Drawing Cards in the Middle Ages to Rise in Ranks-Chapter 356 - 45: Rat Plague

In the dim depths of the catacombs.

A dense mass of red dots, mixed with sharp squeaking of rats, instinctively sent a chill through Li Yena’s heart.

Even though the vast swarm of rats could be completely incinerated with just one Flame Burst Technique, posing her little actual threat.

What truly terrified Li Yena was that such a multitude of rats reminded her of the horrifying calamity recorded in the Empire Library’s annals.

The Justinian’s Plague!

It is said that during the plague, countless cities of the Empire turned into dead zones, and countless fertile farmlands with crops ready for harvest were abandoned, leading to the disappearance of a third of the Empire’s population.

In Constantinople, this densely populated city, thousands were dying each day.

In the face of the plague, lives were lost indiscriminately, whether bloodline nobles, bravely fighting generals, or humble commoners.

Wooden carts loaded with bodies operated day and night, failing to transport all of them outside the city limits, leaving them wrapped in mats, lying in the streets waiting to decay, gnawed by rats and mosquitoes.

One illustration in a book documenting the plague left a deep impression on her.

It depicted a ghoul with sparse green hair and shriveled skin like a mummy stuck to its skeleton, with a belly as swollen as a pregnant woman’s.

Bingeing in heaps of corpses until its belly burst, letting chunks of meat spill all over.

The ghouls, seemingly never able to fill their stomachs, were dying from overeating, giving a sense of how many lives were lost in that catastrophe.

Li Yena opened her hand, the originally lighting-up fireball suddenly enlarged, transforming from a fist-sized orange flame into a golden fire serpent, flickering with fiery tongue as it stared at the swarm of rats.

Seemingly aware of the threat finally, the rat swarm ceased its hesitation.

Squeak—

With dense squeaking, accompanied by an endless, pus-covered swarm beneath their wet fur, it came at her like a tidal wave.

Boom.

The golden fire serpent shot out, instantly unleashing boundless flames in that narrow underground world.

No one knows how much time had passed.

The fire gradually subsided.

The previously terrifying rat swarm that could devour any living thing now left only the burnt smell of fur and flesh and the lingering stale odor.

Li Yena covered her mouth and nose, frowned looking at the dark ash-covered ground, her mood didn’t improve much because she knew one thing clearly—rats in the Underground Palace couldn’t be wiped out clean.

She needed to notify Anna.

Retrieving the double-headed eagle badge she carried, she whispered into it, "I need support, Anna, bring Eve and Losa immediately to help me—I’ve discovered a disaster that could bury the entire Empire."

As she spoke, just as she planned to leave the Underground Palace, her steps halted.

She held her breath, listening closely to the rustling noise emanating not far ahead.

Are they rats?!

Li Yena widened her eyes, no longer caring about the mud and filth splattering her clothes, chanted a Magic Shield spell, and ran desperately towards the tunnel entrance.

Along with a loud crash.

The bricks cracked, and numerous cracks appeared on the ceiling above, from which countless disgusting pus-ridden rats crazily burrowed, in the blink of an eye, the fissures rapidly extended above Li Yena’s head.

Li Yena gritted her teeth tightly, the rats falling like rain, smashing against her body’s Magic Shield, and exploded into clusters of blurred bloody marks.

She realized she had done something foolish; her Flame Burst Technique had burned the bricks above her head.

The commotion had attracted neighboring rat swarms here now.

As she ran frantically, she swore that if she survived this time, she would learn short-range Teleportation Technique at all costs! Or spend a fortune and buy a treasure etched with a small Teleportation Array.

Damn, even if none of these options work, she had to at least learn a Floating Technique.

...

Empire Library.

Losa squatted by the pool, said to lead to Golden Horn Bay, watching for a long time but failing to catch another glimpse of "Nikou".

"Exactly what kind of Sea Dragon is Nikou?"

"I don’t know, but definitely a pure-blood Sea Dragon."

Anna looked at Losa’s doubting expression, and with some helplessness said, "No idea, there are so many Dragon Species in the world, many dragon kinds even exist singularly or are already extinct; Sea Dragons are even rarer than terrestrial dragons—you can’t expect sailors to draw its body and features just from seeing a shadow swim by underwater, can you?"

Losa suddenly understood.

"So, all Sea Dragons are collectively referred to as Sea Dragons?"

Anna nodded, "Yes, moreover, Nikou is still in her juvenile stage; many characteristics aren’t evident yet and might change substantially after a few molts."

Anna led Losa, slowly descending a layer from the top floor of the library.

Pointing to a nearby bookshelf she said, "The first row of the third column from the left houses a red-covered book with calf leather bound, a life guide of Dragon Species by Master Ratland, you might find it interesting."

Losa nodded, "Thank you."

Anna frowned and continued, "Though I don’t know how you filtered out the madness factors from Dragon Blood maintaining your humanity, I must advise you, if uncertain, not to continue tapping into Dragon Blood imminently."

To this advice, Losa of course readily accepted.

Dragon Blood indeed affects Losa, but far less compared to ordinary people.

Seeing him directly walking toward the bookshelf, drawing out that red-covered book, Anna could only hum slightly.

"I really hope not to hear someday that a Black Demon Dragon has appeared ravaging the countryside of Jerusalem."

Losa laughed, "Rest assured, I’m just curious."

A complete dragon life guide was indeed tremendously significant to Losa.

Dragon Species are rare, yet common; they say.

Being able to hold ten different categories of Dragon Blood, Losa had already contained six.

Meaning six slots out of ten Skill Slots are occupied.

Following this, he didn’t plan to randomly acquire from dragon-like creatures, such as Proboscis Dragon, Short-necked Dragon, which are slightly stronger than regular demons.

Not to mention the strongest known Copper-Horned Fire Dragon, at least hunting some high-tier dragons like Spine-backed Dragon was essential.

Seeing Losa engrossed, Anna smiled, just about to turn and descend the stairs when suddenly a scorching sensation emanated from the Double-headed Eagle Badge hanging on her chest.

She picked up the badge immediately recognizing Li Yena’s attempt to contact her.

"This gal won’t plan to push the ghoul clearing duty onto me for being too disgusting, right?"

Anna swiftly established contact, her face grew pale with the urgent message transmitted within.

"Losa, I need your help urgently."

Losa did not hesitate, "No problem."

Noticing something amiss in Anna’s expression, he promptly closed the book, returning it to its original spot.

"Is it extremely urgent?"

"Extremely urgent."

"So, what are we waiting for, let’s depart immediately."

Anna opened her mouth, failing to utter words of gratitude, simply grasped Losa’s hand tightly.

"Empty your mind, don’t overthink, I’m going to utilize the Empire Library’s Teleportation Array next."

With a flash of white light, both have already vanished from their original location.

Eve was deeply engrossed in reading a book about Spell Models, when suddenly a hand reached out from behind, grabbing her arm.

"Eh?"

The disheveled Witch managed only a gasp of surprise before her figure abruptly disappeared.