Hunt

Anna could hardly believe her own eyes. When Keanu stepped into the church, she braced herself for the sight of him being chased away by the townsfolk, or even captured and thrown into the dungeon. She'd even begun devising a plan to rescue him. Yet the scene that unfolded before her was one where the villagers respectfully bid Keanu goodbye as he emerged from the church.

However, there's always an exception to the rule.

Gasken the barkeep glared at Keanu intensely, his eyes ablaze with fury. "You might fool others, but you can't fool me. I know there are people in this world with special abilities, but that doesn't mean anything."

"Indeed," Keanu replied with a smile, "Every person with an ability is a gracious gift from God. God wishes for these gifted individuals to spread his light. However, some choose the contrary path. Some become the enemies of God, and the evil attacks are doomed to be eradicated. Some hide their gifts, like precious pearls buried in the sand, neglecting God's benevolence. I simply heed his call, embrace the light, and drive out the darkness. You may choose not to believe that I am a servant of God. That's not what matters. What matters is my adherence to righteousness and my obedience to God's summon. I am here guided by him, and in his name, I will endeavor to do the duties I am tasked with."

Gasken stared blankly at Keanu.

Leaning in, Keanu whispered in his ear, "The reason you know so many people have unique abilities is that you are one of them, aren't you? But you've never confronted your responsibilities. Should you continue with such an attitude, you'll never get Anna's favor."

The statement left Gasken utterly gobsmacked.

Truth be told, the power of spiritual exploration certainly is extraordinary. This cultivated in the minds of the townsfolk an enigmatic image of Keanu as an omniscient entity. Further, his healing abilities convinced some that he might indeed be a divine messenger.

Having commanded respect, Keanu returned to Anna's home. Anna, tugging at his arm, obliged him to disclose his strategy. "How on earth did you do it?"

"What do you mean?" feigned Keanu's confusion.

"It's their attitude towards you, of course! Goodness me, never have I seen someone entirely shifting people's perception of themselves within an hour. They've begun to respect you!"

Smiling, Keanu replied, "Don't trust everything your eyes behold, Anna. No one can gain respect wholly within an hour, even if you were to save their life. True respect stems from understanding, and admiration that springs from within. It needs time to mature, and cannot be earned through transient glory. The villagers adore God, not me. I've merely exploited his name, but that's about it."

He then briefly recounted the recent incidents, leaving Anna dazed with shock.

"It's hard to fathom, but why...why go through all this?"

"Because our adversary is Count Dracula!" Keanu said solemnly, "The Villares lineage hasn't managed to exterminate that vampire for centuries and why? Because your family has been warring alone. You should've unified all the possible battles together."

"It isn't that we didn't want to! We couldn't!" Anna protested loudly, "You saw it, too. People here are scared of death. They have no will to cooperate with my family. They'd rather survive under the wicked attacks' clutches!"

"The issue lies in your understanding of human nature and lack of leadership. Do you know what it takes to convince someone to risk their life for you?" Keanu posed the question to Anna.

Bewildered, Anna shook her head.

Gently, Keanu whispered into her ear, "First of all, you offer them hope."

"Hope?"

"Yes." "The tricks of leadership," Keanu smiled, "firstly lie in instilling hope, and secondly inspiring a sense of awe."

"Promising hope aids in controlling hearts."

"Power can dictate the situation."

"By leveraging miracles in God's name, authority can be enhanced."

"Manifesting via Attacks, holding up villains as cautionary tales can fortify faith."

"If people harbor a sense of awe and confidence towards you, and you present them with promises and hope, they will adhere to your commands and trail your footsteps, even march towards death without regret. As long as they perceive the existence of light, they might even stand up on their own to fight!"

"With a sword in one hand and the law in another lie the perpetual secrets of rule. Unfortunately, the Villares lineage only knows how to wield a sword."

Anna was profoundly stirred by Keanu's words. She had never conceived such glaring deficiencies in her family's confrontation with the vampires. In fact, even the other adventurers, who undertook Van Helsing's missions, hadn't considered mobilizing the townsfolk in resistance.

Although Keanu was unsure whether this course of action complied with the city's intent, he was certain of one thing - every unspecified yet beneficial strategy was worth attempting. Whether on Earth or in his present world, he wouldn't hesitate to rally the entire population of Transylvania if it served his purpose.

After a profound contemplation, Anna finally spoke up, her voice trembling, "This course of action would lead to numerous deaths."

"With God's existence, death shouldn't be feared," Keanu smiled reassuringly.

"So you're confident that the villagers would follow your lead in exterminating Dracula now?"

"No, not yet," Keanu promptly dismissed, "They're just beginning to accept me. I need time to consolidate and strengthen their belief in me."

"And how do you plan to fortify this belief?"

Keanu chose not to respond. He approached the weapon rack in a corner of the room and pulled out a cross-sword. The emblem provided the following information:

Baptized Cross Sword: Damage 5-12, additional 20 points of damage against undead entities. This is not a mission reward item and cannot be carried outside this world.

His fingers slid along the blade, and in a cold tone, he declared, "Let's take care of Dracula's other subordinate first."

Night descended upon the quiet village outskirts of Transylvania, with most inhabitants fast asleep. At a distance of about 1500 meters from the village lay a small woodland, housing a goblin camp.

The goblins, much like the werewolves, were minions of Count Dracula. They carried large axes, had mini throwing axes nestled in their belts, and walked with a distinctive waddle. Despite their dwarf-like size and seemingly harmless appearance (thanks to the masks they wore), they were the most detestable creatures Dracula commanded.

Just like the werewolves, these goblins were born from deceased lifeforms. Their disposition was fierce and ruthless, reveled in murder.

Stealthily along the edge of the woods, Keanu and Anna carefully approached the goblin community. Several goblin warriors were on patrol around the camp.

Among the scores of goblins, there stood an unusually large figure clad in a red cloak, donning a mask and wielding a giant axe, intermittently shouting orders. This figure was undoubtedly the goblin chieftain.

After enhancement, Keanu's vision had marked improvement, allowing him to view distant objects clearly, even in the dark.

On one goblin, Keanu quietly used spiritual exploration. An overview appeared above the goblin's head:

"Goblin Soldier: Attack 7-15, Defense 2, HP 50, no skills. Undead creature, additional damage can be inflicted with holy attacks. Strength type. No special weak points. Excels at throwing axes."

From the capability, these goblin soldiers fell significantly short of werewolves in all aspects, except the absence of specific weakness. It was no surprise that the second main mission offered only 500 CP as a reward. But the issue lay in the sheer number of goblins clustered in the camp, more than 10. This invisible escalation of difficulty was indeed a headache. "There are over 50 goblins," Anna scoped the distant landscape, casting a worried glance at Keanu, "The numbers are overwhelming. What do we do?"

She was taken aback when Keanu disclosed his intention to terminate the goblin chieftain. Although she'd dedicated herself to the eradication of undead creatures, primarily vampires, in adherence to the Villares lineage's legacy, the centuries-long battle had acquainted her with their recalcitrance. Having observed the goblin's strength in numbers (over 50), she sighed in relief. Subconsciously, she was hoping Keanu would retreat.

But Keanu simply replied, "That's why we need to distract them, at least half of them."

His resolve showed no signs of wavering.

"How do we pull them away?"

Keanu whispered his plan to Anna, which brought a furrow to her beautiful brows, "How can you be sure that the goblin chief will divide his forces? What if he doesn't?"

"He certainly will, because he's a leader. As a leader, there are certain things that one must do," came Keanu's response.

"I don't buy it."

"How about a wager?" countered Keanu.

"What's at stake?"

After a moment of thought, Keanu responded, "If I win, you promise me one thing. Don't worry, it won't be a difficult task. Deal?"

Anna was taken aback momentarily and then laughed lightly, "Alright, I agree."

She seemed composed, but her eyes hinted at an unusual tint. This put Keanu in a bit of a spot as it struck him that she'd misconstrued his intention. Seeing that she did not reject his proposal outright, he did not bother to clarify.

A patrolling goblin sentry, clutching his axe, wandered around the outskirts of the camp. Suddenly, a soft cracking sound of stepping on a tree branch echoed in the nearby vicinity.

After hearing the noise, the goblin initially looked around and spotted a shiny silver coin resting not too far off. The goblin approached the coin and frankly seemed confused; it then scooped up a handful of dirt, covering the coin.

Undead creatures inherently abhor silver things, and weapons made from silver increase damage on them. If these silver things don't exist in the form of lethal weapons, then undead beings tend to ensure they're kept sight out of it due to instinctive intense revulsion.

After covering the coin, the goblin sentry found another silver coin not far off. Possessing limited intelligence, the creature proceeded to bury it like the previous one. By the time it was burying the seventh one, a cross sword unexpectedly and swiftly pierced its throat. Black rotten blood sprayed out, and after a few sways, the goblin collapsed heavily.

Keanu revealed himself from behind a tree. Glancing at the trail of burial sites, he shook his head and chuckled at Anna, "If we were baiting a human instead, they would have certainly taken the coins. The same situation faced by different beings would stimulate different responses, leading to the same outcome ... isn't it fascinating?"

Anna gave him a look of exasperation.

Keanu lifted the goblin's body and ran towards the river.

10 minutes later, it was finally noticed that one of their soldiers had gone missing. The goblins started causing a ruckus, looking all over for their lost companion.

After much searching, they finally found the missing goblin - dead on the other side of the river. This discovery makes them angry.

The goblins poured out of the settlement, leaving behind a vacated camp guarded by only two goblin warriors.

"Hey, how are you guys doing?" Keanu emerged from behind a tree.

With his greeting, the gun in his hand spewed a puff of smoke.

A goblin immediately fell to the ground.

The other goblin soldier was just about to hurl his axe when a sharp sword pierced his back. The goblin twitched a few times before falling dead.

"What's the next step?" Anna asked Keanu as she pulled out the sword.

Keanu lightly stroked his gun, responding coldly, "Wait for their return, and then... wipe them all!"