Camilla clung tightly to Kane, her eyes sparkling.
"It's the first time I've seen you spare someone."
"I'm not a killing machine."
"You've killed everyone except those who were useful to you."
"..."
Camilla's words were accurate.
Kane only spared those who benefited him.
The rest tho… he mercilessly took their lives.
Even if he spared them, they would only come back for revenge.
No one ever came back to repay him with gratitude.
It was a preemptive move to avoid future trouble.
"There's no point in fighting someone now, I need to save my energy for later."
"Excuse me?"
Kane's expression was truly innocent.
His face looked kind, but his eyes told a different story.
Camilla had to suppress a familiar sense of unease.
'That's the look he gets when he's about to cause trouble.'
What kind of major incident will he cause this time?
Camilla fretted inwardly.
Meanwhile,
Kane moved through the crowd to a corner.
Facing an empty wall, he spoke.
"The wings of the black crow are broken."
The wall turned, revealing a secret space.
"Haaa! What's going on?"
"It's a secret code. Remember it. You'll use it often from now on. Let's go in."
As Kane and Camilla entered the secret space,
the door closed, returning to the original wall.
* * *
"Brother!"
A man burst urgently into a lavishly decorated room.
"Brother! This is no time to be sleeping—ugh, the smell of alcohol… Please wake up."
A man who appeared to be a subordinate shook the person sprawled on the floor.
"Ugh."
The person lying down barely stirred, despite the rough shaking.
"Brother! Our third brother has been attacked!"
"Wh-What!?"
At those words, the person lying down bolted upright.
With intense eyes, he spoke.
"Who the hell messed with our third brother?"
"I heard it was a noble's kid."
"Ha, which family's brat is it?"
A rough-mouthed man grabbed a drink and gulped it down.
"Ahh, the best cure for a hangover is more alcohol."
"This is not the time to be drinking."
"So, which family's brat was it?"
"No one knows. They say he was knocked out cold without warning."
"That big guy got knocked out?"
The man scowled.
For the hulking third brother to be knocked out meant the opponent was pretty strong.
"Gather the guys and find the one who hit our third brother immediately!"
"Are you coming too, boss?"
"Of course. I need to take that bastard's head myself."
"Heh heh. If you're going, that guy's already as good as dead."
"Stop grinning and get lost."
"Yes, sir."
The subordinate hurried out of the room.
The lean man picked up his drink again and took another swig.
"Ahh. If you stir things up here, you pay with your life."
The man's name was Gillip Aches.
He was the owner of the Black Crow Trading Post.
A very famous person in Philaec.
There wasn't a merchant who didn't know his name.
He was practically the big shot of Philaec's underworld.
Moreover, he had the Dyer family backing him up.
That's why most nobles bowed to Gillip.
"It's been a while since I had a good fight."
Gillip grabbed an axe lying around and left the room.
* * *
"Your Grace, where are we?"
"This is a place only for special guests. It's a real deal, unlike the slave auction outside."
"But you've only stayed within the family estate. How do you know about a place like this?"
Kane just smiled, showing no intention of answering.
"We're here."
As they passed through the corridor and opened the door, there were iron bars on both sides.
Inside were slaves.
Their bodies were tightly bound in shackles, yet their gazes were uniformly fierce.
Kane walked forward, meeting the slave's eyes.
His steps were confident, as if he had been here before, heading straight to the slave he wanted.
Finally, he stood before one slave.
A man with long hair hanging down, hiding his face, but that didn't matter much.
"Mikhail Pervartz. I've returned."
It was a very soft voice.
So soft that even Camilla, who was standing beside him, couldn't hear it.
He reached out and opened the shop window.
—
[Black Crow Exchange has been registered in the system.]
—
After seeing the message, Kane spoke to Mikhail.
"Lift your head."
Even at Kane's command, Mikhail didn't raise his head.
'I need to unlock Mikhail's character.'
—
[Mikhail Pervartz]
– Locked –
—
His status window couldn't be seen yet, as his character was still locked.
'I need to provoke him a bit.'
There was one thing Mikhail hated to hear the most.
"Do you think your family would be proud of your beastly behavior?"
The reaction was immediate.
Mikhail, who had been hanging his head, slowly lifted it.
Through the tangled red hair, intense eyes shone.
"What do you know to be spouting such nonsense?"
"I know that you're the last precious bloodline of the fallen Pervartz family. A family specializing in the fire, and it was once on par with the Hatzfeld royal family. What else is there?"
Mikhail Pervartz.
He wasn't of Hatzfeld lineage, but he had the red hair symbolizing fire mana.
It was a very deep shade of red.
This was evidence of his strong Pervartz bloodline.
"Are you from the House of Sun?"
Mikhail's intense eyes glared.
His gaze was filled with murderous intent, and if not for the shackles binding him, he seemed ready to leap through the iron bars at any moment.
"On the contrary, I come from Rehinar to fight with the Meyer Family."
Meyer was also known as the House of the Sun.
An enigmatic existence belonging neither to the Fresia empire nor the Hatzfeld kingdom.
"Do you even know what you're talking about?"
"Yea, they pretend to be mysterious and noble on the surface, but behind the scenes, they're just a bunch of sinister bastards doing dirty deeds."
The reason the newly formed Hatzfeld royal family could rival the Fresia Empire in national power, and the reason the Fresia Empire weakened so much, were all tied to the House of the Sun.
They had secretly aided Hatzfeld.
"You're a completely insane bastard."
"Don't you want to avenge those who erased your family from the world?" Kane asked, his eyes gleaming like a beast.
Mikhail's response came with a savage look in his eyes.
"It's what I want most. If I can destroy those bastards, I'd give my soul and body to the devil."
Such immense hatred.
Kane provoked him further.
"But you lack the power to exact your revenge. That's why you're a slave."
Mikhail clenched his teeth hard.
He was well aware of his situation.
Anger, hatred, remorse, and a mix of other emotions surfaced.
"Follow me. I will give you the power you deserve."
Mikhail burst into laughter at Kane's proposition.
"Hahaha!"
It was a clear mockery.
"Someone like you, at the beginning of 3rd class?"
A murderous aura swept through the air.
Though his mana was likely sealed, Mikhail's presence dominated the surroundings in an instant.
With sheer killing intent, he made the air around them heavy.
'If the nobles knew there was a Mid-Tier 5th Class slave here, they would offer fortunes to take him.'
Mikhail had become a gladiator slave by choice.
He had something he needed to obtain from here.
But that item turned out to be a fake.
The real one was safely hidden elsewhere.
"I know where the real spear that will restore your power is. The prize from the gladiatorial match is a counterfeit."
"…What?"
The prize given for achieving 1,000 victories as a gladiator was the Red Flag.
The Red Flag was also known by another name…
It was the Flame emperor's spear, the lost treasure of the Pervartz family.
However, it was merely a replica.
Mikhail's expression briefly showed confusion but soon returned to composure.
He realized that the man before him, Kane, was no ordinary person.
"You know a lot about me and my family."
"I know much more than you think. If you're curious, follow me."
Mikhail had shared many stories while he served under Kane.
He had entrusted everything to his master.
Alongside Camilla, he was one of the few people Kane could trust completely.
That's why Mikhail's betrayal had left a hole in his back.
"Curiosity aside, why should I trust you and follow?"
"You want proof of my abilities… Very well. I'll show you what you desire."
Kane raised his hands..
—
[Blue Tiger's breath has been activated.]
[Phoenix's breath has been activated.]
[Warning! Mana consumption has doubled.]
In Kane's right hand, purple water formed.
In his left hand, purple flames.
"How… Could it be, dual runes…?"
Mikhail's eyes wavered.
The ability to wield opposing forces meant possessing two different elemental runes simultaneously.
Even the twelve-star lords couldn't wield dual Runes.
Yet here was a mere novice, a 3rd-class knight, displaying dual runes.
It unsettled his composure.
But that wasn't the end of it.
The water and fire merged, evaporating shortly thereafter.
And then, blood droplets emerged from between Kane's fingers.
These droplets grew larger with each passing moment.
Simultaneously, Kane's face lost all color.
"This is called the 'Blood Wave'."
As he clenched his outstretched fingers tightly, the blood droplet, now the size of a head, burst and rapidly spread around.
Pssss—
The bars, made of a special material that couldn't be cut by most mana, melted instantly upon contact with the blood.
The barrier between Kane and Mikhail vanished.
Kane, his face pale, extended his hand.
"Isn't this enough to prove I'm worthy of being your master?"
Mikhail stared blankly at Kane's face.
The Water Mark (2 Runes) and the Fire Mark (Mark = 2 Runes) combined into the Blood Mark.
In the past life, he hadn't shown the Blood Mark to Mikhail.
No, he couldn't.
Back then, he only had an affinity to the fire rune.
He had subdued Mikhail purely with strength.
But now, things were different from when he was Ray.
He couldn't subdue Mikhail with strength alone.
He had to show something to pique his interest.
That was the Blood Mark.
Mikhail, the last of the Pervartz bloodline, knew about the Blood Mark.
His family was one of the most renowned on the continent.
Even though they had fallen, the quality of their inherited information rivaled that of any famous family.
"Not only do you possess dual runes, but also the Blood Mark… I'm genuinely curious about your identity."
"Kane Rehinar. People call me the worst dullard of the continent."
"You've fooled the world completely."
"Will you join me?"
Kane extended his invitation once more.
Mikhail no longer showed any hostility towards him.
Because he had seen the Blood Rune.
The unique Rune of the Blood Knight.
A Rune not belonging to the four great elemental Runes, but an exceptional one.
Moreover, the Blood Knights had a bitter feud with the House of the Sun.
[A/N: As I mentioned before, the blood mark is a demon's power that blood knights got to defeat the Celestial (Heaven) realm people. Maybe the House of the sun has connections with the celestial stuff.]
They were two existences that could never coexist.
"As you can see, my situation is like this," Mikhail replied.
—
Mikhail, for the first time, showed deference to Kane.
In response to this change in attitude, Kane smirked.
[Mikhail Pervartz has been unlocked.]
[A new character has been added.]
– Slave Spearman Mikhail Pervartz
"Alright. Now all that's left is to draw."
Kane retrieved the reward he obtained from the Nest of Abyss.
[Used 4★ or higher character selection ticket.]
– Steel Knight Camilla Einreich (4★)
– Holy Swordswoman Sara Rehinar (4★)
– Commander Cedric Harka of the Guardian Knights (4★) [Sealed]
– Slave Spearman Mikhail Pervartz (4★)
There were only three characters rated 4★ or higher.
It was still early in the story.
As the story progressed, more characters would be unlocked.
Without hesitation, Kane chose Mikhail Pervartz.
[You have selected Slave Spearman Mikhail Pervartz (4★).]
[A quest has been generated.]
[Escape from the Black Crow exchange.]
Grade: B
—
Mikhail Pervartz had chosen to become a slave spearman. Among the slave spearman, he boasted the highest win rate, making him the best of the Black Crow's exchange, Gillip was unwilling to let him go.
Success Reward: Mikhail Pervartz
Failure Penalty: -100 million gold, hostility with the Black Crow's exchange, hostility with the Dyer family
It was a relatively straightforward quest.
All Kane had to do was escape from this place to obtain Mikhail Pervartz. However, Kane had no intention of slipping away unnoticed.
*Clank!*
The blade of the spear severed the chains that bound Mikhail.
"That should do it."
"Mm."
"No need to worry about the Black Crow's exchange. I'll handle it."
Kane's tone was overly confident. Mikhail looked at Kane with curiosity. The Black Crow's exchange wasn't just a dealer of combat slaves; it was a vast organization controlling the underworld of Philaec. They traded everything from combat slaves to ordinary slaves, plundered treasures, stolen goods, and even engaged in assassination, robbery, and espionage.
'It wouldn't hurt to assess the skills of the one whom I'll be following from now on'
Mikhail rose to his feet. Standing at 195cm tall, his body was covered in scars and rippling muscles. As he stood up, an immense aura emanated from him. Perhaps it was because he was a 4-star character by birth, but his presence was distinct from that of ordinary characters.