Episode 324
“We express our regret over the significant damage caused by the sudden monster attacks in the ghetto areas and to the Empire’s peacekeeping forces…”
The news spread like wildfire across the continent, painting a picture of the situation.
The widespread appearance of monsters was deemed an anomaly, leading to casualties in the ghetto regions and among the Empire’s stationed troops. Many went missing while trying to fend off the threat.
Among the missing were Morgan Buffon, the Empire’s legion commander, Abel Draker, a knight of the Draker Order, and William Siemens, heir to the Siemens family.
Carly Draker, having received an alliance proposal from the Joins, officially recognized the independence of the Western Alliance, composed of the Joins and Beastmen, and pledged support.
Carly announced that the Draker Order was dispatched to hunt down the monsters and “protect” the isolated Empire troops.
This protection extended to the second prince, Leonardo Crowley Constantinus, and Daria Calvi, a knight of the Inma Palace.
The Empire demanded the return of these two, but due to the quarantine imposed by the rampant mutant red plague, they refused any external access or extradition.
Zeke read through the newsletter and chuckled softly.
“Reaping what they sowed, I suppose.”
Had the Empire seized the autonomous district and dealt with Zeke and the Black Sword Order, they would have likely issued a similar statement.
Zeke handed the newsletter to Daria Calvi, who sat across from him.
“Lighten up. I brought breakfast myself, didn’t I?”
In front of Daria was a traditional Empire breakfast: eggs, bacon, toast, and baked beans.
The fortress, once held by the Empire’s troops, was now under the Black Sword Order’s control.
Daria Calvi, along with the second prince, Leo, found themselves in a state of not-quite-detention within the fortress.
Daria glared at Zeke and spoke.
“How long do you plan to keep us here?”
Zeke took a sip of his well-brewed tea and replied.
“I told you, once the tests for the mutant red plague are done, you’ll be free to go.”
Daria shot up from her seat, unable to contain her frustration.
“Enough with the excuses! Do you really think you can hold the mighty Empire’s forces with such nonsense? The Drakers’ vile manipulation of the truth will be exposed to the entire continent!”
Zeke looked at her calmly.
“Haven’t I shown you all the evidence of the Empire’s wrongdoings? It’s too clear to deny.”
Daria was momentarily at a loss for words. Even she couldn’t refute the evidence Zeke presented, which clearly documented the Empire’s transgressions.
Her loyalty to the Empire was strong, but her mind acknowledged the truth in Zeke’s words.
Zeke offered her a cup of tea.
“Why not calm down and have some tea?”
Daria bit her lip, then sat back down, taking the tea in one swift gulp before slamming the cup down.
With a determined look, she began to eat her breakfast with fervor.
Zeke watched her and spoke.
“Don’t take it too harshly. If I send you back to the Empire now, the regents will surely pin all the blame on you. You might just be demoted, but the knights of the Inma Palace, being commoners, could face execution.”
Daria’s hand trembled slightly as she speared a piece of bacon with her fork.
She knew all too well that Zeke’s words were plausible, given the Empire’s way of handling things.
Having finished his tea, Zeke stood up slowly.
“I’ll send you and the prince back to the Empire when the time is right. But whether you stay or return is your choice.”
Daria looked up at Zeke, her eyes sharp.
“Are you trying to recruit me to the Drakers’ side?”
“That would be ideal. But it’s your decision.”
“If I choose to return to the Empire, you’ll let me go? Even knowing I’ll be part of their forces again? That’s laughable.”
“Part of their forces… Do you really think that’s possible? You have many enemies within the Empire. Can you maintain your position upon returning? Even if you rely on Duke Craven’s protection, you’re not his official heir. Unless you reach the rank of a Black Knight on your own, I doubt the Empire will wait for you.”
Daria couldn’t argue against Zeke’s reasoning.
‘How does he know all this?’
Zeke Draker wasn’t just a talented knight. He possessed a rare insight into the Empire’s intricate politics.
Zeke spoke again.
“Take your time to think it over. The knights of the Inma Palace are good comrades, aren’t they?”
After he left, Daria clenched her fists, trembling with frustration.
‘Damn it.’
Zeke’s words were irrefutable.
Returning to the Empire as a defeated commander would mean she’d be demoted for failing to protect the prince, and the knights of the Inma Palace would likely face execution or imprisonment as an example.
The weakening of the Empire’s forces was of no concern to the regents, who were only interested in their power struggles.
‘Zeke Draker…’
Daria’s face was clouded with worry.
‘She’s almost convinced.’
Zeke visited Daria every morning, repeating similar arguments.
Initially, Daria had resisted fiercely, but as she came to terms with her situation, she began to waver.
‘Daria Calvi values her comrades deeply. She knows better than anyone that returning to the Empire means she can’t protect them.’
Zeke planned to recruit Daria to form a mounted archer unit.
With Claire leading the archers and Daria commanding the mounted archers, they would secure the battlefield’s rear.
‘I’ll give it some time.’
In the afternoon, he needed to meet with the second prince, Leo.
Unlike his conversations with Daria, which were aimed at persuasion, his talks with the prince were to gauge the current state of the Empire.
Most importantly, he needed to learn about the emperor’s condition.
‘There’s more to him than just a madman obsessed with immortality.’
In his previous life, the emperor had clung to power, relentlessly seeking the Elder Dragon’s relics.
Zeke’s return had altered history, seemingly affecting the emperor’s situation, and he needed to understand the implications of these changes.
Zeke checked the time before meeting Leo and returned to his room.
He retrieved Solomon’s Ring from his inventory.
Though he had sealed part of the Rider of Blood and Madness’s power, he couldn’t use its full potential like the higher-level dream demon Pan.
‘Unless it’s fully sealed, I can’t access its powers.’
While it was a bit disappointing, sealing the Rider’s power had already dealt a significant blow to Siemens and the Abyss faction.
He put the ring away and sat down, opening the system window.
“Hmm.”
Zeke pondered over the system window.
For days, he had been wrestling with it.
The reason was the special reward he received from the random box after absorbing the Colossus’s body.
‘A skill book. Who would’ve thought?’
It was a new system feature he had acquired.
The skill book allowed him to purchase recorded active skills using karma points and sell his skills to earn more points.
Zeke had been staying at the camp, researching new skills and combinations, drawing inspiration from the dragon language magic formulas he brought from Nirvana to create useful combat skills.
He checked his status window alongside the skill list.
[Advanced Administrator Status Window]
Name: Zeke Draker
Class: Immortal (Unique Grade)
Titles: Blessed by the Ancient Dragon, Heir of Terracan Draker, Successor of the Sword Saint, Knight of Radiant Light, Blessed by the War God, Conqueror of the Tower, Successor of the Hero King, Glory of the Sea God, Grace of the Divine Beast, Patron of the Grand Mage, Blessed by the Fairies
Powers: Dragon Kin Control, Decay, Fortune, Shadow Control, Charisma, Rewind, Freeze, Flame Manipulation
Physique: War God’s Body, Immunity to All Poisons, Sword Spirit Body, Dragon God’s Body
System Functions: Inventory (1,000 slots) / Mini-map / Portal Travel (1 companion) / Advanced Quest Book / Skill Shortcut Slot / Potion Shortcut Slot / Item Crafting / Defense Mode
Passive Skills: Healing Factor / Indomitable Will / Infinite Stamina / War God’s Senses / Limit Break
Special Skills: Elemental Sword [SS Rank (Proficient)] / Infinite Sword Technique [SS Rank (Novice)] / Soul Sealing Technique [A Rank (Novice)] / Spirit Fusion [S Rank (Proficient)] / Holy Light Technique [S Rank+ (Novice)] / Colossus Hunting Technique [A Rank (Expert)]
Active Skills: Lightning Strike [A Rank (Novice)], Lion’s Roar [A Rank (Proficient)] Magic Reflection [A Rank (Proficient)] / Area Buff [A Rank (Proficient)] / Stealth [A Rank (Novice)] / Curse Reflection [A Rank (Expert)] / Blade of Purification [A Rank (Proficient)] / Communion [A Rank (Novice)] / Bloodlust [S Rank (Proficient)] / Amphibious [B Rank (Novice)]
Dragon Skills (Stage 4 Unlocked): Absorption (Beginner) / Word Magic (Skilled) / Dragon’s Breath (Skilled) / Dragon Warrior (Skilled+) / Dragon Wings (Beginner) / Dragon Summoning (Beginner)
Available Karma Points: 27,856
Looking at the status window, it was clear how much stronger he had become since the first time he opened it.
“All that karma from hunting those massive beasts really paid off.”
Zeke pondered whether to use his karma to reorganize his active skills and create new combinations, or to prioritize unlocking the fifth stage of his dragon skills.
“Unlocking stage 5 requires 8,000 points. Even with the 20% discount from my dragon form, that’s still 6,400 points. If I want to unlock skills too, I’ll have to use up almost all my karma…”
Dragon skills were powerful, but they demanded a hefty amount of karma points.
The real issue was the sheer amount of energy required for these skills.
From stage 3 onwards, the energy demand was so high that even Zeke, with his dragon heart, found it burdensome.
For instance, the Dragon Summoning skill he acquired at stage 4 consumed so much energy that he could barely use it.
“I thought I could summon a tyrant with this skill, but it was just too much to handle.”
Unless he fully unlocked the heart of Bahamut, these skills were nearly impossible to use effectively.
Unlocking the fifth stage of dragon skills would be pointless if he couldn’t wield them properly.
After much deliberation, Zeke decided to invest his karma points in refining his active skill set.
He planned to discard unnecessary skills and focus on those useful in combat, preparing for potential confrontations with the empire’s knights and mages.
First, he got rid of the amphibious skill he rarely used.
“I can just use potions for that, so let’s sell it.”
He managed to gain 1,500 points by selling the amphibious skill, having gauged its market value.
Unlike items, the buy-sell price gap for skills wasn’t too wide.
“Only bloodline abilities or ancient artifacts can absorb skills, but low-level attack spells are rarely left in artifacts, making it hard to create combo skills.”
After visiting Nirvana, Zeke realized that absorbing magical items didn’t automatically register them as skills.
Only ancient artifacts could absorb skills, but they rarely contained the low-circle magic needed for combos.
However, skill books contained skills with effects similar to basic magic, allowing for the creation of combo skills.
Using the dragon word magic combo chart he received from Xeroth, Zeke crafted a combo that matched his lightning skills.
“Done.”
He combined water-based magic with his lightning skills for a powerful effect.
“A water bomb with a Waterball effect, Confusion for disorientation, Friction Reduction like Grease, and then linking it with my lightning skills should replicate the dragon word magic Xeroth showed me.”
Just as Zeke finished organizing and purchased the skills with his karma points, a new message appeared.
[Successfully purchased skills from the skill book.]
[A new category, ‘Combo Skills,’ has been unlocked.]
[You can now save up to five skill combinations in slots and use them with a single command.]