40 Bloodbound Judgment (1)

Chapter 40: Bloodbound Judgment (1)

They still had their confident arrogance, not thinking much apart from their initial surprise when Jeanne attacked the Vampires with the Holy Light of the Nails, and while she didn't understand what was going on, she could feel that there was something burning in her heart, not harmful, it almost felt like when Carl would bite her neck.

'Is this the Mana that Carl talked about? I have this feeling that I'm invincible and can punish those evil Vampires.'

"Hmph, you ugly bastard wants to turn me into a Thrall? Sorry to break it to you, but I'm already Carl's woman. SO PISS OFF, I'm not interested in lowly ass, vampires that can't amount even to Carl's fingernails." she spat, her voice ringing out with a fierce resolve that sent a shiver down the vampires' spines.

Jeanne's words dripped with defiance as she stood her ground against the two High-Class Vampires

"Get closer to me, and I swear, I'll blast for each of you one nail in your hearts, while the last nail would be for you fucker who killed my Arachne." her words were laced with a venomous promise for retribution.

With a scoff, Wisborg attempted to mask his growing unease with a facade of indifference, but the pain he was having from the Divine Nail still stuck into his thigh, made him uncertain about the whole situation. "You think you can threaten us, human? You're nothing but a mere speck of dust in our eyes," he retorted, though the slight quiver in his voice hinted at the doubt gnawing at his confidence.

He cursed under his breath, which made Orlok scoff a bit at his pathetic side. "How lucky is this bitch to awaken a Longinus? Divine Nails of Christ at that for fuck sake."

But Jeanne remained unfazed by Wisborg's bravado, her resolve unshaken as she continued to channel the divine power of the two Nails of Christ circling above her head akin to an Angelic Holo. "This one I'll blast it into your skull and make mush out of your rotten brain," 

Orlok's eyes narrowed into slits as he assessed the situation, weighing the risks and rewards of engaging further with Jeanne, was it a mistake to allow Jeanne to awaken her Sacred Gear? He chuckled a bit, mocking himself for even considering this as a proud Vampire Aristocrat in charge of guarding the Vampire Prince. 

This time he wanted to relish the opportunity to crush the insolent human beneath his heel, even if she now had a potential chance to pose a threat to him with her Divine Nails, it only depended on that slight chance she managed to hit him.

"Enough games," Orlok declared, his voice dripping with malice as he took a step forward, his sword gleaming in the dim light of the ruined living room. "It's time to put an end to this little charade and get rid of Krassius once and for all."

With a swift motion, Wisborg followed suit, his fangs bared in a predatory snarl as he advanced towards Jeanne with a feral hunger in his eyes. But as they closed in on her, Jeanne stood her ground.

As Wisborg closed in on Jeanne with lethal intent, she stood her ground, her body tense with anticipation as she prepared to unleash the power of the Divine Nails against her vampiric adversaries. 

With a flick of her wrist, she sent one of the nails hurtling towards Wisborg, aiming for his heart, while the 2nd Nail was hurled aiming for Orlok's head as he was stationary, displaying his confidence when facing her.

Orlok, however, was quick to react, his supernatural reflexes allowing him to dodge the nail with ease. With a smirk, he countered by launching himself at Jeanne, his sword poised to strike with lethal force. However, Wisborg who got affected by the nail stuck in his thigh used his sword to parry her attack.

By this point, Wisborg, with his flesh still burning from the divine energy of the nail embedded in his thigh, gritted his teeth against the pain as he lunged towards Jeanne from the other side, his eyes gleaming with a predatory hunger.

Jeanne's subconscious took over and even when Orlok attacked her with his swift slash, he used the motion of the returning Divine Nail to push her aside and dodge his slash, doing something akin to a sidestep, narrowly avoiding the deadly blade by mere inches. But before she could retaliate, Wisborg's vice-like grip closed around her wrist, his fangs bared as he prepared to sink them into her flesh.

"Let go, you monster!"

"Not happening, you annoying swine. After all the wounds you've given me."

In a desperate bid for survival, Jeanne uses the two Divine Nails to act like a shield, channeling all of her holy power in this push. With a defiant cry, she also motioned the Nail that was stuck into his thigh to pierce through his flesh, causing him agonizing pain. 

Wisborg screamed in agony as the divine energy burned through him, causing his grip to falter and allowing Jeanne to break free.

Meanwhile, Orlok, seeing his partner momentarily incapacitated, while pissed that he had to do the dirty job of subduing Jeanne, seized the opportunity to launch another ferocious attack. 

Using his Vampiric swiftness, he swung his longsword aiming at Jeanne's neck, as if he didn't care about what information she had regarding Carl. He wanted to wash away the humiliation he and his partner suffered, but as if karma had other plans for him, something he didn't expect stopped him,

Before his blade could make contact, a sudden burst of light illuminated the room as Xenovia and Irina burst into the room, their Excaliburs gleaming with holy power, and a long threat intertwined around his demonic blade stopping his slashing motion, and with his gaze dropped on a chestnut colored girl wearing the black combat attire of Exorcists that showed a lot of skin, even though they curves still had to mature and grow.

Xenovia wielding her two-handed sword, Excalibur Destruction swung with all her might to wound Wisborg. 

"... Holy Swords? Excaliburs? The fuck is going on here? Since when has the Vatican dispatched Exorcists capable of wielding Holy Swords? Were they expecting that we would appear?" 

"Is not that. They are most likely after Krassius, too. Can't you see the Holy Ward? We even had to wear the suppression artifacts to get inside as High-Class Vampires."

He tried to dampen the impact of the Exorcist strike, but the Holy Power of the Excalibur was something that had an weakening effect on his body.

"Stand back!" Xenovia commanded, her teenage voice, youthful but still filled with maturity ringing with authority as she made her presence known to the Lasombra Vampires and especially for Jeanne, who thought those girls were also her enemies.

Irina and Xenovia finally decided to strike after gauging the situation, and not wanting for those Lasombra Vampires to suppress Jeanne which was their lead into the mysterious Vampire that might have triggered the activation of the Holy Ward. This was their initial reasoning, but now that she awakened her Sacred Gear which was of the Holy Series, they had more reasons to jump into the fight. 

They never expected for the blonde lady to awaken her Sacred Gear under this high-stress situation. Usually people who had latent Sacred Gears inside of them would awaken them early, and adults wouldn't be privy to this late-blooming. 

This situation proved them wrong, and reinforced the miracles of God. 

Orlok tried to withdraw his sword from Irina's Mimics grip as the holy sword turned into a long thread-like wire, and with his supernatural strength, the young girl was pulled, unable to wrestle the monster's might. 

"I'll not let you off, you demonic beast! You shall suffer under the Wrath of God!" 

Irina matched against Orlok who clearly had an Agility-Spec, but she still struggled to suppress him, strength wise. 

By this point, the proud Lasombra Captain was overtaken by anger, pissed that he was dragged around by a bunch of lowly humans, and women at that. While wrestling with Irina for control over his Demonic Sword, he dodged a Holy Nail that Jeanne sent flying at him.

"Miss, you don't have to help me! I can handle this monster myself, and send him to Hell! Amen!"

"I have the power to help. Don't stop me, young sister. I shall see that those bastards are dead" Jeanne felt slight relief, as he remembered the chestnut nun who amusingly preached to her friends on religion and her beliefs on infidelity. 

She didn't want to allow herself to stare like a princess in distress, at least not in the face of other women. Only in his presence would she allow herself to be weak, and fully embrace his soothing.

Orlok by now had enough, and discarded his indifference at handling this battle, and seeing how Wisborg was being suppressed by Xenovia as she was creating a mess of Jeanne's house under the monstrous power of her Excalibur.

"Wisborg, shift in your Vampiric State. Let's kill those nasty bitches, and just wait for Krassius to get his ass here, then kill him too. I've had enough entertainment for a decade."

As Orlok issued his command, Wisborg let out a guttural growl, clearly he wasn't feeling himself while facing the long blue-haired Exorcist, and as if a limiter was turned off, a jet of demonic energy was exuded by the large Vampire and with another clash of swords, Xenovia got pushed back to her slight displeasure.

Staring at the Vampire, he saw his handsome features contorting into a grotesque visage, as he allowed himself to reveal his true appearance and once more embracing his full Vampiric State. 

His blonde partner was in the same picture as his once charming appearance was now replaced by beastly, monstrous features. His once smooth skin became pallid and gaunt, with elongated fangs, long claws that could shred into pieces anything, but the thing that changed the most were his blood-red eyes that glowed with a malevolent, predatory intent.

"For once in a while I agree with you, Orlok. No more messing around," Wisborg snarled, his voice now deeper and more menacing than before. "Time to show these wretched sluts the true power of the Lasombra Clan."

As his transformation completed, Wisborg lunged forward with renewed ferocity, his claws extended and ready to rend flesh, while his right hand holding solely on the two-handed demonic sword swung at Xenovia. 

He ignored the searing pain from the wound inflicted by the Divine Nail, his thirst for blood driving him forward with a single-minded direction.

Orlok, even in his Vampiric State, allowing his twisted instincts to run wild, had control unlike Wisborg, and didn't go into battle like some Berserker, liking himself to be something akin to an Exterminator, deadly and powerful. 

With a sinister grin, Orlok unleashed his own vampiric powers and wielding his demonic longsword he clashed against Irina who transformed her Excalibur Mimic into the shape of a Samurai Katana ready to continue her battle against the Vampire.

For the young exorcists the fight against the High-Level Vampires who took off their humane masks to reveal their monstrous appearance, left them a bit shocked deep down considering they seemed to have the upper-hand in the initial stages of the fight.

But now? With their true power on display, those Lasombra Vampires were powerful, and by the minutes began winning their respective fights. 

Regardless if Orlok was facing both Irina and Jeanne as she was firing her Holy Nails with a random tempo to grant her the best chances to hit him, his speed was otherworldly and she couldn't keep up with his movements. Fortunately for her, she was using her Sacred Gear as a Defensive Barrier that wouldn't allow Orlok to get to her so easily.

Focusing on his strength, Orlok chipped away at Irina's resolve while the marks of the sword and claw marks were imprinted on her combat attire. The chestnut colored girl began breathing labored while blood slowly dripped down on the alleyway of Jeanne's home as they eventually shifted their combat stage. 

"I figured you would be at least equal to that blue-haired little swine based on the fact you're capable of wielding a shard of Excalibur. But what is this? Are you joking with me? You little girl can't even match my speed, and survived this much because of those rusty nails of Christ."

Orlok had his trademark arrogant smirk all the entire time, even in his Vampiric State, to add insult to injury for Irina he began sniffing around the blood essence that she was scattering all around the alleyway akin to a bloodthirsty beast.

Irina gritted her teeth, her violet eyes narrowed as she faced off against Orlok. "Keep talking, vampire scum," Irina retorted, her voice dripping with boldness despite her labored breathing. "You may be powerful, but you underestimate the power of faith. We will not fall so easily to the likes of you."

With a swift motion, she swung her Excalibur Mimic, the blade gleaming with holy energy as it clashed against Orlok's demonic longsword. The force of their collision sent shockwaves rippling through the air, causing nearby objects to tremble and shatter under the immense pressure.

As their swords locked in a fierce struggle, Irina's mind raced, searching for a weakness in her opponent's defense. She knew that she couldn't match Orlok's speed, but she refused to let that deter her. With each clash of their blades, she focused on conserving her energy, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

Jeanne too felt her mind growing tired while that tingling sensation of mana being drained each time she would launch a Holy Nail at Orlok, and her decreased frequency of attacks was spotted by the Lasombra Vampire who flashed her a twisted grin, all-knowing of her soon to be misery, at least until her Savior would appear and end the two arrogant Vampires.

Keeping on the poker-face Jeanne channeling her holy power into one of the Holy Nails circling around her. With a flick of her wrist, she launched the nail towards Orlok, aiming for his exposed flank as he was occupied with Irina.

Orlok, sensing the incoming attack, just laughed, finding it amusing that Jeanne wouldn't stop her bluffs. His laughter echoed through the alleyway, a cruel sound that grated on Jeanne's nerves as she watched her attack approach its target.

With a steely gaze, she watched as the Holy Nail soared through the air, its trajectory aimed directly at Orlok's flank.

But just as the nail was about to strike, Orlok's celerity kicked in. With a blur of motion, he sidestepped the attack, narrowly avoiding the holy projectile as it whizzed past him and embedded itself into the wall behind him.

"Nice try, but you'll have to do better than that," Orlok sneered, his smirk widening as he advanced towards Jeanne with predatory intent. "You may have some tricks up your sleeve, but you're no match for a True Vampire. A Pureblood. Maybe that mutt Krassius would have fallen for such cheap tactics. Not me"

Jeanne's heart raced as Orlok closed in on her, his menacing presence looming over her like a dark cloud. She knew that she was outmatched in terms of physical strength and speed, her mana reserves dwindling and her consciousness being ever so murky, but she refused to back down. 

With a deep breath, she steadied herself, readying her mind and body for the impending clash as she put some mana into the Holy Nails creating the barrier around herself. This eventual action of hers widened Orlok's grin as he chose to shift back on clashing against Irina.

The young Exorcists by now was moving only by sheer willpower as she fought to protect Jeanne and herself from the vampire's relentless assault. Despite her fatigue and the injuries she had sustained, she refused to yield, drawing upon her faith to bolster her resolve and on the Excalibur to heal her wounds.

Nevertheless, Orlok was relentless, his attacks coming fast and fierce as he sought to overpower Irina and claim victory for himself. With each strike of his sword, he pushed Irina back, slowly but surely wearing down her defenses.

Sensing his opportunity, Orlok unleashed a flurry of blows, driving Irina back with each strike until she collided against Jeanne, the force of the impact knocking them both off balance. Irina gasped as pain shot through her body, her muscles protesting against the strain of the battle.

"I'm sorry for bumping into you, miss. D-Don't worry, I got this. I will defeat this bad guy, and you'll be safe afterwards." she pushed herself upright, her grip tightening around her Excalibur Mimic as she prepared to face Orlok once more, but Jeanne, who could feel how Irina's willpower was slowly crumbling against this ruthless monster.

Not knowing how to encourage her, she just told her what she was grasping on to cope with this situation. "Young Nun, you've done more than enough to help me against these bastards. Just hang on a couple of minutes more and everything will be fine. My Lover will come here soon and take care of those bastards."

"... Miss, I'm sorry to ask you at this moment, but… Your Lover is also a Vampire, right?"

"Hmm? Lover…?"

"That's right. And from the urgency of those two bastards and the tone they spoke when mentioning Carl, they are afraid of him. He's powerful. I'm sure of this. You two girls will be fine. I promise you this. Just… Stay strong for a bit more."

"O-Okay, but miss. You know that Vampires are bad people. Not that I want to accuse you of anything…"

Jeanne couldn't help but frown a bit, but she put in perspective Irina's view as a young nun and 'Exorcist' based on Orlok and Wisborg's words, and the bias of their upbringing could be spotted. Still, seeing those Exorcist girls and with the image she painted in her mind of Carl, she knew that they wouldn't be able to hurt him.

"It's alright. If you feel that Carl is your enemy by the time you meet him, it's your choice how to approach him."

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A/N: Is it viable for a newly Longinus Awakened to hang in there with A-tier Vampire Threats? Why not. Longinus Sacred Gear could be classified as SSS/EX tier Weapons if we translate it to gaming terminology.