Chapter 310

Chapter 310

The greatsword embedded in the ground glowed red, and the air vibrated. The Gelikas, sensing danger in their frantically shifting vision, stopped multiplying and gathered.

They placed one in the center, and began to form a shield-like circle around him. Their tiny bodies piled on top of each other, quickly forming a towering spire. The Gelikas let out an odd grunt, preparing for the impending crisis.

But it was useless. Neither the crimson moon in the sky, nor Van, attacked them. There was only a strong vibration, a vibration that made their tiny brains roll around in their skulls.

After a long moment of silence, Gelika, the topmost one, who had his head buried in the crack of his own clone, gently lifted his head. And he looked.

Haiyaa.

It was a red blob. Tiny droplets were everywhere. Beneath the shadow of the crimson moon, the dark, rich droplets glistened like finely crafted jewelry.

As Gelika admired the droplets, he reached out his finger to one that was close to his nose. The thin membrane pressed against his fingertip burst, and the liquid inside splashed over him.

It was blood. Sniffing and smelling the dampness, Gelikas eyes widened in realization. What surrounded them now was not beautiful jewelry, but brutal droplets of blood.

He must tell everyone about this new discovery. With that thought, Gelika looked down.

!

What lay beneath him was no longer a living comrade. A pile of corpses, flattened, drained of all moisture. What he was stepping on was dry bones.

And now, blood gushed from his fingertips and toes, from his eyes and ears, from every orifice in his body. Horrified, Gelika looked up at the sky.

A crimson moon. The crimson moon was draining their blood. Gelikas blood drips rose toward the crimson full moon, and the moon trembled as if pleased with its new offering.

In his rapidly fading consciousness, overtaken by survival instinct, Gelika hastened to create a new clone. However.

Try it.

Van stepped in front of him, and to the small Gelikas eyes, with his back to the crimson moon, he looked more like a grim reaper than a human being. Eerie sunken eyes and a twisted grin, he stomped over Gelikas withered corpse.

Keep giving birth. If you still want to give birth after seeing that little f*cker, go ahead. Ill feed you to that f*cker as many times as you want.

Blood rushing out, heartbeats slowing. To Gelikas horrified ears, the muffled sound of a human laugh echoed. It was the last sound he could hear.

.

Van killed them all. There was not a single one left. He could feel the death all around him, and his technique was a success. The Crimson Moon had done its job.

Its not going away.

But the moon didnt wane; it stayed where it was, still pulsating with hunger. As he stared at it, Van slowly lowered his gaze to his hand. Blood was pooling from a small cut on his fingertip. The droplets soon rose, drawn by the crimson moons attraction, like Gelikas blood. An unreaped skill that would go beyond the enemy to bite its master.

I feel it all the time, but its a crappy power.

Shaking his fist in mockery, Van turned to face Cadels position.

Sorry it took me so long, Commander.

Even if that giant moon was crawling up and eating him, he had to get Yeohwan to safety. So Van pushed through the unfamiliar sensation of his blood rushing out of his veins. Pushing on, he picked up Cadel and carried him. But the body, already drained of energy, refused to obey his will.

With a soft thud, Cadels body fell away, and Van hit the ground with a ragged breath. Cadels face came into his blurred vision. He stared at it wordlessly, and with a low groan, he pulled Cadel into a draping embrace.

Beneath the crimson moon, the only things alive were two men clutching at a slender lifeline.

* * *

Knight Van Herdos limit breakthrough quest completed!

Congratulations! Knight Van Herdos has met the limit breaking conditions. The grade increases.

Knight Van Herdos deviates from the fateful orbit.

Entering self-correcting mode. It will take time to update the information.

Access to information on Knight Van Herdos is temporarily restricted.

After about two hours of mesmerizing the appearance of this ridiculous system window. After being released from recovery mode, Cadel finally opened his eyes.

He blinked a few times, and the first thing he saw was the sky. It was a clear sky in broad daylight. Next, he felt a warmth covering his body. Turning his head slightly, he saw Vans face, wrapped in his arms.

Van? Van! Wake up!

Ive been doing my own research while Sir Van was away, so its nice to have someone who understands. Ive only gotten berated before, sadly.

Garuel seemed genuinely pleased by Vans brief compliment, and began to rattle off an unasked-for history. The time hed spent a day freezing to death while attempting to heal Lydons injuries from a playdate, the time hed told Lumen about his brief fling and been ignored for over a month, the time hed finally snapped Yozens patience and was rewarded with a fist-sized hole in his stomach. Most of them were miserable stories of rejection by their comrades.

And.

Enough with the year-long bullying story.

Oh, talk about bullying. How unpleasant. Lets talk about something else, shall we? Lets talk about you, Sir Van. Youve improved a lot.

How do you know that?

Sir Vans aura is not subdued despite my demonic energy infiltrating it. There used to be a subtle rejection. I guess you have complete control now?

At Garuels question, Van thought back to the harrowing battle a few days ago. The technique he had succeeded with was a new ultimate that perfectly channeled and controlled his previously uncontrolled aura. But it hadnt ended well. The giant crimson moon had only stopped its rampage and returned his blood when its master was near death.

It was still a tricky skill. He shrugged, unsure, and Lydon, who was sitting with his legs stretched out on top of Vans head, patted him on the head.

Of course its under control, Van! You should have a bone to pick when you come back from a year-long independent walk.

Come down from my head when I still say something nice.

When did Van say something nice?

Lydon waved his arms in the air, a playful expression on his face as he flew out of the way of the vicious grasp that was trying to snatch him up.

Lumen! Yozen! Heres Van, whos back from leaving the house, and hes not even that much stronger!

As he looked away from the chuckling, Van saw two men approaching from the opposite direction. They were talking to each other, but when they heard Lydons shout, they joined the group.

.

Van locked eyes with Lumen first. There was a lot of emotion in their gaze, but neither of them dared to speak. After lingering in the silence for a while, Van blurted out everything he wanted to say.

Youve gotten even uglier.

Lumen smirked at him, then held something out in front of him. It was an unidentifiable object wrapped in a long white cloth.

What is this?

Unravel it.

Dont give gross gifts.

You expect this to be my gift? Thats offensive.

With an annoyed flicker of Lumen, he unwrapped the cloth, revealing the identity of the wrapped object. It was a greatsword. Vans eyes widened slightly at the sight of the carved wolfs head on the handle.

Leader was keeping it. This is what this guy found.

Lumen nudged Yozen, and Van hesitantly lifted his head, then stared at Yozen, who stood wordlessly.

Were you following me?

I thought you knew that already.

How can I detect the pursuit of an assassin like you who doesnt even show any signs of presence?

By instinct. You have a pretty good instinct.

In the midst of the chase, he would occasionally look back in Yozens exact direction. When he recalled the time, Van shrugged and shook his head. He stroked the rust-free, well-maintained blade, and his jaw clenched.

How that person must have felt, carefully polishing the greatsword Van had discarded. Vans heart grew heavy just thinking about it.

Thank you. For finding it.

You should say that to Cadel.

Yeah.

The healing was complete, and the greatsword was returned. But Van didnt leave. They stayed in place, exchanging uninformative conversation.

No one asked him why he had left, no one chastised him for returning, they just joked around as casually as they had always done. And in the midst of it all, Van found himself feeling unexpectedly comfortable. Even if he did recognize it, hed probably just describe it as creepy, but this was definitely his place.