As the medicine was swallowed, the old man clenched his right hand and tapped the tabletop. He closed his eyes, his expression becoming more terrifying than when he had drunk the blood of the poisonous insects. However, the trend of his body swelling finally stopped; although blood was still seeping from his skin, his bloated form began to shrink back inward.
Clearly, he had endured once again. This meant that both Shade and the old man had survived the second round of this Divine Banquet hosted by the God of Vampirism, while the girls still needed to drink together twice more, and the witch still needed one more.
"Thank you."
Having returned to normal, the old man thanked the girls with a hint of exhaustion. This time, he did not produce that ring as a token of gratitude, but he clearly would not forget those who had helped him.
"The ninth blood-brew: Ether Wine. The origin of this brew is quite interesting; its raw materials are some magical creatures from another deity with whom I once traded. I cast the bottle into a deep-sea vortex, where it concentrated under the pressure of the abyss for ten thousand years, and then I added the blood of some deep-sea behemoths as seasoning. In my view, this wine belongs to the 'rare mouthwash' grade; after all, aside from its peculiar taste, it simply provides mortals with a vast amount of Spirit beyond their imagination."
"I want to try it," the witch said immediately.
"We do too," the girls added, raising their hands.
The tasting of the ninth blood-brew proceeded without incident. Although Shade was tempted, he did not suggest trying it himself. The witch digested that massive amount of Spirit, and the price was that she appeared to have aged ten years.
The twin girls did not drink the brew without a price this time either. After they drank the liquid together, Shade actually saw the hearts of the two girls linked by the phantom image of a black chain.
The immense Spirit within the blood-wine had directly materialized the bond of "twins" found within their family inheritance contract. As the Spirit was digested, the chain connecting their hearts vibrated violently.
The elder sister in the white dress nearly bit through her lip, but she refused to make a sound, while the girl in the black dress let out soft cries of pain. Had it not been for the kind assistance of the witch sitting beside them, guiding them to disperse the stagnant Spirit—which would be fatal to an ordinary person—the girls would likely have struggled to remain sane.
But having endured the abundant Spirit of the Ether Wine and learned how to utilize power that did not belong to them under the witch's guidance, they were drawing closer and closer to officially awakening as witches.
The time had reached the 27th minute since Shade entered the Nightfall Manor, and nine of the ten bottles before the Saint had been opened. It seemed this vampiric deity had timed everything precisely so that Shade could leave just in time.
"The final blood-brew: Soul Wine. I traveled to the end of the land of souls to fetch a bowl of pure water."
He nodded toward Shade.
"Yes, the very place you just left. I infused it with the blood of the Soul-Suckers, a race I have already exterminated, and stored the bottle and the liquid within the soul of a mortal infant I had chosen, letting the wine spend a lifetime with him, witnessing everything the soul experienced. Only after ninety-nine such cycles was this bottle created."
This deity did not mind trouble at all in order to obtain fine wine.
With a *pop*, the cork flew open. Everyone at the table, including Shade, couldn't help but look toward the mouth of the bottle. Even without the deity's introduction, they understood the effect of this wine—
It made the soul stronger.
No mundane soul could resist such a temptation. Even though Shade's soul could be tainted by divinity, he was still attracted by this opportunity.
"Only an absolutely powerful soul can drink it. A river can accommodate the impact of a stream, but an ant hole absolutely cannot," the deity said, looking at the twin girls.
"The medicine in your boxes has no effect on soul damage. So, will you drink this final glass of wine with me?"
The girls had no choice but to agree; this was already the final blood-brew. They looked at each other, for it was obvious that even with the soul bond and the power of their family inheritance, they could not be considered "powerful souls" by any stretch.
"Please wait a moment."
This time it was Shade who spoke. He glanced at the girls.
"You said I could use the third bottle of wine I brought to offset one opportunity to drink the blood-brew. I have already shared three glasses of wine with you; therefore, may I give this opportunity to these two young ladies?"
Although this meant Shade would have to find another type of blood next time, for him, it was merely a matter of time and gold pounds.
"Of course you may, but... there are two of them, and you can only offset one glass," the Saint said calmly.
"I'm the older sister, I'll drink it!" the girl in the white dress said immediately, reaching for the glass, but she was stopped by the girl in the black dress, who had seemed timid until now.
"No, you've already done enough, Grace."
She stared at her sister, displaying a strength she had never shown before.
"You've always been the one protecting me, ever since we were little. We promised to always be together; does that mean only you are allowed to sacrifice for me?"
"But I'm the elder sister—"
"Girls, please be quiet."
Shade timely interrupted this dialogue, which sounded like something out of a courtly novel. Dorothy would probably be interested in such a story, but he didn't have much time and couldn't afford to listen to the sisters' conversation.
"I will drink it in their stead."
He looked up again at the deity at the table.
Without giving anyone a chance to react, the Soul Wine was poured into glasses at both ends of the long table.
Shade took a deep breath, picked up the glass, and gazed at the deity.
"I must admit, this is indeed a very fine banquet," he said, offering praise that cost him no gold pounds.
"Thank you for the compliment; your taste is quite good," the deity responded. They raised their glasses together and lightly clinked them across the long table; the sound of glass colliding actually echoed through the air.
Shade drained the glass in one gulp. As expected, he felt his soul absorbing power, but there was no pain. A soul capable of storing divinity was completely unaffected by this glass of wine.
"Sir..."
The girls wanted to thank him, but Shade was out of time.
"Then until next time, God of Vampirism. Next time, I shall bring a better gift."
As he spoke, he stood up and prepared to turn toward the door. Rather than being forcibly dragged away by an invisible power, Shade preferred to walk through the white mist door himself.
The twin girls wanted to thank him again, but as Shade reached the door, he heard the deity's voice.
The double doors, which had turned blood-red at some point, opened automatically before Shade, revealing the endless white mist behind them. Shade stood at the door and turned back to look at the vampiric deity, who was holding the empty glass and speaking softly
"I noticed you are helping the mortals here? Unexpected guest, do you wish to be a good person?"
This was the Delarion language of the Sixth Epoch.
"No, I simply wish to do what I want to do."
The Saint said, "I admire the kindness you have shown me."
Shade did not speak. He had a dozen seconds left before he could leave; these matters could be dealt with next time.
"But I am curious: if you possessed the ability of vampirism, would you use it to strengthen yourself?"
Though he didn't exhibit much cruelty, an evil god was indeed an evil god.
"God, please forgive my offense, but I refuse to become a vampire," Shade said, and began counting down in his heart
"Three."
There wasn't enough time for the evil god to forcibly convert him, unless the other dared to act while Shade was being pulled into the white mist door.
"No, no, I have no interest in converting you. I meant to ask, would you be willing to listen to my story?"
The Saint folded his hands on the table. The tapestry with crimson symbols behind him trembled slightly; no, even the eerie kerosene lamps on the walls and the strings of teeth hanging from the red crystal chandelier began to shake.
"Two."
He spoke: "Apologies, I must leave now."
"Then..."
The God of Vampirism seemed to be smiling; He was very smug. Shade stepped backward as the white mist gradually enveloped him.
"One! Ha, I'm safe!"
"Just now, the ten stories of brewing I told—what did you think of them?"
The final sentence entered his ears just as the white mist completely blurred Shade's vision. He could only see the Saint's crimson eyes—eyes that seemed capable of dragging any soul into a pool of blood—staring at him.
"So that was His plan..."
【The God of Vampirism looks down upon the earth from the sky, using great power, desire, and bloody hands to brew endless blood-brews. This is the manic craving of vampirism, the most perfect collection of oddities, and the chaotic tale of blood and wine.】
【You have listened to the story of the Old God "Vampire Duke Lael"; you have learned one of the profanities of the Old God "Vampire Duke Lael".】
"Wait, you're not telling me that just because I listened to a god's brewing stories, I'm going to become a vampire, are you?"
【Outlander, you have acquired the occult art—Blood-Wine Brewing.】
(End of Chapter)