Episode 208
With a burst of energy, Zeke’s sword strike pierced through the Blood Golem, leaving gaping holes in its body. The fragments of his attack seemed to have struck the core, causing the Golem to waver and its form to collapse into a pool of blood.
The sticky mass that was once the Blood Golem melted away, losing its shape entirely. The shards of Zeke’s attack didn’t stop there; they continued on, slicing through the blood magic circle and striking Garin.
“Ugh!”
Garin, who had been channeling power into the Golem while preparing a new spell, couldn’t dodge in time. His arms and legs were punctured, yet he persisted, completing his incantation.
Zeke, catching his breath, turned his attention back to the Golem, intent on finishing it off. But the creature had already reverted to a pool of blood, being absorbed back towards Garin.
Just then, from the crimson magic circle, a mix of blood, bone, and flesh erupted, forming a new figure. A knight clad in blood-red armor, mounted on a similarly armored steed, emerged, exuding a menacing aura.
Arataso gasped in awe. “A Blood Knight! To see the cursed knights of Blood Keep again!”
The Blood Knight, armed with a long lance and shield, advanced. Runes emitting a chilling energy were etched into his armor and shield.
“Out of the frying pan, into the fire,” Zeke muttered, quickly absorbing mana stones to replenish his energy. He faced the Blood Knight, channeling the power of purification. A golden aura spread outwards.
Simultaneously, a red mist began to rise around the Blood Knight, blocking the purifying aura and shielding Garin.
Seeing this, Zeke infused the wave of his powerful attack into the purifying aura.
The golden aura surged, attempting to disrupt the Blood Knight’s energy. Meanwhile, Garin began chanting another spell.
From Garin’s shadow, a red mist emerged, gradually forming into a swarm of small, red bats that flew towards Zeke, obscuring his vision.
“Ha!” Zeke calmly expanded his aura, disintegrating the bats sent by Garin.
Seizing the opportunity, the Blood Knight charged at Zeke, his cursed runes glowing ominously as they resisted Zeke’s aura.
The Blood Knight, having partially overcome the purifying aura, thrust his lance, wrapped in a red energy, at Zeke.
Zeke parried the lance with his sword, Bahamut, the clash echoing loudly.
The Blood Knight’s strikes were heavy, and with each attack, the speed and force increased, pressing Zeke further.
Gripping Bahamut with both hands, Zeke deflected the lance and counterattacked.
The Blood Knight’s lance broke through Zeke’s defense, striking first.
The clash of sword and lance resounded, forcing Zeke to step back and catch his breath.
“Brute force alone won’t work. I need to become one with the sword and read the flow,” Zeke resolved, trusting in the path he had forged.
Releasing the mana-draining spell, he focused solely on his sword.
With a fluid motion, Zeke wielded Bahamut, his movements leaving afterimages.
He dodged the lance with an illusionary step and unleashed a spinning attack.
His sword struck the side of the horse, causing the Blood Knight to stagger.
Not missing a beat, Zeke advanced, unleashing a powerful wave attack.
The force swept over the Blood Knight, eliciting a reaction for the first time.
Riding the momentum, Zeke unleashed a whirlwind technique.
His sword cleaved through the ominous energy surrounding the Blood Knight, splitting the armor without the need for an aura blade.
Zeke realized he was reaching a new level of swordsmanship.
“The aura blade is just a manifestation of inner energy. The true essence lies in the sword’s will itself.”
His sword sang with power as he moved forward.
Behind him, Garin shouted at the Blood Knight, “Kill that human now!”
At his command, a blood-red energy erupted from the Blood Knight’s armor, enveloping his lance.
The deathly rider charged at Zeke, the compressed red energy forming a deadly lance aimed at him.
In that moment, everything seemed to slow down for Zeke. The lance, the knight’s breath, the horse’s movements, even the air’s flow—all became clear to him.
“What is this?” he wondered, as he moved his sword in harmony with the flow.
With ease, Zeke’s sword sliced through the Blood Knight’s lance.
The Blood Knight let out a cry, charging at Zeke without pause.
Zeke leaped, spinning in the air, and cleaved the knight’s head in two.
The Blood Knight’s helmeted head split apart, and his lance fell from his grasp.
His body disintegrated into a mix of blood, flesh, and bone, crumbling away.
Zeke unleashed the power of purification on the remains.
The Blood Knight, exposed to the purifying force, turned to black ash and vanished.
Only the ominous armor remained where the Blood Knight had stood.
Zeke turned to face Garin, who conjured another red mist.
This time, Zeke sliced through the mist with his sword, his will alone enough to cut through the intangible fog.
“How dare a mere human challenge a noble Royal Vampire like me…,” Garin began, but Zeke didn’t wait to hear more.
As Garin’s eyes flared with a final desperate glow, red mist surged from his body, coalescing into a massive spear.
Garin hurled the red spear at Zeke.
The spear spun towards him, but Zeke calmly assumed the stance of the Dragon Slayer technique.
He imbued his sword with intent and unleashed the Dragon Cleaver technique.
The red spear, despite its ethereal nature, was cleaved in two by Zeke’s strike.
Garin, in disbelief, cried out, “To cut through blood magic… impossible!”
But then he sensed something amiss.
Cracks began to form on his body.
“No, it can’t be!” Garin reached out towards Zeke.
The Dragon Cleaver had not only split the spear but also Garin himself.
His body fractured and crumbled, releasing red smoke before disintegrating into ash.
Yet Zeke did not stop there.
He continued to swing Bahamut, lost in a trance, as a mirage-like aura rose from his sword.
Zeke glimpsed a new world, one he had never seen before.
“This is what I couldn’t see before,” he realized.
At some point, he halted his sword.
The sensation of wielding the sword was different now.
“I’ve surpassed the aura blade, reaching a level where I can wield the sword with will alone. I’ve found the key to the Astral Sword.”
Zeke stood on the brink of becoming a Black Knight, a rank held by only eight across the continent.
At just nineteen, he was nearly there.
Calmly collecting his thoughts, Zeke sheathed his sword and surveyed the spot where Garin had vanished.
Amidst the scattered ashes lay a lavish dagger Garin had carried.
Zeke gathered Garin’s dagger and the Blood Knight’s armor.
“If I hadn’t gained this insight during the battle, I might not have survived,” he reflected.
At that moment, a message appeared before his eyes.
[You have flawlessly conquered the third hidden stage.]
[The Realm of the War God is in awe of your incredible abilities.]
[A reward will be granted for successfully completing the stage.]
[Determining your reward.]
[The reward is being delivered to you.]
As the message vanished, three random boxes materialized in front of Zeke.
Two of them gleamed with a golden light, while the third shimmered with a strange, multicolored hue.
“What is this? It’s like a rainbow of colors.”
Another message popped up.
[For surviving the third hidden stage, you receive 10,000 experience points.]
[For your unbelievable prowess in conquering the hidden stage, you are awarded two special random boxes and an extra-grade random box.]
“Extra-grade?”
Zeke approached the boxes slowly.
He decided to open the two special random boxes first.
As expected, a golden light spilled out as he opened them.
Zeke examined the artifacts inside.
“A medal and… is this a book?”
He checked the details of the medal and book from the special random boxes, along with the dagger he had picked up earlier and the Blood Knight’s armor.
―Armor Details―
Description: Armor of the Blood Knight guarding the Blood Keep
Unique Ability: Blood Field
Special Note: Cursed if worn by the living.
―Dagger Details―
Description: Dagger of the Royal Vampire
Unique Ability: Summon Blood Golem
Special Note: Can summon a Blood Golem using the wielder’s blood as a medium.
―Medal Details―
Description: Medal imbued with the power of the Royal Vampire
Unique Ability: Blood Mist
Special Note: Can cast ‘Blood Domain’ using the wielder’s blood as a medium.
―Book Details―
Description: Ancient Bloodline Magic Tome
Unique Ability: Bloodline Magic Transmission
Special Note: A secret tome passed down among Royal Vampires, containing ancient bloodline magic cast using blood. (Only learnable by the vampire race)
Zeke couldn’t help but exclaim in awe as he reviewed the artifact details.
“Artifacts imbued with the power of the Royal Vampire? That’s incredible.”
Having faced Garin himself, Zeke knew firsthand how formidable the Royal Vampires were, making these artifacts all the more valuable to him.
As he marveled at his finds, Zeke glanced at the Bloodline Magic Tome with a hint of regret.
“Bloodline magic, huh? It must be powerful, but it’s a shame only vampires can learn it. I’ll keep it for now and see if it comes in handy later.”
He figured he could hand the Blood Knight’s armor over to Richmond for research later.
Zeke examined the Royal Vampire’s medal and dagger.
“The dagger can summon a Blood Golem, and the medal can cast the Blood Domain, which means I can summon that red mist the enemy used.”
The red mist, which served both offensive and defensive purposes, was highly valuable.
Zeke put on the medal and tried casting the skill.
A crimson mist rose from Zeke’s body.
He watched it, issuing mental commands, and the mist moved effortlessly according to his will.
Zeke smiled with satisfaction.
“It consumes a lot of mana, but it’ll be incredibly useful in battle.”
After storing the other artifacts in his inventory, Zeke stood before the final box.
He eyed the rainbow-hued random box with a mix of anticipation and tension.
The special random boxes had already yielded extraordinary artifacts, so he couldn’t imagine what might come from an “extra-grade” box.
Carefully, Zeke opened the box.
A dazzling array of colors burst forth.
“Ugh.”
The light was so brilliant that Zeke could barely keep his eyes open.
[You have opened the extra-grade random box.]
[You receive 500 Karma Points as an achievement reward.]
Just opening the extra-grade random box granted him Karma Points.
As the light subsided, Zeke could finally see the artifact inside.
Surprisingly, it was a rather ordinary item.
“A ring?”
Inside the extra-grade random box was a simple, brass-colored ring.
Zeke picked it up and examined its design.
The ring bore a unique insignia—a star formed by overlapping triangles.
At that moment, another message appeared before Zeke’s eyes.
[You have obtained the legendary item ‘Solomon’s Ring.’]