There was complete silence.
No birds sang and no wind howled in the ruins of the castle.
The only two people left alive in Cainhurst Castle besides Annalise and Logarius stared at each other.
The murder in Gairm's eyes was very pure. Instead of being fueled by hate or shame, it was the cold practical answer he came to after having his secret revealed.
The ramifications of this were far greater than what an onlooker might initially think. Because this truth revealed that Vilebloods could be created. And what's more, they could be created by the Healing Church.
The miraculous ability of blood manipulation would push the Church to even greater heights. With a little showmanship, it could easily be seen as the act of a god. If Laurence had that power in his hands, then Yharnam's surrounding territories and perhaps even the entire continent would fall into his hands.
And this thought maddened Gairm.
"Why do this?" Gehrman asked. There was no deep reason for the question, it was simple curiosity.
"You're blind if you can't see it." Gairm let his head drop. Defeat pressing down on him. "The use of Blood is a perpetual machine that will create more and more beasts until there are no humans left. Hunters use the Blood to hunt beasts, then they themselves become beasts, only to be hunted themselves. There is no end to it. Especially not with Laurence in charge."
"Laurence is ambitious. He is naive and doesn't understand the weight of his actions," Gehrman admitted with narrowed eyes. "But you make it sound like he has purposefully planned this."
Gairm's head shot up. His body straightened and a cracking sound escaped his broken ribcage. Wild hate filled his eyes.
"He did plan this, can't you see!? That man is not naive, he knows full well the destruction his Church brings," his eyes pierced Gehrman's soul. "Laurence is evil."
Gehrman felt his hair stand on end at the viscous proclamation. The Hunter of Hunter's said it with such conviction that it made him stop and consider the idea.
Laurence isn't an especially kind person. Especially when compared to how he acts when playing the Vicar. But he isn't some evil mastermind. He simply gets too caught up in his studies.
"Everything he does is for the good of the people. He helps the injured and cures the terminally ill."
"Everything he does is for the evolution of people!" Gairm put heavy emphasis on the word. "He doesn't give a damn about Yharnamites. He would burn an entire city to the ground if it meant the advancement of his goals."
Gehrman flinched.
At those last words, something deep within him resonated. Memories of Laurence started to play in his mind unbidden.
Laurence obsessing over specific types of poisonous Blood in this Nightmare; old and powerful poison that seemed to be created from a heavy concentration of Vermin.
It was a corrosive toxin that encompassed entire regions, causing many of them to become unlivable.
Burn a city to the ground…
The image of Old Yharnam was thrust into his mind. Corpse filled streets and foul stenches. Burning pires and overwhelming beasts.
Poisonous beasts.
…Why were the beasts in Old Yharnam poisonous?
Laurence reasoned that it was a particular strain of blood that caused this. A toxic mutation he called Ashen Blood.
In his First Nightmare, he said that he thought it came from the Pthumerian Labyrinth underground…but that made no sense.
The Labyrinth was utterly massive, the entirety of Yharnam was unknowingly built over it. But if that was the case, then why was only Old Yharnam affected?
A bead of sweat dripped down the side of Gehrman's forehead.
Ashen Blood held the properties of both The Blood of Great Ones that created beasts, and the poisonous properties of Vermin.
Everywhere else in the world that had Vermin in heavy concentrations had unique beasts that adapted to the number of Vermin around them.
Old Yharnam's beasts were the same as any other, they simply had the poisonous effect added on top.
It felt artificial, manufactured, and most of all, it felt like an experiment.
What would happen if we mixed these two types of Blood?
No…Laurence wouldn't have condemned an entire city to burn.
And yet, he found it hard to deny that the Ashen Blood was likely created by Laurence and the Healing Church.
Perhaps the initial experiment got out of hand. Maybe they didn't expect the Ashen Blood to spread and infect others like a virus.
But that didn't really matter.
If the Church really did experiment on Yharnamites, even if it was only a few, then they were undoubtedly evil.
"I couldn't kill him outright. You brought up a good point when mentioning the injured and terminally ill," Gairm's mad voice had faded, now it dripped with solemn remorse. "The city would have been up in arms, and the Church would have simply replaced him and called him a martyr and saint."
"So you tried to create a counter to them. Something to keep them in check," Gehrman surmised.
"And it worked. The Church's expansion slowed as they drained their resources to combat the Vilebloods. In a perfect world, they would have continued to fight each other forever, neither growing to their full destructive potential."
Gehrman frowned.
Despite there being logic in Gairm's actions. There was still something inherently wrong with him. He came across as a savior, but in reality he had still killed hundreds, if not thousands of people both directly and indirectly. His actions worsened the disparity between Cainhurst commoners and nobility. And the only ones that directly suffered from the Vileblood attacks were his own Workshop Hunters.
"Well…you've given me a lot to think about," Gehrman said.
His hand tightened around the weapon in his hand. Despite the context making his actions seem more understandable, it did not dull Gehrman's desire to kill him.
"At the end of the day though, you still abandoned your duties," Gehrman drawled. "The Hunter of Hunters is supposed to take out Blood Drunk Hunters, not take down Churches. You really shouldn't have taken the oath if this was your plan all along."
Moving the scythe on top of his shoulder, Gehrman casually reached out his left hand. The gesture was reminiscent of someone asking another for a thing they had loaned. And indeed, this was very appropriate.
Gairm understood what the hand meant. He squirmed a little before opening his mouth.
From it, the Hunter's Oath spilled from his mouth.
The words were percisce, and each of them carried a deeper Arcane meaning behind them. As Gehrman heard each word and committed them to memory, a familiar Rune began to form in his mind.
It was the Oath Rune he had wanted since he realized he could equip Runes.
Deep in his very being, the Hunters Mark fused with him.
He felt his senses sharpen even further and a familiar energy raced throughout his muscles, blood, and bone.
The Arcane concept of a Hunter seemed to be made specifically for Gehrman. No one in all of history had ever embodied the Oath more than he.
And true to his Oath, he raised his blade.
And true to his word, he killed quickly.
Transcendent bodies were far, far more durable than those of even the Ascended Rank. Even with the [Burial Blade (Sealed)] fully augmented with Transcendent Blood, it would not be able to leave more than a scratch on someone like the Bloody Crow of Cainhurst.
However, the man had already succumbed to terrible wounds, all Gehrman had to do was sever the last thread of life left in him.
[You have slain a Transcendent Human, Bloody Crow Gairm.]
[You have received a Memory.]