I tossed a bag full of blood-soaked towels into the trash before heading out. The process of learning the Art of Sanguina was a messy one, to say the least, but I was incredibly excited at the prospects that lay ahead. I signed up to clear a ruin in order to try and experiment.

If I was only limited by my imagination then all I needed to do was expand my horizons so to speak. So I began thinking on the more extreme end of the spectrum as I walked.

I was certainly no expert on the subject and hadn’t thought about the science behind cloning, but I knew it required a sample of DNA. So, keeping that in mind, was there not something similar I could make use of? Could I regrow limbs and organs if I continued studying the art? Or maybe I could do something greater like getting a second life by regrowing my body if I ever sustained a fatal injury.

There would probably be drawbacks like a drain on my vitality or something similar, but it was well worth it if it meant I could avoid death at least once.

Of course, all of that was far off since the most I could do was freely manipulate my blood. It was the most basic of stages, but I wouldn’t disregard it just because of that.

`Ah, wait!’ I only just remembered I had around 750k after paying off my debts.

Being a class-3 gifted made it so I could purchase a lot more weapons and artifacts, but they were all standard.

Henry Cunningham took part in illegal auctions where black market artifacts were sold. Parts of his memories revealed that there were some amazing things being exchanged. Unfortunately, to even get near that market, I’d need to put 10 million dollars to take part. The market around illegal trade was hesitant to let non-buyers take part given the danger they put themselves in to make items available in the first place.

I strolled past a bar where a group of people gathered around a tv that displayed a news report. Feeling curious, I stepped and went completely unnoticed and I joined them.

[Just as expected, the US has officially unveiled one of its major development projects. For the first time, an artifact was artificially created using resources gathered from an unspecified ruin. Researchers on the project state they were able to create what they call a suit of ‘enchanted armor’ that can be used by ordinary humans. It is said the first models have the combat equivalent of an individual class-two gift, but by early spring they expect to be able to manufacture models that can reach up to class-four. US officials have stated that the suits will be strictly used to combat domestic threats and protect allies during Ruin Eruptions and criminal acts perpetrated by gifted. Some human rights groups are expressing their concerns over the issue of over-policing gifted, others argue that the development acts as a deterrent to criminals as well as opens a new field of technological possibilities. Some may recall that Russia has begun development into it's Iron Soldier’ project which aims to create ‘golems’ that can be remotely controlled. There are several individuals from across the globe with gifts that allow the creation of pseudo-golems and they are reported to be close advisors on the project…]

I left just as the report was coming to close, amidst the heated discussions of the customers filling the bar.

Just as Alexandra said, it seemed the landscape around the importance of gifted was shifting and at a rapid pace. The biggest superpowers in the world had made landmark achievements which should’ve been cause for celebration, but without knowing how things would progress, I felt a little uneasy.

Putting aside those thoughts, I headed straight for the ruin close by.

…

“Sir, it is extremely dangerous to go in without protection,” A security guard told me at the ruin’s entrance.

My destination was a class-2 ruin filled with imps. Primate-like creatures that attacked with numbers rather than strength alone.

“Don’t worry, my gift has it covered,” I replied with a smile.

“Understood, I’m supposed to warn you, but if that’s your choice feel free to enter.” He stepped aside without saying anything else, probably expecting me to come out injured.

I ignored him and descended into the ruin while studying my surroundings. As expected of lower ruins, the interior was much like a cavern, but it hosted a lot of plant life like shrubbery and moss lining boulders and parts of the walls.

As I moved further in, I could hear echoing cries of the imps which caused me to smile. The reason I chose this ruin is that I had experience fighting imps. I still recall the time where some of them climbed out of the sewers and almost caused a disturbance.

“Ah, that video was a bit popular wasn’t it?” I spoke aloud, reminiscing about my five minutes of fame.

Anyway, I stopped just short of a smaller tunnel that would likely lead to the imp nest and began to manipulate the sanguina.

First up, armor. The problem with purchasing armor was that it was expensive and had costly upkeep and unless I shelled out millions of dollars, I doubt I would find something that could survive an encounter class-4 ruin.

I needed to find out if I could solve this by manipulating my blood. Since I could create scarlet blades formed from crystallized blood, then it stood to reason I could pull off something similar while using the art of sanguina.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Picturing the black combat suit Alexandra gave me, I tried to replicate as droplets dark red blood emerged from my pores. I felt an incredible strain as my blood began to move under my command.

The closest thing I could compare it to would probably be lifting weights with just my brain. Even though I wasn’t making any physical effort, a strange pressure seemed to weigh down on me.

I think maybe ten minutes passed before I had created something of note. Underneath my clothes, a layer of blood-covered my skin, extending all the way up to the top of my head. The major flaw was a series of exposed areas that were a failure on my part. Slips of concentration left some areas of my body exposed.

Another problem was the rigid feel of the blood as well as my joints being more exposed since I could seem to create a flexible enough layer that would allow movement.

Still, I was happy with my first attempt since it proved that I could protect myself without shelling out thousands of dollars toward armor. If I improved the blood armor, there was no doubt it would create a better defense.

There was also the question of whether runes could be applied to my blood, but I would hold off on that for now.

I needed to test the combat potential of my the sanguina. So I headed deeper into the cavern where the high-pitched noises of the imps were the loudest. It didn’t take me long to come across the skittering creature with bright orange fur which jumped in surprise after seeing me.

It let out a cry of alarm which echoed through the caves, no doubt bringing more of them toward the area.

I raised my palms and released a torrent of bloody darts which completely ripped the imp apart.

“So that works.” My first attack was crude and a bit wasteful.

In theory, I could produce maybe five to ten times the blood of a normal person in order to fuel the Art of Sanguina, but it required me to shift my attention and was extremely draining after a while.

I noted that I would need to explore options to extend my endurance while using the arts before my eyes fell on a group of imps that attempted to encircle me.

Now, previously, I had a skill that made my blood poisonous and a skill that could make corpses explode. I would try to replicate those next.

I shifted my palm toward the most exposed imp and fired off a clump of blood that painted its chest red. I focused on the imp I marked and pictured a massive explosion going off.

What I got in reply was something similar to the sound of a firecracker. The imp tumbled onto the ground, but it wasn’t dead. It seemed to be hurt a little, but it was a far cry from the results I wanted.

With a scream, an imp jumped toward me and I instinctively moved away.

‘What about this?’

I forced the blood armor covering my body into the shape of a spike that impaled the imp, but its weight was too much and the spike shattered, causing me to feel the backlash. With a grunt, I fell to one knee feeling exhausted and that’s when the rest of the imps decided to rush me. Like dogs, they tried to nip and tear at me, burying me in the center of their blockade.

I brought my arms together and protected my neck and head as they attacked in a frenzy. I maintained a calm head as the painful attacks struck me.

‘Density is key,’ I made a mental note of it before picture my blood solidifying in a way similar to the scarlet blades.

My body became stiff as the layer covering me hardened and the impact of the imps striking me was greatly reduced. They hardly relented though and I could feel the crystallized blood chipping and even cracked in some areas.

‘High defense and low mobility and basically no sight.’

Entering a crystallized state rendered me immobile and partially blind, but on the upside, if I improved it I would have a steel wall to protect myself.

‘Now for a counter-attack.’ The imps weren’t showing any signs of stopping so I needed to do something before they broke the crystallized blood and I was really in danger.

Since I couldn’t create strong enough spikes, maybe I could try to make use of a whip.

Focusing on the blood protecting my back, I allowed it to soften before extending it and causing it to thrash around.

I didn’t see the result, but I could hear the imps crying out as well as feel the attacks come to a stop. I undid the crystallization and rose to my feet a few seconds after, surveying what was left.

The whip wasn’t sharp enough to sever limbs or remove heads, but the imps were definitely hurt.

‘So it must’ve been the weight behind the attack.’

I guess it acted as a blunt instrument rather than a whip, but it worked. Maybe the answer to making a bladed whip was to improve on flexibility and density while reducing weight. Since the scarlet blades could slice through most things, the same could happen with a bladed whip.

The imps staged a retreat, heading deeper into the caves to lick their wounds, but a blood tendril emerged from my back and grabbed one who was slower.

“Hold on, I need someone to help me with this,” I spoke to the shrieking creature.

It thrashed around in a wild panic, but I made sure that it couldn’t break free.

Now that I had a breather, I wanted to test blood poisoning, burning, and maybe even injecting my blood into another being to see if I could control its movements.

For the sake of learning, the imp I grabbed wouldn't be able to die just yet.

…

An hour later, I cleared the ruin without much of an issue.

This was one of the easiest ruins in comparison to others as imps were cowardly creatures by nature and chose to run away and group up. My souls were stolen by the strange ring around my navel, but that wasn’t a big concern at the moment. I earned a lot of progress in the Art of Sanguina which was worth not gaining a few hundred souls.

As I emerged, the security guard spoke while staring at me strangely.

“Do you need medical assistance?”

“Hmm?” I looked at my blood-soaked clothes and shook my head with a dry grin. “I’m fine.”

His face grew uncomfortable as he continued looking at me, but I ignored him.

Was my smile that unsettling? I hope I didn’t pick up on any strange traits from Henry. He liked using knives to cut people and gained some sort of enjoyment from it. I had to experiment on imps, but I didn’t exactly enjoy it.

Well, the only I felt good about was the fact that I was making progress.

‘Oh, yeah,’ I coughed aloud as I finally realized I was standing in front of the security guard while wearing a grin and thinking to myself. I probably looked like some sort of sadistic pervert in his eyes, reminiscing about killing the imps.

I quickly walked off to a changing station while hiding my face in shame. The price of learning didn’t come without its costs.