Child of Destiny

...…

On the major castle that had become a corrupted nest, the throne room became a battlefield for Shin and Lodhir, who were controlling the body of the fallen elven king.

The entire place had completely turned into ruins. The throne room was completely different from what used to be. Its high ceiling was no longer there while the thick and sturdy walls filled with murals had fallen during the battle. Even the platform where the throne was located was ruined while the throne itself was smashed into pieces.

The entire place was already covered with thick roots that had either been cut into multiple pieces or scorched into charcoals.

At the center of these ruins stood the lone figure of a cloaked young man while pointing his blazing sword at someone, who was lying on the ground.

Underneath Shin's feet was the body of King Yulis, who was possessed by Lodhir. The body no longer had any of its limbs as they were cut by Shin's sword earlier. Shin had severed all the limbs of the fallen elven king to make sure that it could no longer move.

"Heh-… Hehe-… You are indeed a monster. No wonder those people are too wary of you," Lodhir, who was still possessing the body of King Yulis, was laughing maniacally despite the current state that he was in.

He stared at Shin with an insane look on his face as he continued. "You may have won this battle, but we have won the war! This kingdom can no longer be saved! It has already been corrupted and will become one of our lands!"

He continued to laugh as if he was mocking Shin. Then he continued. "As your you! Just you wait! I will turn your virtual avatar into a perfect puppet that would be my most powerful weapon!"

"Let's see how your account will become once I make that happen!" it was clear that he was provoking Shin on purpose.

Unfortunately, Shin had no intention of falling for it as he coldly said. "You are welcome anytime. But make sure to be prepared for being imprisoned in a prison prism the next time we meet. I have no intention of letting you go for the second time."

Lodhir smirked. "What a coincidence. I happen to have the same plan."

Shin no longer had the time to play with this guy, so he quickly swung his sword and severed the latter's head for 'another time'.

Shin sheathed the [Yamato] immediately after that and bent down to take the Crown Relic that was on the head of the fallen elven king. He did not bother to look at its properties as he directly threw it in his inventory.

He then turned around and looked at the remains of the fallen elven king as he hesitated. He then shook his head and mumbled to himself. "There is nothing to lose if I give it a try."

He then formed a palm blade with his right hand and focused his mana on it. He then thrust it down and struck the chest of the remaining below him.

After feeling that he had something in the place where King Yulis' heart was supposed to be, Shin closed his hand and grabbed onto that 'thing'.

He then pulled his hand out along with what he had grabbed with all his strength.

Raising his body and standing straight. He looked at his hand and saw a spherical object that looked like a small globe. It had a color like the blue sky while releasing a gentle glow that seemed to have pulsed with a proper rhythm.

It was the core of King Yulis, which was formed after he became a Humanoid King Class Monster.

This core was supposed to be contaminated by the Corrupted Mana. But its appearance clearly showed that it was not affected by any kind of corruption, which made Shin heaved a sigh of relief.

Shin stared at that core for a moment before turning to the remains on the ground. He was not sure how he was going to extract the soul of this monster since he had never done it before. Even though he had read the 'legends' about acquiring the Sword Heart, it had never been mentioned the proper method of doing it.

Aside from extracting the core and the soul of the said monster, nothing else was recorded.

*Ding*

It was at that moment when Shin heard a notification sound.

System: You have met the conditions to extract the Soul of the Sword Slave.

System: Sword Heart Tinder (Soul) had been detected. Do you want to extract it and seal it to the core?

Shin suddenly came to a realization as his eyes suddenly turned bright. "So, it is like that!"

He realized that the developers would have to think about it and download it to the system. Since they had designed such a scenario, it was clear that they had a solution for the problem that he was facing.

No longer hesitating, Shin quickly hit the 'Yes' button in front of him.

Swoosh!

Following his actions, a sudden 'movement' could be seen from the remains under him. He saw a translucent light moving from within the remains of King Yulis before 'coming out' of it. It was as if something had lured it to come out before slowly extracting itself from the physical body.

Then Shin watched this 'tinder' float up and enter the core that he was holding in his right hand.

The translucent light looked like an incorporeal spirit that turned into smoke while it was being sucked by the blue core.

The process lasted for a couple of minutes before being completed.

*Ding*

System: Extraction has been completed!

Shin stared at the core for a few moments before looking at its details.

-------------------------------

[Item Name]: Sword Heart Container

[Item Type]: Miscellaneous Material

[Item Rank]: Special (Legendary) – Obsidian Material

Description:

A special core that has been used to host the soul of a fallen swordsman.

It contains the knowledge and experience of the fallen Swordmaster.

Note: Can be used as a main material to form a Sword Heart.

Special Clue: Look for a Great Sage with a secondary profession of Alchemist or Apothecary at the Saint Rank to achieve the highest rate of success.

--------------------------

Shin's eyes became brighter when he read through the description of the item. "So, it is true! It is really designed from the legends in the real world! This is good stuff!"

It took him quite a while to calm himself down before keeping the item inside his inventory and looking around.

He then saw the pair of swords lying on the ground a few distance away from him. He suddenly remembered the new rules of drops inside the game.

Monsters no longer drop any items when they die. Materials could be extracted from the bodies of the Beast-type Monsters while weapons, equipment, or other items could be dropped from Humanoid Monsters.

The former case was pretty much a common practice these past few days after the player adjusted. There was still a certain chance to extract or gather some special materials from the monsters' carcasses if they were lucky.

The latter case was somewhat similar. If the players were lucky, then they could get the weapons or other equipment that the monsters were using as a form of drop just like what happened in front of them.

Bending over, Shin picked up the pair of swords and looked at their descriptions. The swords were good quality as both were at Black Mithril Rank. Their stats and other bonuses were also quite interesting and would be at the top of the rankings if they were to be listed.

But since Shin was already in possession of a better weapon, a sword at the Obsidian Rank, these swords were nothing in his eyes. Other than their interesting names – [Twilight] and [Nightfall] – Shin quickly lost his interest in them.

He then casually threw them in his inventory before sweeping his gaze at the battlefield once again, making sure that he did not miss anything.

After being sure that he had not overlooked anything, Shin opened the communication panel to inquire about the current situation.

Ithilien immediately reported that the Maze Forest was still able to hold on with the help of the players and NPCs, but barely. She felt that the situation would turn for the worse if they did not perform the ritual as soon as possible.

Shin quickly informed them that he already had the final relic and would be headed there in no time.

Ithilien heaved a sigh of relief when she heard that and urged Shin to come as soon as he could while they prepared for everything.

Shin then contacted Diablo and asked about his situation. From what he had heard earlier, the latter seemed to have lured the Dragon Centipede away from the Maze Forest to buy them enough time.

Shin was quite surprised that Diablo just replied simply.

Diablo: Go! I will play with some old friends first and join you later.

Reading between the lines, Shin realized that the Pandemonium Descendants might have pulled one of their tricks once again. But since he no longer had the time to dwell on it, he set it aside for the time being before rushing toward the Maze Forest.

He had to deal with the most urgent matter first before anything else.

…

On one of the hunting maps of the Sacred Light Kingdom, a giant centipede suddenly lost its cool and started wreaking havoc the moment when Lodhir died.

It broke free from the constraints and control of the necromancer that was controlling it and finally regained its freedom.

To 'celebrate', it started destroying everything on its path while heading toward a random direction.

As if taking it as a cue, Amon, who was patiently waiting up until this point, finally made his move.

Boom!

An explosion erupted behind him as he suddenly lunged forward, flying straight to Diablo, who was running ahead of him the entire time. He caught up to the latter within a couple of seconds before swinging his sword.

Swoosh!

Puff!

His attack was swift, strong, and ruthless. But he had cut nothing but air as Diablo turned into smoke right after the blazing sword passed through his body.

Unknowingly and soundlessly, Diablo suddenly appeared behind Amon while swinging the shortsword on his left.

'Twilight (Elven Thief) Skill: Backbreaker'

Amon quickly sensed the chill on his back as the shortsword was about to hit him. He swiftly took a couple of steps forward while quickly turning around and holding his sword diagonally in front of him.

Clang!

Burning sparks flew in the air as the swords collided.

Then the two separated from each other as Amon used the force from the impact to retreat while Diablo kicked the ground and swiftly gave chase.

Swoosh!

Amon stomped his foot to forcefully halt his retreat while raising his sword in the air. It released a blinding light that looked like a golden sun that rose in the void while a raging flame flowed through its blade.

He then swung it down when his opponent was about to enter his attack range.

'Divine Wrath Skill (Tier 2): Solar Explosion'

Boom!

The flames exploded and created an energy that rippled in all directions like tidal waves. Wherever they went, everything the waves touched was reduced to dust.

It was clear that Amon wanted to cover a huge area to prevent the opposing side from dodging. But Diablo did not even hesitate to use one of his life-saving skills when he saw the incoming attack.

'Shadow Dancer Skill (Tier 2): Gale Steps'

Swoosh!

Diablo took advantage of the few seconds of immunity all kinds of damage and status effects of the skill while using the extreme speed boost that it had to continue advancing.

Diablo disappeared for an instant before reappearing right in front of Amon. But right after his reappearance, his face was already in front of a blazing sword that was greeting him. He could already feel the heat of the sword as it was about to hit his face.

'Shadow Dancer Skill (Tier 2): Shadow Waltz'

Swoosh!

The blazing sword passed through his 'body'.

His figure slowly faded away as it was only an afterimage.

Diablo then reappeared behind Amon for another time as the stiletto on his left hand pushed forward. Its tip was directed to the lungs of the latter, seemingly wanting to pierce it with all his might.

'Twilight Skill: Backstab'

But before the tip of the stiletto reached its destination, Amon used the momentum of his previous actions and quickly spun. He then turned to face Diablo and swung his sword down as it released a much more intense burning than earlier.

'Divine Wrath Skill (Tier 2): Divine Cleave'

A Tier 1 Skill against a Tier 2 Skill – it was clear which side would win if this exchange continued.

Even if Diablo was confident that he would still hit Amon's heart with this stab, he would still be unable to kill the latter since he was aware of the 'Seven Hearts' of Demon Race.

On the other hand, he would be cleaved by the descending sword if it continued.

Not going to risk it, Diablo retreated without hesitation.

'Shadow Dancer Skill (Tier 2): Extreme Vanish'

Swoosh!

He disappeared once again and retreated. But this time, he did not reveal himself immediately as he entered stealth and started stalking his opponent from the dark.

...