Chapter 257: Kal Is Dead?
It was my first ti seeing her in person.
Blood and snakes.
A being that evoked those two words.
Her beauty rivaled that of a golden-haired elf, and her figure was equally alluring. But the mont one beca captivated by that allure, they were reduced to a handful of bloodstains, becoming nothing more than her nourishnt.
“Excuse . It would be troubleso if such a valuable research specin were to be damaged.”
“And you call it ‘excuse ’ when you try to crush soone's head?”
“How unfortunate. You’re quicker than I thought?”
Crazy bitch.
Just from her aura alone, I had already figured out who she was.
The Blood-Drinking Chalice, Gram Seraphim.
Realizing that Gram would clash with Kal, I had hidden myself and waited until one of them fell. Then, like lightning, I struck from the shadows.
I tid it perfectly, targeting the mont a crack appeared in the fight due to Lyon's arrival.
The ambush was a success, and I hunted Kal.
But what I hadn't expected was her suddenly inserting herself at the end of the hunt.
She appeared before with her mask off?
Gram, who always hid her identity thoroughly while operating outside.
Even the stars of Demtor didn’t know her true face. Yet she had revealed both her face and abilities in front of .
Looking around, the black butterflies were gone.
I recalled what she had said just monts ago.
She had moved before things could be ruined.
She clearly understood Kal’s situation and acted swiftly.
“How did she know??”
She even knew exactly which direction Kal had fled.
But that question was short-lived.
Swsssh—
She drew out Kal’s true blood, exhaled lightly, then pulled her hand out from his chest.
Blood sprayed everywhere.
“Kuhk!”
Kal coughed up blood and collapsed weakly into her arms. She gently caressed his face and spoke.
“Kal, you can't die yet. We have to work on you before death sets in or the decay will be irreversible. Ah, I guess it's hard now that your true blood is all drained?”
She murmured as if whispering to a lover. It was truly chilling.
She showed no emotion at the death of another.
A textbook psychopath.
“Ah, this doesn’t quite balance the books......”
She muttered sothing aningless, fiddling with her ring, then looked at .
Her relaxed expression and the way she blinked—it gave off a vibe that wouldn’t make most people feel threatened at all.
“Well then, excuse .”
She turned her back as if to leave, but I moved urgently.
She's coming!
Vrrrip!
A cluster of crimson thorns stabbed toward from behind.
They had sprouted from the blood-soaked ground where Kal had fallen.
From the beginning, she had no intention of letting live.
I had seen her face and her powers—of course she wouldn’t.
Ppppppbbffft!
The thorns burst simultaneously, scattering a storm of blood.
If it made contact, it’d be dangerous.
I activated Spectral Form and shielded every inch of my skin.
Where it touched, red smoke hissed up, and the surface began to lt.
A snake with a wicked nature.
Unlike Kal, she was not soone I could afford to lower my guard against.
Seeing my response, her brow furrowed.
An expression of surprise.
“You’re a trickier one than I expected. I suppose it makes sense, considering what you did to Kal.”
From within her robe, she pulled out a vial and drank it.
Then, a spear ford in her hand, made of black flas.
Pointing its blazing tip at , she began to chant. I hurriedly raised my bow.
Vwooong!!!
A blinding light erupted as the bow ford.
I summoned an arrow of Divine Power and quickly scanned the surroundings.
Kal, who had been by her side, had vanished.
Where did he go?
[Above.]
“Ab—??”
Reto detected the anomaly and warned .
I saw Kal slowly rising into the sky.
And then,
KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIAK—
A grotesque screech ripped through the sky.
A gale roared in, and a massive shadow darkened the surroundings.
It was enormous.
A giant blue monstrous bird swept over the forest canopy. As its luminous blue feathers scattered through the air, my eyes widened in disbelief as I recalled the creature’s na.
The monstrous bird—Fortea??
It was unmistakable. Fortea was a summoned creature, a monstrous bird that served only one master.
“Arcane?!”
Arcane, the Prophet of Fate.
He was here.
I spotted a man atop the bird’s head as it calmly flew off with Kal in its grasp.
White hair fluttering in the wind.
The puzzle pieces finally clicked together.
Gram’s precise movents now made sense.
Arcane was her ally.
“To recognize Arcane so quickly... now I’m really curious about your identity.”
“You got Kal’s information from Arcane?”
“You even guessed that?”
She licked her lips and smiled.
“What a sha. If we’d t sowhere else, we might’ve beco lovers.”
“I’m not interested in the Ivory Tower’s archives.”
“...Did I waste this spell then?”
Having shown her face, she had no choice but to kill . She’d used a rare card. And honestly, I was beginning to wonder about this person’s identity.
Only for a mont though—then she smiled brightly and released the spear from her hand.
“I’ll just ask Arcane later.”
“My intel fee is expensive.”
The black fla spear floated midair.
That spell was unavoidable.
I pointed my bow and rapidly scanned her divine list.
I needed ti to think.
Should I seize the chance to kill her? Or should I preserve my life?
Offense or defense, I had to choose.
“Adding corpse delivery fees too, this trip’s a total loss.”
“That magic spear must’ve cost you sothing too. You wouldn’t use it unless you were absolutely going to kill .”
“You... who are you? You know Spear of the Scorching Fla?”
“Ask the demons when you get to hell. Who knows? If you sleep with them, they might tell you.”
“You’ve got jokes too, huh.”
Her expression hardened. She flicked her fingers. The flaming spear in the air ca hurtling at like a lightning bolt.
[Preserve your life.]
“Can’t I withstand it?”
[If the spell you’re thinking of is that one, then it’s dangerous.]
As soon as Reto’s calculation was complete, I clicked my tongue and released the taut bowstring.
“Damn it, if only I could’ve fired two arrows...”
Thung!
The divine arrow tore through the air.
At the sa ti, the spear moved like a living serpent and lunged toward .
One of Grand Duke Bersen Clarke’s ultimate techniques—Spear of the Scorching Fla.
Once struck, the cursed flas would burn until the target died.
Worse yet, once it chose a target, it would chase them until death.
I triggered Burst Strike and instantly retreated to gain distance.
[Incoming!]
The spear curved midair and ca streaking toward like a lightning bolt cutting through space.
The gap closed rapidly.
I stared at Gram with intense focus.
Divine Arrows, once summoned by a Divine Spirit, could never be avoided.
“...!?”
But the divine arrow pierced through her gesture and broke into a radiant halo.
Gram flinched briefly, then widened her eyes at the phenonon unfolding in front of her.
“What is this?!”
Fshhhhh—
The Spear of the Scorching Fla scattered in the air and vanished.
The ability I had sealed from her divine list was the core of the Blood-Drinking Chalice.
[Blood Master] (Sealed)
An ability to copy another's powers through blood-based elixirs.
She glanced at the other vials and noticed the change, her face growing confused.
That was how I survived.
And now—
“Reto!!!”
I triggered Burst Strike and shot toward Gram like a bullet.
Reto’s spirit energy gathered in my fists.
With piercing force, I unleashed Quanru.
The montum of Burst Strike and the spinning force of Quanru created overwhelming destructive power that rained down on Gram.
“Die!!!!”
It was ti to throw everything I had into killing her.
As I closed in with trendous speed, for the first ti, I saw an expression of panic on her face.
At the sa ti, her pupils turned a blood-red hue.
Just as Quanru’s fist was about to smash her head, a red shield appeared before .
A sticky, steaming barrier.
Glump—!
It stretched long as it absorbed my fist.
Like rubber, it didn’t pierce. My attack was blocked just before her face.
[Barrier of True Blood]
An absolute defense, one of her unique abilities.
It was an entry on her list that had made hesitate to seal it with the Divine Arrow.
I went mad, pumling the Barrier of True Blood with my fists.
There was only one way to break it—impact.
As my fists bounced off the gooey surface, her face began to distort.
Her lips turned blue, and monts later, she staggered, coughing up blood.
Just a bit more!
She was enduring all of my blows, containing Spectral Power, Quanru, and Enchantnts. The shock must have been trendous.
Her precious true blood was being depleted with every hit.
It was a perfect shield, but with a fatal flaw.
And now that Blood Master was sealed, all she could do was defend.
If I eliminated her here,
I could seize half the story of Demtor.
I’d gain an upper hand in the battles against the witches.
I had to finish it here.
Just as I hardened my resolve—
!?
My strength left , and my balance wavered.
It wasn’t my will.
The overwhelming energy vanished like a mirage. The golden light dimd.
The Divine Hunter’s effect had suddenly ended.
Kal...
He’s dead?
That bastard—useless even in death.
I steadied my stance and punched the barrier again, but the impact was clearly weaker than before.
Burst Strike...
Two shots remained.
If I infused one more—
“Danger!!!”
Then I heard Fenry’s urgent shout.
She rose from my shadow, grabbed , and teleported away again.
Where my shadow had been,
BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM—!!!
A terrifying magical bombardnt rained down.
Black-robed figures erged through the trembling forest.
Black butterflies.
They vanished back into the forest amidst clouds of dust.
So did Gram.
She was gone.
“We have to pursue!”
As I ca to my senses and shouted, Fenry grabbed my shoulder.
“You trying to get us all killed?”
Her voice made finally notice our group’s condition.
Pale as death.
The others were sprawled out, their wounds frozen over.
Fortunately, they were all still alive.
“What happened?”
But neither Rengua nor Lyon were in sight.
The ones on the ground were the Royal Guards and Shamans who held the line to the end.
“A giant bird snatched them up.”
“...A giant bird.”
That ant Arcane had used the monstrous bird Fortea to extract Rengua and Lyon.
But why those two, especially with Kal dead?
“Kal is dead.”
“You sure?”
I nodded, and Karl ca up from behind and said,
“Then the only one left alive is Rengua.”
Lyon, who held out until the very end, was half-dead. From the amount of blood he’d vomited, it was a miracle he was still breathing.
“His neck and back were pierced by Lochter’s sword, and my daggers went through him in three places. Not even Lyon’s grandpa would survive that.”
If Karl’s instincts confird Lyon’s death, it was as good as certain.
Rengua alone couldn’t do anything.
I had achieved the goal of eliminating Kal.
So why did this unease remain?
But I quickly shook off the thought and looked forward.
Gram Seraphim.
With Blood Nature, she had likely just begun to expand her influence in Demtor.
Right now, there was still a way to strike her a massive blow.
I’d already half-succeeded.
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