Alex walked at a slow pace toward Iosefka's Clinic with one single goal — to obtain the blood of the saint, who was Iosefka herself. Following the same path he had taken not long ago, Alex ignored the Yharnam resident who had already revived. For him, this was just another confirmation that ordinary people in Yharnam were forever trapped in the nightmare and would resurrect endlessly.
Lost in his thoughts, Alex stopped at the iron gates of Iosefka's Clinic. He noticed that the iron gates he had kicked open with his foot earlier now stood in place and were simply open, as if they had been carefully opened rather than broken down. Taking a cigarette from the pocket of his new hunter's coat, Alex brought it to his lips and pondered.
Exhaling cigarette smoke, he began to roughly understand how this world actually worked. From the very beginning, Alex had been sure that the residents of Yharnam would endlessly return to life, as if restarting the natural cycle of events for them.
But what really interested him was why special monsters, considered bosses in the game, did not resurrect, and why some people retained their sanity after so many cycles.
"Too many questions I want answers to. Sigh… Alright, I'll act step by step, like in the Dark Place," Alex said quietly, exhaling cigarette smoke and lightly stretching his neck.
Taking another drag, Alex stepped onto the territory of the graveyard next to Iosefka's Clinic. Walking the same path, he noticed that the clinic doors, which Alucard had kicked down, were now also simply open. And the gravestones that had been destroyed by the kicked-down doors now looked as if no one had touched them for a long time.
Everything looked as if nothing had happened and all the destruction had vanished without a trace. Shaking his head, Alex approached the doors of Iosefka's Clinic and began descending the steps, holding a cigarette in one hand and the Hunter Axe in the other. Descending into the clinic hall, he saw the revived werewolf.
As soon as Alex noticed it, the werewolf also caught the new scent and sharply raised its head. The werewolf bared its bloodied teeth and dug its claws into the wooden planks under its paws, leaving deep grooves.
"Come on, doggy. Don't waste time," Alex said, lazily waving his hand and inviting it to attack.
In response to his words, the werewolf emitted a low guttural growl and dug its claws even deeper into the floor. It did not take its eyes off Alex and began slowly creeping forward like a cautious predator, staring straight into his eyes. Alex himself stood lazily by the steps, waiting for the beast's next move.
The werewolf moved sideways like a wolf, trying to find a convenient moment for a sudden leap. This creature had once been a patient of the hospital, but now it had become a real beast with corresponding habits. It sensed another predator in front of it that had wandered into its territory.
Alex stood in place and slowly smoked his cigarette, watching the werewolf out of the corner of his eye. When it had circled far enough around him and, as it seemed to itself, ended up in his blind spot, the werewolf decided to attack. Digging its claws into the planks, it sharply leaped forward, opening its jaws to sink its teeth into Alex's throat.
But before the teeth could close, Alex directed the Hunter Axe toward the beast. He activated the mechanism on the handle, and the blade instantly shot forward. The handle lengthened, and the sharp blade pierced straight into the werewolf's mouth, passing through its throat and grazing vital organs.
"Heh… Dog kebab. But I don't like the way you're looking at me," Alex said, chuckling at his own joke and looking at the werewolf impaled on the axe.
Alex smiled widely, baring his sharp teeth and not hiding his intentions toward this "kebab." The werewolf remained impaled on the blade and handle of the axe, miraculously still alive thanks to its incredible vitality. Even though the blade had passed through its throat and internal organs, it still reached its clawed paws toward Alex.
Alex held the axe by the very end of the extended handle, so the werewolf could not reach him. Seeing that the beast was still not dead, Alex, still smiling widely, lifted the axe along with the impaled werewolf above his head. With a sharp swing, he slammed the beast's body against the wooden floor.
The planks immediately cracked, and splinters flew in all directions. Alex continued to smash the werewolf's body against the floor and walls until it turned into a shapeless mass of bones, flesh, and fur. Looking at this shapeless pile, Alex lightly shook the axe to throw off the remaining flesh from the blade and handle.
"Now it's dog mince… I hope no one heard that. How creepy," Alex said in an embarrassed tone, returning the Hunter Axe to its compact form.
Alex awkwardly cleared his throat because of his stupid and inappropriate jokes. Shaking his head, he decided to focus on why he had come here. At that moment, he least wanted to waste time on ordinary monsters that would not help him better understand the structure of this world. Lighting a new cigarette, Alex took a deep drag and exhaled the smoke.
He roughly understood what was happening here and how everything worked, but that did not stop him from seeing everything with his own eyes. Adjusting the hunter's hat on his head, Alex moved deeper into Iosefka's Clinic. Entering the next hall and stepping over the corpse that the werewolf had once again failed to finish eating, he tried to ignore the strong smell of medicine mixed with blood.
Pausing for a moment near one of the hospital beds, next to which stood an IV drip with a red murky liquid inside, Alex wondered if he could collect Blood Echoes from this drip. Touching the glass wall with his finger, he felt nothing.
"Hmm… Doesn't work. Oh well," Alex said, removing his finger from the flask.
He felt no Blood Echoes from this medicine, only a very faint, barely noticeable trace of the Great Ones' blood. The concentration was so insignificant that it wasn't even worth paying attention to. Shaking his head, Alex moved on.
However, the method of creating such medicine using the blood of the Great Ones interested him. Alex knew that in some universes they also used the blood of deities to create medicines and other things, so this did not surprise him. All that interested him was the technology of the process. Entering the next room, Alex slightly raised an eyebrow when he saw the Messengers' lamp.
He had thought that the lamps would not appear in the same places as in the game, considering that this was the real world. Seeing nothing wrong with it, Alex just shrugged, approached the lamp, and touched it to light it. When the Messengers' lamp lit up, the Messengers themselves immediately came to life and began stretching their small hands toward Alex.
"Later, little ones. I have other things to do right now," Alex said with a cheerful smile, looking at the Messengers.
In response, the Messengers continued to stretch their small hands toward him. And before climbing the stairs to meet Iosefka, a strange idea formed in Alex's head.
Freezing in place, he took out the crystallized Blood Echo he had collected from the previously killed werewolf. Squatting down next to the Messengers' lamp, Alex was not completely sure of his theory, but that did not stop him from testing it.
"Come on, which one of you little ones will help me test this," Alex said, extending the Blood Echo toward the Messengers.
One of the Messengers grabbed the crystallized Blood Echo with its small hands. At that same moment, it disappeared into a gray ethereal puddle. Seeing that the Messenger had taken the Blood Echo and left, Alex raised an eyebrow in surprise. He became very interested in what would happen next.
Lighting a new cigarette, Alex waited for the Messenger's return. He squatted, propping his cheek with the hand holding the cigarette, and played with his finger with the remaining three Messengers.
They tried to catch his finger with their small hands, making sounds of distant whispers. When the cigarette had burned halfway, the Messenger returned, holding a small bottle of liquid in its small hands. Alex immediately recognized the item — it was a Blood Vial.
"Ho… So in exchange for Blood Echoes, you brought me a Blood Vial… Everything is getting more interesting…" Alex said, stroking his chin.
Alex took the Blood Vial from the Messenger's hands and put it in his pocket. He became very interested in how this strange exchange of Blood Echoes for items worked. After all, in the game, nothing could be exchanged with the Messengers outside the Hunter's Dream. Rummaging in his pocket, Alex took out two more Blood Echo crystals and placed them in the hands of two Messengers.
Receiving the Blood Echoes, they immediately disappeared. Alex noticed that the exchange took about a minute, so he did not mind waiting. Just a minute later, two Messengers returned.
One held a leather bundle in its hands, and the other held a bottle of Molotov cocktail. Taking the bundle from the first Messenger, Alex realized it was mercury bullets and immediately put them in his pocket, while placing the Molotov cocktail bottle next to himself.
"So the items you bring are random. Is that right?" Alex asked, stroking his chin and looking at the Messengers.
In response, the Messengers only began waving their hands and making distant whispers that even Alex could not make out. Stroking his chin and looking at them, Alex wanted to figure out how this exchange system worked.
Reaching into the pocket of his hunter's coat, he felt the only remaining crystallized Blood Echo orb he had collected from the first killed Yharnam resident. Bringing the crystal to his eye, Alex tried to understand what the exchange depended on, considering that no one would explain exactly how everything worked here.
"In the game, at least there were prices and numbers. Here you have to do everything by guesswork… Hmm, what does this exchange depend on," Alex said, examining the crystallized Blood Echo.
Alex instantly realized he had done something stupid because he had only one Blood Echo crystal left from the Yharnam resident's body, and no others to compare. And asking the Messengers for clarification simply made no sense.
Deciding to do one last check before going up to Iosefka, Alex took the Molotov cocktail that the Messenger had brought and tried to give it back. But the Messenger stretched out its small thin hands, pushing the bottle away and clearly indicating that it was not going to accept the item.
"So here you only accept Blood Echoes for exchange. Good to know," Alex said, putting the Molotov cocktail into the inner pocket of his hunter's coat.
From this trip to Iosefka's Clinic, Alex got more than he expected: he confirmed some theories about this world, better understood how the exchange worked, and how Blood Echoes could be used. Straightening up, he quickly made a few notes in his notebook and immediately put it back in his pocket.
He understood that he had been in this world for only two hours, and even if time stood still here until certain events, there was no need to rush some things. Glancing at the stairs leading upstairs, Alex began making plans for the future that would help confirm his remaining theories.
Lighting another cigarette, he began climbing the steps to meet Iosefka. Reaching the very top, Alex saw the closed doors of the room where he and Alucard had begun their journey in this world.
Lightly knocking on the door, he heard the distant sound of quick footsteps approaching the door. The steps grew closer until a barely visible silhouette of a woman in the white robe of the Healing Church appeared on the other side.
"You are that man who ended up here… Have you gone out hunting? I'm sorry, but… I cannot open the door. My name is Iosefka," Iosefka said, seeing Alex's silhouette on the other side of the door.
"Why did you close the doors? When we left, the door was open?" Alex asked, putting on a surprised expression.
"The patients of my clinic must be protected from infection. I know you two are hunting for us, for our city, but I'm very sorry. I cannot open the doors," Iosefka said with a note of sadness in her voice.
"I wouldn't say that… Oh well. If you won't open the doors, and I need materials inside, could you give me some?" Alex asked with a strained smile on his face, leaning his back against the door.
"I can see what you need. Just tell me," Iosefka replied with obvious relief in her voice.
Alex took out his notebook and wrote a list of reagents he needed to create certain things without using magic. Writing the list from the book he had taken in the Hunter's Dream, he slipped the sheet of paper under the door. Iosefka saw the sheet on the other side and picked it up.
She quickly scanned the list and immediately left. Listening to the receding footsteps, Alex continued smoking while waiting. The wait did not last long, and after ten minutes he heard Iosefka's quick footsteps returning.
When she approached the doors, a small window opened in the lower part, through which she pushed out a small bag in which glass vessels clinked. Iosefka quickly placed the small bag on the floor and immediately closed the hatch.
"Unfortunately, this is all I can give you. There isn't much, but I think it will be useful for your hunt," Iosefka said in an embarrassed tone.
Alex picked up the small woven bag and looked inside. He saw a small amount of reagents, a pocket watch, and a small vial with a pale yellow liquid.
In fact, Alex needed only two things from this bag the most — the pocket watch and the vial with Iosefka's blood. He could have found all the other reagents if he had searched. Alex was not very surprised that Iosefka had given him her blood herself.
"Thank you, these things will be useful. But what is this liquid?" Alex asked, addressing Iosefka and pretending he did not understand.
"It is my blood. It can heal you if you are in danger. I understand there are two of you. But please, try to understand me. I can only pray that the hunt is successful," Iosefka said in a sad tone, placing her hand on the door from the other side.
"Mmm… I see. I think, thank you. Strange little town you have here… Thank you again," Alex said, putting Iosefka's blood in the pocket of his coat.
"I'm sorry… that I don't have anything more for you. I can only pray for you. May light be with you in the night and in your fate!" Iosefka said, genuinely worried for Alex, even though she could not see his face.
Alex held back a sarcastic comment about how no prayers would help here. Shaking his head, he lightly tapped the back of his fist on the door, hinting that he was leaving. Iosefka heard the receding footsteps and left the room to return to her work.
Descending the steps, Alex slung the bag over his shoulder. He saw no reason to stay in Iosefka's Clinic any longer and decided to return to Alucard. Alex knew that his wife was currently dying of boredom, and he could feel her emotions. Leaving Iosefka's Clinic, Alex took the pocket watch from the pocket of his coat and opened it.
He saw that the watch hands were frozen in one position and twitching slowly, as if something was preventing them from moving forward. Holding the watch in his hands, Alex left the clinic grounds and glanced at the Cathedral Bridge.
Remembering that the Cleric Beast was on that bridge, Alex thought that killing this monster would confirm his theory. Glancing once more at the frozen watch hands, he put them back in the pocket of his coat.
"I hope she won't be too angry that I took so long," Alex said with a strained smile on his face.
Alex was not completely sure how Alucard would react to his delay. Approaching the gates he had previously opened, Alex, without turning his head, pulled out the Hunter Pistol and fired backward. The mercury bullet hit the head of a Yharnam resident who had decided to attack him from behind.
Having killed the nuisance, Alex moved his finger and collected the Blood Echoes, which he immediately put in his pocket. Moving up the street of Central Yharnam and covering his nose, Alex passed by a monster burning on a bonfire. Walking a little further, he saw the torn bodies of Yharnam residents who had become victims of Alucard's hands.
The further he walked, the more dismembered bodies and scattered parts he saw. Alex noticed the body of one poor soul impaled on the sharp bars of a fence. Another looked as if it had been pressed into the wall of a carriage with a press and then smeared across it with whatever was left. Alex was not surprised by his wife's cruelty and simply continued walking.
Along with Alex's rhythmic footsteps on the road, the sounds of burning bonfires and crackling bones spread. And along with these sounds, he heard the voices of Yharnam residents who had locked themselves in their houses and had not yet completely lost their minds, but were only gradually losing their sanity. From the houses came simultaneous crying, laughter, and other insane sounds.
Walking further, Alex saw a large bonfire on which the body of a huge werewolf was burning. But the most noticeable thing in this place was not the execution of the werewolf itself, but the slaughter that had occurred here. Alex looked at the bodies of the killed with slightly pursed lips.
Some were impaled on their own muskets so that the barrels stuck out of their mouths. Others had been used as firewood to start the bonfire. Alex counted at least no fewer than thirty bodies killed in a particularly cruel manner. And in the center of all this sat Alucard.
She was sitting on the roof of a destroyed carriage, her black hair gently swaying in a wind that did not actually exist, and her red eyes looked at the brightly burning bonfire. On her lap sat the black cat familiar that Alex had created specifically for collecting Blood Echoes. Sensing Alex's presence, Alucard slowly turned her head and looked at him with her red eyes, in which the light of the bonfire was reflected.
"You took a long time," Alucard said in a bored tone.
"I was checking some things… I see you had quite a bit of fun here," Alex said, pointing his finger at the body of a resident impaled on a musket.
"It wasn't enough. And this little one killed all the fun. He absorbed all their blood," Alucard said, running her fingers through the cat's fur.
"That's why I created this familiar — so you wouldn't put in your mouth what you shouldn't," Alex said, leaning his back against the carriage on whose roof Alucard was sitting.
"How caring… Why were you delayed?" Alucard asked, rolling her eyes and shifting her gaze back to the bonfire where the body of the large werewolf was burning.
"I found a couple of interesting things. Learned something funny related to the Messengers. And obtained the blood of a saint for you," Alex said with a light smile.
"Blood of a saint? Are there such people in this world?" Alucard asked, looking at Alex with interest.
"In this world there are women with special blood. In the Healing Church they are called saints. Simply because their blood can heal," Alex said, taking out the vial with Iosefka's blood.
Alucard looked at the vial with the murky pale yellow liquid that Alex was holding in his hands. She showed some interest in this so-called blood and softly jumped down from the roof of the carriage, standing in front of Alex. The black cat familiar jumped onto Alucard's shoulder. It also looked at the liquid in its master's hands.
Without waiting for Alex's permission, Alucard grabbed the vial with the blood, opened the cork, and brought it to her nose to assess the smell. Alucard sensed an aroma that was both attractive and alarming: a thick, rich sweetness reminiscent of condensed honey or syrup, but with a light bitterness and a hint of something ancient and alien.
"What smell do you sense?" Alex asked with interest, watching Alucard's reaction.
"I have drunk the blood of women who were called saints. But this blood smells different… I would say that this is exactly how the blood of a saint should smell. Intoxicatingly sweet," Alucard said thoughtfully, examining the vial with Iosefka's blood.
"Before you drink it, I want to say that I don't know what effect it will cause. I already told you whose blood is used to create medicines in this world. And Iosefka is a saint, and the concentration of the Great Ones' blood in her blood is much higher than in those medicines. On one hand, this blood has strong healing properties. On the other hand, you are a Nosferatu, and a very powerful one at that…" Alex said in a thoughtful tone, beginning to stroke his chin.
Alex began muttering various theories under his breath. Alucard looked at him with a blank gaze and, instead of guessing, preferred a practical approach. She brought the vial with Iosefka's blood to her lips and immediately drank its contents. The moment the blood touched her tongue, Alucard felt an intense rich sweet taste with a strange bitter aftertaste, as if small bitter crystals had touched her tongue.
But at the same moment, she felt a rather strange and interesting sensation inside herself. The shadow behind Alucard began to writhe and lengthen, taking the form of the Baskerville Hound. Alex, busy with his thoughts, immediately noticed the appearance of the Baskerville Hound and shifted his gaze to Alucard, who was holding the empty vial with Iosefka's blood. Alex looked at the hound again and noticed no changes in it, except that Alucard could once again summon her familiar.
"It seems this blood is much more interesting than I expected," Alucard said with amusement in her voice.
"Hmm… It seems Iosefka's blood helped you recover," Alex said in a surprised tone.
"Just a little. But yes. I wonder what will happen if I drink her completely," Alucard said, looking in the direction where Iosefka's Clinic was located.
"No. We already discussed this. No more other souls in your body. I need only you," Alex said, looking at Alucard with a gaze devoid of any emotion.
"Hahahaha… How cute you are when you're jealous. Do you want me to kiss you? So you can calm your jealousy," Alucard laughed loudly, lifting Alex's chin with her finger.
"I wouldn't refuse. But not because I'm jealous, but simply because I don't mind kissing my wife. Yes… That's exactly how it is," Alex said, folding his arms across his chest and nodding his head.
"You're acting like a child… But I like it when you're like this," Alucard said, leaning closer to him and almost touching his lips with hers.
Alex rolled his eyes and wanted to object that he was not acting like a child. But before he could say anything, Alucard had already kissed him on the lips. The kiss did not last long, and after it Alucard burst into light laughter, looking at Alex's face. Gently shaking his head, Alex took Alucard by the hand and led her after him.
The passage further down the street was blocked by closed wooden gates. Not wanting to take a detour, Alex raised his leg and kicked the wooden gates. The massive wooden gates were torn off their hinges after Alex's strike, and the mini-giant who was standing behind the doors at that moment was immediately buried under them.
Still holding Alucard's hand, Alex climbed onto the fallen wooden doors and jumped lightly. Immediately after that, there was a crunching sound as if something had been crushed, and blood began to seep from under the door. Alucard looked at this with a cheerful smile and followed Alex. The black cat familiar did what it had been created for and immediately absorbed the Blood Echoes.
Walking further, Alex and Alucard found themselves in a spacious courtyard where an elegant marble fountain stood in the center, which was not working. From all sides, the voices of Yharnam residents could once again be heard, who were simultaneously laughing and crying. And along with this insane laughter and crying came the light sound of bells hanging on the trees.
Stopping, Alex began thinking about where to go. He remembered that if they went right, they could climb to the Cathedral Bridge, where the Cleric Beast lived, and if they went left, they could meet the hunter Eileen. Both options suited Alex, but first of all he needed to understand what Alucard wanted.
"My love…" Alex said, turning his head toward Alucard.
And as soon as he turned his head, he realized that Alucard was no longer beside him. Starting to look around quickly, Alex heard the sounds of gunshots, the growling of dogs, and the sound of flesh being cut apart. Sighing to himself, Alex understood that the choice had already been made for him. Lighting a cigarette, he headed to the right side.
Climbing the steps higher, Alex saw half of a dog's corpse that looked as if someone had bitten off the other half. Passing by the corpse by the well, whose head had been smashed against that well, Alex raised his gaze to the steps leading to the Cathedral Bridge. Climbing the steps onto the bridge, he saw how Alucard had torn a werewolf apart with her bare hands — from its maw to its tail.
"Couldn't you wait for me?" Alex asked, leaning against a stone monument.
"Why? You started making that thoughtful face of yours again, so I went ahead," Alucard said, throwing the two halves of the killed werewolf off the bridge.
"Oh, Father. Give me strength… Just a little," Alex said, pinching the bridge of his nose at Alucard's response.
"Don't dramatize, my love. I endured everything you did. Now it's your turn to indulge my desires," Alucard said, walking up to Alex and poking him in the chest with her finger.
Alex looked at Alucard with a tired gaze, but at that same moment a loud howl echoed across the area, coming from the direction of the Cathedral Ward. Alucard's head immediately turned toward the howl, and a wide smile appeared on her face. Alex once again pinched the bridge of his nose, mentally cursing the Cleric Beast for not being able to wait before letting out its howl.
And before Alucard rushed forward, Alex grabbed his wife by the waist, not letting her go in search of the Cleric Beast. At that same moment, Alucard's face was covered in shadow, and her red eyes turned to Alex with a silent threat for him to let her go.
"Don't look at me like that. Your threats won't work on me. There's something I need to do before we go there," Alex said, continuing to hold Alucard by the waist.
"You know what kind of creature is there, don't you?" Alucard asked, narrowing her eyes.
"Yes, at the end of this bridge is the Cleric Beast. A church servant who turned into a monster. And this monster is special," Alex said, still not releasing Alucard from his hands.
"Let's assume this monster is special. And what do you want to do?" Alucard asked, stopping her resistance and calmly looking at Alex.
"Just testing one theory. You'll be the one killing it anyway, and you'll be the one drinking its blood too. I only need one thing from its body to test the rest of my theories," Alex said, releasing Alucard.
"You should have started with that. Then let's go. Or are you going to come up with a bunch of reasons again for us to go somewhere else instead," Alucard said with a lazy smile on her face.
"I can offer a meeting with the hunter who hunts other hunters," Alex said with a strained smile on his face.
"Can I kill her and drink her blood?" Alucard asked, posing the most obvious question.
"No… She is kind of useful for my plans… As long as she is alive, you will be able to kill other hunters and drink their blood," Alex said with a strained smile on his face.
Alucard looked at Alex with a blank gaze, clearly letting him know that she was not going to go looking for a woman she would not even be allowed to touch. Having expressed everything she wanted with her gaze, Alucard turned around and walked in the direction from which the Cleric Beast's howl was coming, clearly hinting that she was going to kill this monster, whether he wanted it or not.
Alex lit a cigarette and followed after Alucard. After all, after killing the Cleric Beast, they would be able to return to the Hunter's Dream, where Alucard could absorb all the Blood Echoes that the black cat had collected. And Alex was interested in seeing how Alucard would kill the Cleric Beast.
To be continued...
(I've been thinking for a while about how to properly explain the Game's mechanics in the real world, and I have some ideas. Or maybe I should just skip the hassle and go with the flow. I mean, it's easy for me to explain how the Envoy's Font should work, in the real world, not the game world. Or how to obtain the Madman's Knowledge. And all that. I'd just feel disgusted if I didn't explain how it should all work. Anyway, it's mealtime. Peace, love, and monster, stop running away.)
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