Deep beneath the military stronghold, a group of vampires barely survived the madness of Starlight. They covered their mouths, chill echoing throughout their bodies.

For some reason, an instinctual fear was triggered. None of the vampires knew why, but it must have originated from the one who brought that light.

"What do we do?" One of them inquired as the others stayed silent, not daring to utter a single response. Most closed their eyelids, hoping that whatever was above them would continue.

At this moment, they were no different than some ordinary humans who lived in fear of the horrors that consumed the New World.

It was an ironic sight since the vampires have always deemed themselves superior to the cattle, who were called humans.

But the New World has always been strange. Regardless of the superiority and relative power between the species, the horrors stood above, indifferent.

"Be quiet and don't attract any more attention if you want to survive!"

"The Aetheric Weapon has failed to protect us. A True Blood needs to be deployed; otherwise, the monster army would reach the northernmost city."

Amongst them was a vampire noble who managed to survive the madness of the Starlight. He was fortunate to have been administering their supplies deep underground during the attack.

Otherwise, he would have bled from his orifices and died like his colleagues. It was a horrifying death, he dared not imagine.

Hearing his words, most of them nodded and kept their breathing steady. Better to be silent than provoke whatever was standing above them.

Fortunately for them, the executioner who had murdered thousands of their vampire comrades in mere moments wasn't interested in hunting the last of the survivors.

Damien merely glanced in their direction for a moment and shook his head. "Let us continue and leave those people behind."

He wasn't out for blood. The only thing he needed to do was destroy the strongholds that defended the northernmost borders of the Clan.

The dividing line of the New World needed to be expanded. It was time for the southern frontiers to head further south. After all, more buffers were better than none.

"I agree, Lord Oberon." Proton looked at the desolate stronghold, maintaining its calm. "The less time we spend in this empty stronghold."

"The better our chances would be in defeating the third military installation of the northern defenses." The monster was akin to a strategist.

Damien and the Prothonean could bounce ideas with one another, reaching an effective conclusion that could never have emerged without reflecting on strategies.

Without any hesitation or delay, the monster army continued its march. The Behemoth was already resummoned by Damien, moving alongside its fellow monsters.

Their destruction didn't matter as long as their master was alive. They would be resurrected with ease. In simpler terms, they were immortal.

But it wasn't without its price, although the monsters didn't know of the cost, Damien understood better than anyone that he had limits.

His Command Seals, although over two hundred, were only enough for exchanges that might last four hours. He wouldn't be able to fight for over a day.

It was an inherent that only reveals itself when he was fighting someone stronger or equal to his strongest version, which was Damien and his monster army fighting alongside one another.

As the rumbling steps of the monsters became further, the survivors of the second stronghold sighed in relief. Their tense shoulders relaxed as their hearts calmed down.

What they had gone through was no different than having a guillotine swinging above their necks. The executioner was merely deciding whether or not it should kill them.

Luckily for them, the executioner didn't want to waste time on hunting down the remnants of an already defeated stronghold.

The survivors could be counted by hand. Even if they managed to re-establish a military installation, their numbers were too low to make it operational.

It was better to leave and head towards another direction that wasn't in the path of the marching monster army.

"The disciple of the Seventh Paragon..." The vampire noble muttered under his breath, earning the confused and curious glances of the surrounding vampires.

"It was none other than him who destroyed the first stronghold and massacred the second one."

"As expected... Monsters really breed monsters." He continued while the vampires gasped, realizing the identity of the one who attacked them.

Most believed it to be an Aberrant, but they didn't expect that it would be a Jaeger. Well, they weren't wrong about the attacker being an Aberrant.

After all, Damien was an Aberrant who stood alongside humanity. Even though he was considered the weakest, he was still part of the beings gifted for the New World.

In any case, the vampire survivors left the second stronghold, heading in another direction to avoid entangling their lives with the monster army's path.

Meanwhile...

In the third northern military installation, alarms blared as news regarding the second stronghold's lost contact spread. One after another, Aetheric Weapons were being transported to the installation.

"Where are the True Bloods? We need their reinforcements against these incursions!" The commander of the installation roared, a high-ranking vampire noble.

"Identity has been confirmed, Sir!" Another vampire stepped up and reported. "The leader of the monster incursion is the Aberrant Jaeger, Damien."

"Direct disciple of the White Devil."

Hearing the words that escaped his mouth, the commander and officers of the installation were dumbfounded. They already had their suspicions.

But the confirmation was probably the worst-case scenario.

"Damn it!" The commander roared, barely containing his anger. A nerve nearly popped from his forehead as the officers rushed to calm him down.

After he calmed down, he took a deep breath and inquired. "How many Aetheric Weapons have been deployed?"

"A dozen of them have already been deployed, Sir. All of them are currently charging for the first strike." An officer reported while another followed.

"Unfortunately, the True Bloods will not be able to reinforce our installation. The nearest is half an hour away." When the following officer added.

The commander almost exploded, once again feeling distraught. Just as when they were facing the most devastating human incursion, the Clan was barely reacting.

"It looks like we will be relying on ourselves against these monsters." He furrowed his eyebrows, pondering the upcoming confrontation.

"Any more information about how the second stronghold fell? Was it wiped off the map? We haven't heard news from them since they made contact."

The commander questioned, since the most troublesome problem they faced wasn't firepower, but the lack of information. According to the intelligence, the Aetheric Weapon attack succeeded.

But afterward, there was nothing more but silence.

"No contact has been made, Sir-" As the officer answered, a communication specialist entered and reported. "Intelligence from the second stronghold, Commander!"

The commander and officer raised their eyebrows, immediately turning their attention towards the specialist. Seeing their intense gazes, the specialist gulped and continued.

"The second stronghold is gone, Sir. It has been defeated by the monster army. Most of our infrastructure was left intact, but every vampire inside has lost their lives."

"Those deep underground managed to survive, and were met with desolation alongside corpses. According to the survivors, the culprit was a radiant light."

"It brought madness to those who gazed upon it. Blood gushed from their orifices, and they all died with terror-struck faces. It appears to be a mental attack of some sort."

The communication specialist ended their report, and silence permeated throughout the room. Most expected the reasons to be explosions, death, and flames.

But to think that it was an instantaneous path to madness. The thought alone made ears deafened. They wondered how they could resist the light of madness.

No one could fight without exposing themselves to the monster army. If they did reveal themselves, what if that light would shine upon them?

Wouldn't the defense fall immediately like the second stronghold?

"As long as we don't look, right? Couldn't we use constructs against them?" An officer suggested, earning his colleagues' recognition.

The commander thought about it for a moment before nodding in agreement. It was possible indeed since constructs should fall into madness, for they have no mind to corrupt.

With this in mind, the third stronghold began preparing itself for the incoming monsters. Unbeknownst to them, it wasn't only Starlight they needed to worry about.

After all, there were many more monsters whose abilities bordered on horror. The abilities of these monsters, although contained, would prove to be far more complicated than Starlight's.

On the other hand, atop the head of Eclipse. Damien stood as the third military installation got nearer. After destroying this stronghold, what comes after it would be the final one.

If the True Bloods weren't reinforcing this military installation, they would surely be protecting the fourth and last one. Beyond that stronghold would be their city, which Damien didn't plan to target.

After all, he would have already gotten what he needed. There was no need to be greedy and take more than required.

"Let's see what this stronghold's got."

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