Chapter 24: The Purple-Quality Retainer
[Congratulations, you have completed the milestone—Chivalrous Knight. You prevented a bandit attack on a caravan and destroyed two bandit gangs.]
[Your chivalrous spirit deserves to be commended. Received: Advanced Card Draw x1.]
[Advanced Card Draw: Upon use, guarantees a retainer of "Rare" quality or higher.]
In the game, one star corresponded to Common quality, white.
Two stars corresponded to Uncommon quality, blue.
Three stars corresponded to Rare quality, green.
Four stars corresponded to Extraordinary quality, cyan.
Five stars corresponded to Epic quality, purple.
Six stars corresponded to Legendary quality, golden.
This meant that this lottery ticket would yield at least a three-star retainer!
Lothar glanced back at the bandit stronghold. For some reason, he didn't feel much joy in his heart. Grinding monsters and leveling up, so commonplace in games, felt truly heavy when translated to reality.
Ryan led the caravan slowly into the bandit stronghold. The diligent new subjects gathered all the portable and valuable items, leaving only some rations and seeds for the women and children confined in the "meeting hall."
The spoils were somewhat unexpected. It seemed the bandits had just plundered a small merchant caravan and hadn't yet had time to dispose of the goods. If the loot obtained this time were exchanged for money in a nearby town, it would probably amount to about thirty gold coins of the best quality. This was enough to purchase a manor in the countryside.
Leaving the bandit stronghold, the group headed directly for Veneto. Veneto was currently within the domain of a major Mediterranean power, the Republic of Venice. They stopped in a town to rest and regroup. Lothar dispatched Hans, along with the former knight's personal manservant, to handle the spoils and exchange them for needed supplies. He himself, with Banu, returned to the inn early.
Lothar prepared to draw a card immediately!
As the multicolored Advanced Card Draw ticket turned into scattering dust, a card shimmering with a deep purple radiance slowly materialized. Lothar held his breath, feeling his heart pound violently. As the chief planner for the game, he knew all too well how low the probability was of drawing five-star and six-star retainers. He had already braced himself for just a three-star; who would have thought his luck would have a small burst?
The card had a distinguished purple border, and a purple gemstone was embedded in the top center. As an Epic-quality retainer, it was qualified to stand alongside the strongest Legendary retainers. Even among some "whale" players, five-star retainers were not a common sight in their lineups.
In the center of the card was the image of a sweet-smiling, girl-next-door type. She had white, straight-cut bangs, wore sheer long sleeves, a black tight-fitting outer garment, and a black short skirt, revealing fair white legs clad in long cotton stockings. Apart from a pair of winding horns growing from the top of her head, she seemed to possess no dangerous aura whatsoever.
[Name: Fringilla Țepes
Rating: Epic (5-Star)
Level: 1
Affection: Indifferent
Strength: 10
Agility: 12
Constitution: 23
Endurance: 12
Spirit: 35
Profile: She is a noble lady from the Blood Court, singing dirges in the dark night beneath a red moon, drop by drop draining her chosen prey of its last bit of blood.
Talents:
Blood Magic Specialization: Fringilla is a blood mage with solid fundamental skills. As long as her spiritual power is sufficient, she can cast most blood magics.
Blood Seduction: Fringilla's voice is filled with the alluring charm of female vampires that tempts one to sin; she can easily capture the hearts of men with weak wills.
Skills:
Bloodthirst: Fringilla can draw upon any blood rich in life force as nourishment to replenish her consumed stamina and spiritual power.
Blood Pool Transformation: (Requires Elite Promotion to unlock)
Tyrant Transformation: (Requires Elite Promotion to unlock)
A purple radiance flashed. A thick, sweet-and-fishy odor permeated the air—somewhat fragrant, yet also somewhat nauseating. Red mist, like grasping claws, spread out, then, a moment later, abruptly converged, coalescing into a black-skirted young woman who appeared to be no more than 1.6 meters tall.
Just like on her portrait. The young woman had long, straight, fair legs, looking much like they were clad in white silk stockings, but they were actually cotton tights. The "absolute territory" between her short skirt and stockings was tantalizing.
An intense desire for possession surged from within Lothar's heart. But immediately following, a cool aura gently brushed past him, restoring his clarity—it was Banu's presence.
The only difference from the portrait was that Fringilla had lost her pair of winding horns.
Fringilla's large eyes blinked. She tilted her head up to look at Lothar, a pitifully endearing expression on her face. "Master, you've finally summoned me. I've been waiting for this day for so long." She took two steps forward, held Lothar's arm, and swayed it gently. "Master, I'm so thirsty. Can you give me a little blood to drink?"
"Alright, there's no need to put on an act with me. As a high-ranking vampire, blood is like dessert to you, not a necessity."
Lothar, as the chief architect of the game naturally knew what lay at the core of this seemingly girl-next-door character. After unlocking her Tier 2 Elite exclusive skill "Tyrant Transformation," Fringilla would transform into a horrifying monster covered in blood-red tentacles, each capable of piercing an enemy's body and drawing blood. All her surface cuteness and beauty were a disguise; in reality, she was an entirely different species from humans.
A layer of mist veiled Fringilla's eyes. She said pitifully, "My Lord, can't you even satisfy such a tiny request from your retainer? Your blood aura is clearly so abundant; you must have just killed many people, haven't you?"
Perhaps due to the "chill" emanating from Banu nearby, Lothar was not in the least bit entranced. He frowned and asked, "Where did the horns on your head go?"
Fringilla let out an "Ah!" and said in surprise, "What horns? My body is no different from that of a normal human female, you know." She blinked and added with a mischievous smile, "Only better."
Banu, who had been sitting on a chair at the other end of the room without uttering a word, finally spoke. Her tone carried unconcealed disgust. "You abominable beasts who have absconded from Hell, the hideous bodies concealed beneath your skins are simply nauseating. I warn you, do not speak to our Lord in that disgusting tone again."
Lothar felt a headache coming on. In the game, Fringilla's faction was the Blood Court. And the Blood Court was a faction created by a group of vampires who had escaped from Hell, their base located in Wallachia. Not only did they have no bond with Banu's Hell faction, but they were also enemies. The difference between them was like that between police and criminals.
Still, it didn't matter much. Obtaining a five-star retainer, and a rare spellcaster at that, was already an unexpected delight. Even with some side effects, he had still profited immensely!
Fringilla glanced at Banu, especially at that demon-faced relief shield, a deep look of apprehension flashing in her eyes. Several of her ancestors had been forcibly dragged back to Hell by Banu. But her expression quickly turned to disdain. "Banu, you've only served our Lord for a little longer than I have. Otherwise, you might not actually be my match right now." She felt that with her abilities, she would surely be more favored by their Lord than a cold, foolish woman like Banu, as long as their Lord upgraded her frequently, even promoting her to Elite. Even with a one-quality difference, Banu couldn't possibly be her opponent.
"Besides," Fringilla added, her attitude one of defiant confidence, "we're all working for our Lord now. Surely you wouldn't dare to attack me, would you?"
Banu looked at Lothar, a rare trace of anger in her cool eyes. She wasn't good at verbal disputes; right now, she clearly wanted Lothar to speak up for her.
Lothar instantly felt his scalp tingle. 'How am I supposed to handle this?'