Chapter 144

Chapter 144

12 hours ago.

The night before Stage 5 began.

Junior came to me, saying she had a lot to discuss, as I contemplated strategies till the very end.

"Your Majesty. You knew I was hiding something, didnt you?"

I nodded.

Juniors attribute [Cunning Fox].

An attribute that hides her stats.

[Cunning Fox]

- Always digs an escape hole. To prepare a trump card, deceives opponents about her abilities.

Since Junior had this attribute from the start, it was hard to get a precise grasp of her stats.

"I knew youd know."

With a bitter smile, Junior cautiously took off the glove on her left hand.

The back of her exposed left hand was covered in burn scars from childhood, and at the same time, a vivid magic pattern appeared.

My eyes widened.

"This is..."

"You know what this is, dont you?"

I nodded heavily. Junior put the glove back on.

"I told you before that Id shown you all my abilities, but that was a lie. I was hiding one more thing."

"..."

"But I wont hide it anymore."

Quietly, I opened the system window to check Juniors stats.

Juniors real level, real skills, real attributes...

I let out a small sigh.

"...You showing me this means youre ready, right?"

"Yes. Just finished."

Junior gave a faint smile.

"The skill to hit the vampire king, and my readiness. Everything."

"..."

Junior told me about the results and achievements of the magic research shed been delving into over the past few days.

I, who had been listening with bated breath, slowly opened my mouth.

"I also got a skill this time."

My level was already 36 at the final dungeon clear.

I should have gotten the 2nd skill a while ago.

But it wasnt a skill that could be normally applied, so I was thinking of sealing it for this stage.

If combined with Junior, it could be used in this stage too.

I explained my skill set to Junior. Junior looked at me with a surprised face.

"Then, if I combine my power with yours..."

"Even if he is a vampire lord, we should be able to kill him."

Immediately after, I shook my head slightly.

"But, Junior. Are you... really okay? If you use that magic, you will..."

"Im fine."

Junior, who answered with emphasis, let out a fox-like smile.

"Your Majesty. Ive always wanted to be a magician."

"..."

"And this front line was the first place to treat me like a real magician since I was born. The moment you gave me my first salary, I decided to show all my abilities here."

Even though it was a very thankful statement...

I sighed.

"But your grandmother will be sad."

"Didnt I tell you before?"

Junior cut me off.

"I never thought of her as my grandmother."

"..."

"So, shall we?"

With a magic circle floating behind her, Junior laughed lightly.

"Should we practice our combined skills all night for tomorrow?"

***

Present time.

On the fortress wall. The final showdown of Stage 5.

Ta-at!

Celendion charged forward.

The speed that was unseen to the eyes, just like what he showed before.

But it was different this time. My party members were reacting to it.

"This battlefield is purely between me and humans!"

The vampire king let out a roar.

"Do not interfere, hybrid-!"

Boom!

With a swing of Celendions hand, the body of the Chimera Origin exploded.

The summoned monster filled with venomous blood was destroyed in an unbelievably simple manner.

And Celendion tore through the scattered meat and blood to reach me and-

Grasp.

He grabbed my collar.

Celendions grinning mouth gaped wide.

The four shiny fangs flashed a deadly light, heading straight for my neck-

Snap!

He bit into the arm that had come between his fangs and my neck.

In surprise, I saw the one who had put her arm between Celendions fangs and my neck... it was Oldgirl.

Even as her arm was being bitten by the vampire and her blood was being drained in an instant, Oldgirl, with a calm face, turned to me, raised her hand slightly... and waved.

She smiled as usual.

In the next moment, Oldgirl, who had been drained of vitality, groaned and kneeled on the ground.

She had been completely drained by the vampire king.

There was no chance of survival. Oldgirl shriveled up and twisted like an old tree, dead.

While I watched this scene in shock,

Prince!

Thump!

Damian, who had been standing behind me, grabbed my shoulders and jerked me back.

At the same time, Skull, who had been standing to my right, drew a silver dagger from her waist and charged forward.

Your opponent is me, vampire-!

An archer going for melee.

What are you doing, Skull. Besides, you specialize in long-range sniping.

She wanted to resist, but there wasnt even a chance. Skull swung her dagger, aiming for the enemys head, just like her codename and specialty suggested.

Purrr-Boom!

She was battered by a blood spell that Celendion swung in annoyance, her body shattered to pieces.

The droplets of Skulls blood, dispersed in mid-air, didnt fall to the ground. Instead, they stopped abruptly, then were all sucked into Celendions mouth.

Celendion, who had killed Oldgirl and Skull in a matter of seconds, savored the taste of the blood in his mouth and lightly licked his lips.

"... An elf, huh? Hmm. Not bad for a first meal."

The monster with a boys face curled his lips into a grin towards me.

"I guess Ill have to eat you, Ash, to satisfy this hunger."

Damien desperately tried to pull me back, but Celendion was approaching much faster.

Celendion took a step toward me, grinning as if he was joking, his mouth wide open -

Pooom!

The next moment, Lucass long sword fell down, flashing from behind Celendion.

"Huh?"

Celendion let out a surprised moan from his mouth just as,

Thunk! Thud! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Lucass long sword mercilessly cut through Celendions back and nape.

The Sky Silver long sword had torn apart Celendions core, and unable to endure it, Celendion dropped onto his knees.

Thunk-!

Finally, Lucass long sword pierced through Celendions chest and surged forward, precisely penetrating his core.

He had managed to expose and destroy the vampires core with his sword, just by activating his skill [Soul Strike].

"... What is that state of yours, knight?"

Celendion slowly turned around, coughing up blood.

"Its as if you are not human... as if youve entered the same realm as us. I even feel a sense of similarity."

"..."

Lucas was a bit different from usual.

His lowered stance was like that of a wolf standing on all fours, and his blue eyes, seen through his disheveled golden hair, were emitting a dangerous light like a beast.

The heat blowing out from his back was rippling like a heat haze.

I swallowed my dry saliva.

Dont tell me, this guy Lucas...

Did he use [Beast Transformation]?

I have to stop that! If he uses that trait...!

"Thanks to you, I couldnt sense it. This is..."

Celendions body slid down to the ground,

"...making me use one of my lives. Impressive."

And then, as if nothing had happened, he rose again.