Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 687 - The Undignified Vampire Kind

Shard asked, somewhat surprised.

“The day you visited me at the Traveler’s Camp, I was competing in marksmanship with my colleagues and hit all eight targets, which was really lucky.”

Captain Lades smiled:

“The brigadier already appreciated me for solving a murder case here a few weeks ago. When he saw my marksmanship and found out I also played Roder Card, he gave me this card.”

“All eight shots? Captain, the next time someone mentions ‘Captain Eight-Guns,’ it won’t be in jest. You have a bright future ahead.”

Shard also smiled, handing back the card:

“Shall we play Roder Card together later?”

“Sure, but after nine o’clock, as I still have things to do. But while I’m up for playing cards, I won’t bet with you.”

The captain said with a laugh:

“You are the champion of Big City Player 1853, and I have no confidence in beating you.”

After saying goodbye to the captain by the crackling bonfire, Shard truly felt happy about his friend’s fortunes. Compared to other friends he had made during the barely half a year he had been known as an outsider in this world, he had witnessed Captain Lades’s transition from life’s hardships back to the right track entirely.

Even in this dangerous and bizarre world, a normal person who maintains a passion for life can, with a bit of luck, find their way uphill. For someone who has become accustomed to various horrors in this new environment, this was a small consolation.

Shard sighed with a smile and planned to proceed to a place where they played Roder Card. But just then, a young man holding a wine glass approached him proactively, someone Shard did not recognize.

“Hello, sir, interested in making a friend?”

The other party, also dressed in a black suit with neatly styled brown hair, smiled and asked Shard, who was startled and shifted his gaze from the charming little bat pattern above the man’s head before shaking his head sharply:

“Sorry, I’m not interested in predatory lending.”

“No, no, I’m not a loan shark.”

Shard looked him over again and raised an eyebrow:

“Sorry, I’m only interested in young ladies.”

“Don’t worry, so am I.”

The young Vampire Kind replied with a smile, lowering his voice:

“I’ve never seen someone as handsome as you around here before. Are you an outsider?”

“Yes, I came from a far place, invited by a friend to this banquet.”

“Then, would you be interested in trying something… fresh?”

He lowered his voice, looked around, and then from his pocket, took out an exquisitely crafted small metal box with a bat emblem on the lid.

Touching a button on the box lid, “click” it opened, revealing three glass containers the size of half a little finger embedded inside, containing dark red liquid:

“Sir, this will be interesting.”

“What is this?”

Shard took the box offered by the young man, but after touching the three test tubes, he did not feel any element.

“Blood Brew.”

Upon hearing the answer, Shard nearly tossed the thing in his hand as if it were a steam bomb:

“Sorry, what?”

The young man didn’t seem surprised by his shocked expression:

“It’s a liquor containing blood components. You’re an outsider, so you might not know, but this is quite popular locally. Would you like to try it?”

He encouraged, and Shard looked at him even more astounded:

“Whose blood is this?”

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“Human blood.”

The young man smiled slightly:

“But rest assured, it’s all obtained through legal means. After all, why commit a crime when money can solve the problem?”

“This…”

Shard had heard of people peddling forbidden substances at parties, even in the Northern Pearl, Tobesk. But he hadn’t anticipated how potent the local “forbidden substances” would be.

“Besides human blood, we’ve also added some hallucinogenic elements to the Blood Brew, which makes it quite intriguing,” someone said.

The young man continued to entice:

“Of course, if you drink it while being intimate with a lady on the bed, the effect will be even better. How about it, this tube is on me, and if you’re interested, I have more in stock.”

Shard now fully confirmed that this unfamiliar Vampire Kind was a traditional drug trafficker. Seeing Shard as an outlander with a fresh face, he had approached him to strike up a conversation.

“This… I’m sorry, I’m not interested in human blood, though I might consider animal blood.”

Shard handed the golden box back to the man.

“No worries, no worries, I also have Blood Brew made from animal blood,” the young man assured him.

The young man seemed to have guessed what Shard was thinking, and he took out another box from his pocket, checked the label, and handed it over to Shard.

The golden box still contained three identical tubes and still showed no signs of elemental traces:

“This is crow blood brew. Rest assured, we detoxify the blood during processing. This batch is quite effective, and for a handsome young gentleman like you, it can make engagements with passionate ladies sweeter.”

Shard hesitated:

“Finally arriving in a new city and trying something fresh isn’t too bad. I’ll take them all. However, if it’s just ordinary drinks, I won’t let you off easily.”

The young Vampire Kind laughed:

“Don’t worry, I’m a businessman and won’t ruin my reputation, and you can ask around. Baron Brad and many gentlemen from City Hall use our products—especially the older gentlemen who always find themselves lacking vigor during exercise. The first tube is on me, and the other two are eight shillings and five pence each.”

That wasn’t too expensive, so Shard paid the amount. The young man gave Shard a business card, telling him that if he needed more, he could order from this address.

“Is this the way the destitute Vampire Kinds here make a living, or perhaps part of some damned ritual?”

After the man left, Shard held the golden box, pondering. But he tended to lean toward the first possibility, judging from the man’s tone and practiced sales pitch—he must have been in this line of business for a long time.

“I’ll ask Granny Cassandra about it later.”

Pocketing the golden box, Shard inwardly sighed about the local nobility’s corruption.

Indeed, nobles were corrupted everywhere, as he had also learned about the secrets of nobility from Lecia during her Saturday lessons. Had Lecia not grown up in such an environment, she might not have so readily accepted Shard’s “taking them all” approach.

With this thought, he looked despondently at the moon in the starry sky. Above the fires scattered across the area, the moon still shone brightly.

“Look, who’s this? Watson, you really did come after all.”

Lost in thought, he suddenly heard a voice from behind and immediately turned. This time it was Priest Augustus. The Old Cleric was still dressed in his clerical robe, his face glowing red by the firelight, looking quite cheerful:

“Seeing you at the banquet, why are you here alone watching the moon? I think the young ladies of Milestone would not fail to appreciate your looks.”

Priest Augustus clinked his glass casually with Shard’s, aware that Shard’s drink, which looked like wine, was probably just juice.

“I wouldn’t engage with unfamiliar girls in a foreign place.”

“Worried about Annette or Luisa being upset?”

The Old Cleric indeed saw everything clearly, and Shard laughed awkwardly:

“I was just thinking about some worrisome matters, Priest Augustus. Do you know about the local Blood Brew?”

“I do,” the Priest nodded without hesitation:

“There is a group of destitute Vampire Kind in Milestone who migrated here long ago. They operate a red wine vineyard, but some also make a living off their skills in making Blood Brew. They sell cheap or expensive Blood Brew among the lower-class poor and the upper-class nobility.”

At this point, the Priest did not hide the loathing on his face:

“What they call Blood Brew is essentially diluted blood mixed with forbidden substances. The Church has known about this for some time, but since it does not involve the Transcendent, they only participate in the police actions when these individuals are caught. The Kingdom is very wary of the Church’s involvement in ordinary criminal cases. But without Blood Brew, there would still be fruit wine, and without fruit wine, other methods for trafficking forbidden substances will emerge—these traffickers can’t be completely eradicated.”

This also reminded Shard of Mr. Benhart’s opinion about the local Vampire Kind, which was “they had forgotten what decency was.”

“So, the local Vampire Kind are just drug traffickers?”

Shard found this amusing.

“Yes, they are not members of the same clan but rather the losers of internal strife within their race. Actually, I wish they would stir up some trouble, so the Church would have ample reason to intervene directly and eradicate them all,” Priest Augustus sighed, but Shard grew even more curious about why Mr. Benhart and his nephew had come here, as the destitute Vampire Kind currently had as many as three Sage-Level Relics in their possession.

He handed one of the small tubes to the Priest, a connoisseur of Magic Potions, to analyze if there was any problem. The Priest naturally agreed and then changed the topic:

“Let’s not talk about such distressing matters anymore. Watson, how come you are here? Didn’t you not want to come?”

“I have to meet a friend in a while.”

“You really do have a lot of friends. If you find time, you might want to check out Auction Hall No. 3. I heard they have some good items there, but I’m not sure if the information is accurate.”

“Understood, I’ll go check it out later. Oh, by the way, will there be any Special Roder Cards at this auction?”

Shard casually asked.

“Of course,” Priest Augustus answered, then raised his eyebrows:

“I know you are the champion from the Big City Players, but you should not get too engrossed in that game. In my view, the harm of Roder Cards is only slightly less than that of forbidden substances.”

Priest Augustus believed in the inherent evil of human nature, hence his aversion to Roder Cards. This was also why the others in his group repeatedly reminded Shard not to tell the Priest about their gambling on Roder Card Games.