Chapter 100: A Fight It Is Then
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Finding Lily's whereabouts was not as difficult as imagined. Perhaps you could say that the kidnappers did not count on a highborn vampire to go all out to save a werehusky. They stowed her in an abandoned warehouse somewhere in the Northern Suburbs but, they could not contain the aura of a werehus...an idiot.
Perhaps, it was beyond Casar Ebben's ability to even do that. Vivian did mention that werewolves were rarely competent in high-level magic and based on their nature, the study of force field enchantments were far in the back of their heads. The Dark Fog used by the Ebbens were considered the pinnacle of werewolf sorcery. They knew how to use it to hide themselves in darkness but, they had little inkling on how to do same on others.
However, another problem lay before Hao Ren: the Northern Suburbs was a considerable distance away. He would need to cross a good part of the city and then the suburban area to reach there. This was not helped by both areas being on the opposite end of each other! Vivian could technically fly there without much of a fuss but, for Hao Ren to get there via normal means would mean that he could be arriving too late. Not to mention that Lily, the idiot may have already started a fight herself by then.
"I can fly with you in tow," Vivian said as she stretched her arms to prepare for flight with Hao Ren hanging on to her. "I can hide our trace using magic. Normal people won't be able to sense us. But, the high-speed flying part... may be a bit taxing on you."
Hao Ren sighed. "What other options do we have? If Lily starts fighting, it'll be too late to even do anything."
Vivian hunched as a pair of wings spread out from her back. She held her hand out to Hao Ren. "Let's get moving then."
"Wait a sec, I'll leave Y'zaks a note." Hao Ren held his hand up and ran back into the house to scribble a note for the great demon, explaining the situation with Lily. It was then that he realised that he left out a lot of details: Like Lily only having a mobile phone to keep in touch with, him not having any means to locate his tenant immediately or do having any proper means of transportation... As you can see, a myriad of issues came forth at the very last moment but, there was no time to fret over them now. Hao Ren resolved to meet Raven 12345 on the matter once things were settled.
After leaving his note, Hao Ren and Vivian started making their way to the Northen Suburbs hastily.
Flying up in the sky at high speeds, with cold winds buffeting him, the flight was a miserable one for Hao Ren. Even though he was in the embrace of a beautiful vampire, other things were a lot less desirable (warm embraces are not a specialty of the vampires). He just felt weird being carried by a girl and said, "I need to get some new abilities from Raven 12345 soon. At least, the ability to fly... Makes things easier..."
Most people would have simply passed out, being dragged through the air at high altitudes and speed but, Hao Ren with his enhanced vitality could still hold on. Nonetheless, as the winds and condensed moisture hit him in the face, Hao Ren could not help but yelp. And the aftertaste of that scream was rather unpleasant.
Vivian could tell that Hao Ren was slightly embarrassed by his tone. She smiled gently and said, "It's fine carrying you around. I haven't had many chances to do this, being alone all these years. Having someone to carry about while flying is a refreshing experience."
Hao Ren had to response to that. He found the way Vivian put it was a little bit odd but, he left it at that.
At the speed Vivian was moving, it did not take long for them to cross the entire city and come towards a part of a town that looked similar to the Southern Suburbs.
It was the Northern Suburbs, a mainly industrial zone of the city. It used to be bustling with factories, warehouses and logistical companies. As the industry would have generated much pollution, it was built far away from the residential areas. With recent redevelopment of a few areas near the city, most of the original tenants had moved on to greener pastures and the Northern Suburbs industrial area fell into a decline. Only a few factories remained, either too polluting to be near the city area or too costly to move. Most of the buildings were now abandoned. Hao Ren heard that the city hall had plans to redevelop the area but that would take a few years at least, for it to even take off.
The Northern Suburbs Industrial Zone was now a mostly deserted shell of its former self.
Hao Ren and Vivian landed on the roof of a metal factory and the vampire removed the rather taxing invisibility spell. She pointed towards a big building. "That way, my bat is currently hanging on the roof top. Doggie's aura is coming from that area... Dark Fog is surrounding the immediate area and my bat can't get in. Those Ebbens... pfft, still a nuisance like last time."
Hao Ren took a peek and commented, "Things still seem to be quiet."
"You got a plan?" Vivian looked at Hao Ren. "Wanna rush in headfirst or what?"
Hao Ren looked rather troubled. He did think about facing the kidnappers head on but things did not seem so easy. The two werewolves strictly speaking, did not actually kidnap Lil but, Hao Ren had no idea what concerns they had, which prevented them from telling Lily that they were looking for their kin. At least from how they acted, they had no intentions of harming her.
However, Hao Ren was also under no illusion that he could talk his way out of things. Lily was an oddball amongst werewolves and if the stories about them were true, most werewolves would be hostile. To show his face would mean inviting a fight.
He recalled the experience he had, fighting the giant wolves in The Plane of Dreams and tried to act out what novels said about getting pumped before going into a fight. He pointed towards the fog and asked, "Do you know the rough location Lily's at?"
"I do have a rough idea." Vivian pointed at the west side of the warehouse. "There's a row of windows covered by the fog. Looks like an office of sorts. Lily's in one of them."
"Can we try to lure the werewolves away and then rush in to grab Lily?" Hao Ren said hesitantly. "If we need to fight after that, at least, we don't have to worry about a hostage."
Vivian nodded and whispered an incantation. A swirl of red mist appeared out of nowhere and quickly formed into a humanoid shape resembling Vivian.
The Blood Mist did not totally hide its presence and the moment it approached the area, the Dark Fog stirred. The werewolves were clearly alerted to its presence.
"Let's go!" Vivian pulled Hao Ren's arm as they leapt off the roof and ran straight towards the windows of the warehouse.
The area was filled to the brim with leftover construction materials and was perfect at hiding what was going on there. Vivian even neglected to hide her wings and glided through the air. She arrived at the corner of the warehouse in the blink of an eye. Hao Ren could only rely on his legs but, he thankfully managed to keep up.
As they positioned themselves by the western wall of the warehouse, they could hear bestial roars nearby. It was clear that Vivian's Blood Mist Avatar had made contact with the werewolves.
"My Blood Mist can corrode glass and porcelain into nothing. An evil grin appeared across her face. "There was a time when werewolves were innumerable. Hopefully, the Ebbens sent someone with brains."
Hao Ren looked up towards the row of windows. He guessed from the height that the building was at least two-stories high and Lily was possibly being held in one of the offices on the second floor. As Vivian mentioned, black fog swirled menacingly outside the windows.
He reached into his pocket and a voice suddenly appeared in his head. "I'm warning you. Don't you dare use me as a projectile..."
"Why would I even?" Hao Ren was flustered at the rather sensitive MDT. "I'm trying to get my phone to give Lily a call. To see if she could fight her—"
Before Hao Ren could finish his sentence, a violent shout rang out nearby. "F*ckers! I knew it was you, blood suckers!"