As the screech and thunder tore through the silence, a dark cloud hung over the sky. Lightning thundered on Arcane relentlessly as she hovered in the air, taking it all with pained, low screeches.
As lightning struck Arcane, a small, barely visible white thunderbolt mark began to form just above her glabella, at the center of her forehead.
The bottom tip of the thunderbolt's symbol began filling up like a container, showing clear signs of progress. With each lightning strike, the symbol glowed white, gradually filling and moving upward.
Rex looked at Arcane, who hovered in the air, his expression worried, his fist clenched tightly.
His gaze moved toward her father—the one who made all this possible—lying on the floor like a husk. Yet faint life flickered within him. Just barely alive, the father hadn't used all of his soul—a wisp of it still remained within him.
Everything was proceeding peacefully. But they knew that this wouldn't last long.
"Rex, we need to prepare," Darius spoke as he looked at the gaping hole in the roof, where the lightning was striking Arcane from. The clouds had long turned dark—however, only in the 10-meter radius around Arcane.
The rest of the sky? Clear, as if nothing had ever happened. And those dark clouds stuck out like a sore thumb in the clear sky.
Rex nodded as he too looked at the beautiful, yet painful, sight—mentally preparing for any problems. Then, from the corner of his eye, a flying human appeared… peeking with a curious yet wary gaze through the same gaping hole.
However, he was flying with the help of an artifact—not by his strength alone. Then another human appeared. And another. In a similar fashion, a total of six people gathered—some male, some female—flying by various means.
Some had beasts helping them fly, while others used artifacts. But they all had one thing in common: their eyes flickered with greed as Arcane's painful awakening reflected in their eyes.
"We have a 'Pureblood' here."
A small grin etched across everyone's faces—except for a single man… who hovered without any visible aid, relying solely on his strength. Instead of a grin like others, a purposeful smile crossed his face.
Seeing the lightning striking Arcane, one man closed in and announced, "He is mine. I have a blood feud with that young man—he massacred all of my subordinates," the man growled, moving in their direction without caring for the other's opinions.
And others? They ignored him, letting him test the waters, scrutinizing how things would play out.
"We are in deep shit, Darius," Rex exclaimed, pulling out his daggers.
Rex's eyes locked onto the man approaching them—the man's expression was a mask of rage and resentment as he grinned sinisterly.
Crack… Boom.
The man blasted another gaping hole a few meters away from where lightning had been striking Arcane. He passed through the new hole, haughtily flying atop a Bloodgrin Fenhound—a twisted creature with a carnivorous grin and two small black wings, like something straight out of a nightmare.
[Name: Seskel Marth]
[Entity: Human]
[Rank: Ascender 3-Star]
[Potential: D]
Available slots: [3] → [Tamed living: 3/6]
[Taming in progress...]
Target: {Seskel}
Rex quickly decided to tame the man, not knowing how things would play out.
Seskel swiftly landed on the cold floor, his eyes scanning the surroundings. Though his gaze halted and narrowed on Arcane's father. Then, smirking after taking everything in, he uttered, [Dust Pellet Barrage], directly preparing to attack without indulging in small talk.
Within a fraction of a second, dust swirled around him, grinding faintly as it changed into small pellets. They orbited around his hand—his eyes gleamed greedily as they shot forward in a burst, targeting Rex.
"Damn it," Rex grumbled, stepping into a defensive stance while activating [Earth Pulse]. Then, deeming it wouldn't be effective enough to block the attack, he commanded, System, upgrade Ea— but stopped mid-sentence. When...
Arcane's biological father loomed in front of him—in a protective stance to stop the barrage.
Then, with a cracked voice, he rumbled, [Thunderblaze Aegis]…
Yet nothing happened. No shield fluttered to protect him or Rex.
Instead, a faint smile appeared on his face. He knew the skill wouldn't work—yet he stood tall, protecting Rex. Hoping… he would do the same when the time came.
The Dust Pellet Barrage struck him relentlessly—each pellet penetrating deep into his flesh. Even in his weakened state, his body remained strong, holding on against the powerful, rapid barrage. The pellets lodged deep within him, refusing to leave.
But this was the last of his strength. After blocking everything, He fell weakly.
Then, he put everything into one final moment.
Arcane's father—Raigon—rumbled his final words, speaking while looking at Arcane. The words were clear for everyone to hear:
"Let the world remember her name… before it learns to fear it!"
Crackle!
…BOOM!
The lightning crackled with thundering intensity, as if answering to his final moments. Then… it slowed down, like a dying flame.
Rex quickly glanced at the lightning mark on Arcane's forehead. Its progress had slowed considerably—mirroring the lightning strikes.
The mark was halfway filled, and then it slowed down. Rex glanced worriedly at Arcane. Her expression turned more excruciating—though the lightning had brought pain, it was progressive pain. But now, with slow progress, the lightning strikes felt like attacks more than progress.
Rex's attention snapped back as the higher-ranking bloodline trader, named Seskel, shuddered. "Fuck! That scared me." Then, realizing something, he snickered.
"Tsk. I'll make good use of that body," he muttered, eyeing Arcane's father.
"Now… who's going to save you, kid?" he provoked, as dust swirled again—forming into small pellets...
[Tamed Entity: {Arcane} | Awakening Bloodline → 53%]