Chapter 20 Welcoming Guests

"Is this the place?"

Looking at the tunnel in front of him, the serpent captain furrowed his brows, looking at the patrolman in front of him. Sensing the serpent captain's gaze, the latter quickly nodded.

"Yes, captain, according to our investigation, they should have left in this direction..."

"I understand."

After getting the answer, the serpent captain didn't say much but turned his head to look behind him.

"What do you think, Lady Eilis?"

Standing in the middle of the team was a girl who looked to be about fifteen or sixteen years old, dressed in a simple black cassock, with soft silver-white hair that flowed down to her waist like a waterfall. From the outside, she looked like an ordinary noble lady. And that face, which looked so soft and weak, with lips always slightly pouting, gave the impression of being easily bullied.

But no one here dared to underestimate her, whether it was the physically strong serpents or the Teflins skilled in stealth and assassination. The look in everyone's eyes when they looked at the girl was only of respect and awe.

She was a nun from the Crimson Monastery of Black Onyx City, and also the daughter of one of the three rulers of Black Onyx City, Eilis Green Teydan.

Eilis's background was quite legendary within Black Onyx City, with two particularly peculiar points. First, she was born and raised in Black Onyx City. Second, she was the child of a half-vampire and a human. Especially the latter, for the half-vampire community, was an almost miraculous milestone.

Half-vampires are essentially the mix of humans and vampire kind. On the surface, vampires often capture humans as servants and "blood banks," and sometimes for their amusement. As such, it's not uncommon for human women to become pregnant, giving birth to what are known as half-vampires.

Half-vampires inherit the advantages of both vampires and humans; they possess the beauty, superior physical qualities, and lifespan of vampires, while their human blood helps them resist sunlight and holy water to a certain degree. Although they can't completely shield themselves from sunlight, their resistance is much stronger compared to pure vampires.

However, half-vampires are not without flaws. Like vampires, they also feel discomfort if exposed to sunlight for too long. The violent tendencies inherent in vampires lurk within them, and the scent of blood can turn them beast-like. As such, half-vampires are unwelcome both among humans and vampires, forcing them to hide in the deep, dark regions.

Compared to other half-vampires, Eilis's father, Eilite, had a similarly tragic path in love. He and his wife were childhood sweethearts, but when Eilite's half-vampire lineage was discovered, he was expelled from the village. Unexpectedly, his wife chose to leave with him. After enduring many hardships, they finally settled in the dark regions.

And then, Eilis was born.

Eilis's birth was sensational news among the half-vampire community, as there had been cases of half-vampires marrying humans, but for some reason, most of these unions resulted in miscarriages or no pregnancy at all, leading to despair among half-vampires. But now, Eilis's birth reignited hope.

As a hybrid of human and half-vampire, Eilis's constitution was closer to half-vampires. She inherited the beauty and physical prowess of vampires but lacked the violent bloodlust inherent in half-vampires. She also inherited human potential, becoming one of the few high-ranking mages in Black Onyx City after only a decade of study. Surprisingly, tests showed Eilis was completely immune to sunlight damage! She could walk under the sun like any normal person without any issues.

This was considered perfect!

As such, within the vampire community of Black Onyx City, Eilis's prestige was second only to her father, with nearly every half-vampire seeing her as the future for their children. Imagine, if their children could live like ordinary humans, they wouldn't have to hide in such a dark and sunless place.

Thus, when Eilite suggested his daughter join this mission, the other two were quite surprised—after all, Eilis was Eilite's most precious daughter!

Some even called Eilis the "little princess" of Black Onyx City.

However, unlike those pampered nobles, Eilis was not only a high-ranking mage but had also assisted Black Onyx City in repelling invasions from other races several times, earning her high prestige. Otherwise, merely relying on her family background, how could she have established herself in Black Onyx City?

Hearing the serpent captain's inquiry, Eilis stood up, furrowed her brows slightly, hesitated for a moment, and then said.

"There are no more than ten of them."

After saying this, she first glanced at the serpent captain, then quietly added another sentence.

"And there were no casualties."

Hearing this, the serpent captain's expression immediately became serious. Eilis, as a high-ranking mage, was definitely not wrong in her judgment. Although it seemed like Eilis's words were contradictory at first glance, the serpent captain understood her meaning. A fully armed merchant caravan was annihilated by less than ten people without any casualties. If it were the patrol team he was leading now, it probably couldn't do any better.

"I understand, miss. Then... about that mage..."

Thinking this, the serpent captain furrowed his brows and asked in a low voice. The reason for dispatching Eilis to join the patrol team was to rely on her knowledge and abilities to assess the strength of the mage who attacked the merchant caravan. After all, whether on the surface or underground, mages are the most formidable enemies.

"This..."

However, facing the serpent captain's inquiry this time, Eilis was troubled and furrowed her brows. She hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.

"I can't say for sure."

"You can't say for sure?"

"Yes."

As she spoke, Eilis raised her hand and pointed to the scorched marks on the wall.

"From the marks, this mage is very skilled in elemental magic, even reaching the legendary level. Look, captain, this lightning bolt was shot straight from the front. Although it was unexpected, this is, after all, the most heavily defended area of the caravan. At the very least, the number of people should have been enough to withstand it. But this lightning not only penetrated the entire caravan's defense but also hit the tunnel wall. The merchant caravans of the dark regions always emphasize resistance to magic, and the guards often wear enchanted armor. Ordinary magic couldn't possibly have such strong penetration power unless it's a legendary mage."

"So, we're dealing with a legendary mage?!"

Hearing this, not only did the serpent captain look puzzled, but the others also wore expressions of disbelief. It's no wonder, as legendary mages are respected everywhere, whether on the surface or underground. No matter where they go, they are treated as honored guests. It seemed unlikely for one to stoop to being a bandit.

Could it be a trap set by some force against Black Onyx City?

"But..."

"But?"

"This mage is really strange..."

Saying this, Eilis also sighed in confusion. As a high-ranking mage, she naturally recognized at a glance that the battle marks here were clearly the work of lightning and fire magic. But how could a legendary mage only use two spells back and forth? Besides lightning, there was fire, and as they moved along, Eilis almost memorized these two spells...

Such behavior is usually seen in novice magic apprentices, isn't it?

Eilis could hardly imagine that Jean's system was just like this, giving him only two spells so far. It wasn't that Jean didn't want to use other spells; he simply didn't have any others to use!

"Could it be some kind of magical beast?"

Thinking this, the serpent captain also had a moment of inspiration. Eilis couldn't be certain either. The dark regions below were full of strange and bizarre magical beasts. If there were some creatures that could spit fire and shoot lightning from their eyes, it wouldn't be impossible. However, since there were no signs of any beasts here, Eilis was also somewhat unsure.

"In any case, let's see how things go."

Thinking this, the girl didn't say much else. She knew her identity was special. Although many people in the team respected her, some didn't think highly of her. Moreover, with the situation unclear, if she definitively claimed there was a legendary mage mixed in, it probably wouldn't end well.

"Which direction did they go?"

"Report to the miss, it's this way."

"Let's go take a look."

Saying this, Eilis didn't say anything more but followed the serpent captain towards the other end of the tunnel. Just as they reached the corner at the end of the corridor, the girl suddenly heard a light sound under her foot.

"Crack."

"Hmm?"

Hearing this sound, Eilis looked down, only to see that the ground under her feet was no longer the uneven surface it appeared to be but a continuous slab of stone. Through the dust, one could vaguely see the patterns on it.

"!!!"

In that instant, Eilis suddenly felt a burst of cold air explode, as if she had inadvertently entered the body of some monster. All she could see around her was flowing blood, thick muscles, and intertwined blood vessels, with a warm and bloody smell hitting her face, making the girl stunned for a moment.

But it was just a blink of an eye. When Eilis came back to her senses, the previous scene had disappeared without a trace. In its place were still the cold stone walls and the deep, dark passage, with everything looking the same as before.

What was that just now...

"Miss?"

"I'll be right there."

Hearing her comrades' call, Eilis shook her head and quickly walked forward.

No one noticed that behind them, the heavy stone walls silently slid past, and in the blink of an eye, everything returned to calm.