Chapter 132: Founding of ‘Ophiuchus’ (2)

Kerwin Leopold returned home but could hardly remain the face of the Family. It was a time even more intolerant of Vampires than now and, consumed by his desire for blood and his quest for Enlightenment, he decided he wasn’t in a good enough headspace to lead the Leopold Family anyway so he recused himself. He kept a few of the Loepold Family’s most loyal men with him, rewarding them with the gift of Vampirism should they please him enough in the completion of their tasks which were simply to bring him those he could feed on. Soon, it was clear that they needed to expand. There were starting to be too many disappearances in the Capital and environs and to bring down the scrutiny of the Empire’s strongest monster hunters and Vampire haters upon them would not bode well no matter how hidden they were. They needed humans who could accomplish the mundane tasks of human/humanoid hunting for them. And, to even further make things more stealthy, they might as well only take what they needed from their targets—Blood—and dispense of their bodies. And that formed the foundation of ’Ophiuchus’. Led by Kerwin’s spawns so he could retain a tight leash on the entire operation, it was soon clear that it was a waste to spend such a powerful force that they had quickly amassed on just getting humans to feed on when they could use it to bolster the Leopold family. All in secret of course. It took decades to refine the idea and spread the renown of ’Ophiuchus’ while maintaining its secrecy. It took quite a bit of meticulous planning and implementation to take contracts and keep the organization’s name from the lips or knowledge of anyone besides the members. Most of the proceeds went to the Leopold Family’s wealth and all information received through the shady dealings was used to secure their standing within the Acheron Capital and their relationship with the Imperial Family. And it all started because Kerwin Leopold wanted to become Immortal. "How do you know all this?" Arlette asked. "Does it matter how I know?" Caius asked. "Yes," Arlette said intensely, "Yes, it does. We’re about to accuse the Leopold Family of colluding with Vampires!" "Oh I think it’s fair to say they’re doing more than colluding with Vampires," Caius said with a little laugh, "No member of the Leopold Family has died of natural causes since the days of Kerwin Leopold. They all just lie about their advancements in Magical enlightenment. The lower the Magic Circle they claim, the quicker they can claim they’re nearing the end of their lifespan and need to seclude themselves to try breaking through to the next Magic Circle. At least for those who are well known enough to need the charade. The others just vanish and no one gives a damn. Those who choose the elaborate ruse, use it to phase themselves from society. They wait until barely anyone checks in anymore and then join Kerwin who turns them into a Vampire so they can all live eternally together." "That’s..." Arlette started but seemed to be finding it hard to choose the word to use. "Brilliant?" Caius supplied. Arlette gave that a thought and then decided it worked and nodded. She had never really considered becoming a Vampire herself but she would be lying if she said she didn’t see why someone would seek the path. The tale Caius just told her stated the most common reason: Immortality. Also, she had spent too many years rounding up people to be used as Vampire feed to now look upon that way of life with disgust. Hell, she had spent two weeks so far nursing a Vampire directly from her body. Caius smiled and shook his head. "Oh, you have no idea," he said. "There’s more?" Arlette asked in disbelief. They were close to their destination now. They had crossed into the large territory the Leopolds had been granted so members of their Mercantile empire could live close, be cared for, and held accountable. "Well, of course," Caius said, "You don’t think they’re content to live forever in secrecy, do you? While every other family has lost their Ancestors to age, the Leopolds have remained intact. Every genius that has ever come from the family since the days of Kerwin Leopold still breathes and still roams the underbelly of the Acheron Capital. You can’t seriously think it’s all to no end, can you?" Arlette frowned but said nothing. Caius glanced at her then as he continued, "Plus, that’s only speaking purely of the Vampires who bore the name ’Leopold’ while they were human. The others, the first of Kerwin’s spawns, are spread all over the Empire running the various bases of ’Ophiuchus’ all packed full of human members they trained themselves. With the humans all versed in the best interpretations of the Arcane Codex that money can buy..." Caius trailed off a bit here and Arlette knew the reason why. She was one of those human members and had apparently been nurtured for a grand scheme. She glanced at Caius with her lips pressed together before she returned her eyes to the road. "I don’t intend to fight in any one’s wars," she said stiffly. "Would you have a choice?" Caius asked gently, "You’ve done all they’ve asked of you thus far. Will going to war really be where you’ll draw the line?" Arlette frowned even harder but couldn’t say anything. She couldn’t refute. Even now, her words seemed to have just been reactionary. She still had a great sense of loyalty to ’Ophiuchus’. All she had learned today hadn’t quite changed that... Just increased the scope massively. "Don’t worry," Caius said then, "That’s why we’re here. To ensure you won’t have to join in something like that because a couple of idiots think they have what it takes to take down an Empire." That was an arc of [To Kill A Demon Lord...]; ’The Rise of Ophiuchus’. Up until that point, Aurelius had had a few run-ins with the organization not out of personal vendetta per se, but rather the contracts they had taken. For the first couple of Arcs of the story ’Ophiuchus’ remained an underground force that’d pop up its annoying head once in a while, get that head cut off and slick off to lick its wounds, before returning at a later time. And then the reveals began and it became a force to be reckoned with. Interestingly enough, it was still not personal with Aurelius exactly. However, ’Ophiuchus’ trying to take over the Acheron Empire certainly affected every main character. They had immense wealth at their disposal. More wealth than the entire Acheron Imperial coffers could hold and they had their forces far too strategically placed. They looked damn near unbeatable. Until they weren’t. "You still haven’t told me how you know all this," Arlette piped up to say then. Only now did she realize how well Caius had changed the subject when she asked him just a few minutes ago. "Later," Caius told her with a light smile, "We’re here." ••• The Leopold Estate was grand. If the Von Helsing Estate, despite its insane size, still gave off a homely and peaceful air because of the stones used to build its buildings, the Leopold Estate seemed to be going for the exact opposite. The marble used to carve the buildings glimmered as sunlight hit it. So many parts were gilded with gold and there were so many different statues all over that added to the look. And that look was meant to show you and make sure you didn’t miss the fact that the family who called this place home were insanely, ostentatiously, rich. Arlette’s carriage was stopped at the Gate as Guards stepped close to look in. They spent less than a second eyeing Arlette and Caius—successfully avoiding getting too distracted by the beauty of the two of them—and opened their mouths clearly to demand why they were here. Caius cut in immediately. "I am Caius Von Helsing. This beautiful lady here is Arlette Louvene. We’re here to see Lord Kieran Leopold." Arlette rolled her eyes when he said her name. ’Like they give a crap who I am,’ she thought with a mental scoff. Sure enough, the moment they heard Caius’s name, the ears of the Guards perked up without caring for the name he called after. "Von Helsing, you say?" They asked and eyed the Lochxen uniform he had on. "Yes," Caius said. "Can you prove that?" One of the Guards asked, deciding that the fact that Caius seemingly attended Lochxen was not proof enough.