When the standoff reached its peak and the atmosphere was stretched to the breaking point, it felt like a single spark could ignite a full-blown war.
Suddenly, a figure dropped from the sky and landed directly in front of Muriel.
As every gaze snapped toward him, Vlad stepped forward with a calm expression, unbothered by the tense stares of the witches.
"I am the ancestor of vampires! The current King of Wallachia! Archduke Impaler—Vlad!"
"Surely, every one of you has heard my name."
His voice was strong and commanding, brimming with authority. The sheer force of his presence sent a wave of pressure through the crowd, making dozens of witches struggle to breathe, their chests heaving under the weight of it.
While the witches were still frozen in shock, their minds blank—
A shrill, frantic voice cut through the air.
"Don't listen to him! This must be someone Muriel arranged to impersonate!"
As the speaker appeared, a sharp gleam flashed in Vlad's eyes.
He raised one arm—and in the blink of an eye, the old witch who had tried to sow chaos was clutched helplessly in his palm.
He didn't bother acknowledging the fear in the other witches' eyes.
Looking at the wrinkled, panicked woman squirming in his grip, Vlad sneered and said coldly:
"So you're the one stirring everyone up? You've got quite the nerve."
His voice was low and steady, but carried a deadly chill.
The old witch's heart sank.
She hadn't expected to be completely powerless before this man.
With one flick of his wrist, he'd sealed off all her energy.
In that moment, she realized—she'd made a terrible mistake. This man wasn't someone she could afford to provoke.
"Don't kill me—I'm useful! I can help!" she pleaded, panic overtaking her pride.
"You think you're still worth keeping alive?" Vlad's sarcastic tone made her tremble.
"You can't kill me! If I die, there'll be riots! You won't like what comes next—"
Crack!
Her voice broke off mid-sentence as Vlad, clearly disgusted, snapped her neck and flung her corpse away like trash.
Though it took only a moment, the act left the entire scene frozen in silence. Before the witches could process what had happened, the old witch's lifeless body landed in full view.
The crowd stared in shock.
"You… you actually killed Witch Andney," one witch gasped, stunned. She had been a close ally of the old woman.
Witch Andney had long been a respected figure among the dark witches. Without her, it wouldn't have been so easy to spread doubt and manipulate the others.
As soon as her name was spoken, the rest of the witches snapped out of their daze and grasped the full reality of Andney's death.
The previously silent mountainside platform erupted in anger and disbelief. Glaring eyes turned sharp with hostility, and the witches' magic stirred, ready for battle.
"Hmph. Noisy things."
Whoooosh! Boom!
As soon as Vlad spoke, the sky changed. Winds roared, thunder cracked across the mountaintops, and heavy black clouds rolled in, blanketing the world in darkness.
The dramatic shift in nature instantly silenced the outrage.
All eyes looked up in awe and fear, watching the incredible scene unfold.
Even Muriel, who had moments ago been deeply worried, now stared at Vlad in shock, her face pale and stunned.
"He's… so powerful," she murmured, dazed.
"Who else has something to say?"
His voice was like a bolt of lightning, snapping the witches out of their trance.
They all turned toward him—but not one dared to speak. Fear rooted them to the ground.
Vlad stood tall, arrogance radiating from him, his gaze like steel. None of the witches dared meet his eyes for long; they looked away, uncertain and shaken.
"I'll give you ten seconds to decide."
"If you want to follow me—if you want to help build a kingdom where witches and other extraordinary beings truly belong—step forward."
"If not, I won't force you."
For a moment, no one moved. It was as if they were all waiting for someone else to take the lead.
"Ten. Nine. Eight…"
Muriel looked around at the uneasy witches and seemed to understand. She stepped forward boldly.
"I'll join."
The moment her voice rang out, the silence broke. Dozens of witches surged forward as if a dam had burst.
These proud, fearsome women suddenly appeared meek and respectful as they bowed and lined up behind Muriel.
Seeing this, Vlad smiled slightly and gave Muriel a look of approval. This woman was clever.
"Six. Five…"
The hesitation in the crowd melted away. One after another, the remaining witches rushed to join, following the trend like a tide.
Vlad watched with satisfaction, then turned his eyes to the last few who still hadn't moved.
"Three. Two. One."
Only six or seven witches remained unmoved. Vlad gave them a cool, unreadable glance.
"I'm merciful. I'll give you three seconds to leave. If I still see you after that… stay."
His tone was casual, almost friendly, as if he were talking about the weather.
But the moment his words landed, the air grew heavy and cold. The witches couldn't even breathe properly.
"You promise you won't harm us?" one witch asked, her voice shaking.
"Of course. I said I wouldn't force you. I didn't say you had to join."
"Isn't that right?" Vlad replied with a relaxed smile, as if chatting with a friend.
While that witch foolishly tried to argue, the others quickly realized the danger. Some transformed into crows, others mounted brooms—they all fled as fast as they could.
"Oh, dear lady… time's up."
Vlad sighed and looked at the last witch regretfully, then casually ended her life.
Though, he thought, God probably wouldn't welcome her either.
Watching the others flee across the sky, already a kilometer away in seconds, Vlad grinned with disdain.
"Now, let me show you what true power looks like."
He raised his arms high.
The wind roared louder. Thunder cracked again and again.
Then, from the dark clouds and mountain valleys, came a tide of bats. Countless flapping wings filled the sky, forming rivers of black that merged into a vast sea—an overwhelming ocean of darkness that blotted out the sun.
With a single wave of Vlad's arm, tens of thousands of bats surged into a monstrous torrent, like the arm of a god crashing down from the heavens.
The scene struck every witch with awe and fear.
Some collapsed, their legs too weak to stand.
Even the braver ones trembled.
After witnessing such power, the witches had only two thoughts: gratitude for surviving—and pure reverence for the terrifying man before them.
And among them, more than a few now saw Vlad not just as a leader…
But as a god.
...
...
Read 40+ chapters ahead! Please support my work on patreon.com/CloudOfDreams.
Also please give reviews.
Thank you!