Born in Blood



Liam stored the Sanguine Witch's body, even grabbing onto her dislodged head with his chains before it flew away.

The remaining vampires instantly lost their courage with the Legionnaire's death.

Why would they try to fight someone their superior couldn't kill? 

They'd rather live for another day. Although the higher-ups could potentially execute them for cowardice, they'd gamble their chances. 

Instantly, they turned around and headed towards the distant Citadel.

…But Liam chased after them.

Zooming towards the Citadel, he realized there was no backup in sight, meaning the dearly departed Madam Ursul hadn't ordered for any.

Or, she simply didn't order them to chase. 

Lower vampires strictly followed the instructions given by their leaders, and the Sanguine Witch clearly thought she was above receiving support.

At the same time, Liam didn't want any witnesses to the battle he just had. 

There weren't too many cultivators that could wield darkness, after all. 

If they were to make an effort and search for him, they could narrow down their inquiry and find him with ease.

If that were to happen, Liam didn't doubt he would be used as a pawn to soothe things over.

'Not gonna happen.'

As Rin, Nord, Nessa and Niveh went one direction, he went the other, trailing after the remaining five.

Liam was atop an armored, peak Rank 3 Blood Bat, and its speed was way faster compared to the others. 

In a flash, he soared towards the nearest vampire, whose already pale skin grew even paler, swiftly launching three needles into each wing of the beast it rode.

Liam's aim was on point. 

The needles tore through the skinny membranes between the bony wings of the bat, then exploded, corroding through and making it lose the ability to fly.

Only the main body of the bats were armored, and their wings were freely exposed.

The vampire's screams and the bat's screeching eventually faded as they both plunged downwards, consumed by the thick layer of fog enshrouding the ground.

Liam's vertical iris constricted, shifting between the other four.

"What are you?!" one of the vampires shrieked as Liam pulled up behind it, shooting another barrage of needles that clipped the bat's flying ability.

The other three were dealt with in a similar fashion. 

All they could do was throw random attacks in a panic, but they were too distraught for any to land.

Liam swiftly retrieved two of their corpses midair before they tumbled down, then began flying back to his group. 

'I have a good amount of vampire hearts left in my rings. With the Witch's, my blood manipulation prowess could even double.' 

'I'm not even done with draining Vxich's body, too.' 

A smile formed on Liam's lips despite the dire circumstances. 

There was much to be excited for.

///

Crimson lightning struck the mountain peaks, between and below which two Blood Bats flew with a short distance between them.

Soon enough, Liam caught up with his group. 

At first, they were prepared to attack him, thinking he was the Witch or some other Legionnaire, but quickly realized he wasn't. 

"You crazy bastard!" Nord shouted, not bothering to hide his amazed and loud voice. He laughed. "You keep taking all the glory!" 

Rin shook her head in defeat. 

In a way, she imagined that Lawrence's strength was a little above her own. Now, her previous thought of him becoming a Rank 2 Magus wasn't too far fetched anymore, yet she had no way to confirm it.

"I'm surrounded by crazies… every single one of you," Nessa uttered under her breath as she maneuvered her mount. 

Niveh was just thankful she accepted Liam's offer, remaining silent and avoiding his piercing gaze.

"What happened to that woman?" Nord eventually asked over her shoulder. "We couldn't see because of the fog and growing distance."

Liam said nothing and simply maintained some space between him and his group, cultivating in silence as the soft gusts of wind pulled his hair back.

In truth, he took a slight gamble when performing his little stunt. He wanted to keep the Rank 3 Nexus without his group members having any right to ask for it, but he underestimated just how fast he dealt with the Legionnaire.

"She fell off." 

Was all Liam responded with.

///

The two weeks of travel passed quickly. 

At one point, Liam had taken his group under the Witch's bat in order to reach their location faster.

During the time period, he couldn't do much except eat, cultivate and keep a lookout for anyone trailing them. 

Thankfully, they were far enough from the Citadel. Even if anybody was following them, it would take a similar period of time for them to meet up.

On the way, Rin began to mark and jot down the various farms and Feeding Grounds they passed by. There were too many to count. 

Liam made sure to fly low through the Blooder's territory, so as not to alert the other domain rulers. 

'Though… I could use another Rank 3 Nexus…' 

Liam shook his head. He was being a little bit too ambitious. Settling for what he had was enough for the current time.

Eventually, they reached the foggy cliff where the Korsan lands met the blood-red sea. 

Liam 'parked' the bat just before they went through the misty areas. They would walk the rest of the distance on foot, since the bat was a little too big to fit inside the boat.

Before they passed through, Liam exchanged a knowing nod with Rin. 

Upon entering the wraith infested area, Rin simply hurled a simple fire lance spell that cleared open a path. Several shrieks rang out as the 'will-breakers' – the nickname Rin had given the ghosts – were vanquished.

The group instantly passed through and climbed down the docking port where the ship was. 

"Took you all long enough," a voice complained. A moment later, a large form blurred, revealing the darkwood ship with a slightly cranky looking man atop of it. 

Looking at the disheveled, exhausted and cold-faced youths, Jack realized he had it quite easy compared to them. His lips curled to an awkward smile.

"Welcome back."