Having overcome the security perimeter and restored its integrity, the vampire felt a nervous tremor in his limbs. The thrill of the hunt was palpable. He had ventured further than anyone ever had before. If he was caught, even thinking about it was unsettling.
Once in the lavatory, the man immediately cleaned himself up, removing excrement and other filth from his clothes and body. Personal magic was truly a marvelous thing. Now, a half-flask of drink to restore his strength and then continue. The night was still long, people were asleep, so there was a chance to finally obtain the bishop's blood.
Emerging into the corridor, he came face-to-face with a servant. Fortunately, his reaction didn't fail him, and the man was knocked out before he made a sound. What the hell!? He barely smelled! And there were no sounds! Were they expecting him?! The thought made his heart race faster. Fortunately, the answer lay right at his feet. A few drops of the unfortunate servant's blood and he could calm down.
The man just needed to use the bathroom in the middle of the night. Sighing with relief, the scout hid the body in a cupboard with rags and cast a "sleep" spell on his victim. The awakening of the servant would be a wet one. Chuckling at the thought of an adult waking up having wet himself, the vampire willed himself not to think about other matters.
Almost blending into the wall, he crept down the corridor to the staircase. The bishop's private quarters were on the third floor, but this staircase wouldn't get him there. He needed to go up to the second floor, cross another corridor, and only then would there be a staircase to the third floor.
Why such a strange layout, considering the most valuable things were in the basement, the vampire didn't know. At least the blood of numerous church employees provided him with knowledge about the building's internal layout. If only they also went on the roof, he wouldn't have wasted a couple of hours crawling around up there.
The corridor on the second floor was quickly crossed. He didn't encounter any new midnight wanderers suffering from small bladders on the way. Climbing the stairs to the third floor, the man stopped and exhaled. If he were a believer, he would have probably prayed, but since he was raised as a strict atheist, he just rested before the final push. Cracking the door slightly, he winced in despair. The hinges even noticed such a slight movement and squeaked unpleasantly. And this noise was heard by a guard in the corridor. Even two!
There were two guards in the corridor! What a surprise, they had two guards watching over the church bosses' sleep. And the most important thing, not a single one of the servants had any memory of this guard post. Apparently, before coming here next time, he would need to try to obtain some blood from the church guard. Though to hell with the next time, he would manage this one!
Quietly and quickly descending to the floor below, the vampire waited. Heavy footsteps, the creaking door overhead, and the flickering torchlight on the walls. The guards were doing their job diligently. After waiting for the sentry to ensure everything was calm and leave, the vampire repeated his action with the door. Again, a slight creak drew attention, and everything repeated. And then twice more.
Only on the fifth try did the guard come downstairs, where he was quietly neutralized by the scout, who almost howled when he drank the human's blood. Shift change! The change of guard was due in less than half an hour. And he hadn't thought about that at all. It was too late to blame himself. He needed to get out before he was caught. And the only way out was lit up for the future. Sergei would tear his head off when he returned!
Deciding to make some noise as a parting shot, the vampire dashed into the corridor and jumped out of the nearest window. Landing easily on his feet, he immediately ran to the nearest alley, clutching the guard's badge in his hand. Another failure at breaching the bishop's quarters had become public knowledge, and now the churchmen would be on high alert.
Which, of course, did not remove from the agenda the necessity of obtaining the blood of the barony's chief priest. So despite the increased danger, attempts would continue.
Shortly before dawn, two vampires met near the city wall and, without a word, climbed over it and melted into the forest. The attempt to breach the mage's quarters had also ended in failure.
— Do you still think using Sophie as bait is a good idea?
— Do you have other ideas?
The vampires lay in the bushes on the edge of the village, watching as a cart with a girl sitting on the back entered the village gates. Oleg turned on his back and stared at the clouds being driven across the sky by the strong wind. Igor, meanwhile, continued to observe.
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