Gospel of Blood

Chapter 198: Bloodborne Duke

Legendary!

This is a Legendary being!

Feeling the overwhelmingly powerful aura, much stronger than that of the Flame Demon Valaroka, Charlotte's heart skipped a beat.

Encountering a Legendary being was not part of her plan.

Although she possessed the ability to absorb other bloodlines in her True Ancestor form, making her a nemesis of bloodbornes, at this moment, she had only projected a thread of consciousness into Count Lachlan's mental world, augmented by divine power.

Perhaps in a direct confrontation, her True Ancestor form could easily dominate, using her divine power of blood to crush the opponent. However, the current situation felt more like they were connected through a "phone call."

Charlotte's phone wasn’t even her own—it was the Gospel of Blood's, the phone line was provided by Nice, and the server belonged to Count Lachlan.

In this context, relying solely on remote invasion, she couldn’t overpower a legendary being like when she had crushed Valaroka.

Continuing with the Servant’s Final Oath had become a luxury because the legendary will, awakened from Count Lachlan’s soul source, was now blocking the direct path to Lachlan's soul.

After a brief hesitation, Charlotte decided to detonate the divine power within her consciousness thread that had entered Count Lachlan's mental world, aiming to destroy his mental world entirely.

Count Lachlan had already sensed something unusual about her identity.

Even if he hadn’t discovered her "true identity," she needed to eliminate the danger in its infancy to prevent the Nez clan from learning her secret.

However, just as Charlotte was preparing to destroy Lachlan’s mental world and escape, a dignified and ancient voice suddenly echoed within his mental world.

“Who are you, sir? Since when did the noble descendants of blood become lapdogs of the Holy Court?”

Huh...?

Lapdogs of the Holy Court?

Charlotte was momentarily stunned.

Simultaneously, dark red light blossomed, and a tall, ethereal figure gradually materialized in Lachlan's mental world.

It was a young man whose age was indiscernible, dressed in a blue-black robe adorned with starlight. His silver-gray hair and extraordinarily handsome features gave him an androgynous appearance.

His scarlet eyes shimmered with starlight, exuding both dignity and mystery. As he appeared, the entire mental world was bathed in a deep starlight glow.

Charlotte’s heart sank.

She sensed that Lachlan's mental world was now protected by this figure.

The bloodborne before her was undoubtedly Count Lachlan’s direct superior and very likely the mastermind behind the chaos in the Castell territory.

“I am Yorok Nez. How may I address you?”

“Hiding like this, have you forgotten the honor of the bloodborne after becoming a follower of the God of Contracts?”

The dignified voice spoke again, and the descending Bloodborne Duke cast a cold, wary gaze at her.

Hearing this, Charlotte's mood grew more complicated.

Wait...

He mistook her for a follower of the God of Contracts?

Instinctively, Charlotte focused on the thread of consciousness she had projected and quickly realized what was going on.

It was simple. She had invaded Count Lachlan’s mental world using the Servant’s Final Oath, a spell cast by Nice from the God of Contracts. During the invasion, she naturally followed the path of the contract magic.

Contract magic served as a disguise, masking the essence of her consciousness. Moreover, since the contract magic was manifested using the divine power of blood Nice borrowed from her, her divine power also carried traces of the God of Contracts.

Honestly, Charlotte had no idea how Nice managed this transformation.

The mysterious black cat had only told Charlotte that it could use the power of the mental world to perform divine rituals from the God of Contracts, given her permission within her mental world.

Regardless of how Nice did it, when Charlotte projected her consciousness and divine power through contract magic, the combined forces created a bizarre result.

In the perception of the descending Bloodborne Duke, Charlotte’s aura bore the marks of the God of Contracts, Mithra, despite having traces of bloodborne essence.

She had been mistaken for a bloodborne follower of the God of Contracts!

Realizing the truth, Charlotte’s mood grew even more peculiar.

However, she quickly had an idea.

Not being recognized was beneficial.

Whether it was Charlotte's true identity or her status as the master of the Gospel, either revelation would bring endless trouble if discovered by the Bloodborne Duke.

Conversely, since the Bloodborne Duke had misidentified her, she might as well go along with it...

Completing the Servant’s Final Oath seemed impossible now, and even destroying Lachlan’s mental world had become quite challenging.

However, if she played her cards right, she might not only avoid exposing her identity but also extract some secrets from the Nez clan...

With luck, she could even intimidate the Nez clan into refraining from attacking Castell again, buying her time to consolidate her territory!

Thinking this, Charlotte glanced at Lachlan’s mental world.

Unable to bear the dual descent of Charlotte and the legendary bloodborne, Count Lachlan had fainted and his consciousness had fallen into a deep sleep.

With Count Lachlan unconscious, no one could expose Charlotte’s identity.

As long as she and this self-proclaimed Yorok Nez Bloodborne Duke were here, her identity remained safe.

With this in mind, Charlotte manipulated the divine power hidden beneath the contract magic.

The light transformed, and a mist of crimson and silver-gray interwove, creating a vague, graceful figure.

Charlotte couldn’t change her manifested appearance within an uncontrolled mental world.

However, she could blur it.

After the True Ancestor's Liberation, she transformed into her adult form. Now, influenced by contract magic and deliberately blurred by her own actions, a female figure that even Charlotte herself couldn't recognize was born.

She chuckled softly and said leisurely.

"The honor of bloodbornes? Hidden in darkness, using filthy tricks like rats... you dare speak of bloodborne honor?"

"Who I am is not important. What's important is that the descendants of Nez... you've crossed the line."

She didn’t know it before she spoke, but the moment she did, even Charlotte herself was startled. During her True Ancestor form, she hadn't paid much attention to her voice. Now, in Count Lachlan's mental world, her voice, amplified by divine magic, had changed along with her body.

Gone was the childish tone, replaced by a commanding and seductive one.

Duke Yorok's expression remained unchanged, but a dark look appeared deep in his eyes.

After a few seconds of silence, he laughed lightly.

"Embracing the darkness is the very essence of a bloodborne's existence. Those who betray their bloodline are the true desecrators!"

"Ha! You don't even dare to say your real name. It seems you know well that siding with the Holy Court is a disgrace that the noble bloodborne abhors."

With a stern expression and a grand voice, Duke Yorok continued.

"As for crossing the line... if anyone has, it’s the Holy Court. The Videl Treaty clearly delineates our rights and duties, yet you have violated it, undermining the authority of Nez in Starfall!"

Undermining the authority of Nez in Starfall?

Charlotte's heart skipped a beat.

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She knew the Nez clan had significant influence in the Starfall Kingdom, almost like the uncrowned kings. While they didn't control the monarchy as thoroughly as the Wild Clan Vadallat in the Coria Kingdom, they were an undeniable power among Starfall nobility.

However, as far as Charlotte knew, the Holy Court didn't interfere much in the Starfall Kingdom. Their relationship with the Nez clan, while adversarial, was mostly one of mutual non-interference.

But listening to Duke Yorok now... it seemed something had gone awry within Starfall?

After some thought, Charlotte feigned confusion and asked.

"Undermining Starfall's authority? The Church has always maintained non-interference with Starfall's bloodbornes. What are you talking about?"

Duke Yorok snorted, laughing derisively.

"Non-interference? Ha... it seems you haven’t earned the full trust of the Holy Court."

Charlotte's mind raced.

She wanted to inquire further, but seeing the Duke's scrutinizing gaze, she decided to hold back.

Posing as a follower of the God of Contracts, it wouldn’t be wise to reveal her ignorance about the Church.

After some thought, Charlotte decided to shift the focus to her own territory.

"The Church has its own principles, but the order of Castell cannot be challenged."

"The land of my Lord's faith must not be desecrated. If you continue to meddle in northern affairs, it will be akin to declaring war."

Duke Yoroc fell silent.

After a long pause, he looked at Charlotte and said softly.

"Is this the will of the Holy Court?"

Charlotte neither confirmed nor denied it.

Duke Yorok remained silent.

Charlotte watched him, curious about how he would respond.

Like her, this legendary being wasn't present in the flesh; he was also a consciousness projection attached to the unfortunate Count's mental realm. Considering this, he probably couldn't fully grasp her strength and wouldn’t dare act rashly.

Meanwhile, Duke Yorok met Charlotte's gaze.

His starlit red eyes glowed brighter, and Charlotte felt his aura rising sharply.

Is he really going to make a move?

Charlotte cursed inwardly, increasing the output of her divine power and preparing to destroy the mental world if necessary, even if it exposed her divine power of blood.

Exposing her divine power of blood would only reveal her True Ancestor's power.

But if Count Lachlan survived, it would be more than just exposing her divine power of blood!

Just as Charlotte was about to make a show of force, Duke Yorok suddenly stopped.

He looked at her deeply and then said.

"I understand."

With that, his ethereal figure began to dissipate, as if he were retreating.

Huh?

He's leaving?

Charlotte was stunned.

However, just as Duke Yorok's figure vanished, Count Lachlan's mental world abruptly shattered, detonated by the Duke himself.

Charlotte wasn’t the one who did this.

It was Duke Yorok.

This Bloodborne Duke... had wiped out his own Count from the soul level before leaving!

Charlotte felt a strong force eject her, and in an instant, she was back in the study of the Count's mansion.

She had exited the mental world and returned to reality.

Count Lachlan's presence was gone, and Mayor Madoc was foaming at the mouth on the floor, seemingly suffering backlash from Lachlan's soul annihilation.

After ensuring he was still alive, Charlotte pondered over what had just happened.

The sudden appearance and departure of the Bloodborne Duke, and the information he revealed, left her deep in thought.

Killing his own kin without hesitation before leaving, it seemed the Nez clan had grand schemes afoot.

Judging by the clues, their actions were likely tied to internal strife within the Starfall Kingdom.

And... what exactly was the Videl Treaty?

Charlotte was puzzled.

However, since it involved the Holy Court, she had a professional to ask.

"Nees, what is the Videl Treaty?"

"The Videl Treaty? Why are you asking about that?"

"Just tell me if you know."

"Uh... okay, it should be a treaty signed three hundred years ago between the Church and the heretics of Starfall Kingdom... you know, Starfall is overseas, and the Church's control there isn't very strong, especially after the decline of the Holy Legions over the centuries. The Videl Treaty was a compromise with the heretics active in the Starfall Kingdom."

"What does the treaty stipulate?"

"Let me think, I don't remember the exact terms, but generally, it allows the Holy Court to turn a blind eye to the heretics in Starfall, provided they operate underground and don’t disrupt the Church’s preaching or the kingdom’s order."

"It sounds... somewhat similar to the situation in the Coria Kingdom?"

"Hey, it's different. The bloodbornes in the Coria Kingdom are much more dominant. The Church's rule is almost nominal; I’ve heard that priests there don’t even dare to leave their churches at night!"

Charlotte: ...

"And what about the Starfall Kingdom? Has the Holy Court done anything there in recent years?"

"I wouldn’t know. I’ve been in the Crescent District all this time and don’t know much about the Starfall District. But if I had to guess, maybe only the civil war from thirteen years ago?"

Nice replied.

"Civil war?"

Charlotte’s interest was piqued.

"The Lilac War, the internal struggle for the throne of Starfall Kingdom that lasted three years following the end of the Star-Moon War. The prolonged wars left the kingdom in ruins, and eventually, two branches of the Roman family fought for the throne."

Nice explained.

The Lilac War...

Charlotte mused.

She had read about this war in records, but it had been over a decade ago.

Of course, more than ten years had passed since then, and the Starfall Kingdom had long since returned to normalcy.

But now, it seemed that things in the Starfall Kingdom might not be as peaceful as they appeared.