Child of Destiny

...

While watching the battle from the sidelines, Shin noticed some changes in Blackie's movements when she was about to get cornered by the cage-liked blood spikes surrounding her.

It was hard to notice it at first, but after looking closely into it, Shin discovered that Blackie's footwork and attack pattern were getting more refined as the battle progressed.

She stopped attacking recklessly to destroy the incoming blood spikes that were trying to harm her. She was no longer sending a barrage of energy waves to destroy those spikes and instead focused on strengthening her claws with her powers.

After that, she started attacking the stems of the blood spears, shattering them from there and slowing down their growth by a considerable margin.

With it, she was able to conserve more of her energy and was able to move freely even with a limited amount of space. And by continuously fighting this way, she seemed to get a sudden enlightenment during the battle.

Boom!

Then a sudden burst of aura exploded from Blackie's body, warding off the incoming blood spikes momentarily. And in the very next moment, she suddenly transformed into a blurry silhouette that broke away from the cage that was trapping her.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

She flashed through the entire arena, flying everywhere, and destroying the blood spikes in the process.

Boom!

And with a powerful landing, a strong shockwave swept through the area, clearing the remaining spikes.

When the dust settle, Shin and the other vampire finally saw a clear view of Blackie. And her current appearance was somewhat different from what she had during her previous transformation.

She was still wearing the seductive set of armor that she had earlier. But it was now more refined and had a more detailed design on it. It was the same for her claws which now had a purple flame on their tips.

Her bat-like wings became slender but also looked sturdier. A shadowy flare was flickering through those wings before dissipating in the air.

There was also a small ember of fire at the center of her forehead while a glowing crown flowed over her head.

Blackie ignored the gazes focused on her as she quickly flapped her wings, propelling herself toward the air where her opponent was currently standing.

Seeing her sudden burst of speed that was much faster than before, Earl Cray finally snapped out of his daze and quickly raised his arms in front of him, blocking the incoming attack.

Bang!

But despite being prepared for it, the vampire earl was still flung in the air by that attack, surprising him greatly.

Blackie's current attack was much stronger than what she had earlier.

Earl Cray immediately learned his lesson and did not dare to underestimate his opponent. He gathered his blood elemental powers and formed a spiky armor through it. At the same time, a pair of crystalline sticks filled with crimson spikes appeared in his hands.

Swoosh!

It was at that moment that he heard the whistling sound of the wind coming from behind. Without any hint of his hesitation, the vampire earl turned around and swung his crystalline stick at the incoming enemy.historical

Bang!

Blackie's sneak attack failed but she didn't stop. She disappeared from her current location and reappeared on the other side of the vampire early before launching another attack.

Earl Cray was not idle either as he quickly turned to her and swung his weapon decisively, creating another explosion due to the powerful collision.

After that, the two of them transformed into a pair of streaks of lights that traveled through the air and on the ground of the battle arena while clashing against each other.

There was also a barrage of powerful skills that could be seen from time to time, coming from the two, creating a much stronger explosion of powers.

…

Shin didn't dare to blink even for an instant as he discovered something strange about Blackie. And after watching for a long time, he realized how wrong he was about her.

The performance that she was currently showing him was at least on a level comparable to what he saw from Vladimir and Hanzo's battle before. It might because of her current level where she temporarily lifted the restrictions caused by his insufficient power.

At the same time, he also discovered that Blackie looked like a blank paper filled with nothing but could absorb everything that was written on it.

She was like a talented child that could learn everything from watching what the others were doing.

Right now, she was currently combining the foot techniques that she had learned from him and fusing them into her system. She was combining the fighting style that she learned with the instincts that she had in her blood.

From Shin's perspective, Blackie seemed to be evolving continuously all throughout the battle, as if she was currently under an awakening. She was not planning to stop and rapidly approaching her peak form.

Seeing all of that, Shin couldn't help but take a sneak peek at Dracula who happened to be looking back at him. The Vampire King gave him a mysterious smile as if there was a hidden meaning behind it.

Shin was confused at first, but he immediately understood what was the meaning behind that smile. 'Could this be the real reason why he proposed this contest?'

'It is impossible, right?' He couldn't believe it, but the more he thought about it, the more convinced he became.

At the same time, Shin also became even more confused about what was going on. 'But what is the reason? Why he wants to promote my elemental spirit?'

Thinking more deeply into it, since the time they entered this kingdom, they gain a lot of benefits than losses. It was, even more, noticeable during their battle against the Fallen Dragon Knight Army.

It was as if they were being taught by their teachers, seemingly hoping they to grow stronger at a much faster rate and achieve great things after.

Shin's thoughts halted in there as he suddenly remembered the Training Grounds that they discovered in the Sky Deceiving Valley. Thinking about it, it seemed like the 'training session' started from there if he disregard their encounter with the Corrupted Cult.

'What do they want us to do?' asked Shin silent before looking at Dracula once again.

He was sure that these powerful beings want them to do something, but he couldn't figure out what exactly it was. At most, he was thinking that it was related to the so-called 'Devil Ancestor' that was mentioned by the system earlier.

'Is that Devil Ancestor so strong that these powerful guys are making preparations way ahead of time?' thought Shin while wearing a deep frown.

He was thinking that it might be because Dracula and Draco knew that they couldn't do anything about it since they were about to die.

This was what Shin had suspected, at the very least. But he still couldn't shake off the nagging feeling that there was something more into it. And the more he thought about it, the more uneasy he got.

He couldn't ignore his instincts since it was never been wrong before.

He couldn't come up with a conclusion for the time being since he was still lacking some important information. Maybe the other clues were from Draco, and Arthur and the rest of the group already learned about it.

Unfortunately, he couldn't contact them for now due to the powerful formation enveloping the whole city.

Realizing that he couldn't get the answers that he wanted yet, Shin temporarily set it aside for now and thought about it again later.

Given that, he turned his attention back to the ongoing battle and saw that it was already about to end.

​ In the air, both Blackie and her opponent paused for a moment and faced each other. And as if they had a tacit understanding, the two of them simultaneously made their respective moves.

Blackie spread the wings behind her widely, suspending herself in the air. And after a brief pause, her body started flickering before splitting into multiple copies of herself, surrounding her opponent from every direction.

She also didn't wait for a bit longer as the wings of every copy of herself and her main body flapped simultaneously, launching herself toward her opponents.

All of the Blackie surrounding Earl Cray turned into blurry silhouettes that were heading at him while leaving a purple blazing trail in the air.

'Elemental Spirit Skill (Darkness): Doom Verdict'

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

In the meantime, Earl Cray curled his body in the air while gathering all of the remaining blood elemental powers within him.

And when Blackie was almost upon him alongside the realistic illusion of herself, Early Cray suddenly stretched his arms and legs out and straightened his body while releasing all of the accumulated powers.

Boom!

Alongside that, blood spikes suddenly came out from his body and shot in every direction, piercing everything that came in contact with it.

It covered a large area in the air, making it impossible for Blackie to get near him, especially with that almost impenetrable defense.

Boom!

But all of a sudden, a flash of black lightning suddenly struck down from the ceiling of the throne room, right above the spiked barrier that Earl Cray had summoned.

The black lightning obliterated that spiked barrier and struck down straight at Earl Cray who was supposedly hiding within it.

Boom!

In the next moment, at the center of the arena, Blackie was revealed. And on the spot beside her, Earl Cray was currently lying on the ground, unconscious.

Then a system notification rang in Shin's ears, telling the result of the first battle.

...