A squad of Secrets-Hunters clad in black cleric's robes swiftly passed by the bookstore, silent and solemn, nearly merging with the night.
Hunters? Will adjusted his glasses, slightly surprised.
Sandbank Street was in the South District, normally under the White Cup Cult's jurisdiction. Moreover, Hunters usually operated alone or in small teams; a group of this size... must be a Purge Unit from the Burial Court.
"Sigh... This year has been particularly unsettled."
There was the evil spawn attack on the museum during the Budding Moon, the blood rain enveloping all of Norlington during the Hidden Moon, and these bizarre rumors about the sewers the past few days... While such incidents weren't unheard of in previous years, this year seemed exceptionally full of them.
Old Will vividly remembered the nearly deafening gunfire near the museum at the end of the Hidden Moon, and the thick, pungent stench of blood that lingered for days without dissipating.
It seems Vivian won't be coming today. That child holds a clerical position within the Secrets-Hunter Cult; she tends to get busy when there's a mission.
Though the Hunters' work is arduous and dangerous, she's a clerical staff permanently stationed at headquarters. Aside from calamities on the level of the Great Plague, there's basically no need to worry about her safety.
That's good. I wonder if my little grandson can secure a decent clerical job within the Four Major Orthodox Cults after graduation. But that's years away; I might not live to see it...
Thinking of the future, Old Will let out a sigh, half melancholy and half expectant. He then leaned on his waist, trembling as he stood to pull down the door curtain.
The "Open" sign was also flipped to the "Closed" side.
He wouldn't have imagined that Vivian was actually among that squad of Secrets-Hunters that just passed his bookstore door…
…
"Sigh, another night shift."
Vivian lightly bit her lip to prevent her tired and unwilling-to-stay-up-late soul from accidentally floating out of her mouth.
At times like this, she always envied the clerical staff of the General Affairs Division. Though their workload wasn't small either, they at least worked under the protection of the [Unblemished Land] and enjoyed a standard eight-hour workday.
While the Burial Court also had eight-hour shifts, the duty hours could be from midnight to 8 AM the next day... If assigned a mission to hunt evil spawn, it might even require tracking and ambushing for months without sleep.
Vivian hadn't been in the Burial Court for long and hadn't encountered the latter situation yet.
But Sister Haida had personally experienced it many times, and not only that, she seemed to relish it...
"The Error-Purgers are waiting for us. Be patient, Vivian."
Seeing Vivian seemed somewhat distracted, Haida gave her a simple reminder.
This mission differed from the previous small-team operation mode. The General Affairs Division had issued a Purge Directive and decided to appoint Haida as the mission's Executive Supervisor, which was why she was leading so many Secrets-Hunters.
Since it was "Executive Supervisor," this temporary rank was typically only held by senior Hunters at the supervisor level. But within the Burial Court, there were no objections to Haida leading... because her qualifications were unquestionable.
Power was the only certification standard among Hunters. No Secrets-Hunter would doubt a Hunter who had taken a High Priest's head.
"I know."
Vivian muttered softly, then fell silent again, following behind Haida.
Travelling swiftly at midnight, the squad of heavily armed Secrets-Hunters soon arrived at the drainage system's entrance. It had been further widened by the White Cup Cult using engineering equipment, and the outer guardrail had been expanded.
"Good evening, Sister Haida." The leading Error-Purger greeted Haida.
He wore a trim white short-sleeve shirt and a deep red headband, his skin a healthy wheat color. He didn't look like a professor or student but more like a professional sailor.
Haida gave a slight nod, politely returning the greeting.
"Greetings. Are you the person in charge for this operation?"
"Yes, you can call me Utus. I'm a professor in the Marine Studies Department, a part-time naturalist and folklorist, and the first mate of the 'Leviathan.'"
Why would a Marine Studies professor be in charge of this kind of incident... Haida narrowed her eyes, feeling slightly surprised.
Seeing Haida's subtly changing and quickly returning expression, Utus laughed quite heartily.
"Indeed, it should have been Professor Terence continuing to handle this. But his back injury flared up recently; he needs a few weeks of recuperation. No choice; I, the dolphin keeper, had to step in."
"Assistant Child is also here; you're more familiar with him. Discuss any pending operational matters with him."
Hearing this, Child at the front of the line waved to Haida, indicating he was indeed present.
"Rest assured, Sister Haida. My decades sailing the abyssal seas of Gormouth weren't wasted. Though I can't compare to Headmaster Grantham, I certainly won't be worse than Professor Terence."
After saying this, Utus showed Haida the Pure White Cup holy symbol tattoo on his arm and the mission assignment letter.
After verifying and confirming it was correct, Haida nodded.
"Alright, let's prepare to move out."
"Please wait a moment, Sister Haida. Besides the White Cup's Error-Purgers, there's also a rather special guest this time..."
Utus then looked towards the reporter-clad Rosalia beside him, and Haida also turned her gaze to her.
An accompanying reporter?... No.
Black hair, red eyes, the "spirit" diffusing from her carried a clear, slightly cool sensation and was constantly changing...
"Moon's Favored?" Haida guessed based on these characteristics.
"Correct. A pleasure to meet you, Sister Haida. I am Rosalia Nolaria."
Rosalia bowed gracefully and naturally.
Thanks to good family upbringing, there were no decorum flaws. But the slightly disordered rhythm in her chest indicated she was far from as calm as she appeared.
These Hunters clad in black exuded scents of steel, gunpowder, and silver, carrying a strong oppressive force. This somewhat awakened the fear hidden deep within her bloodline.
If vampires hadn't pledged themselves to the Molting Moon's embrace, these Hunters' quarry might have been herself.
I heard Mr. Child say Haida could pull out a lesser evil spawn's head with her bare hands. I wonder if that's true...
"Welcome aboard, Rosalia."
Haida didn't reject the Moon's Favored joining this purge. After all, the city drainage system was vast; an extra pair of hands was always good.
Moreover, it offered a glimpse into the White Cup Cult's attitude. Since they agreed to let Rosalia participate, it meant the Moon's Favored's suspicion had been largely cleared.
Once all preparations were complete, Haida didn't linger further. Leading the Error-Purgers and the Purge Unit, she stepped once more into the gloomy and deep sewers.
—
"Split into groups of six for reconnaissance. Group leaders report the code phrase every 300 seconds for status confirmation."
"Yes!"
After Haida issued the order, the Purge Unit behind her quickly and orderly dispersed into squad formations, spreading out in various directions.
Though splitting up is a taboo in horror movies... the current situation indeed only required spreading out personnel to ensure search and capture efficiency. Moreover, operating in squads meant they could support each other if danger arose.
Furthermore, the drainage system was narrow to begin with, unsuitable for the Purge Unit to advance as a massed group.
"Alright, we'll proceed along the planned route."
After issuing commands, Haida led Vivian and several Error-Purgers to begin their penetration.
Though she didn't actively seek the lead role, both Utus and Rosalia very tacitly orbited around her.
White Cup members qualified to be Error-Purgers more or less mastered some second-category secret arts usable for combat; Utus was no exception. But fundamentally, he was an educator after all... it was hard to compare to the Hunters' professionalism in tracking evil spawn.
One more question... Would Doctor Fran come for this mission?
Haida looked around but didn't see the figure of someone in a white coat.
Though Fran hadn't arrived yet, one couldn't assert she would be absent. After all, there was the previous precedent... With that bizarre "Mist Within the Door," it wouldn't be surprising for her to appear at any time, in any place.
"Vivian, bring out the search 'hound'."
"Okay."
Vivian took an arm wrapped in layers of cloth from her agent-style handbag, unwrapped it, and threw it on the ground.
...That's right. It was Byers's arm.
The flesh tissue processed via [Hound Mimicry] could not only find its own master but also perform some "hound" original work, seeking things with a composition similar to its own. Of course, efficiency and accuracy would be slightly lower.
Looking at this constantly twitching severed hand, Rosalia pursed her lips, her expression subtly complex.
Byers's corpse seemed to be missing an arm too... and it was also the left one, just like this.
Though vampires, as undead, possessed supernatural regenerative abilities, the bones of Byers's newly grown arm weren't made of [S-813. Pseudomorph Steel], making it easy to distinguish.
And for some reason, the coroner handling Byers's autopsy had completely cut off the newly grown limb, restoring his one-armed state.
"Reinforce the already recorded scent signature."
Vivian patted Byers's severed arm on the ground, then waved a blood-stained silk handkerchief in front of it. The arm then wriggled quite anthropomorphically, like a canine wagging its tail.
If it had a vocal organ, it would probably be barking by now.
Were the Secrets-Hunters' hounds always in this form... Rosalia's eye twitched slightly. Utus was also somewhat surprised, but as a seaman with wide experience, he didn't show any emotion.
As for Child, having seen it once before, he remained composed, as if accustomed to it.
"Go."
Once the arm had completed reinforcing the scent impression, it diligently clawed with its fingers and began rapidly crawling.
Haida followed closely, observing the surroundings along the way.
She wore secret-art-powered comms equipment on her earlobes, receiving code phrases from each squad every 300 seconds to confirm member survival.
As "Executive Supervisor," besides being responsible for decapitating dangerous targets, Haida also had to coordinate in real-time the Purge Unit's actions. It could be called multitasking.
"Squad One area clear. Code phrase: Elderberry."
"Squad Two area clear. Code phrase: Joseph's Coat."
"Squad Three area clear. Code phrase: Elderberry."
"Squad Four area clear. Code phrase: Joseph's Coat."
...
The Burial Court's squad code phrases were set before the mission departed, typically using the name of a flower or plant. Sometimes a single code phrase was used uniformly; today they were differentiated based on squad number odd/even.
Additionally, she had made some special arrangements in sequence to prevent certain special circumstances.
"First round confirmation complete. No abnormalities. Proceed deeper."
Since the Purge Unit had just begun spreading out, the likelihood of encountering evil spawn was indeed not high. But Haida maintained the Burial Attendants' usual rigor when receiving code phrases, without the slightest slackness.
Because the cost of negligence might be a comrade's life.
"So well-trained... as expected of the Burial Court's Purge Unit. I wish my ship's lads were this efficient."
Utus couldn't help but utter an admiring remark.
He had previously heard Professor Terence mention some rumors about Sister Haida, which had sparked some interest in him to see the true face behind her fearsome, notorious reputation.
From what he'd seen so far, she indeed possessed a certain command ability. As for whether her personal combat prowess was as ferocious as Terence described... that was still under observation.
Byers's severed arm sniffed left and right, leading the group towards the core area of the city's drainage system.
It didn't even have a nose; did making a "sniffing" motion really have meaning...
Though Rosalia was trying very hard to ignore this arm that believed itself to be a hound, her attention was still irresistibly drawn to it.
Tap.
The arm suddenly stopped moving forward, leaning its body repeatedly swaying before a wall, adopting a canine confrontational posture.
If it had a mouth, it would surely be barking fiercely now.
"In the wall, huh... The White Cup engineering team is up top; I'll call them down."
Utus looked at the deep grey, thick concrete wall, feeling somewhat at a loss.
This wall had withstood years of dampness erosion in the sewers; prying it open with conventional tools might be difficult.
"No need."
Haida assessed the wall's dimensions and thickness, then drew the power sword "Nirvana." Its tip lightly tapped and pierced the wall with ease.
Screech-
The concrete and the rebar embedded within were like soft rubber; a diamond-shaped opening was cut out in an instant.
The power sword's blade emitted fine metallic humming, carrying a hint of inexplicable resentment. This was quite understandable. As a noble power sword, having to do the work of an engineer's shovel would naturally cause some emotion...
"Shh... Be patient."
Haida lightly tapped the blade, wiping away the dust and iron filings it had picked up during cutting. Under her soothing, the metallic humming gradually subsided.
Utus narrowed his eyes slightly.
Headmaster Grantham had previously sent him some basic information on Sister Haida, which did mention she used a sword-type relic. But who would have thought a sword could be used this way…
+++
T/N: Hey readers~! New Translator here! Before I say anything, I'd first like to thank the original author for creating this wonderful story. Without them, I wouldn't have the chance to share this adventure with you. I hope my translation does justice to their work, and that together, we can enjoy this story.
With that said, I'm happy to let you know I'll be uploading daily chapters. And for those who wish to support my work and gain early access, I've set up a Patreon where advanced chapters will be available.
[email protected]/PeakTL