Be Wary of a Prey

A sly smile appeared on the assailant's concealed face as he prepared to drive his sword into Jules' heart… but the blade wouldn't move. The blood within Jules' body had stopped it.

"In battle, everything can be used as both a weapon and bait. My body is no exception." Jules' indifferent voice echoed in the alleyway.

The moment Jules' words reached him, the assailant suddenly felt a sharp pain as something pierced his back and exited through his chest… then another from the front.

"Huh?" Shocked, the assailant looked down to see solidified blood piercing his chest—one came from the blood wall above, while the other had erupted from Jules' own body.

It was Jules' turn to smile deviously.

"Be wary of the prey too; they can be dangerous," Jules mocked. "Greet the gods yourself."

Jules' dagger rose swiftly.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

With a swift swipe, the assailant's wide-eyed head rolled across the floor.

Slam–!

As he watched the body fall, Jules remained motionless.

The blood wall that had blocked the fire spell reverted to its liquid state, the remnant flames carried away by the wind, unable to harm him due to the barrier spell he had cast.

Now that the dust had settled and silence grew louder, Jules noticed a phone near the assailant's corpse.

A message had just been delivered, causing a notification to appear. It was likely a voice message that played in the assailant's ears before being transcribed into text:

[Back up is on its way. The others are rounding up.]

That message made Jules realize that the people he had fought alongside moments ago were most likely dead.

Deep down, Jules wanted to curse, wallow in his pain, and run for his life—but he remained still. Pain wracked his body—blood dripped from multiple wounds. A sword remained lodged in his chest, yet he stood as if he felt nothing.

After three minutes, someone led a group of armed individuals into the alleyway, drawn by the irregular mana flow in the environment.

Upon spotting Jules standing in a pool of blood, she gestured for her followers to stay alert.

Walking forward, the leader of the group said, "Who are you?"

"Ravens… you bastards…" Jules muttered with a weak smile. "You sure took your sweet time."

At this point, his vision blurred.

"What?" the squad leader asked.

"That drink…" Jules' voice grew weaker as he explained. "It's safe. Now save me."

Thud–

Jules embraced the pain and fell into darkness.

A voice whispered gently in his mind as he lost consciousness.

[Unique Skill 'Seraphim of War' has been created.]

…Then another voice resonated within him just before he fully blacked out.

"Oh~ How I've missed the smell of blood."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

'...What happened?'

Warm orange light seeped through the small gap in Jules' eyelids, making him wonder what was going on.

As he struggled to open his eyes, flashes of what had happened before he passed out surfaced in his mind.

'Was I eventually saved?'

The need for an answer forced him to wake up completely.

"A hospital room?"

Jules found himself lying in a bed, wearing a patient's green gown. Beside him, a beeping machine monitored his vitals.

His body wasn't hurting much—he even felt stronger than before.

"I really survived? I don't remember much of the fight… I was cornered in an alley and had to find a way to escape… then what next…"

Jules wanted to think clearly, so he released mana into the atmosphere to extend his senses.

As he drew mana from his core, realization struck, bringing back some of the details he had forgotten—the strange liquid he drank, the effects it had, and most importantly, the skill he had acquired.

"My core capacity increased! It wasn't temporary!" Unhidden joy lit up his face.

If anything had held Jules back, it was his minuscule core size. It wouldn't be wrong to say he had the smallest core in the world, even after hitting his growth limit.

"My body is not only healed, but it's also stronger… I made the right choice drinking that liquid!" Jules exclaimed.

"A right choice… I wonder if that's true."

A bold, feminine voice reached Jules.

Too absorbed in checking his body, he had failed to remain aware of his surroundings.

He turned his head toward the door.

A tall woman leaned casually against the doorframe, her piercing purple eyes scrutinizing him from a distance.

Dressed in black pants and a white shirt that failed to hide her heavily built physique, she exuded the presence of someone who knew their worth.

Jules immediately recognized her and recalled how he had been saved after that brutal fight.

She was the Vice-Guild Master of the Onyx Rave Guild.

"The Dullahan, Kira Moon," Jules muttered.

Standing upright, Kira Moon walked into the room and spoke in a stern tone.

"Jules Evanava. Nineteen years old. No family ties. Registered as an adventurer a year ago. D-Rank. Low water affinity. Exceptional mana control. Weak physical constitution. Extremely low core capacity."

Listening to his details being laid out so flatly, Jules flashed a smile that contrasted sharply with Kira Moon's serious gaze.

"Oh my. To what do I owe the pleasure?" he asked.

Taking a seat beside his bed, Kira Moon continued.

"Do you recall the events of last night? After leaving a Beyond, you and your party were ambushed. You were specifically targeted by a C-Ranker… yet you survived despite being weakened beforehand."

Giving Jules a moment to process, she added, "And if I may add, you survived by killing your attacker. Tell me, how did you accomplish that in such a state?"

'Ah… so this is an interrogation,' Jules thought. 'If I'm not careful, she'll try to control me.'

Controlling his expressions, Jules carefully considered his response.

"I drank the liquid everyone was after. It gave me the power to survive."

All at once, the atmosphere in the room darkened and grew heavier.

Unfazed, Jules tilted his head slightly, his lips curling up. "Happy now?"