The dragon's harem

Back in the castle:

Thud! Eris knocked on Aella's door, "Aella, it's me,"

Aella opened the door, yawning, "Eris, do you need something?"

Eris pulled a small bag and handed it to Aella, "Hold onto this for me. I have work to do,"

"What kind of work?" Aella asked, sensing a faint magic from the bag.

"Investigate something for Arad," Eris looked around and walked into Aella's room, locking the door.

"The god of murder's cult. Arad believes there are some of them in this city as we faced a dracolich last night." Eris explained.

"If that was true, wouldn't it be dangerous for you to go alone?"

"More people would make it harder for us to sneak around," Eris pointed at the back, "Look inside."

Aella looked inside the bag only to see a vial of blood, "That's my blood. I heard strong vampire lords can bring their spawns if they are killed. Arad can't do it now, but I'm sure he will achieve that level in a few years."

"Wait, you can't rely on that," Aella closed the bag. "You aren't going alone,"

"Sorry, but I must go," Eris looked around, "Zephyr, knock her out,"

Zephyr emerged above Aella's head, flicking one finger, and she fell asleep.

Zephyr stared at Eris as she used her wind to move Aella toward the bed, "Arad didn't tell you to investigate them, did he?"

"You can tell," Eris smiled, looking down.

"They serve the god of murder. There are bound to be some paladins with them," Zephyr said. Paladins serve the gods, but that doesn't mean the gods need to be good.

"The paladin of the murder," Eris growled, "That vile urge masked as a holy being,"

"I see," Zephyr sighed, "That's your target. Won't it be safer if you waited for Arad? Or even, why do you want to kill him?"

"All I know about Mother is that she was killed by the vile urge, or at least that's what Father said once. So, I'm going to kill him." Eris growled sparks of purple plasma glowing in her eyes.

"Your life isn't yours, so don't waste it," Zephyr smiled, "Shi no Cho."

"What was that?" Eris stared at Zephyr, confused.

"The butterfly of death, don't fly too close to the pyre or you will burn."

Eris lunged out of the window, quickly climbing the castle walls and rushing away.

Eris stood on top of a high building, staring down at the capital under the moonlight. ^I can smell blood from here,^ She looked toward the slums. ^It's the god of murder after all.^

Thud! She jumped down, thrusting her claws at the wall to slow down. BAM! After a swift landing, she looked around in the darkness, smelling blood everywhere. ^The blood of one man and one woman, he's dead, but she was only injured.^

By sniffing the blood, a vampire can get a rough estimate of their prey's condition like a wolf chasing its bleeding prey. The way it works is by determining if the blood is clean and what is in it. If it's parts of an important organ, he's mostly dead. But if it's clean, it's mostly alive.

^The man's blood has parts of his liver and intestine. Disemboweled, and he won't stay alive for long.^ By being an expert mortician, she has dicected enough bodies to tell. ^The woman was only cut across her back. She will live, probably left for the altar's sacrifice.^

Eris growled, standing and chasing the smell of the blood while keeping to the shadows.

The god of murder, even his name remains hidden as it's only told to people before their death. ^They took only took her several minutes ago. I should be able to save her.^

After several minutes of chasing the smell, Eris reached the city walls. She looked around, but there didn't seem to be a way for the cultists to go, especially while carrying a corpse and a woman.

Standing there for a few seconds, She only found that the smell of the blood ended there. ^They can't go through the main gate, that only means...^ She approached the wall, ^No, they didn't climb it,^

Feeling the cold breeze around her, Eris racked her brain trying to figure out how the cultists escaped. Since there was no clear way, it only meant one thing.

^Teleport magic. But their range must be short since otherwise, they would have teleported from a spot far from the wall.^ She looked around, the place was empty, but it could be easily watched from afar. They will only risk it if they don't have any other option.

She expanded her claws and started climbing the walls. The gate guard would try to stop her if she went there, and that wasted time could lead her to miss the cult.

One of the guards on the wall spotted something climbing, and he pulled a torch, "Who's there!" He growled.

Eris glared at the man, her eyes glowing red, "You can go sleep."

The guards waved for a second as he turned around, "I can go sleep..." He mumbled.

Eris quickly climbed the wall and jumped down, looking around. ^Good, I can smell the blood again.^ She walked across the empty grassland, still smelling the burned wood from the dragon's attack.

^Damn it, the smoke is covering the scent of blood. I can't run, or I will lose track of it.^ Eris kept moving slowly until she reached an old farm.

The large wheat farm had half of its crop burned, the barn torn down, and some parts of the main house charred, but it still had light inside. People still live there.

Eris approached the door and took a big whiff. There is no mistaking it. The cult went through this house.

Knock! Knock! She knocked on the door, "Excuse me! Is someone home?"

After a few seconds, she could hear footsteps approaching the door, "Who is it?"

"Eris from the eastern farms," Eris replied.

Click, the door opened slightly, and a woman stared at her. "Don't know that name,"

"I recently married," Eris looked down, "Our house just crumbled from the burns. I was wondering if I could spend the night inside?" She asked, staring at the door. It was still closed with chains, she must convince the woman to open the door on her own, or she will alert the cult inside.

"We're struggling on our own, scram!" CLAP! The woman smacked the door closed. "Look somewhere else,"

"Only today! Please. I can't keep walking," Eris called again.

"You came here. Surely you can go somewhere else." The woman replied from the inside, and Eris could hear her going deeper into the house.

^How about I make myself seem like a rare sacrifice? That's has to change their minds.^

"I'm pregnant and won't be able to move much," Eris called, and she could hear the woman inside stop. ^It's working...^

CLICK! The woman opened the door, "Fine, but you leave at the first light,"

As Eris walked inside, she could see the chains flickering with magic at the door. It was the right call not to barge. "You sleep on the couch, rest, and I will bring you some water," The woman said with a smile, turning to head toward the kitchen.

^Three people. This woman in front of me. One man was upstairs, and one just walked in through a door in the basement. The scent of blood is strong down there so that must be the secret entrance, and he should have the key.^

FLICKER! The candles flickered for a second as Eris opened her mouth. CRACK! The woman gasped as she felt fangs digging into her neck. She tried to scream, but her neck felt numb.

Thud! Thud! Using her elbow, the woman started smacking Eris on the stomach to force her away, but to no avail.

The man upstairs walked down, seeing the woman struggling in Eris's mouth. "An intruder?" He growled, pulled an axe from his waist, and threw it.

Eris used the woman as a body shield to stop the axe before dropping her and lunging forward. One foot on the table and another on the stairs, and in the blink of an eye, her claws pierced the man's stomach.

Thud! The man didn't flinch and swung his arms down, grabbing Eris by the head and smacking her on the face with his knee.

"GRAH!" He cried as his knee started bleeding, and Eris's fangs ripped clean through his flesh. "Monst..." Before he could finish, she bit his neck, draining from all blood.

"GAH! Disgusting, but I need the heal later," She wiped her lips as she looked at the basement door.

"What's the noise?" The door opened, and a man walked out. His eyes darted across the room, seeing the woman's corpse on the ground. "We're..."

CRACK! Eris's hand reached down from the ceiling, catching the man by the face and lifting him up. He struggled, trying to swing his fist up and hitting Eris's hand.

"WRYYYY," Eris sighed, tanking all of his punches to her arm, "It's over," CRACK! Her claws dug into his face, killing him on the spot.

She jumped from the ceiling and landed beside the man, searching his pockets. ^Good, I found the keys,^ She pulled every key he had and went to the basement to try them all.

Inside the dust-filled, old musty basement Eris easily saw a stone door hidden behind the barrels. ^Nice skills, but I can smell blood so you aren't hiding it from me.^

After three attempts, she finally got the door open.

As the massive door crackled open, Eris stood there glaring down. The rancid smell of the dead assaulted her nose. ^A rotten morgue,^ She growled, taking a step inside.

Her eyes glow with a faint purple flame, decorated with a crimson glimmer. With each step, her blood boiled. "This place needs some cremation." She mumbled.