Third Person's POV
A thriving market of flesh and blood operated beneath the surface of civilization.
From there, they were scattered throughout the Blood Veil Continent and most likely would never see freedom again.
Ethan's fingers curled into fists. He had long since abandoned the naive ideals of justice, but even so, there were limits to what he could tolerate.
He had no interest in heroism but he despised the weak being preyed upon by vermin.
A soft sound behind him drew his attention. Virelle was staring at the cave walls and her expression was shadowed by sothing unreadable.
She is thinking the sa thing that I am thinking right now.
anwhile, Velcy stood in silent rage as her tail flicked aggressively and her cat-like claws twitched at her sides.
She had been a victim to this network and Ethan felt sympathy for her.
Ethan's gaze shifted to the Blood Slave, who remained as still as ever in the darkness, its slitted crimson eyes gleaming with an eerie light.
Then, without a word, the Blood Slave lifted its skeletal hand again and a single ember of blood-red fire ignited at its fingertips.
It floated gently before dropping onto the remains of the fallen.
A roaring crimson blaze erupted and consud the bodies in a purifying inferno.
Ethan watched as the firelight bathed his features in a soft, flickering glow.
This world is violent. Unforgiving and twisted beyond salvation.
And I have no intention of changing that.
As the last of the flas flickered out, leaving nothing but ashes behind, Ethan turned to the others.
"Let's go. It is ti we leave and continue on our journey."
Without another word, they stepped away from the carnage and left the smoking valley behind.
Moving through the dark jungle, they returned to the clearing but Ethan's eyes imdiately sharpened as he noticed sothing amiss.
The clearing which had been filled with the grotesque remains of the hundreds of dead dark goblins was now completely empty.
Not a single corpse remained.
His steps halted as his gaze swept the surroundings and his senses heightened as he attempted to glean sothing abnormal.
He crouched and ran his fingers over the dry grass as he sought for any traces of their black blood or residual energy but there was nothing.
It was as if the entire battle had never happened.
"What happened here in these short monts while I was gone?" he asked in a calm voice though it was currently laced with suspicion.
"Where are the bodies of those wretched dark goblins?"
His gaze landed on Virelle and the Blood Slave as he hoped for a concrete answer.
Virelle hesitated and glanced at the Blood Slave, who stood motionless with its crimson eyes glowing faintly beneath its hood.
When the old creature remained silent, she eventually sighed and spoke.
"Sir Blood Slave perford a Blood Quintessence Extraction on them. He used their remains and their core essence to construct a one-ti-use sword."
Ethan's gaze flickered towards the Blood Slave, who remained still and had already sat on the carriage with his withered fingers resting on the reins of the carriage.
"A Blood Quintessence Extraction…" Ethan muttered and his mind started recalling what he had read in the Scarlet Hollow Castle's library.
The ritual was ancient and forbidden in many places and was known to strip the very essence of the slain and condense it into a singular weapon infused with their lingering souls.
However, the elite and strong vampires did not need to perform a lengthy ritual for it and could perform this magic technique instinctively.
As if in response to Ethan's muttering, the Blood Slave slowly lifted a withered hand.
A black wave gushed from his body and it twisted and congealed into a gleaming three-foot-long black sword before Ethan's eyes.
It was a beautiful yet grotesque weapon. Its blade was dark as midnight and was accompanied by an eerie glow.
The hilt bore the twisted face of a screaming dark goblin as it was forever immortalized in tornt.
The Blood Slave tossed the weapon toward him, and Ethan caught it with ease by its hilt.
His fingers brushed against the cold surface as he felt the unnatural weight and power pulsing from within.
"This is… impressive," Ethan admitted with an amazed tone, though his preference for sabers and axes over straight swords made him less enthusiastic about the weapon.
The Blood Slave's voice rasped and broke its usual silence.
"It is yours… young master. You killed all those filthy goblins, so you should keep it and use it in tis of crisis.
A weapon forged from the essence of your enemies. It can unleash a single, full-powered strike of a peak Crystal Formation being. Use it wisely."
Ethan nodded and stored the sword in his spatial ring.
"Thank you," he said, though his mind was already racing.
The Blood Slave's actions were calculated but its motives were sowhat unclear.
Was this a gift? A test? Or sothing else entirely?
With a final glance at the empty battlefield, they knew it was ti to move forward.
But before boarding the carriages, Virelle spoke up.
"Why don't we rest for the night? We have all been through a lot, especially you, Ethan. You need ti to recover."
"I was thinking the sa thing!" Velcy chid in softly with her blue eyes full of concern for him.
"Big Brother Ethan, you are exhausted and you are still healing. Let's rest for the night."
Ethan nodded in agreent at their propositions.
The continuous battles had drained him both physically and magically.
His body ached and his magic reserves were depleted. The residual burns on his neck and chest, though healing, still throbbed with residual pain.
"Alright. We will camp here for the night."
He touched his finger and retrieved a conical piece of fabric from his spatial ring.
He tossed it onto the ground and on touching the ground, it expanded into a spacious tent, large enough to accommodate three people.
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