Chapter 33

In the middle of the night, Ke'er returned, climbing in through the window.

Once she reached the second floor of the inn and found the location of Sun Ran and the others, she quickly climbed into bed, curled up, and hid herself in the ragged mattress between Sun Ran and Lan Xin.

To allow the Maintainers to perform at their best, the bodies they possessed were very similar to their original bodies. Ke'er was no exception, with her petite and delicate frame, she could hide under the blanket without anyone noticing from the outside.

By this time, Lan Xin and Bai Tingxuan had waited for half the night and finally succumbed to sleep. Only Sun Ran was still awake, meditating with his eyes closed. He naturally needed very little sleep and rarely slept.

"Are you hurt?" Sun Ran asked in a low voice.

"Nope." Ke'er's face showed a hint of joy. She almost entirely curled up in Sun Ran's arms, wriggled to find a comfortable position, then took out a small porcelain bottle the size of a thumb and showed it to Sun Ran, boasting, "Guess what I got?"

Sun Ran was very familiar with Ke'er's personality. Seeing her excited look and recalling her previous goal, he already had an answer in mind.

But he wouldn't be so boring. He took the bottle, examined it from all sides, and feigned confusion, "Is it a deadly poison?"

Ke'er shook her head with a smile, "Wrong, guess again."

"Is it holy water that can subdue vampires?"

"Idiot, no, guess again."

"Oh, I know, is it the blood of a high-level vampire?" Sun Ran's face showed realization.

"Finally, you got it... Wait, you knew all along, didn't you? You liar!"

Ke'er punched Sun Ran's arm hard, only stopping when she saw him wince in pain. Then she began to recount her experience that night.

After entering Tergoviste, she contacted Lan Xin and Bai Tingxuan and also noticed a high-ranking vampire officer parading in the streets. She thought of Sun Ran's ghost-seeking compass and quietly followed him.

The ghost-seeking compass could locate the previous generation of vampires. If she could get the blood of a high-level vampire, it would save a lot of effort.

She followed him to a secluded alley and, armed with a third-grade dagger, was about to make her move when another figure emerged from the darkness and attacked the vampire first.

"Guess who it was?" Ke'er teased, seeing Sun Ran deep in thought, she quickly warned, "Tell the truth."

"Alright, was it the Bronze Maintainer Jing Ke?"

"Boring, can't you ever guess wrong?" Ke'er pouted in dissatisfaction and continued her story.

Jing Ke appeared, and the skills of a Bronze Maintainer were no joke. The vampire was so fast it seemed to vanish, moving like a ghost, but he couldn't break through Jing Ke's defense. Jing Ke was like a sack of cloth, not the fastest, but he managed to contain the wind.

They fought for nearly three minutes, exchanging countless blows. Jing Ke remained unscathed, while the high-ranking officer was injured in multiple places and was about to give in.

Then, reinforcements arrived for the vampire, a squad of thirty crossbowmen, all using repeating crossbows, and they started raining arrows on Jing Ke.

"Is Jing Ke done for?" Sun Ran frowned.

The repeating crossbows were incredibly powerful. Although he wasn't afraid of a squad of thirty, it would take some effort to deal with them.

"Not done for. He immediately fled and temporarily escaped. But I saw him hit by at least three arrows, and they were poisoned. He won't get far."

At this point, Ke'er looked relieved.

If she had rushed out first, she wouldn't have just failed to collect the vampire's blood; she probably wouldn't have made it back at all. It was clear that luck was still important.

Sun Ran could sense the danger and gently patted Ke'er's back to comfort her.

He then asked, "If you faced that vampire, would you have a chance to win?"

Ke'er shook her head, "Very difficult. Escaping would be the best I could do. That vampire was too fast. Jing Ke, in terms of martial skills, Lan Xin might be able to match him, but he clearly has advanced abilities, with extremely high physical attributes and agility."

Sun Ran nodded, his brow furrowed. A single high-level vampire could hold out for three minutes against a Bronze Maintainer. The true Destroyer's strength was only stronger, making this mission very challenging.

After a moment of thought, Sun Ran instructed, "The city is on high alert now. The Destroyer is likely hiding. Let's lie low for a while."

"Okay." Ke'er nodded. They only had four people and couldn't confront a duke with an army.

The two fell silent, and the room became quiet, with only the snoring of some travelers.

Ke'er quietly turned to look at Lan Xin, seeing her still sound asleep, she turned back and said to Sun Ran, "Hey, husband, I have a question."

"Ask away." Sun Ran had already closed his eyes to rest.

"Do you know each other in the real world? I mean, do you know each other's addresses?" Ke'er asked.

"Yes." Sun Ran nodded, "I'm living at her place now."

If the other party didn't ask, he wouldn't bring it up, but if asked, he would tell the truth.

"Are you married?" Ke'er was surprised, her face showing disappointment.

In modern society, people were independent, and living together was rare unless they were married.

"Married?" Sun Ran was taken aback, looking at Ke'er, who was only showing her eyes from under the blanket, and pretended to be clueless, "Didn't you know? I'm married to you. You forgot?"

"Ugh! I'm not talking to you anymore." Ke'er was taken aback, then realized Sun Ran's meaning—he wasn't married.

Relieved by the answer, Ke'er relaxed and curled up under the blanket, not saying another word.

Sun Ran smiled slightly, closed his eyes, and pretended to rest, the ripples in his heart quickly calming down.

The night passed without incident.

The next morning, the inn was filled with noise.

"What's happening outside?" Bai Tingxuan, still half-asleep in the corner, asked groggily.

"It's the assassins causing trouble again." Lan Xin, who had also been woken up, replied.

"No, the assassins have been caught." Sun Ran looked out the window, his eyes sharp.

"Ah, was Ke'er caught?" Lan Xin whispered in alarm.

"Who said it was me? The one caught was that idiot Bronze Maintainer, Jing Ke." Ke'er's head popped out from under the blanket.

Seeing she was safe, Bai Tingxuan and Lan Xin both breathed a sigh of relief.

Sun Ran got up and said to the three women, "Get up quickly, pack your things, and let's go see what's happening outside the inn."

The three women nodded, quickly took out their hidden weapons from under the bed, equipped themselves, and then left the inn in three groups.

On the street, Sun Ran led the way, Ke'er followed as a passerby, and Lan Xin and Bai Tingxuan trailed about a hundred meters behind.

The people on the street were all running in one direction, shouting, "Go to the city gate, go to the city gate, the assassins have been caught and are about to be executed!"

Everyone rushed to the city gate to see the spectacle. Curiosity was a human trait, no matter where you were.

The Thorn Rose team followed the crowd to the city gate. Near the gate, they indeed saw a prison cart with a middle-aged man who looked utterly broken.

He was so badly tortured that his limbs were twisted and broken, and his mouth was stuffed with rags, making suicide impossible.

"That's the assassin from last night," Ke'er whispered to Sun Ran. In other words, it was the Maintainer Jing Ke.

The prison cart was surrounded by a large number of cavalry, at least fifty, each with a crossbow on their saddle, making them very powerful.

In the city, rescuing the prisoner was impossible and would endanger the Thorn Rose team.

Sun Ran nodded, "From the looks of it, Jing Ke is going to be executed outside the city. Let's follow them."

With the assassin caught, the city's defenses were significantly reduced. The guards didn't stop them, and the four members of the team smoothly left the city.

Outside the city, the stakes for the execution were already prepared. They were specially made, one meter long, as thick as an adult's arm, and had barbs, making the execution extremely painful.

Duke Dracula also appeared, standing on the city wall.

He was a tall but slender middle-aged man with a sinister expression, heavily guarded by shield bearers.

"Should we have Lan Xin shoot him?" Ke'er asked angrily.

Sun Ran rejected the idea, "No, there's no evidence he's cheating. He's still a regular player. Killing him would violate the three major rules of the Maintainers."

"Too bad for him." Ke'er was just venting.

"Once we kill the vampire Destroyer, his position as duke won't last long, and he'll fall quickly." Sun Ran consoled her.

Duke Dracula was cruel and bloodthirsty, with many enemies. Once his bat army was defeated, the Church and the Ottoman Empire would quickly move in.

At this moment, Duke Dracula seemed to give the order for the execution. Two guards dragged Jing Ke out of the prison cart, and two more guards held him down and carried him to the stake.

Jing Ke knew his fate and struggled violently. Looking at the thick, barbed stake, fear finally showed in his eyes. Even knowing it was a virtual game and everything was fake, this method of execution was too brutal!

In the game management station, Hao Qiang, responsible for this Maintainer mission, watched the scene and turned to the staff, "Quickly kick this guy out of the game."

If the Bronze Maintainer endured the execution, he would suffer a mental breakdown. To protect the player, every execution was interrupted at the last moment.

At the same time, Jing Ke's body outside Tergoviste suddenly went limp, his muscles lost control, and he defecated and urinated, his eyes rolled back, and his breathing and heartbeat stopped.

A guard checked Jing Ke's pulse and reported to Duke Dracula, "My lord, the assassin was scared to death."

"Coward, weakling!" Duke Dracula was disappointed, "Even if he's dead, the execution must proceed. Impale his body on the stake."

"Yes, my lord!" The guard obeyed and impaled Jing Ke's body on the stake.

After the execution, the guards and the crowd dispersed.

Sun Ran, mixed in the crowd, took out the high-level vampire blood and applied it to the ghost-seeking compass to see if the Destroyer was hiding near Duke Dracula.

The compass needle turned a few times and then pointed outside the city.

"Hmm?" Sun Ran stopped, then immediately turned and walked toward the plains outside the city.

A high-level vampire not hiding in the city but outside was very unusual.

Sun Ran deduced that this vampire was likely the Destroyer himself!

By hiding outside the city, he was playing the "light under the lamp" strategy. When all Maintainers assumed the Destroyer was hiding in the city, he chose a safer spot outside.