This dungeon has mushrooms growing on it.

Chapter 398 397.1+1=
The Crimson Tower.

Two half-vampires knelt humbly on the ground, their faces plastered with fawning smiles, carefully lifting a delicate jar.

"My lord, this is a rare snake honey that I searched for with great difficulty. Its sweetness is unparalleled..."

Before the words were finished, a scarlet whip whistled through the air, lashing them hard and sending them flying backward, crashing heavily against the wall, only daring to let out suppressed groans.

“How many times have I told you,” Sigismund said, leaning slightly forward on his throne, his eyes flashing with a dangerous red light, “Don’t let me see any sweets during this time! If there’s a next time, I’ll kill you all!”

"Yes! Yes! We know we were wrong!" The two half-vampires scrambled to pick up the fallen jars and retreated to a corner in a disheveled state, wishing they could hide themselves completely.

Looking at their obsequious manner, Sigismund's eyes flashed with undisguised disgust.

Only his roommate, with his unique taste, would appreciate such a spineless, sycophantic person.

However, the roommate's ability to accurately identify two sycophants among his many subordinates shows that he has a "discerning eye" when it comes to judging people.

Similarly, if it weren't for his roommate's liking, he would have thrown this trash into the death mission long ago.

Just then, the adjutant stepped into the hall: "My lord, Duke Verallis's troops have entered the Sky Curtain area."

"They've finally arrived!" Sigismund's eyes flashed with a sharp light. "I've been waiting so long! The news hasn't leaked, has it?"

"Rest assured, my lord. After incorporating the Blood Knights into the scout unit and implementing the border blockade, no human scout will be able to cross the defense line to investigate the movements of our army in the rear."

Sigismund nodded in satisfaction. Such a high-profile attempt to suppress the news would naturally alert Alama, his old rival.

But that's irrelevant now. As long as the news is kept under control, humanity won't have time to send reinforcements to High Fortress!

Of course, this achievement came at a heavy price.

"What are the losses of the Blood Knights?"

"Reporting to my lord, a total of 187 Blood Knights have died in the past two weeks."

This was all Alama's doing.

Sigismund clicked his tongue in displeasure. The Knights Order only numbered two thousand, and the loss of nearly one-tenth of them was quite painful for him.

But... it was all worth it!
The adjutant promptly reminded him, "My lord, Duke Verallis has arrived. Should I go to greet her?"

Sigismund glanced at him, knowing that this inexperienced adjutant wanted to take the opportunity to show off, but he clearly didn't know enough about Verallis, otherwise he wouldn't have dared to take on such a task.

Since he was now his adjutant, Sigismund rejected his application and pointed to the two half-vampires still trembling in the corner: "You three are responsible for welcoming Veralis."

The two half-vampires looked at each other, and the adjutant also looked puzzled.

"Sir," the adjutant asked cautiously, "does this mean the three of us should go together?"

Sigismund was somewhat impatient with his adjutant's question, but he still repeated, "If you're not going, let the three of them go."

The lieutenant looked in the direction Sigismund was pointing, but all he could see were the two half-vampires kneeling on the ground.

Could it be... that there's a third unseen person hiding here?

The adjutant felt a chill run down his spine. As a hall-level expert, he was confident that no one could escape his perception at such close range.

But as far as the eye could see, there were only those two half-vampires huddled in the corner.

His lips moved slightly, as if he wanted to ask another question, but then he saw Sigismund suddenly raise his hand to his forehead, his brows furrowed, muttering to himself in an almost inaudible voice: "No... wait, him and them... one plus one equals... three? No, there's something wrong with this calculation..."

The voice was intermittent and filled with confusion.

After a long while, Sigismund suddenly came to his senses, as if enraged by his own outburst, and shouted sharply, "Let them go! Now!"

"Yes, sir!" The adjutant dared not say another word, suppressing his unease, and quickly led the two half-vampires away.

Lin Jun took in all of this and silently recorded this precious observation.

[Skill: Multiple Wills LV1]

If Shenmu hadn't mentioned it casually when he killed Iros, Lin Jun wouldn't have noticed that Sigismund had a skill that was only level 1.

After all, this vampire duke possessed hundreds of skills, and he usually only focused on the high-level skills, making it difficult for him to notice the low-level skills at the end of the list.

However, Lin Jun wouldn't kindly remind Sigismund that as an excellent observational subject, he should just maintain the status quo.

"Speaking of which, Xiao Xi," Lin Jun asked in a superior tone, "why are you so concerned about your Blood Knights? Is there anything special about them?"

Sigismund, now back to his usual self, seemed to have forgotten his earlier lapse in composure.

Although he was unhappy with how his roommate addressed him, Sigismund still explained with a touch of pride in response to his roommate's curiosity:

"The Blood Knights are elites handpicked from slaves, trained from childhood. Each batch is repeatedly indoctrinated with the belief that loyalty to me guarantees everything, while enduring the most rigorous training. Finally, the trainees are divided into groups of twenty, training each other..."

Before Sigismund could finish speaking, Lin Jun interrupted, "Only those who fight to the last man are qualified to join the Blood Knights?"

Sigismund was silent for a moment: "No... it's not that extreme. If it were, everyone would die... The losers will continue training, and when replacements are needed, they will compete and be selected again."

A disappointed click seemed to echo in his mind, and Sigismund's knuckles bulged with veins as he barely suppressed the urge to crush the armrest.

……

Verallis's troops were stationed behind the Crimson Tower, and from above, they could see many enormous figures in the distance—trolls.

The troll's most distinctive feature is its racial trait, "Quick Adaptation," which allows them to rapidly increase their resistances and adapt to their environment.

And its signature skill, [Regeneration].

This is quite an eye-opener; you never encounter something like this in human territory!
Lin Jun was quite envious, but unfortunately, she didn't have a way to get her hands on trolls for the time being.

The trolls were clearly not law-abiding soldiers; after only a short observation, several clashes broke out between ordinary demon soldiers and trolls.

However, the Valaris forces were clearly very experienced in this matter, and the trolls' disturbance was quickly quelled.

Sigismund also came downstairs, allowing Lin Jun to see the "madwoman" he had mentioned.

"Ah! Sigismund! Long time no see..." The enthusiastic half-demon girl wagged her tail and waved her hands as she ran over from afar, calling out loudly.

only……

"Um..." Upon getting closer, looking at the slightly chubby figure in front of her, the girl asked uncertainly, "You... are you Sigismund?"

(End of this chapter)