Bloodbath (1)

While John and the Guard Captain were marching, Drake entered the Town's Hall.

Some guards bowed: "Sir, the mayor will arrive soon"

The Mayor was the individual with the highest status in Frozen City. Yet, every citizen and guards knew that any member of the Moonfall family, as insignificant as their position was in the said family, was way above the mayor. That was the power of nobility. The guards didn't even question Drake's motive for coming.

Drake breathed in.

It was not easy.

He had killed barbarians on the way here, but these were murders based on self-defence. Even if it wasn't, they were individuals who would kill travellers. It was almost righteous to kill them.

But guards...

Guards were just men on duty.

Worst still, guards had the duty to protect the Frozen City inhabitants. By killing them, he would weaken the city's defence and that would most likely result in innocent lives being lost.

Drake shook his head.

What was the use of conscience when he was so weak?

Righteousness was a luxury of the strong. If he wanted to do good in the world, he had to become strong first. The opportunity to amass blood crystals only came with the opportunity to create a blood bath. And such opportunity only came once in a while.

'Uncle John will scream at me, and probably not trust me for a while...But the gains far outweigh my relationship with him'

Even if they made a deal with a necromancer, these guards were not completely guilty. They only consumed blood crystals. They probably took it as a way to become stronger. They might have taken it for the sake of protecting their families.

'A bloodbath can't be justified. Even if I become stronger, even if I save a thousand lives after it, it won't make the innocent lives lost in the process come back. The people in the Moonfall fief will brand me as murderer subconsciously, or even consciously. Whenever I meet a stranger, they might think of me as a murderer...', Drake analysed.

But he had made his decision.

*SPLASH*

Unsheathing his sword, he beheaded the two guards bowing to him in a flash.

[Blood Absorption Ritual in process]

Suddenly, the guards' body became older and turned into some sort of ash.

[You have gotten two blood crystals]

"What...What have you done?", a knight shouted in anger. He witnessed his own men turning into ashes, "Jake has a family! He has a wife!"

Drake sighed. He would probably have nightmares for a while, if not for life. These eyes of horror. It was as if he was a monster. No, there were no legitimate 'as if'. He was a monster.

[Name - Arthur Don | Age - 45 Years Old

Race - Human

Attributes:

Strength - 2.6 (+1.0) | Agility - 1.8 | Vitality - 3.4 (+1.0) |

Perks: Knight Physique (+1.0 Strength, +1.0 Vitality)

Skills: Porfield Military Swordsmanship (39)...

Spell: ø]

His physical stats were high. They rivalled that of Drake even though he had the blood of humans. He truly was a veteran knight.

"Do you hold the position of Guard Captain? Your vitality is unusually high. You know part of the truth, don't you? You are a criminal, and I am the executionner"

These apathetic words angered the veteran knight.

Charging, a collision soon reverberated throughout the town Hall.

However, Drake wasn't a weakling either.

[Name - Drake Moonfall | Age - 15 Years Old

Race - Human / Wereraven

Demonic Raven Bloodline (Stage I) - 16% Purity

Attributes:

Strength - 2.6 (+1.5) | Agility - 2.0 (+0.5) | Vitality - 2.4 (+1.5) | Magic Power - 4.6

Perks: Demonic Raven Bloodline (Stage I: +0.5 Strength, +0.5 Agility, +0.5 Vitality), Knight Physique (+1.0 Strength, +1.0 Vitality)

Skills: Moonfall Knight Swordsmanship (76), Magical Knowledge (43), Etiquette (40), Archery (35), Horsemanship (30), Cartography (26)...

Spell: Demonic Raven Vision (35)]

'Strong', Drake appraised as he could not push the veteran knight back, 'I must use skills then'

"You can't defeat me, you punk. How old are you? Twenty? Twenty-five? I could be your father. I have trained relentlessly all my life. Do you think you could kill innocents and-"

Before the veteran could finish his sentence, Drake crouched and relieved the pressure from his blade. His opponent's balance was broken. Drake thrusted his sword in the knight's armor. It hit the mark, but Drake wasn't finished here.

Evading the horizontal slash from the veteran knight, Drake counter-attacked and thrust a second time in the knight's shoulder. This time, it didn't just pierced the flesh of the veteran knight, it pierced it all the way through.

"ARGH!", the knight shouted while dropping his sword.

Drake retrieved his sword and kicked the knight who flew onto the wall. Lastly, he thrust once more, this time hitting the man's throat. It was a gruesome death, his eyes of horror forever engraved in Drake's memory.

'It's psychologically tougher than I expected. But I must not falter. I must become stronger by all means necessary. I must become stronger by all means...'

Like a mantra, Drake tried to resist the urge to throw up and continued his march.

[Blood Absorption Ritual Activated]

[An unprecedented phenomenon has happened]

[You have obtained a [High-Quality Blood Crystal]]