The Path of Justice Lies in Eliminating Evil; Cooperation is Irrelevant

# Chapter 20: Eliminating Evil Is the Path of Justice—Who You Cooperate With Doesn't Really Matter

Murphy had to admit—he had truly underestimated his adorable little players.

After listening to Lumina's description of her plan, even he, an orthodox vampire, stood in the woods for over ten seconds before snapping back to reality. By the time he looked at Lumina's innocent face again, his gaze had turned rather complicated.

He knew players always liked to pull off some abstract stunts, but this... well, even by the moral standards of a villain, it crossed a few lines.

However, by the negative moral standards of a vampire as a member of the Midnight Kin, it fit perfectly. This seemingly sunny exchange student girl—was she perhaps a natural dark horse? Maybe even a bit yandere?

Was she really this ruthless?

Murphy hesitated for only a few seconds before making up his mind.

"Your suggestion carries some risk. I need to consider it carefully."

With the composure befitting an NPC, Murphy said this to Lumina, then took out the weapons and armor stored in the psychic bag at his waist, handing them to the little players for fitting and familiarization.

Among them were some alchemical grenades confiscated from the Witch Hunters and that massive automatic hunting crossbow—devastatingly powerful but too heavy to move easily.

"They're all cold weapons?!"

Over twenty minutes later, Meow Brother's group returned, clustered around the professional.

The Banzai Happy Stick's notebook, provided by Murphy, was already filled with scribbled parameters. He had found a terrain in the woods perfect for an ambush, but when he returned and saw their side's weapons and armor, he couldn't hold it together.

"I'm not familiar with cold weapon combat."

Happy Stick grabbed a vampire-style rapier, swung it a couple of times, and said to Meow Brother with some frustration:

"But I know a few guys who do group combat reenactments—pretty skilled. Their windmill sword technique is legit."

"We'll talk about that later. Just tell me—will these work or not?"

Meow Brother waited for the verdict, while Happy Stick inspected the current equipment situation. Finally, his eyes lit up when he saw the automatic hunting crossbow.

He stepped forward quickly, fiddled with it a bit, and after hearing from Niu Niu about its rapid-fire performance, thought for a moment, then slapped his thigh and said:

"Mount this on the carriage! Make a simple armored compartment as a firing platform. Hey, girl over there! Meow said you're a good shot, right? You'll be the sniper.

I can also guest-star as a professional ranged attacker. We'll use these black bombs to make some landmines too."

Happy Stick sat down with authority, raised his hand, and said:

"If we start tomorrow, we need to dig fortifications now. They have armed soldiers—even if it's WWI-level firepower, we need a few foxholes.

If possible, we should also dig a trench! They're delivering military supplies, so they won't be carrying them by hand. Since they have vehicles, a trench will be very useful.

The road through those woods is already abandoned. They only have one route.

Too bad we don't have enough gunpowder, otherwise we could rig up some improvised mortars..."

"You're getting way too criminal with this."

Meow Brother rolled his eyes, but then had a flash of inspiration and immediately reported to Murphy. When he heard the players planned to stay up all night working on fortifications, Murphy was stunned.

He didn't mind the players staying as free labor—after all, he had already reported his blood servant situation to Lady Femis.

He was just surprised that the little players were even more enthusiastic about this than he was.

But then he thought again—they wouldn't really die anyway. To them, it was just a military game. That was way better than his situation.

"Fine!"

Murphy nodded and said:

"I'll get you some tools. Do what you need to do."

With that, he withdrew from the woods, leaving the rest to his little players. He himself took Maxim back to his carriage and called Mirian aboard.

"I have a task for you."

Murphy took a deep breath and whispered to Mirian:

"I'll go draw away Lady Femis's servants. You take the chance to go to the carriage holding the Witch Hunter prisoners. They've been tortured and interrogated by vampires these past two nights, but they should still be conscious by now."

"What are you going to do?"

Mirian's face was filled with horror.

She already sensed something was wrong, but Murphy didn't give her a chance to refuse. His next words weren't spoken aloud but transmitted to Mirian's ear using sound mimicry.

The girl's eyes grew wider and wider as she listened. By the end, she was so terrified she covered her ears and screamed:

"You're insane! If they find out, we'll—"

"Then don't let them find out! Don't worry—this is how we vampires operate. Even if it gets out, other vampires will only praise me for being ruthless enough... and I'll gladly accept that as a compliment.

The problem is, you need to act immediately."

Murphy reached out and covered Mirian's mouth, saying to her:

"Don't be afraid. At high noon, when the sun is at its harshest, even a vampire like Lady Femis must hibernate in her coffin. As long as you're not stupid enough to lift their coffin lids, no one will jump out to hurt you.

All you have to do is deliver a message!

Think about it carefully.

Even if the Witch Hunter prisoners refuse to cooperate, they won't betray you! And even if they do talk, the vampires will just dismiss it as a malicious scheme to sow discord."

We move tomorrow!

If they don't seize this last chance, when they return to Cadman City, a fate worse than death awaits them.

Before the psychic interrogator's methods, their will is useless; those secrets will be dug out and bring death and destruction to their companions.

Trust me, Mirian, this is an opportunity for all of us!

I swear to you, no matter the outcome of tomorrow's action, you will have your freedom! After we return to Cadman City, I'll personally send you on a merchant caravan to Chardo Port.

I swear it in the name of my elder, Lady Triss!"

Mirian stared hard at Murphy. After nearly a minute of silence, she gritted her teeth and asked:

"Why are you doing this? They're your own kind! You're throwing them into the fire."

"They're not."

Murphy closed his eyes slightly and waved a hand, saying:

"I give them smiles, they give me mockery. Haven't you heard what they've called me these past two nights? A rat from the mud pit, the waste of Cadman City!

I may be mild-tempered, but I'm not so forgiving as to pretend I didn't hear any of it. Nor do I plan to entrust my fate to whatever mercy that young lady may or may not have.

I have only one kinsman in the dark!

She's still waiting for me back at the manor in Cadman City.

If I die, Triss will surely be lonely and heartbroken. And have those vampires treated you well, Mirian? Why consider their future?"

"Why not send Maxim?"

Mirian hugged her arms fearfully and said:

"He's more loyal. You should trust him more."

"Maxim is loyal, but he's tongue-tied. You, on the other hand, have the brains to convince those prisoners."

In the dim carriage, Murphy reached out and placed his hand on Mirian's trembling shoulder. He said in a low voice:

"I've never asked, and you've tactfully never brought it up, but we both know you have something that can help those Witch Hunters escape."

"You have to make sure I'm safely sent to Chardo Port after all this is over! And give me a reward that'll keep me comfortable for life!"

Mirian bit her lip until it bled, but she finally made up her mind. Lifting her head, she grabbed Murphy's collar and snapped:

"I'm never coming back to this godforsaken place called Transia for the rest of my life, and you owe me this, Murphy! You hear me? You owe me a huge favor!"

"Yes, I promise to repay it, to the best of my ability, so that you'll benefit from it for life."

Murphy grinned, pulled out his old pocket watch to check the time, and said:

"There's still an hour until the sun is at its harshest. The vampires' senses will be dulled to the extreme. Make it quick. I'll have Maxim back you up."

--

"Lady Adele, my blood servants have already gathered in the woods and started digging fortifications for Miss Femis's action tomorrow."

Thirty minutes later, Murphy—wrapped head to toe in a cloak, covered tightly but still wilting from the sunlight—came to the side of Miss Femis's blood servant. He addressed the mature lady in front of him, who wore a butler's uniform with a cold expression but was at least an E-cup, saying:

"But they need tools and manpower, so I need to pull all the human servants from your convoy to help out."

"That's against regulations, Lord Murphy."

Lady Adele, resting by the carriage, glanced at Murphy. Her black-and-white eyes were full of scrutiny and vigilance.

She had been observing Murphy for the past two days.

But the more she watched, the more she found that this guy was unlike any vampire she'd ever met. If she weren't sure Murphy was truly a blood kin, Lady Adele would have thought he was a genuine cunning human.

Seeing Lady Adele refuse, Murphy didn't waste words with her.

He turned, pulled open the door of the black carriage where Miss Femis was resting, and reached in to knock on the young lady's walnutwood little coffin.

The move startled Lady Adele.

Her cold, ladylike composure cracked. She leaped up, precisely grabbed Murphy's wrist, and glared at him.

"Look, either you obediently send people to help! Or I'll call the young lady up at this unseemly hour to discuss the matter with me."

Murphy shook off the hidden-talented housekeeper's hand.

From that precise movement just now, he judged that this housekeeper's strength was definitely above his own—maybe even greater than some of the vampires in the convoy.

She might be a human assassin or rogue at the Black Iron Body rank, but Murphy wasn't afraid of her, because their "status and position" weren't on the same level.

He straightened his collar, pointed at Lady Adele's delicate nose, and said:

"I'm a member of the Blood Eagle Clan. Even if the young lady wants to punish me, she'll have to wait until we return to Cadman City. But for a housekeeper who makes her master lose face, perhaps the mud of the Filthy Swamp would match that servant dress of yours better."

"With all due respect, you're doing something dangerous, Lord Murphy."

Lady Adele's tone grew even colder.

She could sense that Murphy was deliberately provoking her, but she didn't know why this weak vampire was doing it—was it really just for some tools?

"But I'm losing interest in continuing this conversation, you big-chested, brainless human!"

Murphy bared his blood-drinking fangs and said to the housekeeper in a gloomy tone:

"Know your place, you groveling bitch!"

Those words instantly made Lady Adele's face turn an ugly shade of pale.

Her hand had already moved to the pistol strapped to her thigh beneath her long skirt, but after a few seconds, the loyal steward took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.

She realized Murphy was leading her by the nose, and this was clearly not the time for internal strife.

So she stepped back, produced a silver handbell, shot Murphy a frosty glare, then rang it to summon the human servants of the convoy.

This small commotion perfectly masked the activity inside the carriage at the rear of the convoy.

Maxim stood guard by the carriage, his face hidden behind a mask, but his breathing betrayed his tension. He had no idea what Lord Murphy was planning, but he knew this was the moment to prove his loyalty!

Inside the carriage, Mirian carefully skirted around the two coffins placed in the large compartment.

She crawled on her knees toward the female hunter, Natalie, who was bound in the carriage by horrifying, vicious torture implements. Natalie's face was caked with blood and grime, clearly having endured inhuman suffering, but when Mirian reached out to touch her cheek, she struggled to open her left eye.

Her right eye was already a bloody, pulped mess.

"Shh!"

Mirian made a silencing gesture at Natalie in the dim light, then cautiously glanced at the coffin beside her, afraid the vampire interrogator inside might suddenly leap out at any moment.

She then pulled a piece of paper from her bosom and unfolded it before Natalie's eyes, activating the seemingly ordinary metal bracelet on her wrist to emit a faint glow that illuminated the writing on the paper.

The female hunter's bloodstained face initially showed confusion, but once she made out the words on the paper, her eyes went wide.

Mirian didn't linger long.

She had only come to greet her. After seeing Natalie nod at her, she wrote another line on the paper and held it up for the huntress to see.

"The raid is tomorrow night, target: the Golden Lily Transport Team! Survive tonight, and I'll come back tomorrow to release you."

After she left, Natalie glanced at her three companions in the dim carriage. They had all been tortured beyond recognition.

Blood servants could not be trusted!

She was certain of that. This had to be that vampire named Murphy stirring up trouble behind the scenes.

But the infighting among vampires had nothing to do with them, the Witch Hunters. If this battle could make the gathered Midnight Hunters suffer a major loss, then the Witch Hunters were willing to be used as pawns.

Her team members were already dead, so the vampires had to lose people too.

Only that would be fair enough.

Thud

The female hunter used all her strength to kick over the bucket of bloodstains at her feet.

The gore splattered everywhere, masking any lingering trace of Mirian's presence. Then she closed her eyes, entering a meditative rest to gather a sliver of strength.

Tomorrow night.

Just tomorrow night—the final gamble!

Ps: My readership seems to be hanging by a thread, folks. Please keep reading—it really matters for a new book!