"My Master, huh? He is a good man, and I will follow his orders till the end of my life," said Garrick.

"Order! What order?" asked Victor seriously.

"Why would I tell you..." Garrick replied cryptically as he began storing energy around him.

"OK, it looks like I have to make you speak myself," said Victor.

Both Garrick and Victor were heavily injured. Garrick's consciousness weakened, and he began to hallucinate a voice.

The voice whispered, "Garrick, I have known you since your childhood. Look at you, so full of youth and promise..."

"Grandpa!" Garrick mumbled weakly, his voice barely audible. "I... I will fulfill your wish with my life... I... I promise..." he murmured.

"Garrick!... Gar... Garrick!" The voice faltered as Garrick began regaining his senses.

"I will do anything to collect the Great Ivan Treasure," he accidentally declared loudly.

"(Shocked) What!.. The Great Ivan Treasure! That means behind this gate, one of the stones is present. The three Stones, possessing the power to change the whole world—they were here in Ivan, which is why they are called the Great Ivan Treasure. But in many years, no one has known where they are. So that's why I can't detect what is behind the gate. This matter is far more complicated and important for the future. I have to protect that Stone," Victor thought.

Garrick reached into the left pocket of his jeans—old cloths, worn from countless battles—and pulled out a capsule.

Looking at the capsule and then at Victor, Garrick said, "Let's end this with the death of one of us. Why not end it with a single move? The one who survives will survive."

"Very well, I will take on that challenge. I too have many things to do," replied Victor.

Author's Note: Pseudo Capsule is an incomplete experiment. It grants the user temporary control over their blood beast, but as it is incomplete, its effects are not fully known.

As Garrick took the capsule, he screamed in pain, "(Scream)... rrr... r..." His eyes turned a reddish purple as his body began to crack and transform into something unknown—a grotesque metamorphosis fueled by forbidden power.

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With a wicked voice, Garrick declared, "So, let's end this before my death—I would like to die as a warrior." His tone was both defiant and mournful.

Victor, watching all this, continued to restore his nature energy, though his gaze was filled with concern. Garrick's body was unstable; it was clear that if he maintained this power much longer, his body would collapse completely.

"How is that boy able to survive..." Victor thought, his voice heavy with disbelief as he rushed toward Garrick.

"Blood Art: Life & Death!" Garrick activated his ultimate technique. In that instant, a chilling presence spread over the battlefield. The air grew cold, and a palpable sense of foreboding filled the space.

As Garrick unleashed his Life & Death attack, the energy around him intensified. A deep, resonant hum vibrated through the ground, and shadows seemed to coalesce into a swirling vortex of power. He began to chant, his voice low and commanding: "First, Life; then, Death. The one who is beyond all is the one who controls these forces. Now, let the power judge our deeds. We will be punished for our sins and praised for our virtues." His words echoed ominously, as if nature itself were listening to his invocation.

At that moment, both Garrick and Victor's movements froze as if time itself had been halted by the immense power of the technique. The pressure was unbearable—a force that weighed down on every living thing in the vicinity. The very essence of life and death was being called into judgment.

Suddenly, a disembodied voice resonated through the air: "Victor... You have been charged, and it is proven here. You are guilty! Garrick, who bears the greater weight of guilt, I hereby declare Victor to be safe." The voice was cold and authoritative, leaving a chilling impact on everyone present.

Garrick’s eyes widened in shock as the accusation echoed within him. "N-no... this can't be," he muttered. "Why am I the one with more sins than the man who has participated in countless wars and murdered so many?" His voice trembled with anguish and disbelief.

Victor, seizing the moment, did not wait any longer. He released a massive, devastating elegen—a surge of nature energy channeled through his very being—directly at Garrick. The attack was titanic in force, a violent explosion of raw power that sent shockwaves rippling through the battlefield. Garrick’s body, already unstable from his transformation, convulsed under the assault. He could no longer maintain his control, and with a final, bone-crushing impact, he fell.

Garrick lost! His body crumpled to the ground, lifeless, as the dark energy dissipated into the air.

Victor, too, was visibly weakened. Gasping, he said, "I have to dismiss Blood Eye... I have used too much Blood Art." With a strained expression, Victor deactivated his Blood Eye technique, the intense red glow fading from his vision.

Standing beside Garrick’s still body, Victor’s heart was heavy with sorrow and confusion. "Life & Death, huh? This technique is an ancient one, isn’t it? But how can he do it? It is not a mere Blood Art—there must be something more. Is there something I am missing here? Well, now is not the time to ponder this. I have to help Kael and save the Stone. I don’t know who your master was, but you were too loyal to this world. You died as a warrior!" Victor murmured bitterly as he looked down at Garrick’s lifeless body.