Chapter 41

Chapter 41
Chapter 41
Attack (2)

Heinz knit his brows, taking in the scene around him.

He was completely encircled by a group of vampires and an unfamiliar squad of masked individuals.

Through the use of “Penetration,” he had accurately gauged the capabilities of the vampires, but the masked group remained a mystery; despite evading his detection, they appeared to possess a comparable level of strength.

“How did you spot me?”

With their barrier now fully operational, his stealth had been forcibly broken. Yet, he wondered how they had managed to pinpoint his location beforehand, especially since he had activated “concealment” to mask his presence.

“I put a considerable amount of effort into tracking down the Hahoe mask.”

Dressed in a sharp black suit with slicked-back hair and wearing an arrogant smirk, the man positioned on the staircase—unmistakably a high-ranking official of the villainous syndicate—shrugged nonchalantly.

It was evident he had zero intention of offering a polite explanation.

“Are you lot associated with the Abyssal Conclave, per chance?” Heinz inquired, casting a sharp glance toward the masked subordinates who seemed to obey the man’s orders.

It stood to reason that only such an organization would conspire with the radical faction of the Blood Alliance to orchestrate this kind of ambush.

“My, my, but who exactly are you? I can’t quite grasp why a fellow vampire would side with them. Beta One, Beta Two, does your faction have any record of this individual?” The suited executive deflected the inquiry, turning instead to consult the representatives of the Blood Alliance.

“…We are equally in the dark about his identity. Assessing his strength, he appears to be at minimum a level 7, yet his face is entirely unfamiliar to us.”

“His distinct aura is quite foreign. He gives off the impression of someone who has only recently returned from an unmapped, hidden domain.”

The two most powerful vampires within the assembly took turns offering their assessment.

The mention of “Beta Two” confirmed that both high-ranking Betas were present in the room.

Recalling the memories he had extracted from numerous radical vampires he had previously subdued, their titles directly reflected their hierarchy.

The supreme commander of the Blood Alliance’s extremist wing was designated as Alpha, with the two Betas serving directly beneath him.

Positioned below them were the twelve Gammas.

‘Though that number has dropped to nine by now.’

After eliminating the Gamma known as Dohan Soo, he had successfully hunted down three additional targets.

The coordinates and details regarding this specific base had been wrested from the very last Gamma he had neutralized.

‘Furthermore, because the residual power of ‘concealment’ is likely still clinging to me, they haven’t realized that I have been feeding on our own kind.’

Because the barrier’s suppression had severely dampened ‘concealment,’ he was unable to maintain active stealth, let alone completely mask his aura.

‘So, how many level 7 Betas are we looking at? Two. Along with twelve level 6 combatants. Among those at level 6, a select few exceptional individuals hold the Gamma title. I can’t be sure how many of them are gathered here, not to mention the sentries stationed just outside the main lobby…’

Disposing of the vampires on their own wouldn’t pose a massive dilemma.

The true wildcard was the masked contingent believed to belong to the Abyssal Conclave.

Even under these tense circumstances, he found himself entirely unable to read or estimate their power levels.

“Tell me, how much longer does the Hahoe mask intend to linger in the dark? It is high time he showed himself. Or does he plan to keep treating us like nonentities?”

Heinz’s brow twitched slightly.

Up until this moment, there had been no mention of the Hahoe mask, leading him to believe they were completely oblivious to his presence.

[Hmph… quite a brazen fellow, aren’t you? If you are so eager for my appearance, I shall oblige.]

A profound voice, sounding as though it resonated from the depths of the underworld, reverberated through the entire chamber.

Since his presence was already exposed, there was no longer any purpose in remaining concealed.

Ssshh—

As Hans materialized slowly out of the shadows… the ambient temperature plummeted instantly, an icy draft swept through the room, and the illumination lighting the space seemed to wither and lose its brightness.

He had not even deliberately unleashed his magical pressure, yet his mere manifestation was enough to violently alter the surrounding environment.

Catching their breath in shock, the surrounding vampires instinctively took a step back in retreat.

“Hmm… this far exceeds my calculations. Had we attempted to manage this situation on our own, we would have been in severe jeopardy.”

Visible fractures formed across the previously relaxed expression of the man in the suit.

Confronting Hans face-to-face had clearly dealt a heavy blow to his confidence.

“His power might surpass my expectations, but it remains well within our capacity to neutralize.”

Regaining his footing, the man’s expression quickly reverted to a state of calm composure.

It was clear he had engineered a highly meticulous counter-strategy.

“Umbral sorcery and necromancy. Because both represent extreme forms of power, their inherent vulnerabilities are glaringly obvious.”

Clang—

The sharp snap of his fingers rang crisply through the air.

Woong—

The protective barrier enclosing the space began to vibrate violently.

Ding-ding— Ding-ding—

Suddenly, as if they had produced them from thin air, the masked operatives positioning themselves around the second-floor balcony began brandishing an array of strange implements.

One individual vigorously rang a small ceremonial bell or droplet instrument akin to a shaman’s tool; another produced a heavy wooden totem, driving it forcefully into the floorboards; a third began plastering yellow paper talismans across every available surface, while others held aloft sacred relics from various alien religions entirely foreign to Earth.

The collective pressure converging from every direction immediately blunted Hans’ rising momentum.

An oppressive, choking energy began to ruthlessly batter and destabilize his forbidden magical reserves from all sides.

[…It appears you have gone to extraordinary lengths to welcome me.]

It was undeniable that they had conducted a meticulous investigation, assembling an extensive array of countermeasures specifically designed to counter his unique arsenal.

Due to the fundamental nature of the active sorcery, the vampires stationed throughout the area looked visibly uncomfortable, but compared to Hans—who was the focal point of the suppression—their discomfort was minor, akin to a slight disruption in their clan blood circulation.

‘It doesn’t cause any immediate damage to Heinz. It’s somewhat restrictive, but…’

This was an immense net cast exclusively to ensnare and eliminate Hans.

In this heavily weakened state, if the Abyssal Conclave coordinated their assault alongside the vampires…

Even an entity as formidable as Hans would be forced to beat a hasty retreat.

‘Assuming Hans had arrived entirely unaccompanied…’

Their strategic calculations were transparent.

Operating under the assumption that Heinz was a standard level 7 vampire, they figured a single Beta would suffice to subdue him, leaving the entirety of their remaining forces completely liberated to annihilate Hans.

“Hup—”

Heinz drew a deep, focused breath.

His heart began to hammer with immense violence, causing the blood throughout his entire anatomy to surge at an accelerated pace.

“Blood Circulation Amplification.”

His ordinarily pale complexion flushed a deep crimson, his muscular structure expanded, and thick veins mapping his skin bulged outward.

“Haaa~”

He expelled a heavy breath from the depths of his lungs.

His perception sharpened to a razor’s edge, allowing him to perceive the raw emotions of everyone in his vicinity as tangibly as if he could pluck them from the air.

Regrettably for his foes, he did not conform to their conventional understanding of a level 7 vampire.

His total volume of blood essence and the purity of his vampiric lineage were roughly on par with the Betas, perhaps even slightly inferior.

However…

Kwaaang—!

“Acceleration.”

Bursting from his position like a fired projectile, his body launched forward across the floor.

“What?!”

The target closest to him, a level 6 vampire, proved utterly incapable of tracking or reacting to his explosive velocity.

Poof—

Amid a gasp of pure shock, Heinz’s hand tore clean through the vampire’s back from behind.

“Ugh…”

Pierced directly through the center of his heart, the vampire instantly spat a torrent of blood, his entire frame wracked with violent tremors.

Yet, his terror was far from over.

‘My blood… it’s being forcibly drained?!’

The vital fluid within him was being violently re-routed and pulled toward Heinz’s own heart.

To be precise, it was being drawn into the very arm currently impaling his chest cavity.

‘Consuming our own kind?! Directly through his limb? This makes no sense…!’

Even as he shattered the target’s heart, Heinz had deliberately sliced open his own wrist, using the opening to siphon the vampire’s lifeblood directly into himself.

Through the laceration on his wrist, minuscule droplets of his own blood intermingled with the victim’s supply; by instantly reclaiming it, he completely overrode the opponent’s internal blood manipulation.

This feat was made possible solely by the absolute domain over blood control he had acquired upon ascending to the status of a Noble Blood.

Furthermore, by embedding his hand directly within the foe’s heart chamber, he secured unmediated access to the absolute core of the victim’s circulatory system.

“Ugh… this monster, he’s cann… agh!”

The dying vampire, desperately attempting to shout a final warning to his allies with the last vestiges of his strength, let out a curdling shriek.

The blood that Heinz had aggressively drawn inward manifested into an exquisite crimson blossom, swirling elegantly around the perimeter of his mouth.

The “Blood Bloom” that thoroughly enveloped the victim’s entire physical form gradually expanded, reducing the vampire to a mere mound of ash before dissipating into nothingness.

‘A clever misdirection to obscure the act of cannibalism.’

Though Heinz had blanketed the target’s entire body to shroud the gruesome sight of blood being actively siphoned away into ash, he deliberately left the space around his lips exposed.

This was accomplished courtesy of the “Blood Bloom,” which possessed the unique ability to incinerate only what he consciously dictated.

“………”

In the mere span of a few seconds, every vampire occupying the chamber froze in sheer disbelief at the sudden turn of events.

The Beta vampires, whose reactions came a moment too late, glared at Heinz with rigid, stony countenances.

Because Heinz had been highly vigilant and actively projecting his deadly aura, they had been unable to locate a safe opening to intervene.

Oblivious to the fact that Heinz was actively draining blood through the impaled chest, they quickly abandoned any hope for their mortally wounded subordinate and moved to seize the initiative.

“How could this…?”

Beta One hissed between tightly clenched teeth.

His voice betrayed an extreme level of wariness.

‘I couldn’t even mount a timely reaction!’

He took immense pride in his peerless physical conditioning, yet Heinz’s sheer execution speed outstripped anything he had envisioned.

By the time his reflexes registered the threat, his comrade’s heart had already been obliterated.

Worse still, the casualty was among their most formidable Gammas.

Granted, it was an unannounced ambush, but for an operative of that caliber to be erased in a handful of seconds was deeply unsettling.

He knew he could not duplicate such an instantaneous kill in that timeframe.

Heinz turned a cold, collected gaze upon the defensive vampires surrounding him.

‘Eliminating a level 7 via a preemptive strike would have been ideal… but had I targeted them directly, they would have managed a counter-response. I certainly could have delivered a critical blow, but the remaining forces would have rallied to buy time for their recovery.’

Consequently, it was far more efficient to definitively delete the level 6 combatant possessing the peak Gamma capability closest to his position.

[Acquiring a fresh strand of vampiric essence. Under the passive influence of the unique attribute ‘Blood Fusion Evolution,’ the subject’s proficiency in magical energy manipulation has been augmented.]

As a direct consequence of this exchange, the enemy’s total combat effectiveness dipped, while Heinz’s personal threshold experienced a measurable surge.

Simultaneously, an entirely separate, unforeseen variable was unfolding.

[Hehehe… Quite extraordinary. Is this a manifestation of that as well? A sophisticated tapestry of incantations woven together from separate realities?]

Hans had uncovered a collaborative research project detailing spell syncretism inside the stronghold of the Blood Alliance extremists, which had left him profoundly astonished.

The breakthrough defied his existing paradigms, shattering what he had previously deemed fundamentally unfeasible.

Naturally, Hans had managed to vastly elevate his own sorcerous tier by analyzing and adapting dark arts native to foreign worlds.

The harmonious intersection of “Sinister Wisdom” and “Forbidden Knowledge” granted him unparalleled aptitude when it came to breaking down and mastering dark magic.

Even so, a quiet sense of dissatisfaction had lingered within him.

Those attributes merely offered supplemental modifications to existing dark magic, causing him to completely neglect experimenting outside his established comfort zone.

Had he merely been traveling the path of least resistance, growing complacent with his current capabilities?

While “Sinister Wisdom” claimed to bestow an absolute comprehension of dark sorcery, it required a fundamental perception of magic itself to achieve such a state.

“Forbidden Knowledge,” despite its heavy inclination toward the dark arts, retained countless esoteric truths salvaged from an entire world.

Was there truly no alternative application for these gifts?

Was this rigid adherence merely him imposing artificial boundaries upon his own potential?

Granted, given that Hans had initiated his journey into the arcane less than a year prior, an outside observer might dismiss such thoughts as simple impatience or avarice.

Nonetheless, when a soul chooses a singular destiny and commits entirely to its mastery, chronological time ceases to be the defining metric.

At the very least, Hans held this conviction with absolute sincerity. Following that revelation, Hans had relentlessly studied the magical methodologies of the Blood Alliance while capitalising on every chance to ambush wandering vampires.

He systematically cataloged the vampires’ casting infrastructure, ran live diagnostics on their physiology, and strove to manipulate his skills through various innovative approaches.

‘The returns may be modest at this stage, but progress has undeniably been made. In fact, this scenario presents a perfect crucible.’

Hans struck his staff firmly against the floorboards. The surface beneath his boots stained a pitch black, radiating outward across the floor, and from within the creeping gloom, figures of the undead began to pull themselves upward.

Likely due to the disruptive influence of the dampening arrays targeted at him, he was unable to blanket the entire structural complex in absolute darkness as he normally would.

‘Let us test the absolute limits of their preparation. This ordeal will serve as nothing less than a stepping stone for my own ascension!’

If an element remains unknown, the solution is to experience it directly.

By a stroke of fortune, wasn’t this entire arena orchestrated by the Blood Alliance, who happened to be at the absolute vanguard of that specific magical domain?

Had they deployed dark magic against him, it would have been optimal, but confronting this diametric, extreme magic was an excellent alternative.

Precisely because it posed an equally lethal threat to his existence, it forced him to perceive and comprehend the underlying mechanics of the spells with heightened sensitivity.

‘Hahaha! I am thoroughly anticipating this! Come, provide me with greater amusement! If you have engineered a trap, you had best deploy every ounce of it without reservation!’

This encounter provided an invaluable window to map out his own vulnerabilities.

Acknowledging one’s weaknesses constitutes the foundational step toward transcending them.

Should he successfully weather this storm, he would achieve an entirely new echelon of power.

Positioned right above the Blood Alliance’s restricting field that hemmed them in, the boundary Hans had secretly established prior to his infiltration hummed to life.

Within this theater of war, sealed tightly beneath a layer of dual barriers, no living soul could hope to stage an easy retreat.

‘Now then, let us commence the Death Match.’