Custos had used his most powerful attack yet. It made a direct hit with Valves for a powerful blast that could destroy half of the Forest Of Mortem. Not only was Valves hit by the attack at point-blank range but it was sure to erase him from existence.
At least, this was what Custos believed to be true. To his horrific astonishment, his Plasmic Nuke was redirected toward the sky. It flew high into the air before exploding like an erupting volcano. Custos couldn't believe what had just happened.
Valves stood before him, almost completely unphased by the attack. His massive bat-like wing had covered him like a cocoon, preventing him from taking any damage.
"Was that your most powerful attack? It was quite powerful. If anyone else was hit by that, I can't say if they would have lived or not. Unfortunately for you, I'm your opponent this time."
Valves then delivered a painful punch to Custos' gut. The air was squeezed from his lungs and he immediately fell to his knees. He coughed violently, doing his best to restart his lungs.
"Did you know that when I killed your father all those years ago, he never stopped fighting until the very end? Even to this day, I still fail to understand why he fought so hard, despite knowing he had no chance against me. I could never tell if it was his honor as the Knight Captain or if it was some deep desire to protect his family."
"Valves! I swear on my life that I'll kill you!!"
"Are you sure you should be saying something like that? You do realize that you're currently at my mercy, don't you? Killing you would be as easy as stepping on a bug. But I won't do that. At least not yet. I think it's time for me to give you back what you've been wanting so desperately."
A black wormhole then appeared on the ground before them. This was when Eliisabet was thrown out face first in pain.
"Eliisabet!!" Shouted Custos in worry.
Eliisabet quickly looked up to see that she was back in the Forest Of Mortem. Her eyes widened and her heart raced. She was about to have a panic attack. This was until she saw Valves standing over Custos.
"Custos!!"
"No! Just run!! Don't worry about me! Just use this chance to run! You're no match for him!"
Eliisabet clenched her teeth. She was caught in a dilemma. Every fiber of her body was screaming for her to run. But she couldn't bear to leave Custos behind with Valves. There was no doubt in her mind that he would kill him.
Valves laughed as soon as he saw her helpless expression. A look of uncertainty was cast over her face. She trembled and tears threatened to climb to her eyes.
"I... I can't leave you, Custos! I can't do it!"
"Don't be an idiot, Eliisabet! I've never failed to keep my promises to you and I'm telling you that I'll be okay! Just run!!"
Eliisabet refused to listen. Despite the fear she felt, her desire to save Custos was even greater. With her arms trembling, she picked up her yari. She then looked up at Valves, doing her best to find the courage she needed to attack him.
Screaming wildly, she ran toward Valves. She jammed the blade of her yari at him but Valves easily caught it as if they were playing a friendly game of catch. He then brought around his vampiric hand for a painful slap to Eliisabet's face. The slap echoed through the forest, even causing her to fall over.
"You half-vampire scum!! How dare you do that to her?!" Cursed Custos.
"I think it's about time I put you to sleep," said Valves calmly.
Just then, Valves grabbed onto Custos' head before delivering a painful bite to the side of his neck. Custos screamed in agony as all 4 fangs were injected into his skin. The pain felt as if someone was using an axe to hack away at the side of his neck. This was followed by thick red Hemo Energy flowing from his body. By the next second, Custos collapsed.
Eliisabet looked up to see the horrific sight. She trembled from anxiety and hopelessness.
"No... Custos! Custos!"
"Don't worry, he's alive. I just gave him a little parting gift is all," answered Valves deviously.
"What did you do to him?!"
"Just an experiment is all. You'll see what I mean eventually."
Slowly, Valves then picked himself up. His blood-red eyes shone brightly from underneath the fake melted mask he wore. His one bat-like wing folded in and out as he turned toward Eliisabet. He couldn't look any more evil. He almost looked like the devil himself.
"Why are you here, Valves..? Why are you in the Kingdom Of Regnum? Do you plan to take over this country as well?! Wasn't Decidit enough for you?!!"
"It's as if you can read my mind. We do plan to take Decidit as well, but that's not all. Our plan involves taking over all Seven Great Nations across the Realm Of The Living. Just like Decidit, all the other Kingdoms will fall before us. I just hope you're still alive by then. I believe you'll feel a lot less lonely once our plan is complete!"
"You're sick! How can someone like you even be part human?! You're just a monster, Valves! No human heart would be evil enough to place so much suffering on so many innocent lives!!"
Valves laughed, "Well, I am part vampire so maybe I'm just embracing my natural role as a Hybrid!"
Valves then gently brushed his fingers across Eliisabet's face as if to admire her beauty. Fear now ran rampant in her soul. If her heart started beating even a little faster, there was a chance she would collapse.
"One day, when I finish building my kingdom in this world, I'll come back to take you as my wife. Your sweet silver hair and gorgeous scarlet-red eyes have always caught my attention, Regina. That might have even been the reason I didn't kill you all those years ago..."
Just then, a frown came over Valves' face as he detected odd Hemo Energy approaching them from above. With a loud shout, someone attacked.
"Bloodline Art: Cold Cut!!"