Episode 242: Blanca Roche (1)
“You’re not surprised.”
Blanca smirked as she spoke, noting that Damian’s expression remained unchanged.
“Did you think I was joking? What I said is true. Sla has been at the academy for a long time, watching you…”
“I know.”
Damian’s voice was cold and firm.
“I came to the academy to kill Sla in the first place.”
Sla could transform into anyone and turn anyone to their side. Being easily startled wouldn’t help in killing Sla.
“You came to kill that monster? That’s absurd. An impossible goal.”
“I was trying to figure out who Sla was. I didn’t expect you to be in league with them.”
“You don’t seem too shocked. Did you suspect me?”
“Not suspect, just didn’t trust anyone.”
From the moment he entered the academy, Damian trusted no one. Anyone could be Sla.
“When did you start siding with Sla?”
“Long before I met you.”
“So approaching me was Sla’s order too.”
Blanca nodded slowly.
“My role was to learn about your situation, actions, and goals.”
“Was it your idea to kidnap Oliver and Penelope?”
Blanca nodded again, a bitter smile on her face. The veins in Damian’s neck stood out.
“I noticed you had a special affection for those two.”
“What did you do to them?”
“Don’t worry. They’re both safe. For now.”
Damian suppressed the anger boiling inside him.
It wasn’t hard to unleash his fury, but there was still much he needed to hear from Blanca.
“Why are you following Sla’s orders?”
“I’d rather not say. It’s personal…”
“Is it because of your son?”
Blanca’s silence confirmed Damian’s suspicion.
“Did Sla promise to save your son if you complied? Sla, being a master of dark magic, could easily cure an incurable disease.”
Or even create a new body altogether.
For a dark sorcerer of Sla’s caliber, such feats were trivial.
The problem was the number of lives that would be sacrificed for such acts.
“Do you realize how many people will die for Sla to use dark magic? You’re willing to sacrifice others to save your son.”
“I don’t care.”
Blanca spoke without hesitation.
“I can bear that burden if it means saving Gael.”
“Rubbish.”
Damian’s voice dripped with disdain.
“Bear the burden? How? How will you take responsibility for the suffering of those sacrificed to Sla?”
Blanca’s expression hardened at Damian’s accusation.
“Don’t speak so carelessly. You wouldn’t understand. Watching my child suffer every day…”
“You’re the one speaking carelessly!”
Damian shouted, his voice filled with rage.
“Do you even know what happens to souls tormented by dark sorcerers?”
Dark magic is born from the agony of human souls.
Dark sorcerers often massacred people to harvest large amounts of dark magic.
Those killed by dark sorcerers found no peace in death. They were tortured, their souls forced to produce dark magic until they were utterly consumed.
“The one you’re collaborating with is Sla! The great evil of Pandemonium! Do you even know how many have suffered or died because of her?”
As a Death Knight, Damian had been unable to defy Dorgo’s orders.
Dorgo had forced Damian to kill his own family for mere amusement.
Damian’s family, shocked by his transformation into a Death Knight, had perished.
But even in death, they found no peace.
The rarity of being Damian’s family attracted the greed of many dark sorcerers.
Dark sorcerers, including Sla, demanded their souls from Dorgo.
-Sir Damian? Can you see this?
Sla had taken his sister Louise’s soul. One day, she appeared before Damian, showing him Louise.
-This is your sister. I pondered what to do with this soul.
A small glass bottle.
Inside was Louise’s soul.
-I decided to keep it as a display. Isn’t it more entertaining than you’d think?
The bottle wasn’t just filled with Louise. It was packed with evil spirits.
Louise’s soul was trapped, subjected to unspeakable torment by the spirits.
-It’s a pity you can’t see this.
Inside the bottle, Louise’s dignity was being trampled.
Her pride as a human, a woman, a living being was shattered.
It would have been better if she were alive. She might have gone mad and died from the pain.
But a soul cannot commit suicide. It can only be exploited by a dark sorcerer until it vanishes.
“You fool. You’ve made the worst choice! To save your child? You’ll lose him because of this! Dark sorcerers are scum!”
Damian’s voice was filled with fury.
But his words didn’t reach Blanca.
“There’s no point in arguing with someone who’s not a parent.”
Blanca Roche had her reasons too.
“Make your choice. Will you follow Sla’s demands? If you refuse, I can’t guarantee the students’ safety.”
Damian answered by drawing his sword, Dawn.
“So you don’t care about the children’s safety?”
“Don’t prattle, you scum.”
A murderous aura erupted from Damian.
It was on a different level from when he threatened the students of Class 13.
“I’ll kill you here and then rescue the kids.”
“You’re full of energy. But even if you kill me, you won’t find out where the kids are.”
“Are you done talking? Then shut up. I can’t listen to you anymore.”
Damian summoned his magic. The ground beneath him cracked like a spider’s web.
“Full of energy.”
Blanca opened a pocket dimension and pulled out a spear.
Both the shaft and blade were made of a single metal, glowing with a blue hue, indicating it was no ordinary spear.
“Blanca Roche. Captain of the White Blood Knights, once known as the Red Light.”
Blanca took her stance.
“It’s regrettable to face you like this.”
“Spare me.”
With those words, the two knights charged at each other.
The two figures seemed to vanish, only to collide in mid-air. Sword and spear clashed.
With a sharp sound, both were thrown back, but only for a moment before they clashed again.
Dawn and the red spear met repeatedly in the air, sparks flying with deafening noise.
‘To hold your ground against me… impressive.’
Every time their weapons met, Blanca couldn’t help but be impressed by Damian’s skill.
His reflexes, agility, technique.
Nothing was lacking. He matched her evenly.
‘Is this truly the skill of a newcomer?’
Winning the Helian Tournament was a significant achievement.
But experience couldn’t be ignored. Blanca Roche was a master class, already glimpsing the second wall.
Even a Helian Tournament winner shouldn’t be able to match a seasoned master class.
‘It’s a pity. In different circumstances, we could have had a meaningful exchange as knights…’
As Blanca pondered, Damian spoke.
“Seems you’re harboring delusions.”
His eyes were filled with contempt.
“Don’t look at me with those eyes. It’s disgusting.”
Damian’s words, laced with anger, dragged Blanca’s mood down.
He wasn’t wrong. Blanca had abandoned her pride as a knight and her duty as an adult to save her son.
“You’re right. I’ll focus on defeating you.”
“No need. I’ve read enough.”
Read? What?
In that moment of confusion, Damian’s movements changed.
He spun, dodging Blanca’s thrust, closing the distance in an instant.
“What?”
Blanca quickly tried to retrieve her spear to counter, but Damian’s kick landed on her abdomen first.
The heavy impact made her cough up blood as she flew back.
Her back hit a wall, shattering it as she was thrown outside.
Blanca rolled on the ground, quickly getting up, only to find Damian right in front of her.
‘When did he…’
Damian swung his sword at Blanca. She hastily raised her spear to block.
The blade’s trajectory shifted slightly, grazing her neck.
“Ugh!”
Blanca winced at the sharp pain, but there was no time to tend to her wound.
Damian was already launching his next attack.
Countless slashes came at him from bizarre angles. Blanca barely managed to parry the strikes with his spear.
But he couldn’t block them all. Occasionally, an attack would slip through his defenses, cutting into his body.
As the battle dragged on, Blanca’s wounds multiplied. His clothes were soon soaked with blood.
“Is this really the skill of a novice…?”
What had started as surprise had long since turned into shock.
Damian Haxen was completely overwhelming him, leaving no room for a counterattack.
“If this keeps up, I’ll lose…!”
The thought sent a chill down his spine.
Losing to Damian Haxen meant execution as a traitor to the empire.
But that didn’t matter. What Blanca couldn’t bear was the thought of being unable to save his son.
He gritted his teeth. That was something he could not allow. It was time to give it his all.
Blanca dragged his spear across the ground, sparks flying as the blade scraped the earth.
The sparks quickly ignited into flames, which surged and grew into a massive blaze.
Damian Haxen stepped back, eyes wide with surprise as he looked at Blanca.
”…A special bloodline?”
“You catch on quickly.”
The flames Blanca conjured continued to swell, engulfing the ground where he stood.
“Our family has always been blessed with fire magic.”
With every movement of his spear, the flames danced as if alive.
“I wanted to bring you in unharmed, but it seems that’s no longer an option.”
Blanca assumed a fighting stance.
“Be careful. The Roche family’s crimson flames are quite fierce.”
He swung his spear toward Damian.
The crimson flames surrounding Blanca transformed into a massive beast, lunging at Damian Haxen.
Crimson Flames.
The fire conjured by the Roche family was unlike ordinary flames.
Thanks to their special bloodline, they were born with innate fire magic, which was further amplified by their mana cultivation techniques.
The resulting crimson flames could evaporate a small lake in an instant.
Most enemies couldn’t withstand the flames. Weapons melted, and foes were reduced to ashes in moments.
Thus, Blanca Roche hesitated to use the crimson flames. If Damian Haxen died from this attack, he wouldn’t be able to save his son.
But that fear was unfounded. No, it was a miscalculation.
“First Ring.”
Damian Haxen murmured softly. A resonant sound erupted from his body.
In the next instant, Damian’s form split, leaving afterimages that swung their swords simultaneously.
Dozens of slashes tore the crimson flames to shreds, leaving no trace behind.
”…”
Blanca Roche’s eyes widened.
He had seen knights block or cut through the crimson flames before.
But he had never seen anyone completely extinguish them.
“No wonder Slah covets you…!”
Blanca exclaimed in admiration, dragging his spear across the ground once more. The crimson flames reignited.
And then—
“Second Ring.”
The resonant sound intensified. Damian Haxen vanished.
In the next moment, Blanca Roche’s body was cleaved in two, blood spraying into the air.