Did the villainous professor survive today?

Chapter 73 Vampires

the next day.

The sun slowly rises from the seam between the waves and the sky.

"Professor Krenk, are you sure you want to come with us to patrol the woods surrounding the city?"

A law enforcement officer in a dark gray uniform questioned Krenk earnestly.

This was the first time he had met someone of such high status, so he was extremely tense.

Not far outside the city of St. Auster, bordering the Duchy of Eton, lies a vast jungle inhabited by ferocious magical beasts.

To ensure the safety of residents around the city, the law enforcement agency conducts regular patrols of the jungle perimeter every Monday, driving away and killing these ferocious creatures to ensure they do not nest or operate in areas close to the city.

"Yes."

Kroenke patted the rump of the black horse beside him with his right hand, and the horse immediately hummed softly and swished its tail.

He didn't plan to meet the vampire right away, but instead searched the surrounding area to see if he could get any useful clues.

Patrolling the outer edge of the jungle is a dangerous job. Most of the magical beasts active in the jungle outside the city are around the second tier, and occasionally a third tier magical beast will run out from the middle and deep layers.

Once you reach Tier 3 or higher, conventional firearms and gunpowder have little effect on certain magical beasts with hard scales.

Therefore, the law enforcement officers responsible for patrols have an average strength of about mid-stage Tier 3, which allows them to minimize the accident rate when working in groups.

Of course, for Krenk right now, a Tier 3 magical beast is just a delicious dessert, a way to earn points.

"Let's get ready to go."

Kroenke stepped into the stirrups and, with a slight effort, successfully mounted the horse.

Once inside the jungle, the roads become muddy and winding, and vehicles can easily get stuck in the wet mud. Therefore, the law enforcement officers rely on horseback for transportation.

The clatter of hooves and the clanging of armor came simultaneously from behind Krenk.

Kroenke instinctively turned around, then paused, startled: "Sistine?"

Krenk stared in astonishment at the girl riding a white horse before him.

The other person's long, silver hair was braided tightly at the back of their head and then coiled into a low bun.

The mithril chainmail reflected iridescent light, and the interlocking metal rings collided with each other as it moved, making a soft clicking sound.

Her right hand gripped the reins, while her left hand rested on the heavy metal helmet, which she placed steadily on the saddle.

"Yes, Krenk, the weather is really nice today."

Sistine rode up to Krenk, her gaze fixed on the distance.

The sun has risen completely above the sea level. On the vast ocean, ships returning from their voyages are entering the port in an orderly fashion. Straight masts cut through the steam clouds spewed from the factory, and fish at the bottom of the wooden barrels thrash about, trying to escape.

Krenk frowned: "What are you doing—"

Sistine approached Krenk, then, with a stern face, leaned close to his ear and muttered, "Why did you suddenly decide to participate in the forest patrol? What if you encounter a high-level magical beast and something goes wrong?"

Kroenke:

'

'

Krenk had already begun to figure out how to get Sistine to accept the fact that she had become stronger naturally.

He considered for a moment and said, "I intend to test my abilities."

He only told half the truth, without mentioning the vampire.

He did indeed want to practice against these wild magical beasts and test his true strength.

At the same time, this sentence can also plant a seed in Sistine's heart that she has indeed been gradually becoming stronger recently, so it won't be too abrupt.

"That's perfect. I'll come along too. If anything unexpected happens, I can protect you."

Sistine said naturally, turning to the officers beside her, "Officer Trent, is it alright if your patrol team adds another person?"

The officer in charge of the enforcement team widened his eyes when he saw the badge on Sistine's chest.

The Valiant Knights.

Like the Divine Knights, the Valiant Knights are the highest violent organization in Saint Auster, responsible for maintaining stability throughout the city. The difference is that one is responsible for the lower city and the other for the upper city.

Comparing them to law enforcement officers is like comparing the military to the police.

Normally, the members of the Knights do not take action; they only have the opportunity to step in when major events or difficult emergencies occur.

The sudden appearance of the chief professor of St. Auster Magic Academy, along with a knight from the Knights Order, made him break out in a cold sweat.

He couldn't help but wonder if there was some important task ahead of him that he had no right to know.

"It's alright," Krenk said reassuringly, noticing the other's nervousness. "Let's go."

Krenk pushed off with his legs, and the black horse beneath him reared up and headed towards the outskirts of the city.

The enforcers rode forward in an arrowhead formation, with Sistine and Krenk surrounded at the very center, even though they were the least in need of protection.

The outermost ring of the forest is made up of felled trees, and there are tree stumps everywhere with oxidized and yellowed cross-sections.

"Professor Krenk! Knight Sistine! We are about to enter the interior of the forest!"

Enforcement Officer Trent remained vigilant at all times.

The forest interior is densely wooded with lush foliage, and sparse sunlight filters through, creating dappled patterns of light and shadow.

Sistine calmly observed everything around her, then squeezed her thighs together, and the white horse she was riding came to an instant stop.

"Sir Sistine, what's going on?"

Trent asked as if facing a formidable enemy.

"Over here."

Sistine pointed in a direction while her right hand rested on the hilt of her sword at her waist.

Everyone looked in the direction Sistine was pointing, but all they could see was a dense thicket of bushes; nothing else was visible.

"I'll do it."

Krenk reached out, and a net of water formed in front of him. The water was splashed onto the bushes, which quickly withered away.

Water-based spells combined with poison-based spells.

After witnessing all this, Sistine subconsciously glanced back at Krenk, but then remembered that he had proposed a brand-new spell-combining model in class a few days ago, and she dismissed her doubts.

Beyond the withered bushes, one could see several wolves with black fur and snorting heavily devouring a deer in a clearing about a hundred meters ahead.

These wolves were significantly larger than coyotes, standing as tall as a person. Their eyes were completely black with only a tiny bit of white light, like stars in the night.

【Hoshino Wolf Pack】

[Death Threat: D]

Is it because the individual wolves pose little threat that the system directly considers the wolf pack in front of it as a whole? Krenk wondered to himself.

"Hoshino Wolf? How did such a creature end up here?"

Trent said in surprise.

In his understanding, these magical beasts mostly lived deep in dense forests. These creatures had a keen sense of smell and were very averse to the pollution produced by factories in the lower city. Therefore, they rarely appeared near cities, let alone in groups.

Kroenke, on the other hand, remained calm.

If the vampire enters the depths of the jungle and replenishes its blood supply to restore its fighting strength, it could indeed drive the monsters that originally lived deep within the jungle out of their original habitat. Then, like a wave spreading outwards, it would affect the food chain balance of the entire forest.

Then, Krenk suddenly remembered something.

Sistine's Eye of Insight wouldn't directly detect that vampire hiding deep inside, would it?

Or rather, some clues or hints.

If things get out of hand, it will be difficult to handle.

While he was thinking, Trent, who was standing next to him, raised his hand and made a fist.

The other law enforcement officers received orders to immediately dismount and then quietly flank the enemy from an angle.

After selecting their positions, the law enforcement officers pulled out guns engraved with magical patterns and checked the melee weapons tucked into their chests to ensure they could be drawn immediately.

The scope of the gun was aimed at the wolf pack that was feasting, unaware that the Grim Reaper's scythe was already at their necks.

After confirming that there were no problems with the fire network, Trent subconsciously looked at Kroenke beside him, seemingly waiting for the other's orders.

Kroenke nodded: "Don't kill them directly."

Kroenke wasn't sure if he would get the points if someone else did the killing.

Upon receiving the order, Trent made the number three in the air while waving his arm.

At the same time, the barrels of dozens of law enforcement officers simultaneously emitted scorching flashes of light, and mercury bullets spun out of the barrels, leaving burning arcs in the air.

These bullets were faster than sound; the moment they entered the wolf's body, the red mercury inside the bullets exploded, sending thousands of fragments flying in and out.

The gunshot startled the crows perched in the trees, who cried out in alarm. Blood and flesh stained the surrounding earth red, and the Star Wolf rolled in the blood and mud, howling in agony.

Trent raised his fist again, signaling to the other officers to keep their aiming down, rather than to fire again.

The first round of shooting aims to incapacitate the target, and the target area is the torso rather than weak points such as the neck and head.

Two burly male wolves did not lose their ability to move immediately after being shot at in the first round.

White steam billowed from their nostrils, and they bared their teeth and looked around with red eyes, searching for attackers.

Upon noticing a law enforcement officer with a gun not far away, he immediately dragged his aching body and lunged at the officer.

Whoosh!

A sharp gust of wind swept past, and two water jets appeared precisely in the male wolves' path of movement, before the wolves ripped open their skulls.

Red blood splattered out along with white fluid, emitting a strong, fishy smell.

You have defeated the leader of the Hoshino wolf pack.

[Points +1000!]

You have defeated Hoshino Wolf.

[Points +500!]

[Current points: 1500!]

Apart from the two male wolves that suddenly sprang into action, no other wolves chose to resist.

Among them, several wolves were curled up, licking their wounds and whimpering, their lives hanging by a thread.

Krenk pushed off with the stirrups, directing his black horse to approach.

"Professor Krenk, please be careful," Trent quickly reminded him, "Don't underestimate them just because they're beasts. They're actually quite intelligent. Their specialty is playing the victim, waiting to evoke human sympathy before launching a desperate counterattack."

"It's okay, don't worry about me."

Kroenke waved his hand.

He could actually take down the wolf pack from a distance.

However, this would arouse Sistine's suspicion, since the two water arrows just now were already the limit for the former Krenk.

Kroenke approached slowly, reached out, and ended the wolf pack's suffering.

You have defeated the Hoshino wolf pack.

[Points +1500!]

[Current points: 3000!]

After doing all this, Krenk gripped the reins, turned the horse around, and said, "Let's go."

"Professor, what's next? —"

Trent asked, looking at the pile of corpses before him, "We need to report this to our superiors. The Star Wolves are even venturing into this area. Has something happened deep within the jungle?"

"Let's leave here and take another look around to see if any escaped."

As Krenk spoke, he deliberately released Alice.

Under Krenk's command, Alice approached the wolf pack and began to drink their fresh blood.

He knew that only Sistine could see Alice in her spirit form.

He wanted to create the illusion for Sistine that he was using Alice to become stronger.

As expected, Sistine also saw Krenk's actions. She only showed a puzzled expression on her face before immediately putting them away.

After Alice drained the wolf corpses, Krenk reopened the control panel.

The blood pool is still full, but the experience bar has hardly changed.

It seems that Isabel's magic is still very much needed to upgrade Alice.

Suddenly, Alice looked up and gazed into the depths of the jungle.

Almost at the same moment, Sistine also reached out and pressed down on the silver sword tucked at her waist.

Her almost transparent eyes were fixed on the depths of the jungle, in the same direction as Alice's.

What's going on?

Sensing the unusual activity, Krenk activated his enhanced spiritual vision without hesitation.

Deep in the jungle, the dense vegetation trembled slightly, and an almost sticky, eerie atmosphere was invisibly approaching Krenk.

"Everyone! Retreat! Request the aid of the Valiant Knights!"

Sistine drew her silver sword directly, jumped off the white horse, and assumed a defensive stance. The silver sword gleamed blindingly in the sunlight.

Krenk's pupils dilated slightly.

Damn!

He understood instantly.

It's that vampire hiding deep in the jungle!

It's rushing towards this direction at top speed!

In an instant, a scene from Anvil Prison flashed through Krenk's mind.

That's right!

Both of these vampire uprisings were related to Alice!

The Silent Order creates vampires in order to search for bloodlines!

But to Krenk's surprise, the other party was able to sense Alice's presence from such a distance and go mad because of her.

Everyone gripped the reins tightly, ready to begin the retreat as Sistine commanded.

"Krenk, you go first, I'll cover you."

Sistine stared intently into the depths of the jungle, gripping her longsword tightly.

No, I'll stay.

Kroenke's gaze also went into the depths.

It's not that he didn't want to escape.

Mainly————

The vampires came for him.

The surrounding terrain is entangled with vines, making it impossible for horses to run fast. Before they can even return to the city, they might be overtaken by that vampire.

He didn't need to think about choosing either Sistine, a paladin who had just reached the fifth rank, or the patrol team of law enforcement officers whose average level was mid-third rank.

"What do you mean?"

Sistine glanced at Krenk beside her out of the corner of her eye. "Krenk, I'm not kidding you. This situation is very dangerous. If you stay here, I can't say for sure what might happen."

Krenk's right hand formed a grasping posture, and the next moment, a blood-red longsword also gathered in his palm.

Krenk sighed softly, "I was hoping to hide my strength, but it seems I can't hide it anymore."