hesitated.

“Can’t you just go back and forth?”

“Well, I could… but are you sure you want me to do it?”

“Do you not want to?”

“No, that’s not it. I’ll construct a fortress in the western front and make it my crowning achievement!”

“Ambitious. I like it,” Kane replied, patting Gillip on the shoulder.

Finally, Kane turned his gaze to the vampires.

“Try to get along well with the people of the territory,” he said.

“You need not worry about trouble from us,” one of the vampire elders stepped forward and assured him.

Living among humans was one of their long-held dreams.

Now that this dream was coming true, there was no chance they would ruin it.

All the vampires were filled with excitement for this new beginning.

***

Aerial City

Boom!

The ground seemed to tremble.

Ray Hatzfeld stared at it, his pupils quivering.

“They’ve created an aerial fortress… No, an aerial city,” he whispered in shock.

It was beyond belief.

The House of the Sun was ahead in every field:

Swordsmanship, spearmanship, archery, magic, engineering.

There wasn’t a single area where they lagged.

Their technological gap with the rest of the continent was at least 100 years.

No other nation had ever managed to lift a city into the sky.

“No wonder the House of the Sun has been shaping the world,” Ray murmured.

“What will you do? If you want to follow them, this is your only chance.”

“I don’t even know where they’re headed,” Ray admitted.

Before being reincarnated here, he had skipped most of the scenarios in this game.

He hadn’t been particularly fond of the game, nor did he bother to look into its story, so he wasn’t familiar with the plot.

He only remembered the parts he had personally played.

That’s why he decided to rely on Kane Rehinar’s actions.

Kane seemed to know the game far better than Ray ever had.

“Damn it, skipping through this awful game is coming back to haunt me,” Ray cursed internally.

How could he have known he’d be Reincarnated into this shitty game’s world?

And even then, he had almost died shortly after.

Killed by another reincarnated player.

When he woke up again, his body had changed.

From a miserable failure to a genius.

At least he remembered the early parts of the story he had played.

But as the story progressed, the challenges became harder.

The deeper he delved, the more uneasy he felt.

Eventually, he abandoned his thoughts of revenge.

His only goal became escaping this world and returning to reality.

For that, he needed Kane Rehinar.

As expected, Kane was a veteran of this game.

He had a completely different mindset than Ray.

“If anyone can clear this, it’s him,” Ray thought, changing his approach.

He decided to help Kane clear the game.

But today, despair gripped him.

The story was progressing in ways he didn’t recognize.

Who could have predicted that the Meyer Family’s territory would transform into an aerial city?

“An aerial assault would mean game over,” Ray thought bitterly.

There was no way to destroy the aerial city.

If it was attacked and collapsed, its remains would crash to the ground, devastating everything below.

Any nation beneath its shadow would be reduced to ashes.

That’s why an aerial city was such a terrifying threat.

“We have to follow them,” Ray resolved.

Together with the Barbarian lord, he pursued the House of the Sun’s aerial city.

“It’s moving at an incredible speed.”

“To move something so massive must require an enormous power source. Their technology is absurdly advanced.”

“That’s why you said we had to eliminate them if we wanted our people to settle safely.”

“They are pure evil.”

“Now that I’ve experienced it myself, I have to agree. Their actions are downright vicious. They’re completely incompatible with our Barbarian warriors.”

“There’s not much left now. Once we deal with them, everything will return to peace.”

Barbarian Lord also had a sense about these things.

He, too, believed that removing the House of the Sun, the root of all evil, would bring balance back to the world.

After about a day of pursuit, they finally discerned the House of the Sun’s destination.

“They’re heading for the Fresia Empire.”

“Shouldn’t we inform him?”

“It’s a good thing we exchanged magical communication orbs.”

Ray quickly contacted Kane. As he poured mana into the communication orb, the signal was sent.

At the same time, Kane was preparing to leave Rehinar.

Vvvmmm!

The magical communication orb vibrated.

“Ray Hatzfeld?” Kane said, answering the call.

Ray’s urgent voice came through immediately.

"The House of the Sun is heading for the Fresia Empire!"

“I already dealt with their regular forces not long ago.”

"No, you don’t understand! Their entire territory has transformed into an aerial city, and it’s moving toward the Fresia Empire!"

“Aerial city?”

Kane’s eyes widened.

That was his plan, something he had conceived.

But this was the first he’d heard of the House of the Sun already creating one.

"Do you see that dot up there? The entire House of the Sun has risen and is moving at an incredible speed."

“Are you tailing them?”

"Thankfully, I managed to figure out their direction and contacted you."

“Thanks. Leave the rest to me.”

"Barbarian Lord and I are on our way as well. Just hold on a bit longer."

“Understood.”

The call ended, and Kane turned to Chrysalis.

“We’re changing our destination. We’re heading to the imperial capital of Fresia, not to the House of the Sun.”

Chrysalis, who had been listening nearby, spoke up.

“If this is an all-out confrontation, shouldn’t we bring every available resource?”

It was a fair point.

But Kane shook his head.

Even if this world was part of a game, it was also his reality.

It held people he cared about—his favorite characters, and warm, loving parents.

“We’ll go alone.”

If Rehinar mobilized its forces, it could certainly aid the Fresia Empire.

But such a move would come at a great cost.

Rehinar had only recently stabilized.

A war could lead to its ruin once again.

Of course, Kane believed he could prevent that from happening.

But still, one could never be certain.

Kane wanted to give Rehinar a life unlike the one it had known before.

All the struggles he endured alone were for that very reason.

But sometimes, he wondered—what would happen if he cleared the game and then disappeared?

He had thought countless times about the worst-case scenario, where the character Kane no longer existed.

“With just the four of us—me, Desdemona, Mikhail, and Chrysalis—we should be enough, don’t you think?”

Mikhail shook his head in mock protest.

“You’re such a ruthless master, always working us too hard.”

“I’d follow you anywhere,” Desdemona said, delighted by the prospect. She felt this meant Kane would lean on her even more.

But then, an unexpected intruder appeared.

“I step outside for the first time in ages and I ran into you?”

“Fathe... Father?”

Cedric was standing right behind him.

“Is something going on?”

His voice was warm and filled with concern.

“How is your health?” Kane asked, deflecting.

“Son, shouldn’t you be answering me first?”

“Well… it’s just…”

Kane hesitated.

If something happened in the Fresia Empire, his father would undoubtedly want to step in.

But his body was still far from fully recovered.

For Duke Carl, taking action now wouldn’t be good.

“You don’t have to explain, son. I already know. The world’s balance is shifting strangely—this is about that, isn’t it? The flow of energy is moving… toward the Fresia Empire.”

Kane was astonished, more than he had ever been.

His father had deduced the situation just by sensing the flow of energy.

“How did you know?”

“You don’t need mana to understand nature’s signals. Son, your father isn’t as frail as you seem to think.”

Duke Carl then revealed something to Kane.