38 The raid

Dahlia got up with a start, uncertain of what was going on, but she could read the urgency in Valentina's tone.

"What do you mean by an emergency? Do you know how bad? Should I do anything?"

The Archduchess looked at the girl who had only just recently recovered from the long day. She might be perky, but it was merely a second wind. Dark shadows could be seen under her eyes and the vampiress had no desire to exhaust her further.

"All you should do is rest. I know that it's not the worst things could be, but it's something that requires immediate support from me. I also know that it's outside the castle in the adjoining city, but that's all the information I had relayed to me. For now, just stay safe within this room and try to recover. I'll be back as soon as possible."

With that, Valentina was already pulling on clothes she had set aside and gave Dahlia a gentle and loving kiss before finally rushing out the door. On the way, Bessie accompanied her and was listening to all information as it was presented. She may be Dahlia's maid, but staying by her mistress' side wouldn't help her if she was left in the dark.

Very quickly, the two had met up with Rorik and the castelan began to give an explanation.

"Right, so Lilli and half of the guard have been dispatched already. All other fighters are remaining at the castle in case this is a distraction. In Victor's Square there was a sudden disturbance just a short while ago. At first people thought it was a bandit raid in the city or something, but that doesn't seem to be the case."

They continued to walk and talk as they all headed to the barracks for the Archduchess and highly valued personnel. Forcing open a pair of double doors, both women immediately began grabbing weapons, materials, tools, and armour, all while still listening to the report.

"We don't have numbers listed. There's at least thirty confirmed, but it's believed there's much more not recorded. What makes these individuals clearly not bandits is their methods. They are focussing on murder, maiming, or destruction rather than pursuing wealth. They refuse to parley and simply won't stop their onslaught."

He pulled out a few pieces of paper with roughly sketched lines forming a moderately detailed sketch of a person in robes as well as the same robed person in a rougher sketch, but showing them riding a strange large bird.

"Avery is on the field and he sent us these sketches the moment he saw the assailants. Apparently the thirty raiders counted were all wearing the same robes and riding these strange birds. No one has identified them yet but…"

The Castelan trailed off and Valentina furrowed her brows in frustration.

"Don't drag it out, tell me. I want to have this corrected and resolved as soon as possible and don't need you to stall with your words."

Leaving Dahlia in her current condition was having a bad effect on the Archduchess' mood as she kept remembering what had happened last time she left the girl alone. She despised needing to leave her side, and had settled on settling this matter with as much ruthless efficiency as she could muster. Rorik was a little distressed at being treated so brusquely for the second time this week, but he managed to bear with it.

"The birds seem to have anti magic properties. Though we can't identify them, which is an issue in of itself, we know for certain that no magic can remain condensed around them. It doesn't negate bloodlines, but does negate bloodline magic, as with everything else. It seems that those anti magic auras allow for these raiders to fight on an even footing with many of our better trained soldiers. It removes all magic based techniques they have and leaves their skill as their only option. But considering the enemy is mounted and armed… it's making the situation difficult."

Again, Valentina was furrowing her brow but for a different reason this time. Birds large enough to ride combined with anti magic properties? It's not surprising that others don't have any idea, but she was aware of that type of monster. Jubjub birds. They were legendary creatures that grew to the scale of buildings and could be considered walking natural disasters if they were released in a civilised area. They basically acted as the ultimate predator of people resting on their magical laurels.

The thing is, jubjub birds were not meant to be interacting with humans anymore. They were supposedly sealed away in a giant cave network below the Theocracy. The Caverns of Infinity are meant to be a permanent home (or prison) to all contained creatures within. Due to their risk, the jubjub birds were lured into the caves at the cost and sacrifice of many lives. To imagine that there were so many out in the open was terrifying.

Luckily, these seemed to either be lesser variants or chicks. They may be similar in size to a horse, but they were dwarfed by their adult counterparts. The birds looked like dodo birds, with dull grey feathers that would look pearlescent given the right angle. The strange shimmer to their wings made them difficult to see clearly or to hit accurately and then their natural strength and speed made them terrifying to fight without magic.

Despite this unusual setback and dangerous enemy, Valentina didn't falter. Finished getting ready, she simply gave a brief nod to Bessie before leaving. The maid fully understood what was implied. Protect Dahlia. That was in her hands, and it was a duty she would die to uphold. The minotaur-kin continued to get ready as the Archduchess rushed out.

Valentina could track nearly any employee at any given time thanks to her hexes, so she was quickly able to locate the epicentre of the conflict. Knowing what was to come, she began to activate her own mana pathways, churning the magic through her body at an incredible rate.

While she may have set aside some of her family's schema, building blocks were still used and the Archduchess used these to her full advantage. Unlocking the innate potential of vampires, her senses grew, her speed and strength became enhanced, and her body seemed to shift slightly as it redistributed muscle to make her even more physically tuned for fighting.

Her thoughts were simple. While her magic may be counteracted while near the birds, that wouldn't force permanent changes to be undone, and unlocking her bloodline like this would be one such irreversible trait. Being in this state in day to day life was dangerous as it enhanced her emotions and killing intent, but in cases like combat, it was exactly what she needed.

With the changes complete, she burst forward with a sudden surge in speed that made the ground crack beneath her feet. Like a dark arrow, she sped towards the source of conflict and arrived in mere moments. What was found at the scene though was dreadful.

Victor's Square, a place for gatherings, festivals, and maintaining morale in the city was now found in ruin. While some allies and enemies remained here, more fighting could be heard in the rest of the city and it was clear that this had been the first point of contact. Also, given the number of bodies dead, amount of remaining raiders still standing, as well as the sounds in the city and degree of devastation, it was a certainty that far more than thirty enemies were present.

Buildings were torn apart and collapsed and bodies of enemy, aly, and civilian alike were scattered about. Their lives suddenly becoming meaningless in the face of this merciless raid. Sobs and screams could be heard and immediately the Vampiress could sense a large number of bodies were still alive, through gravely wounded. It was something that would need attention later.

Now, there were more pressing issues. Although many had moved to different parts of town, there were still thirteen of the bird riders fighting, while about thirty Lukreshian foot soldiers tried to hold their own. Most were pikemen or wielding halberds or something similar. The bodies on the ground appeared to mostly be from sword users that had been overwhelmed by the cavalry.

While the raiders had still been trying to wear down the polearm wielding soldiers, the moment the Archduchess arrived, they changed focus instantly. They were still a hundred metres away and they were talking in mutters and whispers, but with her enhanced senses, Valentina could hear them as clear as day.

"She's the major concern. Her and the paladin from earlier. We were instructed to never get off of the mounts if she's present."

"But she's scary strong, right? You saw how fast she was when she got here, she might be able to fight us all if we're not careful… should we retreat?"

"Don't be a coward! It's just one woman. Besides, do you think we'll be rewarded if we just let her have her way. We need to prove ourselves!"

They bickered for a bit, but Valentina was getting tired of waiting. She had already eavesdropped and got a bit of information so now it was time to end these bastards. Summoning a stream of blood, she quickly reformed it into a javelin before hardening it. Rather than throwing it and keeping it solid with magic, she needed to expend extra time and energy making it solid beforehand; crystalizing it rather than holding liquid together with mana.

After making three of these crystalized blood javelins, Valentina looked up and saw that the enemies were still arguing. They were aware of her, but she was so far away that they assumed they were still safe. Deciding to prove them wrong, she hoisted all three in quick succession throwing each unerring towards the riders. In less than a second, three of these cloaked raiders were thrown off their mounts with a blood javelin in each of their chests.

The precision was absurd, and the ten remaining enemies quickly turned their focus on Valentina. They knew she was dangerous, but what they just witnessed was far outside the realm of typical strength. Although she might have sacrificed some combat ability for her hexes, Valentina remained a terrifying force to be reckoned with, and as her blood lust and killing instincts rose, a bloodchilling grin split her face.

"It's time to dance and have a little warm up. Come, fight like you mean it because I might not kill you as fast as your comrades. You'll suffer at my hands for interfering with my time together with my love."

The raiders all seemed confused at that remark, but the sheer insanity that seemed to seep out of the vampire's eyes led none of them to take that as the ramblings of a crazy lady with no means of backing up the claim. Knowing how complacency was the downfall of their comrades, all immediately began to prepare a coordinated attack.

All at once, the jubjub birds rushed together and Valentina raised a brow. While the riders only had moderate experience and lacked a lot of standard knowhow, the mounts were incredibly well trained. Whoever had their hands on a way to breed these birds not only had extreme resources, but also was able to hire skilled trainers. The origins of this raid were getting more and more troubling.

With her claws now extended, Valentina watched the movements of the speedy birds as they approached. Their shimmering feathers made them hard to track, especially as a group, but the riders gave the positions away. Just as they came near, she dashed into a gap between two of the birds and as she did, two legs were also grabbed. The rider of each mount was dragged off and pulled out of the safety of their bird's antimagic field.

Although each raider was using weapons that should hinder the vampiress from approaching, her speed was just far too abnormal and they were struggling to even comprehend how quick she could move.

With the two riders now pulled away, Valentina smirked. These people were far too easy to combat. While they might have been putting up a hard fight against the regular soldiers, they were able to do so thanks to their magic nullification and the physical advantage of their mounts. Frankly though, their skills were alarmingly lacking. They had a well trained foundation but with no practical experience, and it was showing.

With her vastly superior physical abilities, the vampiress felt like this would be over quickly. She tossed the two she had captured aside. The locations she had touched seemed to radiate a dark cruel energy and, as she turned her back on those enemies, the effects of what she had done could immediately be seen.

The two raiders thought they had the chance to strike while her back was turned, but immediately the action caused their hexes to activate. Even as she focussed on the remaining raiders, Valentina couldn't help but smirk. Sounds of choked screams echoed from behind her as the two raiders collapsed. Their magical defences had been so poor that she was able to deliver a fairly potent hex within merely moments.

Frankly, she was glad she chose to neutralise them that way. The skills and resilience of her enemies were far too poor and if she tried to physically subdue them, chances were high they'd die by accident. With her hexes however, the moment they showed aggression their blood would immediately stagnate and cut off oxygen supply to their whole bodies. As the two collapsed, the hexes also relaxed and the two were kept in a shaken, but alive, state.

'Good, with them fully subdued, I can fight the rest without worrying about casualties. I'll accept two prisoners for now.'

Glancing to the west, a large stream of white and black lighting bolts could be seen continuously raining from the sky in a single location and the Archduchess clicked her tongue. Lilli was pulling out some more destructive magic and if that was the case, not all the enemies here were as pathetic as the ones she currently faced.

Returning her focus to the eight remaining bird riders, it seemed like they had already repositioned themselves in her brief moments of distraction. The birds acted in tacit understanding with each other and their riders, and soon a wall of weapons were arranged like a cavalry phalanx.

Seeing it, her eye twitched a bit. Without magic, this was actually a little annoying to deal with. She dashed away to make space in order to manufacture another solidified blood polearm, but this time the riders were far more wary and they gave chase. The fast birds couldn't move as fast as the vampiress, but they still made it so she couldn't slow down to form her weapon. Even more frustrating is that they remained in a tight formation. There weren't any convenient openings for her like before.

"These fucking birds! I'm going to turn you into a feast once this is over, you hear?"

Spinning on her heel, Valentina settled on not solidifying her blood. Rather, even if she couldn't imbue it with mana driven force, she could still create blood. With that in mind, a wave of thick crimson suddenly descended on her enemies. It was less than even a typical ocean wave and there was little force behind it, but that was fine.

As the opaque blood acted like a curtain obscuring their vision, the Archduchess used it as cover, approaching and getting within blindspots. As the wave struck, it got in eyes, mouths, and ears, causing confusion, and that was the moment to strike. In the brief moments of confusion and chaos she created, Valentina pounced on the raiders, tearing them apart with her razer like claws.

By the time the blood was cleared from their eyes, the remaining enemies were shocked. Five of the eight had been taken down in such a short window. In each case, ruthless and deep cuts crossed each of their throats, and suddenly the three remaining raiders felt true dread.

The rest of the battle ended in an instant. Without the power of numbers, Valentina quickly found holes in their defences and exploited them the moment they were spotted. Much to her dismay though, the birds didn't stick around. Rather than fight against her, the jubjub birds seemed to be trained to run away, likely to be collected later.

Part of her wanted to give chase, but there were far too many unknowns to rush away mindlessly. The priority was to bring the city back to calm and stop the assault from these raiders. Looking to the west again, the lightning strikes were continuing. That wasn't good.

If anyone could last for any length against Lilli, either they were incredibly skilled or the commander was getting swarmed by enemies. Either way, it was unacceptable and Valentina rushed to the scene.

Signs of chaos and destruction were spread about the city. Rubble was strewn about and plenty of people in sleeping garments or naked ran and screamed or huddled and cried. The number of casualties was also far too high for her liking. This entire raid was a mess.

Climbing the side of a building with some incredible acrobatics, the Archduchess finally found herself on a rooftop overlooking the large alley where the lightning strikes were occurring and she was immediately met with shock.

'First the birds, now this? Fuck, this is far worse than I thought.'