"Uwaahhh..."
Celestia, in Kaelus' embrace, bawled her eyes out as much as she could. There was no telling how scared the poor lass was. The Kingdom of El Blanca is perceived to be more hospitable and peaceful compared to the rest of the kingdoms in the continent of Yxillion. It's filled with kind and warm individual who would help others without batting an eye.
However, just like in the rest of the world, not everything is all white and bright. Of course, there are still individuals who choose to walk the path of evil and notoriety just to make themselves a penny. Such individuals are called 'mercenaries'.
Although, dating a few years back, mercenaries were the term for people who are rented or paid for a job. The work is not necessarily evil; in fact, in the golden era of mercenaries, most mercenaries were adored and symbolized as heroes.
But as the time went by, and with the founding of the various organizations and groups, the number of people who wanted to be a mercenary became less and less to the point that they were overshadowed by the new profession called 'adventurer'.
As of today, most mercenaries are doing jobs that are cannot be posted on the task board by guilds. These jobs include assassinations, abductions, theft, and human trafficking. One such group that is composed entirely of mercenaries is the 'Black Heart'.
They specialized in killing politicians and novels and selling the captives in the slave market to be put up in an auction. A poison in the world that has engraved itself to the roots of every kingdom, and now they have set their eyes on the princess of El Blanca, Celestia.
"There, there. Are you okay, now? Does it still hurt?"
Kaelus continued to placate Celestia while also checking her bodies for any injuries. Fortunately, she only suffered some bruises, however, it's apparent that she got hurt not physically but mentally. It's only given since a princess like her who spent most of her time in the confines of the royal palace would not have the mental fortitude to undergo a sudden abduction.
"Mmm."
Celestia didn't answer and just shook her head. Despite being scared about what she had just experienced, foremost, as a noble and a strong woman, she knew that what happened was entirely her fault.
'I knew I shouldn't have tried to contact Ellin without permission... if only I told my father, he would've surely assigned guards to escort me.'
She got lucky. If Kaelus was not in the kingdom at this time, then she would have surely been abducted and delivered to Duke Alphasanc, who only god knows what is going to do to her.
'Still, it never ceases to amaze me just how powerful really is. When i met him on my 18th birthday celebration, I could swear that he was just at the same level as my father, if not weaker. However, the same cannot be said for the Kaelus right now. Did he reach the rank of Emperor already?'
There is a legend in Yxillion that goes:
It will take five max level Novice to beat a single Seasoned warrior.
Ten max level Seasoned to beat a single Master.
Fifteen Master to beat a single Grandmaster.
Twenty Grandmasters to beat a king or Queen.
And to beat an Emperor?
All kings and queens of Yxillion must first band up to beat a single Emperor or Empress.
That is just how big the disparities in strength between each rank are . However, this legend is not necessarily true, as some Kings and Queens are more powerful than their fellow. Still, no King or Queen could ever hope of defeating an Emperor level powerhouse by just themselves.
"Kaelus. Did you reach the rank of Emperor alr-"
Celestia was about to ask Kaelus when suddenly he mentioned for her to be quiet.
"Shh..."
Three cloaked figures suddenly jumped down from a roof of a building. The three landed swiftly in front of them without even making any sound. They all similarly wore a black chest plate with a black heart engraved in the left part of the armor.
"Mercenaries from the Black Heart, huh?"
From their clothing alone, Kaelus knew that the three belonged to the organization: Black Heart.
"it's an honor to meet The Prodigy, Kaelus Rain."
"Oh, so you already knew who I am, yet you are still bold enough to show yourselves. Is it confidence or arrogance? Do you think that the three of you are enough to defeat me?"
"Surely, you jest. Even if there were ten of us, it would still not be enough to defeat a powerhouse such as yourself. However, the founder did give us something that even you would have trouble handling."
"Interesting. Then what are you waiting for? Show me what that 'thing' is. Celestia, you be a good girl and stay there for a minute."
Kaelus stood up and beckoned for Celestia to retreat behind him. He walked forward until he was only a few meters away from the cloaked figures. Celestia, although afraid, believed in the strength of the man in front of her..
"Be careful, okay?"
-
"So? Where is that 'thing' you are referring to?"
Kaelus stretched his neck while asking about the enemies. He could easily end the fight right now, but he was interested in whatever the founder of Black Heart sent his minions to fight against him.
'It is said that the founder of Black Heart was someone close to the rank of Emperor. Whatever of his treasure did he give these trashes, it would certainly be worth the wait.'
"Before I show you, I believe we must first introduce ourselves. We are the Foulblood brothers, hailing from the kingdom of Derico. The three of us were orphans before the Black Heart took us in their care. My name is Karl, Karl Foulblood. I am the eldest of us three."
Karl took his time introducing himself before introducing his brothers.
"These two are my sibling: Fritz and Jerome. Like me, they are also raised by Black Heart."
It seems like Karl was intentionally prolonging the introductions to annoy Kaelus. Something that worked pretty well.
"Blah, blah, blah. Are you done? If so, then show me the artifact already. You guys are wasting my time."
"Pardon me, but I'm afraid that we would have to test you first if you are truly worthy of us using this artifact against."
When Kaelus heard this, his expression changed to a cold one. He motioned for the three to attack.
"Then what the fuck are you waiting for? Come at me."
-
"Ha!"
Karl swiftly stabbed his dagger into Kaelus, but the latter easily dodged it. Kaelus took hold of Karl's arm and threw him like a sack of potato to a nearby wall.
"[Blazing Cage]"
A blue aura enveloped Jerome as he launched a skill against Kaelus. 'Blazing Cage', a rare skill that is often used against a 'Desolator' level beast. It encases the enemy with flames hot enough to melt rock, trapping the enemy in hell. However, the skill was broken by Kaelus with just a flick of a finger.
"[Curse of Nausea]"
Fritz used a debuff skill against Kaelus. The goal of the two is to weaken and slowed Kaelus so that Karl can fight against him on equal footing.
[The Skill: |Curse of Nausea| has been applied]
[For the next five minutes:
- [STR-15]
- [AGI-15]
- [WEP-15]
-Inability to use movement skills that are ranked [RARE] and below.]
Curse of Nausea, a debuff skill hailing from the northern tribe of Mok'sin where the Fallen Necromancer Aljuita came from. It is said that anyone who is affected by this skill will experience severe headache and dizziness.
"[Ailments Negation]"
Kaelus also used a skill to cancel the effects of the Curse of Nausea. 'Ailments Negation', the ascended version of the [RARE] skill 'Impair Nullification'. It is an [EPIC] skill that automatically removes any debuff of [RARE] rank and below.
"Is this all that you can do?"
Kaelus attacked Karl in the stomach with a punch. Karl, unable to bear the strength of a fist containing hundreds of STR points with it, was sent flying to the end of the alleyway.
"Khaak..."
Karl spewed out blood upon hitting a house. Fritz and Jerome stopped attacking and went to help their brother up. Kaelus waited patiently as the three gather themselves.
"Hehe... you really are as strong as the stories say. Fair enough, I'll use it."
Karl took out a black piece of a scroll from his robe. The scroll was sealed with a red string. Karl mumbled something, then suddenly the seal came undone.
'That's...'
Kaelus, upon seeing the scroll, already had an inkling of what it could be. However, remained patient and waited for Karl to finish.
"Sorry for the wait, esteemed prodigy. I didn't expect the seal to be that strong that even a Grandmaster like myself would have difficulties undoing it."
"It's nothing. Continue."
Karl smiled and opened the scroll.
"Darker than the night, brighter than the light."
"Collapse: [Abyssal Stream]"
A beam of purple energy came out of the scroll that charged straight at Kaelus. The energy of the skill was so strong that it destroyed the houses in the surroundings even though it did not hit it.
'Heh, [Abyssal Stream] is not a fast skill, and I know that you can easily avoid it. However, at this moment, you cannot.'
That was the thought running through Karl's mind. With Kaelus' speed, the [Abyssal Stream] would appear like a slow bird slowly charging at him. If the situation was normal, then he could easily dodge it.
But behind him was Celestia.
"No, no, no! You can't be serious!"
Kaelus screamed frantically upon seeing the purple beam approaching him. Karl smiled in victory as he thought that he got Kaelus trapped. Now, Kaelus has no choice but to receive the attack.
'It's over.'
However, Kaelus just raised his hand in front of him. The purple beam came to a still before completely disappearing. There was no damage to Kaelus' hand or to Celestia.
"What?!"
"Was that the skill that you were so proud of? The [Abyssal Stream] might be an [EPIC] skill, but it belongs in the lower ranks of [EPIC] skills. Furthermore, the skill only came from an artifact, a skill scroll. Its strength doesn't even resemble half the original, though even if you use the original [Abyssal Stream] the result would still be the same."
Karl gritted his teeth upon seeing that his artifact didn't even manage to injure Kaelus, let alone kill him. The artifact that the Black Heart's founder magnanimously lent him was useless in front of the man in front of him. He couldn't fathom it. He couldn't accept it.
"Die!"
"[Flames of Oblivion]"
Karl used a [RARE] skill 'Flames of Oblivion' in hopes of defeating Kaelus. This skill is strong enough to set an entire town ablaze. A pride of a Grandmaster.
"Let me show you how you should really do it."
Kaelus stretched his left hand forward and opened it as if he was grasping something. Suddenly, purple energy gathered in the palm of his hand. At first, it was only the size of a marble, but then it slowly became bigger. When Karl saw the purple sphere of energy, his eyes widened in fear.
'You can't be serious...'
"[Abyssal Stream]"
A beam of purple energy came out of Kaelus' hands. It was the same purple energy from Karl's scroll. The difference was, however, was that it was thrice as big as Karl's. The purple beam completely enveloped the three Foulblood brothers, completely disintegrating them.
[You have slain the entities: Karl (LVL-60) | Fritz (LVL 54) | Jerome (LVL 57) |]
[+1,256,875 EXP]
"Bullseye."
-
[KARL FOULBLOOD]-[GRANDMASTER]
[AGE: 45]
[RACE: HUMAN]
[LVL: 60]
[EXP: 437,691/450,000]
[STAT POINTS: 0]
[HP: 6000 (500 + 5500) | MP: 4150 (250 + 3950) ]
[STR: 30 + (5)] | [MAG: 65 + (13)] | [DEF: 50 + (5)] | [AGI: 10 + (5)] | [CRIT: 15 + (5)]
[CLASS: ASSASSIN]
[SUB-CLASS: FLAME KNIGHT]
[TITLES: SCOURGE OF THE NIGHT]
[SKILLS]
LVL 5 |RARE| (FIRE): [FLAMES OF OBLIVION]
LVL 2 |UNCOMMON| (FIRE): [FIRE BLADE]
LVL 5 |RARE| (PASSIVE): [SENSE DIFFUSION]
LVL 5 |COMMON| (ACTIVE): [SPEED BOOST]
LVL 5 |RARE| (PASSIVE): [GRANDMASTER'S AURA]
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