Episode 466
As Titus hesitated and took the offered hand, Zeke reached out with his other hand and covered Titus’s eyes.
Titus braced himself, expecting something to happen, but nothing did.
‘What is this?’
After a moment, Zeke removed his hand from Titus’s forehead, but nothing seemed different.
‘Was this guy just showing off for no reason…?’
But then, Titus realized something was off.
He found himself bound tightly in chains, unable to rise from the chair.
Struggling against his restraints, Titus tried to break free.
“Mmm! Mmm! Mmm!”
His mouth was gagged again, and he could only make muffled sounds. As darkness enveloped him, a towering staircase appeared, leading up to a massive throne.
Titus, bound and unable to move, could only look up at the throne.
He saw someone seated there and scrutinized the figure.
A man wrapped in bandages, with wild, unkempt hair.
The malevolent energy emanating from him made Titus feel as if his body was being torn apart.
‘Ugh…’
Just looking at the being on the throne made Titus feel like he was losing his mind.
His head filled with wicked thoughts, and madness surged within him.
Then, the bandaged man slowly opened his eyes.
The sinister figure, with glowing red eyes, looked at the bound Titus and spoke.
[Though faint, I can sense the power of our lineage within you.]
Suddenly, a third eye appeared on the man’s forehead, visible through the bandages.
The red eye was not a tattoo or a mark—it was a real eye.
Seeing this, Titus realized he was facing a legendary being.
He gazed at the man on the throne with a mix of awe and fear.
‘This is the true master of Shambhala, the king of all the Three-Eyed Clan. The ruler of all that is wicked.’
The Blood King, Caligula.
The very being whose power he sought to reclaim had appeared before him.
Caligula, seated on the throne, looked at Titus and spoke.
[Though you are a lowly offshoot, barely worthy of being called part of the clan, the potential in your blood is commendable.]
Caligula’s third eye began to glow with a blood-red light.
Titus met his gaze and felt a searing pain on his forehead, as if it were being branded with fire.
‘Ughhhh—’
Through this, Caligula attempted to escape Zeke’s inner world by embedding himself in Titus’s body.
He spoke to Titus.
[I will awaken the power within you. Do not fear, accept it!]
Sssss—
The color of the eye on Titus’s forehead deepened, and the pupil began to move as if it were alive.
“Ughhh!”
Titus felt as if his brain would burn out from the forceful intrusion of the Blood King’s power.
His potential was awakening, but his mind was on the verge of melting.
[You have no need for a brain. I will infuse your awakened body with my soul and make you a loyal puppet. Your task is to free me from this cursed immortal.]
Rumble—
Titus’s body began to tremble violently.
Even as Titus shook uncontrollably, Caligula continued to pour his power into him.
Just as the eye on Titus’s forehead flickered with light, a voice interrupted.
“That’s enough. Stop right there.”
Zeke appeared beside Titus, wielding the holy sword Ascalon, and aimed it at Caligula.
Vwooom!
The will of light emanated from Ascalon, cutting off Caligula’s malevolent power.
Titus, still bound to the chair, slumped over, exhausted.
Caligula, seated on the throne, ground his teeth at the sight of Zeke.
[Zeke Draker, you accursed immortal. You interfere once again.]
Zeke clicked his tongue at Caligula.
“Even as a mere soul, you still have a big mouth.”
Zeke slowly ascended the stairs, approaching Caligula.
Caligula, seated on the throne, spoke in a flustered tone.
[Even if you have devoured my soul, the spirit of Shambhala’s great king will never vanish. One day, I will claim your body.]
Despite being absorbed by Zeke, Caligula’s soul maintained its identity, occupying a corner of Zeke’s inner world.
Zeke shook his head at Caligula.
“You fool. I could have shattered your identity at any time. Do you know why I left you in a corner of my inner world?”
Standing before the throne, Zeke glared at Caligula.
At that moment, the holy sword Ascalon vanished, and shadows rippled from Zeke’s body.
The shadows coalesced, forming the shadow sword Caladbolg, which had merged with the Shadow Armor.
“I waited until I could turn your wicked soul into a shadow spirit.”
With those words, a black shadow rose from Caladbolg, aimed at Caligula.
Zeke’s power as the Shadow King slowly approached Caligula’s soul.
“The moment you opened your power to awaken Titus’s potential, I understood all your abilities. Thanks to that, I can now fully control the Blood King’s power.”
Realizing that his encounter with Titus was part of Zeke’s plan, Caligula shouted fiercely at him.
[…You, you insolent wretch!]
“Now is the perfect time to turn you into a shadow spirit.”
The shadow from Caladbolg swirled and enveloped Caligula on the throne.
[Kraaaah!]
Caligula struggled to escape the shadow, but this was Zeke’s inner world.
Though he had maintained his identity and endured, escaping this place was impossible from the start.
Soon, the shadow creeping over his body completely engulfed Caligula.
Rumble!
The shadow that swallowed the master of Shambhala flared up like a great flame, expanding and spreading in all directions.
After a moment, the fiery shadow subsided, transforming into a single form.
A message appeared before Zeke’s eyes.
[The wicked soul of Caligula, the fallen king of the Three-Eyed Clan, has transformed into a shadow spirit.]
[By fully absorbing Caligula’s soul and power, the title ‘Blood King’ is now fully activated.]
From the burning black flames emerged a shadow spirit with three eyes.
The specter of Caligula, dormant in Zeke’s inner world, had transformed into a shadow spirit.
[Under the influence of the power ‘Shadow King,’ a powerful shadow spirit is born.]
[The shadow spirit resists the power of the Shadow King with incredible mental strength.]
Despite becoming a shadow spirit, Caligula, once the king of Shambhala, astonishingly resisted Zeke’s power and refused to submit.
Zeke raised Caladbolg, aiming it at the shadow spirit Caligula had become.
“You make things difficult for yourself.”
With formidable mental strength, Zeke could wield even greater power within his inner world.
Soon, shadows enveloped his body, transforming into a larger, more formidable shadow than Caligula.
Rumble—
The massive shadow, filling the entire inner world, began to crush Caligula.
Roar!
Caligula resisted to the end, trying to escape Zeke, but it was futile.
The shadow tendrils coiling around him slowly took shape, becoming black bandages that wrapped around Caligula’s body.
Swish—
Bound in black bandages, Caligula could no longer resist Zeke’s power.
[The shadow spirit ‘Caligula’ submits to the Shadow King.]
[The elevated status of the submissive shadow spirit transcends the limits of a shadow spirit.]
[The shadow spirit ‘Caligula’ evolves into the shadow guardian ‘Caligula,’ registered as the user’s guardian.]
Zeke was surprised by the message that Caligula had evolved from a shadow spirit to a shadow guardian.
‘To evolve from a spirit to a guardian… Caligula’s soul is indeed on a different level from ordinary specters.’
The appearance of Caligula, now a guardian, began to change.
Sssss—
The black bandages covering his face vanished, revealing three red eyes. Simultaneously, his hair rose, transforming into burning black flames.
Around Caligula’s neck was a necklace of 108 prayer beads, and he wore a black kasaya.
Zeke realized the attire was similar to what the High Table’s Manna wore.
‘Was there a connection between Shambhala and the origin of the Great Church?’
With both Shambhala and the Great Church gone, the exact details were unknown.
As Zeke pondered this, Caligula, fully transformed into a shadow guardian, approached and knelt before him.
Thud!
Zeke looked at Caligula and spoke.
“Caligula. Will you pledge your loyalty to me as a guardian?”
Kneeling before Zeke, Caligula opened his mouth to speak.
[Immortal one, I pledge myself to you and am reborn anew. I, Caligula, will fulfill my duty as your guardian spirit and protect you.]
With his very soul bound to Zeke, Caligula appeared markedly different from his days as the Blood King.
Zeke, pleased with Caligula’s vow, nodded with satisfaction.
“Good. I look forward to your future endeavors.”
With those words, Zeke snapped his fingers.
His inner world shattered into pieces.
“Gasp!”
Titus, who had lost consciousness, suddenly came to his senses.
Realizing he was still holding Zeke’s hand, he recoiled in shock.
Zeke, with a calm expression, addressed Titus.
“Do you understand now who I am?”
In that moment, a powerful aura of the Blood King emanated from Zeke.
Having fully absorbed Caligula’s power, Zeke was now the embodiment of the Blood King.
Feeling the overwhelming force, Titus turned pale and trembled, immediately kneeling before Zeke.
“I, Titus, descendant of a humble lineage, greet the former Blood King, the pinnacle of all beings with blood.”
In the presence of Zeke, whose power was pure and unmatched, Titus could barely breathe.
Zeke looked at Titus and spoke.
“Titus, feel the power within you.”
Trembling with fear, Titus finally noticed the change within himself at Zeke’s words.
‘What is this…?’
Caligula had awakened Titus’s potential, elevating his blood power several levels.
Feeling the newfound strength coursing through him, Titus shivered with awe.
“Ah, the grace of the king… I have truly received the king’s grace!”
Zeke, unfazed, looked at Titus and asked.
“Are you and your sister the only ones of the Three-Eyed Clan here?”
Through the wisdom of the dragon, Zeke had learned of Titus’s sister, Yulina.
Titus raised his head and replied.
“Yes, my king.”
“I read that your initial cooperation with the Abyss was to reclaim the Blood King’s power. Is that correct?”
Titus nodded, his face slightly tense.
“Y-yes. I was foolish not to recognize you and harbored such irreverent thoughts. Please, punish me!”
Zeke rose from his seat and spoke.
“What would I gain from killing you over such a trivial matter?”
Approaching Titus, Zeke placed a hand on his shoulder.
“Titus, can you swear true loyalty to me?”
With a look of reverence, Titus gazed up at Zeke and replied.
“Of course, my king! Command me as you will.”
Zeke nodded at Titus’s words.
“Good. Then, Titus, I have a task for you.”
Seeing the fervor in Titus’s eyes, Zeke smiled broadly.
Titus, accompanied by Yulina, who wore a hood pulled low over her face, descended into the stone building’s basement.
As they approached the entrance to the underground cave connected to the building, the Abyss’s mages guarding the area were startled to see Titus and asked.
“W-what brings you here?”
With a cold expression, Titus glared at the mages and spoke icily.
“How dare you block my path. Move aside at once!”