The First Vampire

The flower boat slowly moved towards the shore, Marquis Garcia’s gaze deepened, he had already spotted the figure of the cavalry on the shore.

Despite Marquis Garcia’s face maintaining its usual calmness, Colin, who was standing next to him, could see from the tightly clenched fists that Garcia was far from composed.

To alleviate the awkward tension, Colin proceeded to narrate the changes North Territory had faced in the past few months.

Marquis Garcia listened in silence, showing no reaction.

Only when Colin finished his recount, Garcia simply complimented,

“You did very well!”

On hearing this, Colin involuntarily puffed his chest out like a student who had just been praised by his teacher, his heart filled with happiness.

However, his joy was short-lived. Marquis Garcia’s next remark made him feel as if he had just been thrown from the clouds to the ground,

“The child that Her Majesty the Queen carries is yours, isn’t it?”

Colin immediately tensed, just as someone would if caught cheating by their father-in-law.

Uncertain of whether to lie or tell the truth, Queen Isa before he could make a decision, said softly, “Your lordship, the child I carry belongs to the house of Miller.”

Marquis Garcia understood the Queen’s meaning — this child would not be cited as Colin’s legitimate heir and she would not jeopardize Vera’s status.

So, Marquis Garcia turned his attention back towards the shore without saying another word.

Only then did Colin breathe a sigh of relief.

However, he soon realized that in this world, the existence of lovers from noble backgrounds is common and most of them even have illegitimate children.

Of course, the condition is that she will not threaten the status of the main wife.

Otherwise, Marquis Garcia would not let off Queen Isa easily.

Colin turned his head and secretly gave Queen Isa a thumbs up.

Queen Isa responded with an enchanting smile.

Seeing Marquis Garcia’s complete disinterest in conversation and his air of indifference and isolation, Colin chose not to disturb him and moved to stand by Queen Isa, whispering,

“Have you decided on the nominee for the lord of Alfalfa City?”

“Yes.” Queen Isa nodded, and knowing that Colin was reminded of what Count Evan said before he left, she explained, “It’s unlikely he is a remnant of the St. Sean family.”

“Oh? Are you sure?”

Queen Isa nodded again and then revealed a name Colin found familiar: “Ron Lute”.

“A member of the Lute Clan?” Colin remembered that the previous half-elf queen was also from the Lute clan and, Duke Lute was the commander of the Silver Moon Guards.

However, this man, encouraged by Cis Savoy, initiated a coup, which was, of course, ruthlessly defeated in the end.

The Lute Clan was stripped of their nobility and their territories by Queen Isa, evicting them from Silver Moon City.

“Yes,” Queen Isa explained, “This Ron is the nephew of Duke Lute, a third-order knight with some talent, and he has amassed a group of Lute clan members by his side.

That’s why I gave him this opportunity, promising that as long as he could secure his position as the lord of Alfalfa City, I would bestow upon the Lute Clan this land and grant them their respective noble titles.”

Colin nodded, approving Queen Isa’s decision.

Firstly, since this Ron Lute has a known background, he won’t be of the St. Sean’s remnants.

Besides, as members of the once top half-elf clan, Ron’s capabilities, networking, and reputation are all insured, which is much better than choosing a fugitive as the city’s lord.

“Make sure he keeps an eye on any suspicious persons.”

“I know.”

After some brief instructions, Colin said nothing more.

At the moment, he didn’t have time to play hide-and-seek with the possible remnant of the St. Sean family at Alfalfa City, he even lacked the time to manage the city’s ownership.

The pressing matter was to rush back to North Territory as soon as possible, take Vera to Dragon City and meet Emperor Reinhardt to finally decide on the succession of the Northern Duke.

Then, he would be free to solve these miscellaneous issues.

Moreover, he never really cared about this remnant of the St. Sean family, after all, with even Mr. Ji dead, what kind of ripple could the St. Sean family cause?

Furthermore, Colin also suspected whether this remnant of the St. Sean family even exists, or was it merely a smoke bomb released intentionally by Count Evan.

Lost in his thoughts, the flower boat had already docked.

Before Marquis Garcia could disembark, he saw that the Dark Cavalry on the shore had already knelt in a massive group.

Knight Logh cleared his throat and shouted aloud:

“Dark Cavalry, welcome the return of the Marquis!”

“Dark Cavalry, welcome the return of the Marquis!”

The voices of nearly ten thousand Dark Cavalry warriors echoed throughout the Angry River, and a solemn killing atmosphere gradually began to take shape.

Colin silently observed the scene before him, his gaze deep.

He didn’t doubt for a second that if Marquis Garcia gave the order, the Dark Cavalry would immediately cross the river to avenge him.

They wouldn’t even consider whether the North Territory could endure another war, or whether this ten thousand Dark Cavalry alone could sweep over the East Territory.

One man directs, the whole army follows!

This was the prestige Marquis Garcia held among the Dark Cavalry.

Even though Colin had led the army to victory several times, even though Knight Logh had pledged allegiance to Colin with the Dark Cavalry under the command of Marquis Garcia, they still couldn’t erase the mark that Marquis Garcia had firmly inscribed in the soul of this army.

At this point, Colin couldn’t help worrying whether the Dark Cavalry would leave him behind.

Marquis Garcia’s deep gaze slowly swept over the Dark Cavalry warriors on the riverbank. Every Dark Cavalry warrior couldn’t help but puff up their chests, accepting the inspection from the man they believed in their hearts.

Not sure if it was because they saw Marquis Garcia’s white hair and the crutch in his hand, the Dark Cavalry warriors’ breathing gradually became heavy, their eyes flickering as if there was a fire raging.

The north wind whimpered, and the Angry River, under the glow of the sunset, seemed to be gushing with blood.

But just when this momentum reached its peak, Marquis Garcia suddenly spoke:

“I am not qualified to lead you.”

Knight Logh wanted to speak, but was pushed back by Marquis Garcia’s icy stare.

“It was I who trusted the wrong person, leading to our disastrous defeat in Shadow Gorge,

It was I who harbored regrets, unable to fulfill my promise to live and die with the Dark Cavalry,

And it was I who couldn’t see through our enemy’s conspiracy, plunging the North Territory into chaos.”

“I dare not seek your forgiveness, and I have no face to lead you anymore.”

Marquis Garcia pointed at Colin and declared loudly, “You need a new commander!”

In his heart, waves surged as Colin turned his head to look at Marquis Garcia’s profound gaze.

Within that gaze, there was guilt, relief, and a longing hope.

Colin understood that this was Marquis Garcia’s formal handover of the Dark Cavalry to him.

Although this was a scene he had often dreamt of, when faced with reality, Colin was moved, and yet also shaken by the immense responsibility that came with the role.

A faint smile appeared on Marquis Garcia’s face, his tone filled with encouragement, “From now on, the Dark Cavalry will become history. Viscount Angler, give this army of yours a new name.”

Colin’s mind whirled rapidly, knowing that this was a rare opportunity. If he missed it, he didn’t know when he would be able to truly win over the North Territory’s strongest army.

“Let’s call it the Blood Knight Army.” Colin declared aloud, “Originated from the Dark Cavalry, reborn through a baptism of blood; it shall also grow amidst the blood of our enemies!”

Marquis Garcia quietly repeated the name “Blood Knight Army” several times, a satisfied smile on his face. He then slowly stepped back, highlighting Colin’s position.

Without any hesitation, Colin declared: “Blood Knight Army, at attention!”

Thump!

Knight Logh’s left hand hit his chest armor hard, and his gaze also shifted from Marquis Garcia to Colin.

Following that, a series of knocks rang through the skies, converging into a unified voice.

The former Dark Cavalry soldiers finally truly accepted their change of identity.

Feeling an emotional wave within his heart, Colin ordered: “Escort Marquis Garcia back to the North Territory!”

“Blood Knight Army, roger that!”

Colin stood proudly at the bow of the ship, accepting the cheers from the Blood Knight Army and feeling a surge of heroic exhilaration.

Behind him, Marquis Garcia was staring at Colin’s upright figure. For a fleeting moment, it seemed as if he was glimpsing himself from twenty years ago.

One in front and one behind, one in high spirits, the other in sorrow.

It seemed like a symbol of the end of an old era and the beginning of a new era.