When Casimir saw him remain silent, his heart skipped a beat. He thought his confession hadn't been profound enough and hurriedly added, "Your Majesty, I have more to confess. I used filthy Gold Coins to insult those pure young women, weaving lies with honeyed words to deceive them."
"I will go find them all at once and sincerely apologize."
Chen Yu gave a little hop. "There's no need."
"I shouldn't have to tell you what to do when you get back."
A delighted expression appeared on Casimir's face. "Yes, Your Majesty! I will ensure the Great Slime Sect flourishes and your glory shines upon every corner of the Dark Land."
Chen Yu: "..."
'He couldn't care less about some Great Slime Sect, alright?'
'It'd be a miracle if anyone actually believed in a sect that sounded so ridiculous.'
He fought back the urge to retort and corrected him, "I meant that this war should be over."
...
Half an hour later, a fully satisfied Casimir left the Demon Camp.
He left behind several chests of Gold Coins as a bargaining chip and, clutching the Blood of Life bestowed upon him by Chen Yu, set off on the journey back to the Eternal Night Territory.
Upon returning to the gloomy council hall in the ancient castle, Casimir announced the good news to the assembled Blood Race elders: he had successfully negotiated a truce with the Slime Kingdom.
"They agreed?"
"I can't believe it actually worked."
Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief, and the heavy, oppressive atmosphere in the room instantly eased.
"Well done, Sir Casimir."
"The family is proud of you."
Praise washed over Casimir like a tide, and smiles spread across the faces of every Blood Race member.
Even Deng Lun, who had been silent the whole time, gave a slight nod and said flatly, "Not bad."
Without asking any further questions, he turned and left the council hall as usual.
Ignoring the other Blood Race members around him, Casimir stared at Deng Lun's back as he disappeared beyond the door, lost in thought.
'I have a feeling he's discovered something.'
'I can't drag this out any longer,' Casimir resolved.
'The coup must happen tonight.'
'I have to seize complete control of the Eternal Night Territory for myself.'
That's right. This was the true agreement he had reached with His Majesty, the Slime.
He needed to launch a bloody internal purge to completely eradicate the stubborn old guard, eliminate the lingering influence of Mage Salazar, and expel the entire filthy Goblin Army from the Eternal Night Territory.
He would use the blood of traitors to cleanse the land of its past sins and bring true rebirth to the Eternal Night Territory—and to the entire Dark Land.
And finally... he would throw open the gates, welcome the Demon Legion of His Majesty the Slime, and complete the transfer of power.
As the (self-proclaimed) first bishop of the "Great Slime Sect," he had long been prepared to sacrifice everything for it.
Casimir maintained a humble smile, responding to each of the elders' praises in turn.
The Blood Race elders began to chat amongst themselves, their attention quickly shifting from him to a discussion about holding a ball to celebrate the victory.
Watching these members of the Blood Race, already lost in their decadent fantasies, Casimir said nothing and turned to leave.
Leaving the council hall and its stagnant, musty air behind, he walked alone through the castle's vast and shadowy corridors, his footsteps echoing off the stone walls.
Soon, hazy figures began to emerge from the shadows between the pillars. They were all members of the Blood Race who had gathered after hearing of Casimir's return.
A young member of the Blood Race lowered his voice and asked urgently, "Sir Casimir, is there any news about the Blood of Life?"
Casimir stopped, his hands clasped behind his back. His gaze swept over his brethren hiding in the shadows.
"I'm afraid I have some unfortunate news, everyone."
"Though I did everything in my power, the amount of the Blood of Life I was able to secure is limited. I'm afraid it won't be enough to satisfy everyone's needs."
"How can that be...?"
"What are we going to do?"
Whispers of disappointment and anxiety spread through the shadows.
Just as the mood was growing despondent, Casimir changed his tune, his voice now laced with temptation.
"But I know a way to secure a stable and plentiful supply of the Blood of Life for you all."
In an instant, the eyes of every young Blood Race member lit up, their gazes locking onto him in unison.
Casimir watched their reactions with satisfaction, then smiled as he revealed his true purpose:
"But before we get to that, would any of you be interested in learning about our glorious Great Slime Sect?"
"The Great... Slime Sect?"
The Blood Race members exchanged glances, their faces etched with confusion.
...
「Night.」
In the Eternal Night Territory, there was no true distinction between day and night. No matter how much time passed, the sky remained a perpetually dim expanse, suffused with a faint glow.
However, most creatures living there still followed ancient biological instincts, feeling an overwhelming drowsiness when this specific time of "night" arrived.
On the inner wall of the greystone rampart, a cloaked Mercenary Guard couldn't help but yawn. He pulled an hourglass from his tunic and held it up to his eyes.
"It's the middle of the night already..."
He rubbed his bleary eyes and muttered, "Those Slimes probably aren't coming back, right? We've got a truce, after all."
"Who knows?" replied another, more vigilant mercenary beside him, his eyes still scanning the darkness beyond the walls.
"Those monsters are cunning. Who knows if they'll suddenly tear up the agreement and launch a sneak attack? Better to be careful."
"Alright, you get some sleep. We'll take turns. I'll wake you when your shift starts."
"You'd better keep a sharp eye out, then," the first mercenary said. He clutched his two-handed warhammer, leaned against a merlon, and squatted down to take a quick nap.
However, before he could even close his eyes, a flicker of movement in his peripheral vision—a blurry shadow—flashed past him.
It came and went in an instant, like an illusion.
He jolted, his drowsiness instantly vanishing. He quickly looked up and nervously nudged his companion.
"Hey, Yulier, did you see something go past just now?"
The mercenary named Yulier stared in the direction he was pointing for a long moment before shooting him an annoyed glance.
"I think you're just tired and seeing things. It's pitch-black out there, what could you have possibly seen? Get some sleep."
"Y-Yeah? You think so?"
The mercenary stared doubtfully for a moment longer, but he couldn't fight off the wave of drowsiness. Mumbling that his eyes must have been playing tricks on him, he hugged his warhammer, leaned back against the base of the wall, and drifted into a deep sleep.
Meanwhile, behind the inner wall of the greystone rampart, in an area littered with ruins and dilapidated buildings, several blurry figures merged with the darkness flickered past and vanished.
They moved swiftly, disappearing into the deep shadows of a collapsed house.
A short while later, the sound of hushed conversation could be heard from within.
In the shadows, Nili leaned against a broken wall with her arms crossed, a skeptical look on her face. "So, are vampires really going to meet us in a place like this?" she asked.
The intruders were Stone Assassins from Gor, and perched on Nili's shoulder was a Slime.
Chen Yu gave a little hop. "We just need to wait here patiently."
Nearly all of the Stone Assassins who came on this infiltration mission had mastered Shadow Travel.
This meant that if they encountered any danger they couldn't handle, they could melt into the shadows and instantly retreat from the battlefield, which guaranteed a relative degree of safety.
However, when these Stone Assassins, accustomed to fighting the Blood Race to the death, first heard that this mission required them to cooperate with vampires, they had thought Chen Yu was joking.
'Cooperate with our ancestral enemy?'
'It sounded like something out of a fairy tale.'
Still, if a coup, coordinated from the inside and out, could truly change the course of history and end the Blood Race's control over the Dark Land...
...then it wouldn't be a bad outcome for the Stone Race.
In fact, if it weren't for the oppression of the Blood Race, they wouldn't even care about matters beyond Gor.
They just still doubted whether the Blood Race would actually keep their promise.