The Longing for Home

After three days and two nights of fast travel, Murphy's convoy finally drew near Cadman City again. At their current speed, they would arrive in half an hour.

The outline of the great city, built on a plain among the hills not far from a river, was already clearly visible.

Over the past two days, the players had gotten used to logging in freely and managing their game time sensibly. They left one "sentinel" online, and the others logged in whenever they reached a village or the convoy stopped to rest, so they wouldn't waste their precious game time on boring travel.

The players' poses when they logged off were strange, too.

Murphy had gone to take a look. They were sprawled like corpses on the two large wagons reserved for them at the rear, looking just like sleeping people. Every so often, one would snore or roll over, making their simulated sleep remarkably lifelike.

This proved that, after the players' free-access function was enabled, they could maintain a physical presence in this world for a long time.

Though he still didn't understand how the function worked, Murphy guessed that these "physical projections" could automatically absorb the ambient psionic energy in the world to sustain their existence.

Miss Femis's notes on psionics explained all this in detail in the section on summoning. Though he couldn't directly apply it to special summoned beings like the players, Murphy guessed the general principles were probably the same.

"You've spent two days with my warriors. What do you think of them?"

It was overcast today, with no bothersome sun, so Murphy sat hooded on the moving wagon and chatted with Maxim, who was driving, on and off.

At Murphy's question, Maxim immediately put on a stern expression and said,

"Not good, Lord Murphy. I admit your warriors are full of energy, as if they never get tired, but they're irritating and completely crazy.

Yesterday, they even followed me to the latrine, apparently trying to confirm that I needed to relieve myself too.

And whenever I have a moment to myself, those fellows gather around me and use those accursed calculation orbs to ask me all sorts of strange questions.

They seem especially interested in my private life and my white hair. It's incredibly annoying.

I had to use the method you taught me and send them on errands before I could get any peace and quiet."

"That's just how they are. They're curious and have no sense of caution."

Murphy sighed helplessly and said,

"Even after I repeatedly told them not to bother Miss Femis, a few daredevils still went and teased her last night. Miss Femis used psionic bindings to hang them in midair for half an hour.

But you have to admit, they're talented at running errands, right?

They can always find whatever you want at the fastest speed, using all sorts of bizarre methods.

How are they progressing with their swordsmanship?"

At the question, Maxim's disgruntled expression suddenly gave way to a sigh.

He said somewhat gloomily,

"My lord, it took me a whole half month to get the basics of Blood Vulture Swordsmanship when I first started learning it. It took me three years to master the techniques for all kinds of weapons. Your warriors have only been learning from me for two days, and they don't take it seriously at all.

"But they've already grasped the essentials of Blood Vulture Swordsmanship.

"Last night, I even saw them drive off a few gnoll bandits who'd been lured close by food. Their swordsmanship was still clumsy, but it already looked the part. Compared to their ability to learn, I feel like a complete idiot.

"Are all otherworlders as clever as they are?"

"Of course not. There must be idiots over there, too. Fortunately, we don't need idiots."

Murphy answered offhandedly.

The players' rapid progress at learning skills definitely wasn't because they were all martial arts prodigies. It was purely an illusion caused by their 1.5-times growth and learning rate.

The Test Administrator System had probably adjusted this when it created the player template. Otherwise, if it really took players several months to learn a set of sword techniques, the game would be dead in the water.

The realism and challenge players wanted didn't actually conflict with the convenience and shortcuts they craved. Finding the right balance between the two was the key to making a game appealing.

That is, if this world really was a game.

"I just learned a new sword technique."

Murphy stood and patted Maxim on the shoulder.

"When we get back to Cadman City, let's practice. We've got half an hour left, so no more resting! Pick up the pace and get us back as soon as possible. I've had enough of sleeping rough in the wilderness."

"Yes, my lord. I'm looking forward to getting back to the city, too."

Maxim smiled and flicked the reins, urging the wagon to speed up again.

Murphy, meanwhile, strode across the roof of the wagon with a relaxed air, as if walking on level ground. After one light leap, he landed on top of Mirian's wagon.

The red-haired girl had also been pestered these past two days by the "enthusiastic" players, who kept searching everywhere for hidden quests to trigger. She was enjoying a rare moment of peace.

As Murphy landed, she suddenly asked,

"Murphy, could I hire your warriors to escort me to Chardo Port?

"They're really enthusiastic. It's as if they'd tackle any task I asked of them with boundless energy. I like them more than those gloomy mercenaries.

"They're simple, lively, warmhearted, and kind."

"They'd scare you if you saw their evil side, Mirian. Besides, you can't hire them right now."

Murphy replied,

"My warriors haven't fully adapted to this place yet. They're too weak. But in the future, they might become your personal bodyguards, as long as you can afford them.

"By the way, Mirian, don't spread the word about who they really are once we're back in the city. Just say they're from Morland Village."

"I understand."

The red-haired girl waved a hand.

"Your summoning technique is obviously a secret art. Don't worry, I won't blab about it. Besides, saying they're mountain folk from the northern region would make a lot more sense than saying they're from Morland Village.

"No one would question the mountain folk's odd behavior, and their language is notoriously hard to understand.

"That makes them a perfect match for your warriors."

"Thanks. I'll keep that in mind."

Murphy opened the door and climbed into the wagon.

He knocked on the black coffin inside. A moment later, the lid slid open, revealing Miss Femis's disgruntled face.

Rubbing her forehead, she said,

"It's daytime, Murphy!

"I understand that you're an unusual sort, like the legendary 'daywalker,' eager to bask in dangerous sunlight. But I'm a true child of the night, and I don't like being woken up at this hour."

"It's overcast today, Miss. There's no sun you hate. Perhaps you should try appreciating the world beyond the night. But actually, I came to ask you a technical question about summoning and psionics.

"Since we'll be back in Cadman City soon, it probably won't be so easy for an outsider like me to ask you questions, given your status.

"So please forgive my rudeness."

Murphy apologized frankly. The helpless young lady waved her hand and said irritably,

"You'd make me happy just by keeping your impolite servants in line. I'm very unhappy with the way they look at me as if I were some rare animal. They also call me all sorts of strange things, like 'loli.' I don't know what it means, but the gleam in their eyes makes me want to snap their necks."

"That's because they like you, Miss. You may not know it, but you're very popular with them."

Murphy smiled. Looking at the "vampire rich loli dark young lady" who'd come up again and again on the forums, he cleared his throat and asked seriously,

"While reading your notes, I found an entry on using a summoned otherworldly creature called a 'death crow' for reconnaissance. I tried having one carry things, but whenever my summoned creature died, it vanished immediately, and whatever I'd asked it to deliver disappeared along with it.

"So I'm curious: is there any way to make a summoned creature leave something behind in the physical world after it dies?

"For example, a corpse that could remain for a little while."

"You're making such a fuss just so a death crow can deliver things for you?"

Miss Femis looked at Murphy with a peculiar expression. He nodded, and she gave him a look that said I don't believe a word of it before replying in a low voice,

"Don't be so nervous. I won't pry into your little secret. Your question is easy enough to answer, anyway.

"Have you heard of 'warlocks'?

"Those practitioners of dark arts like summoning otherworldly evil spirits to possess their enemies, slowly devouring their minds and flesh until the spirits can fully replace them. The secret to keeping their summons around for a long time is that they make 'calamity cores' to help stabilize the spirits' physical projections.

"Make a core for your summoned creatures using their method, and the psionic energy that makes up their physical forms won't immediately dissipate when they stop moving.

"In your words, it'll leave a 'corpse,' but it can last for no more than a day."

Miss Femis's answer suddenly enlightened Murphy. He pressed her for more details.

"Are there any special requirements for making such a core?"

"None."

The young lady yawned again, her expression making it increasingly clear that she wanted him gone. She said,

"Any psionically sensitive material will do, and it's not difficult to make one. If you really want to learn, I'll write you a letter with the instructions and send it to you after we get back to Cadman City."

"Then let me thank you in advance."

Murphy had gotten what he wanted. He stood and glanced at the coffin beside him.

"Lady Adele will awaken tonight as a vampire. I want to take her to meet my elder, Triss. But don't worry, Miss: if she wants to come back to you, I won't stop her.

"Think of it as a temporary work assignment.

"I'll 'loan' you my progeny for a while. You only need to pay a token hiring fee. If you want, I can even sign a formal labor dispatch contract with you."

"There's no need, Murphy."

Miss Femis lay back in her coffin. As she lowered the lid, she said,

"Adele is already your progeny. Though I'm reluctant to part with her, I'm the daughter of the Blood Vulture Clan's leader. I haven't fallen so low that I need to steal a fellow clansman's progeny.

"She'll go with you!

"Whether she wants to or not, because that's the family rule."

The wagon fell silent again.

Murphy stood speechless between the two coffins.

After spending the past two days with Miss Femis, he'd come to understand her character better.

The young lady was practically the personification of family rules. Everything she did was governed by the ancient doctrines of the Blood Vulture Clan. She could accept anything that fell within the rules, even if there was a trap in it.

Murphy could now understand why Miss Femis had seemed unconcerned about the sacrifice of the sixty Midnight Hunters.

To her, it was a necessary contribution to the clan, as well as an act of obedience and reverence toward its doctrines and rules.

She wouldn't even consider the unsavory part Murphy had played in the affair.

He'd brought the clan a precious victory.

That was enough for her to overlook the unreasonable aspects of it.

Dealing with someone so principled was pleasant. At the very least, Murphy no longer felt as resistant toward Miss Femis as before. He even thought that working under her might not be so bad.

After all, as long as he followed the rules, she was easy enough to deal with.

And in her worldview, there didn't seem to be any concept of "clever tricks"—that is, exploiting loopholes in the rules. It was something Miss Femis could accept.

So if he could win Miss Femis over, things for him and Triss in the Blood Vulture Clan might improve considerably.

Murphy stepped out of the wagon and gazed toward Cadman City.

He could just make out the city's outline beneath the overcast sky, and a smile tugged at his lips.

He'd been away from home for eight days, one day longer than he'd promised.

Triss would definitely nag him when he got back. He hoped that good-for-nothing hadn't managed to starve herself to death while he was away.

Still, given Triss's occasionally scatterbrained and mostly unreliable nature, she'd probably get along just fine with his little players, wouldn't she?--

"Coordinates locked. Target direction confirmed. Communication channel clear! Plan D entering Phase One!"

At the crisp report, the psionics mage before General Loren began casting in the command hall of the frontier fortress in East Prussia. As the lights on the psionic calculation orb strapped to his chest flickered, a reconnaissance spell showing a bird's-eye view of the ground activated and appeared before the general and his commanders like a mirror.

The spell's image showed Cadman City from above, the capital of the Transia region and the Blood Vulture Clan's headquarters, nearly three hundred kilometers away.

The psionics mage fine-tuned the angle so the general and his commanders could see the entire city clearly.

Beside them, a group of Tower of Rings psionics mages in black robes busied themselves with a massive psionic communications network linked through calculation orbs. New orders were sent out every so often.

"Target information relayed to Whitecliff. Shaping Towers 01–03 are in position! The shaping masters are standing by!"

"Cadman City's corresponding astral coordinates have been calculated! No interference in the mapping between the two sides! The next phase-coordinate shift is in six hours! We have plenty of time."

"The 'Astral Tear' grand spell is ready! Whitecliff Headquarters is making its final confirmation for Plan D. General, please give the order."

A psionics mage in uniform called out to General Loren. He stared at the city reflected in the image before him.

He narrowed his eyes but didn't immediately give the order. Instead, he turned to an elderly man beside him, dressed smartly, with a black cane in hand and a top hat on his head.

He said,

"How does it feel, knowing you're about to watch a legacy your people spent four hundred years building collapse in an instant?"

"The Blood Vultures aren't my people."

The grim-faced old man showed none of the respect for General Loren displayed by the others. He stared at Cadman City, shrouded in the pale light of the overcast sky, and said quietly,

"Their shameful betrayal 225 years ago sparked the Second Night War, nearly destroying my family and bringing the entire vampire race to the brink of extinction.

"And in the next few minutes, those schemers will pay for everything they plotted in the shadows.

"If you insist on asking what I think,

"then I'll tell you: I'm looking forward to what's about to happen more than anyone."

"To take this revenge, you've even let go of your feud from the Night War, violated your people's law of isolation, and chosen to work with the Tower of Rings? As far as I know, an astronomical number of your kin died at the hands of the Tower of Rings toward the end of the Second Night War and during the subsequent 'Wolf Calamity.'"

General Loren raised an eyebrow and asked,

"Is it really worth forgetting one old hatred for the sake of another?"

"Of course."

Old Edward, the leader of the Wolfsbane Clan, flashed a chilling smile from beneath his top hat.

He clutched the skull-adorned cane and said quietly,

"As long as the Blood Vultures are destroyed today, every sacrifice will have been worth it. You simply don't understand what the Blood Vultures are doing, or what kind of nightmare Salokdar's deranged actions are about to bring upon us.

"I wouldn't even call it destruction. It deserves a word utterly at odds with vampires, like 'redemption' or 'salvation.'

"But I don't want to reveal any more. Don't keep me in suspense, General Loren. You know what I want.

"Let me see!

"Let me see what the Wolfsbane Clan will gain by bowing to the ambitious King Louis."

"Order confirmed!"

The half-dwarf general snorted.

He turned, stroked his beard, and swung his hand down as if chopping with a battleaxe. His voice was low as he said,

"Plan D is underway! Let's bury the Blood Vultures in history, once and for all!"

"Boom!"

A few minutes later, a muffled boom came from the image before them.

Terrifying psionic energy temporarily tore open the divide between the material world and the astral realm. The sky and earth trembled, and the power of the murky astral clouds poured through. In the last moment before the psionic reconnaissance spell was disrupted and vanished, General Loren and Old Edward watched with satisfaction as most of Cadman City was swallowed up and torn apart.

The two exchanged a smile, then raised the fine wine an orderly had brought them.

"In the name of victory, gentlemen!" the general cried.

"The war is over."