His tone carried a hint of amusement:
"You have no idea, as long as you, the vampire count, are on the Antasia, my wife and I can't sleep a wink."
"So if you want to leave... as long as you can free yourself from these bonds, please do so."
"Wh... what?"
Bennett jerked his head up, looking at Gray at an odd angle, trying to find some feigned composure on the other's face.
Unfortunately, no, at this moment Gray's face only showed unquestionable composure.
Bennett's expression Solidification.
Is the other party promising me freedom?
Does this mean they're letting me go?
Is this true?
The freedom I've longed for for so long seems to be within reach, almost within my grasp!
But why now?
Anytime is fine, but definitely not now!
If I were to leave now, all I would gain is physical freedom, but my spirit would still be influenced by the progenitor of Antos.
Leaving Antasia, I will tirelessly roam the Wilderness of Chaos, day and night.
Ultimately, together with other members of this lineage, they converged into a wave of Blood Corpse, relentlessly sweeping through the Grand Duke's enemies until he achieved final victory.
But by then, even if Grand Duke Antos had won, he himself might not be alive.
The enemy is someone even the Grand Duke fears and worries about. I am just a Low Tier- ranking person. In the eyes of the enemy, I am probably no different from an insect. Perhaps with just one look, I will be doomed.
Couldn't you just summon Middle Tier and High Tier units to help? Is that not possible?
Oh, by the way, the " Miser " doesn't have any High Tier dukes under his command...
Utterly despondent, Bennett only wanted to ask the owner of his lineage one question face-to-face:
"How could you be so selfish? Bah! Bah!"
At this moment, the old Blood Corpse was caught in a dilemma—
To live, one must endure restraint and humiliation; to be free, one must bear an extremely high risk of death...
Neither of them was what he wanted, but he had to make a choice as soon as possible. The Grand Duke's call to him was becoming increasingly clear, and he was about to lose control of his body.
Freedom... life... humiliation... living a wretched existence...
After a brief moment of distraction, Bennett made no attempt to hide his dejected expression.
He seemed to have completely given up struggling, looking up at Gray and saying:
"Captain, you've won, but I didn't lie to you. The Grand Duke really is summoning me, but I'm truly afraid of death, I really don't want to go... Please..."
Bennett's head slumped limply, and no one could see his true expression; only his sorrowful voice echoed on the second floor of the fortress:
"Please, knock me unconscious with electricity, so I won't hear the Grand Duke's summons."
"Um."
Gray put away his hammer, turned around, and stood behind Bennett, suddenly asking:
"How did you knock on the door? Your restraints are perfectly fine."
Bennett stammered in reply:
"His body swayed and rocked as the fortress jolted, then he rammed the door with the front of his wheelchair..."
"You know quite a lot... but you disturbed my afternoon nap, you should be punished!"
Gray snorted and decisively pulled the stun lever all the way down.
Bennett's body trembled instantly, but this time he did not let out any of his usual cries of pain.
In the past, he would always scream with extra fervor, as if those screams could lessen his pain by even a fraction.
This time, however, he simply gritted his teeth, letting the electric current flow through his body, hoping only to lose consciousness soon.
The electric shock lasted for a minute at maximum power, and the smell of burning filled the second floor of the mobile fortress. Bennett finally got his wish and was disconnected.
Gray locked the warehouse door, went up to the deck, and looked at the still boundless wilderness in the distance, asking:
" Antasia, can you go any faster? This news must be conveyed to the Second Holy See as soon as possible."
Klaf City, beneath the city lord's mansion.
Silvis's tone was somewhat heavy:
"This is the location of Antos's seal. If you don't believe me, you can open it and take a look."
It's not that I don't believe it, but since we're already here, we should see it for ourselves.
Ed placed his hands on the door, turned his head, and asked again:
Are you sure Antos is sealed away?
The old knight nodded:
"Of course, if he had already broken the seal, we would be dead long ago. If we were killed, my companions would always be able to open the door and inform me of the news."
"But none of those scenarios happened at the time, which can only mean that they had already died at the hands of Antos, and that they had used their lives to plunge the sealing sword into his body."
"Okay, then come in together."
Ed exerted force with both hands, and the stone door emitted a screeching sound.
"I won't go... My lord and my comrades' corpses are inside..."
Silvis said with a heavy heart:
"I will enter this place with the next wave of reinforcements from the Eternal Domain, and personally slay Antos to avenge my lord and my comrades."
The stone door slowly opened a crack, Ed continued to ask:
"But you don't mind if we attack Grand Duke Antos, do you?"
"Of course, it would be best if you could kill him, but it's a pity I can't take revenge myself."
"Okay, I understand."
"Please come in, everyone. I will keep watch over the gate for you."
The stone door opened, Ed took the lead, followed closely by Willow. The players crowded into the basement, which was now nothing more than ruins, like dumplings being dropped into a pot.
The old knight then reversed his grip and thrust his longsword into Sentinel mode.
The spacious underground space was almost completely dark, but that didn't deter Ed and his Soul Returner.
With night vision activated, the group immediately began their search.
The sound of hurried footsteps echoed in Silvis's ears. He was back in this place, separated from his lord's corpse by only a wall.
It would be a lie to say he felt no excitement or anger, but Silvis remembered his promise: he would bring the allied forces of the Eternal Domain here, only then would he have the face to face his...
" Silvis!"
Ed's voice suddenly came through, carrying a tone that Silvis couldn't quite understand.
"What's up?"
His tone was very serious; he would immediately draw his sword and attack whenever his friends from the Tree Worship Church needed help.
I think you should come in and take a look.
Ed's voice came again, tinged with both doubt and earnestness.
"I've said it before, the bodies of my lord and my comrades lie behind this wall. I have no face to face them until reinforcements arrive."
"Yes, that makes sense."
Ed understood Silvis's feelings, but then changed the subject:
"But what if I said that the current sealed area contains neither the remains of your companions nor Antos, who should have been sealed here? Wouldn't that be a different story?"