"One drop to fill a small keg?" Feela the Behemoth grunted. "It’s enough to turn dozens of humanoids into Thralls every day. The transformation is gradual, so Meln needs to give small doses every day. It’s amazing his army was that small." "Undead Divine Beasts are always dangerous, but this is much worse." Inxialot the Lich King said. "Melina doesn’t need to feed on his peers to maintain his powers, and his Upyrs will not fear sunlight after the transformation is complete. "Once your dumb younglings realize it, there will be a line to join Melgoth’s ranks around the block." "Hey!" Lotho jumped from his seat. "Plant folk are not the enemy. Meln is." "I wasn’t referring to you, Lotho." Inxialot looked at the Treant like he were dumb. "I was referring to all of you." He then pointed at Feela and Raagu. The two women flushed in outrage but said nothing. They knew young Awakened were indeed reckless and stupid enough to consider Orpal’s offer. "The silver lining is that we undead couldn’t join him even if we wanted." The King of Liches continued. "We can only take one of Night’s prisms, but I doubt anyone is foolish enough to do it after what happened in the past." "This raises an uncomfortable question we all have, Lith." Feela shifted awkwardly on her seat. "Forgive me for asking so bluntly, but you are the only one who can answer it. Are Upyrs superior to your Demons?" Lith pondered for a while, trying to find the right words to avoid alarming the Council. "Your question is simple, but the answer is not." Lith replied. "We have to admit that Meln can create more Upyrs than I can conjure Demons, and that while my soldiers fade, his remain. "To make matters worse, my Demons draw their powers from me. The Upyrs will depend on Meln’s blood only during the Thrall phase. Once the transformation is complete, their power will be their own, and Meln will be unburdened to create more." "This is just terrifying." Raagu shuddered at the thought. "You’re telling us he could potentially replace the entire Awakened population in a region in a matter of months." "Indeed, but there are many catches." Lith raised his hand for silence. "My Demons are loyal. They don’t do anything or go anywhere without my permission. Meln’s Upyrs are only bound to him by the need for his blood. "There is no loyalty. Once a Thrall becomes a real Upyr, nothing stops them from walking away, and Meln knows it. Also, I can raise my Demons in a matter of minutes, and they are immediately ready to fight. "Upyrs are adult Awakened who spent decades to reach their current level, if not centuries. It takes them months to become full Upyrs and even longer to master their powers. The more effort they put in their training, the less willing they will be to die for Meln." 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚 "I see what you mean." Feela mulled over those words. "The Upyrs could rebel, run away, or even betray Meln in exchange for a full pardon from the Council. He can’t just take everyone in." "Exactly." Lith nodded. "Meln needs Awakened who already have at least the bright blue core. He can turn them into deep violets easily, whereas going from deep blue to bright blue could take years. "Yet the more he gives, the fewer reasons his Thralls have to stay loyal to him. He can draw people to his side, but he can’t keep them." "In other words, he’s a paper tiger." Inxialot understood where Lith was going and laughed in amazement. "What do you mean, a paper tiger?" Lotho furrowed his brows in confusion. "You’ve seen the video of the battle for the Stonewall Fortress. Those Upyrs were strong and fought to the bitter end!" "Only because they were still Thralls." Inxialot tutted. "Meerkat had the leash of the next infusion to push them forward. Without that, how many do you think would have followed his orders?" "Are you telling me…" "I am." Inxialot nodded. "Manatee’s time is limited. Once the first Upyrs are on the verge of fully transforming, he will be cornered. If he completes the process, the Upyrs might easily rush to us and sell Muskrat’s skin to be accepted back among our ranks. "After all, they got the secret of the violet core and have become Divine Beasts. They know we would gladly welcome them back into our fold in exchange for Walrus’ head. Why fight a madman’s battle when you can get a seat in the Council and a palace? "If he keeps his Upyrs as Thralls, instead, no one will have any interest in remaining. They’ll realize they are just under a poor man’s slave collar that only works because they allow it to. "Either way, his army is bound to collapse." "So the Upyrs are better for an individual to gain power, but your Demons are a much better weapon." Raagu said. "I don’t like your definition, but yes." Lith nodded. "My Demons are like a blade. I can take it out and sheathe it when I’m done. Meln’s Upyrs are like a plague. It takes a long while to concoct it, and once released, he has limited control over it." "Why a plague?" Feela asked. "My Demons can’t make more Demons without my permission." Lith shrugged. "I doubt Upyrs can use their blood to sire Upyrs of their own, since having Meln’s life force mixed with their own makes the Upyrs hybrids. "There can only be one Vurdalak. Yet, Upyrs are alive and can still reproduce the old-fashioned way." "Good gods!" Feela said. "If the Upyrs’ children inherit the abilities of their parents, even after we defeat Meln, they would soon become one of the dominant bloodlines of Mogar. Maybe even become the sixth race in the Council!" "Maybe, and maybe not." Lith shook his head. "Upyrs are still hybrids stuck between their original life force and the one Meln shared with them. Even if they are stable, I doubt their offspring will be that lucky. "A hybrid’s life forces are bound to clash at some point, and when that happens, there are only three possible outcomes. The children discard their Upyr form and revert to their original nature, they embrace it and turn into Vurdalaks, or they are given no choice at all and just die. "That’s why I called the Upyrs a plague. If we let them spread, Meln’s blood will leave deep scars on Mogar that will last long after he is dead and forgotten." *** As time passed, Kamila’s womb swelled to the point that it was impossible to hide the pregnancy. The Royals were annoyed for being left in the dark, but when Lith explained his reasons to them, the Royals could only agree with him. "Too bad Meln didn’t take the bait." King Meron sighed. "It would have solved all of our problems without the need to lift one of our fingers." "Thank the gods I didn’t take the bait!" Meln was thousands of kilometers away from Lutia, but fear made his heart pound so hard that he was afraid it could burst out of his chest. "It would have ruined my plans and put an end to my life without Leech lifting a single finger!"