Alex was inside the Grand Cathedral of the Healing Church, lazily lying on the steps near the main entrance. The exit from the Grand Cathedral was blocked by a thick, opaque gray mist that made it impossible to leave — one could only enter through it. Alex could easily pass through this mist and leave the Grand Cathedral, but he saw no reason to do so and was in no hurry.
He continued lying on the wide steps leading to the main hall, staring at the ceiling while statues built in honor of Amygdala towered above him. He wanted to close his eyes and relax. However, from the main hall of the cathedral came the rumbling of battle and a bestial howl that sounded every few seconds. The cause of this rumbling and howling was Alucard's battle against the beastly side of Vicar Amelia.
Listening to the sounds of the fight, Alex understood that Alucard was simply toying with her food to relieve her boredom somehow. Thinking about how long this would last, Alex heard another loud crash that sounded like a stone column being destroyed.
He didn't even need to look to know how the battle was going. Hearing yet another crash of a collapsing column, Alex let out a heavy sigh and hoped that his wife wouldn't destroy the entire Grand Cathedral. Stretching slightly, Alex sat up and looked at the unconscious Amelia, who had been unconscious ever since he had separated her beastly side from her.
"Where to go next?… Or maybe it's better to stick to the already planned route…" Alex muttered, stroking his chin and ignoring the rumbling behind him.
As he thought about where to head next, Alex shifted slightly to the side. The moment he did so, one of the Amygdala statues standing along the wide staircase crashed down with a loud bang, scattering dark stone shards in all directions. Alex glanced at the fallen statue, and a question arose in his mind.
Could Alucard, with her current strength, defeat Amygdala? Alex wasn't sure she had enough power yet to deal with such an entity. Unless the Amygdala located on the Nightmare Frontier was merely one of its projections. In that case, Alucard would have quite good chances of victory.
Tapping his finger on his knee, Alex remembered that he had promised Alucard they would go to the Nightmare Frontier, which meant his choices were limited. Lighting a cigarette, Alex narrowed his eyes slightly as he recalled what lay beyond the Nightmare Frontier. Thinking about the Hunter's Nightmare, he realized that things wouldn't be as simple as they were in the game.
He was completely certain that entering the Hunter's Nightmare wouldn't be easy. Alex wanted to reach the Hunter's Nightmare to see Maria and kill the Orphan of Kos. But one thing he was sure of was that, unlike the game, he would have to take a completely different path to get there.
"What if I just destroy the Nightmare Frontier… I'll need to check," Alex said, narrowing his eyes and staring at the Grand Cathedral's gates shrouded in mist.
Alex's plan to destroy an entire dimension only grew stronger the more he thought about it. And this plan seemed to him the most effective and simplest. Otherwise, he could use other means to reach where he needed to go. While Alex was lost in thought, the rumbling behind him grew more intense.
Deciding to see what was happening in the main hall, Alex closed one eye. In that instant, the scene of Alucard's battle against Amelia's beastly side appeared before him. The entire main hall of the cathedral was covered in deep claw marks on the floor, walls, and even the columns, which could barely be called intact anymore.
The only thing that had survived the destruction was the main altar, which had miraculously remained undamaged. On that altar lay the skull of a monster, which presumably belonged to Laurence after he had transformed into a beast. And in the center of all this were Alucard and a giant snow-white werewolf with deer antlers on its head. The snow-white fur of the giant werewolf was soaked in its own blood.
Amelia's beastly side was in a pitiful state: it was missing one eye, and blood flowed from the empty socket. A large chunk of flesh was torn from its side near the ribs, and the wound looked as if something massive had ripped it out with its teeth. The small deer antlers on the beast's head were completely broken, and the wounds on its front limbs were deep enough to reveal the white bones beneath.
Compared to the snow-white werewolf, Alucard didn't have a single wound. Her long straight hair flowed behind her in the wind blowing through the shattered stained-glass windows, and the light of the pale rising moon cast a shadow over her face, revealing only her pink-red eyes that glowed brightly in the darkness.
Alucard was wearing a black leather straitjacket with straps tightened all over her body. A wide smile was on her face as she looked at the snow-white werewolf, whose fur was drenched in its own blood. The snow-white werewolf let out a low growl, staring at Alucard, and tried to crawl backward to heal itself.
But every time it tried, Alucard attacked, preventing it from regenerating and inflicting even deeper wounds. Alucard continued smiling until suddenly her body turned into black liquid that began forming a black puddle, flooding the entire main hall of the cathedral. In the next moment, the whole main hall was covered in thick shadow, through which even the moonlight could not penetrate.
The snow-white werewolf growled and looked around, sensing danger from all sides. A moment later, hundreds of red eyes opened throughout the main hall, all staring at the snow-white werewolf. Before the beast could do anything, two silhouettes began to appear beneath its feet. The first was the Cleric Beast, and the second was the Bloody Cleric Beast — the beast that had come from inside Gascoigne.
Both beasts grabbed the snow-white werewolf by its limbs and began pulling in opposite directions. A moment later came the sound of tearing flesh mixed with the crunch of bones. Both beasts slowly tore the snow-white werewolf apart. Then, with a sharp tug, they ripped the beast in half from head to groin.
The snow-white werewolf's guts and blood spilled onto the floor at the feet of the two beasts, each holding one half of its body. After the snow-white werewolf's death, the shadow slowly flowed in one direction, forming a small black puddle.
Slowly emerging from this black puddle was Alucard in her usual male Victorian attire. She looked at the torn snow-white werewolf, whose halves were held in the paws of her familiars. A bored smile appeared on her face. On one hand, she had found it interesting to fight such a monster that could regenerate its wounds.
But it had quickly bored her, especially after the snow-white werewolf stopped regenerating once it began receiving more and more wounds. Alucard slowly put on her red glasses and took a step back so she wouldn't get splattered. At that same moment, the body of the snow-white werewolf exploded in a fountain of blood, like a bloody firework.
Once the snow-white werewolf had completely ceased to exist, the Black Cat jumped down from the altar and began absorbing the Blood Echoes. Alucard watched the process until she heard the sound of footsteps. Turning her head, she saw Alex walking toward her, carrying the still-unconscious Vicar Amelia on his shoulder.
As he approached his wife, Alex noticed that the battle had helped her have some fun, even if not as much as she had hoped. Walking up to Alucard, Alex glanced at her familiars, who immediately dissolved into shadow and merged with Alucard's shadow.
"Did you have fun? Or was it not enough?" Alex asked, tilting his head slightly to the side and looking into Alucard's eyes.
"It was a little interesting… but it got boring quickly… It felt like fighting a very resilient beast," Alucard said, running her finger along Alex's cheek.
"Hmm… Maybe it's because I separated the human part from this beast?… The beast that came out of Gascoigne started mutating… Why didn't this werewolf mutate?" Alex said, stroking his chin and narrowing his eyes slightly.
"Does it matter? The beast is already dead. All your pondering is pointless," Alucard said, poking Alex in the chest with her finger.
"You're right. Alright, I'll touch the next trigger in this cycle now. Then we can move on," Alex said casually, shrugging and nodding toward the monster's skull on the altar.
"The cycle didn't advance after the beast's death?" Alucard asked, slightly surprised and raising an eyebrow.
Alex nodded and took out his pocket watch from his pocket to show Alucard the time. Looking down, Alucard saw that the time on the watch remained exactly the same as before. Seeing the confirmation, Alucard nodded, remembering what Alex had told her about such special places and their triggers.
Still carrying the unconscious Amelia on his shoulder, Alex approached the altar and reached out toward the monster's skull that had once been Laurence. Alex didn't even want to know why the Healing Church kept the skull of the beast that the founder of their Church had become. Before touching the monster's skull, Alex decided to examine it with his magical vision.
He saw that inside this monster's skull was stored an oppressive power made of a mixture of guilt, madness, and ancient rage. While using magical vision on the monster's skull, Alex was able to understand the true reason why Laurence had become a monster. It was a curse connected to the incident in the Fishing Hamlet. And as Alex examined the monster's skull, a distant, mournful child's cry began to sound in his ears.
But what interested Alex most was the power carried by that mournful cry. Grinning, Alex narrowed his eyes and traced the connection all the way to the source of the curse. And, as he had suspected, the entrance to that dimension was closed to those who were not cursed by the being that dwelled in that Nightmare. And Alex saw who was guarding the passage to the Hunter's Nightmare.
"Looks like I found the door… Hehe…" Alex said with a soft chuckle, observing where the connection led.
"What door?" Alucard asked, hearing her husband's laugh.
"The door to the Nightmare. I just need to open it or break it. And kill the one guarding that door while I'm at it," Alex said, turning his head.
"Amygdala?" Alucard asked with a slight smile.
Alex nodded in response to Alucard's question. Seeing the confirmation, Alucard smiled slightly, understanding where they would go next. Stopping his examination of the monster's skull, Alex deactivated his magical vision, and the mournful cry of the Orphan of Kos stopped sounding in his ears. Carefully lowering Amelia to the floor, Alex reached out and touched the monster's skull.
The moment he touched it, he saw the memories stored within. They were memories from the time when Laurence was still part of Byrgenwerth and a student of Master Willem. During his research, Laurence had sought a way to ascend. And his research had led him to the conclusion that the blood of the Great Ones was the way to ascension.
When Laurence shared his findings with his teacher, the latter rejected his student's theory. Master Willem believed that to ascend to greatness, one needed eyes to be opened, and a brain to comprehend what was seen.
That was why Master Willem believed that if the brain could not keep up with what the eyes saw, madness would follow. Master Willem's goal was to find a way to connect the eyes with the brain so that one could see the world as the Great Ones saw it.
Unlike his teacher, who sought the path to see the world as the Great Ones did, Laurence had found another way. A path that had come to him from Master Willem's own words. And gradually, Laurence had delved deeper into the study of the Great Ones' blood to find the path to rebirth and ascension.
When Laurence first proposed his theory to his teacher, the latter immediately rejected it. And thus began the endless arguments between teacher and student, where one tried to guide his pupil onto the right path, and the pupil tried to show his teacher another way. In the end, Laurence decided to leave Byrgenwerth to continue his research. When Laurence informed his teacher of his departure, instead of arguing or trying to stop him, Master Willem gave only one final piece of advice: to fear the Old Blood.
That was the last memory stored in the monster's skull. Pulling his hand away, Alex clicked his tongue lightly. He had expected to see more, but only got a short fragment of Laurence's past life.
Still, thanks to these memories, Alex had heard both theories of the two madmen who wanted to become something greater. But hearing both theories together, Alex couldn't hold back and burst into loud laughter at the stupidity of the two men. He clutched his stomach and laughed so hard that his laughter echoed through the main hall.
Alex couldn't stop laughing at the foolishness of the two madmen, both of whom were right, yet because of their pride couldn't accept each other's words. Alucard looked at Alex, who was laughing hysterically. She became curious about what had caused her husband to suddenly laugh like this.
"Oh, humans… How I love them… Such lovely creatures… So unique, yet so proud… It's no wonder pride is considered the greatest sin. It closed the eyes you were supposed to open… You were so close, yet so far," Alex said in a gentle tone, wiping away tears after his long bout of laughter.
"What did you see? What made you laugh so much?" Alucard asked, walking up to Alex and leaning down to look into his eyes.
"One wanted to open eyes, the other wanted to be reborn through blood. But both were wrong… and at the same time, both were right," Alex said with a wide smile, still impressed by the memories he had seen.
"I'm ready to listen to what you saw. If it made you this amused, then it must be something quite interesting," Alucard said with a narrowed smile, stroking Alex's cheek.
Alex smiled and poked Alucard's forehead with his finger, transferring the knowledge of the two theories, including what he himself had understood. After quickly processing the memories, Alucard thought for a moment, then burst into the same loud laughter as Alex. She couldn't stop calling Laurence and Master Willem two stupid bastards who were entirely to blame for achieving nothing. But even if the teacher and student had decided to work together, it wouldn't have changed anything.
The explanations Alex had given her were direct proof of that. Even if one opened their eyes and absorbed the blood of the Great Ones, the human essence inside would still remain. There were only two outcomes: the next stage of evolution, or a brainless monster. Alex himself had seen this many times, which was why he laughed so sincerely at what he had seen in the memories.
"Without rejecting human nature, they would have achieved nothing…" Alucard said, stopping her laughter and shaking her head.
"And to ascend in such a way, a whole series of conditions must be met… Anyway, this doesn't concern us," Alex said, picking up Amelia, who still hadn't regained consciousness.
Alex carried the unconscious Amelia over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, with Alucard walking beside him. They descended the stairs, stepping over the fallen Amygdala statues. Exiting through the gates of the Grand Cathedral, Alex and Alucard looked up at the sky and saw that the pale moon hung at its zenith. Alex took out his pocket watch and saw that night had already fallen.
Looking at the frozen time, Alex remembered that the next trigger would be the death of the one who was holding back the influence of the Red Moon. And when the Red Moon rose over Yharnam, it would mark the beginning of the awakening of madness and the omen of the birth of yet another Great One, who tried to be born cycle after cycle.
And this Great One was the reason why Yharnam was trapped in an eternal mad nightmare, where everyone eventually went insane. Sighing, Alex put the pocket watch back into his coat pocket and looked at his wife, who was thoughtfully gazing at the moon in the sky. Alucard was lost in her thoughts. Sensing Alex's gaze on her, she turned her head toward him.
"Didn't your friend ascend and then become a god?" Alucard asked as they left the Grand Cathedral together.
"Bu-chan… That's proof that a human can become a god. But it was destined for him to become a god and walk the path he walked. Gods, humans, animals — all are subject to fate. The beginning and the end of the path are always the same. Only the path itself changes," Alex said, shaking his head.
"Fate… Yes… It's always her," Alucard said, beginning to descend the stairs.
"Yeah, the biggest villain of all. Shame on her," Alex said with a cheerful smile, walking down the stairs beside Alucard.
"Said the Demon King who constantly complains about either fate or luck," Alucard said in a sarcastic tone, giving her husband an amused look.
"And this is coming from my wife… Ah, my heart… It's broken… I'm dying… I urgently need a life-saving kiss," Alex said dramatically, clutching his heart with his hand.
"I would do it… if you weren't carrying another woman on your shoulder… So, my love. Not 'Fate'," Alucard said in a cheerful tone, walking ahead and ignoring Alex's dramatic performance.
Hearing such a joke from Alucard, Alex was momentarily stunned, then burst out laughing. Catching up with her, they continued descending the stairs to return to the Oedon Chapel. Fortunately, to reach the Oedon Chapel, they only needed to go down.
When Alex and Alucard were almost at the Oedon Chapel, their path was blocked by one of Alex's clones, dressed in black hunter clothing and holding a Rifle Spear. The clone reached into his pocket, pulled out a small object, and immediately threw it at Alex. Alex caught the thrown item and saw a small green stone with pores that resembled Amygdala's head. Seeing this Tonsil Stone, Alex smiled slightly and put it in his pocket.
"Thanks, Greed. Where did you find this?" Alex asked, looking at his clone named Greed.
"I had to break into a couple of houses to find it. And now… Be so kind as to go fuck yourself, Original. I have other work to do," Greed said, flipping Alex off.
After showing Alex the middle finger, Greed lowered his hand, tapped the Rifle Spear on his shoulder, walked past Alex, and bumped him with his shoulder. Alex looked at his clone with an empty gaze. He carefully lowered Amelia to the floor. Before Greed could climb the stairs, Alex kicked him in the back.
From the impact, Greed flew up the stairs and crashed back-first into a building, smashing through the wall with his body. Alucard, who was watching this, didn't hide the amusement in her eyes. She understood the relationship between Alex and his clones, of course. Greed climbed out of the building he had crashed into and lightly brushed the dust off himself.
"Go fuck yourself too," Alex said, flipping Greed off.
"I can't, I am you," Greed replied with a carefree smile, spreading his arms.
"Go do your job already. Stop getting on my nerves," Alex said, waving his hand, picking up Amelia, and slinging her back over his shoulder.
"Yeah, whatever you say. And you'd better watch the time, Original. I think Wrath went to kill that disgusting old hag," Greed said, pointing his Rifle Spear in the direction the other clone had gone.
"Isn't that where…" Alex said, narrowing his eyes.
"Yeah, it is. I'll go get the invitation now. And now, I take my leave, Original," Greed said, heading toward the central square while tapping the Rifle Spear on his shoulder.
Watching his departing clone, Alex smirked and turned to Alucard. He didn't need to explain anything — she could already hear his thoughts. Especially his thoughts about the place they were talking about. Alucard showed no reason to refuse visiting a place like Cainhurst Castle.
For her, it was just another place for a walk where there would be an interesting opponent. But the most important thing was the Tonsil Stone, which could open the doors to the Nightmare Frontier without needing to use other abilities. The encounter with the clone named Greed had brought quite a few benefits.
Not wanting to linger any longer, Alex and Alucard continued on their way back to the Oedon Chapel. Once again approaching the Oedon Chapel, Alex flipped off Amygdala before entering the building. The moment they stepped inside, they immediately drew attention. But Alex noticed that there were more people in the chapel now. In addition to Eileen the Crow, who stood aside leaning against the wall, three more people had appeared.
The first was an old man who looked at Alex and Alucard with suspicion. The second was the prostitute Arianna. And the last one Alex hadn't expected to see was Adella, who was supposed to be in the underground prison. Alex wondered which of his clones had decided to personally climb into the Kidnapper's sack so that he would carry him to the prison.
"Young Hunter, you've returned… What happened to Vicar Amelia?" Gascoigne said, approaching Alex and Alucard.
"The same thing that happened to you. She's still unconscious," Alex said, nodding at Amelia, who lay on his shoulder.
"Did you manage to find out what's going on?" Henrik asked, approaching closer and frowning slightly.
"Not much. The Vicar wasn't in a state to talk… But I think the answers we need will be in Byrgenwerth," Alex said, handing the unconscious Amelia over to Gascoigne.
"It will be difficult to reach Byrgenwerth. They closed the entrance to outsiders long ago… And the path there isn't easy either," Henrik said, continuing to frown as he looked at Alex.
Alex nodded understandingly, knowing that the path through the Forbidden Woods was one big labyrinth of trees. While Alex discussed the route with Henrik, Gascoigne handed Amelia over to Adella so she could look after her. After handing Amelia to Adella, Gascoigne joined the conversation to help with the route through the Forbidden Woods.
While Alex was busy discussing the route, Alucard leaned against the wall and calmly observed, having no desire to talk to people. Watching Alex talk with the two Hunters, Alucard felt a steady gaze on her. She turned her head toward the source of the gaze and met eyes with Eileen the Crow, who was staring at her intently. Alucard looked at Eileen for a couple of moments and quickly lost interest in yet another Hunter.
Looking at Alucard, Eileen sensed the danger emanating from her, especially the thick scent of blood. Meanwhile, Alex continued talking with the two Hunters, giving them small hints about what might happen at any moment. Gascoigne and Henrik were not foolish Hunters and had lived long enough to understand what Alex was implying. But none of them said it out loud. And even without Alex's hints, it was clear that things would only get worse soon.
"Thanks again for your help. Now we're heading to Byrgenwerth. And when the Red Moon rises, don't leave the chapel," Alex said, bidding farewell to Gascoigne and Henrik.
"Young Hunter, are you sure the Red Moon will rise? How do you know that?" Gascoigne asked with a serious expression, knowing what it would lead to.
"I saw it when I touched the skull in the Grand Cathedral. That's why I mentioned Byrgenwerth," Alex said, pretending he didn't know much himself.
"So the night of the Great Hunt is coming again… And that's very bad news," Henrik said, frowning even more.
"Indeed… So we'll hurry before all of this happens," Alex said, shaking his head.
"Then take care of yourself, Hunter. And may the Blood Echoes guide your way," Gascoigne said, nodding at Alex's words.
"You take care of yourselves too, old men. See you soon," Alex said, preparing to leave.
When Alex finished speaking, Alucard looked at him with a gaze that clearly said: are you done with this pointless chatter? Seeing his wife's look, Alex gave her a thumbs-up, showing that he was finished with all business in this place.
Alex still had no intention of talking to Eileen at that moment and saw no reason to. After all, he wasn't planning to head to Byrgenwerth right now. He would return to this place later after visiting the Nightmare Frontier. Leaving the Oedon Chapel together with Alucard, Alex explained where they needed to go to reach the Nightmare Frontier.
"Are you sure?" Alucard asked, walking up the stairs beside Alex.
"Sure about what?" Alex asked, tilting his head slightly to the side.
"That this creature will open the passage for you with this stone? Especially after all your gestures," Alucard asked, taking the Tonsil Stone out of Alex's pocket.
"If that bitch doesn't open the doors, I'll open them myself. The Tonsil Stone is just a key… But you don't always need a key to open doors," Alex said with a carefree smile, taking the Tonsil Stone from Alucard's hand.
Alucard only smirked at Alex's words and continued climbing the stairs. After ascending almost to the Grand Cathedral, Alex and Alucard turned right to reach the temple built in honor of Amygdala, where the doors leading to the Nightmare Frontier were located.
Walking a bit further along the right side of the Grand Cathedral, they saw the temple itself in the distance. Alex pointed his finger at the temple so Alucard would know where they were going. Alucard's red eyes began to glow as she sensed Amygdala's presence from the temple Alex was pointing at.
Descending downward, Alex and Alucard saw the bodies of two dead hunters whose limbs were twisted at unnatural angles. But one corpse stood out from the other: a Tonitrus — an electric mace — was sticking out of its head. And a note was impaled on the handle of the Tonitrus. Grabbing the Tonitrus, Alex removed the note from the handle and read what was written on it.
"'Don't thank me'… I wasn't going to, you bastard. I would've taken this weapon anyway," Alex said, tossing the note aside.
"Your clones have quite an interesting sense of humor… Especially their cruelty," Alucard said, kicking the mutilated hunter's corpse with her foot.
"At least no one will bother us on the way forward. The last thing I want is to stop because of some idiots who've gone mad," Alex said, storing the Tonitrus in his inventory.
"Are you that eager to reach the Nightmare Frontier, my love?" Alucard asked, wrapping her arms around Alex's neck, her lips almost touching his.
"I'm interested in what's near the Nightmare Frontier," Alex said, quickly kissing Alucard on the lips.
Feeling the kiss on her lips, Alucard smiled tenderly and ran her finger across Alex's lips, wiping away the remnants of her lipstick. After they finished embracing, Alex took Alucard by the hand and headed toward the Temple of Amygdala. Descending to the temple, Alex and Alucard saw the corpses of mini-giants who had been killed by their own weapons. Ignoring the corpses, they entered the Temple of Amygdala.
Upon entering the temple, they began descending the stairs, and Alex immediately saw Amygdala clinging to the wall directly above the closed door. Once again feeling Amygdala's gaze on him, Alex grimaced as he walked down the stairs. After descending, Alex and Alucard found themselves in a spacious round hall where Amygdala statues stood along the walls, and a circular platform stood in the center of the hall. Approaching this platform, Alex stepped onto it and looked at Amygdala.
"Oi, Cunt. Open the doors. And quickly," Alex shouted, throwing the Tonsil Stone at Amygdala.
The Tonsil Stone flew in an arc and landed directly in one of Amygdala's hands, which it had raised. At that same moment, Amygdala lowered its hand, and beneath it a vortex began to form that tore through space itself. Very quickly, the vortex that had torn through space turned into a portal leading to the other side.
Grinning, Alex raised his hand and once again flipped Amygdala off. Once again, Amygdala did not react to Alex and simply continued to watch. Alex took Alucard by the hand and led her toward the portal that Amygdala had opened. Approaching the portal, Alex and Alucard stepped inside without wasting any time. In that same moment, they found themselves in a completely different place.
To be continued...
(I actually thought Alex and Alucard would end up at the Nightmare Border by this chapter. But as usual, I couldn't fit everything in, so the chapter ended with the portal. Next, we have a very short journey through the Nightmare Border and its destruction. And then the transition to the Hunter's Nightmare. I'll try to do everything quickly, including describing the lore and all that. Regarding the fight with Amygdala, I don't know whether it's worth dragging it out or not. But I'll think about it. On the one hand, yes, on the other, I don't think it's worth it. Anyway, I'll decide everything tomorrow. And now, it's time for food. Peace, love, and adventure time.)
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