“FIRE!!!”

In the night, thousands of flaming arrows rained on the pale skinned ghouls, turning them into flaming porcupines. Narukami sheathed his blade, turning to a fresh group of bloodthirsty ghouls. “Storm Sword: 5th movement. Lightning Surge!”

Narukami’s sword sailed through the air, slicing the air itself, and then cleaving the bloody ghouls in one strike. “Sun! Use it now.”

Gentle Sun stood on the wall, a grin on her face. “Let’s see you vampires take this.”

“Sun Domain: Heliacal Land!”

A bright light flashed across the battlefield; the vampires and ghouls screamed as they burned under the sun in the night. Gentle Sun leaped down from the walls, slamming her staff on the ground, a pulse of bright orange mana smashing against the waves of darkness.

Narukami watched the scene in awe, “T-That’s a little too strong…” In the darkness, Gentle Sun had become a sun, shining so bright ghouls near her vaporized on the spot.

A chill ran down his spine and he turned to the Vampiric Duke sitting on a makeshift throne, watching the battlefield as if he was bored. “That girl is interesting, her sun powers are quite potent.” The duke spoke to the shadow next to him. “But it’ll be nothing against us, so its your turn to move in Baron Drazan, kill the girl, the blood of a sun descendant will hurt us.”

“Understood Duke Alvarez, I shall make quick work of the girl.” With that he burst into a flock of bats, zooming straight towards Gentle Sun.

Narukami noticed, “Sun! Look out!” Gentle Sun saw the flock of bats, spinning her staff around, firing three orbs of sun energy at the flock. The bats easily moved to the side, combining together to form a skinny vampire with a nasty smile. “You’re finished!”

Sun slammed the staff on the ground, forming a bubble of sun energy around her. “This bubble will not stop a baron!” The baron’s hand slashed down, his face filled with glee at the thought of a quick victory. What he never noticed was the small grin on Gentle’s face.

An orb of light slammed into the back of the baron, causing him to groan at the sharp pain. Then Gentle Sun waved in the air, suddenly disappearing, replacing herself with the baron.

Drazan the Vampiric baron felt panic fill his cold heart, “W-What is going on?!” He saw the red-haired woman smiling outside, and he hissed sharply as he attempted to attack her.

Every time Drazan attempts to attack the bubble, a beam of light hits him, causing him to scream. “Hehe, not so tough now you’re in there, aren’t you.” She laughed heartily at the screaming vampire, causing the other vampires to shudder.

“Now… I wonder how you’ll be able to handle this…” With a wicked grin on her face, she pressed a pulsing orb of flame into the bubble, easily entering as if nothing was there.

Drazan’s ashen face looked even paler, as the orb pulsed quickened, getting faster and faster. His heart pulsed at the same rate, his fear rising to the very max.

The orb pulsed faster, until it became a constant beeping…

BOOM!

A blinding flash exploded from the bubble, once subsided, only a pure white skeleton remained, all the clothes were burnt to nothing.

Gentle Sun gave the bubble a satisfied nod and placed her hand on it, feeling the bubble easily breaking into strands, entering her body. She grinned and turned to the duke sitting on the throne, seeing a mild expression of surprise on his face.

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Sun pouted at the lack of a reaction from her enemy, and she focused on the battle. The vampires outnumbered humans 3 to 1, and many are much higher levelled than the human players, with only the best of them at level 39. Some of the elite from other countries were strong, like Qian Xun and Xue Er from the Humble Sage guild. There was also the Japanese Elites, Atsushi himself took on 5 vampires at once, with Karin and Shiki covering him with long distanced attacks.

Kinuko was in charge with healing as well some Holy Smites when needed, after levelling to level 50, Holy Smite was a grenade of light energy. Vampires in groups never stood a chance against those smites.

Narukami felt lucky that many of the players answered the call for battle, but at the same time, he stared at the vampire with a hint of fear. “Even though I’m level 70 now, I get goosebumps from that guy…” He slashed through another wave of vampires, pushing closer towards the duke.

Duke Alvarez inspected the battlefield, standing up with a certain grace. He stared directly at Narukami, a faint trace of excitement on his face. He crouched down, and burst into the air, destroying the ground under him.

Lightning Emperor sensed the powerful vampire flying straight towards him, he sheathed his sword and unsheathed it, sending a barrage of winds against the oncoming Duke. A blood red sabre formed in the vampire’s hand, slicing the wind easily, like slicing through butter. “Come! Entertain me!”

Bat-like wings sprouted on the back of the Duke, as it floated in the air, staring down at Narukami like a predator staring at prey. “He’s difficult, he’s on another level compared to the barons—”

Then the duke was right in front of him.

“Wha—”

DOOM!

Narukami felt a sharp pain in his chest, and he was flying into the castle walls. Rubble exploded around him, blood spewing from his mouth as he lay limp in the rubble. Duke Alvarez strolled forward, as if he was never on a battlefield, as if he was in a park for a stroll. But he froze, lifting his hand to the sky, stopping a giant white sword right at his fingertips.

He snapped the finger stopping the sword and it shattered into particles of light. Kinuko’s face turned pale quickly sending a surge of healing towards Narukami. But right at that moment, a shadow was in front of her, Duke Alvarez stood there with a nasty grin on his face, eyes glowing blood red as his mouth inched closer to Kinuko’s neck.

CLANG!

Duke Alvarez scowled in annoyance, Silent Death stood between him and Kinuko, her daggers brandished in a scary way. Then a thunderclap sounded, and behind him was Lightning Prince. A cloud of ash burst at his side, and Ash Blade’s furious expression brought a little frown to Alvarez’s face.

Then a heavy weight pressed down on the vampire, causing him the grit his teeth slightly, looking to his other side to find the red-haired Gentle Sun floating in the air with glowing white eyes. “Surrender or die!”

Duke Alvarez felt a happy grin bloom on his face, and he threw his head back with a maniac laugh, dispelling the pressure on his shoulder. Gentle Sun’s expression darkened and she clapped her hands together, glowing with the intensity of a sun.

The vampire squinted his eyes at the bright light, but couldn’t help a smile on his face, “Good! Good! Keep trying! Try till you’re all dead!”

And the battlefield exploded…

>>>

Throughout his entire life, Narukami had been strong, he had broken records in heights he should have never been able to reach. He worked himself through blood, sweat and tears to get himself to where he was. Even then…

Is this how they die?

Silent Death laid on the ground, two holes in her neck as she gasped with the hole in her neck. Lightning Prince was sprawled on the ground, his profound spear snapped in half. Kinuko and the others were incapacitated, all trying to protect the healer, but it was all in vain.

Narukami had to watch from his slump position, as Ash Blade and Gentle Sun was lifted into the air. Duke Alvarez had a mad grin on his face, his fingers slowly tightening around their neck, the noose of fear strangling their hearts…

He tried to move, he tried so hard. Narukami had never tried as hard as he did now, the Lightning Emperor sat slumped as his friends are dying in front of him. The duke glanced at the slouched king, eyes gleaming as if they said, “I’ll have you watch your friends die, one by one…”

The fingers tightened, and then were loose.

They weren’t loose, they were severed.

Blood spurted the air, filling it with the dense metallic smell. Two pale limbs fell to the ground, the owner of those arms staring at his right with wide eyes of shock. Narukami himself was shocked, not because of the falling arms, but because of the man who caused it.

A few meters away from Duke Alvarez, was a man with a black, blank mask. Black-red armour fitted on him. Purple, cold, void eyes stared at the vampire.

That was the first shock…

The second was the pair of black wings, pitch-black feather with a purple tinge at the end. The feathers seemed translucent, at the same time, it wasn’t see-through, it was showing the stars, the dark abyss, the infinite void.

Blood Mask had returned.